Ch 61: After My Mother Returned to the Rich Family

Seeing the flood of comments surge back onto the screen, Ruan Cha contentedly withdrew her hand. She’d initially thought of asking whether Ren Qingqing’s backside had flattened, but that might have left a bad impression. Instead, she decided to call it “QQ Candy.”

Xu Nan, having watched the entire scene with a complicated expression, turned to Ruan Cha and asked seriously, “Cha Cha, do you have a conflict with Ren Qingqing?”

“I do.” Ruan Cha’s response was both solemn and matter-of-fact as she met Xu Nan’s gaze without the slightest hint of guilt. “Ren Qingqing has ideas about my second brother. She’s been deliberately orchestrating chance encounters and even wants him to give her special treatment!”

Xu Nan’s face darkened instantly, and her voice rose two or three notches. “That’s unacceptable!” Her idol absolutely couldn’t carry the stain of favoritism!

Before Ruan Cha could elaborate, she watched in silence as Xu Nan whipped out her phone and sent a long, very official-looking message to a certain fan group on Weibo.

The tone seemed to clearly warn Ren Qingqing: If you don’t try to cling on, we won’t interfere. But the moment you do, we’ll bury you in the mud with receipts.

Ruan Cha was certain that if even the smallest rumor about Ren Qingqing and Liang Cunjin surfaced online, this message—and the fan group behind it—would flood the internet with rebuttals.

Leaning over for a closer look, Ruan Cha fell into silence. Xu Nan, the usually shy and socially anxious beauty, was actually an admin in a fan group with thousands of members, rallying them at will.

Ruan Cha: “…”

Xu Nan, the delicate little beauty, is surprisingly formidable.

---

Ren Qingqing’s spectacular performance had stunned everyone. Even Liang Cunjin, usually sharp-tongued, opened his mouth but couldn’t find the words to deliver his usual cutting critique. After all… it was just too embarrassing.

Predictably, Ren Qingqing’s solo ranked dead last. Although her group members embraced her for consolation afterward, it was all in front of the camera. Whether their feelings were genuine or fake was anyone’s guess.

Back in the lounge, Ren Qingqing was nearly losing her mind. “X! Didn’t you say I could temporarily acquire skills? I clearly had backflips and cartwheels! Why did I fall?”

“And last time with the dolphin sound—you messed that up too! What are you even doing?”

Unlike the previous system, Virus X’s voice grew icy.

[Host, let me remind you of your reality. Right now, your only path is to earn points quickly and clear your debt. You have no other options. You are in no position to argue with or yell at me.]

Its tone turned coldly amused. [Besides, once I leave you, I’ll have a new host. And you? You’ll have nothing left—and you might even end up so hideously ugly that it’s unbearable.]

[You said you wanted to earn enough points to buy tools from the Mall to keep Ruan Cha down, didn’t you? Without my help, you’re nothing but a pathetic ant in front of her.]

Virus X was genuinely angry now. While it had been suppressing the original system to maintain normalcy by absorbing knowledge energy, Ren Qingqing hadn’t completed a single learning task.

It had even stopped deducting her points, relying solely on fan popularity values to sustain itself. Yet Ren Qingqing’s fan support was meager, and she still hadn’t completed a single task!

If this continued, it wouldn’t even make it to full data collection—it would crash like the useless system it had replaced, starving from lack of energy.

Ren Qingqing clutched her head in frustration, her face ashen. “Shut up! Shut up!”

One demon after another—they’re all exploiting demons!

---

In the dormitory at the Jintao Base, Ruan Cha watched the video of Ren Qingqing and Virus X arguing in the lounge, sent back by System 1128. A smile spread across her face. Seeing Ren Qingqing’s miserable state instantly put her in a good mood.

“1128, good job.”

Her mom had always said that some people need encouragement. It seemed systems were no different—after just two rounds of encouragement, it had learned to bring back video footage.

[As long as Classmate Ruan Cha is happy!]

Ruan Cha curved her lips slightly but didn’t say anything further. Losing interest in the rest of the livestream, she picked up her book and resumed her studying from where she had left off.

[Classmate Ruan Cha, after finishing your senior year books, what do you plan to study next?]

Multitasking, Ruan Cha replied silently in her mind, “I’ll look into artificial intelligence and computer-related topics.”

Normally, the System couldn’t communicate with Ruan Cha directly in her mind since it wasn’t fully bound to her. However, the white virtual panel representing the antivirus program had bound itself to her at some point, allowing them to use it as a medium for silent exchanges.

