1 「The Beginning」
"Sister!" A young woman cries out in shock; her eyes wide open as she stood frozen and unable to move at the gruesome sight before her.
Her beloved sister stands before the corpse of the man she loves, her bloodied right hand holding a glistening knife in blood. The woman's eyes were red from anger and insanity.
"If…" She starts speaking in a daze. "He doesn't love me, I won't allow anyone to have him!" She declares before she suddenly laughs out loud.
The screen suddenly turn black.
A young woman wearing a hoodie sat up as she places the remote control down. "What kind of second-rate drama was that? Two sisters setting aside their blood relations just to fight over a man?" She murmurs to herself.
Rising from the sofa, the young woman deliberately ignores the sight of a ball of fluff falling down to floor.
After stretching her arms, Wu Fei quickly opens her laptop and starts playing game.
「Host...」A sweet childlike voice calls out.
Hearing that cutesy but emotionless voice, Wu Fei freezes. She faces a floating toy and blinks. Her arrogant expression quickly shifts into an innocent and wide eyed look.
"Yes?"
System 086 stares speechlessly at how quickly its host change faces. At least this shows that the Host can act, it comforts itself.
「...Reminding Host that the filming of the TV drama will start three days from now. Host should start reading through the script and memorize your lines.」System 086 reminds her of the object of its system task.
Wu Fei pauses, her eyes darting around the room as she thinks of numerous excuses to make so that she can delay reading the script and memorizing her lines.
As though hearing her thoughts, System 086 mechanically spoke the following words.
「Task penalty of failure is a deduction of 100 points. Reminding the host that her current points is not enough as such, the system will automatically self-destruct and exterminate the host.」
Hearing that, the young miss can do nothing but resentfully swallow all of her grievances and complaints before she dutifully exits from her game and picks up the untouched script next to her.
How she wished that this system never appeared before her! She thought bitterly to herself, thinking of the day that the meng selling system appeared before her.
﹊﹊﹊
Wu Fei furrows her brows in concentration as she skilfully maneuvers her character to attack the dungeon's boss.
"Ha!" The young woman made a pleased sound upon seeing the golden 'victory' on the screen, she smiled smugly.
Just as she was about to go and do another sweep of the dungeon, the doors of her room loudly opened and a cheerful voice announced her arrival.
"Young miss! Did you miss me?" A young teenage girl dressed in a maid's outfit cheerily calls out as she opens the lights.
"!!" Letting out a pained shout as bright lights suddenly flooded her vision, Wu Fei quickly covered her eyes.
"Xiao Yue!" She grits her teeth in anger. "Turn off the lights!"
"Oh my! I am so sorry young miss!"
Sorry? The young woman thought to herself as she blinks her eyes rapidly. I am not blind nor deaf ah! I can see that bright smile and twinkling eyes. This empress dowager can also hear that unapologetic tone!
"Just turn off the damn lights!"
﹊﹊﹊
"The young miss is already 20 this year. Madame and Master are starting to get worried about you- just look at other families' young misses! They are already craving out a career for themselves, mixing in the social circle, making connections, and also discussing marriages with other families. Then look at you, our family's only young miss, who decided to shut herself inside her room and do nothing but play games and watch movies! The Old Madame is not getting any younger, and at her old age, she wishes to see her granddaughter…"
Wu Fei sits on the sofa, legs crossed and her left hand propping her chin as she watches her friend pace in front of her. She absentmindedly listens to the young girl passionately speak a familiar speech.
"Young Miss, are you even listening?"
The woman lets out a soft hum, nodding her head in response. She stares at Xiao Yue indifferently and then lightly speaks, "To summarize, they just want me to go out of my room."
"That's right! So please consid-"
"Get out."
Wu Fei unhesitatingly cuts her off. Her voice is bitingly cold and her eyes stony, causing Xiao Yue's bright smile to falter.
Seeing the young girl opening her mouth to protest, Wu Fei leisurely adds. "Or don't blame me for being cruel."
Xiao Yue pauses, the times when this little ancestor made her life difficult by making her run around the manor doing tasks came to mind. She smiles stiffly before deciding to forgo everything and run away from this petty devil.
