After the system upgraded, the System Shop opened too.
Tang Shiba took a delighted look, only for the point prices inside to nearly blind her.
Trash system, this is what you're showing me?
Good grief, this was daylight robbery! Even a pack of tissues cost ten points.
Everything else cost 30, 50, 100, or 200 points.
Earning money wasn't easy. She'd thought the system upgrade would send her straight to the pinnacle of life.
And this was what she got?
[Host, the System Shop has a prize wheel. You get one free spin daily, with a chance to win any shop item, including discount coupons.]
Fine. Something was better than nothing.
So she used her free spin for the day.
[Ding! You won one Gossip Helper. P.S. It can help someone or something escape a current predicament or change the outcome.] [After the system upgrade, you can get gossip on anyone.]
Did that mean she could get gossip on random passersby too?
That was pretty nice, actually.
Just as she finished browsing the various products, her second brother's furious voice rang out.
"Tang Shiba, get out here!"
Oh, he'd come to settle the score.
"Xueqing still won't come out to eat. Go apologize and cheer her up."
Cheer her up? Had the world ended? Were knives raining from the sky?
This blind fool of a second brother wants me to apologize? What did I do wrong? Oh, dear brother, if you want an apology, should I jab her with a needle or not?
Tang Second Brother grew even angrier when he heard that.
Damn it, she actually wanted to stab her sister with a needle! How could she be so vicious?
She won't starve. She has loads of snacks in her room. Whenever she makes an excuse not to eat, she just wants you all to fuss over her. Meanwhile, she enjoys her snacks more than you enjoy your meals.
His hand paused. Snacks?
Impossible. Xueqing wasn't that kind of person.
Tang Shiba opened the door and immediately spotted the Honor Banner hanging on the living room wall. She chuckled.
Mom had hung it somewhere really conspicuous. She could even see it from the second floor.
She looked at her second brother in confusion. "What does Tang Xueqing refusing to eat have to do with me?"
Oh, look! Tang Xueqing just opened a bag of imported snacks. She's eating them right now.
He gave her a conflicted look. "If you'd explained things to the reporters in the first place, Xueqing wouldn't have said the wrong thing. She's blaming herself now. How does that have nothing to do with you?"
Wow, she's really enjoying them. Let me see what she's eating.
She smiled sweetly. "Sure, I'll go get her."
She walked over to Tang Xueqing's door and knocked.
Tang Second Brother followed. He knew Tang Xueqing was secretly eating snacks, so he should have stopped Tang Shiba from knocking.
But he didn't want to stop her. It seemed he wanted to see whether Tang Xueqing really was eating snacks too.
Tang Xueqing opened the door, looking haggard.
"Shiba, Second Brother, I have no appetite. Go ahead and eat without me."
She looked as delicate as a little white lotus, her pitiful eyes glistening with tears.
Anyone who saw her would think she was pure and untouched by worldly concerns.
Unfortunately, she was ruthless.
Tang Shiba peered into her room, but Tang Xueqing subtly blocked her view.
Tang Shiba smiled. "Sorry, I'm not here to call you down for dinner. My water heater's broken. I need to borrow your bathroom."
Then she barged straight in, knocking Tang Xueqing a step backward.
Tears instantly spilled down Tang Xueqing's cheeks, and she threw herself into Tang Second Brother's arms.
"Second Brother, Shiba doesn't like me. No matter how hard I try, she resents me for staying in this family."
Tang Xiao hurried to comfort her, his expression darkening.
Tang Shiba really had gone a little too far.
Tang Shiba ignored her completely and walked straight to her desk.
Seeing this, Tang Xueqing panicked. She quickly wiped away her tears and called out to stop her.
"Shiba, that's my private study area. Didn't you want to shower? The bathroom's over there."
She pointed in one direction. Tang Shiba grinned and reached for her drawer. "Let me borrow a pen. I like drawing while I shower."
What nonsense.
