For someone who just turned eighteen, life had already been a bit too cruel.
“Now that we’ve met in person,” Shangguan Xiyue said, “if anything comes up, just tell me. If there’s something I can help you with, I’ll do it—no questions asked.”
I didn’t resist when she patted my head.
“We… will always be brothers, right?”
“Mm, of course we’re brothers. Didn’t you always call me that online?” Shangguan Xiyue suddenly smiled.
Back when I was still a boy, she was the only one I could truly game with online.
At first, I didn’t even know her gender—neither of us had ever used voice chat.
Add to that her carefree, bold personality, and naturally we just called each other “bro” like it was the most normal thing.
The villa district was huge—not just filled with houses, but also surrounded by all kinds of lifestyle facilities.
I had no idea what kind of people frequented the bar here at night.
Seeing that I’d finally understood what she was trying to say earlier, Shangguan Xiyue continued to speak gently.
“Now do you get it? I’ve never been distant with you, so don’t overthink things.”
“A boyfriend or girlfriend and a brother are not the same thing.”
“A brother—what are they, really? They’re your final line of support. You and your partner might break up one day. But a brother—he’s the one who’ll still be there after your breakup, standing firmly by your side.”
“That sounds… just like a bestie.” I ripped open a packet of beef jerky and stuffed it into my mouth without thinking.
“Exactly. It’s just a label, it depends on how you choose to understand it.”
Shangguan Xiyue looked at me, cheeks puffed as I chewed clumsily.
That sight stirred something inside her—the faint awakening of what could only be called a “little sister complex.”
And it was only growing stronger by the day.
“Come on, Cat God’s gonna take you out for food!” Shangguan Xiyue was already eager to drag me off for a treat.
Since Su Liumeng had things to take care of and couldn’t be here, someone had to take on the responsibility of looking after Xiaoyan.
“Go eat what?” I asked, staring at the small stones on the ground.
I raised my foot and kicked one away.
The round pebble bounced off a short distance. “I just ate something, though.”
Shangguan Xiyue took in my childish little move with an indulgent smile.
“Snacks.”
Snacks? I rubbed my small, round belly, stuffed full from earlier.
Well, if it’s just snacks, I did still have a tiny bit of room left…
But…
A trace of hesitation crossed my eyes.
“I heard other people say that pregnant women gain weight. If I keep eating so much… will I get even fatter?”
At that moment, I still had the empty beef jerky wrapper clutched in my hand.
Following Shangguan Xiyue’s slowly shifting gaze, my cheeks flushed a little red.
This girl who had just been stuffing herself with snacks… was now worried about gaining weight?
Shangguan Xiyue had already laughed silently about it more times than she could count.
Near the school, there was a large integrated shopping plaza.
In the display case on the first floor, a tray of mini cakes caught my eye—I paused there for a few extra seconds.
“Let’s go,” Shangguan Xiyue tugged me away, “don’t forget what the doctor said—watch your sugar intake. No overeating sweets.”
“Beef jerky should be fine, though.”
“You’re the one who just said you don’t want to get fat.”
I pressed my lips together and said no more.
Mainly, I’d heard from others that eating too much sugar during pregnancy could cause the baby to grow too large, leading to a difficult labor.
There was also the risk of developing gestational diabetes.
On the fourth floor, there was a dazzling arcade, lit up with flashing lights.
Right at the entrance were dance machines and rows of claw machines.
“Wanna play?” Shangguan Xiyue stopped in front of the arcade with me.
“I wanna play that one.”
I pointed toward the dance machine with one finger.
“But… I can’t.”
“Then let’s keep moving.”
Out of sight, out of mind.
I lowered my head and gently tugged on Shangguan Xiyue’s sleeve.
She was quite tall—truly goddess-tier height—and her figure needed no exaggeration.
No matter what she wore, she could make it look stunning.
I noticed quite a few people were stealing glances at her.
