Chapter 23 Banquet 3 Let's make a bet, let's bet on whether Xie Jiaoyue or the waiter...
In fact, the system had also doubted the host's intentions.
For example, during the first mission, it questioned the host's intention to make the male protagonist a son-in-law, and during the second mission, the host gave the male protagonist an ambiguous pill. But in the end, all the missions were successfully completed, and its suspicions were unfounded; it was just unnecessary worry.
It even doubted its own computational model, but unfortunately it didn't have the money to update to the latest, idiotic version of the AI model and could only use the old one.
So today, when it saw Xie Jiaoyue picking out clothes for Chu Xingjin, although it was very suspicious of its host's intentions, it had learned from the lessons of previous missions to keep quiet and observe.
As expected, it was proven wrong.
Even the waiter, a complete stranger, praised the host's love for the male lead and acknowledged the host's good taste. Doesn't this prove that the host has perfectly embodied the character and is genuinely spending money on the male lead?
As for whether the clothes are suitable for the male protagonist, since it was chosen by the male protagonist himself, it's just a system. Its job is only to maintain the protagonist, and it doesn't need to make too many judgments about the protagonist's choices.
The system shut down its connection with Xie Jiaoyue's five senses. Since the male protagonist has already put it on, then... then it thinks it's good too!
It seems it's time to schedule the next task.
It will issue tasks when it finds a quiet time.
They waited and waited until they returned home.
Of the four people who left, only three remained when they returned home.
Xie Jiaoyue couldn't understand what was going on. Gong Shi Moyu had clearly said he would leave in the evening, but when they left Wang's Clothing Shop, he suddenly took his leave.
He patted her head and said with a relieved expression, "It seems that Jiaoyue doesn't need me to care too much."
This statement is nonsensical and doesn't make any sense.
After briefly browsing a few shops and buying some shoes and cosmetics, she grew tired of Chu Xingjin's "preaching" and simply returned home.
Her original intention was to go back to the mansion and plan her outfit properly, but unexpectedly, as soon as she stepped into the house, the system's voice rang out.
[Task 3: Bring Chu Xingjin to Xin Xiuying's birthday banquet.]
Xie Jiaoyue stopped looking at her clothes and stared at the task in deep thought.
It's strange, really strange.
Previous missions all had clear requirements for spending money, or were clearly beneficial to Chu Xingjin.
For example, the first time, she needed to rescue Chu Xingjin and change his situation. The second time was even simpler; she needed to find a magic pill for Chu Xingjin.
It's very obvious that the cannon fodder are supplying resources to the male protagonist.
But this time, it's not apparent from the mission summary at all.
Another problem is that she was going to take Chu Xingjin to the birthday party anyway, and even took Chu Xingjin out to buy things for that purpose. Under these circumstances, the system still issued a task.
This indicates that the task was extremely important, corresponding to a very important point in time in the original work.
But Xie Jiaoyue recalled the original text for a long time and couldn't see anything important at all.
Could it be that the system has had a change of heart and wants to send her something?
However, when it comes to the calculation of mission rewards, she only gets a commission if she spends money for Chu Xingjin. Apart from that, there are only vague lottery opportunities and "harmless" halo upgrades.
Why take Chu Xingjin to a birthday party? Is there some opportunity to spend money?
Xie Jiaoyue checked the mission rewards page after a long time. Some of her balance had been deducted, probably because of the small cloak that Gong Shi Moyu had given her.
She didn't spend any money on Task Two, so there shouldn't have been any commission settlement, but the system calculated her commission based on the market price of Bacon Pills.
Her balance skyrocketed, and she now has 24 high-grade spirit stones.
Bacon Dan is really valuable; if you convert it, it could buy four Fu Lai restaurants.
The experience bar for the "harmless" aura has increased significantly. Once quest three is completed, she should be able to unlock the next level and learn about the aura's function.
She got another chance to win a prize, but she didn't use it.
