Ch 41: After My Mother Returned to the Rich Family

Ren Qingqing, under the scrutiny of the entire class, turned bright red, wishing she could crawl into a hole. Her nails dug harshly into her palms as she stammered, “Teacher, I didn’t just—”

“That’s enough, no need to explain. Go stand outside and listen to the class,” the chemistry teacher cut her off, his tone stern. “I don’t care if you have a problem with me or if you’re half-asleep and talking nonsense. Take this time to calm down, and have your parents come in the afternoon.”

In over twenty years of teaching, this was the first time a student had called him a liar in class. The chemistry teacher couldn’t help but feel utterly exasperated.

Ren Qingqing glanced at the task panel, overwhelmed by a desire to faint on the spot. But when her eyes landed on the “3 lightning strikes” punishment listed below the task, she couldn’t suppress a shiver. Head down, she grabbed a physics simulation paper and quickly left the classroom.

“Wow, she’s taking a physics paper with her.”

“Her chemistry paper is just lying on the desk.”

“Do you think Ren Qingqing is trying to help mediate the silent feud between our chemistry and physics teachers?”

The students whispered amongst themselves. They had seen it clearly—Ren Qingqing hadn’t been asleep. If she wasn’t sleeping, it couldn’t have been nonsense; it had to be her true feelings.

The chemistry teacher’s face darkened further. He slammed the chalkboard eraser onto the podium with a loud thud and barked, “Quiet! Anyone else who speaks out will join Ren Qingqing outside!”

The classroom fell silent once more.

---

In Class 10.

Ruan Cha rested her chin on one hand, her gaze sweeping over the freshly completed physics experiment simulation paper before her. Her eyes lingered on the bright red 120 at the top of the page, her lips curling slightly into a sly, triumphant smile.

Ever since transferring to the second high school and being set as Ren Qingqing’s associated target, she had been under constant threat from system tasks. But now, the tables had finally turned.

Although she could no longer hear the system’s electronic voice, she could clearly see the before-and-after changes to the tasks on the small white virtual panel hovering before her.

The original task, likely meant for Ren Qingqing, had no strict time limit and only required a 70% accuracy rate—clearly accommodating her reduced intelligence score.

However, once Ruan Cha completed her simulation paper with a perfect 120/120 in under 30 minutes, the task was refreshed. Now it not only had a time limit but also required a 100% accuracy rate.

Even with her original intelligence, Ren Qingqing’s chances of completing such a task might have been no better than 60%. With her current reduced stats, success seemed near impossible. Otherwise, the system wouldn’t have repeatedly set targets like “top ranks in the grade” instead of “first place.”

As for the system’s newly coined title for her—“task devourer”—Ruan Cha speculated it was tied to her consistent hijacking of tasks meant for Ren Qingqing. After all, none of the tasks the system had assigned to Ren Qingqing had gone unclaimed by Ruan Cha.

Of course, as for the words “Task Devourer,” Ruan Cha still found them ridiculously over-the-top. Devouring and purging? Well, Ren Qingqing did seem like a walking toxic hazard…

Seeing the task had officially been assigned to Ren Qingqing, Ruan Cha was in a great mood but still worried about Xu Nan getting caught up in something. She glanced at the teacher on the podium, who had her back to the class as she wrote the last homework assignments on the board. Seizing the opportunity, Ruan Cha quickly jotted down the page numbers of the four experiments from the simulation paper and sent a message to Xu Nan.

[Ruan Cha]: Nan Nan, I just worked on a few experiments, but I think there might be some small issues with my answers. If you have time, could you try them too? We can compare notes.

[Xu Nan]: We just finished going over the physics test. We’re doing self-study now. I can work on it right away.

Ruan Cha: “…”

Has the second period even been going for twenty minutes?

Regardless of how much time had passed, having Xu Nan redo the experiments was a good backup plan.

When the second period ended, Ruan Cha ignored Xie Chang’an’s invitation to join his gaming team and immediately headed upstairs. She needed to speak to Xu Nan face-to-face. While she couldn’t say anything directly related to the system, she could still find excuses to encourage Xu Nan to study more and stay alert—anything to shield her from Ren Qingqing and the system’s machinations.

As soon as she reached the third floor, Ruan Cha froze in surprise at the scene before her. Why was Ren Qingqing leaning against the wall, scribbling furiously on a test paper?

What, did standing up while writing somehow boost her creativity?

Ren Qingqing felt like her brain had turned to mush. Staring blankly at the experiment questions, her mind spun uselessly. Physics had never been her strong suit, and to make matters worse, the system had based its task on her recent midterm results!

