Chapter 6: Self-Studying Russian

Ning Ning froze. Wait, what? I’m showing off my skills here, Mother, and you say that?!

Yue Chi couldn’t help lowering his eyes with a faint laugh, then explained for her.

“Ning Ning was singing a Russian song. Her pronunciation was very standard. She’s very smart—if she can learn Russian songs, she must also be capable of handling Russian conversation.”

“R-Russian?”

“Yes. Mother, what I want to tell you is that this isn’t just a whim, nor a passing fancy. I really do have the ability to learn. I taught myself Russian. I even bought Russian books before. If I can learn a completely new language, then the knowledge I’ve studied before won’t be a problem either.

Mother, I’m serious about taking the college entrance exam, and I’m serious about wanting to attend university.”

Ning Ning solemnly emphasized once more. This time her mother was fully convinced and nodded excitedly.

“Good! Then Mother will wait for you to take us to the capital to enjoy a better life. Ning Ning, you must make us proud! You must get into a good university!”

“Alright.”

Ning Ning beamed, radiant as ever. She had always been beautiful, but before, she carried the air of a silly, sweet girl. Now, she seemed like a sharp-minded lady with everything under control.

Watching this scene, Yue Chi grew even more certain that the girl before him wasn’t the original Ning Ning. The old Ning Ning had been gentle, sweet, and lovely, but never clever or dazzling. Even if she had been reborn, she couldn’t have changed this much.

“Task Four progress +3. Current total: 33. Points: 33.”

Ding-dong! A new system notification popped up. Ning Ning glanced at Yue Chi in confusion. More progress? My butterfly wings haven’t even flapped yet, and he’s already rushing to change the Pacific wind currents?

“Well, I’ll head back now. Ning Ning, if you have any questions with your studies, you can ask me.”

Yue Chi politely nodded to the mother and daughter before heading home. Things were becoming more and more interesting.

Ning Ning: Interesting. I like this feeling of being out of control.

Emmm, I don’t know what else to say—let’s just call it a good match.

“Xiao Yue is such a good boy—handsome, outstanding, polite, and thoughtful. If you liked him and even chased after him, I wouldn’t mind. But instead you just had to fall for that stinking brat Xing Yuan. One look at him and you can tell he’s no good.”

Ning Ning’s mother sighed, then dragged Xing Yuan down again, making it clear how much she disliked him.

“No, chasing after someone is shameful. No one is worthy of me chasing them.”

Ning Ning wagged her little finger in refusal. Her goals now were to complete the four tasks, take the college entrance exam, go to university, then pursue a master’s degree, a doctorate, and continue her studies in this era.

“Exactly!”

Her mother nodded firmly in agreement. Her daughter deserves to be the one pursued, not the other way around.

“Choice: Do you want to use 45 points to change the life trajectory of the supporting character in Task Four?
a. Yes
b. No”

The system’s voice suddenly rang out, this time with a multiple-choice question. Ning Ning raised her brow and asked in her mind:

“What’s the difference?”

“Task Four has reached its first key node. If you spend points, the character’s fate will shift. If you don’t, progress will stop, and their fate will remain unchanged.”

So in other words, she had no choice but to pick “yes.” Otherwise, Task Four would fail.

“I choose a.”

“Will every task require spending points once it reaches 30 progress? How many times do I need to change things before it’s complete? And are the required points fixed?”

“No. Each character’s life nodes are different. The points required also vary. The number of nodes cannot be disclosed for now.”

Got it. Basically, it gets to scam you however and whenever it wants.

“Then can spent points still be exchanged for life value?”
“No.”

“Fine, deduct them. How many points do I have left?”

“2.”

That meant only 2 days left. Good grief. The effort of the past few days was almost wasted. I’m back to being on the brink of death again. The further this goes, the harder it’ll be to gain progress. No wonder there are four tasks—what looks like single choice is actually multiple choice. Otherwise, survival would be impossible.

“Ning Ning, why are you spacing out?”

Her mother waved a hand in front of her face when she suddenly fell silent mid-sentence.

“Nothing. Mother, I’ll go plant some grapes.”

Ning Ning shook her head, then took a break from her busy thoughts to plant the grapes she had received from the system’s newbie gift pack in the courtyard.

“Will these really grow? Where did you get these grapes? They don’t look like the sour ones on the mountain.”

“These are probably sweeter. Doesn’t matter—if they grow, good; if not, forget it.”

She shrugged, not caring much. Who could have guessed that these grapes would later bring her a huge surprise.

“Even when I plant vegetables, I’m not this casual.”

Her mother muttered, then went back to the kitchen to cook. Ning Ning leaned on the doorframe and said sweetly:

“Motheeeer~~~ I want five yuan.”

“What? How much did you just say?”

The knife in her mother’s hand slammed down on the cutting board with a loud thud. She was visibly shaken—five yuan was no small sum.

“Five yuan. I need to buy something. But don’t worry, Mother. This five yuan is my seed money. I’ll turn it into fifty, five hundred, five thousand, even fifty thousand later. Please? I love you the most, Mother!”

Ning Ning clung to her arm, shaking it fiercely. Her mother couldn’t withstand this wave of spoiled sweetness and, dazed, gave in.

“Alright, alright, I’ll give it to you. But you must not waste it. I don’t expect you to earn money, but at least don’t throw it away.”

“I promise I won’t waste it!”

Ah, the benefit of being an only daughter—five yuan in exchange for a little bit of acting cute.

After dinner, Ning Ning even helped wash the dishes, earning herself her mother’s doting scolding.

“Go play, don’t mess around here. It’s just a few dishes—don’t you think I can wash them myself?”

Such genuine indulgence. Left with no choice, Ning Ning went out again to find Lin Xiao and continue her mission.

“You little brat, stop right there! If you dare run again, don’t even think about coming home! You’re turning the heavens upside down!”

“I told you to watch your little brother, and you complain so much? Skipping one meal isn’t enough for you? Believe it or not, I’ll marry you off right now and let your husband’s family beat you to death!”

Just as Ning Ning arrived at Lin Xiao’s house, someone darted past her like a streak of light. She only saw a blur. Behind her was Lin Xiao’s own mother, cursing viciously, face twisted in rage.

In an instant, Ning Ning understood—the runner had been Lin Xiao.

Her eyes lit up. Didn’t expect Lin Xiao to run this fast. A talent worth cultivating. Without hesitation, she followed after.

“You’d better stop associating with my Xiao. She’s been getting more disobedient lately. Is it because you’ve been teaching her? Ning Ning, let me tell you—my Xiao is not like you. She has a little brother. Unlike your family, with no son to carry the lineage. When your parents die, no one will smash the funeral pot or wear mourning for them.”

Unable to catch Lin Xiao, her mother grabbed Ning Ning instead, berating her so fiercely that her spittle nearly hit Ning Ning’s face.

Ning Ning turned her head in disgust, shook off the woman’s grip, and retorted coldly:

“So what? Having a son—will that bring you back from the dead? Or will smashing a pot make sure you’re reborn into a better life?”