Volume One, Chapter 6: No Better Way
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Wu Jiyun came to his senses, suppressing his anger slightly and regaining his usual composure.
“That time, it was you who humiliated Yunyun in public. It can’t be that Yunyun ruined her own dress.”
Wu Xingxue was too lazy to argue.
Because it was pointless.
She hadn’t kept quiet; ever since Wu Yuyun framed her, she had tried to speak up. But every time, the Wu family seemed bewitched—no one believed her.
At first, her eldest brother and mother would speak up for her, but later they just wore stern faces and told her to apologize to Wu Yuyun.
Wu Xingxue knew Wu Yuyun was scheming behind the scenes, but she simply didn’t have time at home to deal with her.
She had to participate in various competitions and train; sometimes training camps lasted over a month.
Meanwhile, Wu Yuyun spent more time with the family.
There was a way, of course: Wu Xingxue could give up her own plans, come home, and compete with Wu Yuyun for time with their brother and parents, acting sweet and coquettish.
But Wu Xingxue couldn’t do that.
To abandon her dreams and career just to fight for favor with Wu Yuyun? Wu Xingxue couldn’t.
So later, to save her breath, Wu Xingxue simply fought back on the spot, causing the Wu family to believe even more that she was bullying Wu Yuyun, that she had changed.
It wasn’t true that she didn’t care.
Wu Xingxue’s heart was flesh and blood too. In her past life, she only saw missions, no warmth. It was the twenty-plus years living with the Wu family that taught her the warmth of kinship and let her grow flesh and blood again.
Yet it was also they who gouged out her heart with their own hands.
Now, she was determined to cut away the rotting flesh herself.
She never denied her feelings for the Wu family, but those feelings had vanished amid their cold stares and scoldings.
In the three years since the apocalypse, Wu Xingxue had given far more than the Wu family’s upbringing.
Now it was the Wu family who owed her.
And Wu Yuyun had deliberately framed her these years, even causing her to shatter her superpower core.
She would not forget this grudge!
She had already found a possible way to repair her power core; the losses Wu Xingxue had suffered, she would reclaim one by one!
Raising her voice, Wu Xingxue said, “I’ll say it again: I have long since repaid the debt of upbringing. From now on, I, Wu Xingxue, have no relation to the Wu family.”
She arched her brow. “Now, Commander Wu, you should be satisfied. You won’t have to worry about me causing trouble in your family’s name and ruining the Wu family’s reputation.”
Wu Jiyun’s body stiffened.
Actually, that wasn’t what he meant...
But he said, “Do as you wish.”
He glanced at the three administrators who had embarrassed him terribly.
“Don’t come in tomorrow.”
The administrators fell to their knees, begging for mercy, but Wu Jiyun’s face remained cold; he didn’t even look at them as he turned away. The crowd automatically parted to make a path for him.
The young girls nearby whispered excitedly, “So handsome! The real-life domineering CEO!”
Wu Xingxue pulled the corner of her mouth into a wry smile.
If only they knew that this ‘domineering CEO’ Wu Jiyun now had to punch a time card every day but didn’t earn enough, and every month had to rely on his sister’s subsidy to keep his pet goldfinch—then their illusions would shatter completely.
After leaving, Wu Jiyun’s mind kept echoing Wu Xingxue’s words.
Was she really going to sever ties with the Wu family?
His heart pounded rapidly, betraying a subtle unease.
Wu Jiyun’s lips tightened. “Without the Wu family’s protection, you won’t last three days before coming back begging me!”
“Trying to threaten me? Ha!”
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The crowd watching the drama was gently dispersed by Grandma Qin. Upon learning that Wu Xingxue had cut ties with the Wu family, she couldn’t help but worry about where she was living and how she was surviving.
Wu Xingxue felt a warm glow inside, as if a stove had been lit.
The family she once treasured as precious, when she left, wished she would vanish from the world immediately, fearing she might take any benefit from the Wu family.
Yet the mother of the person she had saved casually was so caring toward her.
Perhaps this was the true nature of the Wu family—she had only just realized it.
Grandma Qin noticed Wu Xingxue hadn’t found a place to stay yet. Seeing the sky darkening, she waved her cane with vigor.
“You just come stay with me. I won’t charge you!”
“But this house is only available for one more week. Don’t mind that; this old lady will find a way to renew it soon.”
Her eyes shone with gratitude for the person she was repaying and affection for the younger generation.
Wu Xingxue shook her head. “Grandma Qin, thank you for your kindness, but you know I’ve offended many people before. If anyone causes trouble, I don’t want to drag you into it.”
“Who dares come see me? I’ll scold them to death!” The old lady placed her hands on her hips, brimming with spirit. She seemed even more energetic than Wu Xingxue.
“Enough. As long as you don’t mind, settle in. Now we’re both alone—we can at least keep each other company.”
