Chapter 18 After the soul swap, I switched back.

During Si Qi's absence, the Si family group has been encountering difficulties one after another.

However, considering that exoskeletons are a completely new field, with energy, mechanical structure, and internal programming all being unfamiliar to everyone, it's normal that they were initially confused. The Si family never suspected Si Qi was behind it, especially since Si Qi always provided answers when they asked him questions.

They planned to wait until Si Qi finished his college entrance exams and had more time to ask him about it. Si's father was even more confident, saying that with the Si family's vast business empire here, there was no worry that Si Qi wouldn't come back.

Little did they expect that, despite all their calculations, they had miscalculated Si Qi's temperament. They couldn't have predicted that Si Qi would abandon the family business so easily, and that from the very second day after returning to his body, he would start digging a pit for the Si family, planting such a huge time bomb right under their noses.

They even dug a large pit themselves and carefully placed Lei into it.

Mr. Si was both angry and anxious. On one hand, he wanted to stop the project but dared not because of the presence of other groups. On the other hand, he was eager to find Si Qi and hope to hear an explanation from him that "it was all a misunderstanding".

He had never so humbly hoped that his child actually loved him and didn't hate him. If he could do it all over again, he hadn't even considered not producing the mecha, but instead thought of appeasing Si Qi and getting Si Qi to help the group build the mecha.

He believed that Si Qi had the ability to handle the mecha.

The interactions and Q&A sessions over the past month have already proven Si Qi's capabilities.

No matter what the fault is, it's all Si Ding's fault. If it weren't for Si Ding, how could Si Qi have argued with his family, sacrificing so much benefit at the cost of hurting both himself and his enemy, just to make the Si family pay the price?

So, because of Si Qi's disappearance, Si's father, who was so anxious that he had blisters on his lips, searched the world for Si Qi's whereabouts while sending people to drag Si Ding out of the examination hall when he was halfway through the exam and bring him back home.

Si's mother even had a big argument with Si's father over this.

"Why are you angry with the child!" Mrs. Si said angrily. "Now that you've brought Xiao Ding back, do you think Xiao Qi will show up?"

Father Si: "He's only refusing to come back because he's angry that this person is at home! You at least need to show some respect!"

Siding was filled with resentment, and the dissatisfaction that had been building up in his heart on the way home finally exploded after hearing his father's words.

"Just because Si Qi didn't take the exam, you're telling me not to take it either?" Si Ding said in disbelief, "Dad, even if Si Qi's grades are better than mine, you don't have to bully me like this to please him!"

“Xiao Ding is right!” Si’s mother immediately said.

"Who cares if you take the exam or not!" Father Si was in a panic and didn't care about such things anymore.

When Si Ding heard that it was indeed because Si Qi hadn't taken the exam, his father, out of favoritism, simply wouldn't let him take it either, he was both angry and indignant, feeling that he had suffered a great injustice.

"Why?!" Si Ding finally uttered the words that the original owner had uttered countless times in his heart: "Why?! Aren't I your son?!"

"Shut up!" Si's father was too lazy to listen to Si Ding's complaints and asked him, "Do you have Xiao Qi's contact information? Has he blocked you?"

Si Ding looked at his father sadly and said in a hoarse voice, "I don't know."

"Attack!" Si's father commanded.

"..." Under the intense gaze of his father, Si Ding reluctantly opened the call page, anticipating the humiliation and ridicule he might face, but he had no choice but to do so.

To Si's father's surprise, the call was answered.

Si Qi was dressed in clean, simple clothes, without any luxury accessories. The background behind him didn't look like a hotel or resort, but rather a simple, even somewhat plain, room.

Siding: "You—"

Si's father quickly took the camera's spot and said to Si Qi, "Xiao Qi, where are you? It's the college entrance exam today, and I haven't seen you at the school."

Si Qi: "Oh, I didn't go."

Si's father: "..." Can something as important as the college entrance examination be so easily dismissed with a casual remark that he didn't go?

