Lu Xuexi looked away, her expression clouded with irritation. In the next heartbeat, a voice suddenly resonated within her mind.
[Host, Jiang Su's favorability has dropped to the passing threshold. To ensure continued luck extraction, please increase his favorability as soon as possible.]
[I know,] Lu Xuexi replied, her tone dripping with impatience.
[If you hadn't said that lowering their Yang energy would make it easier to extract their providence, why would I have taken Jiang Su there in the first place? You clearly said those ghostly creatures wouldn't hurt me, so what was the deal with those threads?]
If it hadn't been for those threads lunging at her, she wouldn't have been so terrified that she instinctively abandoned Jiang Su to save herself.
And if she hadn't run, why would Jiang Su be so angry with her now?
Initially, she hadn't taken his anger seriously when he stormed off earlier that day. However, to her shock, the System issued a warning the moment he left.
Jiang Su's favorability points had nosedived, plummeting toward the abyss with no sign of recovery!
She had spent three whole years painstakingly raising his favorability above 85. Now, twenty points had vanished in an instant. Lu Xuexi felt like she could die from the sheer frustration of it.
[The System does not make mistakes. The System can ensure the Host is not harmed by Yin energy, but those threads were driven by malice and resentment, which falls outside the category of ghostly creatures.]
The System's robotic, formulaic tone only served to make Lu Xuexi more agitated.
She had stumbled upon this System shortly after moving into the Jiang household. Through it, she had easily acquired beauty, a perfect figure, and even a sharp intellect. Combined with the providence she extracted later on, her life had been one of effortless success.
Because of this, she had always placed absolute trust and reliance on the System's words. Who would have thought she would suffer such a massive setback this time?
[Fine, whatever you say. Fortunately, Jiang Su is easy to appease. Don't worry, once I'm discharged and go home, I'll have his favorability back up in no time.]
Despite the stumble, Lu Xuexi wasn't overly concerned. Jiang Su had a temper, but he was the type whose anger came fast and faded just as quickly. Having spent years manipulating the Jiang brothers, she understood their personalities perfectly.
Thinking of this, she reached for her phone and sent Jiang Su another message.
"Little Su, are you asleep? You didn't come to see me today. Are you still mad at your sister? I haven't slept well at all these past two days in the hospital. Whenever I think about what happened that day, my heart is filled with sorrow and regret.
I've never encountered anything like that before, and I'm still so scared. Leaving you behind really was because I wanted to find someone to save you... I know you might not believe anything I say right now, but I'm being sincere. Little Su, I'm being discharged tomorrow. Will you come pick me up?"
After finishing her long, carefully crafted essay of a text, she took a glass of warm water from Jiang Cheng and waited for the System to report a rise in favorability.
One minute passed. Five minutes. Ten minutes.
She finished two glasses of water, but there was no reply from the other end. Even the favorability level shown by the System remained motionless.
Lu Xuexi's expression began to sour. She didn't believe for a second that Jiang Su hadn't seen the message. He was an internet-addicted teenager who practically lived with his phone attached to his hand.
So why wasn't he replying? Why wasn't the favorability moving at all? Could he really be that angry with her?
Under those circumstances, anyone would have made the same choice she did. Even if he held a grudge, it had been two days. Now that she had offered him a graceful way out, he should have just let it go.
Lu Xuexi felt that Jiang Su was being truly ungrateful.
Perhaps noticing her darkening expression, Jiang Cheng couldn't help but ask with concern, "Xuexi, what's wrong? Are you feeling unwell?"
Jiang Cheng looked at her directly, his eyes filled with worry and pity.
Lu Xuexi bit her lip, forcing a lonely, fragile smile. "It's nothing... it's just that I've sent Little Su a few messages over the last two days, and he hasn't replied to me..."
She shifted her gaze, her worry appearing genuine. "I'm also worried that he might have been too traumatized that day, or that he's physically unwell... He should have stayed in the hospital for observation for two days, just like me."
Hearing that Jiang Su was ignoring her messages, Jiang Cheng's face also darkened. He felt that his younger brother was being incredibly immature.
When he recalled going home earlier that day to rest and see Jiang Su bouncing around energetically at Jiang Xuxu's side, he felt even more that Xuexi's concern was misplaced.
Xuexi was lying in a hospital bed constantly worrying about him, yet he couldn't even be bothered to reply!
Jiang Cheng decided he would give that brat a piece of his mind when he returned tomorrow.
Thinking this, he didn't tell her the truth to avoid upsetting her further. He simply comforted her, "Don't worry. He's probably just playing games and didn't notice the message."
As he spoke, he reached out and gently took Lu Xuexi's hand where it rested on the quilt. His voice was soft. "I saw Little Su at home today; he's perfectly fine. Don't overthink things. You'll be home tomorrow."
Lu Xuexi felt a flash of revulsion at the large palm resting on the back of her hand, but she maintained a gentle smile on her face. "Mhm. It's a good thing you're here with me, Brother Jiang Cheng. Otherwise, I'd definitely be letting my thoughts run wild alone."
She didn't pull her hand away, and Jiang Cheng seemed to forget he was still holding it as he continued to coax and comfort her.
Lu Xuexi humored him absentmindedly while the System's voice rang in her mind once more.
[Host, Jiang Cheng's favorability +2. It is currently at 92 points. It is suggested that the Host take this opportunity to accelerate the conquest. The higher the target's favorability, the more providence the Host can extract from them.]
Lu Xuexi felt another surge of impatience at the System's urging.
[I know.]
She was well aware that higher favorability meant more providence to harvest. She also knew exactly how to make Jiang Cheng's favorability soar. Since he already liked her, as long as she was willing to give him a bit of a "response," she could guarantee his favorability would hit 99 in minutes.
But she didn't want to do that. Using one's body to trade for favorability was something only low-class women did. Lu Xuexi had standards for herself. If she could wrap someone around her finger without resorting to cheap physical ambiguity, why would she take the extra step?
Jiang Cheng was considered excellent within the circle of second-generation socialites, but he still paled in comparison to someone like Jiang Huai.
And then, there was Chu Beihe.
The thought of Chu Beihe's appearance and his standing in the elite circles made Lu Xuexi's heart burn with desire. Only a man like that was worthy of her genuine emotional investment. Moreover, Chu Beihe was known to be a man of high standards and perfectionism. Such a man would surely expect a lot from his partner.
For his sake alone, Lu Xuexi wouldn't casually engage in ambiguity with others. That would only lower her level.
While she was lost in her own thoughts, the System spoke up coldly.
[Host, allow me to remind you: you have been attempting to conquer Chu Beihe for three years. To this day, his favorability remains stagnant at 38 points.]
And thirty of those points were the initial base points provided by the System. In other words, her actual score with him was a mere eight pointsthe kind of score one might get for simply helping an old lady cross the street.
Lu Xuexi: "..."
If you don't speak, nobody will think you've crashed.
Meanwhile, at the Riverside Villa.
Inside a dim room, a youth with a slightly pale, sickly complexion stared intently at an address just sent over by a private investigator.
A sliver of obsession flickered in his gloomy eyes. He murmured in a raspy, low whisper:
"Ruirui, I've found you again..."
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