Tang Xueqing hurried over to stop her, but Tang Shiba was faster.
She pulled the drawer right out, then accidentally dropped it on the floor.
With a thud, all the snacks spilled out, including some Imported Biscuits she had just opened and hadn't finished.
Tang Xueqing's face went white.
Tang Shiba stared at the snacks on the floor in feigned surprise. "Wow, so many snacks! Turns out my little sister's a snack lover too, just like me."
"You know, whenever I used to sulk at my family and refuse to eat, I loved stuffing my drawer full of snacks."
"That way, I'd have something to eat when I got hungry, and my family would anxiously come to comfort me. I just loved feeling that people worried about me and cared."
"You're the same, aren't you, Tang Xueqing? After all, who would punish their own body, right?"
Every word Tang Shiba spoke felt like a needle piercing her heart. She was humiliated and furious.
She frantically looked at her second brother and rushed to explain. "Second Brother, Eldest Brother bought these for me. I couldn't finish them, so I put them in the drawer."
Her second brother stared at the drawerful of snacks, his expression changing several times.
His feelings were mixed. He'd gotten some gossip, but he'd also learned something.
Apparently, every girl who sulked and refused to eat liked buying snacks and storing them in her drawer.
He forced a smile and comforted her. "It's fine. When you don't feel like eating a meal, you can have some snacks. That way, you won't go hungry."
Tang Xueqing still felt humiliated. She couldn't understand how Tang Shiba had happened to open that particular drawer.
She'd known there were snacks in the drawer all along! She'd come in deliberately to expose her!
Having gotten her fill of gossip, Tang Shiba walked out with a smile. "Oh, I suddenly don't feel like showering anymore. I'm hungry. Time for dinner."
"I'm all grown up now. I don't eat snacks anymore."
Tang Xueqing sadly pushed Tang Xiao outside. "Second Brother, go eat. I really have no appetite."
Knowing she had snacks in her room, Tang Xiao stopped trying to persuade her. He simply told her to have some when she got hungry, then turned and went downstairs.
Tang Xueqing closed the door, rushed over, and stomped the snacks on the floor to pieces.
"Tang Shiba, I swear I won't let you get away with this!"
Tang Xueqing took out her phone and messaged Zhou Dan.
After sending the message, she stared blankly at the snacks on the floor, tears spilling down despite herself.
Then, with trembling hands, she picked up the crushed snacks again.
They were crushed, but they were still edible.
She couldn't throw away such expensive snacks just because Tang Shiba had provoked her.
Tang Xueqing ate until she felt like throwing up before finally finishing all the snacks.
She took the rubbish into the bathroom and burned it. There was too much, and she didn't want anyone else in the family to see it.
If they saw it, who knew what they would think of her?
The thick smoke made Tang Xueqing choke so badly that she hurried outside.
The moment she ran out, the house's Fire Alarm suddenly went off.
She frantically ran back in and used water to put out the fire.
Once it was out, she looked at the half-burned rubbish and pressed the flush button, trying to flush it away. Then she discovered that the toilet was blocked!
She was on the verge of losing her mind with anger. Fighting her disgust, she fished the rubbish back out.
Tang Second Brother knocked on the door again. "Xueqing, are you okay? Why was there a fire in your room?"
Tang Second Brother knew why there had been a fire.
Tang Shiba had been chattering away about it in her head the whole time.
He didn't find it annoying.
He just thought this sister of his was a little crude.
She talked bluntly about shit and piss.
Even he felt a little sick listening to it.
Tang Xueqing found another excuse to send Tang Xiao away.
As Tang Xiao headed downstairs, he was still thinking that his sister was surprisingly thrifty.
She'd even picked up the snacks that had fallen on the floor and eaten them.
He suddenly felt sorry for her.
Just then, he heard Tang Shiba's latest gossip-filled thoughts. So shocked that he missed a step, he tumbled straight down the stairs.
Before you continue