Si Qi was surprised that he hadn't blocked Si Ding yet. He glanced at Xiu Xiu in his consciousness space and knew that Xiu Xiu probably wanted to see Si Ding make a fool of himself, which was why she hadn't blocked Si Ding's call out of mischief. He asked him, "What's up?"

Mr. Si opened his mouth, but ultimately did not utter a question. He said in a somewhat humble tone, "Xiao Qi, did you block your father? I tried to contact you today, but my calls were rejected."

Si Ding looked at his father in shock, never dreaming that his father would speak to Si Qi in such a tone.

Si Qi pretended not to know and said, "Really? Maybe I went to a place that blocked the signal today."

Si's father: "Signal blocking?"

“The signal will be blocked during the college entrance examination.” Si Qi made up an excuse easily: “I was traveling and didn’t have time to go back, so I took the exam at a local school.”

Father Si's eyes widened; he had completely forgotten about this!

Yes, during the college entrance examination and joint entrance examination, the candidates' signals are blocked. Isn't that common sense? If a candidate wants to take the exam at a certain school, they just need to apply to the central system in advance. They don't have to take the exam at the school they attend.

Sting was immediately overcome with grief—because of this misunderstanding, his parents had forcibly dragged him home from the exam hall, and he hadn't even taken the exam!

Other students in the exam room saw him being forcibly taken away, shouting and screaming all the way. He lost all face!

Father Si breathed a sigh of relief and smiled, saying, "So that's how it is, so that's how it is."

That's good, that's good. At least I wasn't blocked by Si Qi.

Si Qi deliberately asked, "Why is Si Ding at home? Didn't the exams just end?"

Si Ding's face immediately darkened. Si Qi really knew how to bring up the most awkward things.

Si's father said nonchalantly, "It's nothing. I couldn't get through to you on the phone, and I was worried you'd miss the exam, so I called him over to the house so he could call you and ask."

Si Qi said with a half-smile, "Then didn't he miss the exam?"

“It’s no use him participating if he’s like this.” Si’s father knew that Si Qi was saying this on purpose for Si Ding to hear, and he was happy to step on Si Ding’s sore spot in front of Si Qi in order to please Si Qi.

Si Qi smiled as expected.

Si Ding's face turned from green to black, then black to red, his expression constantly changing, but because he was in front of his father, he dared not utter a single word in rebuttal.

Si's mother listened to the whole thing and noticed Si Ding's expression. Considering how they had been worried about Si Qi's disappearance not long ago, and how they had indeed been threatened by Si Qi's actions, Si's mother didn't interrupt at this moment to say anything bad about Si Qi.

The two sides talked back and forth for a long time. Si Qi had had enough of Si Ding's jokes, so he casually gave his father some reassuring promises and then hung up the phone.

“I’ve blocked Si Ding too.” Si Qi, who had turned his back on Si Ding, walked out from the corner of the room, revealing a lot of experimental equipment that Si’s father could recognize at a glance, and said to Xiu Xiu.

"Okay~" Xiu Xiu said with a smile.

Completely unaware that he had been deceived once again, Si Qi reassured him that Si Qi would return after the exam results were released, and he breathed a sigh of relief.

Compared to the terrible situation they had previously guessed, Si Qi was only a few days late returning home after the exam, which was already quite good.

Si's mother also breathed a sigh of relief, and only then did she have the mind to comfort Si Ding, saying to him, "It's just missing one morning's exam, it's okay."

Si Ding said in grief and indignation: "But..."

"Be good, okay?" Mrs. Si frowned slightly, trying to explain patiently, "Your father is just a little anxious."

“But he just didn’t answer the phone, did he really have to call me home too? And he even took me away from the exam hall,” Si Ding said, feeling increasingly aggrieved. “I’ve lost all face!”

"Alright, alright," said Mrs. Si, "If you want to take the exam, you can go this afternoon."

"What about my grades?!"

"Even if you get one more point in one subject, you still won't get a very high score," Mrs. Si said instinctively.

Siding: "…………" He was even angrier!

Furious and frustrated, Siding returned to school, where he had to patiently explain the events of the day to the gossipy students, turning black into white, barely managing to save face.