In the end, Wu Xingxue couldn’t bear to refuse Grandma Qin’s kindness.
Partly because she feared that if the old lady got too excited, her cane might land on her head again...
She had felt the pain from Wu Jiyun’s blow.
For once, Wu Xingxue experienced the reward of being kind—finding a place to sleep after helping someone.
She was placed in the room belonging to Grandma Qin’s son.
That night, Wu Xingxue politely declined the thin quilt Grandma Qin offered and only accepted the jacket left behind by her son.
Still, she couldn’t fall asleep from the cold.
The clothes in her space were only thin summer garments. Even wrapped in all of them, the chill seeped deep into her bones.
Suddenly, she thought of the black-and-white furball in her space.
“Stuffing it between the clothes should keep me warm.”
Wu Xingxue entered her space and found the paper lying inside.
She took it out, using the moonlight to read the contents.
The other party’s drawing skills were better than hers; Wu Xingxue understood at once.
“He’s trying to ask what kind of medicine that is?”
She slapped her forehead. She had been too rushed that afternoon and forgot to mark that it was anti-inflammatory medicine.
Wu Xingxue drew and scribbled again, her head nearly bursting.
Putting the paper back into the space, she pondered how to facilitate smooth communication between the two.
After searching her mind for a long time, she recalled the promotion from the auction a few days ago.
The highlight of this auction was a strange alien plant that mimicked the form of a parrot, capable of talking and singing.
What caught Wu Xingxue’s attention was that the promotion claimed this alien plant had translation abilities.
“I don’t know if that’s true, but even if it is, I can’t afford it.”
Wu Xingxue collapsed onto the wooden bed, limbs spread out.
The auction’s finale always started at over fifty thousand. She? Had only fifty-two.
An evil idea crept into her mind.
“What if I stake it out and then steal it…”
The thought just flashed, and she immediately despised herself.
Muttering silently: “Safety zone rules, safety regulations, Chapter 8, Article 13: anyone who steals ten thousand Union Coins or more shall receive fifty lashes and two years of compulsory labor.”
Wu Xingxue’s gaze grew even firmer, though a trace of regret still passed through.
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“I’m a law-abiding citizen now! Think clearly!”
She sighed. Sure enough, the rules had all the ways to make money written down.
Elsewhere, He Cang noticed the process once again after the paper disappeared.
He looked at the contents on the paper, his golden beast eyes gleaming in the firelight on the wall.
“Medicine for treating fever? That fits my current symptoms perfectly!”
He Cang urgently called the elder of the Yi tribe over.
“Please take a look. Is this medicine?”
He Cang handed the white round tablet to the elder.
The elder was cautious; the white little pill was tiny in his palm.
“I can’t tell. I don’t smell any herbs.” The elder’s eyebrows knitted deeply, full of suspicion. “Where did this come from? It doesn’t look like medicine at all.”
“So small—how could it cure anything?”
He Cang: “Fever.”
The elder’s beard twitched angrily. “Impossible! Absolutely impossible!”
“I’ve lived nearly a hundred years and never seen medicine like this!”
“Chief, you must have been deceived by some cunning beast!”
He Cang said nothing, bowing his head slightly.
His body was growing hotter and hotter.
He feared he might not last three more days.
He asked, “Forget what it cures for now. Check if it’s poisonous.”
The elder saw He Cang wouldn’t listen, so reluctantly scraped some powder from the pill, sniffed it, then placed some on his tongue.
After a while, he frowned. “So far, no poison, but I can’t guarantee. This medicine doesn’t look like it was made by our beast people.”
Suddenly narrowing his eyes, the elder said, “Chief, you don’t intend to eat it, do you?”
He Cang raised an eyebrow, a twisted aura spreading over him. “There’s no other way.”
The elder said, “Chief, you carry the entire future of the Qionghu tribe. You can’t take that risk!”
The elder’s vision blurred, and the pill vanished. He saw He Cang’s throat move as if he swallowed something.
The elder: !!!
“Chief! How could you—” The elder was filled with regret and anger but saw He Cang’s face break into a casual smile.
“There’s no better option. If it works, I’ll be strong enough to fight in three days. If not, I lose nothing.”
“I wasn’t going to last long anyway.”
The elder sighed heavily, eyes full of sorrow. “Then let’s see if this strange medicine works.”
Walking away, the elder said without looking back, “I’m not asking for it to reduce your fever, just that it doesn’t cause you other problems.”
He Cang didn’t take the pill on impulse.
The cub in the ring world had a kind heart. He could have taken the fruit directly but deliberately exchanged it with the pill.
Plus—
“A cub, drawing pictures, exchanging like this—so much trouble just to harm me?”
He Cang chuckled softly.
Suddenly remembering he hadn’t replied to the cub yet, he thought that wasn’t a good example for a grown beast.
As the paper transmitted again from the space, Wu Xingxue was shivering.