Chapter 30: I Also Want Cake (30)-2
Warm breath brushed against Liang Xi’s palm, and she quickly pulled her hand away.
Jiang Zhiyan accompanied Liang Xi to the countryside. Liang Xi had told her family beforehand that Jiang Zhiyan was coming, so Liang Xi’s mother prepared new slippers, added another blanket to Liang Xi’s bed, and prepared a late-night snack.
Jiang Zhiyan bought gifts for everyone in Liang Xi’s family. She was good with words and, if she wanted to, could be everyone’s favorite.
Liang Xi stood in the distance, watching Jiang Zhiyan chat with her grandmother.
“What are you standing there for? I bought some cherries, go wash some and eat them.” Liang Xi’s mother patted her.
“Okay.” Liang Xi replied, then couldn’t help but ask, “Mom, do I seem different from before?”
“Yes, you’re lazier.”
Liang Xi: ???
Liang Xi didn’t want to talk and went to the kitchen to get a plate. Less than a minute later, Jiang Zhiyan followed her in, rolling up her sleeves and standing beside her.
“You’re a guest, I can’t let you do the work.”
“Doing chores with you is like playing a game.”
Liang Xi nudged Jiang Zhiyan with her elbow, glancing back to make sure no one was around before speaking: “Is it strange that I don’t want them to remember me, but if they really don’t remember me at all, I’ll be very sad… Would they still be so nice if I were just ‘Liang Xi’?”
Jiang Zhiyan was silent for a long time before replying: “That’s a normal feeling, nothing strange about it.”
She didn’t answer the other question, and Liang Xi already knew the answer.
“I will always remember you, no matter what you become, I’ll recognize you at a glance. That’s you.”
“The legendary ‘recognize you even if you turn to ashes’?” Liang Xi joked.
“Yes.”
Liang Xi put a cherry in Jiang Zhiyan’s mouth, then continued washing the rest, her disappointment evident.
“She must be very sad right now.” The system said. “This truth is too cruel for her, after all, she has genuine feelings.”
“That’s why the first rule for taskers is not to develop feelings for NPCs.” Jiang Zhiyan threw the cherry pit in the trash can. “She can handle it, she’s the most outstanding tasker in my eyes.”
The system didn’t know how to respond. It had been curious before and searched for information, but it couldn’t find any records. This meant that under normal circumstances, one shouldn’t become a soul fragment. It figured she must have exploited some bug or used some unusual means to survive as a soul fragment. And taskers who did that sort of thing usually couldn’t earn many points, like Jiang Zhiyan.
As for whether Jiang Zhiyan was an excellent tasker… the system didn’t dare say, but her mental fortitude was definitely strong.
“Host, do you know there’s an asterisk next to your mission name?” The system said.
“Yes.”
“Then what does it mean?” The system had always been puzzled. It previously thought it was a harmless bug, but now it felt like there might be another meaning.
Jiang Zhiyan didn’t answer the question.
The two elders went to bed early. Liang Xi’s mother was working overtime in her room, leaving only Jiang Zhiyan and Liang Xi. They went back to their room early and locked the door.
Liang Xi lay on the bed, watching a video Yang Xiao forwarded to her. Jiang Zhiyan leaned against her, her leg hooked around Liang Xi’s, gently swinging it.
“Does she send you such boring videos every day?” Jiang Zhiyan asked after watching with her for a while.
“Yes, they’re not that boring, it’s just that my sense of humor is higher.” Liang Xi put her phone aside. Just as she turned around, Jiang Zhiyan leaned on her, burying her face in Liang Xi’s shoulder and taking a deep breath.
“Are you trying to sniff me like a cat?” Liang Xi pressed Jiang Zhiyan’s head. “You’re still so thin, even after I’ve been feeding you for so long.”
“I have some meat.” Jiang Zhiyan pressed against Liang Xi’s chest.
Liang Xi: …
“My mom is right next door.” Liang Xi whispered. “Behave yourself, the walls are thin.”
“We’re not doing anything.” Jiang Zhiyan slid down slightly and kissed Liang Xi’s stomach.
Liang Xi’s legs instinctively wrapped around Jiang Zhiyan’s body, her waist involuntarily lifting. Jiang Zhiyan’s hand found the sensitive spot on Liang Xi’s waist.
“A major stimulus, I feel like, this could be considered a stimulus.” Liang Xi said, her voice slightly muffled. “My soul is trembling.”
“No, going halfway and then returning would be too frustrating. I’d rather just leave directly.” Jiang Zhiyan nuzzled against Liang Xi again, clinging to her.
Liang Xi laughed: “You really are…”
She turned around, facing Jiang Zhiyan: “Let’s go back after you’ve calmed down.”
“Okay, I’m not in a hurry, and you don’t need to be either.”
Even with Jiang Zhiyan beside her, Liang Xi still didn’t sleep well that night.
She dreamt she was sitting in a small, dark room. After a long period of silence and loneliness, the surroundings brightened, and she was surrounded by mirrors.
