Taken aback, Bao Bao could only stupidly ask, forgetting about his worries from before.
[Changed? Change what?]
<This body’s personality.>
[...]
Unable to catch up to the changes, Bao Bao became still and didn’t react for a while.
Had he misheard? Using his wonderful but basic feature, he rewound the last ten seconds and clicked ‘play’. But even after he listened to it, Bao Bao had yet to accept the reality of what just occurred. So, he reviewed that same moment again and again until he could no longer deny that his child had asked him for something.
Upon his realization, Bao Bao giggled foolishly as if he had a few loose screws. His child-like laughter was crisp and full of vitality, exposing a bit of his true nature.
Seeing that Bao Bao didn’t answer him right away, Wei Xiao perplexed. He turned and faced his system, patiently waiting for a response.
A fierce blush crept upon him from being stared at by this beautiful and pure child, Bao Bao felt like a beast merely gazing back at him. He couldn’t help but avert his sight elsewhere, his face feeling hot. Thankfully, he didn’t have a face as he wouldn’t be able to maintain a calm expression.
Bao Bao coughed and fumbled around for an excuse.
[...Ba-Bao Bao will have to ch-check… Uh, Bao Bao will be ri-right back!] aaaahhhhh!
Bao Bao: blush.jpg¹ heartstuck.jpg²
Although outwardly outgoing, Bao Bao was still inherently shy. His heart palpitated and the steam escaped from his nonexistent ears in torrents. His round body quickly rushed off, only the illusionary dust and white blur could be seen of his departing figure.
Realizing that after he left, how he had single-handedly destroyed his own ‘imposing’ figure, Bao Bao almost exploded in embarrassment. Oof! He was supposed to answer cooly then… *sigh*
The peculiarity of his host was too devastating for the early days of ‘systemhood’ and Bao Bao was caught unprepared. How was he supposed to adapt to the changes so quickly, ah? Bao Bao grumbled faintly as he sent in a ticket.
Wei Xiao retrieved his gaze and glanced down at the bracelet in his hand. Rubbing the reddish dark brown beads back and forth with his thumb, he felt the semi-smooth surface beneath the pads of his finger. As he fiddled around, a faint aroma was released and intermixed with the air. The light earthy and floral scent carried a calming effect.
Oddly, the longer he held onto it, the more aromatic the bracelet became. The scent covered the entire area where he was. He tilted his head to the side. How was it able to do that?
After examining its exquisiteness, the bracelet could be categorized as ‘good’ by Wei Xiao.
Just glancing at it, he could tell that whoever made it was incredibly conscientious when crafting the bracelet. There was a lot of thought and meticulousness of how and where to carve the bead as they were carefully hand-carved so that it drew out the wood’s natural beauty. The wood grains of each bead were flawlessly shown off.
Made from the rare and scarce rosewood³, the bracelet’s design looked incredibly simple and ubiquitous, but it was far from being ordinary. Rather, it should be considered a prized possession. Blessed and carved by the abbot himself, it was one of kind. Therefore, it was a very thoughtful and special gift from his parents.
Earlier that week, Wei Xiao had overheard Butler Wang talking on the phone and found out that Wei Tian and Zhou Rongrong had traveled far to obtain this bracelet. They were looking for a box to match the bracelet before giving it to him. It was known that the two of them aren’t overly superstitious, but because of Wei Xiao’s prospect, the two of them were desperate. If there was something that gave them even the tiniest bit of hope, they would be willing to believe in it.
Therefore, because of its pricelessness, the trinket caused a bit of a conflict.
A faint light flickered in his eyes. Although it may have been exposed for just a split second, he caught all the minuscule changes on her face.
He was informed by his system that Wei Yue had been nearby when the butler was on the phone. But upon opening the box given to her, the delight on Wei Yue’s face disappeared as fast as it came.
Thanking them with a slight smile, Wei Yue waited until Zhou Rongrong and Wei Tian had left the room to toss her citrine bracelet⁴ to the ground. Her face darkened, looking like the bottom of a burnt pot. She stomped on the citrine bracelet a couple of times and left in an exasperated manner, her eyes expressing her disgruntlement.
Coincidentally, when Wei Yue saw who her parents gave it to, Wei Xiao spotted the resentment.
Her eyes burned brightly. The look in them was as if Wei Yue wanted to swallow him whole.
But she was quick to change her face. Soon, she was smiling sweetly and became his benevolent and thoughtful older sister once more.