Having experienced the last lottery, she vaguely felt that the prizes were all related to her current situation. She wasn't facing any difficulties yet, so she could save the lottery opportunity.
So, what will she gain from mission three?
Xie Jiaoyue confirmed with the system: "[Does the cost of buying clothes for Chu Xingjin today count towards the expenses for Mission Three?]"
The system directly approved: 【It can certainly be calculated.】
Xie Jiaoyue was moved; the capitalists had finally had a change of heart.
Then she calculated her expenses for the day, and the total amount she gave to Chu Xingjin was less than 0.1 high-grade spirit stones.
Her eyes lit up: "[Does this count as what I bought for you?]"
[Host, listen to yourself, are you even speaking human language?]
Xie Jiaoyue bit her handkerchief. Chu Xingjin treated her like a beautiful ornament, so why didn't he consider it an act of dressing up an ornament?
She laid out all the clothes, treating them as the spoils of her third mission. She wouldn't be Xie if she didn't try them on eight hundred times!
...
Xin Xiuying's birthday party started at noon.
Even before the start time, some people had already arrived, such as her cousin Xin Yijiu, who was always by her side.
Xin Yijiu brought fresh fruits to Xin Xiuying, and took the opportunity to squeeze out the others and sit next to Xin Xiuying: "Cousin, I heard that Uncle is paying special attention to your birthday banquet this time and invited a lot of people. Who are they?"
Xin Xiuying is the daughter of the clan leader. She has lived in the praise of others since childhood. On this Spirit-Fixing Day, she was found to have the outstanding talent of dual spiritual roots. Moreover, she has dual spiritual roots of water and wood, which are most suitable for the Xin clan's cultivation method. This makes her extremely proud.
A smile played on her lips, and she beamed: "This isn't just my birthday party; Father also wants everyone to know about my talent, so he's making it a big celebration. I heard from Father that he even invited the Phoenix Clan."
This year, on the day of the Spirit Fixation, when Xin Xiuying was testing her spiritual root talent, the alchemy furnace actually emitted a buzzing sound.
Heavenly spiritual roots are rare and precious, but for a family with a long tradition like the Xin clan, suitability is even more important. The fact that she can make the water-patterned alchemy furnace hum is a testament to Xin Xiuying's ability to become the most important member of the next generation of the Xin clan.
Xin Xiuying's father has been ecstatic these past few days. They have been suppressed by the other two powerful families for years, and now they finally have hope of turning things around. How could he not be excited? He's so excited that he's been thinking about how to show off.
The solution the Xin clan chief came up with was to hold a birthday banquet, since it would be inconvenient to show off once he entered the clan school.
The parents' thoughts were so similar, exactly the same as Gong Shirao's. Once she entered the clan school, who knows how long it would take for her reputation to spread? How could they, as parents, bear it these days?
For this birthday banquet, the Xin family will bring out the Water Pattern Alchemy Furnace, which has not been used for many years, and Xin Xiuying will personally start the alchemy furnace in front of everyone.
She specially wore her most gorgeous and precious robes for this occasion, like a proud little peacock.
Xin Yijiu knew a little about the inside story, but she didn't expect it to be so grand. She gaped, "They even invited the Phoenix Clan!"
It should be noted that the Phoenix Clan, as a demon clan with an extremely special bloodline, has always been reluctant to pay attention to the few Yellow-level aristocratic families, even though their settlement is not far from Jinling City. Unexpectedly, they have actually been willing to do us a favor this time.
Xin Xiuying said, "Of course. My father is the head of the Xin clan. He invited all our relatives and friends this time. Who wouldn't give him face?"
She clicked her tongue: "But the Xie family also received an invitation."
She took a couple of bites of fruit unhappily: "That Xie Jiaoyue has never liked to attend these kinds of events. Father only politely sent an invitation to the Xie family. I didn't expect them to accept it this time. Xie Jiaoyue actually plans to come."
On such a joyous day, what is that unlucky little fellow doing here? Is he here to bring her bad luck?
She hated Xie Jiaoyue's timid and hesitant demeanor, as if she had been bullied.
