The air suddenly grew still. The few black-suited men who had come to pick up Lu Linwei, who had initially exuded an intimidating aura, now tried to breathe as lightly as possible, filled with regret.
They cautiously glanced at their boss, whose expression was so terrifying that no one dared to look at him for more than a second.
Lu Linwei stared dead at Shen Ying, his voice carrying a faint, almost otherworldly tone that felt like it was pulling one into an abyss—
"Rescue—funds?"
Shen Ying nodded. "It might sound shameless coming from me, but I think it's fair to call it a life-saving favor, don't you?"
"Not to mention the accommodation fees, meal expenses, and nursing care over these past few days," she added, eyeing his darkening expression with skepticism. "You didn’t think all of that was free, did you?"
Seeing Lu Linwei's face grow even darker, Shen Ying reminded him, "Think about how attentive I’ve been, how accommodating, even putting you above my own family’s precious heir."
"After all that, you really think you don’t owe me anything?"
Lu Linwei felt his vision darken for a moment, a faint metallic taste rising in his throat.
Owe her nothing? He had nearly given her his heart.
Now, looking at the woman before him, he felt the urge to snap her neck.
He forced out a cold smile and said to Shen Ying, "I’ve never been fooled like this in my life."
As soon as these words left his mouth, the temperature in the living room plummeted, and the black-suited men seemed ready to pounce at any moment.
Shen Yao, who had been watching the scene unfold, felt like he was about to wet himself. He could practically see these men taking them out the moment his sister’s meal ticket so much as coughed.
Fortunately, Lu Linwei ultimately did nothing.
He sneered at Shen Ying, "You’re right. A life-saving favor is enough for me to forgive this humiliation."
"But only this once."
With that, he reached out and gestured lightly. One of the black-suited men immediately produced a bank card.
Lu Linwei held the card between his fingers and extended it toward Shen Ying with an air of arrogance. "The amount in there will satisfy you."
Seeing Shen Ying take the card without hesitation, her face lighting up with joy, Lu Linwei clenched his jaw.
"Let’s go," he said coldly.
As he walked out, his eyes couldn’t help but flicker toward her, only to see that her attention was entirely on the card, not sparing him a single glance.
A wave of malice surged in Lu Linwei’s heart, but he forced it down.
She was just another greedy woman, no different from the others he’d met.
No, this one was even more foolish. With him standing right there, how could she only see the paltry sum in front of her?
The thought made him even angrier. Was she waiting for him to offer more? To reel in a bigger catch?
After Lu Linwei left, Shen Yao collapsed onto the sofa. Seeing his sister busy checking the bank card balance, he nearly cried out, "Sis, who the hell was that guy?"
"How could you dare to swindle someone like that? If they had decided to act, the two of us wouldn’t even be enough to make a decent stir-fry."
Shen Ying glanced at the balance on the card and smiled with satisfaction.
She turned to her younger brother and said, "How can you call this swindling? Think about all the new dishes you learned to cook for him, the clothes you washed, and the floors you mopped over and over to accommodate his cleanliness obsession."
"I won’t let you undervalue your hard work like that."
Shen Yao finally caught on. "Wait a minute! You were the one who reeled him in, but I was the one doing all the work. Before I got back, you were just feeding him takeout. Now I’m practically qualified to drop out of school, get married, and become a househusband. Why is he thanking you and not me?"
"No way, you’ve got to split the money with me."
Shen Ying wasn’t stingy and immediately transferred 500 yuan to him.
Shen Yao nearly exploded when he saw the amount. "That’s it? Judging by his attitude, there’s gotta be at least tens of thousands in that card, and you’re giving me 500?"
Shen Ying wanted to tell her brother that he had no idea how these wealthy tycoons operated, but she kept a calm and earnest expression.
"You can’t just focus on what you’ve given. You have to think about what you’ve gained."
"Sure, you put in the effort, but you’ve also gained skills. With what you’ve learned, even if you end up on the streets, you won’t starve. These are survival skills. Who else but your sister would take the time to train you like this?"
"Didn’t you say you wanted to impress that girl you like? Without all this practice, where would you have gotten the confidence to compete?"
