Chapter 38: Random Task

During the entire two-hour flight from City B to City A, Jiang Xiaoyi’s face remained flushed. Before turning off her phone, she had caught a quick glimpse of the thumbnail Meng Chuning had sent her.

A photo of a pink pleated skirt hiked up, revealing a pair of bare, pale legs.

“…” Jiang Xiaoyi covered her face, feeling like she was about to combust. Though she hadn’t looked closely, a single glance at a photo like that was enough to send her thoughts in the wrong direction. Staring any longer felt like a sin.

During the flight, a flight attendant came over several times to ask if she was feeling unwell. Jiang Xiaoyi shook her head, her cheeks still burning, and the attendant only left after confirming she was fine.

After landing, Jiang Xiaoyi turned her phone back on, and a friend request popped up on WeChat.

Pear Juice: [It’s me, Pear Juice.]

Pear Juice Teacher had actually added her on WeChat of her own accord. Jiang Xiaoyi immediately approved it and sent a greeting.

Xiao Yi: [Hello, Pear Juice Teacher. I’m Jiang Xiaoyi.]

Pear Juice: [Hi. Do you have time tonight? If it’s convenient, we can start your voice acting lessons right away.]

Xiao Yi: [Absolutely! Thank you, Pear Juice Teacher!]

Pear Juice: [You’re welcome.]

Pear Juice Teacher then sent over the address of her personal voice acting studio. Jiang Xiaoyi calmly replied “Got it,” but her composure shattered when she saw Meng Chuning’s message.

M: [Xiaoyi, have you landed?]

Jiang Xiaoyi tapped open the chat and quickly typed back.

Xiao Yi: [I’ve landed, Sis.]

She then exited the chat window, not daring to so much as glance at the photo in the conversation history.

From the moment she’d woken up that morning, System PP hadn’t made an appearance. Jiang Xiaoyi thought it was surprisingly true to its word—say it’s taking a break, and it actually did. But without the system’s usual nagging, she felt a little out of sorts.

At six o’clock, Jiang Xiaoyi arrived right on time at the voice acting studio. During a break while waiting for Pear Juice Teacher, she snapped a photo and casually sent it to Meng Chuning.

As soon as the picture went through, Jiang Xiaoyi’s hand froze. That had been way too habitual.

Before meeting Meng Chuning, she would have sent it straight to Su Jiuyue. But now that she knew Meng Chuning, she hardly messaged Su Jiuyue anymore.

She couldn’t just ignore her one and only friend. So Jiang Xiaoyi casually forwarded the photo to Su Jiuyue as well.

Su Jiuyue: [What’s this place? It looks so familiar!]

“Xiaoyi!”

Jiang Xiaoyi had just received Su Jiuyue’s message when she heard someone calling her name from nearby.

“Jiuyue!” Jiang Xiaoyi pushed open the door to the voice acting studio and walked in. “What are you doing here? Don’t tell me you’ve picked up another part-time gig at a voice acting studio?”

“…” Su Jiuyue retracted her open arms. “You didn’t even read my messages!”

Jiang Xiaoyi scrolled through Su Jiuyue’s barrage of nagging texts, marking them all as read and replying haphazardly. She’d been too busy with system tasks these past couple of days to look closely.

Now, reading through them one by one, Jiang Xiaoyi let out a “Wow!”: “Jiuyue, your novel got turned into an audio drama?!”

The next second, she grew a bit worried. “Is it really okay to air something like that?”

Su Jiuyue grinned. “Relax, it’s not that explicit. But what are you doing here?”

Jiang Xiaoyi told her about her upcoming role in Want to Hear You Say. “So I’m here to learn from Pear Juice Teacher.”

“Ah, got it. Pear Juice Teacher’s in there—go ahead and find her first. We can catch up later.” Su Jiuyue pointed to the first room on the right. “Head on in.”

Jiang Xiaoyi knocked on the door. Hearing Pear Juice say “Come in,” she pushed it open.