The afternoon exams resumed on time, but Si Ding's condition was not as excellent as it had been in the morning. He was no longer as smug as Si Qi, who was afraid of him and dared not come to school, nor was he filled with the desire to get first place in the whole school and let everyone know how awesome he was. All he could think about was being dragged away in public halfway through the exam, his father's words, "It's no use even if you take the exam," and his mother's casual remark, "You were never going to get a high score anyway."

—So what exactly is his purpose in insisting on taking the exam?

Anyway, I won't get first place in the whole school after the exam, and I can't compare to Si Qi's top score anyway.

The more Si Ding thought about it, the more dejected he felt. He realized that he seemed to be constantly battling with thin air. Even if he managed to maintain his status as the young master of the Si family at school, Si Qi didn't care about his existence at all. Even though he hadn't been home for more than a month, Si's father still missed Si Qi. He spoke to Si Qi on the other end of the phone in a humble and ingratiating tone, saying things like "I'm worried," "It's okay," and "Come home soon, Dad misses you."

Even Si's mother and Si's daughter, who had always stood by him, changed their tune. Si's daughter became increasingly reluctant to talk to him, and Si's mother stopped giving Si Qi the cold shoulder. Even when Si's father scolded her in front of him, Si's mother pretended not to hear or see it, echoing Si's father and hoping that Si Qi would come home soon.

He has less and less status in that family. As his illness gets worse, will Si's parents just watch him die and not even try to find a way to switch him back with Si Qi?

That must be it...

Siding was so distressed that he completely forgot he was in the exam hall. He hung his head, closed his eyes, and looked bitter.

He found it difficult to stop himself from getting stuck in a rut, and the shadow of death and the neglect from his parents and family made him mentally disoriented.

He was very familiar with this droopy appearance, just like "Si Ding" who appeared in the Si family a few years ago.

As the students walked out of the examination hall after the exam, they suddenly caught sight of that familiar, dejected figure who seemed out of place on campus. For a moment, it was as if they were hallucinating and seeing someone from a few months ago, and they almost mistook him for someone else.

—Is the core inside this body really the proud and confident president of the past?

It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that he was Siding himself.

The students watched Sting from afar, whispering amongst themselves. Sting noticed this, his expression growing increasingly awkward. He quickened his pace, boarded his family's flying car, and urged, "Hurry up."

The driver didn't reply, just drove silently. After a while, the distracted Siding finally snapped out of it and shouted, "Where are you going?"

The driver in front then spoke, his tone carrying a chilling smile: "Young Master Si, be quiet."

Sting was so frightened that his hair stood on end. He quickly jumped to the driver's seat and looked at the driver's face: "Who are you?!"

The driver casually put the car into autopilot mode, turned around and looked at him with a smile, raised his gun, pointed the muzzle at the head that Sting had offered himself up, and said slowly, "Me? I'm the one who's taking you to a good place."

Siding's face turned deathly pale.

"Are you trying to kidnap me? Don't shoot! I'll cooperate. My family is rich. My mom will definitely give you the ransom. Don't be impulsive!"

The driver couldn't help but chuckle and said with a smile, "Okay, then you'd better cooperate. I don't want to get myself covered in blood."

Cold sweat beaded on Si Ding's forehead; he pursed his lips and dared not move.

He cautiously peered out the window, trying to memorize the route, his mind racing. One moment he wondered who had sent the kidnappers, the next he wondered why this guy had to kidnap him, and then he thought of Si Qi. After a pause, he mustered his courage and said to the kidnapper, "Actually, I'm not a child of the Si family."

The kidnapper chuckled, casually tapping Si Ding's head with the muzzle of his gun like a toy, nearly scaring Si Ding to death. "I know you're not a child of the Si family."

Siding: "Then you still—"

The kidnapper remained silent. Si Ding, unwilling to give up, mustered his courage and tried to reason with the kidnapper: "I'm just an adopted son at most, worthless. If you want a large ransom, you can just kidnap Si Qi, he's your biological son! I can even cooperate with you and help you call him out."

