The notification sound for the successful transfer had just faded when even more detailed plans for revenge came flooding into his mind.
Once his Younger Sister started her summer break, he would return home. Yes, he would go back!
He wouldn’t go back in disgrace, either. He would return like a victorious general coming home from a campaign, specifically to torment them.
He would rush to finish all the housework and complete every bit of labor in the family’s fields. He wouldn’t let his Mother shed a single drop of sweat.
He wanted to leave her with nothing to do, making her restless and frantic. He wanted her to feel empty and bored—it would be best if she died of boredom!
He also imagined that, regardless of whether his Mother asked him to buy anything, he would insist on using the money he saved to buy her gifts on the day he returned.
It wasn’t out of filial piety, but a haughty declaration, a blatant provocation:
‘Look, you’re old now and can’t move anymore. Who can you count on in the end? You have to rely on the very son you once despised to provide for you!’
He wanted to see for himself the expression of humiliation and helplessness on his Mother’s face when she accepted those “gifts.”
Thinking of these malicious schemes, He Denghong gave a twisted smile.
He felt that these tactics were incredibly ruthless, striking precisely at his Mother’s pain points—her labor value, her reliance in old age, and her pride.
He could almost foresee how anxious and stifled she would feel during that idle summer break while watching him work, until her spirit finally collapsed.
Just as he was immersed in this triumphant fantasy, the phone in his hand suddenly vibrated.
The screen lit up. It was “Mother” again.
The new message was as brief as always: “Your Younger Sister said her school has a short break soon. She wants to go see you.”
The message didn’t contain a single word regarding his previous hysterical accusations or the “tip” he had just sent.
The smile on He Denghong’s face froze. His Younger Sister… was coming here? To this place where he struggled to survive like a sewer rat?
The silhouette of the Red Crow Rabbit appeared silently on the windowsill. Its red-and-black plush body looked like an ominous shadow in the dim light.
Its button eyes flickered with a mischievous glint as it stared straight at the distorted face of He Denghong, who was slumped on the bed.
“Goo-goo-goo—”
It let out a string of strange laughter, breaking the dead silence of the room. “I was wondering why I could smell a resentment so thick it wouldn’t dissipate from several blocks away. So, it turns out you’re here acting out a melodrama?”
He Denghong snapped his head up. He and He Jiulu both glared fiercely at the uninvited rabbit.
He and his avatar growled simultaneously, “Get lost! I’m in no mood for your crap!”
“Oh my, don’t be so angry.”
The Red Crow Rabbit gave a nimble hop and landed on the nightstand. It used its short claws to perform an exaggerated gesture of patting He Denghong’s shoulder.
“On one hand, you’re gritting your teeth and denouncing your parents’ faults, yet on the other, you ‘tip’ back the hard-earned money you struggled to make…”
“You plan to go back and ‘torment’ your old Mother with chores, yet you’re also calculating what gifts to buy… Tsk, tsk. Your method of filial piety is truly unique, isn’t it, He Jiulu? Or should I say, He Denghong?”
It deliberately elongated its tone, the cunning light in its button eyes nearly overflowing.
“Clearly, you still can’t let go, worrying that no one will care for them when they’re old, yet you insist on acting as if you wish they’d die sooner. When are you going to fix that stubborn, prideful streak of yours?”
“What the hell do you know?!”
He Denghong and He Jiulu erupted at the same time. The original body leaped off the bed while the avatar lunged at the Red Crow Rabbit, though the creature easily turned into a puff of black smoke to evade them.
“Then what else should I do?! Am I supposed to actually go back and kill them?! Even if I took them to court, who the hell would believe me?!”
“Those judges, those outsiders—who could possibly imagine how they pushed me to this point, bit by bit?! They’d only think I’m making a mountain out of a molehill! That I’m whining over nothing!”
He panted heavily, his voice raspy with agitation. “Yes! I hate them! I wish… I wish I’d never been born! But even so…”
“Their blood flows in my veins! I am their son! That is a damn fact! I’m going to be both abusive and filial! I’ll curse them while I look after them!”
“I’ll make them realize that the ‘trash’ they looked down on back then is now the ‘filial son’ they can’t get rid of and can’t help but rely on! That is my revenge! Are you satisfied now?!”
The Red Crow Rabbit reformed its shape and lay on the windowsill, tilting its head. It watched the out-of-control He Denghong as if appreciating a theatrical performance.
“Goo-goo, wonderful. Simply wonderful. This twisted filial heart is truly moving.”
Its tone suddenly shifted, becoming lighthearted yet carrying a hint of unquestionable threat.
“However, my new Eshu, let’s put your private grudges aside for a moment. Your efficiency in dealing with the ‘Guiyi’ has been a bit low lately. Have you been distracted by these family matters?”
He Denghong’s pupils shrank. “What do you mean?”
“I don’t mean anything special,” the Red Crow Rabbit’s button eyes rolled around. “I’m just checking in. You see, your parents are getting old. They live in such a small place, and the security there doesn’t seem very good, does it?”
“If one day they were accidentally hurt by some inconspicuous little Anomaly that just seeped through, that would be terrible, wouldn’t it?”
He Denghong’s blood ran cold. He and his avatar both froze in place. “You… you dare use them to threaten me?!”
“Threaten? How can you call this a threat?”
The Red Crow Rabbit shook its ears innocently. “This is humanitarian concern for an employee’s family! Our Gongjishi is a legitimate organization; we follow the rules and the law.”
“Look, the Yulin City branch is large and well-equipped. There are professional containment personnel to maintain safety. It’s practically a retirement paradise!”
It gestured with its claws, its tone full of temptation. “How about… I bring your parents over to ‘enjoy their lives’? I’ll find a quiet and comfortable unit for them to live in right inside the branch. It’s absolutely safe and perfectly peaceful!”
“That way, you can focus on your work without worrying about their safety. It’s killing two birds with one stone! Goo-goo-goo!”
“Legal and compliant?! Bringing them to the branch for ‘retirement’?!” He Denghong’s voice trembled with extreme rage and fear. “Red Crow Rabbit! What the hell are you trying to do?!”
“That ghost of a place is a Living Building! There are countless ‘Guiyi’ sealed inside! You want them to go there? How is that any different from throwing them into a monster’s nest?!”
The Red Crow Rabbit looked at the tense He Denghong, who seemed ready to pounce and fight for his life at any second, and suddenly let out a relaxed laugh.
“It was just a joke. Why are you so nervous? I am a law-abiding Exploiter. Why would I do something like kidnapping?”
It hopped down from the windowsill, its silhouette beginning to fade. “But… He Denghong, you’d better remember this. The merging process of the two universes won’t slow down just because of your family conflicts.”