Who hasn't read a few Mary Sue novels in their naive youth? Back in those ignorant days, Mary Sue novels seemed absolutely fantastic. Putting yourself in the heroine's shoes felt incredibly satisfying.
But when you actually encounter a Mary Sue world, it leaves everyone speechless.
Especially the gilded, golden toilets and the per capita rainbow-colored hair.
[Reborn Transmigrator Gu Nuanyang: I was wrong. I thought only the heroine had rainbow hair in a Mary Sue world, but it turns out everyone has it.]
[The Switched-at-Birth True Heiress Qin Suyuan: I have a question. Does the heroine of this world really wake up on a hundreds-of-square-meter bed every day? Are the toilets studded with diamonds?]
[Earth Girl Lin Xi: I'm more curious to know if there are really many geniuses in a Mary Sue world. Like, mastering English without learning it, or knowing the solution to math, physics, and chemistry problems at a single glance.] This had almost become Lin Xi's obsession.
Back when she was in high school, Mary Sue novels were all the rage. Among all the heroine's amazing talents, this was the only skill she remembered. She used to fantasize about how great it would be to have that ability—she wouldn't even need to go to school, just stay home and show up for exams.
Lin Xi never imagined she would one day see a real Mary Sue. To be honest, she's a bit excited.
Xu Huanhuan and the others came online too, and the discussion became even livelier. Everyone had their own take on Mary Sues; some even asked if Mary Sues' tears turn into pearls...
Right at that moment, the girl being stepped on moved. She reached out and twisted the back of the ankle of the foot pressing her head down. The person stepping on her had delicate skin and tender flesh, unable to withstand such pain, and let out a yelp before lowering her leg.
The girl who had been stepped on stood up. Her black hair made her stand out like a sore thumb among the crowd of people with rainbow-colored hair.
"Wow, you dare to fight back!" Several girls saw this and immediately surrounded her: "Sisters, let's teach her a proper lesson."
Chi Qiushui looked at these classmates, who were written as Mary Sues but read more like tacky delinquent girls, and spat in disdain.
"So what if I fight back? You think you can bully me and I'm not allowed to resist? What the hell are you anyway? If you'd shown up two minutes earlier, who knows which one of us would be lying on the ground right now..." The black-haired girl's opening remarks left the group chat members even more speechless.
[Earth Girl Lin Xi: I never expected my first 'shake' to connect me with a girl from Northeast China, huh.] Northeast and Southwest China span the entire country; the 'shake' function's range is pretty impressive. Lin Xi had never thought about it when using WeChat's shake feature.
[Sixties Era Boxer Xiang Qianlan: A Northeastern girl in a Mary Sue world... that's a sight too beautiful for my eyes.]
The stereotype of a Mary Sue world is that all the girls are delicate and frail. The stereotype of Northeastern girls, on the other hand, is that they are tough and bold. Combining these two elements seems mismatched and bizarre no matter how you think about it or look at it.
Lin Xi found it hilarious. There's a common saying online describing them as 'Lin Daiyu before they open their mouths, and Zhang Fei after.'
For Lin Xi, who has lived in the north, this stereotype is rather absolute, but she has to admit that Northeastern girls generally have very straightforward and cheerful personalities, and are practically all born comedians. Hanging out with them is genuinely a blast.
Opposite Chi Qiushui, the few rainbow-haired girls were bewildered by her strange accent.
The leader was the first to react: "You..."
Chi Qiushui was in an extremely foul mood, so bad that if you gave her some TNT she could blow up the whole Earth. Right now, she'd even curse at a dog passing by outside, let alone these underage delinquents engaging in school bullying.
"You what you? How old are you kids? Fifteen or sixteen, right? Still bullying classmates at school? Did your mom and dad pay for your education so you could swagger around school? What, you got nothing better to do? If you're really that bored, go grab a shovel and shovel manure!"
Chi Qiushui spoke rapidly. Before the Mary Sues could react, she unleashed another verbal barrage. Their brains couldn't even keep up with her speaking speed.
