Chapter 41

Shi Ye stared at the empty bowl, a tiny bit of tomato-colored soup remaining at the bottom, resembling a small patch of dried blood in the dim light. The unfamiliar warmth in her mind hadn't completely faded, and her eyes were a little swollen, but no tears flowed. Depression was like a thick, impermeable membrane, enveloping, compressing, and transforming all her intense emotions into a dull void—except for the sharp pain she had just felt and this strange, burning sensation in her eyes.

She reached out and touched the rim of the bowl with her fingertips. The coldness of the porcelain seeped through her skin, a stark contrast to the warmth of the food in her stomach.

"Host physiological indicators have stabilized, and mood fluctuations have decreased." The system's electronic voice sounded incongruously, as calm as a weather forecast. "Now is a good time to advance the mission. It is recommended that the host review today's interaction with Qi Jin, analyze the effectiveness of the 'showing weakness' and 'accepting care' strategies, and plan the next course of action."

Shi Ye's fingertips withdrew from the bowl, slowly curling up. "Next step?" she sneered inwardly, "Knock her unconscious, tie her up, and put her in Lin Xiaoyu's bed—wouldn't that be an effective plan?"

"The system does not support any form of illegal behavior," the system replied matter-of-factly. "Furthermore, the success rate of this plan is estimated at 0.01%, and there is an extremely high probability that it will cause the target Qi Jin's favorability to drop to zero, resulting in the complete failure of the mission."

"Oh, so there's still a 0.01% success rate." Shi Ye twitched the corner of his mouth, a completely unsmiling arc. "I thought it was definitely zero."

Too lazy to argue with this lousy system anymore, she used the sofa as a support to stand up. The wound on the sole of her foot still hurt, but she could bear it. She picked up the empty bowl and chopsticks and limped towards the kitchen.

The water from the tap was a little cold, making her shiver as it hit her hands. She squeezed out some dish soap and slowly began washing the dishes. The rushing water broke the heavy silence in the living room.

She washed the dishes, dried them, and put them in the cupboard. She looked at the few dishes in the cupboard, mostly cute ones brought by Lin Xiaoyu, and next to them, a few simple, high-end bone china bowls brought by Qi Jin. Two completely different aesthetics, haphazardly crammed together, just like her life at this moment.

She closed the cupboard door, walked to the window, and lifted a corner of the curtain.

The area downstairs was empty; Qi Jin's car had already driven away.

The faint warmth that had just begun to rise in my heart seemed to disappear into the city lights along with that taillight.

She drew the curtains, walked back to the living room, and slumped back onto the sofa. Her phone screen was lit; Lin Xiaoyu had sent several more messages, sharing information she'd found at the library and new design inspirations, her words brimming with excitement.

As Shi Ye looked at the vibrant words and images, her mind involuntarily drifted to Qi Jin. How would Qi Jin view Lin Xiaoyu's imaginative designs? Would he offer calm and professional advice, or would he, like tonight, sit silently to the side, waiting for her to finish her bowl of noodles?

The thought popped into her head, and a slight ripple stirred in the stagnant water of her heart.

wrong.

She sat up abruptly.

She shouldn't be thinking about this. What she should be thinking about is how to take advantage of Qi Jin's appreciation for Lin Xiaoyu's design talent, how to create opportunities for them to interact more, and how to... bring them together.

This is a mission.

It is the key to keeping this world from collapsing.

She closed her eyes and rubbed her temples hard. The system's voice was still in her head, but it was quieter than before, as if it was waiting for her to "recap" and "plan".

“System,” she began, her voice slightly hoarse in the empty living room, “If… I mean if I fail to complete the mission and the world begins to collapse, what will be the first sign?”

"Insufficient data, unable to make accurate predictions," the system replied. "Based on existing abnormal event records, it may manifest as partial failure of physical rules, logical contradictions, disordered character behavior data, or an increase in the frequency of 'unnatural phenomena' already encountered by the host."

