Chapter 156: Chapter 156: His Character Unlocked
Xiao Qingya sat up straight, and she snatched the proud little white cat. Her chubby hands shook the System a little.
[What do you mean? Explain clearly!?] Xiao Qingya demanded with widened eyes. She was utterly confused and shocked.
Originally, she thought that the System had met Xiao Yuanwei, which triggered the character’s unlock. As it turned out, it was actually her mother?
Zhou Anran stiffened a little, and she kept her eyes closed, her breathing steady as she made herself look as relaxed as possible. The little one had stood up, trying to see whether her mother had fallen asleep or not.
The System wilted slightly. [Host, the profile unlock can happen only when two main protagonists have developed feelings for each other. Your parents are a special case...]
Zhou Anran’s figure trembled slightly and she told herself to stay calm.
What the System said wasn’t actually wrong. They had developed feelings for each other—hence, the reason they got married.
Still, all of that was in the past.
[Then, during the main storyline’s timeline, they meet.] The System added.
Xiao Qingya’s little brain short-circuited.
[Are you speaking the truth, System?] She stared at the white cat, who was now licking her fingers ingratiatingly.
[Host, I also just found out about this function recently. Actually, they must have exchanged some words too...]
The System had detected the presence of the male lead, but only vaguely. Only after it opened the notifications did it all make sense.
The nobleman who had created so much ruckus at the county’s market was Xiao Yuanwei.
[Then, my mother... ] she trailed off, at a loss. Her mother didn’t seem happy; instead, she seemed to be more exhausted than ever.
Xiao Qingya’s lips pursed, and she wondered whether there was some sort of misunderstanding. Her little brain thought about it harder.
[Host, do you remember that this mission is harder than our previous worlds?] The System reminded her.
She sighed. The memories of the storylines between the male lead and female leads in the previous worlds poured to her head. Most of them had a difficult journey before they were together.
And... not all of the male leads were good people either. Some of them were blatant red flags.
Xiao Qingya’s fists hardened.
[Hmph, so what if he is a nobleman... even if he is the emperor himself, I will still beat him up if he hurts my mother!]
Zhou Anran tried hard to resist the urge to open her eyes, turn around, and tell the little one not to do something rash. Alas, she couldn’t.
She could only spend her time in restlessness until she couldn’t resist as the exhaustion took over. She drifted to sleep.
Xiao Qingya was still chatting with the System. Soon, she also found out that Zhou Shiming had been taken away. Zhou Wenzhi had brought him to the yamen.
The little one snickered like a cat who had successfully stolen a fish when she was reminded of Zhou Shiming.
In order to take revenge for her elder siblings, she had sent Ling Yu and Ling Bo to harass him.
[Ling Yu, Ling Bo, come out! I will burn some incense sticks for you two.] She was so satisfied that she decided to give them more rewards.
Her Master, Mo Chen, had sent her more incense sticks through Physician Bai. The incense sticks were incredibly useful for ghosts, especially when the Ling siblings had used most of their energy in dealing with Zhou Shiming.
[Little Master!]
The two immediately appeared. This time, they witnessed the white cat bring the burning incense into the room. They exhaled in enjoyment.
[How did he look when Grandfather took him away?] She asked them enthusiastically.
The Ling siblings immediately answered. [He still looks frightened and tells everyone he sees ghosts!]
They had starved him, so people would only attribute this as the effect of his extreme hunger. He even hallucinated that he saw ghosts!
Xiao Qingya didn’t just let the siblings scare Zhou Shiming with their real appearance, but also made them take the appearance of Chen Huayun and Liu Hei.
As soon as the siblings got closer to him... poof, they reverted back to their bloody faces.
When Zhou Shiming saw his mother and wife’s faces, it would remind them of this traumatizing memory.
[Oh, right, System. If my mother and father met, does that mean my father lives nearby, huh?] The little one revealed a thoughtful look. [Will they meet again?]
The System didn’t answer, because it also didn’t know.
When it was time for dinner, Xiao Qingya roused Zhou Anran from her sleep and opened the door. All the people who helped them had gone back, including Steward Xu and his people.
They promised they would come back the next day to take the paddy rice seeds with them.
Now, it was just the Xiao family alone.
"Mother, please eat the congee." Xiao Yuyan said quietly as she shoved a bowl of congee to Zhou Anran.
Zhou Anran thanked her, and they began to eat in silence. After they finished, not long after, they heard a groan from Xiao Fenghao’s room.
They all went to his room to check.
"Hao’er, how are you?" Zhou Anran’s cool fingers traced her son’s face. Xiao Fenghao took a sharp breath, and his eyes fluttered open, very slowly.
"Mother, Hao’er is still paralyzed from the effect of the scorpion stings." Xiao Jingran explained.
He pried open his younger brother’s mouth, and under Xiao Fenghao’s astonished eyes, Xiao Jingran poured the congee into his mouth.
Once he finished, there was still more. Xiao Fenghao opened his mouth, wanting to protest. However, it gave Xiao Jingran an opportunity to stuff the bitter medicine down his throat instead.
Xiao Fenghao choked slightly and his eyes watered.
His tongue was still numb, and his entire body too.
Zhou Anran nodded. After they finished taking care of Xiao Fenghao, they told him to sleep. "Hao’er, take some rest so that you can recover soon."
They all left the room.
The next day, as the family went to meet Steward Xu, Xiao Qingya tiptoed to Xiao Fenghao’s room.
The System had told her that the supplement liquid could help Xiao Fenghao recover faster. It was something from the cultivation world.
Xiao Fenghao’s eyelids twitched as the familiar sensation returned. Xiao Qingya was feeding him with her baby bottle again...
Then, all of a sudden, the door swung open.
