Chapter 3

Pei Deming, the eldest son of the Pei family, and his wife Xu Cui returned from work with their three children. The women went to cook while the men relaxed.

While washing vegetables, Xu Cui asked, “Why hasn’t our mother come back yet?”

Pei Deming shrugged off the concern, saying he was too tired to think about it.

Xu Cui was worried: “Do you think our mother did something bad? If the second brother’s family finds out we told her about Jiang Xi, might they cause trouble?”

She had learned that Jiang Xi was meeting someone for a blind date and used it to convince her mother-in-law to give up on the match. She hoped the third brother’s pension would be handed over to her family.

Pei Deming thought his mother would soon send over the third brother’s pension. He was annoyed about how many sons his mother had.

_

As they walked back to Pei’s house, Pei’s mother spoke seriously: “Xiaoxi, there are things you need to know.”

Jiang Xi, exhausted from the long journey, asked, “What is it?”

Mother Pei explained: “The third child has two older brothers. Since he’s injured, they are all eager to get his pension…”

The story begins when Pei Hejun was injured and transferred back to his local hospital.

Pei Hejun’s injuries were very serious. He was hit on the head during a mission. While other injuries were treatable, his head injury was severe. He fell into a coma after surgery and is being kept alive only by medication. It was almost certain he would die, but he was still alive.

Before he fell into a coma, Pei Hejun had asked to be sent back to his hometown. After his condition stabilized a bit, he was moved back. Although most of his injuries had improved, the head injury was still not healed, so he was sent home to recover.

This situation highlights the limitations of medical technology at the time.

The army covered his medical costs, but couldn’t fix the problem due to lack of advanced medical technology. After returning home, Pei Hejun was cared for by his parents. Despite being in a coma and dependent on medical care, his body still needed regular food and maintenance. Pei’s mother struggled alone, so Pei’s father had to help. This meant they earned fewer work points during this time.

The eldest and second sons were unhappy with this, feeling it was a waste to support the third son and wanted the third son’s pension to be given to them, threatening to withdraw their support in the future.

Pei’s mother was aware of her sons’ selfishness. She had not expected much support from them in old age, so she had separated them early on, leaving only the third son to care for them.

Now, with the third son unable to help, Pei’s mother had to manage on her own. The third son was the most caring and used to send food and gifts regularly. His success had improved their lives, so Pei’s mother was reluctant to give his hard-earned money to her other sons for nothing.

The two sides had been in conflict for days.

Pei’s mother, who had been crying often, said, “Luckily, I have you now. The eldest daughter-in-law told me about you visiting a friend. They probably thought I would give up and hand over the pension. If you come back with me now, they will definitely be unhappy. Don’t worry; we won’t live together in the future. You will live with us.”

She said this to prepare Jiang Xi for any mistreatment. Jiang Xi had made a significant sacrifice, and if she faced any injustice, Pei’s mother would be heartbroken.

The two little girls felt relieved and their steps became lighter.

Jiang Xi wiped the sweat from her face and smiled reassuringly: “It’s okay, I’m prepared. As long as Auntie can protect me, that’s enough.”

“Of course!” Mother Pei said loudly, “If they mistreat you, come to me.”

Jiang Xi nodded: “Okay~”

_

With her main worry addressed, Pei’s mother felt lighter. She helped the two little girls with their luggage and was energized enough to entertain them.

Jiang Xi didn’t want to complain. 

The original owner of Jiang Xi wasn’t useless. She grew up in the countryside and was used to working hard, but now even walking a little was tiring.

Could it be that the soul affects the body?

It was May, not very hot, but still made her sweat a lot. Her clothes were drenched in sweat.

Jiang Xi checked her pulse and found she was a bit malnourished but not too weak. Her younger sisters didn’t sweat as much.

The four of them took a break on the way. When they arrived at Pei’s house, Jiang Xi was exhausted and sat down to rest. It was not yet time for the afternoon work. Pei’s father saw the commotion and came out, surprised to see Jiang Xi and her sisters.

“Jiang Xi?” Father Pei was shocked to see her there. “And with two younger sisters?”

Jiang Xi stood and greeted him: “Uncle.”

“Sit down and rest. You must be tired from walking,” Father Pei said kindly and looked at Pei’s mother.

Mother Pei gave them brown sugar water and said with a smile, “Drink this. I’ll talk to your uncle for a while.”

Jiang Xi thanked her: “Thank you, Auntie.”

The younger sisters also expressed their thanks.