“Cat…”
My soft call made her slow her steps just a little.
“All these years… I’ve never heard you talk about relationships. Have you never liked anyone?”
“My family won’t let me fall in love,” she replied with a sudden self-deprecating smile.
“Xiaoyan, there are too many things in life we can’t control.”
“You probably don’t know this, but I have a fiancé I’ve never even met. One of those arranged marriages—approved by both families.”
My breath caught.
“Then… what are you going to do?”
“I don’t want it. But what can I do?”
“Alright, we came out to have fun. Let’s talk about something cheerful.”
“I can’t even be bothered to think too far ahead. All I can do is take each day as it comes.”
“I’ll help you.”
I said it softly—maybe more to myself than to her.
Once I could start cultivating, I’d gain power.
With that, I’d be able to help her somehow.
“Li Mei’s still stuck in military training,” Shangguan Xiyue said, glancing at the jade bracelet on her wrist.
The school had begun handling Li Mei’s incident yesterday—and she’d secretly lent a hand behind the scenes.
“She’s one step away from being expelled.”
“All it takes is one minor mistake, or if her grades don’t meet the mark, and she’ll receive a ‘voluntary withdrawal’ notice.”
Everyone knew that “voluntary withdrawal” was just a pleasant way to phrase it.
If you didn’t comply, they’d just expel you outright.
I went blank for a second.
I’d never realized Shangguan Xiyue was still quietly keeping tabs on everything concerning me.
“For someone who dared to secretly take photos of my Xiaoyan, honestly… that girl’s already peaked in life,” Shangguan Xiyue sneered coldly.
But when she turned back to look at me, her expression softened again.
“Don’t worry. I’ll make sure you get your revenge.”
“What if it causes trouble for you?”
That was what I truly worried about.
“It won’t.”
“After all these years navigating the system, if I slightly push for a harsher or stricter punishment within legal and proper procedures, who’s going to say I did something wrong?”
Maybe she’d been in a position of authority for too long—there was even a faint trace of commanding power in her tone when she said that.
I gave her a quiet thumbs-up.
“Nice. As expected from the Cat I used to know.”
Inside the snack shop, the shelves were filled with rows upon rows of premium treats—enough to dazzle anyone’s eyes.
I picked through the shelves, selecting a few snacks from the ones I could still eat—choosing those with milder flavors.
“Checkout.”
I opened up my payment code.
“That’ll be 5,700 yuan,” the cashier reported expressionlessly.
Even though I had mentally prepared myself, hearing the actual amount still made my heart skip a beat.
Damn.
No wonder—it was a high-end snack shop in a massive, top-tier city’s commercial district.
Shangguan Xiyue was carrying two large bags. I had two small ones.
I looked at her, shaking the little bags in my hands, and gave a helpless smile.
“If I keep spending like this, I might have to go shake milk tea at Guming.”
“You’re in college and still dreaming of shaking milk tea? You trying to skip fifty years of hard work?”
I sighed and added in a low voice,
“Being a security guard at the gate isn’t off the table either.”
Shangguan Xiyue had driven us out here.
On the way back, something suddenly occurred to her.
“Xiaoyan, your new name—it sounds really nice.”
“Oh, that? I just changed it casually.”
If she hadn’t brought it up, I would’ve completely forgotten I even had a new name.
“It has the character ‘xin’ in it—like ‘heart-heart.’ It suits you.”
“It’s cute.”
“I still prefer when you call me Xiaoyan.”
I fiddled with the snack bags resting in my arms.
*****
Back at school.
After saying goodbye to Shangguan Xiyue, I returned to the villa, but Su Liumeng hadn’t come back yet.
The place felt eerily empty.
I wasn’t used to such quiet, so I decided to go out again.
A walk—just to help digestion. Good for the baby, and good for me.
Before I even reached the sports field, I saw a crowd of new students gathered in a circle up ahead—something was clearly going on.
