Chapter 102
[Beep—Dear host, the system has detected that you are feeling down. To reduce the difficulty of completing the storyline, the system shop will be permanently open.]
Just when the homeless girl was at a loss, the system's mechanical voice sounded in Lin Yi's mind again.
What can I exchange for?
[Some commonly used survival items can be redeemed in the shop to ensure the host's survival until the end of the story.]
On the large shelf, there were a few bottles of mineral water, a sewing kit, and some compressed biscuits.
That's it? These things can only ensure she doesn't starve to death while trapped. Otherwise, whether it's a natural disaster or a man-made one, she'll still die.
[...Items in the shop will be refreshed periodically. Feel free to message me anytime if you need anything.]
[In addition, based on the cheat system selected by the host, a special exchange event has been prepared for you.]
The Golden Finger—that's the Pharmacopoeia Index! Lin Yi's eyes lit up.
Has the special offer started yet?
[Nothing is available yet, but seeing how much the host is looking forward to the event, the system is very pleased and grants you a sneak peek.]
Crack—
Lin Yi saw the illusory image of the wooden shelf tremble, then flip over, revealing a room full of books on the other side.
The print on the spines was rather small, and Lin Yi was too lazy to read each book carefully. He asked, "Are there any books related to the Gu techniques of Southern Xinjiang?"
A book unfolded before my eyes, turning a few pages on its own without any wind.
"This is it! I want to redeem it."
[Okay, host. The goodwill points required to exchange for this "Secret Records of Gu Poisoning in Southern Xinjiang" are 1,000.]
...A thousand points? Why don't you just rob someone?
[The use of the word "rob" here is inappropriate. The goodness value itself is useless to the system; its existence is to regulate the host's behavior, prevent the host from losing its humanity, and provide convenience for the host.]
I didn't find it convenient at all; all I experienced were countless troubles it brought!
If the host finds it too expensive, they can wait for a special offer to purchase it.
This isn't about price; her goodwill score is too low, with too many negative values, and she'll be sent back immediately. "When are there any events?"
Tomorrow at 10:00 AM, which is the Si hour (9-11 AM) for you.
Less than a day.
Lin Yi then asked, "How much of a discount can I get during this special offer?"
The discount may vary depending on the price list updated randomly by the system each day, and the system cannot predict this.
Perhaps feeling the wording was a bit stiff, the system added a "yo" after a while.
"..."
"Don't want to talk about it?" Xie Chengnan asked.
"Hmm...it's not very convenient."
Lin Yi couldn't tell him about the system, but she didn't want to lie to him either, so she glanced at him nervously and then looked away.
Xie Chengnan reached out and straightened her dry, curly hair. "If it's inconvenient, that's fine. What do you need me to do?"
Lin Yi hadn't yet obtained the Gu Secret Record, and she wasn't sure what she needed to prepare. She thought for a moment and said, "You need to take good care of your injuries and recover quickly."
Xie Chengnan chuckled softly as he rested his head on her lap.
The next day, Lin started monitoring the system early in the morning. Since there wasn't a sundial in front of every tent, checking the time wasn't convenient. In order to get the method as soon as possible, she would tap the system every now and then.
After waking up the redemption interface for the umpteenth time, I finally saw a red "Special Price" tag in the lower right corner of the book.
Lin Yi shifted his gaze to the exchange value below and blinked.
?
"Is the price marked incorrectly?"
The system didn't respond immediately; it was probably checking the price tag.
That's right.
As the mechanical voice faded, Lin Yi snapped, "Are you kidding me?"
The exchange value for "The Secret Records of Gu in Southern Xinjiang" is clearly marked as "999 - Special Price".
[As informed to the host yesterday, the exchange price is randomly generated and cannot be controlled by the system.]
The system's mechanical voice was exactly the same as yesterday, devoid of emotion, but Lin Yi felt it was much colder today. It was as if the few times it had shown "humanity" in the past were just her illusions.
"Even if it's randomly generated, how come the difference between 1000 and 999 is so incredibly coincidental that I just happened to be the one who got it? Can you honestly say there wasn't any shady dealing involved?!"
【No. 】
Cold. Cold and infuriating.
To deal with such a system, Lin Yi had no other choice but to be even more shameless: "I just want to change it, you figure out a way."
Regardless of whether the price is changed or a new discount is offered, Lin Yi is determined to switch, and he cannot allow his goodness value to be reduced to a negative number!
[Dear host, ideals are beautiful, but reality is often harsh. If you insist on exchanging for it, the system will deduct 999 points of goodwill from your account.]
[Friendly reminder: After deduction, the host's goodwill score balance is -429, meeting the deportation criteria.]
[Please confirm if...]
Lin Yi could clearly hear the sound of the system freezing.
The hissing sound of electricity lasted for ten seconds.
Then, even though it was the same mechanical voice, Lin Yi felt something was different.
[Dear Host, the prices in the store cannot be changed. The system can apply to provide you with an advance payment service, which means that the Good Deeds points will not be deducted temporarily. The deduction will be made when the host's account balance reaches the payment threshold, at which time an additional 10% of the deducted price will be required. Please select whether you agree.]
"……agree."
[Ding—Transaction completed. Have a pleasant journey.]
The "Secret Records of Gu Poisoning in Southern Xinjiang" fell into her hands out of thin air. Lin Yi gripped it tighter.
This system... is very strange.
She couldn't quite put her finger on what was wrong, so she simply stopped thinking about it.