Jiang Xiaoyi gave a slight nod. “Hello, Pear Juice Teacher.”

“You’re Jiang Xiaoyi?” Pear Juice turned around with a polite smile. “Director Zhou said you were very pretty, and seeing you now, she was right. Director Zhou has good taste.”

“You’re pretty too, Pear Juice Teacher.” Jiang Xiaoyi tried her best not to stumble over her words. She hadn’t expected Director Zhou to describe her to others as “pretty.”

On second thought, though, she and Director Zhou had never really delved into professional topics, so maybe Director Zhou had only noticed her looks. Yet Jiang Xiaoyi’s memory of Director Zhou’s appearance had grown fuzzy—even though she’d thought Director Zhou was quite attractive at the time.

Pear Juice had a lovely voice and a great personality. Jiang Xiaoyi quickly warmed up to her.

Pear Juice taught voice acting earnestly, and Jiang Xiaoyi learned with equal diligence. Over the next two days, Jiang Xiaoyi felt herself improving by leaps and bounds.

She turned to Su Jiuyue. “Jiuyue, is your audio drama still looking for voice actors?”

Su Jiuyue shrugged. “You’ll have to ask Pear Juice Teacher about that. I’m just the scriptwriter handling the adaptations.”

Pear Juice overheard and smiled. “We are short some. Xiaoyi, if you want to give it a try, you’re welcome to join. I think you’d be great.”

“Wow, getting Pear Juice Teacher’s approval feels amazing.” Jiang Xiaoyi reached out to Su Jiuyue for the script. “Jiuyue, let me see if there’s a supporting role in your script that suits me.”

Su Jiuyue happily shoved the script into her hands. “I’m looking forward to it.”

The voice acting lessons wrapped up around eight o’clock.

Pear Juice shut down all the equipment. “Want to grab a drink and unwind?”

Su Jiuyue jumped at the chance. “Sure! Sitting all day has my back killing me. I could really use some relaxation!”

Jiang Xiaoyi kept her head down, scrolling through WeChat. Half an hour had passed since she’d messaged Meng Chuning, with no reply yet. Was Sis not coming back tonight?

“Xiaoyi?” Su Jiuyue nudged her. “Pear Juice Teacher’s asking if you want a drink. What are you spacing out for?”

“Sure.” Jiang Xiaoyi pocketed her phone.

The music in the voice acting studio was soothing and pleasant, perfect for closing one’s eyes and listening in the quiet atmosphere.

Pear Juice cracked open a beer, only for Su Jiuyue to snatch it away. “CV teachers can’t drink—you have to protect your voice.”

With that, Su Jiuyue clinked it against Jiang Xiaoyi’s. “Right?”

“Right. Pear Juice Teacher, you shouldn’t drink. Have some juice instead.” Jiang Xiaoyi twisted open a bottle of soda and handed it to Pear Juice, then grabbed three beers for herself.

Su Jiuyue clamped down on her hand. “What are you doing? Drowning your sorrows?”

Jiang Xiaoyi shook her head. “I won’t get drunk.”

“…” Su Jiuyue eyed the two beside her oddly. Pear Juice sipped her juice like it was beer, while Jiang Xiaoyi downed her beer like it was juice. Neither got drunk, but they both seemed a little tipsy anyway.

Drawing from her novel-writing experience, Su Jiuyue tsked twice. “You two wouldn’t happen to be lovesick, would you?”

Both Jiang Xiaoyi and Pear Juice froze for a second. Pear Juice recovered first, turning to deny it. “No.”

“…Me neither,” Jiang Xiaoyi mumbled uncertainly, licking her lips. These past couple of days, she’d felt like something was missing inside her—like System PP had only appeared in her dreams, and all those intimate moments with Meng Chuning had been dreams too.

When she woke up, she and Meng Chuning weren’t even acquainted, and there was no such thing as the system in the world.

Jiang Xiaoyi had no idea what was wrong with her. She felt ill somehow, though she couldn’t pinpoint where it hurt. All she knew was that it was miserable.