"Well, I guess that’s true," Shen Yao scratched his head, his thoughts drifting to the girl he was pursuing. He decided not to press his sister about her stinginess.
Shen Ying nodded in satisfaction. "Oh, and by the way, if anyone ever says that kind of stuff to you when you’re looking for a job, just walk away. They’re no good."
Shen Yao: "..."
Before he could respond, Shen Ying had already retreated to her room.
It was only then that the system finally found a chance to speak up. Its voice trembled slightly: 【Host, I strongly condemn your actions of deceiving the system and giving it unrealistic expectations.】
【What is this? Trying to push the male lead away by acting greedy and materialistic?】
【Let me tell you, you’re being naive. If you think it’s that easy to exploit a tragic romance system, you’re sorely mistaken.】
Shen Ying cut off its rant: "Hold on, I swear on everything I have that wasn’t my intention."
【Then what’s with the bank card? If you really cared about money, once you’ve successfully seduced the male lead, wouldn’t you have everything you wanted?】
Shen Ying replied, "But according to the plot, isn’t he supposed to go back and not return for several months?"
"I still need to eat during those months, you know."
【But you’ve got at least 100,000 yuan in your hands now. That’s more than enough to cover your expenses for a few months. If you’re not deliberately sabotaging the mission, please explain why you’re going out of your way like this.】
Shen Ying sounded puzzled. "Didn’t the system do a background check on me before recruiting me?"
"I may keep a low profile, but my family is quite well-off. I’m not against enduring hardship, but if I have the means, why should I live on a tight budget of 100,000 yuan for a few months?"
The system was momentarily speechless but still skeptical: 【That’s it? If you’re not rejecting the mission, why can’t you endure a few months? Is this petty thing really worth trading the male lead’s affection for?】
"Petty thing?" Shen Ying chuckled softly. "I’ve never hidden the fact that the reason I agreed to bind with the system was to live a comfortable, carefree life without having to work hard for anything."
"A tragic romance heroine fits that criteria perfectly. The plot comes to me without me lifting a finger. As you said, there’s no escaping it."
"If the mission can be completed without any effort on my part, why should I go out of my way to sacrifice my quality of life?"
This was pure slacking off! The system finally understood what it was dealing with—a freeloader.
It sneered: 【Let me remind you, while the inertia of the plot cannot be avoided, the heroine’s circumstances are largely determined by the male lead’s affection and how it manifests.】
【Before, the male lead’s feelings toward you were progressing well. According to the system’s assessment, once you were taken back, your situation would likely be much better than the original heroine’s. But now, that’s no longer certain.】
【The male lead will still be obsessed with you, but his feelings will be filled with conflicting negativity. This will directly affect how he treats you in the future. You’d better prepare yourself.】
Just wait. In a few months, this woman will regret her shortsightedness.
Shen Ying simply smiled upon hearing this, pulled back the blanket, and lay down on her side. She grabbed her tablet and started binge-watching a show, with snacks and fruits piled up on her bedside. This went on for most of the day until Shen Yao came to call her for dinner.
Lazy and carefree days always seem to make time slip away unnoticed. One day, when Shen Yao returned with his luggage and announced that he was on summer break, Shen Ying was shocked to realize that over a month had already passed.
During this time, she had been completely absorbed in the internet and gaming, living in a state of blissful chaos. In the past, her days had been so tightly scheduled that she had never allowed herself to indulge in such leisure.
Now that she had let go, she felt an unparalleled sense of freedom.
However, Shen Yao couldn't stand her current slovenly state. After much persuasion, he finally managed to drag her out of bed, insisting that she join him for a class reunion that day.
“Afraid you’ll run out of money if you drink too much?” Shen Ying immediately saw through his plan.
Shen Yao blushed and quickly promised to take care of all the household chores during the summer break.
Fine, she thought. After all, she hadn’t spent much of the money Lu Linwei had given her.
The siblings took a taxi together to the commercial district. Shen Ying didn’t join her younger brother for the fun but gave him some money before heading into the mall alone.
The world of her current mission was similar to the real world in terms of technology and era.
