Lin Muchen returned to the Lin family late into the night.
Ms. Lin Cuiping was still waiting for her, having prepared warm broth. Thinking of Zhou Yuan'an's mother and then looking at Lin Cuiping, she no longer found Ms. Lin to be merely love-struck. She rushed forward and hugged her tightly.
This is good.
Lin Cuiping was at a loss.
“Oh, you silly girl! The soup is going to spill! Let go already!”
The young girl laughed, waved her hand, and walked towards the steps. She simply felt that Ms. Lin Cuiping was quite alright sometimes, as long as she wasn't love-struck.
But Zhou Yuan'an’s mother’s condition had deteriorated too quickly.
Who was behind this?
Was there a hidden side quest?
Lin Muchen was merely probing.
She didn’t expect the system would actually show itself.
“Let me check. Ah, there is indeed a hidden, locked branch plot in the school bully’s side story. It seems to have a dark style.”
Lin Muchen now got a headache whenever she heard keywords like “dark” or “blackened.”
“Dark? Was his mother made to be like this by someone?”
“Who is the culprit?”
The system remained silent. Lin Muchen knew this was likely the so-called classified information that couldn’t be revealed.
“Can I cure her then?”
The system replied with surprising speed.
“No. Host, your medical skills need to be upgraded. Zhou Yuan'an’s mother’s vital energy is severely depleted, and she only has a month left to live.”
“This instance is very difficult, especially the hidden plot, which involves quite a few secrets of the lower-level worlds. Therefore, if the host can complete this instance and save Zhou Yuan'an’s mother, you can apply to the system to exchange for an opportunity to obtain world secrets.”
“Even the main system cannot veto this kind of operation!”
Lin Muchen immediately perked up.
“So if I complete this instance and save Zhou Yuan'an’s mother, I can exchange with the world for the secret of where Ling Qianhe's mother's ashes are hidden?”
“Isn’t that also a world secret?”
“That’s why the system was evasive and perfunctory, refusing to tell her.”
The system made a sound, but its tone was a little strange.
“Should be able to.”
Lin Muchen suddenly felt a surge of motivation.
“The instance is difficult. But can it be harder than facing Qianhe, having to film with Qianhe?”
“She could get through that, so there’s no reason she can’t do this.”
However, it was like a set of nesting dolls now. She needed points to save someone, but she had to save someone first to earn points.
Lin Muchen now wished she could earn hundreds of points immediately.
As she pondered, she suddenly noticed something amiss.
“Before, when I was practicing in the 'Future Idol' practice room, didn’t you say that if I went to Ling Qianhe’s recording studio to find him, you would give me a hundred points?”
“I went, and I was even caught by that drowsy, unrecognizably confused kid and kissed repeatedly. It made several headlines, garnered a lot of anti-fans, and I paid an incredibly heavy price.”
“Where are my points?”
“Give me my hundred points!”
The system changed the subject.
“I was just saying that. If I hadn’t said that, would you have gone to find Ling Qianhe? I don’t have the authority to give you a hundred points at once.”
Lin Muchen gritted her teeth.
“Do you want to die? If that’s the case, if you, as a system, can make grand promises and then break them, then we can go our separate ways and no one will complete any missions, right?”
“Who says anyone can’t turn their back?”
“If the system speaks without keeping its word, what credibility does it have?”
A crackling sound came from the other side, indicating a fierce internal struggle.
After a while, the system reappeared, its voice hoarse, as if it had been severely dealt with.
“Fine. The main system said I could give you another hundred points as an exception, but never again, sob, sob. Host, you don’t know what I’ve sacrificed for you. I’m so miserable, I’m on the verge of death, my back is about to break.”
Lin Muchen grunted.
“Stop playing the victim.”
“No matter how miserable you are, can it be more miserable than me being pinned to the bed by Ling Qianhe, tied to the headboard with a belt, and he wouldn’t let go?”
As long as the points were in hand, she wouldn’t care if the system lived or died!
The next day, she had to go film again, and it was a so-called intimate scene.
Thinking of this, Lin Muchen felt dizzy and extremely low-spirited upon waking up.
On the way to the set, it was drizzling lightly. She lowered her head and read through today’s script again and again.
It was actually very simple. The script wasn’t long-winded.
[Qi Qingling is imprisoned by Shen Jin’an. The two argue. Qi Qingling begs Shen Jin’an to let her go. Shen Jin’an refuses. Qi Qingling begs him to kill her, stating that she loves another man and only approached him to complete her organization’s mission. Shen Jin’an loses his mind and abuses Qi Qingling.]
See, it was just a short passage.
But as Lin Muchen read, Ling Qianhe’s face appeared in her mind, and she couldn’t help but tremble.
Just then, the car hit a puddle and jolted. She almost lost her balance, grabbed the car seat cushion, and her mind went blank.
More nerve-wracking than an exam.
It felt like facing a huge hurdle in life.
But there was no answer to solve it.
Lin Muchen wished time would pass more slowly, but fate was not so kind. The car stopped outside the film base, and Uncle Li had to remind her.
“Young lady? We’re here.”
Lin Muchen reluctantly headed towards the film crew, but heard some surprisingly good news.
“Qianhe isn’t coming today?”
“His scenes have been postponed? Why?”
Zhao Lan was also helpless.
“It seems something happened at his home. His agent informed us. We can only accommodate his schedule and push his scenes back a bit. Fortunately, his scenes mainly involve opposite you, so it doesn’t significantly affect the overall operation of the crew.”
“It’s just that you made a trip for nothing. I’m truly sorry, this happened so suddenly that we didn’t have time to notify you.”
Lin Muchen certainly didn’t mind.
However, she felt a slight unease.
Something happened at home, was it his elder brother, or Madam Ling?
Zhao Lan shook her head.
She wouldn’t pry into these actors’ private matters.
Lin Muchen didn’t have to film intimate scenes, but she didn’t feel any more relaxed. The system suddenly spoke.
“Host, Ling Qianhe’s blackened value is rising again.”
“I think the situation is not good.”
Lin Muchen didn’t understand.
“Didn’t his blackened value get cleared?”
The system exclaimed, greatly surprised.
“How is that possible! He is the world’s strongest villain. His blackened value has never disappeared, it’s only a matter of how well he hides it. But his blackened value is currently soaring. I think something must have happened that made him extremely irritable.”
“In his eyes, you are already a dead person. Further darkening won’t change much. The fluctuation value won’t be particularly large.”
“I think it’s probably still related to his mother.”
“Madam Ling probably…”
“Is threatening him again using his mother’s belongings, abusing him severely.”
Lin Muchen remained silent, then her spirit immediately lifted.
“Didn’t I buy the function to eavesdrop on his conversations with Madam Ling before? Open it for me now.”
The system was greatly shocked, its eyes wide open.
“Only ten points! That was a one-time use. Host, how many times do you want to use it? It’s a one-time thing! It can’t be used now!”
Lin Muchen snorted coldly.
“When I used it, you never said it was a one-time thing.”
“Since you didn’t say so, it proves it can be used continuously.”
“Open it for me. Anyway, according to the rules, I’m just eavesdropping on his conversation with Madam Ling, which shouldn’t violate the world’s main storyline, right?”
The system was furious.
“You’re quibbling! I can’t allow you to do this violation again! I’ll be punished to death by the main system!”
After a while, it weakly spoke again.
“Then I’ll give you one more chance for free.”
“Just once, the very last time, and I can only listen to a little bit. If I’m caught doing this, I’m done for. Host, you don’t want to see your cute little system completely finished, do you?”
Lin Muchen’s response was a smile.
“Now, immediately, I want to hear it.”