The kidnapper found it increasingly amusing and picked up where Si Ding left off, saying, "Then you'll figure out a way to make us kill Si Qi so you can continue being the only young master of the Si family?"

“Dui—” Si Ding subconsciously said yes, then suddenly noticed “continue to be the only young master,” realized something, and said to the kidnapper, “You know—”

Did he know that he was once the sole heir of the Si family, and that he and Si Ding had swapped bodies?

"Of course I know. You're always telling people about it, wishing everyone knew." The kidnapper smiled, but the smile didn't reach his eyes, making his whole face look rather eerie.

“You and Si Qi switched bodies. Our boss is very interested in this and wants to study how a soul can be transferred from one person’s body to another.” The kidnapper’s gaze was like a sharp scalpel, piercing through Si Ding’s body and into his flesh and bones, intending to dissect him until he was covered in blood.

Sting felt a chill run through his body, a coldness that shot up his spine from his feet to the top of his head. He suddenly realized that this was clearly worse than being kidnapped.

Kidnapping is at least for money, but taking people for research is for their lives.

Sting trembled. If a gun hadn't been pointed at his head, he would have grabbed the car door handle immediately.

The kidnapper saw through Sting's thoughts, but his tone remained gentle and conciliatory: "You should know that when it comes to studying the soul, it doesn't matter if you lose an arm or a leg, right?"

Upon understanding this, Si Ding was so frightened that he immediately dared not move.

But while I dared not move my body, my mind was racing.

He said, "I switched bodies with Si Qi. If you only capture me, it won't be enough, right?"

The kidnapper laughed and said with regret, "Yes, but what can we do? We can't find Si Qi anywhere. Besides, the Si family cares so much about him as their heir, so we can't just do it casually."

—So you ended up finding this unlucky guy?!

Siding cursed inwardly, beads of sweat dripping from his forehead, but there was nothing he could do.

“Look on the bright side. If our research goes well, you might even be able to go back into your ‘brother’s’ body,” the kidnapper earnestly reasoned with Sting. “You don’t want to stay in this body anymore, do you? It’s ugly, useless, and you have a terminal genetic disease. Now that the head of our group is willing to do experiments for you at any cost, what are you complaining about? You’ve clearly gotten a great deal!”

Siding was almost fooled by those words.

Thinking about it carefully, hadn't he always hoped that his parents could find a way for him to switch bodies back with Si Qi? Now that a seemingly powerful group was willing to conduct this research, he had indeed encountered a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

Otherwise, what other force would be willing to risk offending the Si family to do this for him?

Siding was reassured by the man's few words, but his tone still carried a hint of uncertainty: "You won't do anything to me, will you? If I die, you'll lose everything, and my parents won't let you get away with it!"

“Of course not,” the kidnapper said with a smile, as if the gun in his hand was just a fun toy rather than something that could kill. His tone was very friendly: “You are our very valuable ‘collaborator,’ how could I bear to hurt you?”

Si Ding's expression softened slightly, but he was still somewhat unwilling to give up and insisted, "What about Si Qi? If we want to study the soul swap between two people, I alone are definitely not enough. We need to find the other person to see if the soul has been swapped back."

"Yes, we're looking." The kidnapper said regretfully, "Unfortunately, he's hidden too well, I don't have a single clue."

“I can call him!” Sting said eagerly. “I have his contact number!”

"Sure, you can give it a try," the kidnapper said with interest.

Siding quickly did as instructed, a hint of excitement visible on his face.

Unfortunately, after the call was made, under the scrutinizing gaze of the kidnappers, a line of text flashed brightly on the screen: "Sorry, you are not the other party's..."

He was blocked.

Siding was so angry he almost jumped out of his seat, gritting his teeth as he said, "He didn't have that this morning..."

The kidnapper was quite disappointed and scolded Siding, "Your brotherhood is really not that good."

Siding: "..." Isn't that obvious?

Having no other choice, Si Ding struggled to say, "I can let my parents try; their numbers should be able to get through."

Like Si's father, Si Ding also believed Si Qi's explanation that morning, thinking that the exam room blocked the signal, which was why Si's parents couldn't get through on the phone.

