Ji Wushuang drove the car, taking Lu Qianqian to the Spring Breeze Community.
This was the place where Lu Qianqian had been forced to begin her "rehabilitation through labor."
It was also where her transformation had begun.
Lu Qianqian lifted several large, pre-prepared bags from the car.
Inside were some fruits and nutritional supplements she had asked Uncle Yu to help purchase.
"Wushuang, you can wait in the car," Lu Qianqian said.
"My duty is to provide 24-hour close protection," Ji Wushuang replied, also getting out of the car.
Lu Qianqian didn't insist further.
She walked into the cafeteria.
Inside, the familiar aroma of cooked food still hung in the air.
Sister Li, who was working, saw her and cried out in pleasant surprise.
"Qianqian? You girl, what brings you here?"
"Sister Li, I came to see you all," Lu Qianqian said with a smile, putting the things down.
"Oh my, you didn't need to bring anything just for a visit," Sister Li chided verbally, but her face blossomed into a wide smile.
Soon, other cafeteria staff and some elderly residents who had come to eat gathered around.
"Girl Qianqian, you finally came!"
"Child, have you lost weight? Your face looks thinner."
"Grandma Zhang, how have you been feeling lately?"
Lu Qianqian greeted everyone with familiar ease.
Her face wore a brilliant, heartfelt smile.
That smile was completely different from the polite or aggrieved ones she had worn at the Lu Family Manor.
It was a pure, unadulterated joy.
She held Grandma Zhang's hand, listening to her talk about daily life.
She crouched down to play marbles with a shy little boy.
She helped Sister Li put the freshly washed dishes and utensils into the sterilizing cabinet.
Ji Wushuang stood by the entrance.
Like a transparent, non-existent person.
She watched Lu Qianqian, radiant and smiling gracefully among the crowd.
Watched her patiently listening to the rambling stories of the elderly.
Watched her naturally ladle a bowl of hot soup for an elderly person with mobility difficulties.
Her gaze grew somewhat complex.
She had originally thought Lu Qianqian's visit here was just another whim of a wealthy young lady.
A life experience, a show.
But now, she realized she was wrong.
The ease and sincerity that radiated from within Lu Qianqian when she was with these ordinary people...
It couldn't be faked.
Her concern for these people came from the heart.
Ji Wushuang suddenly understood.
Why this porcelain doll wanted to go to those poor and dangerous places.
Because her heart contained something incongruous with her status.
That something was "kindness."
Or perhaps, it should be called "compassion."
This was the source of her seemingly delicate yet incredibly resilient spirit.
An hour later.
Lu Qianqian bid farewell to everyone.
She got into the car returning to the manor.
The car was quiet.
Lu Qianqian's mood seemed very good.
The corners of her mouth held a faint smile.
"Wushuang," she suddenly spoke.
"Hmm?"
"Thank you for accompanying me today."
Ji Wushuang looked at her through the rearview mirror.
"You're welcome."
"That place... is the reason why I want to do those things," Lu Qianqian said softly, looking out the window. "In this world, there are many people we don't see, living lives we can't imagine."
"I just want to go and see them."
"See what I can do for them."
Ji Wushuang didn't speak.
She just silently tightened her grip on the steering wheel.
She suddenly understood.
Why Lu Chenyuan had said,
"My sister, she isn't bad at heart."
And understood why this girl wanted to give up her privileged life to go to those poor and dangerous places.
At this moment, she felt that what she was protecting wasn't just a delicate young lady.
But a pure and precious ideal.
...
The two weeks of intensive training officially ended.
The time for Lu Qianqian's departure had arrived.
She stood before the full-length mirror in the living room.
In the mirror was a girl she herself found unfamiliar.
The girl's skin was no longer milky white.
It was tanned a healthy wheat color.
The girl's figure was no longer simply slender and delicate.
It now had some smooth, powerful-looking muscle definition.
The girl's face seemed a bit more gaunt.
But her eyes were brighter, more spirited than ever before.
It was a kind of resolute light, born only after being tempered.
"Not bad," Lu Chenyuan's voice sounded from behind.
He had been standing there for who knows how long.
His gaze held approval.
"You're starting to look the part."
Lu Qianqian smiled somewhat shyly, then called out,
"Big Brother."
The girl's voice no longer carried a coquettish tone.
"Are you ready?" Lu Chenyuan asked.
"Your flight is early tomorrow morning."
"First stop, Africa, Country K."
Lu Qianqian took a deep breath, then nodded firmly.
"I'm ready."
Ji Wushuang also walked over.
She handed Lu Qianqian a black tactical backpack.
"These are your supplies," she said, her voice still devoid of inflection.
"It contains a first-aid kit, water purification tablets, high-energy compressed biscuits, a multi-tool knife, and a satellite phone."
"From now on, it is your second life."
"You must carry it with you at all times."
Lu Qianqian solemnly accepted the backpack.
It was heavy, but it made her feel secure inside.
She slung it on her back, then turned to look at Ji Wushuang.
"Wushuang."
For the first time, she didn't use a tone of discussion or request.
Instead, she used an equal, partner-like tone to speak to her.
"Please guide me from now on."
Ji Wushuang looked at her.
Looked at the flame in her eyes that had already been ignited and was burning brighter and stronger.
For the first time, she actively extended her hand to her.
"Please guide me as well, Qianqian."
Late at night.
Ji Wushuang sat by the window, polishing a military-grade dagger she had used for a long time.
The cold blade reflected her equally cold face.
Her mind replayed everything that had happened over the past two weeks.