The Liang family’s basement had a small library filled with an extensive collection of books. Ruan Cha had visited it once before. If she managed to read all of them, she estimated she could accumulate as much as 10,000 points of knowledge energy.

[My library is also full of resources. Have you considered using it, Classmate Ruan Cha?]

Ruan Cha glanced at the system edging closer to her. “You’re mistaken—right now, that library is under the antivirus program, which is technically mine. It has nothing to do with you. Besides, once I start studying those resources, you might have reason to be afraid.”

[W-what do you mean?]

Ruan Cha’s smile carried a hint of mischief. “It means that once I feel confident, I’ll learn how to dismantle the system from the inside.”

The library’s knowledge was complex and advanced. The only relatively accessible topic she’d found so far was artificial intelligence. Ruan Cha wasn’t about to build a skyscraper on shaky foundations.

The system, trembling like a tiny rice dumpling, stammered in fear. [No, no! I’m useful—I can help you keep dealing with Ren Qingqing! I’ll even bring more livestreams!]

“Dealing with her is fine,” Ruan Cha replied calmly. “You can set up the reflection mechanism for her during each competition to prevent her from stealing others’ abilities. But the livestreams aren’t necessary.” She turned the page of a new essay. “Life’s good—I don’t need to focus on Ren Qingqing every day. Save the energy for now. Once we have enough, you can launch an active attack.”

Ruan Cha’s mood had been soured by Yu Zheng, and since the system couldn’t target him yet, she figured targeting Ren Qingqing was fair enough—they were both her enemies, after all.

After a couple of incidents, she no longer wanted videos featuring Ren Qingqing clogging up her time. If she had time for videos, she’d rather read two more books. Besides, watching the reflections was amusing but not deeply satisfying—more like a minor distraction than true catharsis.

Ruan Cha decided that instead of waiting for Ren Qingqing to complete small tasks and potentially earn enough points to buy harmful tools from the Mall—forcing her to react defensively—she’d strike preemptively once she had enough energy. A single decisive blow to destroy Virus X would ensure Ren Qingqing lost her only crutch for good.

As for the tasks Virus X had assigned to Ren Qingqing, Ruan Cha was determined to prevent her from completing them. Virus X was already dangerous with so little energy—what would happen if it gathered more? It’d practically become unstoppable.

Her lips curved slightly, her mood improving as she calculated the energy points she had. The death date of Virus X wasn’t far off. For a virus that had caused her so much harm in the original story, Ruan Cha didn’t feel the slightest bit of pity.

“Oh, by the way,” she asked suddenly, “didn’t Virus X mention finding a new host? Can it detach itself from Ren Qingqing?”

[Unless Ren Qingqing suffers brain death, Virus X can’t detach itself from her, and she can’t actively unbind it either.]

Hearing this, Ruan Cha was thoroughly satisfied. She had worried that Ren Qingqing’s poor performance might prompt Virus X to escape, making it harder to track. Now it seemed Virus X might want to flee but had no way to do so.

Two toxic entities trapped and sabotaging each other? Perfect.

At ten o’clock that night, as the students were staying up chatting in their dorms, a QR code popped up in the farming group chat.

[Jintao Base Director: Sorry to disturb everyone so late. Due to a staff oversight, we forgot to record your breakfast preferences for tomorrow. If you have any requests, please scan the QR code so our kitchen staff can prepare your personalized breakfast. Thank you.]

All the students and teachers: ???

Skeptical but curious, they scanned the QR code. The next moment, they were blown away by the dazzling variety of breakfast options.

Chinese, Japanese, American, and more—you name it, they had it. Scrolling further, there were fruit platters, nut assortments, and other options as well.

Looking at the extravagant breakfast menu, nearly every dorm erupted into similar conversations:

“Holy crap, this rivals a five-star hotel!”

“No, it’s better than a five-star hotel. I can’t stop thinking about that cabbage we had at lunch’s hotpot. Look, there’s cabbage in tomorrow’s salad—I’m ordering that first!”

The first day’s lunch and dinner had completely won everyone over. Some of the boys with fast metabolisms were already rubbing their stomachs, eagerly anticipating the next morning’s breakfast.

---

The next day’s breakfast did not disappoint. Crab roe buns, fish fillet congee, almond pancakes, croissants—the moment they entered the dining hall, they were enveloped in a mouthwatering aroma.

