Delicate, Yet Shamelessly Freeloading [Quick Transmigration] Chapter 51

Chapter 51: The Blind Widower in the Infinite Game (18)

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Time in the big world flowed differently from the smaller simulation worlds. Unfortunately, System 77’s appeal happened to fall on a weekend in the big world, and the management department was off duty.

 

Several days passed without any updates, and he had no choice but to remain in place.


Shui Que asked curiously: 【Don’t Overseers get any days off?】

 


System 77 was in the middle of explaining: 【All overseeing staff—】

 

Suddenly, the communication channel was abruptly cut off.


 

The Overseer simply said: 【Overtime.】

 

Shui Que thought for a moment, feeling a little guilty. 【Is it because of me?】

 


After all, aside from the system, the Overseer also seemed to be tied to the missioner. If the missioner hadn’t exited the world, then the mission was still considered ongoing, and the 

Overseer couldn’t take a break either.

 

The Overseer paused:【…】

 


【No.】

 


It calmly added, 【I don’t need rest.】

 

Shui Que was dumbfounded.

 


That sounded like the kind of employee a capitalist would love…

 

Sensing the misunderstanding, the Overseer explained to him:
【Androids don’t need rest time.】

 


【Once energy is depleted, we just connect to a power source. We can charge while continuing to work—charging doesn’t affect work efficiency.】

 

Shui Que’s eyes widened. 【A-Are all overseeing staff androids?】

 

【No.】

 

Just those two words, with no further explanation.

 

System 77 finally managed to get back into the channel, its tone slightly aggrieved: 【They keep interrupting me… 77 was talking to the host…】

 

Shui Que raised a hand and gently patted the floating orb.


 

He lay sprawled on his back on the sea’s surface. When he lifted his hand, it was dripping with seawater, droplets trailing down his wrist.

 

The sphere was also soaked.

 

Suddenly remembering something, Shui Que quickly pulled his hand back. 【77, you won’t get water-damaged, will you?】

 

【No worries. System 77 can only be seen and touched by its host.】

 

The moment he pulled away, the floating orb followed closely, chasing after his hand.

 

At that moment, the massive tentacle supporting Shui Que from beneath the water suddenly surged up to the surface, sending white spray in all directions—like a mountain rising from the ocean. The sea and sky blurred into one, and atop this mountain sat a single human being.

 

From beneath the water, Xie Qian asked, “Shui Shui, heading back?”

 

Shui Que wrung out the hem of his soaked shirt. “Oh…”


His pale tea-colored eyes blinked slowly.

 

Afraid his shoes might get swept away by the sea, he hadn’t worn any.


The seawater had turned his skin even paler and more translucent. His white foot kicked lightly at a tentacle.

 

“Xie Qian,” Shui Que called his name.


 

Because of what Xie Qian had said earlier—those indecent words—Shui Que had barely spoken to him for three whole days.

 

This kind of behavior seemed to be what people called “cold violence”…

 

Although Shui Que had unconsciously done similar things in previous instances, it had never lasted this long.

 

The moment Xie Qian heard Shui Que call his name, he instantly perked up.

 

“Mm, I’m here.” His muffled voice came from beneath the sea surface.

 

Shui Que reached out and brushed the water’s surface, sending ripples across it.

 

He crooked a finger underwater.

 

“Come up here.”

 

The sea creature with a human upper body emerged from the water like someone receiving a pardon, joyfully surfacing. Xie Qian climbed up to the edge of the bulging tentacle mound, his chest and stomach still submerged in the sea. He looked up at Shui Que and asked, “What is it?”

 

Looking closely, the boy who had just beckoned him moments ago had already gotten sunburned in the short time they’d been under the sun. His cheeks were flushed pink from the heat, his cheeks puffed slightly, and all of a sudden, he scooped up a handful of icy cold seawater and splashed it straight onto Xie Qian’s face.

 

Caught off guard by the splash, Xie Qian reflexively shut his eyes and shook his head.

 

He wiped the water from his face, and in his field of vision, he saw Shui Que’s lips curved up mischievously, his gaze full of slyness.