He recounted what had happened that morning, trying to persuade the kidnappers and offering them the information that "Si Qi was taking an exam in another city." The kidnappers shook their heads and denied it: "We have spies all over the country, including monitoring his whereabouts online. He hasn't shown up at all in the past month, let alone taken an exam."

Siding was dumbfounded and instinctively retorted, "How is that possible!"

How could a perfectly healthy person not show up in public for a whole month, and not even be able to find any trace of him online?

Does he not need to eat, go out, or socialize?

Is this how someone deliberately turns themselves into a wanted criminal?

The kidnapper shrugged: "That's the truth."

Siding looked completely bewildered.

He subconsciously sorted through the events of the past month in his mind, and belatedly realized that many things he had previously overlooked now sent chills down his spine upon reflection—

Because of the soul swap incident, the kidnappers lurking in the shadows and Si Qi's parents have been extremely busy with company affairs for the past month and haven't paid much attention to his whereabouts. It's said that Si Qi gave the company something very important, so the company can't do without him. Si Qi hasn't been home for the past month, and there's no trace of him even online...

Si Ding was the first to disbelieve that it was all a coincidence; Si Qi had clearly been plotting something from the very beginning.

Otherwise, how could a normal person go to such lengths as to not be able to find him online? He is clearly deliberately avoiding something!

Is it because of the kidnapper in front of you?

Or was it because of Si Qi's parents who were constantly searching for his whereabouts?

Or perhaps both.

The more Siding thought about it, the stranger the situation seemed to be. It was as if some unseen danger was approaching him, and he was walking step by step into a trap set by others, but he couldn't even see clearly what the danger was or who it came from.

His face gradually lost its color, and for a moment, Siding felt even more horrified than when he first learned of the kidnappers' existence.

The kidnappers found it amusing, thinking to themselves that it was a bit too late for them to start feeling scared now.

However, to be fair, Si Qi is indeed a man of some talent.

Their group had conducted an investigation into Si Qi, learning that Si Qi had swapped bodies with Si Ding when he was six years old, and also knowing about Si Qi's life experiences, including how he was bullied at home and school, how he had excellent grades, and how he harbored deep resentment towards the Si family...

However, Si Qi's achievement of ranking first in the joint entrance examination still exceeded their expectations. In addition, the Si family's supposedly very important project, which involved a large amount of investment and several financial groups, was also led by Si Qi, an eighteen-year-old boy, which was even more unexpected.

Si Qi is a genius, that much is undeniable.

Both his exam results and his ability to completely outmaneuver the Si family members profoundly prove this point.

Further speculation suggests that while Si Qi was setting a trap for the Si family a month ago, he also noticed the Peng Hui Group lurking in the shadows. Because he was wary of someone targeting him because of the soul swap, it's not impossible that he concealed his whereabouts and went into hiding from the very beginning.

After all, the minds of geniuses always far exceed the imagination of ordinary people.

They sent so many hackers to infiltrate the network in an attempt to track down Si Qi, but to no avail.

How could anyone in the world act without using any smart devices or being captured by any cameras?

Unless this person is also skilled in internet technology and has a place that can ensure his food, clothing, shelter, and safety.

These all require a lot of effort to set up.

Si Qi, however, managed to completely resolve the issue in just one month by exchanging his soul.

He even managed to hide his and Si Ding's identities perfectly during that month, so much so that Si Nan and Si's mother, who were always doting on their brothers and sons, didn't notice anything amiss and didn't realize that their family members had been switched.

The more I think about it, the more unbelievable it seems.

Compared to Si Qi, this guy who turns pale with fright at the slightest provocation is no match for Si Qi at all.

She was incredibly lucky to have swapped bodies with Si Qi and taken advantage of him for so many years.

The Peng Hui Research Institute had analyzed that, given Si Qi's abilities and status, it was impossible for him to voluntarily engage in a soul swap, causing himself so much suffering for nothing. If soul swapping could be controlled, then the one who performed this act and possessed this ability was undoubtedly Si Ding. Their primary goal was simply to capture Si Ding for research; Si Qi was merely a secondary consideration.

