MSCRB Chapter 2

“Xiao Chi, don’t be angry. Auntie will cook you another bowl of dumplings. Xiao Xing is just a child who needs discipline. If you’re still upset, just teach him a few more lessons.”

Watching the woman before him look at him tenderly while saying flattering words, Lin Shi found it extremely jarring. For Qin Xing behind him, how cruel it was. How could there be such a mother in this world? How could such a person deserve the word ‘mother’? But the memories flooding into his mind told Lin Shi that the woman’s relentless cruelty toward Qin Xing- the culprit was ‘him.’ The crueler the woman was to Qin Xing, the more amiable ‘he’ was toward the woman. This had created the current situation.

“No need for you to say it; I’ll discipline him myself. Go cook the dumplings and stop meddling in my business.”

Forcing himself not to break character, Lin Shi threw out these words with a surly attitude, then dragged the child away from the dining room. During this time, Qin Xing, dragged all the way to the attic, kept his head down the entire way, not making a sound. Following his memories to push open the attic’s wooden door, when he saw everything inside, the anger Lin Shi had been suppressing instantly reached its peak.

The original family was somewhat well-off. His father ran a company, and they lived in a small villa; there was no shortage of rooms for people. But the place Qin Xing lived was worse than a nanny’s room; it was practically a storage room, without even a bed. If not for the mattress on the floor with a pillow and thin blanket on top, which told Lin Shi someone lived here, he really would have thought he’d walked into the wrong place.

The musty smell filled his nostrils. Lin Shi said nothing, lips pressed tight, turned and dragged Qin Xing back to his own room. Due to anger, his grip unconsciously tightened. Qin Xing winced in pain, trying to break free from Lin Shi’s grasp. But when he looked up and caught a glimpse of Lin Shi’s dark expression, Qin Xing trembled all over and let himself be pulled away from the attic. He had originally thought the other would just drag him to the attic as usual, beat him up, and let him go. But seeing the other’s actions, today he probably wouldn’t be let off easily.

His dark pupils were dim and lightless. The last shred of hope in Qin Xing’s heart was completely extinguished. While thinking about how the other would punish him this time, Qin Xing was forced to stop. Only then did he realize he had been brought to the other’s bedroom. The other had never allowed him in here before, but now he had been brought in voluntarily. Qin Xing was terrified and uneasy.

His hand habitually wanted to fidget, only to find that his hand was still tightly held in the other’s palm. The fist from memory never fell. A soft, warm sensation came from his palm. Qin Xing kept his body tense, head down, silent. His suspended heart had no place to rest. For a moment, he wished time would stop at this moment forever. This way, at least… he would have a moment of peace.

Lin Shi had impulsively brought the child to his room. Turning to look at Qin Xing beside him, he didn’t know what to do with him. Searching the original body’s memories, he found that the two had never exchanged a single proper word. Qin Xing’s exposed ears were still bright red, with several blood streaks on his fair neck. But the boy seemed unaware, still keeping his head down, silent. The moment Lin Shi let go, Qin Xing instinctively tilted his head and shrank his shoulders. The habitual flinching made Lin Shi’s hand freeze mid-air.

His throat felt blocked, his voice muffled: “If I really wanted to hit you, could you dodge?”

Making him sound like some kind of bully.

[Master, don’t be sad. In my eyes, Master is the best master.]
“I’m not sad, I’m… just a little angry.”

Lin Shi pulled a chair over and sat down sulkily, staring at Qin Xing, who stood before him with his head down. Like a small animal, he sneakily glanced at him while trembling.

“Can you still not view the world plot?” Lin Shi really didn’t want to equate the person before him with the world’s villain.

But he already had a vague answer in his heart. How many people raised in such an environment could be psychologically healthy? Wasn’t he himself an example? He gave the little goodness he had to his half-brother from the same father, only to find the other was an ingrate.

[Master, I asked the other systems. Our situation is because we entered the task world early. The main plot hasn’t started yet, so the task can’t be opened for now.]

“Xiao Si, can you contact the main system to report the situation?”

[Master, I’ve already sent an email to the main system. But the other systems said that in situations like this, we can only accept our bad luck.]

As 004 said this, it stuck out its little tongue and instinctively licked its paw. Its fluffy cat ears drooped, chin resting on its paw, listless. Thinking of gossip heard in system circles, one unlucky system had entered a cultivation world with its host three thousand years early. The host, too bored, could only pass the time by secluding himself for cultivation. By the time the official plotline began, he almost ascended on the spot, nearly causing the task to fail. Thinking of the number displayed on the frozen world plot, 004’s voice was tearful:

[Master, I’m sorry, it’s all because I’m useless… We still have to stay in this world for sixteen years.]

Hearing that number, Lin Shi’s whole face fell. That meant he would have to live in this world for at least sixteen years. Looking up at Qin Xing, who still had his head down as if standing at attention, Lin Shi continued asking:

“Is there a way to confirm the identity of the person before me?”

The world plot couldn’t be opened, so who the villain was couldn’t be known through the world plot. But Lin Shi knew that the system’s points mall had all kinds of strange things.