"Oh my!" She lets out a loud exclamation, her expression turning into worry. "I still need to help Auntie Zhang make dinner! Please excuse me young miss!"
She turned and quickly fled the room. Wuwuwu (ᗒᗣᗕ) ՞ Master, Madame! It's not that she didn't try her best, it's just that the young miss is very scary! She doesn't want to do this ever again!
Hearing the door closing with a loud bang, Wu Fei sighs as she laid down on the sofa.
Some things, no matter how much they wish for her to do, even if that made them happy… She really could not muster up the courage to do those things. Ever since that day, even after all this time… Everything in the outside world just seems so painful and meaningless.
She closes her eyes as she thinks about her family's background. The Wu jia are well-known as a giant among men. Not only do they have connections with the military, the family also have their hands in business, real estate, technology, research and other fields.
Their standing in the society, in this generation, became more prominent due to the talents of their Young Masters.
The Eldest Young Master Wu, upon reaching the age of twenty one, immediately took over and managed the family's companies and subsidiaries formally making his father retire. Amidst the expectations of failures from others due to his young age, the Wu Corporation, under this young man's care and management, became one of the leading companies in the business circle.
The Second Young Master, at first, attracted ridicule and scorn when this young man decided to pursue being a painter. Now, however, people could only let out sounds of exclamation when this Second Young Master introduced soul sucking paintings and received acknowledgement from various masters in the field.
The Third Young Master also did not disappoint. As an acknowledged genius, he pursued software programming and developed programs and technology that surprised and amazed the masses.
And finally, the only daughter of Wu jia, the Young Miss Wu. A young woman whose achievements, when compared to her older brothers, are lacking. However, no one can deny the fact that this young woman is the most beloved treasure of the family. Wu Fei, the pearl of Wu jia, the most doted upon child of their family,
… The young miss that nobody had seen ever since she turned eighteen. Wu Fei thought bitterly. The cowardly young miss that is afraid of facing the truth and betrayal of those two people she trusted that she dared not come out of her room.
﹊﹊﹊
「Ding!」
Wu Fei furrows her brows at the soft ringtone. She fell asleep? The woman thought to herself.
Hearing a buzzing sound, the young woman groans. Opening her eyes to search for her phone, Wu Fei stills as her eyes fell on the figure of a fur ball-like thing hovering in the air.
〘 System fully installed.〙
A child-like mechanical voice spoke and the little ball resembling a stuffed toy floated closer to Wu Fei.
Wu Fei blinks rapidly, her drowsiness disappearing upon the sight of an identified white ball floating in front of her. Her eyes narrow in thought, the corner of her lips rising up to form a slight smile. Her eyes, contrary to her bright smile, is chilly.
"Ye gege is getting creative with his inventions ah." Wu Fei mused out loud, thinking that Xiao Yue must have brought this thing in and forgetting to mention about it when she left.
Without hesitation, the young woman pokes the round ball curiously. Her eyes brighten at the soft sensation of the fur.
Very fluffy!
"He still needs to fix this thing's appearance though." Wu Fei couldn't help but add, eyeing the little thing's appearance. The little thing resembles that of a fluffy baby bird, just without legs. The first thing the woman noticed was the bright vermillion flower mark on its forehead, the only spot of color in its otherwise snowy white fur. It was very small, around the size of a tennis ball.
〘Initialization complete. Now transferring data... 〙
"Oh? How interesting," She murmurs softly to herself. Having spent most of her time playing games, watching films, and reading novels, Wu Fei couldn't help but think that this scene before her would fit right in with the troupe of "a system arriving in the life of the protagonis, thus changing their life."
Curious about this toy, Wu Fei waits for it to do something on a whim. If she had known what kind of change it would bring into her life, the young woman wouldn't have hesitated to throw it away.
〘Data transfer complete. 〙
The small ball suddenly shook violently before it stills. Wu Fei leans closer to watch what the little thing's next action will be.
It opens its eyes. Small black eyes, similar to a smooth black polished button, meets Wu Fei's curious and interested gaze.
〘 Hello, host~〙It chirps cheerfully in greeting. 〘 I am System 086, also known as the Entertainment System!〙
It's voice and the way it speaks is very similar to that of a young child. The only jarring thing about it was that while its speech is very human-like, its tone is cold and devoid of emotions.
