After a night of turmoil, the sky began to lighten with the first signs of dawn, and the Du family finally settled down.
Zhao Zhi managed to fall asleep, while Granny Li stayed by her daughter's bedside, not paying any attention to Yu Yi. She didn't even notice when the girl left.
In reality, Yu Yi was now standing beside her, bending down slightly, and with utmost caution, she was using a strand of spiritual energy to examine Zhao Zhi's abdomen once more.
The child in Zhao Zhi's womb was developing very well, even better than a normal fetus. At just three months, it had already fully developed human features, with slender limbs and distinct facial features, clearly a boy.
However, while its body was well-developed, its soul was incomplete, possessing only one soul and two spirits. This was the missing soul of Du Ruo.
Yu Yi stepped back from the bed to stand beside Xue Chenjing and asked doubtfully, "Does this mean that when Zhao Zhi's pregnancy reaches full term, Du Ruo's soul will be completely extracted, turning her back into a male fetus to be born again?"
Xue Chenjing nodded, "It seems likely."
Before transmigrating into the book, Yu Yi had seen some news reports about parents desperate for a boy, trying all sorts of methods. Some pregnant women would take dubious "gender-changing pills" to alter the fetus's sex, often resulting in deformed babies.
She never expected to encounter something similar in this fantastical world.
But this case was even more extreme. Du Ruo had already been born, had grown to six years old, yet she was still being stripped of her identity as a girl, forced to have her soul disassembled and re-enter her mother's womb to be born again as a boy.
A six-year-old child would not willingly return to the womb to change her gender and start over. This could only be the doing of her own family.
Would the boy born through this method still be her? Could such a perversion of nature and ethics truly lead to a good outcome?
Xue Chenjing sensed the uncontrollable anger in the person beside him. He lowered his gaze to look at Yu Yi's profile. She was clearly in a bad mood, her brows knitted with suppressed fury and sorrow.
The system had said she lived in a world of light, where she probably rarely encountered such unjust and vile acts. He suddenly understood why her heart was so scarred. Just like glass, it was pure and clean, transparent enough to hold no darkness, and thus easily shattered.
She pitied ordinary people, felt compassion for a little girl unrelated to her, and was angered by the injustice others faced. She and Xue Mingyuan were alike.
No wonder they were drawn to each other.
But Xue Chenjing was not. He had seen many such injustices; he lived in such a vile abyss. So, he couldn't empathize with her. He felt no sympathy for the soul-disassembled little girl, nor any anger towards the mastermind behind this.
To him, this was just another commonplace drama. Even now, deep within, he couldn't help but feel a secret sense of schadenfreude at others' misfortune.
If she noticed, Yu Yi would surely detest him again.
Xue Chenjing struggled to suppress the pleasure he derived from others' suffering, moving imperceptibly closer to Yu Yi, his chest almost touching her back.
Leaning down to whisper in her ear, "A-Yi, if you ask, I can find a way to extract this soul and two spirits and return them to the little girl's body."
If it could please her, he was willing to get involved in this drama.
Yu Yi shivered at his overly close presence, stepping aside. She frowned at the sleeping Zhao Zhi and Granny Li, who was holding her daughter's hand, leaning over the bed.
After pondering for a long time, she shook her head.
Xue Chenjing blinked in surprise, "You don't want to help her?"
Yu Yi calmed down and said, "We don't know anything yet. Intervening rashly might make things worse."
Just extracting the soul and returning it wouldn't solve anything. If this family was so desperate for a boy that they resorted to such extreme measures, stopping this time wouldn't deter them from trying again or seeking other methods.
Yu Yi remembered the wary look Zhao Zhi's mother-in-law gave her when they first met. She looked around and then left the main house.
The Du family had been in turmoil all night, but Zhao Zhi finally settled down, and Du Ruo stopped crying. Zhao Zhi's husband, Du Qian, came to check on her and then returned to the side room to rest with their daughter.
Du's parents also went back to their own house next door, but their room still had a faint light, indicating they hadn't slept yet. Yu Yi came to the wall separating the two houses, lightly stepped on it, and gracefully leaped over, her figure as light as a camellia flower drifting in the wind.
The fluttering hem of her skirt was reflected in the deep eyes of the person behind her. Xue Chenjing's pupils trembled, and a strong impulse surged within him, uncontrollably wanting to knock the flower to the ground, to see it stained with mud, sullied.
He wondered what expression she would have in such a situation, looking at him.
Xue Chenjing's breathing grew heavier, his fingers curling tightly in his sleeve.
Yu Yi felt the uncomfortable, invasive gaze behind her. As she landed, she stepped on the support frame in the vegetable patch and turned her head alertly.
At the same time, the long-silent system suddenly sprang to life, shouting, "Host, please restrain your dangerous impulses..."
Xue Chenjing immediately met Yu Yi's gaze, tearing apart the images in his mind, and gave her an innocent smile. He tried to calm himself in his heart, not now, not now, not now. I haven't had enough of her beauty yet, not now.
Yu Yi withdrew her gaze and lightly landed on the ground from the vegetable frame.
The system's warning stopped abruptly halfway. It suddenly felt that Xue Chenjing pretending to be Xue Mingyuan was not so bad. At least on the surface, he seemed normal.
Its host had finally learned to control his impulses and desires. Although his thoughts were still a bit dangerous, it was better than nothing. Compared to the beginning, the host had made some progress.
Now, without its prompting, the host was already trying to find ways to please the female lead. This was a good sign.
The task tree within the system suddenly lit up, extending a new branch.
