Chapter 3:
The place Yun Xin called home was nestled in the poorest corner of City Y—a city that bore the title of "city" but functioned more like a sprawling slum. Her adoptive family's house sat within a crowded compound, where neighbors bustled around the shared water area, gossiping freely about everyone and everything.
"If it isn't Yun Xin! I heard you fell into the pond the other day. What are you doing up and about now?"
The words of mock concern came from Aunt Niu, the compound's self-proclaimed caretaker of everyone's business. Though they sounded sympathetic, Yun Xin knew better. Aunt Niu was the number one gossiper in the compound.
"Good morning, Aunt Niu. I'm fine now. Thank you for your concern."
Aunt Niu's eyes widened slightly, startled by Yun Xin's calm and polite response. It wasn't surprising—Yun Xin had always been withdrawn, rarely speaking to anyone unless necessary. Years of mental abuse had conditioned her to hide from people.
"Eh? Yun Xin, did the sun rise from the West today? You sound different!"
Yun Xin offered a faint smile. She needed allies, even ones as unreliable as Aunt Niu, and this was a small but necessary first step.
"I'm fine now, Aunt Niu. Thank you again."
With that, she walked toward the outdoor kitchen. The kitchen, like the rest of the compound, was a communal space. Small, cramped, and filled with outdated appliances, it felt like a relic from another era. She had once begged Meng Cue for a better stove, only to be met with the usual dismissal:
"You lazy brat, the one there is good enough!"
Yun Xin shook her head, clearing away the bitter memories. Breakfast. Meng Cue wants breakfast? Fine. I'll give her breakfast.
Her hands moved instinctively, muscle memory guiding her through the familiar steps of cooking. Though her body still felt weak, she persisted, a plan already forming in her mind.
Then, with a loud *thud*, her body collapsed to the kitchen floor, the sound echoing through the compound.
"Ah! Yun Xin fainted!" Aunt Niu shouted, her voice carrying through the courtyard.
The compound's women rushed in, their curiosity piqued. The outdoor kitchen offered no privacy, and everyone had a clear view of what was happening.
Meng Cue, who had been applying a face mask in her room with her hair bundled in rollers, was forced to emerge. Despite her cruelty toward Yun Xin, she valued reputation above all else, and the commotion outside threatened her carefully curated facade.
"Meng Cue," Aunt Lin, a plump woman with a stern face, scolded loudly. "We've kept quiet all this time, but Yun Xin is still your daughter. Look at her—she hasn't recovered from her fever, and you forced her to cook! If someone didn't know better, they'd think you were her stepmother!"
Meng Cue's eyes narrowed. "Shut up! What I do with my daughter is none of your business. She's just pretending!"
Yun Xin, who had been pretending to faint, suppressed the urge to roll her eyes. *Look at me, lying here on the ground, and no one has even checked my pulse.*
Finally, Uncle Yu, an elderly man known for his calm demeanor, stepped forward. "Enough of this nonsense. Can't you see she's still on the ground? Do you want her to die before you do anything? Someone carry her inside and get her some medicine!"
The compound women, momentarily shamed, worked together to carry Yun Xin back to her room.
Uncle Yu turned to Meng Cue, his expression stern. "We've all kept quiet out of respect for your family's privacy, but this is too much. Don't push things too far. And where's your husband in all this? A man should take charge of his household, not let things fall apart like this."
Yun Xin's thoughts shifted to her adoptive father, Yun Huai. He was a passive man, always coming home late, eating the meals she prepared, and leaving early for his job at the factory nearby. He never intervened in Meng Cue's treatment of her, and his absence had only emboldened her.
As Yun Xin lay quietly in her room, she overheard the ongoing argument.
"Mom, she's faking it," Yun Sue whined petulantly.
"Aish! Can't anyone sleep around here?" Yun Jianshe grumbled, stepping out of his room with disheveled hair.
"Don't mind her, Jianshe. Go back to sleep. I'll call you when breakfast is ready," Meng Cue said soothingly, her tone entirely different when speaking to her precious son. Yun Jianshe yawned and returned to his room without a second glance.
"Whether she's pretending or not, we'll deal with her later. She's lucky the neighbors are watching," Meng Cue muttered before storming out.
Finally, the room fell silent. Yun Xin opened her eyes cautiously. The chaos had subsided, and she was alone at last. Her brief stunt had bought her some time to think.
*I need a plan.*
Her thoughts drifted to the memories of her biological parents. A month from now, they would come to recognize her as their true daughter. But it wouldn't be the joyous reunion she had once imagined.
In her previous life, when they found her, they had taken her in briefly. However, they soon compared her to Jian Suzy—the "real" daughter who had been accidentally switched at birth. Jian Suzy was everything they had hoped for: beautiful, fair-skinned, educated, and well-mannered. Yun Xin, on the other hand, was a disappointment. Malnourished, poorly educated, and awkward from years of neglect, she couldn't measure up to Jian Suzy in their eyes.
Eventually, they were unable to accept her as their child. Her biological parents' treatment had worsened after that, their resentment boiling over because Yun Xin had failed to "live up to her expectations".
This time, I won't let history repeat itself. I'll be ready.
As her thoughts churned, she suddenly heard an unfamiliar sound.
"Hello, Host! I'm System 005, your personal rebirth system, at your service!"
Yun Xin froze, her heart racing. A glowing white orb appeared in front of her, bobbing cheerfully in the air.
God brought me back, and now I'm going crazy too? What did I do to deserve this fate?
"Host, you're not going crazy. You've been chosen for the Cannon Fodder Tragic Fate Rebirth Testing Program!" the orb announced brightly.
Yun Xin blinked in disbelief. A system? She had read about them in novels but never imagined it would happen to her.
The orb continued its cheerful explanation, oblivious to the glint of determination that flashed in Yun Xin's eyes.