 

Before Xie Qian could react, Shui Que guiltily pointed off into the distance, his excuse clumsy and unconvincing. “Look! There’s someone over there!”

 

Xie Qian showed no interest.

 

So Shui Que simply turned his head by force, making him look in that direction—

 

Far off at the shoreline, waves crashed against the beach, foamy and white. Amidst the surf was a small black dot and an overturned surfboard, bobbing with the waves.

 

Someone was drowning.

 

…

 

The drowning person was dragged onto the beach. His face was pale and he looked miserable, clearly half-unconscious.

 

His bare chest rose and fell weakly with his shallow breathing.

 

Shui Que frowned, not daring to delay for even a second, and started performing chest compressions.

 

A hundred to a hundred twenty times per minute.

 

He silently counted the compressions in his head.

 

Because they had discovered him quickly and rescued him in time, the drowning young man soon opened his eyes, dazed. As soon as Shui Que released him, he rolled to his side, braced himself on the sand, hunched his back, and coughed uncontrollably in distress.

 

“Cough, cough, cough—!”

 

His face turned red and his neck bulged, coughing as if his lungs were going to come out.

 

He tried several times to speak to Shui Que, but the stinging, scratchy pain in his throat made him cough involuntarily. He could only cover his mouth, turn his head away, and cough toward the direction opposite of Shui Que.

 

“Cough… cough! Thank you… thank you…” the boy finally managed to speak once he calmed down.

 

“No need to thank me.”

 

Shui Que glanced at him, then shifted his gaze to the surfboard Xie Qian had quietly pushed back to the shore.

 

The board’s strap had come undone.

 

Worry clouded Shui Que’s features. “Were you surfing alone?”

 

This stretch of ocean wasn’t developed at all. There were hardly any people around. It wasn’t a good place for seaside recreation.

 

The boy nodded. “I heard someone say the waves were good here…”

 

After all the coughing, he finally had the chance to clearly see the person who had saved his life.

 

Just now, he’d only noticed the soft tone of Shui Que’s voice. It didn’t sound like a local dialect—there was something gently melodic about it.

 

The boy wore a short-sleeved shirt and shorts. Just moments ago, to help with the CPR, he had knelt on the sand. There were no pebbles, but the soft sand still gave way beneath his knees, leaving the exposed skin flushed pink.

 

He—he had never seen skin that fair and tender before…

 

Years of surfing had tanned the boy’s skin, helping to conceal the flush rapidly spreading across his face.

 

Shui Que didn’t know anything about surfing—what made the waves suitable or not.

 

But he still stiffened his face and spoke seriously, “There’s not even a single person around here. It’s way too dangerous. If I hadn’t found you in time, it could’ve been too late.”

 

The boy just stared at him blankly, nodding every now and then.

 

Such long eyelashes…

 

Did boys really have eyelashes this long?

 

Shui Que frowned. “Are you even listening to me?”

 

Did he even realize how serious the situation was?

 

The boy nodded quickly like a pecking chick. “I get it. I definitely won’t act so recklessly on my own next time.”

 

Shui Que added slowly, “Even with two people, it’s not okay…”

 

The boy immediately followed up, “You’re right! I’ll reflect deeply when I get back!”

 

“Um… are you from Thousand Smoke Island?” the boy asked nervously, with the awkwardness unique to teenage boys. He scratched his head, clearly tense. “I’m from Yuhai City No.1 High School’s surfing team next door. I’m 18, height 185 cm, no bad habits. C-can I get your contact information?”

 

Shui Que was thoroughly baffled.

 

He was someone who firmly believed in doing good deeds without leaving a name…

 

In the ocean, Xie Qian seemed to have grown impatient from waiting. White waves gently lapped at Shui Que’s feet, touching and retreating.

 

Shui Que pushed himself off the sand and stood up, brushing off the grains stuck to his knees.

 

“I’m heading back now,” he said to the boy, eyes downcast. “Don’t do anything that dangerous again.”