"Hit her! How dare she disrespect our Mo Bao! Mo Bao is kind-hearted and won't stoop to her level, but we can't let her off." The leading Mary Sue, knowing she was no match for Chi Qiushui verbally, simply called her lackeys to move towards Chi Qiushui. It was clear bullying classmates was an old habit for them; a couple of the taller, stronger ones were already rolling up their sleeves.
Chi Qiushui cracked her neck and flexed her wrists. When the two Mary Sues approached, she immediately swept a leg out, kicking the one charging at the front—a tall, sturdy girl—and sending her flying. Looking at the rainbow hair scattered on the ground, the garish colors stung Chi Qiushui's eyes.
"Damn, this is the first time in my life I've hit a young girl, but not hitting you guys really wouldn't quell the hatred in my heart. 'Disrespect Mo Bao'? What famous painting or calligraphy from which dynasty is she that I must respect her? If I respect her that much, should I just hang her on the wall? Maybe put some fruit and cake underneath as offerings." Her verbal onslaught didn't hinder her physical one. As the last word fell, the Mary Sue leader was also laid out on the ground.
She straightened her clothes, pulled open the restroom door, and walked out.
A Mary Sue school is indeed a Mary Sue school. Stepping out of the restroom, all the buildings were resplendent and golden, just looking at them screamed 'luxury.'
Chi Qiushui took out her phone, which was covered in multi-colored rhinestones, and started picking them off as she walked, stuffing all the rhinestones into her pocket. With a grim expression, she looked around, realizing she was on an upper floor. Not far away was a small grove of trees, next to which stood several buildings decorated just like the one she was in. The tallest one had ten floors.
The yellow, gilded decoration was really not friendly to the eyes under the sunlight.
She took the elevator down and headed straight for the grove. Inside the grove was a pavilion. By the time she sat down, she had finished picking off all the rhinestones from her phone. She clicked into the transmigrator chat group she had just joined.
Seeing a button to turn off the live stream, she casually switched it off, then greeted the group: [Mary Sue Minor Cannon Fodder Chi Qiushui: Hello, everyone.]
[Earth Girl Lin Xi: Hello, hello! Welcome, welcome!]
[Primitive World A Huahua: Welcome, newcomer! Tell us about your situation~]
[The Switched-at-Birth True Heiress Qin Suyuan: Yeah, yeah, we're super curious about the Mary Sue world.]
Reading the messages in the group, Chi Qiushui took a deep breath.
【Mary Sue Minor Cannon Fodder Chi Qiushui: My name is Chi Qiushui, from Liaoning Province. I slipped and fell on my way out this morning, just half an hour ago, and that's how I ended up crossing over.】
As a young person, Chi Qiushui's favorite thing to do was surf the internet. She had read plenty of novels about transmigration and rebirth, but she never dreamed she would actually transmigrate herself. She had a whole pile of complaints to vent.
【Mary Sue Minor Cannon Fodder Chi Qiushui: From the prefix in my name, you can probably tell what kind of world I've crossed into. This is a Mary Sue world. Based on the memories in my head, there are only four major chaebols in this world: the Nangong, Zhuge, Ouyang, and Duanmu families.】
The moment these four compound surnames appeared, everyone in the group chat immediately felt the vibe. A Mary Sue world, indeed. Don't the protagonists always need some rare, special surname?
The common Gu, Lu, Qin, and He surnames from ordinary novels are all destined for ordinary people in a Mary Sue world.
【The Switched-at-Birth Real Heiress Qin Suyuan: These surnames are just too classic. They're the kind that make me not want to click on a novel as soon as I see them.】
While taking a moment to give Qin Suyuan's comment a like, Chi Qiushui typed and rolled her eyes. She had met plenty of people with compound surnames in real life too, so why didn't she feel this same sense of cringe when chatting with them or calling their names?