“…” After downing two beers in a row, Jiang Xiaoyi grew a bit hazy. Her hand moved on its own, sending a message to Meng Chuning. She quickly closed the app afterward. Ten minutes later, a notification flashed briefly on the screen, unnoticed by Jiang Xiaoyi.

Su Jiuyue said to Pear Juice, “Pear Juice Teacher, I’ll take Xiaoyi home first. She’s drunk.”

Pear Juice nodded. “Be careful on the way.”

“Will do.” Su Jiuyue hoisted Jiang Xiaoyi and headed out of the studio, groaning all the while. “What’s your tolerance like anyway? Can’t hold your liquor and you go drown your sorrows.”

Jiang Xiaoyi wobbled along but refused to admit it. “I’m not drunk. Just dizzy.”

They took a cab back to Star City Neighborhood. Su Jiuyue was nearly exhausted from supporting her. “Stand up straight, Jiang Xiaoyi. We’re almost there!”

Jiang Xiaoyi obediently straightened up and blinked a couple of times. “I can walk on my own…”

A luxury car was parked at the neighborhood entrance. Su Jiuyue glanced at it and let out an exclamation. A license plate full of the same digit? That was the stuff of novels—insanely lavish.

Then the stunning woman who stepped out of the luxury car nearly made Su Jiuyue’s jaw drop. Wasn’t that Meng Chuning, president of YN Group?!

Why was President Meng here?!

“Xiaoyi, Xiaoyi.” Su Jiuyue called out twice with no response. She turned slightly and saw Jiang Xiaoyi tottering toward Meng Chuning.

“?!?” Su Jiuyue’s jaw practically unhinged. What was going on between Jiang Xiaoyi and Meng Chuning? She first thought Jiang Xiaoyi had mistaken her for someone else, but Meng Chuning looked genuinely worried about her stumbling.

As a thoughtful friend, Su Jiuyue quietly slipped into the shadows, determined not to interrupt. She’d snap some evidence and grill Jiang Xiaoyi about it later.

Meng Chuning took a couple of steps forward. Jiang Xiaoyi threw herself at her, wrapping her in a hug. “Sis, what are you doing here?”

Meng Chuning steadily caught her, burying her face in the crook of her neck and catching a strong whiff of alcohol. “Xiaoyi, you’ve been drinking?”

“Yeah.” Jiang Xiaoyi could barely stand, her head fuzzy as if she might be seeing things. “Sis, I thought you weren’t coming back tonight.”

Meng Chuning spoke softly. “I messaged you half an hour ago after landing. Looks like you didn’t see it.”

“Huh?” Jiang Xiaoyi straightened up and fished out her phone. “You did? I had my phone on silent for work and didn’t hear it. Sis, did you come straight here after getting off the plane?”

“Yeah, but your room lights were off, so I thought you’d already gone to bed.” Meng Chuning finished, only to hear another “Huh?” from Jiang Xiaoyi.

“Sis, why… why’d you come find me?” Though Jiang Xiaoyi had been drinking, she wasn’t truly drunk—just muddled. Hearing that Meng Chuning had rushed over right after landing sobered her up a fair bit.

Meng Chuning looked at her with a smile. “You messaged me on WeChat asking if we could meet after I landed. Forgot?”

“…” Jiang Xiaoyi remembered. “Yeah, that was me.”

Laughter danced in Meng Chuning’s eyes, making her look especially captivating under the dim streetlights.

Dazed by Meng Chuning’s smile, Jiang Xiaoyi stared blankly, inwardly sighing that Sis really was so beautiful.

Meng Chuning asked gently, “Shall we head back?”

“Yeah…” Jiang Xiaoyi’s palms grew slightly sweaty. Part of her didn’t want to part, but they couldn’t just stand at the neighborhood entrance forever.

Meng Chuning had finished work, flown in, and waited half an hour for her—she had to be exhausted.

