Chapter 2 Qin 2
Zhu Qing'ai spent her remaining balance of 100 yuan to buy a house with a small yard. According to the panel, it has a bedroom, a small kitchen, and a small yard of about 30 square meters. There is no toilet.
The house itself isn't worth 100 system points, but the various procedures that allow them to legally move in, including the neighbors' vague impressions of them, add up to 100.
Therefore, Zhu Qing'ai did not feel that she had lost out. On the contrary, she thought that it was already a good deal to be able to make things so convenient. She could earn more system points when they were gone, but they could not handle situations like this when trouble came.
She spent some of her remaining balance to transfer System 99, who now had a human body, and herself into the house she had just bought. Looking around, she saw that the new house was practically bare.
She had just cut back on everything to save money; there was no basic furniture, no bed, and a straw mat was used as a substitute for a chair.
The adjacent small kitchen was also empty, without even a stove; it was just a bare, unfinished apartment.
"...Do you want to eat?" The two newbies squatted in the empty room, looking at each other.
System 99 was silent for a while. It couldn't even ask for help on the system forum. It had no idea whether the system needed to eat after taking over the host's body. It had never heard of such a situation before. It should be the first unlucky system.
**
This was quickly verified. Judging from the sky outside, it was probably noon. System 99's stomach made a slight rumbling sound; he was hungry.
Before System 99 could speak, a bamboo basket landed in front of him. Lifting the cotton quilt covering it for warmth revealed ten soft, large white steamed buns underneath.
He looked up and saw the ball of light representing his host trying to twist himself into a smiling face, then accidentally turning into [distortion], [disorder], and [dark crawling].
System 99 didn't know how to describe its current feelings; perhaps its current sensations were what humans had described as being moved.
These foods were purchased by Zhu Qing'ai from the system's exclusive store for one point and distributed to the system as a newbie gift pack.
The system's exclusive shop is filled with a wide variety of items, with food alone having thousands of pages. These food items are arranged according to the positive reviews after purchase, probably to make it easier for the system to select items and to maintain good relations with the host system.
At the very top of the list was Chinese cuisine, with prices varying wildly. It took her a while to find steamed buns and dumplings, which were both delicious and inexpensive.
When she bought the steamed buns, the baozi (steamed buns) were right next to her, but they cost one point for three baozi, which was much more expensive than the steamed buns, so Zhu Qing'ai chose to buy the steamed buns instead.
It's not that the steamed buns next to it are bad, it's just that the steamed bread is more cost-effective.
System 99, who had received today's lunch, was slowly and elegantly munching on the steamed bun, giving Zhu Qing'ai the illusion that she could sell the bun for a higher price.
Zhu Qingai shook her head. This shop was opened by the main system. How could she help the main system make money off her?
After shaking that thought out of her mind, Zhu Qing'ai began to look through her system panels, which should all be left over from System 99.
She wasn't very proficient at using them, but she could sense that these panels, including several large databases, were part of her own. With more practice, she would be able to use them as if they were her own.
But she obviously didn't bind to the system in order to become a system, so the first thing she looked for was an item that could give the system a physical form. Once she had a physical form, she could comfort herself that she had just gained a special ability instead of being directly expelled from the human race.
She quickly found what she wanted in the appearance section of the system's exclusive shop, but the humanoid form was very expensive, an astronomical price compared to other small animals.
She couldn't count all the zeros at the end; it would probably take her a very, very long time to accumulate enough to make a physical copy.
Is Zhu Qing'ai the kind of host who obediently follows the system? She directly looked at the items in the host-exclusive shop. The bodies here are the exact opposite of the system's. Humanoid bodies are the cheapest, while non-human bodies are ridiculously expensive.
The only problem is that she can't guarantee she'll be able to use the body after buying it... so she just keeps the idea in mind for now, thinking she'll try it out someday when she's accumulated enough points.
After closing the evil, consumer-enticing panel for the store, Zhu Qing'ai opened the most basic host panel and system panel.
The host panel records the host's various attributes and items, a setting that Zhu Qing'ai is very familiar with.
The host panel she could see had many more function buttons, and it was not the same as the simple panel that the host could see.
Looking at it this way, System 99 was really generous when it sculpted her body. Her physique started at 80, and it has to be said that Zhu Qing'ai was moved by a system that had no feelings.
In return, she decided to change the host panel for System 99. Since the host position has been changed to System, it wouldn't be appropriate to call her by her name.
Do you have a human name? Would you like me to give you one?
System 99 shook its head: "I don't have a name, only a number. Previous hosts would only call me 99."
“Then I’ll think of a surname for you…” Zhu Qing’ai’s first thought was whether to let the system take her surname. After thinking for a while, she felt that Zhu Jiu didn’t sound good. Changing it to a compound surname would sound much better. So she chose the relatively rare surname ’Tai Shu’. “How about Tai Shu Jiu?”
System 99 thought the name sounded great and quickly nodded in agreement.