 

The boy sat on the ground, dazed, and nodded slowly.

 

Then he saw the fair-skinned, delicate boy walking toward the sea.

 

A large wave came.

 

Still shaken from nearly drowning, he reflexively raised both arms to shield himself from the wave.

 

It came crashing down, drenching him like a soaked chicken.

 

When he looked again, there was no trace of the boy on the surface of the sea.

 

His teammates arrived late. Seeing him staring blankly at the vast ocean, they called his name but got no response. One of them couldn’t help but smack the back of his head.

 

“What are you spacing out for? Your surfboard broke?”

 

The boy looked up blankly. “Brothers Yizhou… I think I just saw a mermaid…”

 

Guan Yizhou frowned deeply. His face had grown gloomier with each passing day, weighed down by lingering frustration.

 

“What kind of dream are you having?”

 

“Still not awake?”

 

His gaze turned to the endless expanse of ocean.

 

*

 

【World successfully detached.】

 

【Soft Rice Point has reached its maximum limit. Converting…】

 

【Plot Progress: 100%. System Evaluation: Achieved a perfect score for a first-year task performer.】

 

【Evaluation from [Overseer 10] as follows】

 

【Character Consistency: S】

 

【Plot Flow: S】

 


【Plot Logic: A → revised to S】

 

【New Staff Potential: S】

 

【[Overseer 10]’s comments: A diligent and hardworking task performer. I learned a lot from them.】

 

In the early stages, all of Shui Que’s instances were guided by Xie Qian, so he had basically maxed out his Soft Rice Point.

 

In two consecutive minor worlds, the Soft Rice Point had hit the upper limit. But when converted into the currency system of the big world, Shui Que only had 900,000 credited to his employee account.

 

However, apart from trading at the company store and getting System 77 a new dog head cover, he didn’t have any other spending needs.

 

His housing was a company-issued apartment for big world employees.

 

In his original world, Shui Que had always been a homebody. He used to live a routine of just the lab and his dorm.

 

So during the one-week vacation in the big world, he signed up for daily food delivery service and then holed up in the apartment, watching movies with System 77.

 

“Ding dong.”

 

The food delivery arrived right on time.

 

Wearing his fuzzy slippers, Shui Que shuffled over and opened the door.

 

Besides the dinner delivery, there was also another finely packaged box on the floor.

 

But he hadn’t ordered anything else…

 

Cautiously, he shook the cardboard box next to his ear. No sound came from inside.

 

The receipt stapled to the top was printed, so there was no way to identify the sender by handwriting.

 

But the bold printed address on the label was indeed Shui Que’s current residence—down to the exact house number.

 

…How strange.

 

Still, in the big world, it should be safe enough.

 

He carried the takeaway and the cardboard box back to his room.

 

Using scissors, he cut along the edges—

 

Shui Que’s pupils instantly widened in shock.

 

A familiar plush dog lay quietly inside the cardboard box.

 

Black and yellow color scheme.

 

The black button it had lost when he was a child had been sewn back on, one stitch at a time.

 

Its two pitch-black button eyes looked quietly and tenderly at its little owner, as if piercing through the many years that had passed.

 

Shui Que hugged it tightly, just like he used to—as if the world had never torn them apart.

 

He even clung to it while he slept that night.

 

System 77 felt a little jealous. Wearing its golden retriever costume hood, it curled up beside the pillow.

 

That annoying plush toy had taken the spot that rightfully belonged to it.

 

Oh well. A system shouldn’t be too petty. The vacation was almost over anyway—what harm could there be in giving up one night?

 

At breakfast, System 77 zipped through the air, flitting back and forth excitedly as it read aloud the details of a new assignment.

 

[Host, host! I found your next mission!]

 

[This time, you’ll be playing the role of the imperial exam male lead’s youthful first love… Wait—] The system paused to double-check, its voice growing quieter as it corrected itself, [No, it’s the dark love. The toxic one.]

 

[Your character trait is being snobbish and materialistic.]

