Chapter 27 The Ancient Scholar Used as Cannon Fodder (Part 27) Lin You to...
Lin You had absolutely no resistance to Chu Qing, a girl who was both soft and sweet.
Hearing her call out "elder sister" in a soft, sweet voice, he not only immediately changed into the clothes she had made for him, but also stayed with her that very night.
This was the first time Lin You had been lying in bed since becoming a system.
Well, she was just a tiny little thing, only a foot tall, lying alone on a large bed that was more than a meter wide and two meters long. It was incredibly spacious; she could turn over as she pleased without fear of falling off.
For a moment, Lin You had a strange feeling, like the kind of feeling you get from reading domineering CEO novels where someone is supposed to be sleeping on a giant bed that's hundreds of meters long.
In the dead of night, Chu Qing next door was already asleep, but the system didn't need to sleep. Of course, this was because her level was relatively low; according to her upgrade path, it would eventually return to normal.
When she was with Chu Nanfeng before, because of the difference between men and women, in order not to make him feel uncomfortable, Lin You would squat on the roof when he was about to sleep.
She counted the stars on the rooftop, looked at the moon, and spaced out for a while. Perhaps because she had become part of a system, once her mind was clear, she was like a machine in standby mode, and she didn't feel bored.
Now lying in bed, looking at the curtains hanging down above, Lin You suddenly regained a sense of what it was like to be human.
She couldn't resist opening the system page and browsing it, just like when she was on vacation and lying in bed scrolling through her phone.
Unfortunately, her system interface wasn't a phone; it only had five icons and no entertainment apps.
Lin You tapped the first character information icon. Hmm, Chu Nanfeng's information had changed slightly; his height had increased by 1cm and his weight by 1kg.
Having followed him around all this time, I never realized Chu Nanfeng had grown so much. Lin You propped her head up on the bed, feeling a great sense of accomplishment in feeding him.
However, despite eating so many snacks and not exercising much, Chu Nanfeng remained tall and handsome. It seems that good-looking people can't gain weight no matter how much they eat.
Lin You completely ignored the fact that Chu Nanfeng always carried a lot of things and accompanied her for most of the day whenever they went shopping. She only envied his physique of not gaining weight.
The character information was simple and clear, and there were no changes to the other data. Lin You then opened the plot introduction.
Now that the main villain Han Qige is completely finished, she no longer feels the anger she once had when she looks at those plot points.
Lin You calmed down and carefully read through the plot again. Then she discovered that the other villain, Prince Cheng, who had planned the rebellion long ago and later allied with Han Qige, had also been killed by Chu Nanfeng and his friends!
Xie Zian had mentioned in a previous conversation that Prince Cheng had been poisoned and was now completely finished.
It seems the plot has completely fallen apart. Oh well, it's not all bad; at least it prevents further bloodshed.
Lin You hesitated for only a second before continuing to scroll down. She often studied the cheat system, but since you could only draw a prize once per world, there wasn't much point in grinding for it. As for the system shop, she only opened it and glanced at it before closing it.
She's too poor, only has five system points! Seeing something she can't buy it, she'd rather not go looking for thrills.
Feeling incredibly bored, Lin You rummaged through her backpack to see what she had. Although there weren't many items, they were all things she had managed to save up.
Somehow, my hand slipped and I accidentally clicked on a small trash can icon in the bottom right corner of the system page.
Lin You was startled, and then realized that the trash can called the recycling station turned out to be a trading platform when opened.
She stared at the trading platform for a long time, feeling like her head was full of question marks.
What reputable secondhand trading platform would have a recycling bin icon?!
She had always thought this trash can was similar to the recycle bin on a computer, used for deleting software or items, and had never dared to touch it.
The designer who made this icon must have something seriously wrong with them!
This second-hand trading platform is used to trade items purchased from the system store or still in the system inventory that are not currently needed. Most transactions are barter.
Of course, you can also use system points to buy it, but system points are too precious, and very few people actually use them for purchases.
Most of the items inside are relatively basic, intended as a perk for new players. Only the first three mission worlds are usable.
Lin You, who is always meticulous in her calculations, studied the platform's products and prices all night and only came to a conclusion after dawn.
