Jiang Le opened his personal information and clicked on the “Grand Lottery Spin” option displayed next to his points. Instantly, a common prize wheel appeared before his eyes.  

To his surprise, the wheel boasted a variety of prizes: eggs, flour, pork, brown sugar, malted milk powder, White Rabbit milk candies… and even a universal wound medicine. There was also a hidden reward.  

As someone with notoriously bad luck—a certified non-lucky individual—Jiang Le didn’t dare hope for the hidden prize. Right now, all he wanted was the universal wound medicine. If he could win it, he’d save a full ten points.  

Those ten points were his entire fortune at the moment, and spending them all at once felt painfully wasteful.  

Jiang Le exhaled, rubbed his fingers together, and put on a devout expression.  

Even Gua Gua grew nervous watching him: [Go, Host! This system believes in you!]  

Amid Gua Gua’s cheers, Jiang Le finally tapped the spin button with trembling fingers.  

The wheel spun instantly, then gradually slowed down. Under Jiang Le’s anxious gaze, the pointer landed on the hidden reward—a sliver of space no wider than a finger on the entire wheel.  

Jiang Le: “???” 

Had… had he finally gotten lucky?  

After all, the hidden reward was probably the best prize on the wheel. But what he really wanted was the universal wound medicine. For a moment, he wasn’t sure whether to celebrate or not.  

Gua Gua urged him excitedly: [Host, quick! See what the hidden reward is!] 

Jiang Le stopped hesitating. Worst case, he could just spend his points on the wound medicine later. This was the hidden reward—what if it was something amazing?  

With that thought, he eagerly rubbed his hands together and clicked “Yes” on the system’s prompt: [View reward?] 

Wide-eyed with anticipation, he was instantly let down by what he saw.  

Jiang Le was speechless: [What the heck is “Sweet ‘n’ Yummy—I Love It”? Is this… food?]

What kind of naming sense was this? If it was food, the label told him absolutely nothing.  

Gua Gua coughed awkwardly: [Well… sort of.] 

Jiang Le sensed something off: [What do you mean, ‘sort of’?] 

When Gua Gua stayed silent, his suspicion only grew. After some thought, he decided to redeem “Sweet ‘n’ Yummy—I Love It.”  

A moment later, a white paper packet materialized on the table in front of him. The packaging… didn’t look like anything meant for human consumption.  

Frowning, Jiang Le unwrapped it to find pinkish-purple chunks inside. Forget the taste—the color alone looked downright suspicious.  

[This… this isn’t rat poison, is it?] Jiang Le recalled the rodenticide he’d bought before. It had looked just like this.

So, the system’s hidden reward is just a pack of rat poison? What a scam! And here he thought his luck had finally turned around.  

Gua Gua hurriedly defended itself: [It’s not rat poison at all! Host, you didn’t even check the item description—how careless!]

Jiang Le clicked open the item info and read:  

“Sweet ‘n’ Yummy—I Love It”: No animal can resist its delicious flavor~ Even if faced with their natural predator, they’ll still gobble it up! Because—Sweet ‘n’ Yummy, I Love It, I Love It!  

Jiang Le: “[…]”  

What a cringey description.  

Still, this thing seemed way more interesting than rat poison. The problem was… he had no idea what to do with it.  

Gua Gua firmly insisted that “Sweet ‘n’ Yummy—I Love It” was an amazing item—a rare hidden reward—and that Jiang Le had hit the jackpot this time.  

Half-convinced, Jiang Le tucked the packet away. Whatever, I’ll figure out its use later. 

With that settled, he gritted his teeth and spent his last ten points on the “Universal Wound Medicine.” 

By now, it was late at night. Through the curtain, Jiang Le could hear Jiang Junqing’s snores. Tiptoeing over, he lifted the fabric slightly. His brother, exhausted from a long day of labor, didn’t stir at all.  

Jiang Le glanced at the newly acquired medicine, then at Jiang Junqing’s leg. [System, can I use this on my second brother?]

Gua Gua: [You can, but it won’t do anything.]

Jiang Le: “[…]” 

Perhaps sensing his disappointment, Gua Gua quickly explained: [Host, the items in the beginner-tier system store are all basic-level. Though every product from this system is top quality, the Basic Wound Medicine only works on injuries less than a month old. Your brother’s leg injury is years old—this medicine won’t help much~]

Instead of feeling disheartened, Jiang Le latched onto something else: [Wait, so there’s an intermediate or even advanced version? Could those heal his leg?]  

Gua Gua: [Host’s question exceeds current access privileges~ Gua Gua can’t answer that~]  

Jiang Le fell silent, but inwardly, his heart raced. If the basic medicine couldn’t treat old injuries, then intermediate or advanced versions very likely could.  

Pressing his lips together, he took one last look at his brother—whose brow remained furrowed even in sleep—then slipped out the door, disappearing into the night.  

The countryside was dead quiet after dark. Even in modern times, his village would empty out completely at night—nothing like the city, where people roamed the streets at all hours.  

As he walked, Jiang Le kept circling back to the medicine. [How do I unlock the intermediate store?]

Gua Gua: [That depends on the host’s own efforts~]  

Jiang Le pressed further: [Then how can I earn more Melon Coins?]

Gua Gua: [By completing the system’s melon-eating tasks!] 

