System Meeting in Progress, Do Not Disturb

Weekend.

It was time for the weekly meal at Chu Miaomiao's house again.

Lin Mo had already grown completely accustomed to it.

"I heard you'll have your monthly exams next week, right?"

Chu Lintian placed a piece of braised pork in Lin Mo's bowl and another of white-cut chicken in Chu Miaomiao's.

Lin Mo nodded.

"Yeah, but it's only on Thursday and Friday. After that, we get the weekend off."

That would give the teachers time to grade the papers.

Chu Lintian watched Lin Mo devouring the dishes with a smile.

"Lin Mo, your grades must be pretty good, right? Any pressure for the monthly exams? Are you planning to go for the arts or sciences track later?"

"Not too bad. I'm leaning toward sciences—I'm more interested in that."

Lin Mo said he was "interested," but for him, subjects like history, politics, and geography were mostly just straightforward.

Most of the difficulty lay in memorization.

The rest was just comprehension.

He chose sciences for the greater challenge.

"Sciences are good, sciences are good." Chu Lintian seemed lost in thought, her gaze lingering on Chu Miaomiao, who was quietly eating.

Others might not know, but she was well aware of Miaomiao's preferences. If it were up to her, she'd probably choose the arts track.

That would mean being placed in separate classes.

She worried that being in different classes might distance them, leaving Miaomiao vulnerable to bullying again.

Lin Mo could guess what Chu Lintian was thinking from her expression and gestures, but he stayed silent, focusing on his meal.

As for Chu Miaomiao, naturally introverted, she said nothing. Only after finishing the meal did she take the dishes to wash.

Once Miaomiao was in the kitchen, Chu Lintian pulled Lin Mo aside to the sofa.

"Lin Mo, there's something I'd like to ask of you."

"Chu-jie, I know. You want me to keep an eye on Chu Miaomiao at school after the class divisions, right? After eating so many meals here, how could I refuse?"

It was a small favor—Lin Mo had no reason to decline.

Chu Lintian glanced at Miaomiao's back as she washed the dishes and sighed.

"Truth is, Miaomiao's had a hard life. Not to belittle you, but she's an orphan too, just like you. Her birth parents—my elder brother and sister-in-law—got together young.

Our family had some assets, so my brother married early and had Miaomiao. But during a family trip, they were hit by a semi-truck. Only Miaomiao survived."

Chu Lintian was playing the sympathy card, but Lin Mo didn’t mind.

He had already pieced together some of this.

But since it was a private family matter, he wouldn’t pry if she didn’t bring it up.

"Ever since Miaomiao told me you brought her back from the hotel that time, I knew you were a trustworthy kid. If—"

Lin Mo raised a hand to stop her.

"Chu-jie, don’t worry. I’ll look after Miaomiao at school. But I think at her age, she deserves to know the truth. You can’t hide it from her forever."

"I won’t. I’ll tell her after she graduates high school. But now isn’t the right time."

I get it—you don’t want to shake her focus.

Soon, Chu Miaomiao emerged and walked straight to Lin Mo, handing him a flyer.

"B-book signing... Can you go with me?"

Lin Mo took the flyer.

Raksha Twin Trees? (To avoid real-world references, I tweaked the author’s name, but you know who I mean.)

Lin Mo had read this author’s works too—he was a fan.

The flyer had many creases, clearly well-handled and frequently unfolded.

The signing was scheduled for tomorrow.

"Miaomiao, you have monthly exams next week, and you’re dragging Lin Mo to—" Chu Lintian frowned at her daughter.

But before she could finish, Lin Mo cut in.

"Of course I’ll go. I love Raksha Twin Trees too. We can study after the signing."

Seeing Lin Mo’s willingness, Chu Miaomiao’s head snapped up.

Her mother had already dashed her hopes, but Lin Mo reignited her excitement.

"I love his work too. My favorite is Floating Life."

Lin Mo nodded. Truthfully, he’d only read Floating Life—the serialized version—but he’d play along for tonight’s sake.

"But we have to go early. The first fifty attendees get Floating Life tea." Miaomiao looked at Lin Mo with cautious hope.

Lin Mo stroked his chin. "Early, huh? Well..."

As he drew out the pause, Miaomiao’s anticipation shone in her eyes like a kitten eyeing a treat in Lin Mo’s hand.

"No problem. I’ll pick you up."

With Lin Mo’s agreement, Chu Lintian didn’t object further. She even suggested, "Stay the night. We have a spare room—no need to go back and forth."

The three-bedroom, two-living-room setup spoke for itself.

Lin Mo had no curfew or obligations to report to, so he agreed.

As for fresh clothes, Chu Lintian produced a set of boys' attire out of nowhere.

"I meant to give these to you before National Day, but you didn’t come over. Now’s a good time."

It was a shirt-and-chinos combo.

Lin Mo rarely wore shirts—only for job interviews before. But office drones and teens in shirts were two different things.

Lin Mo headed to shower.

The three-bed, two-bath setup spoke for itself.

This bathroom was likely Miaomiao’s personal space.

Only a shampoo set and a pink rose-scented body wash sat inside.

Lin Mo skipped the body wash—his spiritual energy kept him clean anyway. After a perfunctory rinse, he bagged his school uniform.

No lingerie in sight—just an ordinary bathroom.

The towel he used was brand new.

Stepping out, he found the living room empty—everyone had retreated to their rooms.

Chu Lintian had assigned him the study.

It had a single bed, likely where she occasionally napped.

A computer sat on the desk, and the shelves were lined with economics and business management books.

Clearly, Chu Lintian spent her free time self-improving.

Lin Mo skimmed them—no interest.

Sitting on the bed, he reflected on his progress since reaching the Foundation Establishment stage.

Now, aside from daily training tasks, System Bro only had one main quest:

Pass the Olympiad training, compete, and advance to nationals.

That was the path System Bro had laid out.

Beyond that, no further demands—total freedom.

Of course, no tasks meant no rewards.

Especially no side quests.

Lin Mo hadn’t cracked the side-quest trigger pattern.

Since he didn’t know, he ignored it.

After Foundation Establishment, the world felt overwhelmingly mundane.

It was as if he alone could sense spiritual energy.

As if no other cultivators existed.

But that was for the best.

"Hey, System Bro, let’s chat."

[System is at a gathering. Do not disturb.]

Well, damn.

Forget it, a laid-back system is just fine—at least I won’t become its puppet.