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Yu Qing felt as if she had prepared herself for a grand battle with full enthusiasm, only to be sent to the doorway to pick green beans instead.

Xiang Changge nodded, holding her phone, and casually placed the first piece on the board, replying indifferently: "Yes."

What was wrong with that? Wasn't Gomoku still a game?

Xiang Changge chose the black pieces, which allowed her to move first.

Looking at the board where the first piece had already been placed, Yu Qing felt as frustrated as if she had punched Xiang Changge with all her might, only to find the other woman was wearing twenty layers of padded jackets.

Taking a deep breath, Yu Qing finally calmed her mood a little.

Fine, Gomoku it is. Did such a simple thing even need a competition?

Yu Qing was full of confidence, and Xiang Changge was equally self-assured.

Life in the apocalypse was both boring and thrilling; when she wasn't killing zombies or scavenging for trash, Xiang Changge would find ways to amuse herself.

For instance, she would draw a grid on the ground and play against herself.

She had played plenty of Tic-Tac-Toe and Gomoku while entertaining herself, and she felt she possessed rich and seasoned experience.

Thus, five minutes later, the highly experienced Master Xiang stared at the four words "You have lost" on the screen with a look of confusion.

She lost?

She lost?

How could she possibly have lost?

Yu Qing didn't know if it was out of joy or because she had finally recovered, but her previously bloodless little face actually gained some vitality. She pursed her lips in restraint, her eyes looking at the incredulous Xiang Changge with a hint of disdain.

"Steward Xiang, you lost."

When she said these words, Yu Qing truly felt a sense of exhilaration, so wonderful that she felt a bit dazed.

She had thought the other party was going easy on her, but seeing Xiang Changge still holding the phone and staring at it in disbelief, Yu Qing clearly realized—Xiang Changge was no match for her.

Xiang Changge, at Gomoku, could not beat her, Yu Qing!

Yu Qing spun the phone in her hand, tossed it back onto the bed, and mimicking Xiang Changge's posture from earlier, she spread her hands toward the door: "Don't let me see you out, Steward Xiang. I'm going back to sleep."

Until she stood outside Yu Qing's room, Xiang Changge still couldn't quite process it.

Considering itself a warm and thoughtful system, the Plot Rewriting System spoke up in Xiang Changge's mind to comfort its host, who had been unceremoniously kicked out of Yu Qing's room: "It's okay, 8802, take it slow. It's only the second day of the mission; we need a gradual process."

If this mission were that simple, it wouldn't have needed to appear.

Perhaps it was the system's voice that brought Xiang Changge back to her senses; she finally put her phone away and pulled out a hard-boiled egg, tapping it against her forehead.

After cracking the shell, she began peeling it while walking downstairs.

System: "..."

It was over; its dear host seemed to have taken quite a hit.

Once Xiang Changge finished the hard-boiled egg, she smacked her lips, which felt a bit dry, and sighed: "I actually lost. Am I not a Gomoku master? How could I have lost?"

The system, which had already started searching for "What to do if the host is too traumatized and acting abnormally," went: "..."

It silently closed the search interface and began collecting materials like Thirty Tips to Become a Gomoku Master and Gomoku Speedrun Tutorials to send to Xiang Changge.

After going into the kitchen to find a carton of milk to drink, Xiang Changge finally accepted the fact that she was not a Gomoku genius.

Although Yu Qing had won and she couldn't force her to get up for breakfast today, as a qualified steward, Xiang Changge had the kitchen prepare several visually and aromatically appealing breakfast dishes and had them sent to Yu Qing's room.

She wouldn't force her; she would just leave the food there. Whether she wanted to eat or not was up to her; regardless, she still had to fulfill her duties.

Since Yu Qing wasn't getting up, Xiang Changge didn't feel like choosing shoes and accessories either, so she told the brand representatives not to come today and that she would notify them when to come later.

Xiang Changge was someone who couldn't stay idle. Aside from Yu Qing's affairs, she still had to handle the recruitment and training of the Yu Family servants.

On top of that, she had found two new psychological counselors and mentors, planning to find an opportunity for them to talk to Yu Qing and see if there would be any effect.

As for Yu Qing's physical health, the wellness coaches and nutritionists couldn't be idle either.

She had the system, which could provide detailed information on Yu Qing's physical condition. The nutritionists had to communicate with the kitchen based on this data, ensuring that while the dishes were delicious, the required nutritional intake was met.

Even though the latter was subject to the variable of "Yu Qing's appetite."

But the point remained: Yu Qing could choose not to eat or do anything, but the things that should be provided to her must not be lacking in the slightest.

Xiang Changge was still thinking about what she could find that might interest Yu Qing.

People really couldn't be too idle; they had to have something to do to feel that life was interesting.

For Xiang Changge, she felt that every second was very interesting.

There were so many things to eat, drink, play with, use, and do, and she was interested in every single one of them.

Xiang Changge was busy and bustling, while Yu Qing was leisurely and relaxed.