Wu Fei smiles, unfazed. "How cute." She comments instead, her tone light and mild. "Did Third Brother create you?"
〘 Replying to Host, System Number 086 is not created and programmed by Wu Ye. System Number 086 is a state of the art system with the ultimate goal of having the Host achieve the title Entertainment Queen. I am a very user friendly system that will help the host live a physically and mentally healthy life!〙
Little student Wu Fei's expression didn't waver upon those words. Her eyes continue to shine with curiosity and wonder while a small smile hangs from her lips.
Inside the mind of this shut-in, however, is very much more chaotic than her expression.
Excuse me?!
How can something that usually happens in novels happen to her? Wu Fei thought hysterically. What sort of luck did she have to be graced with the experience of having a 'system?'
In the novels, how come the characters need to die first before gaining a system but when it comes to her, she falls asleep and when she wakes up to see a system hovering in front of her?
Σ(O_O)
Wait!
Her thoughts came to a halt when a sudden epiphany came to her.
Can she even trust this suspicious round ball? What if this is just a prank from her mischievous third brother? The young woman did not hesitate and ruthlessly spoke out those words, rendering 086 speechless.
It starts to circle around its Host before deciding to issue the first quest. It didn't bother the usual introduction and tutorial, and just continue on.
(⇀‸↼‶) Hmph! Since she doesn't believe it, the little thing thought, then don't blame it for starting the quest chain now! It shamelessly went on, taking advantage of the opening its current mission and target gave it. It needs to keep up with the ploy after all.
〘Requesting quests. Quest list "First Step into Stardom" received. Issuing Quest 1.〙It mechanically speaks and a blue holographic screen appears before Wu Fei.
Wu Fei's relaxed smile turns stiff for a minute before her expression turns serious as she reads the rows of texts before her.
086 blinks rapidly before it marveled at its Host. As expected~ for an excellent system like it, this time's Host is really an elite lady with such dedication ah! Even though she seems unreliable.
┐ (￣∀￣) ┌
While a certain system starts to praise itself narcissistically and criticizing Wu Fei, its Host stares at the task with a tangled look.
So this is the real thing? It's actually real? She thought, blinking sluggishly at the floating screen before her. She held back the urge of throwing anything to the ground in rage. Entertainment Queen System?
Just hearing that makes her feel tired all of the sudden ah! She doesn't want to go out at all, and she also doesn't want to be a star. After all, the life of a public figure is so hard, they rarely have privacy and every single word and action since they became popular has always been under the scrutiny of the netizens.
They will praise you and raise you up to the heavens; and when you fall, they will condemn and scold you to hell. Wu Fei thought to herself bitterly.
Sneaking a peak on the dazed 086, Wu Fei forgets about those thoughts as doubt filled her. For such a dumb and dazed system to be referred to as 'state of the art,' can she rely on it at all?
¯\(°_o)/¯ Shrugging, she turns her attention back towards the lines of texts and reads them again.
「Quest 1: Audition for a role in a TV drama
Quest Description: The first step into your career as the most dazzling and glamorous artist! Host, walk forward and live spectacularly!
Quest reward: 50 system points
Quest failure punishment: Deduction of 100 system points」
Wu Fei pursed her lips. How can she live spectacularly ah? Most of all, how come the first quest is not joining an agency but having to audition for a role in a TV drama? Although this would really help her in entering the eyes of the public and get fans, having a backing like a company would also be helpful…
Wait! Her focus shouldn't be in her career development ah! Wu Fei grits her teeth before deciding to veto this quest!
"I'm not going to do this quest." She resolutely speaks.
Her words, which sounds like a death toll to a certain system, were final and determined. Seeing its Host reclining on the sofa and slowly closing her eyes with the intention of taking a brief nap, 086 finally decides to steel its heart and threaten its host.
It loves all of its hosts, but somehow, they are always so uncooperative at first meeting~ It's glass heart breaks every time~ (〃￣ω￣〃ゞ
The young woman slowly fell asleep, however, before she could fully succumb into deep sleep… She received a heart attack upon hearing the words of 086.
〘Host, please wake up! If you fail the quest, 086 would have to reluctantly exterminate you.〙It chirps cheerfully.