The Gu Secrets Record, redeemable in the shop, is more like a setting book used by the author, detailing more than ten kinds of Gu techniques, each with its own usage conditions and antidote. Lin Yi easily found the Gu poison that An Bing had been afflicted with.
Camel milk, dandelion roots... and cactus thorns—these can all be found in the Gobi Desert. But where are we going to get scorpion tails, ringed snake gallbladders, and vinegar-soaked earthworms?
Lin Yi copied down all these strange and not-so-strange materials, then took the paper to Zhan Xian.
The female battalion commander, wearing a red dress beneath her black armor, fell into deep thought upon seeing these words. After hesitating several times, she finally said, "...I will do my best."
Finding everything would be too much to ask of anyone. Even she herself didn't know if this vinegar-soaked earthworm was a special species or just a bursting, vinegar-soaked one. She nodded: "Let's look for what we can find first. I'll figure out what to do with what we can't find. Is your injury healed?"
Zhan Xian was surprised that she would suddenly care about her, and blinked very lightly, "It's all done... thank you."
"You're welcome."
The distance that had been painstakingly closed before the march had been widened again after some time had passed. Lin Yi was somewhat unwilling to accept this.
She couldn't help but advise, "Even though you're fully recovered, you shouldn't overwork yourself. Make sure you get enough sleep, ideally four hours a day."
After saying this, Lin Yi smiled sheepishly.
At the start of the war, the army began marching at dawn and drilled until dusk every day. This was before any enemy attacks and before any precautions were needed.
Zhan Xian looked at her calmly and answered seriously, "I understand."
Just as Lin Yi was wondering if saying anything more would be too obviously ingratiating, Zhan Xian took the initiative to suggest, "I'm in the cavalry archery camp. If there's nothing important, I can rest for most of the day around noon. If you're bored, you can come find me."
Lin Yi was taken aback for a moment, then realized that the female lead was taking the initiative to make amends with her! She immediately beamed with joy: "Okay!"
That evening, Lin Yi stared at the large characters on the paper, her brow furrowed in worry. She had already read the book, "The Secret Record of Gu Poisoning in Southern Xinjiang," twice over. "Vinegar-dressed earthworms" appeared several times throughout the book, suggesting they were important for curing Gu poison, but there wasn't a single word explaining what they actually were.
Xie Chengnan placed a bowl of ginger tea, which had been improved and promoted by Doctor Qiu, on the table. The sound of the bowl hitting the table did not distract her.
Xie Chengnan glanced at the paper and said, "Vinegar can cure miasma poison. When combined with earthworms, it should be able to cure Gu poison."
Lin Yi didn't pay attention at first, but after a while he realized what he had said, "You know?"
Xie Chengnan looked at her with a smile: "What do you know?"
"Vinegar-dressed earthworms!"
Xie Chengnan nodded, then looked puzzled: "How could the learned and divine doctor not know?"
"Stop being silly and tell me how to do this!"
"Soak live earthworms without shells in white vinegar with slices of old ginger until they die..."
He spoke, and Lin Yi took notes.
After she finished explaining how to make it, Xie Chengnan asked her, still somewhat disbelievingly, "You really don't know what vinegar-dressed earthworms are?"
Lin Yi was a little embarrassed by his question. It was like a top student being asked, "Seriously? You really don't know how to solve this problem?"
This isn't some simple math problem like one plus one equals two; it's perfectly normal that she didn't know.
"I thought this might be a new species of earthworm."
Xie Chengnan nodded: "People say that wise people are often overthinking things, and it's true that the more intelligent a person is, the more complicated things tend to be. Only someone with a simple mind like me would interpret things literally..."
Before he could finish his nice words, Lin Yi covered his mouth.
The latter blushed slightly, secretly annoyed that his mouth had learned such sweet talk to deceive young girls!
Xie Chengnan pulled her hand down, his lips brushing against her palm, his breath hot: "I missed you."
Lin Yi didn't believe it: "Didn't we just see each other this morning?"
"I'd like to."
They had been marching for the past two days, already crossing the Gobi Desert, and by tomorrow they would be deep within it. The desert held not only enemies, but also the desert itself, which they would have to fight against with all their might. This might very well be the best night they would ever have from now until their triumphant return.
Xie Chengnan gently kissed her temple: "Go to sleep early, okay?"
"Let me take another look."
Without saying a word, Xie Chengnan picked up the paper she had been staring at all night and quickly glanced at each name.
"I took a few scorpions with me before I left—the kind we keep at home. Zhan Xian can get the rest, now—"
"I'm sleepy. Miracle Doctor Sister, please have mercy and keep your husband company while we retire for the night?"
Without waiting for a reply, he led the person to the couch.
Due to limited resources, the generals shared a single tent for deliberation and rest, separated only by a screen.
During the day, to make it easier to conduct business, the screen was removed and a low table was placed directly on the tatami mat.
Lin Yi hadn't moved it because he was studying the prescription, so the usable space on the couch was extremely small.
Xie Chengnan pulled her into his arms, and the two of them fell onto the couch together, unable to even stretch out their arms and legs.
Lin Yi remembered to move the low table, but before she could get up, he pressed her back down and hugged her even tighter.
"Just make do with this?" You could tell he was really tired; his murmured voice was hoarse with sleepiness.
She's fine, but Xie Chengnan has long arms and legs. If he curls up all night, he'll definitely feel uncomfortable when he wakes up the next day.
"Let's move a bit, it's awkward like this..." Before she could finish speaking, the breath spraying on her face had already softened.
He's already asleep...
Lin Yi glanced at the low table that was so close yet out of reach, then looked at her tightly bound arms, and finally gave in and closed her eyes.
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