[Host Panel]
[Name: Zhu Qing'ai] [Edit]
[Gender: Male] [Editing Prohibited]
Age: 16
[Height: 185cm] [+] [-] (Minor adjustments within 2cm are allowed)
[Physical Fitness: 80][+]
[Appearance: 88][+][-]
[Mental state: ?] [! Warning! Error!] [Fix]
[Force: ?] [! Warning! Error!] [Fix]
[Skills: None] [Add]
[Items: Steamed Buns x9, Basic Housing x1, Identification Document x1.] [Add]
[Halo: None] [Add]
She changed two items, but didn't touch the other data. The question mark column was probably due to a glitch caused by the system entering the host's body. She didn't have any more points to buy other data.
There are too many reasons to change my height to 186cm. First, it's one centimeter taller, and second, the pronunciation sounds like "get rich," which is very auspicious. I just hope my points will roll in!
[Host Panel]
Name: Taishu Jiu
[Gender: Male] [Editing Prohibited]
Age: 16
Height: 186cm [-]
[Physical Fitness: 80][+]
[Appearance: 88][+][-]
[Mental state: ?] [! Warning! Error!] [Fix]
[Force: ?] [! Warning! Error!] [Fix]
[Skills: None] [Add]
[Items: Steamed Buns x9, Basic Housing x1, Identification Document x1.] [Add]
[Halo: None] [Add]
[System ID 99] [Modified]
[Level: 2] [Upgrade]
[Next progress level: 0/10000]
[Remaining Energy: 57856] [Acquire]
Remaining points: 205
[Database][1][2][3][To be added]
[System Exclusive Shop] [Open]
[System Forum] [Open]
[Main System] [Connection]
[Host: Taishu Jiu] [Private Chat] [Open Host Panel] [Issue Task]
[System Loadable Modules Area] [Open]
Zhu Qing'ai tried all the buttons except for the one for contacting the main system. System number 99 was a part that could not be removed, but she could add parentheses after it and write her name, Zhu Qing'ai, inside.
Energy can only be obtained by exchanging points, and she doesn't currently lack the energy needed to operate herself, so she has no need to exchange points.
She read through the next few sections; some contained a lot of useful information, while others were rather useless.
After reading several posts in the system forum, Zhu Qing'ai became even more determined not to contact the main system for the time being. Her situation was truly rare; she didn't trust this main system she had never met.
After studying the panel, Zhu Qing'ai clicked the "Post Task" button. While thinking about what kind of tasks the systems in the novels issued, she stumbled and sent her first task to her former system's current host, Tai Shu Jiu.
Main Quest 1: Initial Integration into Humanity
[Task requirement: Make yourself look at least somewhat human.]
[Timeframe: Within one week]
[Completion Reward: 1 random gift box, 100 units of current national currency. Failure carries the risk of being burned at the stake as a monster. Please act with caution.]
The reason for deciding on a random gift box is that Zhu Qing'ai hadn't decided what to give yet. The note below is just her conjecture. As for whether she'll be burned at the stake as a monster, that's uncertain.
After issuing the task, Zhu Qing'ai said, "Then why don't you learn how to walk inside the house first?"
[Newbie gift pack has been sent, including the complete collections of "The Complete Book of Human Behavior" and "The Complete Book of Baffling Human Behavior"]
"Alright, I'm rooting for you!"
Tai Shujiu was still immersed in the joy of having a name, and he didn't see anything wrong with the task issued by Zhu Qingai, even the somewhat insulting one: "Make yourself look a little more human."
After receiving the two sets of film and television materials, he immediately started watching them. He was well aware that whether he wanted to be a person or a leader, he was already tied to Zhu Qing'ai. Doing missions was also a matter of mutual benefit for both of them.
Seeing that Taishu Jiu didn't reject the first task she had given him, Zhu Qing'ai breathed a sigh of relief and happily decided to go out for a stroll, to learn about this era before planning her next move.
**
Because the courtyard they chose was simple, and it wasn't in any bustling area outside, the courtyard was surrounded by ordinary houses. More luxurious buildings could only be seen in the city center.
But as she floated along, she felt that the style of the building was becoming more and more familiar.
This looks so much like a building from the pre-Qin period... To verify her idea, Zhu Qing'ai floated to the largest building in the city and found the place where the books were stored.
Looking at the room full of books made of bamboo slips, Zhu Qing'ai understood that this was at least a dynasty before the advent of paper.
It doesn't matter which dynasty it was; what matters is that there certainly wasn't an imperial examination system before the invention of paper.
Zhu Qing'ai: ...
Sometimes I really want to slap myself for being so impulsive...
A note from the author:
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The female lead's name comes from a line of poetry in the column, written by Li Bai.
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By the way, this is a lighthearted read (seriously). There is some logic, but not much, so please bear with me. I tried my best to research the history, but I'm not a professional... Some parts are just my personal interpretation. If you can't stand it, you can click the X and we can part ways amicably. *kiss*
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