Hearing the word 'exterminate,' a certain young miss' mind already thought up of one outcome from that word due to her rich experience in reading novels. Wu Fei sat up straight quickly.
"Exterminate? Please explain." She smiles.
086 felt its fur bristling at the sight of such expression. She looks so amicable and calm, why did it suddenly feel like it was being stared at by a fierce and hungry lion?
Meanwhile, Wu Fei struggles to hold in all sorts of complaints and scolding from being said. What a shameless ball! They had only met moments ago and now it is already rebelling and threatening her? In this system's eyes, is she really its host and not a laborer?!
〘 Answering the host's question, extermination means the destruction of the soul. System 086 has fully bonded with the host's soul already. For me to be able to unbind from the host and to a new one, System 086 must exterminate the host first or for the host to achieve the title of Entertainment Queen~〙
"Then," Wu Fei began, "Why is it also a punishment for a quest?"
System 086 really admires how its Host still keeps smiling. After all, by this time most of its previous hosts would already attack it, threaten it, scold it, or cough out blood and faint from anger. What a disappointment~
〘Host has a default system points of 50. The punishment for failing the quest is a deduction of 100 system points, once the system points reach a negative amount; system 086 either issues a redeeming quest or to change hosts. Unfortunately, Host has still not yet unlocked the redeeming quest function as Host has not yet formally debuted.〙
Wu Fei's smile drops, her eyes flash with various emotions. What kind of system forces its Host to participate in quests?
"System," She starts, "I want to request an audience with your creator." She demands, although she isn't sure of the existence of a creator, but surely there must be something that created this thing, right?
It's not like this thing popped out of nowhere.
086 starts to shake violently, processing the demand of its Host before it answers back. 〘Request denied. Requesting Host to call System 086 as 086.〙
Wu Fei inwardly ridicules the fluffball's naming choice. Hahahaha, 086? You made a fortune?
What "made a fortune"? This empress dowager thinks that this is clearly a case of mistaking a fisheye for a pearl! How much bad karma did she accumulate for her to be punished with this fluffball's presence, huh?
In the first place, how come the system she received is so different from her interests? Why an Entertainment Queen System instead of a system related to gaming? What happened to catering to one's interest?
System creator, come out! You must have mistakenly given me the wrong system ah!
After accepting the quest, little student Wu Fei decided to throw everything to the back of her head and play games.
Hehehe.
Maybe she's just having a very realistic dream? And tomorrow she'll wake up and find that this thing is just a dream?
Unfortunately for Wu Fei, everything is real and not a mere dream.
﹊﹊﹊
〘Host, why are we sneaking out of your house like a thief? 〙086 asks while watching it's silly Host cautiously avoiding the security cameras near the back door of the garden with practiced ease, it starts to wonder how many times its Host did this already.
"Because I don't want my family to know what I am up to," Wu Fei answers before stuffing the floating ball into her bag.
"Now shush," She absentmindedly speaks, as she starts climbing on the wall.
086 speechlessly watch on as its Host struggles to climb up. How physically unfit is this girl? Most of all, how can the young miss of this house even stoop to climbing the walls just to get out of her home?
〘Host, I think you should start working on your stamina.〙It finally speaks after Wu Fei safely climbs down the wall.
Wu Fei steadied herself, frowning as her legs involuntarily shakes from the brief exercise. Ugh. She really needs to start exercising from now on.
"If you have seen me two years ago, I can easily climb this wall several times." She grumbles to herself before shaking her head. Hmph! Before, she can even out run her third brother when it comes to running away from their eldest brother.
She didn't speak anymore as she secured her hood to cover her eyes and cautiously walk to the street where a young man, who was dressed plainly as possible with a face mask covering his face, waited for her inside a lowkey black car.
"Hmph! Little Fei, what took you so long?" The young man grumpily speaks, upon catching sight of his cousin.
"Also, what's up with you? Not only did you ask me if I can help you find a role for a tv show, but why are we going out so early in the morning?" He Jue starts to complain.
Tsk! This cousin of his is too heartless ah. Not only did she make him run around looking for roles that can gain her approval, but she also made him wake up before the sun even rose up and wait for her so early in the morning. It not only got him into trouble with his siblings but his agent as well.
