Chapter 4: Other People’s Children
On the way home, Su Jiu held an iced red tea in one hand and her phone in the other, her gaze lingering on the little bear avatar in the QQ software, her mood inexplicably complex.
She had actually added the Male Protagonist’s Sister’s QQ number, and the other party didn’t realize she was the mayor’s daughter. What should she do next?
Never mind… let nature take its course. After all, Bai Qianyu seemed quite easygoing in the novel.
Unknowingly, she had arrived at her doorstep. It was a three-story courtyard with a distinct Jiangnan flavor. Su Jiu glanced down at the bloodstains on her clothes and curled her lips. If her old man or her annoying brother found out, she’d probably get a beating.
Glancing around and seeing no one, she climbed onto the second floor to her room like a gecko.
Su Jiu took a bath in the bathroom, dried her hair, changed into a long nightgown, and fell into a deep sleep.
After an unknown amount of time, her phone, which was charging, made a sound.
“Who?”
Su Jiu groggily opened her eyes, fumbling for her charging phone. She had few close friends, and people like her dad usually called directly. She picked up her phone and saw that it was indeed the little bear avatar she had just added, which was flashing.
Clicking on it, it was a message from Bai Qianyu.
[Sister Jiu, are you really still in the Coagulated Blood stage?]
Su Jiu didn’t understand why the other party was asking this, as if there was a hidden meaning. She thought for a moment and started typing on her phone.
[Yes, but my Coagulated Blood is close to ninety percent, which is why you saw what you saw today.]
The other party replied quickly, clearly shocked:
[Ninety? This is the realm of prodigies! It’s among the top in Dragon Country…]
Su Jiu felt a little smug from shocking the Male Protagonist’s Sister, but based on her understanding of Bai Qianyu in the novel, she wouldn’t just be here to flatter her.
So she continued typing:
[What’s wrong? Did the Lin family trouble you again? I remember you called the law enforcement team later.]
The other party’s typing indicator had been on for about a minute before finally sending a strange message:
[After that relic was discovered, because my house is in the suburbs, some milky white liquid flowed out from upstream in a mountain gully near my house. I only drank a bottle of water and my Coagulated Blood value increased by three percent…]
Upon seeing this, Su Jiu fell into thought. Although the Male Protagonist’s Sister was not a bad person, she wasn’t a fool either. The purpose of telling her this was probably not that simple.
She slowly walked down the stairs and lightly tapped on her phone screen:
[We’ve only met once, right? Are you not afraid I’ll keep this secret to myself if you tell me something like this?]
The other side quickly replied:
[I trust you… You give me a different feeling. The reason I’m telling you is that upstream of that gully, there are many low-grade monster beasts. I need a helper with similar strength to go deeper.]
[The sparse liquid in the small gully has little effect on me now, but it should have some effect on you. I’ll bring some to school for you on Sunday night. Let’s meet at the flag-raising platform.]
Looking at these words, Su Jiu’s body trembled slightly, and her eyes became deep and distant. She suddenly remembered that in the novel, Bai Ming had an opportunity when he returned from summer vacation. It was a rotten dragon egg that had exploded from a relic, and the location was precisely near the suburbs.
Could that silver liquid be dragon egg fluid?!
Damn it, dragons are creatures whose genes, even a trace, make her own father look up to them. Bai Ming, that guy, broke through from High-level Warrior to beginner Battle General just by drinking rotten egg fluid…
Now, a butterfly effect had occurred. She had saved Bai Qianyu, and she didn’t have to wait for her brother to return. Wouldn’t this opportunity be Su Jiu’s?
Holy crap!
Su Jiu was startled by her own thoughts, and her heart itched. What he drank was rotten, but if she drank good stuff, wouldn’t she soar… Just thinking about it made her unable to sleep.
“Xiao Jiu, your Uncle Lin brought your Sister Liu’er to our house as a guest today, and you’re still hiding in your room…”
“Old man, I’m coming.”
Su Xingguo’s slightly hoarse voice came from downstairs, startling Su Jiu. She quickly replied with one word:
[Okay.]