Two days before the midterms, Ren Qingqing had memorized the simulation paper answers and breezed through the exam by copying them down. She had only lost five points in physics. Naturally, the system concluded physics was her strongest subject.

Now stuck on a particularly tricky problem, Ren Qingqing felt like she was hoisting a boulder just to drop it on her own foot.

Initially, she had felt her decision to associate Xu Nan as a target was brilliant. Without the association, completing A tasks with her current intelligence score would take far too long. Associating Xu Nan meant completing just two tasks to restore her intelligence to its former level, allowing her to continue thriving in the advanced class.

But now…

Ren Qingqing ruffled her hair in frustration, barely able to cling to the thought that at least Xu Nan wouldn’t randomly start working on a physics paper.

Just then, as Ruan Cha arrived at the entrance to Class 1, Ji Feiyang spotted her and waved excitedly. “Ruan Cha! Future classmate! I’ve missed you so much!”

“Ugh, you’re hopeless. Our class gains three people, and you claim to miss all of them!” teased a girl beside him, who then blushed as she also waved at Ruan Cha. “But to be honest, I’ve missed you too.”

Of the three students joining Class 1, Ruan Cha was clearly the one everyone cared about most.

Ruan Cha smiled and waved back at them, her demeanor warm and approachable.

Hearing Ji Feiyang’s voice, Ren Qingqing whipped her head around, her gaze locking onto Ruan Cha’s. For a brief moment, she thought she saw a glint of schadenfreude in Ruan Cha’s clear, almond-shaped eyes.

Seeing this, Ren Qingqing’s pen stabbed into her test paper with frustration, her expression dark and sour. She had already severed her association with Ruan Cha, so why was she still being humiliated in front of everyone?

Ruan Cha ignored the venomous glare from Ren Qingqing, but in her mind, the little devil version of herself was clapping gleefully. She hadn’t expected her trip upstairs to come with the bonus of witnessing Ren Qingqing being punished by a teacher. Absolutely deserved!

“I’m here to find Xu Nan.”

“Cha Cha.”

Xu Nan, noticing Ruan Cha’s arrival, stepped out of the classroom, her cheeks tinged red with slight embarrassment. “I’m sorry. I just finished three of the experiments you sent me, but I didn’t have time to finish the last one.”

Among the six science-focused subjects, physics was Xu Nan’s weakest. Even so, when Ruan Cha suggested comparing answers, Xu Nan didn’t refuse. Instead, she spent all her self-study time tackling the four experiments from the simulation paper, hoping to be of help.

Ruan Cha had already caught a glimpse of Ren Qingqing’s test paper and noticed that not only had Ren Qingqing not finished the second experiment, but she’d also made two small mistakes. With a faint smile, Ruan Cha reassured Xu Nan, “It’s fine, it’s fine. You can finish it later.”

She then delivered the carefully prepared excuse she had rehearsed. “Nan Nan, I’m about to join Class 1, and I’m feeling a little nervous. I’m worried I won’t be able to keep up with your class’s pace.”

“There’s no need to be nervous. You ranked first in the whole grade!” Xu Nan’s bright eyes sparkled like black gemstones, full of admiration. To her, Ruan Cha achieving what no one else in Class 1 had ever managed—beating Fu Chen to claim the top spot—was nothing short of extraordinary.

Hearing this, Ruan Cha sheepishly rubbed her nose. She’d already seen the scores posted by the homeroom teacher. Although she had beaten Fu Chen by eight points to secure the top spot, her 160 in math compared to Fu Chen’s 150 had been thanks to her doing the bonus questions. Without those, she wouldn’t have made it.

Her moment of guilt passed as quickly as it came. She looked at Xu Nan earnestly and said, “I just had a good day during the test. But I’m so used to the way things are in Class 10 that I’m genuinely worried about keeping up in Class 1. Nan Nan, can I ask you for a favor?”

“Of course, what is it?”

“Let’s form a study group. We can check in daily with our progress, and on weekends, we could study either in your lab or… at my house. Could you help keep me on track? My brother always distracts me, and I know I’d be causing you trouble—”

Xu Nan hurriedly waved her hands to stop Ruan Cha, shyly protesting, “It’s no trouble at all. When it comes to studying, how could there be such a thing as causing trouble? Besides, you’re so good at physics and math. I should be the one learning from you. Maybe I’ll need to trouble you someday.”

Ruan Cha beamed and gave Xu Nan a warm hug. “Alright, it’s a deal!”