However, being a different world, the unfamiliar music, movies, games, and fashion brands were enough to keep Shen Ying entertained for a long time.
This time, she bought quite a lot.
The system noticed how naturally Shen Ying purchased expensive luxury items, her relaxed demeanor, and her familiarity with the unspoken rules of high-end stores.
It couldn’t help but believe that she must have been well-off in her real life.
After shopping to her heart’s content, Shen Ying arranged for home delivery and left the mall empty-handed.
By now, it was late in the evening, but the nightlife was just beginning.
As Shen Ying was about to find a place for a drink, a monk in robes suddenly blocked her path.
“Madam, I see that your forehead is dark, and your face is pale. You must be entangled in karmic debts from your past life. Here, take this talisman. It can protect you from retribution.”
The bustling commercial district was a mix of all kinds of people, and by nightfall, all sorts of shady characters emerged. This kind of scam, where someone would aggressively sell talismans or blessings, wasn’t uncommon.
The original owner of Shen Ying’s body had a delicate, innocent appearance, making her an easy target for such people.
The fake monk tried to shove the talisman into Shen Ying’s hand, knowing that once it was in her possession, she would have a hard time refusing to pay.
Shen Ying glanced at the fake monk, her eyes momentarily darkening, though it might have just been a trick of the light.
She took a step to the side, blocking the monk’s hand, and while backing away, she said, “This talisman is too precious. It can ward off calamities. You should keep it, Master. Focus on protecting yourself before you save others.”
After saying this, she took two more steps back, creating some distance before walking away.
The scammer, seeing how quick-witted she was, cursed under his breath and turned to look for his next target.
However, Shen Ying had only walked a few steps when she heard a commotion behind her.
“A monk tripped while trying to sell talismans. He slipped, fell, and knocked out his front teeth. There’s blood all over his face.”
“That’s a fake monk. He’s been scamming lone girls in this area for a while, always harassing them after the police leave.”
“Haha, his talismans must be fake. He’s carrying a whole pack of them, but they couldn’t even protect him from this.”
A crowd had gathered to watch the scene, but Shen Ying didn’t even glance back.
The system was baffled: 【That couldn’t have been a coincidence, could it? Does the host know divination?】
Shen Ying chuckled. “Do you think this is a novel? Do you think I can predict someone’s fortune without lifting a finger?”
“Even if I could, what are the odds that something would happen to him right now, just to prove me right?”
The system felt a bit foolish and retorted, annoyed: 【Host, let me remind you that your recent luxury shopping spree has spent most of your funds.】
【If the male lead doesn’t come find you soon, you won’t be able to maintain this lifestyle until the next plot point.】
To this, Shen Ying nodded in agreement. “You’re right. I didn’t get to finish shopping today. There’s still a big commercial district in the north. I can’t just stay home to curb my spending.”
She then complained to the system, “Aren’t you supposed to be a system? Think of something. Didn’t you say it’s supposed to be ‘I run, he chases, I can’t escape’? I’m right here, so why isn’t he showing up?”
The system: 【...】
What a piece of work. This host really expects to complete the mission without lifting a finger. She’s rotten to the core.
Her words made it seem like the system wasn’t doing its job.
Annoyed, the system fell silent.
At that moment, Shen Ying received a call from her younger brother’s classmate.
The caller said that Shen Yao was completely drunk and asked her to come pick him up.
It was clear that he had been showing off in front of some girls and had been tricked into drinking too much.
Since Shen Ying had nothing better to do, she hailed a taxi.
The karaoke place Shen Yao and his friends were at was in a large entertainment center, and the floor was quite high. Shen Ying didn’t feel like going in to look for them, so she waited outside for them to come out.
As she stood by the entrance, bored, she noticed a few luxury cars pulling up.
The doorman eagerly approached, but the people in the cars didn’t let him get close. Instead, the front passengers quickly got out and respectfully opened the car doors.
The man who stepped out of the car was initially walking straight ahead, but his gaze caught a figure in his peripheral vision.
He paused, confirmed that he wasn’t mistaken, and then, with a cold smile, walked in that direction.
Just as Shen Ying was waiting, she suddenly heard a voice from behind—
“There are no men here for you to pick up.”