Mother Pei took Pei’s father aside and explained what happened at Jiang’s house.

After hearing this, Pei’s father was upset and worried: “Aren’t you harming people? If Jiang Xi marries the third son, her life will be ruined!”

Mother Pei sighed and said softly, “I know it’s unfair to Xiaoxi, but I don’t want the third son to die alone. The doctor said he might not live long. We’re old, and the eldest and second sons are unreliable. But Xiaoxi is honest. Even if she remarries, she won’t let him down as long as he’s alive.”

She felt that giving the money to the eldest and second sons would be like throwing it away. She had seen that Jiang Xi, with her good character, would take good care of the third son without complaints.

Despite being the biological parents, taking care of a comatose person was beyond their capacity. This seemed like the best option for their son.

Father Pei, after calming down, said, “Then the pension…”

“Give it all to Xiaoxi!” Pei’s mother said quickly, “She should get all the money. She has to support her younger sisters, and once they grow up, they can help take care of her. Xiaoxi won’t have to worry in the future.”

Father Pei nodded and said, “You decide when the banquet will be held. We can’t let this child follow the third brother without any status.”

“I’ll discuss it with her tonight. There’s not much work to do recently, so we can do it in the next few days,” Mother Pei said happily.

After their conversation, Pei’s parents came out with two quilts and saw the three girls still sitting patiently.

Mother Pei’s heart softened. She waved them over and said, “I’ve talked to your uncle. Xiaoxi, this is where the third child lives now, and the room next door is empty. You and your sisters can stay here first, and then move in with the third child after the wedding banquet. I’ll make the beds for you.”

She pointed to the room on the right side of the main hall. The room had a bed, a table, a bookcase, and some items. It was clean and tidy.

Jiang Xi had no objections, and her younger sisters were well-behaved. She said, “Okay, thank you, Auntie. I’ll make the bed.”

“Let me do it. You must be tired from walking,” Mother Pei said, quickly making the bed. She put on a cushion, a sheet, and two thin quilts: “This big bed is for the two little girls. You can use the small bed. The cabinets are empty, so you can use them as you like. Write down anything you need, and we’ll buy them together when we go to the market in a couple of days…”

Jiang Xi nodded and asked her sisters to put away their things: “You’ll be living here from now on, so please tidy up.”

The younger sisters nodded and started organizing their clothes.

Jiang Xi found a space for her own clothes. She felt a bit uncomfortable seeing how little their luggage filled the wardrobe.

After settling her own things, Jiang Xi asked her sisters to rest and went outside.

Mother Pei, waiting for her, asked, “Xiaoxi, is something missing?”

Jiang Xi shook her head and smiled: “No, Auntie. May I go see Brother Pei San?”

Mother Pei was pleased and said, “Of course! He’s in this room. Your uncle takes care of him at night, and I take care of him during the day.”

She led Jiang Xi into the room.

The room was larger and had better lighting. A tall man lay on the bed. His features were strong and regular but his face was pale, his lips very pale, and he had a tube in his nose, showing his frailty. He looked much thinner than Jiang Xi remembered.

Fearing Jiang Xi might hesitate, Mother Pei explained, “The third child is easy to care for. You just need to feed him through this tube using a syringe. The tube needs to be changed once a month. It was changed two days ago. For his toilet needs, his father will handle it. You only need to turn him over occasionally, wipe his body, and if you have time, you can also give him a massage…”

She demonstrated as she spoke.

Jiang Xi had studied Chinese medicine and worked as a doctor for two years, so she understood how to care for vegetative^[1]is a medical condition where a person is awake but unable to respond to their surroundings. patients. She was prepared and helped Pei’s mother turn Pei Hejun over.

As she touched him, a translucent screen appeared with the words “Task List” at the top.

Tasks were listed below: 

– [Task 1: Help someone who is being molested by a gangster, reward points: 1 (failed)]

– [Task 2: Help the wronged child, reward points: 1 (failed)]

And more…

Some tasks were marked as failed, while others were in progress.

Jiang Xi was startled and pulled her hand back. The screen disappeared, but Pei’s mother continued working without showing any signs of noticing anything unusual.

Jiang Xi felt a chill but was also excited. She wondered if Pei Hejun was somehow connected to the system.

Amused by her own thought, Jiang Xi touched the screen again. It appeared with the same tasks and a line of small text at the bottom: [Wuwuwu, if the host doesn’t wake up, I will be punished for not completing the mission for a long time. I am so unlucky!!!]

Jiang Xi: “…”

The system seemed a bit funny.