Xu Nan softly agreed, a sweet smile spreading across her face.

—If they studied at Liang’s house, she might even get to see her idol.

In Ruan Cha’s mind, Ren Qingqing targeting Xu Nan was partially tied to her. And even without that connection, Xu Nan’s helpfulness in the lab last time meant Ruan Cha could never just stand by and watch her get hurt.

Inside Class 1, Ji Feiyang nudged Fu Chen with his elbow while glancing at the doorway. “Fu Chen, did you see that? Ruan Cha and Xu Nan were talking, and then they hugged. Their relationship is way too good.”

Fu Chen’s expression remained calm. “What do you think they were talking about?”

What could be so important that Ruan Cha had to come over immediately after class to say it in person?

Ji Feiyang propped his chin on his hand, throwing out a wild guess. “Maybe they were talking about their crushes? Xu Nan doesn’t seem like the type to be into anime or makeup, so it must be about boys, right? Maybe Ruan Cha wants to meet someone over the weekend but is too shy to go alone, so she asked Xu Nan to tag along?”

After hearing Ji Feiyang’s speculation, Fu Chen replied with a deadpan expression, “Ji Feiyang, it’s a shame you’re not a matchmaker.”

Ji Feiyang: “…???”

Why are you taking a jab at me? What did I do to deserve this?

After finishing her conversation with Xu Nan, Ruan Cha turned to see Ren Qingqing getting scolded by the chemistry teacher. Watching Ren Qingqing’s impatient face, clearly eager to get back to her physics test paper, Ruan Cha nearly burst out laughing.

Ren Qingqing, now it’s your turn to be ruled by tasks!

During the third class, Ruan Cha kept glancing out the window, noticing the clear skies and fluffy clouds. It was eerily reminiscent of the weather when Ren Qingqing was struck by lightning for the first time.

Noticing Ruan Cha’s unusual behavior, Yu Zhiyan also turned to look outside. His amber, cat-like eyes widened as he saw a thick, purplish-black bolt of lightning crackling straight toward the upper floors of the building.

“…?”

Did the school forget to install lightning rods?

Then came the familiar, piercing scream from upstairs that the students of Class 10 hadn’t heard in a while: “AHHHHHH! REN QINGQING GOT STRUCK BY LIGHTNING!”

Before they could process what was happening, the scream escalated in pitch and volume. “AHHHHHH! SHE GOT STRUCK AGAIN!!!”

And then: “AHHHHHHH! SHE GOT STRUCK A THIRD TIME!!!”

Class 10: “…”

The heavens must really hate Ren Qingqing.

With a loud bang, Xu Shen shoved his desk aside and ran out of the classroom, followed by a crowd of classmates who rushed out after him, entirely forgetting about the ongoing lesson.

Even the teacher stood dumbfounded. Three times? Sure, once or twice could be chalked up to coincidence, but was Ren Qingqing in an actual feud with the gods?

Yu Zhiyan sat frozen in his seat, his mind reeling. Turning to look at the faintly smiling Ruan Cha, he swallowed hard. Something about this situation screamed that Ruan Cha was involved. “Ruan Cha, what are you thinking?”

Ruan Cha met Yu Zhiyan’s gaze with a serene smile and spoke with an air of cryptic wisdom. “The heavens remember the sins of those who act against others.”

Then, with deliberate intent, she added, “Don’t you think so, Yu Zhiyan?”

Yu Zhiyan: “…”

Why does it sound like you’re saying the heavens will deal with me eventually too?

Seeing Yu Zhiyan fall silent, Ruan Cha turned back to stare at the sky. Three bolts this time. What will it be next time? Thirty bolts of lightning? Ninety laps around the track?

And if Xu Nan scores higher than you, Ren Qingqing, won’t you end up dumber and uglier than ever?

Ah, the system may be as loathsome as ever, but its punishments for Ren Qingqing were undeniably satisfying. Perhaps the system had heard Ruan Cha’s rare praise for it, as the small, white virtual panel in front of her refreshed once more amidst the chaos upstairs.

[Calculation (1) Complete: Physics experiment test scores as follows: Associated Target Xu Nan scored 98 points within 30 minutes. Host Ren Qingqing scored 68 points within 30 minutes. As the associated target’s score exceeded the host’s by 30 points, the host receives x3 negative feedback effects, resulting in the deduction of 1.5 intelligence points. To be executed immediately!]

Seeing the words “executed immediately”, Ruan Cha’s smile deepened, her expression that of a mischievous little villain.

Ren Qingqing, let’s keep playing. Let’s see who outlasts who.