It would be better if they could catch him, but if they couldn't, they wouldn't force it, since they really couldn't find Si Qi anywhere.

Si's parents only discovered that Si Ding was missing when they were preparing dinner that evening.

At first, Si's mother thought that Si was arguing with the family and was hiding in his room and not coming out.

Later, the butler came and said that he had received a text message from the young master saying that he would be back later. However, when they tried to contact the driver, they received no response. When they checked the location of the flying car, the vehicle's GPS was stuck in the suburbs.

Only then did Mrs. Si belatedly realize that something was wrong.

She called Si Ding, but the call was first rejected and then blocked. Considering what happened to Si Qi that morning, Si's mother guessed that the signal might also be blocked, so she called her husband and daughter to call together, but the result was the same.

Mrs. Si began to feel scared. She wondered if Si Ding had run away from home in anger, and she also worried that without treatment, Si Ding would only be waiting to die. She was afraid that something might happen to Si Ding outside, so she hurriedly asked her husband to help search for him.

Although Si's father said he had given up on Si Ding, he wouldn't have been so careless as to not even bother to take care of Si Ding in the last few years of his life. He summoned the men he had sent out during the day to look for Si Qi, but before he could issue any new instructions, he received the reply from his men: "We still haven't found where Young Master Si Qi is."

Si Fu was stunned.

The men Si's father sent out used to do dirty work for him. Finding people, taking lives, stealing information—they were all easy for him to handle.

Unexpectedly, this time, they actually stumbled on Si Qi's side.

Like the kidnapper, Si's father was convinced that people living in this era simply cannot live without the internet.

Whether it's traveling or buying food, you can't do anything without the internet.

With skilled network technicians, they hacked into the backend to check street surveillance footage and accessed official accounts to view entry and exit information, attempting to locate Si Qi's whereabouts.

Si Qi said during the day that he went out of town to take an exam, so he must have traveled by car or plane. But his subordinates said they had no travel information for Si Qi, and didn't even know where he was now.

How is that possible?

"Young Master Si Qi seems to be deliberately avoiding us..." The subordinate said cautiously, carefully choosing his words, "If it weren't intentional, it would be difficult for a person to erase their traces so cleanly."

A chill ran down Si's father's spine. He recalled his inability to reach Si Qi by phone earlier that day, and Si Qi's seemingly reassuring words that revealed absolutely nothing about himself. He immediately opened his contacts and called Si Qi.

The call was not answered as expected; the phone remained on the blacklist.

Mr. Si was furious. So the reason he couldn't make the call before wasn't because the signal was blocked, but because Si Qi had never removed him from the blacklist!

He wanted to give his men a good scolding, but under Si's mother's urging, he had no choice but to continue ordering them to find Si Ding's whereabouts. He didn't forget to add at the end, "Finding Si Qi is the priority. Don't waste your energy on Si Ding!"

Si's mother was furious, but she couldn't do anything about her husband, so she could only turn to her family to see if they could find Si Ding—and she was vague about Si Qi's disappearance, not mentioning it at all.

Otherwise, she could easily guess that her family's concern was far more important than the insignificant Si Ding's whereabouts.

After all, because of her strong assurances, her family had invested heavily in the mecha project, second only to the Si family.

If they find out they've been tricked... they'll be furious and the first one to rush over and tear her apart.

Thinking about the series of troubles that Si Qi's disappearance would bring, Si's mother felt a chill run down her spine and dared not think about it in detail.

Frustrated by a multitude of issues, Mr. and Mrs. Si were both furious and got up to leave the restaurant.

Si Nan sat at the dining table, numbly watching the chaos unfold in the house. The once lively dining table was now empty except for her; Si Qi, Si Ding, Si's father, and Si's mother were all gone. Knowing that the two heads of the household had volatile tempers and would scold anyone who approached, the servants dared not come to serve the meal, leaving her sitting there alone, hungry, waiting for ages.

It seems she really has no status in this family.

Si Nan gave a wry smile.

...

