Chapter 546: Chapter 227 My Son is a Treacherous Official (Part 3)_3
Under such arduous conditions, He Xi managed to pass the Scholar’s exam, and at the tender age of thirteen no less, which was ample evidence of his extraordinary talent.
A child so clever, spending his years alongside a mother who was full of lies, selfish and greedy, either had to remain just or become even more cunning, to surpass his teacher in craftiness.
The various events that unfolded in the original plot showed that He Xi belonged to the latter category.
He was more selfish than his own mother, lacking any sense of morality, and certainly devoid of any basic principles.
Deep affection and loyalty, or the interests of his nation and people–none of these could compare to his own comfortable life.
As long as he could live in luxury, he wouldn’t bat an eye about becoming a treacherous official, or even a lackey to the Hulu invaders, he would be more than willing.
He Tiantian:... Truly deplorable, a mother and son pair.
After a long silence, He Tiantian finally asked Student Xiao D a question, "What’s the task this time?"
Maintaining her persona was a given, but He Tiantian couldn’t be sure whether the system intended her to continue following the plot or to embark on a new storyline.
Like in the last mission where she had to dream big for the nation, which was quite nice in fact.
But, she feared the system might throw a curveball.
After all, He Tiantian had just managed to fleece the system once again; it might take this chance to retaliate.
"The task this time is to collect hatred value!"
Student Xiao D did not beat around the bush and gave her a straight answer.
"Hatred value? Is Ms. Hetian supposed to collect hatred value?"
He Tiantian frowned slightly, what kind of task was this?
Oh, it wasn’t too unfamiliar. During the time when the male lead was with his relatives, He Tiantian received a similar task.
Back then, it was about collecting the male lead’s anger value. Not wanting to make an enemy of the male lead without cause, she played a word game and found another way to accumulate the anger value.
But, hatred value was not the same as anger value.
The occurrence of anger value could merely be due to irritation or frustration or being resentful of someone’s failure to meet expectations, which could fall between goodwill and malice.
The seriousness of hatred value was much stronger as it definitely involved doing something that would cause intense dislike or harm to others to generate the so-called hatred value.
The system was pushing He Tiantian to continue down the plotline, turning her into a wickedly shameless top-grade villain.
"Hatred value of 1000 points, task complete!"
"Hatred value exceeds 5000 points, then it’s considered outstanding, and the points will be doubled!"
"...Tiantian, there’s no cap on hatred value, yo. The higher the number, the more generous the rewards you’ll receive in the future!"
Student Xiao D seemingly overlooked He Tiantian’s furrowed brows as he cheerfully continued his explanation.
"Oh? Just hatred value? And there’s no limit?"
He Tiantian’s lips curved slightly, exuding a bit of a villainous charm with her smirk.
A shiver ran deep within Student Xiao D, inexplicably feeling a sense of foreboding.
It reviewed the task requirements meticulously, almost word for word, and found no loophole that He Tiantian could exploit.
The system clearly intended He Tiantian to become a thoroughly despicable villain, why wasn’t she angry, instead, she even, she even smirked?!
That smile was truly exceptional, one-third mockery, one-third indifferent coldness, and four parts of haughty arrogance, the spitting image of an educated scoundrel, a true dark villain.
Student Xiao D’s fur bristled, trembling, ’Oh no, is our sweet Tiantian turning to the dark side?’
"Yes! Just collecting hatred value from others, excluding the original host herself."
To prevent He Tiantian from playing word games, Student Xiao D’s voice trembled but he still firmly added a clarification.
"Alright!"
He Tiantian was not angry, instead maintaining a gentle (or perhaps sinister?) smile.
"Tiantian, you, you’re not angry?"
This time, the system really did not leave any loopholes at all. It simply wanted He Tiantian to be as shameful and hateful as the original host.
And what was this talk of "no limit"?
Oh God, how many evil deeds must He Tiantian commit to gather such high hatred value?
"Why should I be angry? It’s a novel’s world after all. If there are people worthy of respect and affection, there should also be those deserving of hate and shame!"
He Tiantian spoke calmly, not forgetting to remind Student Xiao D, "Right, create a small program for me to keep track of the hatred value and report it in real-time so I can keep informed!"
"...Alright!" The more "understanding" and "generous" He Tiantian appeared, the more uneasy Student Xiao D felt deep inside.
It really seemed like He Tiantian was up to something.
He Tiantian withdrew her Divine Soul from the library Space and slowly opened her eyes, only to discover the palace-dressed woman, oh, her daughter-in-law, Princess An Kang, was still kneeling on the floor.
At that moment, her unfortunate son He Xi hurried in from outside.
"Commandery Princess, why have you upset Mom again?"
Upon entering and seeing his noble-born wife kneeling before his mother, He Xi didn’t bother to ask why, he simply assumed her guilt.
Seeing such a despicable wretch, He Tiantian felt her anger surging out of control.
Without a word, she picked up a tea cup that was within reach and hurled it at He Xi’s shoulder—
"Ding! He Xi hatred value +1!"