Chi Qiushui couldn't figure it out, but since she had already gotten this far with the introduction, she didn't hold back: 【The school I'm currently at, decorated so gaudily it looks like a bathhouse, is called Oliston Business School. It's a top-tier university in this world, offering one-stop education from elementary school all the way through college.】
【This body I'm in belongs to a high school student from an ordinary family on scholarship at Oliston. Oh, and not only that, my parents are both servants for the top chaebol, the Zhuge family.】
【The female protagonist of this world is named Zhuge Mo'er. The male lead is Duanmu Xiu, the second male lead is Ouyang Xiuming, and the third male lead is Zhuge Shan. The entire world revolves around these four. My current body is Zhuge Mo'er's personal maid, and also a lovesick fool infatuated with the male lead, Duanmu Xiu.】
【Out of jealousy because Zhuge Mo'er received special attention from Duanmu Xiu, and because she didn't follow the trend of dyeing her hair rainbow colors when Zhuge Mo'er became fond of it, she became a target for Zhuge Mo'er's simps. Things like being locked in the bathroom or getting beaten up weren't first-time occurrences.】
【In the plot, this minor cannon fodder character died due to the bullying. After her death, her parents didn't even dare to make a fuss.】
After sending the message, Chi Qiushui sat in deep thought, wondering what sin she had committed in her past life to end up transmigrating into this insane world.
【Domineering CEO Villainess Ye Bingbing: So it's another crazy world?】
【Ancient World Xu Huanhuan: I'm starting to see the pattern. Most of the transmigrators in our group have ended up in worlds that are a bit... problematic, full of people who trample all over the law.】
【Earth Girl Lin Xi: I second what Huanhuan-jie said. I've noticed that too.】
【Primitive World A Huahua: I have a question. There are four top wealthy families. Duanmu is the male lead, Ouyang is the second male lead, and the third male lead is also surnamed Zhuge. So where did the Nangong family go?】
【Mary Sue Minor Cannon Fodder Chi Qiushui: Nangong is the female lead's white moonlight. He went abroad and isn't involved in the main plot.】
While chatting in the group, Chi Qiushui made her way out of the small grove and headed towards the dormitory building.
Oliston Business School has one dormitory building for boys and one for girls, situated on either side of the grove. As an elite school, the dorms are all two-bedroom, one-living room suites for two people. As Zhuge Mo'er's maid, the original host shared a suite with Zhuge Mo'er.
But how could a maid qualify for her own room? In this suite, one room was Zhuge Mo'er's bedroom, and the other was Zhuge Mo'er's walk-in closet. The original host's sleeping place was a small 1.2-meter bed on the balcony.
Beneath the small bed were piled all of the original host's personal belongings. Opposite the balcony stood a desk with the original host's textbooks on it. A few books were placed there, but Chi Qiushui knew the original host never had any time to actually read them.
Other than that, the balcony was empty. Looking at the living room, the 80-square-meter space was spotless, covered entirely in pink carpet. The white sofa was neat and clean. A vase of freshly cut flowers from the morning sat on the coffee table, the scent of lilies permeating the room. In the kitchen not far away, pots, pans, oil, salt, soy sauce, and vinegar were all complete. The refrigerator was stocked daily with the freshest ingredients by the Zhuge family's butler.
After all, as the little princess of this world, being picky was normal. The original host hadn't received much proper education, but her skills in taking care of people were maxed out, especially her culinary arts. Remembering how the original host diligently cooked for Zhuge Mo'er in the kitchen while Zhuge Mo'er entertained her girlfriends in the living room made Chi Qiushui curse.
Then, thinking about how the original host had served as Zhuge Mo'er's maid since childhood without receiving a single cent in wages, she began to pay respects to the Zhuge family's ancestors for eighteen generations. As a working stiff, she couldn't stand this at all. Just thinking about it made her feel uncomfortable all over. What the hell!!
【Mary Sue Minor Cannon Fodder Chi Qiushui: I don't want to stay in this Mary Sue world for a second longer. Even household servants in ancient times got monthly wages! In this damn world, the original host worked purely for free. She even had to pay for her own school supplies.】
【Sixties Era Boxer Xiang Qianlan: !! Capitalists are truly capitalists. As long as you have no conscience, you can make big money.】
【Wealthy Family Eldest Sister-in-law Ji Xinyu: I thought we were capitalist enough, but it turns out some people are even more capitalist than us.】
In Ji Xinyu's world, the investigation into Ren Pingzheng's matters proceeded quickly. With Grandpa Huang's hint, the police directly made the information public. Within just a few days, the Ren family was beaten into a corner by their competitors, with no power to fight back.
Their suppliers came to demand payment daily, and their clients severed cooperation with Quant outright.