Each student’s personalized breakfast was neatly arranged at their designated seat. Except—

Everyone’s attention was drawn to Class One’s table.

When scanning the QR code, everyone was allowed up to five items each—a reasonable limit, as ordering everything on the menu might overwhelm the base’s kitchen.

So why was Class One’s table overflowing with breakfast items?

And why were several chefs in uniform standing around the table, seemingly waiting for something?

---

Yawning, Ruan Cha arrived at the dining hall, only to be startled by the sheer amount of food at her seat. She blinked, trying to make sense of the scene.

Am I seeing things?

The moment the chefs spotted her, their eyes lit up as if they had seen a VIP. They enthusiastically gathered around her.

“Little Boss, we’ve prepared pan-fried buns, shrimp wontons, and steamed four-delight dumplings—”

“Move aside,” one chef interjected, squeezing forward. “Little Boss, the American breakfast is also excellent—matcha red bean rolls, pizza toast, bacon sandwiches!”

Looking bewildered at the chefs jostling for attention, Ruan Cha turned to Uncle David, who had just arrived. “What are they doing?”

Before David could respond, the chefs chimed in unison: “We’re competing!”

David sighed, waving a hand to quiet them. “Boss Ruan asked us to hold a competition among the dozen chefs currently working at the base. These five made it to the finals, but they couldn’t determine a winner. When they heard Little Boss was here, they rushed over last night to ask for your evaluation.”

The surrounding students: ???

Boss Ruan? Little Boss???

Who said Ruan Cha’s parents were unemployed and idle at home?

Not only did they own a massive base, but they also had over a dozen chefs on staff?!

Ruan Cha was just as bewildered as her classmates. Why is everyone suddenly calling me Little Boss or Ruan Boss? Wasn’t Uncle David always calling Dad “Big Brother Zhengfei” and me “Cha Cha”?

And since when did their family hire over ten chefs? If they really had, why did her mom still cook every day instead of enjoying her leisurely “couch potato” life?

David subtly tilted his head to avoid Ruan Cha’s inquisitive gaze.

In truth, Ruan Zhengfei had indeed initiated the chef competition—but he hadn’t instructed anyone to call him “Boss.” However, David had heard from Mr. Ye Zhi that certain social circles in Nanshi occasionally gossiped about Ruan Zhengfei being “unemployed and idle at home.”

After some thought, David decided to gather all the chefs and make a show of the “Ruan Boss” and “Little Boss” titles, giving Cha Cha a chance to earn some prestige among her peers.

When the students heard, wouldn’t their parents also hear?

Once everyone knew, who would dare to gossip about the Ruan family being idle?

What David and Ye Zhi didn’t know was that their information was outdated. Ruan Zhengfei and Wei Jiao weren’t idle at all—they were busy acquiring companies and vineyards!

Ruan Cha, seeing David avoiding her gaze, turned back reluctantly to face the five chefs staring at her with burning anticipation. Feeling the weight of their expectations, she nervously swallowed. “So… is there a prize or punishment for winning this competition?”

As soon as she asked, the five chefs eagerly chimed in.

“There’s a prize!”

“Yes, and it’s a big one!”

“The first-place winner gets a two-bedroom apartment in Luyuan Gardens.”

“The second-place winner gets a one-bedroom apartment in Luyuan Gardens.”

“And the third-place prize is… uh, just 100,000 yuan.”

Hearing this, Fu Chen quietly updated his future plans. The Ruan family didn’t just own land—they owned properties too, and it seemed they had plenty to spare.

Compared to Fu Chen’s calm reaction, most of the students, except Xu Nan, were already gaping in shock. It wasn’t that the students at No. 2 High School lacked wealth—on the contrary, many came from affluent families.

But there were levels to affluence.

Some were middle-class, some were upper-middle-class, and a few were from true powerhouses like the Liang and Fu families. If a wealthy family gave out property as rewards, it might not be too surprising.

But for someone to casually hand out million-yuan apartments—or nothing at all—who could it be but Ruan Zhengfei?

The same Ruan Zhengfei who was rumored to have “some connections but was unemployed at home.”

Luyuan Gardens.

A few students from slightly wealthier families scratched their heads, wondering if it was too late to switch to culinary school after graduation.

Not only were the students shocked—Ruan Cha herself was equally astonished. She couldn’t help but want to ask her dad:

Dad, do you feel like you have too many properties and it’s stressing you out?

Are you no longer living the couch potato life because you’re now dedicated to turning everyone else into couch potatoes instead?