Ye Lianhua stood by the door of the hut, peeking out from behind the broken wooden frame like a guilty raccoon. Sunlight filtered through the dust, revealing a crowd of people still standing outside her house, whispering like pigeons at a wedding.
"...Still alive, huh?"
"She even dares to eat food. That jinx should've just stayed dead."
"I saw her shout at the sky earlier. Definitely possessed."
Ye Lianhua rolled her eyes.
"Wow. What a warm welcome. Feels like I just walked into a haunted version of ancient Facebook," she muttered, hugging the flimsy cloth hat that came with her system reward.
From inside, her grandmother called, "Hua'er, stay in, ah! Don't let their words hurt you."
But Lianhua wasn't one to stay in hiding — not even if she'd been dropped into a live-action drama with chicken poop and evil uncles.
"Let's see what kind of backwater hellhole this really is," she whispered.
She stepped outside slowly.
Instant silence.
Dozens of heads turned.
A baby started crying.
Someone's dog whimpered and hid behind a cart.
Ye Lianhua adjusted her hat like a celebrity dodging paparazzi.
"Well, hello to you too," she said, forcing a smile.
Old Aunt Zhang narrowed her eyes and whispered just loud enough, "Even after falling off a cliff, this jinx still walks. Heaven really does favor demons."
Ye Lianhua twitched.
She was this close to chucking her new rusty hoe like a javelin.
But before she could open her mouth to deliver a speech full of sarcasm and mild threats, a soft voice called out.
"Hua'er! Hua'er, is that you?"
From behind the crowd came a girl dressed in delicate sky-blue robes, her hair tied up with fresh flowers, her face glowing like she'd just walked out of a painting.
Ye Lianhua blinked.
Oh. Pretty girl. Same age. Big eyes, tiny lips, smooth voice.
Alarm bells rang in her head.
White Lotus.
The girl ran up gracefully, as if she floated on flower petals, and grabbed Lianhua's hand with wide, wet eyes.
"Oh, I was so worried! You fell from the hill, and I cried all night! I even prayed for you at the old shrine!"
She sniffled delicately and looked like she might faint from emotion.
Ye Lianhua stared at her.
She didn't remember this girl. But somehow, her face screamed: Main character energy, but villain in disguise.
"Um… thanks?" Lianhua offered uncertainly.
The girl beamed. "Do you not remember me? It's me—Bai Xuexin. We used to play together when we were little!"
"Did we?"
"Yes," Xuexin said, eyes sparkling with sincerity. "Even when others avoided you, I always came to visit. I even gave you my sweet cakes, remember?"
Ye Lianhua raised a brow. There were some blurry memories floating in the back of her head—childhood laughter, stolen snacks… and one cake that turned out to have worms inside.
Hmm.
"I… might recall something like that," she muttered.
Xuexin gasped and squeezed her hands. "Oh, you do remember! Heaven is kind!"
The villagers murmured behind them.
"Look at that… Bai Xuexin's such a kind girl."
"She even talks to the jinx. Such a soft heart."
"She's too good. Must be reborn from a fairy."
Ye Lianhua resisted the urge to roll her eyes again. Hard.
Oh, she's good, Lianhua thought. She knows exactly what she's doing. Making herself look like a saint in front of all these people, huh?
Xuexin's smile twitched just slightly. "Come, Hua'er. Let's walk around the village. I'll show you what's changed since you… um, hit your head."
She laughed lightly, like a wind chime in spring.
Lianhua plastered on a grin. "Sure. Lead the way, oh gentle fairy."
As they walked down the path, people stepped aside—not for Xuexin, but to avoid brushing shoulders with the 'jinx.'
Ye Lianhua whispered, "You sure you want to be seen with me? Might ruin your spotless reputation."
Xuexin leaned closer, her expression full of concern. "Hua'er, please don't say that. I've always cared for you. No matter what others say… even if you're cursed, I will never leave you."
She smiled so brightly that it nearly burned Ye Lianhua's eyeballs.
"I feel so blessed," Lianhua muttered under her breath.
They walked past the tiny marketplace where withered vegetables and dried roots were laid out like sacrifices. A few kids ran off giggling when they saw Lianhua.
"She's gonna eat your soul!" one of them squealed.
She almost chased them with the rusty hoe.
But the system chimed.
[Side Quest Unlocked: Survive Small-Scale Social Humiliation.][Reward: +1 Mental Resilience, Unlock: "Villager Suspicion Meter"]
"...Seriously?"
Xuexin turned to her. "What did you say?"
"Nothing," Lianhua said quickly. "Just talking to my… um… soul."
"Oh!" Xuexin gasped, holding her hand again. "Has your soul also been disturbed? You poor thing…"
Ye Lianhua's eye twitched.
I'm going to need a full-time prayer team to deal with this girl.
They reached a dry field on the edge of the village, where a few boys were planting weeds and calling it farming. Lianhua saw how cracked and useless the land was.
"This is where most of the village grows food," Xuexin said. "But this year, nothing is sprouting. Maybe the gods are angry."
Lianhua looked at the land.
Then at her hoe.
Then at the villagers still side-eyeing her from a distance.
"...I have a feeling they think I made the gods angry."
Xuexin gently squeezed her hand. "Don't worry. I'll always protect you."
Ye Lianhua smiled with all the energy of a half-squeezed lemon.