"Si Ding has been arrested?" Si Qi raised an eyebrow, sat down at the dining table, and put a spoonful of glutinous rice balls into his mouth.

"Yes, he was arrested in the afternoon."

At the time of the incident, Xiuxiu witnessed the kidnapping and overheard Siding's conversation with the kidnapper. Siding was subtly urging the kidnapper to kidnap Siqi as well, which infuriated Xiuxiu.

If Si Qi hadn't kept these two people around for a while, Xiu Xiu might have controlled the flying car and given them a hundred or eighty Thomas spins in the air, making them vomit until they were dizzy and their souls truly ascended to heaven.

However, since it wasn't a big deal, Xiuxiu didn't want to bother Siqi who was working, so she only relayed the information at this point.

Si Qi nodded: "Keep an eye on that side and record their experiment."

Xiu Xiu made an "OK" sign: "Mission accomplished!"

Chu Feng "casually" floated over and said "casually" again, "I can also do supervision, and I can do it exceptionally well."

It's definitely better than some system with the surname Xiu and the given name Xiu.

A system with the surname Xiu and the given name Xiu: "..."

Si Qi skillfully stroked his hair: "Your task is to accompany me. This job is very important, and no one can replace you."

Chu Feng was indeed completely charmed and straightened his back, saying with immense pride, "Yes, that's right, after all, I am your only partner."

Those so-called "authentic Chu Feng" and "idiot Xiu Xiu" should all step aside.

Si Qi readily agreed: "Yes, yes, only you."

He finished eating the glutinous rice balls sprinkled with osmanthus flowers, then drank all the sweet and fragrant soup. Satisfied, he put down his bowl and spoon, stood up, and said, "I'm so tired after a day's work. Come and scrub my back."

Chu Feng followed along eagerly, adding with a cheerful smile, "Only I can take a bath with you."

“Yes, yes, yes,” Si Qi made a heart shape with his hands towards the robot behind him, and then kissed Chu Feng’s big head as he approached. “mua~! Darling, you’re so sweet.”

The sweetness of a naive and innocent girl.

Completely unfamiliar with such a scene, Chu Feng was knocked down by the kiss and remained dizzy for a long time before recovering from his daze. He then foolishly touched the spot where Si Qi had kissed him with his free hand, saying, "I don't have any sensors installed."

Si Qi: "What?"

"I'll install it later, okay?" Chu Feng said pitifully, his blinking electronic eyes clearly saying: So you want a kiss later too.

Si Qi, his face stern, struggled to suppress his laughter. He cleared his throat, stepped into the bathtub, and said meaningfully, "That depends on your performance."

Chu Feng understood immediately, "I love you the most in the whole world, and I'm willing to do anything for you."

Si Qi: "//////"

Sigh, even after all these years, I can still be easily hit by Chu Feng's direct approach.

I blushed a little.

Si Qi pretended to be serious and said, "You're willing to do anything for me, so what are you going to do for me?"

He was clearly teasing him, but Chu Feng, who was born from data, didn't understand any of it and fell into deep thought.

Under Si Qi's intrigued gaze, Chu Feng pondered for a long time before suddenly becoming dejected: "I'm not a good partner; I can't do anything for you."

Si Qi, who was in the middle of a great time, was a little confused by these words.

"...Why did you suddenly think that way?" Si Qi tried to prove it with an example: "Didn't you help me catch the spy and make that bowl of glutinous rice balls for supper?"

How can this not be considered a good partner?

Chu Feng hung his head, looking very sad: "This is all I should do. I only do this much. How can I ask you for a kiss?"

Rewards are given for doing extra work, things that go beyond what is expected. Whether it's catching spies to protect Si Qi or cooking glutinous rice balls to feed Si Qi, aren't these the most basic things a partner should do?

Si Qi is good at everything and is perfect at everything. He has no idea what he could possibly do that would warrant an extra reward from Si Qi.

"..." Si Qi's heart softened at Chu Feng's words, and he couldn't help but reach out and hug Chu Feng, giving him several more kisses.

He really liked this person.

