Chapter 37: Do As You Please

What Cheng Luyun said could easily make someone feel they were being self-sentimental. Perhaps Cheng Luyun didn’t want to leave here. This was her home; maybe she truly liked this place very much. But Huang Wei knew better—she hated it here. The book didn’t say so; she had figured it out herself.

Cheng Luyun did not like Huang Family Village. To be precise, she absolutely loathed this place. Though the villagers all seemed to hold her in awe, almost to the point of fear, even so, every time Cheng Luyun saw those villagers—though she looked all smiles and gentleness—Huang Wei didn’t miss the disgust deep in her eyes.

She abhorred this place. Every time the instance reset, whenever she had no choice but to stand under the old locust tree at the village entrance, the revulsion in her eyes would intensify.

Cheng Luyun detested every single villager of Huang Family Village, tormenting them, forcing them to act like living people though they were clearly dead, and then condescendingly mocking and toying with these villagers. She also abhorred every inch of land in Huang Family Village. Outside of their own home and fields, unless it was to follow Huang Wei out, she would almost never take a single step away from the house.

This home was the only place she could hide, yet also the small world that confined her.

The farmhouse was squarely built. Only the courtyard in the middle was open to the empty sky above, like a square well, with towering walls everywhere you looked.

This home, this Huang Family Village, even this entire world—they were all Cheng Luyun’s prison. An endless June 13th, replaying over and over.

If Huang Wei put herself in those shoes, she’d probably have gone mad long ago.

Based on all of Cheng Luyun’s behavior, Huang Wei was absolutely certain: she resented Huang Family Village. There wasn’t a single moment she didn’t long to escape.

So after Cheng Luyun finished speaking, Huang Wei looked at her with particular seriousness. Those eyes were extraordinarily bright. Even the stars dotting the sky outside the house couldn’t compare to her eyes.

Sincerity was always the ultimate finishing move.

“I know. You hate this place; I hate it too. So let’s save up points together. When we have enough, we leave together, get out of here together.”

Under Huang Wei’s gaze, Cheng Luyun slowly retracted her sarcasm. There was no expression on her face whatsoever as her eyes fixed straight on Huang Wei. This expression even frightened Huang Chengcheng a little. She reflexively hid behind Huang Wei, her hand even clutching the hem of Huang Wei’s clothes. Her intention was to minimize her presence, but her movement drew Cheng Luyun’s gaze onto her.

Huang Chengcheng shivered, hiding herself tightly behind Huang Wei until not even a little toe was exposed.

Cheng Luyun wanted to look further, but then her hand was taken by Huang Wei. She didn’t know when Huang Wei had knelt before her, straightening her upper body and grabbing both her hands, holding them to her chest. “Sister Yun, believe me! I can definitely take you and Chengcheng and escape this world!”

What nonsense. She hadn’t even said she wanted to leave, yet here she was saying ‘believe me’… and even holding her hand! Cheng Luyun pursed her lips. She hesitated for a moment, and then what came out of her mouth was: “Do you even know what I am? Saying such things…”

“I know! But it doesn’t matter. You are the person who has been the best to me in this world. I believe you won’t harm me. And I like you. Even if I die by your hand in the end, that would still count as a worthy death.”

At this moment, Cheng Luyun felt Huang Wei was a little pitiful. She was the person who treated her best in this world? Huang Wei’s previous life must have been far too bitter.

Cheng Luyun looked at the resolute Huang Wei. After a long while, she spoke. “I will not like you.”

The bright light in Huang Wei’s eyes dimmed a little, but after a moment, she still said firmly, “That’s okay too. I still like you.”

Cheng Luyun shook off Huang Wei’s hands. She got off the bed, said she was going to take a bath, and intended to leave. But before she could leave the room, she was called back by Huang Wei. “Then Sister Yun, about me earning points…”

“Do as you please.”

Cheng Luyun tossed out those words and prepared to open the door and leave. Just before stepping out, she still held the doorframe, turned back, and instructed Huang Wei: “I don’t like the name ‘Sister Yun.’ Don’t call me that in the future.”

Everyone in this village called Cheng Luyun “Sister Yun.” Cheng Luyun naturally didn’t like it. Huang Wei nodded to show she understood, then carefully probed, “Then can I call you Ah Yun?”

“Do as you please!”

This time, having said that, Cheng Luyun truly left the room. The master bedroom door slammed shut before Huang Wei’s face, the entire doorframe shaking—showing how much force Cheng Luyun had used.

After Cheng Luyun left the master bedroom, Huang Wei and Huang Chengcheng looked at each other. Huang Chengcheng hesitated a moment before asking Huang Wei, “Dad, are points that amazing? Can you buy me a doll?” Huang Chengcheng had only ever seen dolls on TV. A child as young as Huang Chengcheng had no resistance whatsoever to such a toy, but in this instance, dolls couldn’t be bought anywhere.

Huang Wei touched the soft top of Huang Chengcheng’s hair. “We can. When the time comes, I’ll buy you a doll.”

Huang Chengcheng happily burrowed into Huang Wei’s arms, wrapped her arms around her neck, and planted a kiss on her cheek. “Thanks, Dad!”

On her side, Huang Wei was secretly marveling that she’d successfully bulldozed her way to victory again. Cheng Luyun truly had no intention of killing her; otherwise, after those two waves of recklessness today, her life would definitely have been forfeit. Realizing that this wife assigned by the system actually… treated her rather well made an involuntary smile appear on Huang Wei’s face.