 

[The male lead’s parents are dead, and he’s dirt poor. He meets you by chance, then takes you home after you’re injured. During his lowest point—when he’s grieving—you pretend to care, whispering sweet promises of forever. But behind his back, you’re flirting with others, using him as a stepping stone to get close to his old classmates and mentors.]

 

[You’re also vain. The male lead works three jobs a day just to buy you the finest silks, while also preparing for the imperial exams. But on your wedding night, you run off with a nobleman…]

 

System 77 was clearly struggling as it continued.

 

[…Host, you’re also a manipulative little schemer. While the male lead was working himself to the bone to support you, you ran off to another man’s house, saying the male lead resented how much you spent and wouldn’t even feed you…]

 

[It’s all in the mission briefing!] System 77 quickly clarified, [That wasn’t me talking! It’s what the script says!]

 

Shui Que: “…”

 

Why did it feel like he’d gotten used to receiving weird roles every time…

 

System 77 didn’t even finish reading the entire mission brief, but Shui Que could already guess—it probably wasn’t going to have a happy ending.

 

He let out a sigh. Well, he still had to work hard.

 

“Let’s go.”

 

*

 

Longzhou County.

 

Mountains reflected in lakes, flowers blooming near clear waters. Lotus-picking girls rowed boats beneath the long embankments, their singing drifting gently through the air.

 

Leaving the Xijiang Academy, one would cross the Bazhi Bridge. Beyond that was the morning market, where the main street and its side alleys bustled with stalls and shops—no space left empty.

 

The morning market had just closed, and the daytime market was beginning.

 

The smell of noodle soup and baked flatbread wafted through the air.

 

The sun was beginning to beat down. Shui Que waited listlessly at the bridgehead, stomach growling, leaning against the stone pier, a sheen of sweat forming on his forehead.

 

He finally threw off his sunhat’s gauzy veil. Sure enough, it was much easier to breathe.

 

The sunlight warmed his face, highlighting the delicate arches of his brows, the red of his lips, and his smooth, jade-like features.

 

His skin was so pale it almost glowed, but his lips were flushed a vivid red, and the sun had turned his fair cheeks a soft pink.

 

Passersby—most hurrying across Bazhi Bridge toward the market—couldn’t help but turn their heads to glimpse that striking figure dressed in white.

 

[Why hasn’t the male lead shown up yet?] Shui Que hung his head.

 

He had already politely declined the help of several kind strangers.

 

A man in white robes—clearly a scholar at first glance—walked up and asked, “Young sir, are you feeling unwell?”

 

He had noticed Shui Que’s pale face.

 

Shui Que shook his head quickly. “I’m fine, thank you. I’m just waiting for someone…”

 

The man left, looking disappointed.

 

System 77 shouted: [He’s here, he’s here!]

 

Sure enough, among those walking over from Xijiang Academy, there was a tall young man in coarse hemp robes, a white mourning ribbon tied around his forehead. He had a lean, imposing build, but his face was indifferent and gaunt.

 

In the script, the male lead only took Shui Que home after finding him injured, but System 77 couldn’t bear to see him hurt. It suggested Shui Que simply fake a twisted ankle.

 

So, as the male lead walked past the bridge pier, Shui Que nervously acted it out.

 

“…Ah.” Just as System 77 had taught him, Shui Que lowered his lashes and trembled slightly. “My foot… it hurts…”

 

It felt a bit like he was trying to scam someone…

 

Surely the male lead wasn’t that gullible?

 

Qi Chaojin gave him a sidelong glance, his cold brows casting a shadow over his expression.

 

He didn’t even slow his steps, brushing past him without a word.

 

Shui Que stared after him and called the system: [77! That didn’t work at all!]

 

But System 77’s channel had already been cut off—

 

[I only left you alone for one world.]

 

[Baby, how did your taste get this bad?]

 

It was Overseer 01 speaking.

 

[Just look at those coarse robes. If you follow him, you’re going to end up foraging for wild greens.]

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Huge shoutout to @candycorns2 on Discord for commissioning this! The chapter will be posted regularly, show your support for Ciacia at Kofi.

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