Chapter 101: Bonus – Parental Visits
555 stared forlornly at the small garden outside the window, sighing repeatedly.
When would its Little Frog come back? If it didn’t return soon, 555 would be played to death.
With a playful squeal, little Zuo Ling chomped on 555’s bunny ears.
555 calmly pulled its ears back and told Zuo Ling that it wasn’t food.
Zuo Ling grabbed 555’s hand, her eyes bright. “Five Five, come play with us!”
Play? It was more like torture!
But 555 couldn’t resist the little one’s charm and was dragged off to “play.”
In the living room, Zuo Bian was holding Qin Long, singing and making her laugh. Qin Long giggled uncontrollably.
Zuo Ling, clutching the bunny plushie that was almost as big as her, waddled over like a penguin. Half a meter away, she launched herself at Zuo Bian.
Zuo Bian effortlessly caught her with one hand, lifting her onto her lap.
The two little ones looked up at Zuo Bian, their big, grape-like eyes sparkling. Just looking at them made Zuo Bian’s heart melt with sweetness.
“Have some fruit.” Qin Ai emerged from the kitchen, carrying a plate of cut fruit. She placed it on the coffee table in front of the sofa and sat down beside Zuo Bian.
She reached out and scooped up Qin Long, settling her on her lap.
“I want melon!” Little Qin Long tugged at Zuo Bian’s sleeve.
Zuo Bian smiled. “Long Long, do you want cantaloupe or watermelon?”
Qin Long pondered the question seriously, her tiny brows furrowing, then declared, “Both!”
“Okay, both it is.” Zuo Bian picked up a small plastic fork and fed Qin Long.
Metal forks were dangerous for children. All sharp objects in the house had been carefully put away, in case the children found them while exploring.
Zuo Bian and Qin Ai, although first-time mothers, had done their research and taken all necessary precautions.
As the two little ones were eating fruit, the doorbell rang. Zuo Bian handed Qin Long to Qin Ai and went to open the door.
She saw her parents, Zuo Yan and Du Yundong, smiling at her. “Xiao Bian, we came to see Ling Ling and Long Long.”
“Mom, Dad, why didn’t you call me beforehand? Ling Ling and Long Long are eating fruit. They’ll be so happy to see you.”
Du Yundong chuckled. “I think they’ll be happier to see the gifts we brought.”
Zuo Bian looked down and noticed the two gift boxes in her father’s hands. They must be for the little ones.
The three of them entered the house. Before even seeing her granddaughters, Du Yundong called out their names.
“My precious Ling Ling and Long Long, Grandma and Grandpa are here to see you.”
Little Qin Long, her cheeks stuffed with fruit like a hamster, looked around curiously. Little Zuo Ling, oblivious, was still asking Qin Ai to feed her kiwi.
It didn’t take long for them to appear in the living room.
“Grandma!” Qin Long was the first to crawl off the sofa. Unfortunately, she tripped and fell after taking a few steps. But she didn’t cry. Instead, she looked up at Du Yundong with a sweet smile.
Du Yundong adored children. Seeing such a cute little girl smiling at her melted her heart. She immediately went over and picked up Qin Long.
Qin Long was delighted to see her grandmother and gave her two big kisses on the cheeks. Du Yundong beamed with joy.
Qin Ai, who was feeding Zuo Ling on the sofa, stopped and patted Zuo Ling’s back. “Ling Ling, stop eating, your grandparents are here to see you.”
“Mm-hmm.” Zuo Ling’s mouth was full of fruit, she was still focused on eating, oblivious to what her mother was saying.
Du Yundong and Zuo Yan didn’t mind. They were amused by the children’s antics.
After finishing her mouthful of fruit, Zuo Ling rushed into her grandparents’ arms. Zuo Yan and Du Yundong opened the gifts they had brought and showered the two little ones with kisses.
With the grandparents there to entertain the children, Zuo Bian and Qin Ai finally had some alone time.
They went out on a date, leaving Du Yundong and Zuo Yan to play with the children. 555, feeling lonely, had already snuck away.
After getting married, Zuo Bian and Qin Ai had moved into a new house. In the new house, there was a small room specially designed for 555. The door was low, perfect for its small stature.
Having completed its mission, 555 hadn’t returned to the system world. Zuo Bian’s happiness had earned it 100,000 points. With so many points, it didn’t plan to take on a new mission so soon. It wanted to stay in this world for a few more years, to be with Zuo Bian.
Back in its room, 555 climbed onto its little bed, sighed, and took out its diary from under the pillow.
After the public humiliation incident, 555’s diary not only had a password, but it was also hidden under the pillow.
Self-praise was 555’s daily routine, but now its diary contained something else: longing for Little Frog.
As it wrote about its longing, it started to scold Little Frog. “Bad frog, leaving without saying goodbye, do you know how much I miss you?”
555 drew a frog head covered in bumps on the diary page. Just as it finished drawing, it heard a croak.
“Ribbit? Didn’t I tell you I was going to find you a body, ribbit?”
555, who had been half-asleep at that time, had mumbled a response and gone back to sleep. It had probably forgotten.
“Little Frog!” 555 immediately looked up, its bunny ears perked up.
Little Frog hopped towards 555 and dropped a child’s body, about five years old.
“I found you a body, ribbit. You’ll have a body now, ribbit.”
“Little Frog, I love you so much!” 555 hugged Little Frog’s tiny body.
Little Frog, trapped in the plush embrace, struggled and mumbled, “I know, ribbit.”
555 had always wanted a new body. It couldn’t fully experience this world while inhabiting a plushie, but with a real body, it would be different.
After its initial excitement, 555 released Little Frog and entered the new body. The moment it opened its eyes, the world changed.
It could hear the cicadas chirping and the birds singing outside the window. The wind rustled the leaves, carrying a faint fragrance. Even the feel of the blanket beneath its hand was different.
As the Heavenly Dao had said, a system, a mere data stream, couldn’t compare to a real life.
“Froggy, I have a body now, and I’m rich. Will you marry me?” The first thing 555 did after getting a body was to take out the flower ring it had made.
Little Frog replied, “Maybe, ribbit. Let’s talk about it when you grow up, ribbit.”
“Yay!” 555 wanted to put the flower ring on Little Frog’s finger, but Little Frog’s arms were too short. It couldn’t even find its palms, let alone its fingers.
After a moment of silence, 555 put the ring around Little Frog’s nonexistent neck. “I’ll marry you when I grow up.”
However, 555 never expected that the body Little Frog had found wouldn’t grow. At first, it was the older sister of little Zuo Ling and Qin Long, but as the two little ones grew bigger, 555 remained the same size, becoming their younger sister instead.
Even as a younger sister, 555 couldn’t escape its fate of being played with. Zuo Ling and Qin Long would braid its hair and dress it up in little dresses.
Little Frog’s return didn’t alleviate 555’s suffering. It was small and could easily hop away, leaving 555 to be tormented by the two little girls.
Finally, Little Frog, feeling guilty, found a teenage girl’s body for both itself and 555. Only then did the system and the frog finally get married.
But that’s a story for another time.
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