"Thanks. You're so sweet."
Too sweet.
Ye Lianhua kept her face calm as Bai Xuexin looped her arm gently around hers like they were sisters in a painting.
Too bad Lianhua remembered everything.
From childhood to now—she remembered every meal, every slap, every muttered insult behind closed doors. And she certainly remembered Bai Xuexin.
"Oh, you poor thing," Xuexin continued sweetly, brushing imaginary dust off Lianhua's shoulder. "You've been unconscious for so long. I was so worried. I even told the village chief we should hold a prayer vigil for your soul."
"Unconscious… for so long?" Lianhua repeated slowly.
"Yes, it's been… weeks now, right?"
"Two days," Lianhua deadpanned.
Xuexin blinked. "What?"
"I was unconscious for two days. Just two. Not a decade. Not long enough for you to build a shrine and write a novel about me."
Xuexin giggled nervously. "Oh! Silly me! It just felt like forever! I cried so much—it felt like a year!"
Lianhua narrowed her eyes.
Two days. She'd been unconscious for two days after falling off a cliff—allegedly. And now Bai Xuexin was acting like she'd come back from a ten-year coma, reborn and ready to marry the emperor.
Suspicious.
Not that Xuexin had done anything wrong yet. She hadn't pushed her off the hill, hadn't poisoned her tea, hadn't tried to steal her grandma's land.
She was just… too much.
Too soft. Too sweet. Too saintly.
It made Lianhua's skin itch.
As they strolled back toward the hut, Lianhua slowed her pace.
She spotted a few familiar faces behind baskets and barrels—villagers she remembered from childhood. People who'd always looked down on her and her grandma. People who once told her she'd bring misfortune to any boy she looked at.
And yet here was Bai Xuexin, clinging to her arm like they were childhood sweethearts.
"Xuexin," Lianhua said casually, "do you still live with your father?"
Xuexin nodded. "Yes, just the two of us. My mother passed when I was young, remember?"
Lianhua did. She also remembered how Xuexin's father used to borrow tools from her grandma and "forget" to return them. He even took their water jar once and returned it with a hole in the bottom.
Charming man.
"And you still work at the apothecary?"
"Yes! I help measure herbs and grind roots," Xuexin said brightly. "Father says I'm very precise. It's hard work, but I enjoy helping others."
Lianhua gave a tight smile. "So generous. So humble. So kind."
"Aw, you flatter me!" Xuexin beamed. "You've changed, Hua'er. You're so… bold now."
Was that a compliment? A subtle dig? A little of both?
Lianhua chuckled. "Well, when you fall off a cliff and almost die, it kind of shakes up the personality. You know."
"Oh yes," Xuexin nodded solemnly. "Death really brings perspective."
Lianhua raised a brow. "Have you died before?"
"No, but I've read a lot of poems."
"Mm."
As they neared the hut again, Lianhua spotted her grandmother struggling to pour water into a pot outside. Her back hunched, one leg trembling.
Without thinking, she rushed forward.
"Granny—here, let me help you."
Xuexin paused behind her, blinking. "Oh, you're… still very close to your grandmother, I see."
"Why wouldn't I be?" Lianhua asked, lifting the pot easily.
"She just… she was so sad after your fall. People were afraid she'd… you know… go mad."
"My grandma is stronger than she looks."
"I'm sure she is. Just… be careful," Xuexin said gently. "With people like us—those tied to misfortune—it's better not to be too attached. Sometimes… leaving helps."
Lianhua set the pot down with a loud thunk.
"What do you mean, 'people like us'?"
Xuexin touched her lips. "Oh, nothing! Just that… you know. You've always been different. The villagers talk. They say odd things. I've had my fair share of stares too, you know."
"No one calls you a jinx."
Xuexin tilted her head. "No, but they did call me strange. Once. In winter."
Lianhua crossed her arms. "Must've been a rough day."
Xuexin blinked innocently. "You're teasing me."
"Am I?"
The two girls stared at each other, smiling.
One with syrup and sunshine.
The other with vinegar and suspicion.
Lianhua turned back to help her grandmother, who was humming softly now that her granddaughter was nearby. The moment felt… normal. Grounding.
And then—
[Ding! Side Quest Updated!]
[Reputation with Villagers: Hostile → Wary][Suspicion Meter: 53%][Affection Meter: Bai Xuexin: 7% (Friendly)]
"…Wait. There's an affection meter now?"
[Yes. Affects character interactions. Unlock hidden routes. Beware of deceptive stats.]
"What the hell does that mean?"
[Some characters may not be what they seem.]
She turned to glance at Xuexin, who was now offering a flower to a passing toddler. The child sneezed, and Xuexin wiped his nose with her sleeve while giggling sweetly.
Too sweet.
Lianhua leaned toward the air and whispered, "Can you detect fake people?"
[Scanning… Please upgrade system to Version 2.0 for Emotional Perception Tools.]
"Useless system."
[Host is encouraged to farm and level up instead of making passive-aggressive comments.]
Lianhua groaned, but deep down, she knew something:
This world might be ancient, and this system might be broken—but her instincts were sharp.
And if Bai Xuexin was truly as pure as she claimed…?
Then Ye Lianhua was a cabbage.
And cabbages don't fall off cliffs and wake up with sassy farming software in their brains.