Among the pile of things in her backpack, the most valuable item was surprisingly a water bottle.
Although its function is only to change its appearance once, it holds more water and keeps things warm for a longer time, so it can be used as a hand warmer.
However, its function is quite magical. It is an unconventional item that can be shown to the task target in a very intuitive way, which is a mysterious and unpredictable means of the system.
Commonly known as "pretentious".
Although Lin You didn't quite understand why other systems had to show off to their mission targets, it didn't stop her from exchanging these now-useless water bottles for things she could actually use.
The next day, after Chu Qing got up and finished washing up, a handful of candy was stuffed into her hand. The candy was wrapped in white oil paper, on which was drawn a small blue rabbit.
Holding the candy, Chu Qing solemnly instructed, "Sister, don't use your abilities recklessly, lest it affect your cultivation."
She not only grumbled to Lin You for a while, but also grabbed the candy and went to her older brother to complain. Lin You couldn't help but laugh at her serious little face.
After explaining her new discovery and the function of the kettle to Chu Nanfeng, Lin You followed Chu Qing to watch Chu's mother steam jujube flower buns.
As Chu Qing was walking down the street, she suddenly felt something poke her face, and then a light pink strawberry candy fell into her arms with a thud.
After she put the candy in her pocket, another red bean flavored candy soon fell into her hand.
Chu Qing understood Lin You's meaning, tore open the oil paper and put it in her mouth. The rich red bean flavor, wrapped in milky aroma, spread in her mouth. It was a sweetness she had never tasted before.
Chu Qing couldn't help but shake her head happily, her little braids swaying back and forth, giving her a lively, childlike appearance.
While the two girls were playing around, Chu Nanfeng was thinking about the information Lin You had revealed.
Why would other systems need to display mysterious abilities to the task objects?
The unknown always inspires fear, and deliberately displaying one's mystery is likely a way to intimidate others.
Does this mean that in other systems, the task object and the system are not mutually trusting and friendly?
So, does this distrust come from the system or from the task recipient?
He recalled the scene of his first encounter with Lin You, when his older sister had said that she was the system that saved cannon fodder.
Even if he didn't understand the term "cannon fodder" at first, he could guess its meaning based on Han Qige's situation. It seemed that his older sister needed to save people like him who had bad endings.
Chu Nanfeng sighed deeply. He would give his older sister some more questions after the New Year. At least she needed to thoroughly understand the rules so that she wouldn't be easily tricked.
As for teaching her how to scheme against others, everyone has different talents, and Chu Nanfeng has completely given up on that idea.
With Lord Xie's help, Chu Nanfeng got a great deal when buying the house, saving most of the money. So he kept Lin You's share of the money intact.
After buying the house and servants, and renovating the house, he still had more than 120 taels of silver left. He gave 100 taels to Chu's mother for her daily expenses.
Now, the household chores of laundry and cleaning are handled by Granny Yu, while errands, such as delivering messages and going out to buy groceries, are taken care of by a servant named Afu.
With far fewer things to worry about, Chu's mother lived a much more comfortable life. In her spare time, she would do needlework and cook.
Granny Yu prepared the servants' meals, while Mother Chu only cooked for the three of them. Xiao Hong helped with the fire and washing the vegetables, and she seemed to enjoy it.
When Lin You and Chu Qing arrived at the kitchen, she was adding red dates to the flower-shaped steamed buns that had already been arranged. The steamed buns were a size larger than the plate, with five plum blossoms clustered together and two little magpies on top.
Besides the large flower-shaped steamed buns, the other steamed buns were also made into various shapes, such as small flowers, birds, fish, and rabbits, all round and plump, and filled with red dates or red bean paste.
After steaming the buns, they busied themselves chopping fillings and making dumplings to prepare for the New Year's Eve dinner. Chu Nanfeng also personally cut red paper, wrote couplets, and pasted them on all the doors.
The New Year arrived amidst bursts of firecrackers. After the servants received their rewards, they all returned to their rooms, leaving only the three members of the Chu family to stay up all night in the main room.
While Chu Qing was munching on her snacks and listening to Chu Nanfeng tell a story, she suddenly noticed three words spelled out in the shape of melon seeds that had appeared on the plate in front of her: "Happy New Year".