"For example, the distortion at my front door? The flickering elevator lights? Pixelated images on the TV?"

"Yes."

"What if the collapse intensifies?"

"The underlying data may completely collapse, making the current timeline unsustainable. The specific manifestation is unknown; it could be a complete reset or an even more chaotic state."

Everything returns to zero.

Shi Ye imagined the scene. Qi Jin, Lin Xiaoyu, Jiang Chen, Qin Ming, Dr. Chen, her home, the city outside the window, the chaotic dishes in the cupboard... all disappeared, turning into a void of darkness.

My heart clenched suddenly.

It wasn't fear. It was more like... a dull ache.

"And if the mission succeeds?" she pressed. "If we bring Qi Jin and Lin Xiaoyu together and they have a happy ending, will the world stabilize? Will those signs of collapse disappear?"

"Theoretically, yes," the system said. "The core plotline has been corrected, the world line anchor has been stabilized, abnormal data streams will be gradually absorbed or rejected, and order will be restored."

Order was restored.

Qi Jin and Lin Xiaoyu are together and happy.

And what will happen to her? Will she continue being the eldest daughter of the Shi family? Or will she be sent back by the system after "mission completed"? Or will she simply disappear?

"What will happen after I complete the mission?" she asked directly.

The system remained silent for a few seconds.

"Insufficient host permissions to obtain this information." It's that standard answer again.

Shi Ye laughed, this time a genuine laugh, short and bitter. "Fine, anyway, I'm just a tool, used and discarded, my life or death is irrelevant."

"The system is committed to protecting the host's basic right to survival," the system argued, but it sounded utterly unconvincing.

Shi Ye ignored it. She lay on the sofa, staring at the ceiling. It was as if two little figures were fighting in her mind. One figure screamed, clutching its head, "Mission! Collapse! Qi Jin and Lin Xiaoyu must be together! Otherwise, we're all doomed!" The other figure crouched in a corner, muttering listlessly, "But Qi Jin… Qi Jin, she…"

She remembered Qi Jin's hand stroking her hair in the dark, the bowl of perfectly cooked tomato and egg noodles, her quiet figure sitting on the carpet by the sofa, and the undercurrents surging beneath her calm face when she asked, "Will you regret it?"

The barren, frozen ground in my heart seemed to have been pried open by something, creating a thin crack.

Something is breaking through the ground.

It was very weak, but very tenacious.

She rolled over and buried her face in the sofa cushions. The fabric rubbed against her cheeks, feeling a little rough.

Her phone vibrated again. She picked it up and saw it was a message from Jiang Chen.

"Shi Ye, I heard that President Qi had an accident last night? Are you alright? Do you need any help?"

Shi Ye stared at the message, stunned. How did Jiang Chen know? Did Lin Xiaoyu tell him?

She replied, "It's nothing, thank you for your concern."

Jiang Chen quickly replied, "That's good. Xiaoyu was very worried about you all today. Also... regarding what happened before, I've been thinking about it, maybe we can find some time to talk about it? I think it's better to clarify some things."

The previous incident? Does it refer to his inexplicable attraction to her, or the time when Lin Xiaoyu rejected him?

Shi Ye didn't have the mind to deal with these things right now. She replied, "I've been a bit busy lately, let's talk about it later."

Putting down her phone, she suddenly realized something—in this world, besides the two core characters, Qi Jin and Lin Xiaoyu, the other characters seemed to be operating on their own trajectories. Jiang Chen had his own emotional troubles, Lin Xiaoyu had her dreams and unrequited love, Qin Ming was lurking in the shadows... They weren't NPCs; they were living, breathing people with their own storylines.

And what about her? What is her storyline as a "transmigrator" and "host"? Complete the mission, and then... disappear?

She doesn't want to disappear.

The thought popped into her head so clearly that it startled even herself.

It wasn't because she was afraid of death (though she was), but because... she suddenly realized that she seemed... a little reluctant to leave this world, these people, this chaotic, terrible, yet occasionally warm and absurd world.