As a result of his illness, Wei Tian and Zhou Rongrong were more cautious. They had Butler Wang spend more time doing a check-up on him, thus, Wei Xiao’s days had been calm. There were no disturbances from any unwanted guests and he could recuperate peacefully.
Lying on the bed like a salted fish, Wei Xiao waited for the return of his system, his halcyon green eyes reflected the crystal chandelier.
Despite the fact that Wei Xiao may seem to have forgotten about his tasks, spending his days in leisure—he actually hadn’t. He was only guarding the tree stump, waiting for the rabbits⁵. As even without him lifting a finger, someone would come and deliver themselves to his door.
The faint rustling of leaves drew his attention. He turned his head to the window. Gazing at the small courtyard, the beautiful scenery was reflected in his eyes—but the warmth from the world did not reach the elusive darkness.
Not long after, a small and circular white object whizzed through the air as if it was a bullet shot from the barrel of a gun. Going through the walls as if they were air, Bao Bao eventually reached his child’s room.
Without turning his head to look, the moment the unstoppable white blur stepped into the room, Wei Xiao asked him a question.
<Their answer?>
His question made Bao Bao’s illusionary lip twitched. His host has always been a child of few words… *sigh* what more could he expect from him than this? Arms spread wide open, waiting for a hug? A welcoming shout of joy from the baby chick? If anything else happened besides his trivial words, perhaps Bao Bao would have assumed that his child became possessed by something.
Bao Bao coughed and controlled his thoughts.
[...They said that as long as the personality is changed slowly and is within the normal realm of acceptance in which it would occur naturally, it would be acceptable.]
In truth, Bao Bao didn’t have to leave the room. Rather all he had to do was shoot a ticket and wait for an answer or even look it up himself, but how could he, when he was being stared at so ‘vehemently’? Bao Bao was afraid that if he was intent on staying, he would have done something ridiculous and somehow further ruin his image!
Receiving an ‘ok’, albeit a bit oblique, it was better than being denied. Wei Xiao bowed his eyes.
<Good.>
It soon became quiet again with only the sounds of the courtyard playing in the background. Bao Bao, who felt a sense of urgency in the silence, couldn’t help but blurt out the question he had been holding back.
[What do you plan to do, Host?]
His host was quite enigmatic and seeing how quiet he was currently, Bao Bao unknowingly felt pressed for time. It’s not that he was doubting his little baby! He really wasn’t… he just wanted to know the plan, if there was any, to calm his restless heart. After all, Bao Bao was still a newbie and wanted some reassurance.
Wei Xiao did not reply and frowned, his cute nose scrunching up. Unintentionally, his reaction hurt Bao Bao a little, thinking that he was rejected. As a result, he became crestfallen and deflated visibly to the naked eye. Did he seem that untrustworthy? Slowly sagging to the ground, Bao Bao’s size appeared to have shrunk as well.
Just as the depressed little ball was going to melt into the ground and say that the other didn’t need to feel pressured to answer, Wei Xiao replied.
<To put the family in order; we must first cultivate our personal life⁶.>
Bao Bao let out an ‘ah’ and fell deep in thought. Oh! What his host said was very true… But his choice of words was…… *cough* unique.
Their current world was quite peaceful. Taking into consideration the original’s temperament, there’s no way for his host to return evil with evil to accomplish the task. Hence, he had to handle this problematic issue in what was admissible in this world.
Sifting through everything that had occurred and the information provided, Bao Bao began to analyze. However, his brain soon began to ache. Bao Bao sighed. He was really unsuited to be the scheming or intellectual type.
Giving up on trying to predict what his host was going to do, he asked.
[Um… What does Host plan to do first?]
---
¹blush.jpg:
²heartstruck.jpg:
³Rosewood: Something like this, minus the white beads and not as long.
Rosewood is believed to clear out bad energy, protect the wearer from negative influences, extend healing within the wearer and those around them and help achieve desires by removing obstacles.
⁴Citrine bracelet: Something like this, minus the buddha head carving.
Citrine is believed to attract wealth, prosperity, and fortune. It’s also supposed to make the wearer happier, awaken love for life, battle out the negative energy, and inspire energy and upliftment.
⁵Guarding the tree stump, waiting for the rabbits: 守株待兔 shǒu zhū dài tù, a Chinese idiom that means to wait idly for opportunities.
⁶To put the family in order; we must first cultivate our personal life: a quote from Confucius. The whole quote: To put the world in order, we must first put the nation in order; to put the nation in order, we must first put the family in order; to put the family in order; we must first cultivate our personal life; we must first set our hearts right.
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