Chapter 147: Let's Compete for Favor!

"Yes, that's it, stir-fry it a bit more."

Xiao Fang in front of her followed her instructions and continued to stir-fry the dish.

Almost everyone was busy working, while all Ruan Mian needed to do was stand to the side with her hands on her hips and give verbal directions.

"Big sister, would you like to drink some Lemonade?"

Xia Cheng very thoughtfully brought over a cup of water, and he had even removed the ice cubes; it felt cool to the touch, but it wouldn't be too cold to drink.

Ruan Mian looked at his puppy-like eyes, and her heart softened.

She pinched his ear, "Little Xia, thank you."

When the warm touch pinched his ear, Xia Cheng's cheeks turned red.

He blinked his eyes obediently.

"As long as you like it, big sister, it's all what I should do."

Qin Xiulin watched these two men who both wanted to come and compete with him to be the father of the children, and he was so angry he wanted to strangle them.

Lu Yi stopped the work in his hands and hurriedly brought over a chair.

"Ruan, sit down, don't tire yourself out."

"Where would I be so easily exhausted? Don't treat me like a fragile doll."

Over there, Xiao Hong also began to heat the oil in the wok and stir-fry the green vegetables.

The air was filled with a fragrant aroma.

Her arm moved the spatula, and every step followed the instructions given by Ruan Mian; one could imagine that the dish she made would definitely be delicious.

Just at this moment, a sound suddenly came from the sky outside.

Ruan Mian's head turned toward the outside in an instant.

She had granted Huo Junze permission, so she knew who had arrived without needing to think much about it.

Her feet moved faster than her brain, and she walked out of the courtyard.

Qin Xiulin behind her hurriedly followed.

"Ruan, be careful, slow down, slow down!"

Who would have thought that he, who was originally aloof and cold, and carried his own inherent backbone and pride, would now lower his posture to such an extent.

-----------------Anti-theft divider-----------------

She took a fierce, deep breath, and suddenly she choked.

Jiang Mo struggled to open her eyes, but her throat felt as if it were being gripped by someone; her lungs wanted to draw in oxygen, but she simply couldn't inhale.

Her whole body felt as if it had been repeatedly crushed by a large truck, aching as if it were falling apart.

No!

It wasn't "as if," she really had been crushed by a large truck on her way home on her e-bike after working overtime!

Sob sob sob...

So what is the situation now?

Suddenly, a large string of unfamiliar memories flooded in; in three seconds, she roughly sorted out the current situation.

Was she reborn or did she transmigrate?

In any case, she had ended up in this Jiang Mo, who had the same name and surname and lived on the Jiuzhou Continent.

This was a cultivation continent, but the original owner hadn't tested for a Spiritual Root, was kicked out, and beaten until she was half-dead.

Now she only had one breath left.

It's over, it's over!

Just reborn, could it be that she was going to die again?

As expected, novels are all deceptive; rebirth is just because the previous life died too quickly without feeling pain, so it wants her to experience pain all over again!

With a clatter, a copper coin landed steadily in front of her.

"Why are you still giving..."

"Looking pitiful..."

The person whose eyes were about to lose focus from the pain heard the words intermittently on the bustling street.

But at this moment, she couldn't care about anything else.

Because a mechanical voice sounded in her brain at the same time.

【Congratulations to the host for successfully binding the Money Ascending System!】

【Are you still troubled by not having a Spiritual Root and being unable to cultivate?】

【Are you still worried about being unable to obtain cultivation resources and being unable to level up?】

【It only takes one copper coin to bind the Money Ascending System!】

【Money System, determined to let every cent you earn turn into Qi, making your ascension to the Great Dao not a dream!】

Breath, can't breathe, no fresh air...

The mechanical voice in her brain was still chattering, but Jiang Mo couldn't seem to hear it anymore; she had tinnitus.

The dirt was already about to bury her nostrils!

Just at this moment, Jiang Mo only saw a speck of green in the void, which flew into her mouth with a swoosh.

It was a bit like mint, cool and refreshing, and also carried a bit of sweetness; it melted in her mouth in an instant.

Her nose felt as if it had suddenly cleared its Ren and Du meridians, and she inhaled fiercely.

Inhale! Inhale! Inhale!

Suck up all the air!

Lying on the ground, she felt like a drowning person who had finally come back to life.

No, that's not right.

Why does her body not hurt anymore?

She seems to have eaten something just now...

【Ding-dong, congratulations to the host for successfully binding the system. You have received a novice gift pack, rewarding you with one Longevity Pill (already consumed).】

【Detected that the host's vitality is weak (less than five days remaining). Please earn money as soon as possible to obtain points, which can be converted into Qi. Accumulate a certain amount of points to redeem items from the mall.】

So it was real, not a hallucination before death.