Ren Pingxuan and his actress mother, who were originally preparing to return and fight for the family fortune, were completely dumbfounded by this turn of events. Seeing that Quant Electronics had lost its value, Ren Pingxuan's actress mother didn't even step foot back in China and directly returned to her current husband's side.
It's worth mentioning that Ren Pingxuan even came to see her, outright saying he was willing to marry her and wouldn't treat her like Ren Pingzheng did—on the condition that her Ji family resolve the Ren family's financial crisis.
Ji Xinyu directly kicked him out. As for Ren Jialin, after the incident, she only sent Ji Xinyu one message and didn't show her face. Rumor had it she had gone to another city to buy a house with her limited funds.
The Ji family had hired a new batch of domestic service staff, with salaries based on position. The lowest salary was ten thousand yuan. Good domestic help is worth that much, especially since the Ji family's estate is so large it's impossible to maintain without hired help.
She hadn't thought much of it before, but now, compared to the Zhuge family in the Mary Sue world, Ji Xinyu felt her family was truly conscientious.
[Transmigrated Reborn Woman Gu Nuanyang: You're telling me! In my last life, even selling tofu earned me a few copper coins as hard-earned money.]
Chi Qiushui grew more and more aggrieved the more they talked. She strode over, dragged a box out from under the bed, and took out all the documents inside.
[Mary Sue Minor Cannon Fodder Chi Qiushui: They want the horse to run fast but won't let it eat grass. I've never taken a loss like this since I was a kid! Even my dad would give me two mao for spicy sticks when he asked me to buy cigarettes.]
She slung her small bag over her shoulder and clattered away. Her phone rang. Seeing the name "Young Mistress" flashing incessantly on the screen, Chi Qiushui rolled her eyes and hung up directly.
The management at Olsten Business School wasn't strict. After all, it gathered children from wealthy families across the country. The security guard didn't even bother giving Chi Qiushui a second glance as she left the gate.
Olsten Business School was located in the suburbs, but the area was exceptionally bustling. To cater to the consumption needs of the young masters and misses at the school, several large shopping malls, high-end restaurants, top-tier clubs, and various other exclusive establishments had sprung up nearby.
Chi Qiushui also spotted several styling salons, their advertisements featuring photos of Zhuge Mo'er with captions like "Same Seven-Colored Hair as Zhuge Group's Little Princess."
Chi Qiushui recorded a video and sent it to the group chat.
[Primitive World Ahuahua: ??? So the seven-colored hair in Mary Sue worlds is all dyed? It doesn't grow out of the Mary Sue protagonist's scalp like that?]
[Period Novel Stepmother Xu Huixin: I think dyed is more reasonable. Otherwise, if seven-colored hair grew directly from the scalp, each section a different color, wouldn't that be terrifying?]
Everyone in the group thought about it, shuddered. Lin Xi's hands trembled as she typed a line.
[Earth Girl Lin Xi: That mental image is too beautiful, I dare not look.]
Lin Xi's comment received likes from everyone in the group.
Chi Qiushui was also amused by them. She quickly walked through the commercial district. Since Olsten wasn't out of class yet, the bustling area was mostly empty except for staff.
Walking all the way, the one word these stores screamed was "expensive." But what did it matter to her whether these things were expensive or cheap?
She walked for a long time before reaching the bus stop. Taking out the original host's bus card to wait, she started cursing again.
Olsten School had several parking lots. Zhuge Mo'er alone had over a dozen sports cars parked at school. Yet, the original host had to rely on the bus for transportation.
How absurd! Especially considering every trip the original host made was to run errands for Zhuge Mo'er! Couldn't they at least provide a bicycle? Sometimes, when things were urgent, the original host even had to pay for taxis out of her own pocket, with no reimbursement.
Utterly ridiculous!
Standing expressionlessly at the bus stop for half an hour, a fully pink-colored bus finally wobbled into view.
The doors opened in front of her, and Chi Qiushui boarded. At this hour, the bus was completely empty.
Ever since Princess Zhuge Mo'er started dyeing her hair seven colors, it had sparked a worldwide trend. Young women everywhere followed suit. The bus driver hadn't seen a young girl with black hair in a long time.