Smack—!
A loud slap echoed out, followed by a collective gasp.
“Make way! Make way!”
I was on the shorter side, and the wall of boys in front of me wasn’t easy to squeeze through.
Come on, people—move!
I wanna watch the drama too!
I shouted in my heart.
A senior girl noticed my desperate expression and couldn’t help but laugh.
She nudged her boyfriend.
“Time for you to shine.”
The guy was built like a brick wall, but with one swing of his hips to either side, he cleared a huge gap in the crowd.
I smiled at the senior girl and stood beside her.
“Thanks.”
“No problem.”
*****
At the center of the crowd—
On the open ground, a girl was kneeling.
In front of her stood a rough-looking woman, her calves still streaked with mud.
The woman looked fierce, speaking in a dialect that others could barely understand.
She kept cursing, ranting on and on, forcing the girl to lower her head in shame.
On the girl’s swollen left cheek was a red, bleeding handprint—its outline painfully clear.
“You worthless money-drainer! The only reason I sent you to college was because you could get scholarships!”
“I just heard from someone yesterday that you’ve been making big money at school, eating and using all kinds of name-brand stuff!”
“Have you forgotten how I raised you since you were a kid?”
“Don’t forget—every single cent you have belongs to your younger brother.”
“You’re going to get married sooner or later. If you don’t give your brother money now, who’s going to help you when your husband’s family bullies you?”
Smack—!
Another slap landed.
The girl, head down, still tried to defend herself.
“I didn’t earn that money. I got it because I did something wrong…”
Only then did I realize—this disheveled girl was actually Li Mei.
“I don’t care how you got the money!” the woman shouted, completely ignoring what the girl said.
The school’s disciplinary notice?
She’d heard all about it already.
What she cared about—was how much money her daughter had made.
“How much is left? Hand it over!”
As she spoke, she kept cursing, her spit flying everywhere.
“I don’t have any money left,” Li Mei choked back tears.
“The last five hundred—I already gave it to you just now. That money was supposed to go to the school…”
“You useless trash! Raising you was a waste! You worthless drain—!”
Thud—
The woman kicked her square in the chest.
Li Mei was knocked sideways to the ground.
Her already tattered pants were now covered in dust—mixed with faint streaks of blood.
Some sympathetic onlookers nearby began to scold the woman.
“How can you hit your own daughter like that?”
“What are you looking at, huh? All of you—scram!”
The woman stood with her hands on her hips, shouting back at dozens of people without backing down.
“I raised her! That’s a debt greater than the sky! Everything she has belongs to me! Even if I beat her to death, that’s my business!”
She grabbed Li Mei by the arm.
“What’s the point of studying anymore? You’ve even learned to lie! You’re coming back with me—I’ve already found a good family for you. You’re getting married next week!”
Li Mei clutched the ground with one hand.
“I’m not going back. I don’t want to get married.”
I lowered my gaze and looked away.
Behind me, the sounds of someone else screaming in pain continued.
It seemed like someone else was getting beaten now, too.
Deep within my consciousness—
A tiny dumpling-like figure sat cross-legged, mumbling thoughtfully,
“‘The debt of childbirth is greater than the sky,’ huh…”
I was walking along the sidewalk just in time to hear her soft baby voice.
“That’s true… but also not.”
“There is gratitude, yes—but that doesn’t mean children belong entirely to their parents.”
“Children are also independent individuals.”
The ghost infant was trying to absorb the moral values of human society.
She remained silent for a long time, as if she was still processing the meaning of what she’d just heard.
“Bad person…”
“But what you said just now… makes some sense.”
“…In that case, should I… call you Mommy?”
My breath caught.
What did she mean by that?
I hadn’t forgotten what she’d said earlier—how she’d promised to change her cultivation method, but also declared firmly that—
She would never be like me.
The ghost infant who once ridiculed me for being delusional in my cultivation now sounded… completely different.