Chu Qing's eyes widened in surprise, and she pulled her mother over to see what was happening. The two of them were very happy to be able to interact with Lin You.
Then, Chu Nanfeng, who used to tell stories for half the night every year while staying up late on New Year's Eve, was simply forgotten.
Lin You had previously thought that her response would be similar to Chu Nanfeng's translation, but who knew that a mint would make Chu Qing so excited.
She traded a water bottle for a huge pile of snacks, and even asked for extra loose sunflower seeds, which weighed over ten pounds—enough to fill a lot of her stall.
Chu's mother and Chu Qing asked excitedly, and Lin You would occasionally reply with a word or two. The three of them had a great time.
Chu Nanfeng was completely ignored, so he could only take a book and sit down to read, but the smile on his lips lingered.
After the New Year, Chu Nanfeng studied diligently to prepare for the imperial examinations, and Lin You stopped urging him to go out and play.
But as the only male in the family, even if the family had savings, he couldn't just sit around and do nothing. So Chu Nanfeng sold the pastry recipe from the skill book to the restaurant where he had bought roast duck before.
The restaurant owner gave Chu Nanfeng three hundred taels of silver for the ten recipes, but proposed that he would ask Chu Nanfeng to make some pastries to sell in his restaurant. He would be responsible for the ingredients of the pastries, and all the money from the sales would belong to Chu Nanfeng.
"I am too kind, Manager. I still have to study and don't have much free time."
Chu Nanfeng was about to refuse, but the shopkeeper said that he could make pastries at home and the restaurant would send someone to pick them up every day.
"You don't need to make too many, just one kind a day, thirty-six will be enough." Seeing that Chu Nanfeng was still a little hesitant, the shopkeeper added:
"Knowing you're busy, I'll arrange for another helper to assist you, sir."
This man, dressed in a long, wide-sleeved robe, had the air of a scholar, but who knew he was so skilled? This pastry chef was a descendant of the imperial chefs, yet the taste of his creations was far inferior to his.
The capital city is full of discerning gourmands. If this snack could be sold in a restaurant, its reputation would definitely rise even higher.
Thirty-six pastries were indeed not many, so Chu Nanfeng specially set aside a room in the back room specifically for making pastries.
With a young assistant, it only takes about half an hour each day, yet they can earn two taels of silver. Chu Nanfeng was astonished by the shopkeeper's pricing.
Xie Zian was busy until after the Lantern Festival before he finished visiting all his relatives. He finally managed to go to a restaurant to relax, only to find that there were many more people there.
The shopkeeper had hired a pastry expert from somewhere, who only made six portions a day, six pieces per portion, and the price was not low. You also had to draw a red slip to buy it.
Xie Zian had to join in the fun. He came for three days in a row and finally won a share. Then, he happily carried the food box and ran to the palace to share it with the emperor.
As for why he didn't give it to his father, it was because Lord Xie was treacherous and cunning, and forcibly borrowed several of Brother Chu's paintings from him.
Xie Zian has decided that he will not say a single word to Lord Xie for the next three days!
The emperor had eaten quite a lot of food outside the palace, but the proper procedures still had to be followed.
Seeing Xie Zian looking at the eunuch testing the poison with a pained expression, the Emperor said helplessly, "Your father and I have never deprived you of your appetite, nor do we lack your pocket money."
"You wouldn't believe it, these pastries aren't something you can just buy with money. I spent three days trying to draw a lucky number, and I haven't even tasted them yet before bringing them to you."
While waiting for the poison test to end, Xie Zian gestured to the Emperor about the bustling atmosphere of the restaurant.
The pastries were indeed delicious. Xie Zi'an ate one with him, his cheeks puffed out, and he ate with great relish.
Seeing how much his silly child enjoyed it, the emperor specially sent someone to investigate the pastry chef.
Then, the usually composed Emperor showed a strange expression, and he couldn't help but ask suspiciously, "Could there be a mistake? It could also have been done by a woman in his family?"
Even the head of the secret guards, who had never been suspected of interrogating Prince Cheng's rebellion and the officials involved, replied expressionlessly: "It was indeed Chu Nanfeng who made the pastries."
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