She couldn’t help but hug Huang Chengcheng tightly to hide her silly grin. Huang Chengcheng, nestled in her arms, was afraid of being tossed aside by her dad again.

It had already happened twice! Twice! Every time Huang Wei wanted to say something serious to Cheng Luyun, she’d toss Huang Chengcheng aside. Huang Chengcheng expressed strong condemnation of this pattern.

So this time, Huang Chengcheng held on tightly to her dad, striving hard not to let herself be flung aside.

Huang Wei had planned to wait for Cheng Luyun to come back before sleeping, but she waited for a long time without seeing any sign of Cheng Luyun. In the afternoon, Huang Wei had taken the players up the mountain. From three o’clock, she’d been busy preparing dinner until very late. Now, Huang Wei was quite tired. After waiting for a while, she yawned and eventually fell asleep first.

The moment Huang Wei fell asleep, Cheng Luyun appeared in the room. Huang Chengcheng woke from her feigned sleep and opened her arms toward Cheng Luyun. Cheng Luyun drew near and picked Huang Chengcheng up. She smoothly placed Huang Chengcheng onto the small stool in front of the dressing table and sat on the edge of the bed herself.

In the darkness, the mother-daughter pair looked together at the person sleeping soundly in the center of the bed, then turned back to stare at each other.

Cheng Luyun asked, “Do you think what she said was true?”

Huang Chengcheng blinked, feeling it was her time to shine. She nodded her head vigorously, her loose hair tossing like waves, while continuously affirming Huang Wei with her mouth. “Dad was telling the truth! She was super serious!”

Cheng Luyun glanced at Huang Wei again, then fell into contemplation. After a long time, she asked Huang Chengcheng, “Do you want to go out? Do you want to leave this place?”

Huang Chengcheng didn’t hesitate in the slightest and continued nodding. “Yes!”

Cheng Luyun was a bit surprised. “Why?”

Huang Chengcheng then counted on her fingers and told her. “Outside there must be so many fun things! Chengcheng saw on TV—there are amusement parks, zoos, ocean parks, so many fun places, so many pretty things. It’s too boring in Huang Family Village, there’s nothing, always the same old things.”

After Huang Chengcheng finished, she looked back at Cheng Luyun, her big eyes blinking as she asked, “Doesn’t Mom want to go out and see? Mom has also never walked out of here before.”

Cheng Luyun reached out and placed her hand on Huang Chengcheng’s head, making her lower it so she could no longer see those eyes that looked too much like Huang Wei’s.

She didn’t confirm or deny, but deep down, she had to admit, she wanted to as well. This instance was too small—just Huang Family Village and stretches of borderless mountains.

She had been here too long, so long that even she herself had forgotten exactly how many years had passed.

Repeating, repeating, the endlessly repeating instance, had slowly driven Cheng Luyun to the brink of madness.

But within this world, a different splash of color had suddenly appeared… Cheng Luyun looked at Huang Wei. She lay on her side in the bed, her bangs sliding down past her forehead, revealing her usually hidden forehead and closed eyes. Cheng Luyun couldn’t see Huang Wei’s eyes right now, but she knew the brilliant light that filled those eyes when they were open.

She said she liked her…

Cheng Luyun believed this point, because the way she looked at her was completely different from how she looked at anyone else.

But Cheng Luyun would not fall for her. Cheng Luyun couldn’t fall for her. Her understanding of Huang Wei was still stuck at the level of a “little toy sent by the system,” only this toy was just far too different. She said she wanted to take her out. Cheng Luyun believed her determination, but didn’t think she could accomplish it.

Something she herself couldn’t do, and she was supposed to pin her hopes on an ordinary person stuffed in by the system? Cheng Luyun was no fool.

If Huang Wei wanted to try, Cheng Luyun wouldn’t stop her. As long as they remained in this world, no one could harm her, nor the only one she valued, Huang Chengcheng. Even if the system wanted to play tricks, it could only do so through the guides it sent in.

Cheng Luyun was also intensely curious: exactly how did Huang Wei plan to get those so-called points from the players? If points were truly such an incredible thing, then they would be vitally important to the players too. The players wouldn’t possibly hand over those points easily. Huang Chengcheng took in Cheng Luyun’s expression of watching a good show, and revealed a triumphant smile.

“What are you smiling about?”

Huang Chengcheng retracted her smile, covering her mouth with both little hands. “Chengcheng isn’t smiling.”

Saying she wasn’t smiling, when her tail was practically itching to reach the sky.

But Cheng Luyun didn’t expose Huang Chengcheng, knowing full well that Huang Chengcheng would probably help Huang Wei. When she told Huang Wei “do as you please,” she truly meant it—she wouldn’t interfere with whatever they did. The next morning, Huang Wei woke up very early, though the players were even earlier; the male players were already moving around downstairs.

When Huang Wei went downstairs, she called out a greeting and told them not to go out. Wait until she finished making breakfast, eat, and then go. The mountain path wasn’t easy in the morning, and they didn’t know the way—what if they got lost later?

The players assumed she was worried about them, a bunch of tourist backpackers, getting into trouble, completely unaware that Huang Wei was afraid they’d run off to the Back Mountain and be eaten by those inexplicable monsters.

In order to get points from these players, Huang Wei still had to keep an eye on their lives.