I can't bear to part with Qi Jin's bowl of noodles.

He couldn't bear to part with Lin Xiaoyu's loud and boisterous concern.

They even couldn't bear to part with the annoying and rigid electronic voice of the system.

For the first time in this world, she felt a sense of "existence." She was no longer the muddled, emotionless Shi Ye, nor was she the "host" who only wanted to complete the mission and get out as soon as possible.

She is Shi Ye.

There are times when you feel fear, pain, and confusion, and when you feel a strange warmth because of a bowl of noodles.

This realization, like a faint electric current, coursed through her entire body.

She sat up, her eyes somewhat glazed over.

What if... she doesn't follow the system's instructions?

What if she refused to matchmake Qi Jin and Lin Xiaoyu, or even... tried to reciprocate Qi Jin's feelings?

Will the world collapse immediately? Or will there be another turning point?

“System,” she asked tentatively, her voice very soft, “what will happen if I… choose not to complete the mission?”

The system seemed to detect the unusual fluctuation in her tone, and the electronic voice paused for a moment before replying: "We strongly advise against the host making this choice. Mission failure will directly lead to a sharp increase in the risk of world line collapse. The host herself may also suffer irreversible damage due to protocol conflicts."

"Irreversible damage? For example?"

"Consciousness disorder, data assimilation, or even more serious consequences." The system's voice turned cold. "Please do not make futile attempts."

Disorientation? Data assimilation? Becoming one of those swirling pixels on a snowy screen? Or being completely swallowed up by that "forced association"?

Shi Ye shivered.

"Then... what if the mission succeeds, but I... don't want to disappear?" she asked, rephrasing her question.

This time, the system remained silent for an even longer period.

"Mission success is the primary objective," it concluded. "Other matters can be negotiated separately after the mission is completed."

Negotiation?

The word sounded particularly eerie coming from the cold mouth of the system.

But at least... a sliver of possibility remains?

Shi Ye's heart began to race. She felt as if she were walking on the edge of a dark cliff, and suddenly saw a faint ray of light ahead, the direction of which she knew not.

Although it is very likely just a hallucination.

She lay back down, staring at the ceiling. The war between the two little figures in her mind temporarily ceased, replaced by a more complex and chaotic stream of thoughts.

Do we still need to complete the task?

If she does this, she will continue to hurt Qi Jin, push her towards Lin Xiaoyu, and may ultimately lead to her own disappearance.

If we don't do it, the world will collapse, everyone will perish, and Qi Jin might also meet with misfortune in the collapse.

Both roads seem to lead to dead ends.

But... is there a third way?

A path that can both keep the world from collapsing and... preserve the faint connection between her and Qi Jin?

She didn't know.

The sky outside the window was completely dark. City lights shone through the gaps in the curtains, casting dappled shadows on the floor.

Shi Ye lay on the sofa with his eyes open, his mind swirling with countless thoughts, like a tangled ball of yarn.

I don't know how much time passed, but finally, drowsiness surged up like a tide, drowning out all my chaotic thoughts.

Before she completely lost consciousness, the last clear thought in her mind was:

tomorrow.

I need to see Dr. Chen tomorrow, not for a follow-up appointment, but to... ask her what it's like when someone starts to fear losing another person, starts to feel warmth from a bowl of noodles, and starts to fear "disappearing"...

Could this be considered... a sign that the condition is improving?

Or is it just another, more complex complication called "Qi Jin"?

She didn't know.

She fell asleep.

This time, I didn't dream of pixelated rabbits, I didn't dream of melodramatic vaccines, and I didn't dream of a collapsing world.

She dreamt of a warm darkness, in which someone held her hand; their fingertips were slightly cool, but very steady.

The person didn't speak, but simply held it quietly.

Just like Qi Jin sitting on the carpet beside the sofa, silently keeping company.

I feel very at ease.

So reassuring... that in her sleep, she unconsciously and gently squeezed back those non-existent fingertips.