The person in the mirrors was her, and yet not her. She clearly felt herself sitting in a chair, but the reflection of herself was blindfolded and gagged, hanging mid-air, like a corpse.
Black smoke appeared from nowhere, coiling around her neck.
The feeling of suffocation made it hard to breathe. She felt like the black smoke was trying to strangle her.
She clutched her neck, trying to tear away the smoke.
The “self” in the mirror suddenly opened its eyes and lunged at her, looking down at her.
“Isn’t it nice to stay here, stay here forever? You’re the protagonist here, the entire world revolves around you.”
“Weren’t the days before happy? If it weren’t for Jiang Zhiyan, you would be happy forever.”
“Everyone loves you… You are Liang Xi, you are Liang Xi!”
The scene changed again. She clutched her chest, taking two deep breaths.
She was sitting in the classroom, facing an excited Yang Xiao.
“Jiang Zhiyan is going to get what’s coming to her.” Yang Xiao said excitedly.
“What?” Liang Xi didn’t react for a moment.
“Aren’t you angry? She’s so vicious, actually getting someone to stop you on your way home from school. If it weren’t for a righteous passerby, who knows what would have happened? Ha, I heard Yan Yanzhuo helped you get revenge. It would be great if she could be expelled.”
Liang Xi looked at Yang Xiao’s outstretched hand, avoided it, and stared at Yang Xiao.
“What’s wrong, Xi Xi? You’re acting weird today.” Yang Xiao waved her hand in front of Liang Xi’s face. “Don’t tell me you’re still not planning to confront Jiang Zhiyan? This isn’t the first time she’s done something like this! You can’t let her get away with it! She’s just taking advantage of your good nature.”
“Fine, I won’t talk about it if you don’t like it.” Startled by Liang Xi’s look, Yang Xiao slumped onto the desk.
Liang Xi saw another Jiang Zhiyan. She yelled at her hysterically, but Liang Xi couldn’t hear a single word. Unable to dodge in time, she was hit twice. If Yang Xiao hadn’t rushed out to stop her, Liang Xi might have been pushed to the ground.
It hurt.
Liang Xi touched her arm, a bruise was already forming.
Wasn’t this a dream? Why did it hurt?
That day, she inexplicably won a lottery, she was confessed to by ten people, and every passerby on the street smiled at her.
“She’s just jealous of your position as the protagonist, so she wants to kill you.”
“See, how annoying she is.”
“Don’t believe her lies, look how fortunate your life should be.”
“Don’t you like this kind of life?”
Liang Xi stood by the roadside, pushed away the friendly passersby, covered her ears, and ran forward. She bumped into a few e-bikes and several pedestrians.
No one blamed her. They all asked her kindly if she was okay.
“See, if it weren’t for her, you wouldn’t be blamed.”
“Who said that? I was just hit by Jiang Zhiyan.” Liang Xi retorted.
“But she’ll die. Everyone who hurts you will die, isn’t that good?”
Jiang Zhiyan, sleeping beside Liang Xi, abruptly opened her eyes and looked at Liang Xi’s pale face. She was frowning, clearly resisting something.
“This world’s consciousness is really troublesome.” Jiang Zhiyan was irritated. She pulled Liang Xi into her arms.
“Feels like it’s targeting you two.” The system said. “This world’s consciousness is so active. When you were the protagonist, you practically turned the world upside down, and it didn’t stop you.”
“Xi Xi, Xi Xi.” Jiang Zhiyan called softly, but Liang Xi didn’t react. She lowered her head and bit Liang Xi’s lip hard.
Liang Xi in her dream clutched her mouth and gasped, immediately realizing it was Jiang Zhiyan. She felt exasperated, but also anxious.
She didn’t know what this damn place was, but clearly, Jiang Zhiyan couldn’t enter.
She looked around, her gaze settling on the railing not far away. She ran towards it and, without thinking, jumped over.
“What a stubborn person you are.”
The voice appeared in Liang Xi’s head.
“You won’t be happier than you are now. Jiang Zhiyan is just pretending. You’re only here because of her.”
“You’re bullshitting.”
“How can you curse? My female lead wouldn’t curse!”
Liang Xi suddenly found it incredibly ridiculous: “I’m not your female lead! Get that straight!”
She was falling. Many people crowded around the railing, looking down. Several people also jumped down, trying to pull her up. She didn’t know where she got the strength, but she shook them off.
False sensations surrounded her, but she could clearly distinguish the warmth on her lips, burning hot and forceful, pressing down until her lips hurt.
She tentatively opened her mouth.
Jiang Zhiyan held Liang Xi and kissed her twice. Liang Xi’s face became even paler. “System, send me to Yan Yanzhuo, I’m going to kill him, let’s all die together.”
If the male and female leads didn’t die according to the plot, the world would collapse.
“Are you guys insane?” The system shrieked. Liang Xi inside hadn’t been dealt with yet, and now Jiang Zhiyan outside was having problems.
This was the first time Jiang Zhiyan spoke directly to the world’s consciousness: “Ah, I’ve always been.”
Leave a Reply