Just as Jiang Xiaoyi was about to tell Meng Chuning to go rest, System PP yawned and popped up to stop her: [Random Task: From now on, you must stick close to Meng Chuning continuously for eight full hours—no separating in between! Complete the task for a reward of 100,000 yuan. Fail, and you know what happens~]

Jiang Xiaoyi realized it wasn’t a dream after all. System PP was back.

Sticking close for eight straight hours? That was just enough time to sleep together. After two days of absence, the system had gotten downright tactful. Jiang Xiaoyi wasn’t quite used to it.

Meng Chuning checked the time. “It’s late, Xiaoyi. You should head back and get some sleep.”

She turned to leave, but Jiang Xiaoyi quickly grabbed her wrist. “Sis, what time do you start work tomorrow?”

Meng Chuning looked puzzled. “Nine.”

The drive from Star City Neighborhood to YN Group took about an hour. It was eleven at night now—plenty of time until eight in the morning to clock eight full hours of sticking close.

Meng Chuning waited for her to speak, but Jiang Xiaoyi gripped her wrist tightly and refused to let go. “Sister… can you stay the night?”

“What…?” Meng Chuning blinked in surprise. Jiang Xiaoyi took her hand. “Sister, I promise I won’t do anything to you. I’m just scared to sleep alone tonight.”

“Aren’t you usually fine sleeping by yourself?” Meng Chuning asked.

“Usually, yeah,” Jiang Xiaoyi admitted, “but today I listened to a horror audio drama at Pear Juice Studio. It freaked me out.”

She wasn’t even lying. The sound effects at Pear Juice Teacher’s studio were incredibly realistic. Listening up close with professional headphones had amplified the terror to an unbearable degree, and even now, she could swear she still heard those echoes whispering in her ears.

“Sure.” Meng Chuning squeezed her fingers. “I’ve never been to your place before.”

Hand in hand, the two of them walked into the neighborhood. The path was dimly lit, and a sudden rustle came from the bushes. A wild cat’s green eyes gleamed in the darkness, lending the moment an eerie chill.

Jiang Xiaoyi barely noticed, accustomed as she was to such sights, but Meng Chuning startled and pressed herself into Jiang Xiaoyi’s embrace. “Xiaoyi, what was that?”

Jiang Xiaoyi slipped an arm around her shoulders, offering comfort. “Don’t worry, Sister. Just a stray cat. It won’t hurt you.”

In that instant, Jiang Xiaoyi wondered if she’d made a mistake inviting Meng Chuning over. Her sister was used to the luxury of a gated villa community—would she find this ordinary apartment lacking?

As they walked, Jiang Xiaoyi ran through a mental checklist. Nothing too embarrassing at home, right?

Thank goodness she’d tidied up yesterday. The bedroom was spotless, fresh sheets on the bed, bathroom scrubbed clean, and she’d even picked up a new pair of slippers. Satisfied that everything was in order, she unlocked the door.

“Come on in, Sister.” Jiang Xiaoyi handed over the slippers. “Brand new—never worn.”

“Okay.” Meng Chuning slipped them on, her right hand still clasped in Jiang Xiaoyi’s.

Jiang Xiaoyi felt a flush of awkwardness but couldn’t bring herself to let go.

“Xiaoyi, are you still scared?” Meng Chuning gave their joined hands a gentle shake. “Do we have to keep holding on like this?”

Jiang Xiaoyi nodded. “Still am…”

They’d navigated that pitch-black path through the neighborhood without a second thought—even with Jiang Xiaoyi protecting her. And yet one audio drama had reduced her to this?

“You’re really sure?” Meng Chuning pressed.

Jiang Xiaoyi nodded again.

“But…” Meng Chuning met her gaze. “I need to take a shower now.”

?!

Jiang Xiaoyi had completely forgotten about that.

“Do you have to?” she asked, making one last desperate plea.

Meng Chuning nodded firmly. “I do.”

“…”

Jiang Xiaoyi’s cheeks burned as she bit her lip. “Can I… shower with you, Sister?”