Jiang Le asked again: [So I just have to wait for you to assign tasks? What triggers them?] 

This time, Gua Gua didn’t beat around the bush: [Hehe, as long as the host interacts more with the “melon protagonists,” tasks will trigger automatically! Gua Gua loves eating melons~] 

Jiang Le thought to himself: How am I supposed to interact with these “melon protagonists”? 

Well, at least he had some clue now. It wasn’t like he was completely passive.  

As they talked, Jiang Le arrived at the doorstep of a solitary house on the eastern edge of the village—the home of Yu Hezhong, the original novel’s villain.  

Yu’s grandfather had returned to the village years ago with Yu’s father, but with no place to stay, they had to build a new house. Since there was no space left in the village proper, they had no choice but to construct it on the outskirts.  

Who could’ve predicted that both father and grandfather would later die in an accident, leaving young Yu Hezhong alone after his mother remarried?  

Now, living by himself at the edge of the village, without family or neighbors, the place was indeed dangerous.  

No wonder the village troublemakers like Gou Dan dared to steal from Yu Hezhong—they took advantage of the isolated location, knowing no one would notice.  

Jiang Le had heard the story from Grandma Jiang: Gou Dan had tried to rob Yu’s home but ended up breaking his leg in the process. Instead of admitting fault, he blamed Yu Hezhong and caused even more trouble for him.  

The thought made Jiang Le’s chest tighten with frustration.  

Gua Gua’s timid voice piped up: [Host, hurry up and knock! I’m scared…]

Jiang Le was speechless: [You’re a system—why are you afraid of ghosts?]

Gua Gua whimpered: [Look over there… doesn’t that shadow swaying back and forth look like a floating head?]

Jiang Le: “[…]”

A sudden chill ran down his spine. He quickly stepped up to Yu’s door, placed the Universal Wound Medicine on the stone slab outside, and tucked a note underneath. After knocking, he immediately darted to a pre-scouted hiding spot behind the corner of the wall.  

Gua Gua teased: [Host, you’re acting so sneaky!] 

Jiang Le huffed: [You don’t understand—this is called “doing good deeds without leaving a name.”]

Gua Gua was confused: [But why hide your name if you’re doing something good?] 

Too embarrassed to admit he was socially awkward around his favorite fictional character, Jiang Le changed the subject: [Look, Yu Hezhong’s coming out.]  

Sure enough, the door creaked open, revealing Yu Hezhong gripping a wooden stick, his eyes sharp with vigilance as he scanned the empty surroundings. Finding no one, his expression turned puzzled.  

Jiang Le sighed in relief. Good thing I hid—otherwise, I might’ve gotten whacked with that stick.

Under Jiang Le’s nervous, furtive gaze, Yu Hezhong finally noticed the Universal Wound Medicine and the note left on the stone slab. He lowered his eyes and read the message:  

“This is for treating external injuries~” 

His gaze lingered on the tilde (~) for a moment, his expression unreadable. Then, with a quiet scoff, he muttered to himself, “Since when does anyone in this village want to help me?”  

He turned his head, peering into the darkness where Jiang Le was hiding.  

Jiang Le rubbed the goosebumps rising on his arms: [Why isn’t he going back inside yet?] 

Gua Gua was trembling too: [I-I don’t know, Host! Let’s just go home already, I’m scared~]

Jiang Le: “[…]”  

Great. Now he was getting spooked too.  

Under the anxious stares of both man and system, Yu Hezhong finally closed the door and went back inside.  

Relieved that he hadn’t thrown the medicine away, Jiang Le exhaled and rubbed his arms. Then, breaking into a sprint, he dashed home, muttering under his breath—and picking up speed as he ran.  

Not that he could be blamed. Gua Gua kept pointing out shadows that “looked like ghosts,” fraying his nerves. The worst part? The system wasn’t even trying to scare him—it was genuinely terrified.  

Neither of them noticed that, after they left, Yu Hezhong opened the door again. His dark, inscrutable eyes followed the direction they had fled before dropping to the wound medicine in his hand.  

What was he thinking?

Yu Hezhong barely remembered Jiang Le—just a vague impression of him occasionally trailing behind Gou Dan. Today, though, the boy had helped him. And now, he’d brought medicine.  

Could it really be trusted?

Unaware that his “secret identity” had already been exposed before he could even establish it, Jiang Le finally skidded to a stop outside his house, panting.  

Even though the days were still hot, nights in the village had a creeping chill—typical for the countryside. Except for the peak of summer, evenings always carried a damp, unsettling cold.  

Rubbing his icy fingers, Jiang Le was about to push open the door when a voice slithered out of the darkness beside him:  

“What were you up to just now?”

Jiang Le: “!!!” AAAAAH—!  

Gua Gua: [AAAAAH! GHOST GHOST GHOST!]  

Jiang Le’s neck creaked as he turned stiffly—only to make out a vaguely familiar face in the dim light. Not a ghost at all, but Auntie Zhang Xiuhua, the woman from the neighboring Wang family.  

Zhang Xiuhua’s wrinkled face stretched into a knowing smirk, though her words carried a sharp edge:  

“Saw you sneaking around. What were you doing? Stealing from someone’s house again? At this hour… Tsk. I’ll have to ask tomorrow if anyone’s missing anything.”