[Host, you suspect he’s the big villain from the world task? He doesn’t look like it.]

So timid, killing people?

[Xiao Si, you can’t judge by appearances.]

Living in such an environment every day, it was hard to guarantee he wouldn’t become psychologically twisted when he grew up, and then harbor murderous intent toward those who had bullied him, seeking revenge. And he himself might very well become the other’s first target of revenge.

[Host, the points mall has a Task Villain Tracking Locator. It’s effective for one world. A bit expensive; it costs two thousand points. Do you want to exchange for it?]

Hearing this, a glimmer of light flashed through Lin Shi’s eyes. Without any hesitation, he chose to exchange.

[Okay, Master, deducting 2,000 points to exchange for the Task Villain Tracking Locator. Your current remaining points are 73,000.]

“Bind and activate the Task Villain Tracking Locator immediately.”

[Okay, Master, bound and activated the Task Villain Tracking Locator for you.]

[Beep… Master, target villain locked, one meter in front of you.]

Having habitually read out the bold red text that popped up on the task panel, 004’s entire cat body puffed up. It stared wide-eyed, its emerald cat pupils turning to slits from shock, stammering:

[Master, please be sure to be careful; this villain will kill people.]

“So it’s not just a coincidence of having the same name.”

When the system confirmed Qin Xing’s identity, the heart that had been floating since entering this world actually settled. Although the timeline of entry was wrong, it gave him sixteen years to spend with this little villain before him. Looking at it from another angle, apart from the task taking more time, the task seemed simpler than before.

Some things were very necessary to start from childhood. However, given the original body’s previous actions, getting along with the little villain couldn’t be done as he pleased. He could only start improving the other’s living environment under the condition of not being suspected by others and not being OOC, letting the other feel his goodwill.

Bullying him while taking care of him?

Damn, that felt a bit perverted.

Qin Xing, standing with his head down before Lin Shi, felt the gaze cast upon him. His hands clutched his clothes, and he couldn’t help but look up, only to crash into Lin Shi’s dark eyes gazing at him. He actually saw heartache in them. The other was heartbreaking for him?

No, it was definitely an illusion- another trick to confuse him. Once he let down his guard, the other would find ways to punish him. His ears still ached faintly, as if reminding him not to be so naive. Someone like him could never be liked by others! The “knock knock knock” on the door interrupted the two silent people, each occupied with their own thoughts.

Lin Shi casually said, ‘Come in,’ and the next moment, he saw the woman he’d seen that morning entering with a large bowl of dumplings, all smiles. When she saw the situation in the room, a flicker of surprise crossed her eyes. Then she carefully placed the bowl on the desk behind Lin Shi.

With a face full of affection, she said, “Xiao Chi, you must be starving. Eat up.”

Then, turning to Qin Xing with a fierce expression: “Don’t just stand there like a piece of wood, affecting Xiao Chi’s meal. Come with me, go back to your attic and kneel. Don’t get up without my permission.”

She reached out to grab Qin Xing’s arm, trying to pull him out of the room. Clearly, corporal punishment of Qin Xing was routine.

“Auntie Song, I told him to stand in punishment here, but you’re taking him to the attic to kneel. What, you feel sorry for him?”

“If he runs back to the attic, who knows if he’s really kneeling.”

Lin Shi had just been thinking about how to quietly treat Qin Xing well, and the woman was about to take him back to the attic to kneel. If the little villain misunderstood and blamed him for this, wouldn’t he be wrongly accused!

“You get out. I don’t need your help to discipline him.”

Lin Shi stood up and forcefully pushed the woman out of his bedroom. Although this body was only thirteen years old, his height was already about the same as the woman’s. Lin Shi pushed without any chivalry, pushing the woman so hard she stumbled and almost fell. However, this attitude actually made the woman have no suspicions about Lin Shi.

After shutting the door heavily, he turned back to see that Qin Xing hadn’t even moved from his spot, obediently kneeling on the ground. Head down, thin back straight, hands at his sides- a picture of submitting to humiliation. Seeing this, Lin Shi was almost amused in anger. So his heart had been aching for nothing; the person himself didn’t care. Told to kneel, he knelt. Lin Shi squatted down and reached out to grab Qin Xing’s chin, applying a little force to make Qin Xing look up at him.

“You like kneeling that much?”

“Big brother, I…”

His deep black eyes carried bewilderment and helplessness. Qin Xing didn’t know what he had done wrong. Past experience told him that if he didn’t do what they said, he would receive even more painful lessons. But at this moment, meeting those anger-filled eyes, Qin Xing was so frightened he instinctively backed away, wanting to explain, but the words reached his lips and were swallowed back. He wanted to say he didn’t like kneeling at all! But what was the use of saying it? Thinking this, tears of grievance welled in Qin Xing’s eyes. Under Lin Shi’s gaze, they were on the verge of overflowing.

Author’s Note:

——Just kidding around——

Lin Shi: Xiao Si, I feel like I’m a pervert!

Xiao Si: Master, remove the words ‘feel like.’

Qin Xing: Big brother is so strange today.

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