"Move aside. I'm sleeping here!"
Yin Qingcheng hobbled into Room 401, her expression still cold and detached.
Pain seemed to have no effect on her.
Well, it made sense. Someone ruthless enough to voluntarily touch the Primeval Morning Mist and the power of the Lunar Force wouldn't be fazed by such pain.
But she was furious — utterly furious.
Not because of the physical pain, but because of that feeling of weakness, that unbearable sense of powerlessness.
It was a torment that gnawed at her soul.
But she could still endure it.
Despite her limp, she maintained a domineering posture as she faced Shen Xitong.
All eyes turned toward them.
Shen Xitong raised an eyebrow and sprung up from her bed like a carp flipping out of water.
"And what if I say no?"
"If you say no, I'll kill you," Yin Qingcheng said calmly, as if stating an insignificant fact.
Shen Xitong struck first.
Slap!
A single slap sent Yin Qingcheng staggering backward.
Enraged, Yin Qingcheng lunged at Shen Xitong.
"Come on! Think I'm scared of you?!"
The two of them started fighting — no supernatural powers involved, just a raw, messy brawl between little girls.
Lu Ye...
"Stop it. Stop fighting," Lu Ye tried to intervene, but what could a four-year-old do?
It was only after a brief scuffle that Shen Xitong suddenly fell onto the bed and started wailing.
Lu Ye blinked, bewildered.
Just a second ago, weren't you yanking on Yin Qingcheng's hair like a maniac?
The door burst open.
Yin Qingcheng was still fuming, ready to scratch Shen Xitong's face off.
Thud!
A heavy blow echoed through the room.
Yin Qingcheng was sent sprawling over Shen Xitong, feeling as though her skull had been shattered.
The caregiver grabbed Yin Qingcheng, her gaze cold as she swept her eyes over the other seven children.
"Go to sleep. She'll be moved to another room," the caregiver said, her tone icy.
Shen Xitong curled up under the covers, her shoulders shaking. It looked like she was crying, but in reality, she was laughing her head off.
Hmph. Yin Qingcheng? She was nothing. Completely under control.
Yin Qingcheng did not return.
The next day, no one saw her.
Seventh Heaven.
Yin Qingcheng's eyes snapped open. Her hand was still pressed against the Three-Life Stone, and a few nearly imperceptible cracks had formed across its surface.
Her expression was one of utter disbelief.
No way...
Wasn’t that place supposed to prohibit murder?
Did she just get beaten to death?!
Beaten to death!!!
Yin Qingcheng was stupefied, unable to process what had just happened.
The sensation of dying lingered in her heart, sending shivers down her spine.
The feeling of having lost all power, of being completely at the mercy of anyone, was... unbearable.
No.
There was still a chance.
She needed to change her strategy — recklessness wouldn't work. After all, she wasn't Yue Hongling, that muscle-brained maniac.
Since no one had any power in that place, she'd have to rely on her wits.
Yin Qingcheng placed her hand on the Three-Life Stone once more.
The Three-Life Stone had the power to forcibly intervene in a Three-Life Tribulation, allowing her presence without anyone suspecting her of being out of place. To them, she'd always been there.
Yin Qingcheng opened the door to Room 401 and walked inside.
This time, she didn't fight with Shen Xitong. Instead, she silently walked over to the only vacant bed in the room.
Shen Xitong glanced at her and snorted disdainfully.
Sleep.
Six o'clock in the morning.
Everyone woke up on time. The orphanage meals were quite standard, and relatively healthy.
Since it was the current season, they were served bean pods.
The orphanage didn’t care if the kids got sick of bean pods. It was pure bean pods — not a shred of meat.
Whenever that cold storage full of bean pods was emptied, they'd move on to cabbage.
When the cabbage was gone, they'd switch to potatoes.
When the potatoes were used up, it was back to bean pods.
Sometimes, there would be meat.
For instance, during bird flu outbreaks. Or when meat prices plummeted.
After breakfast, it was time for the daily garbage sorting shift.
Every day, the orphanage received truckloads of garbage, mostly from affluent ★ 𝐍𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 ★ neighborhoods.
Usable items were picked out; the rest were taken away.
It was a seamless process — almost like a production line.
People often wondered, "How much money can be made from sorting garbage?"
In reality, the profits were unimaginably high.
Especially when the labor force consisted of orphans who received no pay.
In fact, these orphans were the ones generating income for the orphanage.
In the afternoon, classes resumed.
For the first time, Yin Qingcheng spent the entire day observing Lu Ye's life.
She was stunned.
She had always thought that Lu Ye, no matter where he was, would be the type to stand out. The kind of person everyone noticed.
But now, she saw a completely different Lu Ye.
One who was utterly unremarkable.
Just another face in the crowd. The most inconspicuous person in the entire orphanage.
He never caused conflicts, spoke softly, and had no temper to speak of.
Day after day, life repeated itself in a monotonous cycle.
The only variation was Director Li Kaoshan’s lectures.
But even those were always the same:
“You are unloved!
It is the orphanage, it is I who give you love!
You must learn to give back, to be grateful!
Only by giving will you receive in return!”
Even Yin Qingcheng was starting to feel a sense of despair.
She constantly tried to approach Lu Ye. Lu Ye remained polite to her.
But there was no way to get close.
Yin Qingcheng frowned.
She understood now.
Lu Ye’s life was too stable. Even though he had to pick garbage every day and occasionally intimidate those who competed with the orphanage for business, his life wasn't particularly hard.
She needed to disrupt that stability.
To become the savior who would appear at Lu Ye’s lowest point.
That way, she could carve herself deeply into his heart.
“Lu Ye, do you believe what the director says?”
Late at night, Shen Xitong lay under her quilt, her head close to Lu Ye’s, and whispered.
“I believe it,” Lu Ye replied firmly.
“Mm, as long as you believe it,” Shen Xitong said softly.
Yin Qingcheng was a person of action.
She started moving.
A rumor began to spread silently among the orphans.
“Did you hear? Lu Ye is sucking up to the director and the caregivers. He wants to become the king of the kids!”
“What? He’s sucking up to them?”
“No wonder Caregiver Chen likes him so much. He’s been flattering them behind our backs!”
“A little kid like him? Become the king of the kids? As if!”
“Looks like we need to teach that little punk a lesson!”
“Director, look at this. Isn't Yin Qingcheng being too vicious? Spreading such malicious rumors about Lu Ye,” Shen Xitong said, pointing to the surveillance footage.
Li Kaoshan’s eyes grew cold.
“What a good child. I’ll handle this,” he said, a chilling smile forming.
“Thank you, Director!”
“Thank you, Director!”
Li Kaoshan looked down at Lu Ye, a strange smile tugging at his lips.
“Lu Ye, how about you really become the king of the kids?”