[Ding—A temporary strategy task has been triggered. After observing countless love stories filled with suffering and deep affection, it is often due to a lack of effective communication between the lovers that leads to such tragedies.
This sweet-text system rejects "not speaking up," "saying one thing and meaning another," and "acting out of sync with words" style of suffering love. From now on, the system will activate the "Truthful Words Mode" for the host, encouraging them to express their love loudly!]
Xue Chenjing's action of jumping over the wall faltered, almost falling. He stumbled as he landed, and it was Yu Yi who reached out to steady him.
Hearing the system's task, Yu Yi also turned her head reflexively, just in time to catch the stumbling Xue Chenjing in her arms.
Truthful Words Mode, did she mean what she thought it meant? Only speaking the truth to her? This temporary task sounded quite promising.
Yu Yi's eyelashes fluttered, her eyes gleaming with interest. She said nonchalantly, "Be careful, don't make any noise."
"Mm, sorry," Xue Chenjing quickly withdrew from her embrace, putting some distance between them, and whispered his apology, immediately clamping his mouth shut, afraid that he might spill his heart's secrets. He even considered casting a silence spell on himself.
Xue Chenjing didn't notice Yu Yi's curious, almost amused look. All his attention was on this sudden temporary task. He demanded unhappily, "What does Truthful Words Mode mean? Explain!"
The system obediently explained, "Master, it means that during the Truthful Words Mode, you cannot lie to the female lead. If you say one thing and mean another, the system will forcibly correct the lie to your true thoughts."
Xue Chenjing visibly panicked, shouting, "No! No! Turn it off!"
His inner thoughts, those filthy and vile ideas, how could he let her hear them? She would immediately realize he wasn't Xue Mingyuan, and she would hate him even more!
The system replied, "I'm sorry, Master. Temporary tasks are randomly triggered, and the system has no permission to turn them off."
Yu Yi silently glanced at Xue Chenjing, pretending not to notice his abnormality, and led the way to the house where the Du couple lived. She stood by the window, listening intently to the rustling voices inside.
Xue Chenjing deliberately lagged behind Yu Yi, standing in the middle of the courtyard. His hands were tightly clenched, and faint demonic energy seeped out from his sleeves, causing his robe to flutter slightly.
He laughed in frustration, "So what use are you? A worthless creature, do you really think I can't do anything about you? Hah, you think I'm bound and can't break free, right? Fine, if I were to grind myself to ashes, you can go ahead and issue tasks to my ashes. Or, you can wait for my next reincarnation, for the next life when I am born again..."
The system was frightened by him and quickly said, "Host, please calm down, don't get excited. It's not like all your thoughts are exposed. This temporary task has a condition—'Love must be spoken aloud,' so it only reveals your feelings of love for the female lead!"
Xue Chenjing's sleeves suddenly dropped, and the turbulent aura around him instantly subsided. He calmed down, his pitch-black eyes looking at the person leaning against the window, sneering inwardly.
Love? How could he possibly have such a thing?
Since he didn't, there was nothing to be afraid of.
Yu Yi didn't notice Xue Chenjing's movements; her attention was entirely captured by the conversation inside the room.
There was the sound of water, and Du's Mother was washing Du's Father's feet while they chatted in low voices.
Du's Mother, who was also Zhao Zhi's mother-in-law, said, "Old man, I really think something's not right with our daughter-in-law. If she keeps this up, she might not be able to give us a grandson."
Du's Father stirred the water in the basin, causing it to slosh, "Didn't the Moon Goddess appear in your dream and promise to fulfill your wish? What's going on now? It's causing chaos in the house."
"Yes, I had that dream, and the next day I went to the temple. The Taoist priest there also said the Goddess had chosen my prayer slip," Du's Mother affirmed, "Granny Li from the west got her grandson through the Moon Goddess's blessing."
There was a long silence inside, and after Du's Mother wiped Du's Father's feet, she got up to open the door and pour the water into the vegetable patch by the wall.
Returning, she seemed to hesitate for a long time before saying, "Maybe it's because Ruo Ruo's too stubborn and doesn't want to go back. Or, should I go and pray to the Moon Goddess again? Let's just forget it. Ruo Ruo is like my own child, and her nightly crying..."
Du's Father slapped the bedboard with a dull thud, cutting off Du's Mother's words.
"Are you trying to make our Du family end without an heir? If it weren't for the Taoist priest calculating that Zhao Zhi can't give birth to a son, why would we resort to this method?" Du's Father fumed, "It's too late to regret now. You go to the Moon Goddess Temple again tomorrow and make sure my grandson is born safely."
Du's Mother was intimidated by his authority and could only nod repeatedly.
After they lay down on the bed, Du's Father sighed deeply, his tone softening, "Once the child is born, it will still be Ruo Ruo, and we will still love her the same. We're just giving her a new body, so that our and his father's craft can be passed on. Otherwise, what use is a girl?"
The conversation inside the room gradually ceased, and Yu Yi stepped out from under the eaves. Xue Chenjing had regained his composure and put on the gentle mask of Xue Mingyuan as he walked towards her, asking, "What did you hear?"
Yu Yi's expression was not very good, "It's a method they got from the Moon Goddess Temple."
She wondered if, besides the Du couple, Du Qian and Zhao Zhi also knew the details of this and agreed to it.
Xue Chenjing didn't care about the Du family's troubles at all. He observed Yu Yi's expression and secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
Fortunately, her attention was on the little girl's lost soul, and she hadn't noticed his abnormality.
But thinking about it, he felt a bit sour, and couldn't help but blurt out, "In your heart, is anything else more important than me?"