If someone bullies you, fight back! You're all from prestigious families, what's there to be afraid of?
Xin Yijiu didn't actually know why Xin Xiuying disliked Xie Jiaoyue, but dislike was enough. She excitedly introduced her to Xin Xiuying: "I met her yesterday, and she still looks as unsophisticated as ever. Her act of running around looking for a husband is even more petty and unsophisticated. The two of them are a perfect match."
The clothes Xie Jiaoyue bought that day, all bright red and gold, should probably be considered tacky, right?
That's not right either. I wouldn't wear such flamboyant clothes here, would I? It's not appropriate for the occasion.
Xin Yijiu concluded, "Even if she comes, she'll only be there to make you look good, cousin." Praising Xin Xiuying while putting down Xie Jiaoyue was definitely the right thing to do; she was her cousin's most considerate little helper.
Xin Xiuying pursed her lips, not quite happy to hear the compliments: "I don't need this kind of embellishment, it's annoying to look at."
I hope Xie Jiaoyue will arrive later today so as not to disturb her good mood.
Xin Xiuying didn't continue Xin Yijiu's conversation, but the others started chatting about the topic.
After all, recently, apart from the day of the memorial service, this romantic affair is the most entertaining, and the young girls are already itching to gossip about it with their friends.
"Have you heard? A waiter? Does Xie Jiaoyue actually like this type? I wonder how talented she is."
"Didn't they say that the Xie family produced two people with celestial spiritual roots?"
"It's unlikely to be the two of them. I remember the elders in the clan mentioning before that these two wouldn't be very talented."
"Xie Jiaoyue used to be like a rabbit. It's not bad to find someone with average talent so that she won't be bullied in the future."
They were all girls under twenty, at an age where they longed for love but didn't fully understand it, filled with innocent dreams, and were even more curious than adults.
"Will she bring a waiter to find a husband?"
"If it were me, I wouldn't bring it; I can't afford to lose face like that."
"I wonder who is better looking between the two of them."
The woman surnamed Wang, who always admired beautiful women, stood up: "You don't understand, do you?"
"Think about it carefully. When Xie Jiaoyue was looking for a husband, she didn't know about his talent as a waiter, nor did she care about his family background. You always need a reason to like someone, so what's left?"
Others were intrigued.
Ms. Wang smiled confidently: "Of course it's looks! That waiter must be exceptionally handsome."
A woman surnamed Xin objected: "I don't think so. People aren't like you, who only care about looks."
"Let's bet, if the waiter isn't as pretty as Xie Jiaoyue, I'll give you the latest Wang family robe!"
"Alright, if he's prettier than Xie Jiaoyue, I'll give you a bottle of Xin's Qi Gathering Pills!"
Wang had never met Xie Jiaoyue, but she had heard of Xie Jiaoyue's name, so she was very confident.
Regardless of Xie Jiaoyue's talent, she has plenty of spirit stones, so why not keep a gigolo to keep her happy?
People nearby joined in the fun, placing their bets.
Among the crowd, someone quietly added a bet on the Wang woman.
Recently, a book has been frequently appearing in her mind, seemingly corresponding to real-life scenarios. For example, the book previously mentioned that Chu Xingjin possessed a metal-attribute celestial spiritual root.
Regarding today, the book states:
Aside from the Xie family, this was Chu Xingjin's first official appearance in Jinling City. After just one meeting, countless noble ladies fell for him and secretly pledged their hearts to him.
He looked down on these people; they were just shallow people who only cared about appearances and were not worth his attention.
He is destined to become a celestial being, and will not linger for mortals.
Her heart skipped a beat. If he wouldn't stop for ordinary people, would he stop for her?
Author's note: I had already finished writing at 9 o'clock, but I couldn't help but revise and revise...
I was chatting with a friend the other day, and we were talking about how some AIs trained on Chinese training sets are doing better than ChatGPT at answering Chinese questions. The best-performing training set is probably the one that's completely stupid!
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