Replayed the entire process of Lu Qianqian transforming from a weeping young lady into a resolute-eyed "fighter."
It also replayed the image of the brightly smiling girl she had seen at the Spring Breeze Community.
She took out her phone and pulled up a photo.
It was a photo of Chen Lei.
In the photo, Chen Lei wore a white shirt, looking clean and shy.
Compared to Lu Qianqian, he seemed to live in two completely different worlds.
But for some reason, Ji Wushuang felt they shared something similar.
A kind of cleanness and purity belonging to the sunlight.
While she herself was someone accustomed to moving in the shadows.
Could she really protect this sunlight?
Ji Wushuang sheathed the dagger.
rowess are unmatched, commanding a million-strong army! Yet, the Emperor wants to depose him for the sake of a false prince? Hold on, are you throwing me into some female-oriented romance plot? How can I tolerate this? With a grand wave of his hand—the Nine Clan Extraction Technique! Slander the Emperor? Very well, all of you shall die! ... The False Prince: "Although I am not the biological son, Father and Mother love me more. The throne should be mine!" The Female Lead: "Qin Xiao, you are the Emperor, and I am a commoner. If you wish to marry me, you must abdicate. Otherwise, you will never have me!" The Empress: "After we divorce, you must give me half the empire!" The Transmigrator Consort: "You worthless Emperor, why should I kneel to you? All men are equal—I advise you to be kind!" The Great General: "The enemy general is my childhood sweetheart. For her sake, I willingly abandon the frontier defenses!" The Retired Emperor: "Although Yu'er was adopted, I prefer him. Qin Xiao, you should abdicate and let him become Emperor!" ... Very well! So this is how you want to play? Facing this twisted world of female-oriented tropes, Qin Xiao grins and raises his hand to unleash—the Nine Clan Extraction Technique! I am the Emperor. Why would I bother reasoning with you? Seal the gates! Leave none alive!
e bizarre and supernatural had descended. The previous emperor was a thoroughgoing tyrant; no longer satisfied with human women, he had set his sights on a stunningly beautiful supernatural entity. He met his end in his bedchamber, drained of all his vital essence. As the legitimate eldest son and crown prince, Wang Hao was thus hastily enthroned, becoming the young emperor of the Great Zhou Dynasty. No sooner had he awakened the "Imperial Sign-In Intelligence System" than he was assassinated by a Son of Destiny—a classic villain's opening. The Great Zhou, ravaged by the former emperor's excesses, was in national decline. The great families within its borders harbored their own treacherous schemes, martial sects began to defy the imperial court's decrees, and border armies, their pay and provisions in arrears, grumbled incessantly against the central government. Fortunately, the central capital was still held secure by the half-million Imperial Guards and fifty thousand Imperial Forest Army who obeyed the court's orders, along with the royal family's hidden reserves of power, barely managing to suppress the realm. As the Great Zhou's finances worsened and supernatural activities grew ever more frequent, the court sat atop a volcano. Ambitious plotters everywhere dreamed of overthrowing the dynasty, and even some reclusive ancient powers emerged, attempting to sway the tides of the world. At the first grand court assembly, the civil and military officials nearly came to blows, fighting tooth and nail over the allocation of fifty million taels of silver from the summer tax revenues. The spectacle opened Wang Hao's eyes—the Great Zhou's bureaucracy was not only corrupt but also martially proficient, a cabinet of all-rounders. Some officials even had the audacity to suggest the emperor release funds from the imperial privy purse to address the emergency. Wang Hao suddenly felt weary. Let it all burn.
Cheng's father told him he was getting remarried—to a wealthy woman. Cao Cheng realized his time had finally come: he was about to become a second-generation rich kid. Sure, it might be a watered-down version, but hey, at least he'd have status now, right? The wealthy woman also had four daughters!! Which meant, starting today, Cao Cheng gained four stunning older sisters?? But that wasn't even the whole story... "My name is Cao Cheng—'Cheng' as in 'honest, smooth-talking gentleman'!"
transmigrates into the world as the sect master of the Heavenly Yan Sect, which is on the verge of being wiped out. He binds a system that grants him cultivation power based on the number of disciples he has: for each disciple, he automatically gains a year's worth of cultivation every single day! Take one disciple: every day he gains 1 year of cultivation power. While others struggle through a year of bitter training, he gets the same just by sleeping through a single night. Take ten disciples: every day he gains 10 years of cultivation power. Foundation Establishment, Core Formation, Nascent Soul—he breezes through all bottlenecks without lifting a finger. Take one hundred disciples: every day he gains 100 years of cultivation power. Even a Soul Transformation Venerable before him can’t survive a single blow. Take ten thousand disciples: every day he gains 10,000 years of cultivation power! With a wave of his hand, he topples empires. With a single step, he crushes the sacred grounds of the universe. ... While others fight tooth and nail for secret techniques, Lin Yan casually hands out Nascent Soul-level cultivation manuals as beginner textbooks. While others strain to find talented recruits, Lin Yan opens his doors to anyone—so long as they’re human. In just three short years, the Heavenly Yan Sect went from a backwater sect made up of three crumbling huts to a sacred land that every cultivator under heaven would kill to enter. ... One day, otherworldly demon gods invade, with a million demon soldiers pressing down upon the realm. Lin Yan, yawning, rises from his lounge chair and glances at the system panel: [Current Disciples: 1.28 million] [Daily Cultivation Increase: 1.28 million years] He waves his hand casually, and the countless demon soldiers are reduced to ashes in an instant. “So noisy… interrupting my fishing.”