Then she put away her phone and walked downstairs. She remembered that some wealthy businessmen from the city were going to auction some items from relics today, and this Uncle Lin was probably one of them.
Upon going downstairs, the first thing she saw was her younger brother, Su Xiao Yu, standing like a servant next to a girl who looked quite youthful and beautiful. Then, she saw a middle-aged man in a suit, who looked about seventy to eighty percent similar to Lin Lie, sitting opposite her father.
She was already regretting why she didn’t pretend to be asleep and cultivate in her room. Now, she estimated that her power needed to improve a bit more, and she had already met the requirements for some basic martial skills.
“Xiao Jiu, look at Lin Liu’er, she’s about your age and already has eighty-five Coagulated Blood.”
As Su Xingguo’s hawk-like eyes shifted to Su Jiu, the atmosphere in the room instantly froze. Everyone’s gaze fell on Su Jiu.
Immediately, before Su Jiu could speak, Su Xingguo gritted his teeth and said with a tone of disappointment: “Your homeroom teacher called again today saying you skipped class.”
“…”
Su Jiu knew that silence was the best option at this moment, but her gaze fell on the middle-aged man and slightly sharpened.
Lin Mo, the head of the Lin family in Huayang City, an early mini-boss in the novel. He was at her house?
“Brother Su, perhaps Xiao Jiu was sick and forgot to ask for leave. My brat also causes trouble often.”
Lin Mo chuckled, continuing to fill Su Xingguo’s teacup with eighty percent of the tea. Although he spoke for Su Jiu, his brows also seemed to agree with Su Xingguo.
“Your brat causes trouble, but he’s almost at eighty Coagulated Blood. This brat might struggle to reach sixty. She just stays in her room all day and who knows what she does in class.”
Su Xingguo became more and more angry, especially seeing Su Jiu not wearing her school uniform, which made him even more furious. A year ago, his daughter was among the top in her class, even expected to get into 211 or even 985 universities.
Now, she might not even be able to get into a no-name university? She’d have to beg some private universities to admit her again.
“Brother Su, let’s not talk about this. Tomorrow is the auction of relics. I heard you acquired some Dragon Saliva…”
Sensing the awkward atmosphere, Lin Mo quickly changed the subject. He had something to ask of Mayor Su, which was related to his daughter’s chance to compete for the top five universities in Dragon Country.
“Acquired what? I exchanged it directly with the country for three thousand merit points.” Su Xingguo frowned slightly and turned to look at Lin Mo. He knew that this old guy, who only acted if there was profit, had something to ask of him.
“Brother Su, you also know that as Xiao Liu wants to compete for the top five positions with those geniuses, she must break through eighty-eight or above in the Coagulated Blood stage. Otherwise, when she reaches the Warrior stage, those true geniuses will have endless martial skills and combat techniques, and she will fall far behind in practical combat.”
Before Su Xingguo could reply, Lin Mo suddenly took out a golden ginseng from his bag. Its roots looked like dragon whiskers floating in the water, and he offered it, saying with great sincerity, “This is a hundred-year-old Dragon Whisker Ginseng. I obtained it by chance ten years ago. It supplements qi and blood and enhances physique for those below the Warrior stage.”
“That probably won’t do… I need my Dragon Saliva to improve Xiao Jiu’s Coagulated Blood. Otherwise, she might have difficulty awakening in a few days.”
Su Xingguo shook his head and refused decisively. He had just over four thousand merit points, and he spent three thousand for Su Jiu. He wouldn’t abandon a watermelon for a sesame seed.
“Old man, why don’t you exchange it with Uncle Lin? The value of the two items is about the same, and Uncle Lin will definitely give us more compensation.”
Just as Lin Mo was about to say something else, Su Jiu spoke with a light smile. Her eyes were fixed on the Dragon Whisker Ginseng. She didn’t lack Coagulated Blood value at all, but she was severely lacking in physique and qi and blood.
In her previous encounters with the Scarlet Flame Wolf, she was always knocked over and pounced on. If her physique were stronger, she wouldn’t have had to die more than a dozen times and relied on guides to kill it.