"I'll explain later, hurry up. I am hungry- I still haven't eaten yet." Wu Fei answered as she sat on the passenger's seat.
He Jue made a face, not deigning to answer back as he started his car. He watches his cousin reading the script he sent her two days ago. Unable to take the, honestly uncomfortable (if you ask him) silence, the young man starts speaking.
"Little Fei, darling cousin, do you know how hard it was for me to look for a script that can satisfy you? Heaven knows how thankful I was upon seeing you agree with that script I've sent you. By the way, why do you need that script? Are you planning on giving it to someone? Wait, do you even know someone aside from us? Seeing you read that script with such startling determination and concentration makes me think that you're actually the one who's going to audition for the role."
Giving her rambling cousin a side glance, Wu Fei huffs. "That's right. I'm planning on auditioning for the role."
"Ha! I knew it! Who are you giving that role to-" He Jue suddenly paused as the words of his cousin sunk in.
"Wait, what, come again?"
"I am auditioning for the role." Wu Fei repeats in amusement, seeing her usually arrogant cousin's expression suddenly distort, torn between shock and fear.
"The hell! Aunty and Uncle are going to kill me for helping you!" He Jue blurts out, fear outweighing the elation of seeing his shut-in cousin deciding to leave her nest and to explore the world.
Oh my god! The rest of the family will kill him! They'll end him- how dare he encourage their darling little Fei into entering that messy and chaotic entertainment circle? Not only that, he actually recommended his cousin to the director of the show he will be acting in. Which is good actually, acting in the same show as his cousin and spending time with her… but this will make those people drink vinegar.
At the thought of how the rest of their family would react, He Jue couldn't help but shiver in fear. My god, he can already see his funeral occurring. ( TДT)
"Oh my god, dad and mom will skin me alive. Big sis and big bro will kill me!"
"Stop being so dramatic, they won't find out until everything is already done and over with ah." Wu Fei interjects, looking at He Jue weirdly. This was the first time she had seen this cousin of hers breaking down.
"Little ancestor, is there any way for you to change your mind? I thought you already gave up your dream of becoming a movie star?"
Wu Fei pursed her lips, reading the script given to her without answering. Of course she already gave up. The moment that man had thrown her away for the sake of benefits, disregarding their relationship of three years, Wu Fei already gave up in this circle that appeared to be dazzling and glamorous but rotten underneath it.
Fame? She does not need it, not when it came with the price of being under the watchful eyes of the public.
Fortune? No. She also doesn't need it. Just the amount of money she gained from her foray in the stock market and her inheritance is enough for her and her descendants to spend lavishly.
What she wants… is just to complete this silly system's quests and send it off. Then, she'll be able to go back to normal.
After all, she already gave up on that dream she and a certain childhood friend of hers had once upon a time.
﹊﹊﹊
"Are you… Wu Fei?" An ordinary looking woman looks at Wu Fei in surprise after the assistant, who led the pair of cousins into the conference room, was done talking with the staff.
Wu Fei smiles lightly as she politely bows at the group of people before her. "Hello. I am Wu Fei." She greets them politely.
He Jue looks dumbstruck at the sight of his arrogant and prideful cousin greeting the staff so politely like an adorable and obedient girl.
...Is this even the cousin he knows?
"You… I want to see you act two scenes." Director Li, a middle aged man sitting beside the author of the novel, suddenly speaks up.
"One was after Feng Yue rescued her brother with the help of Xu Mingyun. Then the scene where Feng Yue's real nature was revealed."
The staff looked at the director in surprise while the author and scriptwriter looked on eagerly.
Wu Fei pauses before she nods her head. "Understood, director."
"Start whenever you are ready."
He Jue stood at the side, looking at Wu Fei worriedly. Aiya, if her acting skills isn't good enough, at least she'll be able to enter with that face of hers, the man thought to himself.
Wu Fei took a deep breath and then smiled arrogantly as she crossed her arms over her chest. "A-Yu, did your sister make you wait for long?" She laughs, and looks down at the ground with mirth and hidden relief in her eyes.
"I hope A-Yu doesn't mind that sister disturbed your 'special' time with this man."
