After Becoming a Cannon-Fodder Lackey, I Swore to Protect the Young Lady to the Death - Chapter 13

“System? Hey, System! Are you back with the goods yet?” Li Xi was doodling circles in the dirt of her overgrown wasteland, calling out blankly into her mind.

The system had been gone for days—first two, then three. The spiritual energy in this area was pitifully sparse; her cultivation was progressing at a glacial pace of 0.01% per day.

【I’m back, I’m back! And I hit the jackpot!!】 Isakana’s voice finally echoed in her head again.

Li Xi stood up, her face lighting up with hope. “So… what is this thing?” she asked, staring at the chipped white porcelain bowl that had appeared in her hands.

【A Spatial Compressor! It’s the ultimate cheat-code for protagonists in those power-fantasy novels! If you go inside, one day in there is only one hour in the real world. Plus, it’s packed with spiritual energy—you’ll never run out!】 Isakana’s voice was buzzing with excitement.

【As your cultivation level increases, the space will level up too…】 Isakana continued to rattle off the endless benefits of the pocket dimension.

“Okay, but how do I use it?” Li Xi asked, turning the broken bowl over and over in her hands.

【First, do the blood-drop ownership thing. Then, place it on the ground in front of you, squat down next to it, and you can enter.】

Li Xi: …Why does this posture sound exactly like I’m begging for spare change?

She didn’t say it out loud, but Isakana heard her loud and clear.

【Look, I did my best! This was the only item I could borrow. There are plenty of spatial artifacts out there, but every protagonist in those power-fantasy stories has one these days. This ‘Beggar’s Bowl’ was the only thing left that nobody else wanted…】

Li Xi: Beggar’s bowl, beggar’s posture… wonderful.

【Sigh, just make do with it for now. When other items become available, I’ll help you swap it out.】

“Fine.”

******

The area surrounding the hospital was teeming with diners and small eateries. Lu Jiaoyue and Li Gangjiao found a random shop and bought a few steamed buns.

“Mmph… why aren’t you eating?” Li Gangjiao asked, her cheeks stuffed with a savory meat bun as she looked at Lu Jiaoyue curiously.

“It’s nothing. I’m just not used to street-side buns,” Lu Jiaoyue replied. Seeing Li Gangjiao staring, she forced herself to take one more bite before giving up and placing the bun back in the paper bag.

Oh no! I forgot—the Eldest Miss isn’t built for street stalls!

Li Gangjiao finished her bun in a few bites and accompanied Lu Jiaoyue to a nearby bakery to buy bread instead.

Until this moment, Li Gangjiao didn’t truly have a grasp of the wealth gap in this novel’s world. Living among the main cast, she had assumed the entire world was prosperous and comfortable.

But even this relatively decent bakery couldn’t hold a candle to the pastry counter in their school’s cafeteria. It offered only a few common types of bread and a couple of freshly made cakes. Outside, she saw homeless people on the street, heard the muffled cries from the hospital, and saw crumbling houses and ancient, cracked roads.

“Jiao Jiao, have you ever been to a place like this?” Li Gangjiao asked, standing beside her.

“No. I’ve always lived in City A. Even when I travel, nobody chooses a place like this,” Lu Jiaoyue replied, shaking her head. In her previous lives, she was either in City A or abroad. She had never ventured “off-script” to a place like this.

They paid for the bread in silence, both deep in thought about their next steps.

While it wasn’t ideal to pull Shen Nanshu out of the hospital so abruptly, Lu Jiaoyue was worried that any delay would lead to complications. She decided to go for broke and booked a flight for that very afternoon.

Because time was of the essence, Li Gangjiao pushed Shen Nanshu out immediately. They had to toss his old clothes and daily necessities into the trash. Li Gangjiao winced: Why does it hurt my soul to see money being thrown away like this?

Shen Nanshu’s caregiver stayed behind. Lu Jiaoyue transferred her a generous fee and arranged for Assistant Li back in City A to find a new one immediately.

By the way, Assistant Li was the father of the original Li Xi.

“Once we reach City A, you’ll stay in the hospital for a bit. When your legs are mostly healed, we’ll take you to see Su Momo,” Lu Jiaoyue said, glancing at the plaster casts on Shen Nanshu’s legs.

“I understand. Thank you,” Shen Nanshu replied. He followed her gaze down to his legs, his voice thick with unshed emotion.

Half a month ago, he was a refined, gentle man with a constant smile. But after his legs were broken, he had been trapped in a long period of agony not just physical, but spiritual.

The documents Lu Jiaoyue had shared were like a blade cutting into his heart. He had always believed Su Momo would find a better life at an elite school in City A. He even thought she had simply become so successful that she’d forgotten her “big brother next door.”

City C was a warm place, but it was small, barely more than a county town. He had thought her leaving was a blessing, never imagining that her admission letter was a piece of candy laced with poison.

So sweet, yet so lethal.

Staring at the clouds outside the window, Shen Nanshu suddenly remembered the day he said goodbye to her.

Su Momo had been wearing a white T-shirt and black casual pants, chattering away beside him. Usually, he would reply to her every word with patience, but that day, he had been glued to his phone, obsessively checking flight guides. He was terrified she wouldn’t know how to navigate the airport, even though he had never flown either. Neither of them had ever traveled far from home.

He had bought her a pink suitcase to celebrate her admission, visiting several shops before finding the exact style she liked.

She had been exceptionally clingy that day, lingering at the security gate and refusing to go through. He had tried to coax her gently, but eventually got so anxious that he’d dropped the suitcase and turned to walk away just to force her to move.

It was only when he got home that he saw her text: I’ll bring you back a gift.

He had smiled at that. He could already guess what it would be—some small trinket or a piece of clothing.

However, at some point, their contact grew less frequent. Or rather, Su Momo’s replies became fewer and farther between… until finally, he was deleted.

That day, he had realized they hadn’t spoken in a long time. Even though he felt a deep sense of loss, he refused to believe their lifelong bond could fade so easily.

But it had.

When the red exclamation mark appeared in the chat box, Shen Nanshu felt a wave of regret. He wished he had looked at her just a little longer on the day they said goodbye.

He had simply assumed… that she would come back.

“I want to know,” Shen Nanshu said, snapping out of his memories and opening his eyes. “How does this Gu Yan treat Momo?”

“Personally? I think he treats her like garbage,” Li Gangjiao blurted out. She had been busy admiring Lu Jiaoyue’s face and answered without thinking.

“Once we’re at the school, you can observe for yourself,” Lu Jiaoyue suggested objectively, leaving the final judgment to him.

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