She knew novels wouldn't lie!

Rebirth + golden finger, stacking buffs—even if she isn't the chosen one, there's no way she's going to let herself die.

"So that Alchemical Pill just now let me live for five more days? Can I buy them from you later once I've earned money? Can you tell me how much this pill costs?"

【One copper coin = 0.1 points; a Longevity Pill requires 200 points to redeem.】

200 points means she needs 2,000 copper coins!

Jiang Mo wants to cry; in her past life as a corporate slave, she had 3,800 in wages just received in her bank card, and she doesn't know if this system supports cross-world transfers.

"Hey, system..."

【This system only supports currency exchange within this world.】

What a heartless, cold, and ruthless system!

Jiang Mo, acting on the principle of maximizing her own interests, tentatively asked, "If—I mean if—I don't earn 2,000 copper coins within five days and can't buy the Alchemical Pill, does that mean I'm going to kick the bucket?"

【Yes, the host's life will terminate, and the system will automatically detach.】

Damn it, novels lied to her after all; what was that about the host and system being in a mutually balancing relationship?

Sob sob sob...

A corporate slave before she died, and still a corporate slave after dying and coming back to life.

It's just a natural-born corporate slave's fate; she's destined to be a corporate slave for lifetimes!

Forget it, forget it; a miserable life is better than a good death. Just take it one day at a time, and she'll work hard to see if she can live a couple more days.

The greatest strength of a corporate slave used to being a beast of burden is that they can gaslight themselves first.

Thinking this, Jiang Mo crawled up, patted the dust off her backside, and she was a hero once again!

The clip-clop of horse hooves came from afar, and the wooden carriage wheels made a huge racket, but it stopped steadily right in front of her.

Do the horses in this world come with automatic parking systems?

"Yo, isn't this my second younger sister~"

A very familiar and clearly acerbic voice came from inside the carriage cabin.

Understood immediately: the troublemaker has arrived.

A long, vermilion-painted fingernail lifted the carriage curtain, and a familiar face was revealed.

This made Jiang Mo feel a deep-seated resistance from the bottom of her heart.

Searching through her memories, it was the eldest daughter of the Jiang Family Second Branch, Jiang Wei.

The original body's background was a bit melodramatic; she was originally the second young lady of the Jiang Family First Branch, but when her Spiritual Root was tested, not a single trace of a Spiritual Root was found.

And because her appearance was a bit too outstanding, the head of the Jiang Family became suspicious.

As it turned out, upon investigation, she had indeed been swapped with someone else when a demonic beast attacked during her birth.

Sure enough, melodrama is never in short supply anywhere.

The trend of "true and false daughters" had even blown into the world of cultivation novels.

Later, the true daughter was found—the real second young lady of the Jiang Family First Branch—and the original body, that fake, was framed several times and driven out of the house.

And this eldest daughter of the Second Branch had competed with the original body over everything since childhood, often feeling suppressed because of the original body's status as the legitimate daughter of the First Branch head.

Jiang Mo being driven out was not without her handiwork.

It was even possible that the original body being beaten to death had a share of her involvement!

Enemies are especially jealous when they meet, especially an enemy who caused her to almost kick the bucket a second time!

Hey, hey, hey! All blood in my body, obey my command: turn red-hot immediately!

"Waaaaah—"

Without thinking twice, she lunged forward and started crying first.

Never mind the snot, tears, or spit; she wiped it wherever it was clean.

"My dear eldest sister~~~" The wailing tone took eighteen turns, sounding strangely like a funeral, "I was almost beaten to death~~~~ Sob sob sob, eldest sister, you must stand up for me~~~"

"A sister's bond is greater than the heavens~~ Sisters for a day, sisters for a lifetime~~ My dear eldest sister, you can't just ignore me~~"

Wailing to the point of deep emotion, she slapped her thigh and grabbed her sleeve to blow her nose.

"Jiang Mo!!! You..."

Jiang Wei's rage came to an abrupt halt as a dusty index finger pressed against her red lips.

"Sister, I know you feel bad for me and are angry at my plight, but you are the eldest daughter of the Jiang Family Second Branch! You mustn't lose your composure in public. I've already been driven out, so people laughing at me is nothing new, but you are different, sister!"

Only then did she notice that Jiang Mo's wailing had actually drawn quite a few people on the street to stop and watch.

She swallowed her breath back down by force.

"Eldest sister! I knew you had a kind heart and couldn't bear to see your younger sister suffer! Are you here to provide for me? How could I take your money? I can't! This simply won't do, it won't do at all!"