Chu Feng was overjoyed, his data streams darting around, while he anxiously said, "We can't kiss, we can't kiss, I haven't installed the sensor yet."

Si Qi was both annoyed and amused, and couldn't help but reach out and slap him, "Didn't you know to ask me for it after you installed it?"

Chu Feng's "eyes" widened: "You can do that?!"

Si Qi glanced at him: "As an AI, you are clearly smarter than most people in the world, so how come you can't even figure this out?"

Chu Feng retorted confidently, "How could I possibly use my brain on you?"

Si Qi was immediately charmed by the sweetness and teased him, "Yeah, you've used all your cunning on Xiu Xiu."

"...Why bring him up at this time?" Chu Feng was clearly jealous.

As expected, all the intelligent systems in the world except for him are the most annoying.

"Did you used to make heart shapes with your hands and give him kisses?" Chu Feng asked in a resentful tone.

“Of course not.” Si Qi replied without hesitation.

Chu Feng, having been flattered, seized the opportunity to say subtly, "But he also bragged to me that you often play games and watch movies with him, and I'm so envious."

Si Qi grinned and said, "Then I'll play games with you, watch movies with you, and I'll always love you the most."

"That--"

"Chu Feng, I'm so cold." Knowing that Chu Feng could be very difficult to deal with when she got serious, Si Qi looked at Chu Feng pitifully: "I'm all wet."

Chu Feng immediately fell silent, focusing intently on rubbing Si Qi's back, afraid that his beloved would catch a cold.

Si Qi: Plan Achieved √

Chu Feng quickly rinsed the soap off Si Qi's body, then wrapped Si Qi in a bathrobe and skillfully carried Si Qi back to the room and onto the bed.

Si Qi continued pitifully, "I'm so lonely sleeping alone, Chu Feng, please keep me company."

Chu Feng obediently lifted the blanket.

"Chu Feng, you're covered in metal, it's so cold."

Chu Feng quickly adjusted the machine's temperature.

"Chu Feng, your body is so stiff, it's uncomfortable for me to sleep while holding you."

Chu Feng had no choice this time and repeatedly promised, "I'll get myself a new set of realistic skins tomorrow."

Si Qi looked aggrieved: "But I want to sleep now."

Chu Feng was at a loss, hesitating and unsure of what to do.

Si Qi finally revealed his long-planned true colors: "I have a body here..."

Chu Feng's heart tightened: "I...I won't—"

"Waaah... I'm so sleepy! I'm so tired and exhausted after a long day of work, and I haven't had enough sleep..." Si Qi looked at Chu Feng with a sorrowful and resentful expression.

Chu Feng: "..."

"Waaah..." Si Qi covered his face and pretended to cry.

Chu Feng: "…………"

"Waaaaah..."

Chu Feng gritted his teeth: "Fine! I'll change."

Upon hearing this, Si Qi gave Chu Feng no chance to back out. He immediately rolled over and pulled out a modified succubus body from under the bed (in his consciousness space), presenting it beautifully to Chu Feng.

Chu Feng, who had spent the entire day cleaning the house and thoroughly clearing under the empty bed several times, was like: ? ? ? !! Where did this thing come from!

Chu Feng stared blankly at the hateful and detestable face of the original Chu Feng. Before he could say anything, his consciousness was pulled in the instant the data stream touched his body.

In an instant, the temperature of the air, the flowing breath, the person opposite him touching his palm—everything, all the information about being "alive," rushed into Chu Feng's mind, making him dizzy and almost trembling.

What shocked him even more was Si Qi's face getting closer and closer, his soft body embracing him, and the gentle kiss that landed on his brow. All of this made him shudder, his pupils suddenly contracting. Before he could react, his hands instinctively grabbed Si Qi's arms, preventing him from leaving.

Then, he leaned forward, raised his lips, and subconsciously followed Si Qi's lips, pressing them down and deepening the kiss.

In his hazy consciousness, a thought flashed through his mind: how incredibly foolish he had been to refuse to change bodies in the past.

It's so good to be alive.

-----------------------

Author's Note: [Dog head with rose in hand]