Yu Qing usually had trouble falling asleep, but after being woken up this morning and then sparring with Xiang Changge over a game of Gomoku, she felt quite energetic despite her physical exhaustion.

After Xiang Changge left, she opened the Gomoku interface on her phone again.

This time, with no one to play with, she chose to play against the computer.

It was simple; she couldn't even beat the easy or hard difficulty bots, so Yu Qing excitedly selected the master level.

After losing five games in a row, Yu Qing got a bit temperamental. She carefully analyzed the bot's moves, finally winning in the eighth game, and from then on, she won more than she lost.

It wasn't until she had won five games in a row that she tossed her phone aside, feeling bored.

How dull; the bots were nothing special after all.

She felt mentally alert but physically exhausted, yet lying in bed, she couldn't fall asleep.

She couldn't sleep, but she didn't know what else to do.

Just as Yu Qing's mood was about to sink into a slump, a knock sounded at her bedroom door.

Yu Qing was startled, thinking that Xiang Changge wouldn't go back on her word and was coming to force her out of bed again.

Just as she was hesitating over whether to pretend to be asleep, she heard the sound of the door opening.

Subconsciously, Yu Qing closed her eyes.

Soon, a familiar set of footsteps approached, accompanied by the aroma of food.

It was Aunt Yang.

Aunt Yang was one of the people who had been by her side the longest; Yu Qing could already recognize her footsteps just by listening.

However, to be safe, Yu Qing still didn't say anything.

She heard Aunt Yang bring something in, place it on the small table by the floor-to-ceiling window, and then retreat shortly after.

Yu Qing's room was very large. The window section was semi-circular, with a large floor-to-ceiling window near the bed, a fabric sofa in front of it, and a small low table in front of the sofa.

On the side, there was a bay window covered with thick cushions, where Yu Qing loved to curl up at night to watch the night view.

Only after the door closed again did Yu Qing open her eyes and look toward the floor-to-ceiling window.

In the morning, Xiang Changge had pulled back the heavy blackout curtains, leaving only the white sheer drapes hanging. It was still a rainy day, and the sky was dim, so the light outside didn't feel harsh even with just the thin veil.

By the daylight, Yu Qing saw the small table, which was packed full.

Sniffing the aroma of food in the air, there seemed to be the scent of something deep-fried.

Inexplicably, Yu Qing was reminded of that smell of fried chicken again.

Author's Note:

Chapter 14: Deliberate Tactics of Temptation

Perhaps it was because she had exhausted so much mental energy playing wits with Xiang Changge last night, but as Yu Qing, whose stomach was already empty, caught a whiff of this aroma, she suddenly felt a hint of craving in her mouth, which had felt devoid of appetite all along.

After lying in bed for a few more minutes to confirm no one else would come in, Yu Qing finally rose slowly and walked barefoot to the low table.

Looking down, she saw several different types of breakfast items occupying every inch of the table.

Oatmeal, sweet potato and millet porridge, steamed egg custard, wontons, steamed dumplings, plain noodles, spinach and tofu soup, toast toasted to a golden brown on both sides... it was all gathered there like a hotel buffet.

And the scent that had drawn Yu Qing here came from a miniature fried dough stick.

It was a very small piece of dough stick; someone who didn't know better might have mistaken it for a lighter.

She didn't know if it was made so small on purpose because they were afraid the greasy food would be bad for her health if she ate too much, or because they were afraid she would waste it if she couldn't finish it.

Beside the dough stick was a bowl of steaming soy milk.

The aroma of deep-fried food was always exceptionally overbearing; in the few seconds Yu Qing stood by the table, that oily fragrance kept drifting into her nose.

"..."

So, since that person couldn't beat her at chess and couldn't find a legitimate reason to force her out of bed for breakfast, she resorted to such deliberate tactics of temptation?

Heh.

-She succeeded.

Yu Qing turned and went into the bathroom to wash up.

Five minutes later, Yu Qing sat down on the fabric sofa, first picking up the warm water left on the side to take a few sips before picking up her chopsticks.

Even though there were many choices in front of her, Yu Qing picked up the fried dough stick first.

Aunt Yang must have brought it up right after it came out of the fryer; it was at the perfect temperature to eat.

Yu Qing took a gentle bite, the crispy outer skin of the dough stick giving way to reveal the soft interior.

It was delicious—crispy on the outside and soft on the inside—a taste Yu Qing hadn't experienced in a long time.

When she first ate it, her taste buds could sense the savory saltiness of the dough stick, but as she chewed, the flour was broken down by enzymes, and a sweet flavor began to permeate her mouth.

After taking another bite, Yu Qing's gaze fell on the bowl of soy milk next to the dough stick.

After a moment of hesitation, Yu Qing chose to dip the dough stick into the soy milk.

Taking another bite, the dough stick, now soaked with soy milk, felt moist and soft, carrying the soy milk hidden deep inside—it was yet another kind of flavor.