Director Li watches the young woman sneer and suddenly kick the air, his mind imagining a man getting kicked and sent flying to the side. Feng Yue stepped forward and then made a move of helping Feng Yue stand up. Her eyes scrutinize the figure of her "brother" and her gaze softens before she lets out a laugh as she sees something.
"Pfft! Brother, look at that mark on your neck. Oh my~" She leers teasingly.
She pauses a bit, her mouth opening in surprise as she hears the response of her brother.
She grins a bit before shrugging. "Aiya, how upset the young master must have been to find out that the young maiden his people painstakingly kidnapped was actually a young master." She laughs again before motioning to her back.
"Come on now, A-Yu. Let's go, we can't have Young Master Xu fight this trash's guards all alone now ah."
She stands to the side as though waiting for someone to go out first. Feng Yue's teasing smile drops as she glances to the side chillingly. She suddenly turns around and smiles brightly as though someone called out to her.
"Coming~"
Wu Fei stills for a second, adjusting her emotions before proceeding to the next act.
Everyone within the room flinches in surprise as the young woman suddenly lets out a loud cry, eyes full of hatred and insanity. "Don't come near him!" She cries out.
Her hands moved instinctively, and her eyes widened as various emotions showed on her face; shock, horror, regret and then finally settling with guilt. She quickly retreated her hand, looking at it in horror.
"No…" She shook her head, backing away.
"I-I didn't mean this." She stuttered, as tears started to fall down.
"I'm so sorry. I-"
Wu Fei suddenly bows down, her tears stopping as she smiles brightly at the group. "Thank you for giving me this opportunity to audition." She speaks instead.
He Jue speechlessly stares at his cousin in horror. What the hell! How come this little ancestor of his is so skilled in acting ah? "Feifei-"
"Good, good!" Director Li lets out a pleased laugh, clapping his hands. "Wu Fei was it? You have very great acting skills. We are pleased to have you as Feng Yue."
He then turns to He Jue, addressing the young man smiling. "He Jue ah, where did you find her? She's quite skilled. Your eyes are very good!"
Watching this well-known and usually strict director laugh and praise his sight, He Jue looks up to the ceiling speechlessly before it finally sunk in that his darling cousin is going to join the crew- and her also miraculously good acting skills.
He Jue wishes nothing more than to disregard everything and interrogate his cousin- however, remembering her words, the man decided to do it later. Instead, the actor smiles back to Director Li charmingly.
"Hahaha, of course, director! This little one is a friend of mine since we were young, I actually thought of her as Feng Yue the moment I read the script." He shamelessly lied, nothing in his expression giving the blatant lie away.
Behind him, Wu Fei and 086 stares blankly at He Jue before they diverted their eyes away from the man.
To think there's actually someone more shameless than me, the two thought at the same time.
Director Li laughs a little. The middle aged man didn't feel offended at all, having an understanding and grasp He Jue's personality and thought progress after working with this young master in several movies and shows.
"Alright, alright. We'll send the contract later, Xiao Fei."
Wu Fei smiles brightly at the director. "A happy cooperation, Director!" She sweetly answers.
﹊﹊﹊
「Host, are you really memorizing your lines?」The doubtful voice of 086 speaks up.
Wu Fei blinks, she glances at the little ball to see it being surrounded by several screens. The screen that stood out to her was the sight of her new Weibo account that the little ball had somehow managed to have verified and is currently managing and controlling.
"Of course!" She answers confidently and full of bravado.
086 suspiciously looks at its host before it decided to let it go for once. At least, it tries to comfort itself, she's still holding her script correctly as opposed to that time yesterday where she was holding it upside down.
"By the way 086, didn't you insist to be my manager? How will be able to do it when you look like a stuff toy?" She probes the System.
「…I'll deal with it when the time comes. But to ease the Host's concerns, I can turn into a human.」System 086 answers reluctantly.
Wu Fei's eyebrows rose in surprise at the answer.
"Seriously? Then why are you in that form?"
The fluff boy fell silent before it answers.
「This form is much more convenient. If I appear in my human form, Host would react differently. Also, I'm a very handsome man as a human. I'm afraid that the Host would fall in love with me at first sight should I appear before you in that form.」
Wu Fei: Aren't you a shameless little thing? (눈_눈)
