Chapter 34: You’re the One Who Did It, Right?

Chapter 34: Chapter 34: You’re the One Who Did It, Right?

Fu Chao quickly lowered his head to hide his emotions, careful not to show anything unusual on camera.

In truth, his mind was in turmoil.

He recalled bumping into Nan Zhi and Nan Yi at the entrance earlier. He had vaguely sensed a strange atmosphere between mother and son but hadn’t thought much of it.

Thinking back on it now, it felt like corroborating evidence.

"Uncle, pick me up. I want to wash my hands."

Qing Xi’s childish voice pulled Fu Chao back from his thoughts.

He glanced at the high sinks in the public restroom; they were indeed a struggle for Qing Xi.

So, he lifted his little nephew and patiently waited for him to finish washing his hands.

As he set Qing Xi back on the ground, Fu Chao’s gaze shifted. He saw Nan Yi standing nearby, not speaking, just quietly watching them.

Fu Chao’s heart softened.

"Do you want me to lift you up?"

Nan Yi nodded politely and said courteously,

"Thank you, Uncle."

Fu Chao scooped Nan Yi up, his hands under the boy’s armpits, and only then did he realize just how frighteningly thin Nan Yi was.

It made Fu Chao afraid to apply too much pressure, worried that the slightest misstep would snap those thin, fragile bones.

Fu Chao was momentarily lost in a daze.

The small figure from his memories silently overlapped with the Nan Yi before him.

It even gave Fu Chao the illusion that Nan Yi’s eyes were identical to that other child’s.

...Fu Chao made a decision in an instant.

They returned the way they came. Fu Chao told Nan Yi and Qing Xi to play in front of the camera and not to run off.

But Nan Yi refused earnestly, saying,

"I can’t play. I have to help with the stall."

Fu Chao’s heart ached even more.

’He’s at an age where he should be carefree. Why must he bear burdens that aren’t his to carry?’

Fu Chao said, "I need to talk to your mom about something. You two wait here."

Nan Yi, looking on blankly, watched as Fu Chao walked over to Nan Zhi, who was chopping vegetables, and said a few words.

Nan Zhi then nodded, and the two of them walked, one after the other, toward a quiet alley nearby.

Nan Zhi stopped and turned off her microphone, looking slightly surprised.

"What’s so urgent that you have to talk about it right now?"

Fu Chao’s face was mostly expressionless.

The face his fans called "god-given" now revealed the sharpness hidden beneath his gentle demeanor.

"Are you sure it’s off?"

Fu Chao’s tone was light, but a bone-chilling coldness was faintly perceptible.

Nan Zhi raised an eyebrow, sensing his hostile intentions.

She remained relatively calm, crossing her arms.

"What do you want to say?"

Fu Chao didn’t beat around the bush and got straight to the point.

"I saw a bruise on Nan Yi’s shoulder."

Nan Zhi’s composed posture faltered for a moment.

Her gaze hardened slightly.

"What? Are you..."

"You hit him, didn’t you?"

Fu Chao cut her off, staring at her coldly.

Nan Zhi’s brow furrowed.

"Why would you think that?"

Fu Chao said, "On the day we filmed the pilot, I saw a mark on Nan Yi’s neck. You tried to cover it with concealer, but it was still obvious. You did that, didn’t you?"

Nan Zhi was silent for two seconds, then suddenly remembered.

"So when you came to warn me that day, it was about this?"

Her head throbbed. She didn’t know where to even begin explaining.

But in Fu Chao’s eyes, her silence and speechlessness were interpreted as something else entirely.

Fu Chao’s anger rose steadily.

"What? Are you going to say it’s a family matter and tell an outsider like me to stay out of it? Let me tell you, domestic abuse is illegal! A child isn’t your property for you to hit and scold as you please! And I’ve told you before to know when to stop. If you keep this up, I won’t hesitate to have you kicked out of the industry!"

The friendly rapport they had built up over a single meal was instantly shattered.

Nan Zhi felt like she was once again seeing the Fu Chao from their first meeting, the one who looked at her with disgust and revulsion.

The Fu Chao from today—the one who washed dishes and vegetables in the kitchen, laughing and so down-to-earth—seemed more like a phantom.

She couldn’t blame Fu Chao, because everything he said and did was out of concern for Nan Yi.

But she couldn’t tell him the truth, either. It involved transmigration, Tacticians, and so on—things no one would believe even if she said them.

In the end, all Nan Zhi could say was:

"In any case, it’s all a misunderstanding! I would never lay a hand on Nan Yi! As for the bruise you just saw, I don’t know the specifics either. He went out for a bit at noon. Something must have happened then!"

’After all, when Nan Yi was changing this morning, I didn’t see any bruises.’

So now she was even more determined to find out what had happened to Nan Yi!

Her intuition told her there was more to this, and she turned to go find Nan Yi.

Fu Chao grabbed her forcefully.

"Wait, what are you doing?"

"I’m going to find Yiyi."

"And have him lie to help you cover this up?"

Nan Zhi was exasperated.

"Of course not! I’m going to..."

She didn’t get to finish.

A panicked figure rushed into the alley before she could.

It was one of the show’s cameramen.

"Stop talking! Stop talking! The livestream is still on! Everyone heard everything!"

Nan Zhi’s face fell.

Fu Chao instinctively let go of Nan Zhi’s arm.

——An invisible storm was brewing, waiting to devour them whole.

-

「At a hospital in Yanjing, in a VIP room.」

In the hospital bed lay a young girl with black hair, snow-white skin, and a sweet, lovely face.

Unfortunately, this beauty was mostly ruined by the arrogance in her eyes.

She complained with dissatisfaction to the empty air:

"System! Is this the perfect vessel you told me about? A carefree, wealthy princess? Her mother died early, and her father has a pile of mistresses and illegitimate children... Did I spend all those points just to keep suffering? At this rate, when will I ever be able to capture the big shot! I want a new body!"

A cold, merciless electronic voice that only the girl could hear sounded from the void:

[Host has insufficient points. This is your final chance. Failure will result in the penalty of obliteration.]

The girl flinched in fear but then pretended to be unfazed.

"I know, I know! ’Obliteration’ this, ’obliteration’ that, all you do is try to scare me... By the way, Nan Zhi should be dead by now, right? Was Nan Yi sent to an orphanage? That little villain Cub is a lingering threat. Shouldn’t I get rid of him before he grows up?"

The girl was already expertly devising several plans in her head.

She slapped the blanket, her eyes gleaming with a malice she was unaware of.

"What if I adopt him? Keep him right under my nose where I can control him?"

The System in the void, likely fed up with her stupidity, coldly reminded her:

[The original host has awakened and is currently participating in the reality show ’Cub Observation Diary’ with Nan Yi.]

"What?"

The girl’s expression changed in an instant.

She pulled out her phone and searched for Nan Zhi’s name online.

The first result that popped up had a picture of Nan Zhi and Fu Chao!

The joyous harmony in the picture undoubtedly stung the girl’s eyes!

She couldn’t help but scream:

"How could those two be together?"

’How can they be together!’

’No matter how I tried to please Fu Chao before, he was always lukewarm toward me, even faintly disgusted.’

’How did everything change the moment the original host took over?’

’Could it be...’

’...this is the so-called telepathic bond between blood siblings?’