Chapter 7: Without Emotion

Braised pork, braised pork, crucian carp tofu soup, and seasonal vegetables—the spread looked quite appetizing.

During the meal, Li Guo kept serving Si Si more dishes. "Come on, eat more," he urged.

Across the table, Man Rou watched with a sour feeling in her chest; as expected, her parents were clearly biased.

Si Si sneered inwardly. The author of that book must have been brainless—how could someone like Man Rou be the heroine?

Li Guo’s apparent kindness toward her now was only because of the betrothal gift promised by Gu Yu hanging over him.

Si Si devoured the braised pork heartily; it was fragrant, tender, and melted in her mouth—nothing like the cooking one would expect from a mother who had been a wealthy housewife for over a decade and rarely bothered with housework.

Seeing her detested elder sister nearly finish a plate of braised pork, the spoiled little brother Wei Lin couldn't hold back.

This was his favorite dish from the state-run grand restaurant, available only in limited supply—his family got to eat it maybe once a month.

Wei Lin grabbed the chopsticks and snapped at Si Si, “You loser! The braised pork is mine; you’re not allowed to eat it.”

The brat’s tone and attitude plainly revealed the original girl’s past treatment and status in the family, which Si Si found deeply unpleasant.

She immediately dumped the remaining braised pork and braised fish into her bowl, then suddenly flipped the table.

Crash! Food scattered everywhere, plates shattered—the room was in chaos.

Boiling soup splashed all over Wei Lin, who flew into a rage and swung his fists at Si Si.

“You loser, how dare you treat me like this? I’ll beat you to a pulp today!”

Not a day for violence, but for wit. Si Si swiftly dodged behind her father.

She said to him, “If you still want that thousand yuan in three days, you better protect me until then.”

Then she stuck out her tongue and made a face at Wei Lin, “Come on, hit me—if you’re brave, you’d better start by hitting your own father.”

Zhu Jiahui’s face darkened, so much good food wasted—a pity, as she had spent a lot and called in favors to get this meal at the state-run restaurant.

Li Guo wanted to get angry but was clearly wary of the Gu family, so he could only scold his youngest son sternly, “Wei Lin, stop causing trouble.”

Turning around, he saw Si Si eating as if nothing had happened, taking big bites of braised pork.

Good grief, she could still eat after all that.

If you asked Si Si, she’d say of course she had to eat.

How could she fight well without eating enough?

For this utterly dysfunctional family, Si Si had no comments; instead of wasting energy, she chose to go mad!

Surprisingly, the Gu family’s influence was significant. Although Si Si’s actions angered everyone, the patriarch of the Ji family wouldn’t openly break ties with her.

She paid little mind to Man Rou, Wei Lin, and the little brat, so she felt quite at ease.

As for the wedding three days later and the banquet, those were matters for the elders. Li Guo and Zhu Jiahui wouldn’t mistreat her for the sake of appearances.

In reality, the original girl owned very little—just a few worn-out clothes were probably all she had.

Thinking that she still had nine points, Si Si planned to go out again to see if she could find anything else useful.

It turned out the cooperative supply store was also a place where she could sign in.

[Ding dong, sign-in at the cooperative supply store successful. Congratulations, host receives five jin of pork belly, thirty jin of rice, and a bottle of cooking oil.]

Indeed, the items gained from sign-in strongly related to the location—food, clothing, shelter, and transportation were basic necessities.

Si Si was quite pleased, feeling that these goods earned with four points today were well worth it.

Then something even better happened—the system’s voice rang in her mind again:

[Congratulations, host has completed three sign-ins and earned a chance at the lottery.]

After the draw, Si Si was a little disappointed; her luck wasn’t great this time.

The pointer stopped on a sector labeled “big gift package,” but in her inventory, it was just a small red paper-wrapped bundle—light, thin, and tiny.

She wondered how the system dared call that a “big gift.”

Only after opening it did she realize she had underestimated the system—this package was quite valuable.

Inside was a thick stack of colorful ration coupons: not only grain tickets but also meat tickets, oil tickets, sugar tickets, cloth coupons, and more.

Altogether, it was a substantial amount.

Though only one of each, the vouchers covered food, clothing, and daily necessities comprehensively.

Si Si knew that various ration coupons wouldn’t be abolished until 1983. She had thought she could only get money via the bank sign-in but no coupons.

That would have been useless—no coupons meant no purchases, relying solely on the sign-in system was too passive.

Now, seeing all these goodies in her inventory from just the first day’s sign-ins filled her with joy.

“Watch out,” a deep male voice whispered in Si Si’s ear.

Then someone tugged her gently to the side.

Si Si realized she had been so absorbed in her happiness that she nearly collided with a kid riding a bicycle.

Gu Yu had pulled her away just in time to avoid disaster. The brat just rode off, and Si Si made a fierce face at his retreating back.

When Si Si turned to thank Gu Yu, her eyes suddenly widened.

“What’s wrong? Are you hurt or scared?” Gu Yu asked, his tone unusual.

Though they had only brief contact these past few days, he knew Si Si was not the fragile girl she appeared to be.

Si Si was indeed startled—she had just seen a large red exclamation mark floating above Gu Yu’s head.

What on earth? Don’t tell her Gu Yu was a sign-in location?

Si Si rubbed her eyes, blinked, and tried various odd gestures, but the glaring red exclamation mark still hovered over Gu Yu.

Gu Yu asked several times, concerned, but Si Si only stared silently.

Previously, his visit to propose was purely out of responsibility.

He agreed to the Ji family’s unreasonable betrothal gift demand simply because he could afford it.

In truth, there was no emotional entanglement between him and Si Si; he was too indifferent to bother with the girl’s strange thoughts.

Seeing Si Si still dazed, Gu Yu turned and left.

Reflexively, Si Si grabbed his sleeve and finally spoke, “Thanks for what you did just now.”

In her mind, she also said:

[Sign-in.]

Gu Yu had urgent matters and said, “You’re welcome,” before leaving immediately.

Meanwhile, Si Si’s heart bloomed with joyous sparks, radiant and free!