Therefore, he looked at Chi Qiushui with particular friendliness, even driving more steadily. Usually, hardly anyone took this route, so the driver would practically drift through this section.
Chi Qiushui looked out the window at the scenery. Her phone rang incessantly, the caller ID flashing from "Young Mistress" to "Mom," "Dad," and "Little Brother."
Chi Qiushui ignored every single one. She got off at her stop. The original host had a bank card; Chi Qiushui planned to withdraw all the money from it.
Although the original host had only saved up a few tens of thousands over the years—not much in this Mary Sue world—it was still a considerable sum.
She lowered her head to send a message in the group.
[Mary Sue Minor Cannon Fodder Chi Qiushui: I wonder how my body back in the Earth world is doing. I had a private nail art studio there. Over the years, I saved up quite a bit. I wonder if my parents can access that money.]
They say there are two most frustrating things in the world: one is being alive with no money, the other is being dead with money left unspent. Chi Qiushui was the latter.
She graduated from an art university. In her senior year, she got into the nail art industry. She genuinely loved it, so she found someone to teach her the techniques. Combining that with her professional training, she opened a private nail art studio once her skills were mature.
A single nail art session started at over a thousand yuan. For more elaborate designs, it was even more expensive. Before she transmigrated, appointments at her studio were booked a week in advance.
[Ancient World Xu Huanhuan: That's simple. You can commission Lin Xi to go check for you.]
[Earth Girl Lin Xi: Right. As long as there's compensation, I can go check for you.]
[Mary Sue Minor Cannon Fodder Chi Qiushui: I'm really tempted, but the distance from the southwest to my northeastern hometown is too far. Round-trip travel would cost several thousand. I can't afford that much compensation right now.]
[Ancient World Xu Huanhuan: In that case, I'll cover your compensation. How about you make me a few sets of press-on nails?]
Xu Huanhuan lacked many things, but she certainly didn't lack gold and jewels. Especially now that the wine she brewed was famous in the capital. She had no intention of disrupting the current wine market, so her output was low. The scarcity marketing strategy meant she earned a lot.
She had also asked Lin Xi to buy press-on nails for her—expensive and beautiful ones. But what girl can resist pretty nails?
Chi Qiushui's eyes lit up. She really wanted to know about her situation. Most importantly, she still wanted to return to Earth. She didn't want to stay in this Mary Sue world a minute longer.
[Mary Sue Minor Cannon Fodder Chi Qiushui: Check out my skills first. If you like them, then we can talk.]
Chi Qiushui tagged Lin Xi, asking her to search for her account on a certain short video platform, which had many pictures of her nail art.
Lin Xi found her account and was surprised to see she had around ten thousand followers. Every post she made had tens of thousands of likes and thousands of comments.
She was skilled at hand-painting, and the nail art she created was stunningly beautiful. Lin Xi had never had nail art done before. Honestly, she wanted a set of such beautiful nails too.
After posting the pictures in the group, she said.
[Earth Girl Lin Xi: Can you make me a set of press-on nails too? You don't need to pay me compensation.]
Chi Qiushui readily agreed. She asked Lin Xi to buy her some nail art tools. Xu Huanhuan chose her favorite style and ordered a set.
After that, the orders Chi Qiushui received never stopped. Lin Xi, meanwhile, had already bought a plane ticket to Liaoning Province.
After a private chat with Chi Qiushui, Chi Qiushui sent her the address of where the accident happened.
[Mary Sue Minor Character Chi Qiushui: This address is my boyfriend's hometown. We were going to his place to discuss our wedding. It's really cold where we're from, and somehow ice formed at his doorstep. I slipped and fell.]
[My family and his are just in neighboring villages. You just need to go to my house and tell my parents my bank card password.]
Lin Xi replied with 'Okay'.
Aside from Xiang Qianlan and Xu Huixin who are in the period novel world, all the girls in the group privately messaged Lin Xi.
Lin Xi transferred these gold and jewelry items to Chi Qiushui again. Back in the group chat, Chu Qianmo was once again hawking his spatial mustard seeds and little pills.
Faced with these items, it was hard for her not to be tempted. After promising to go buy ingredients unique to this world as soon as she got off the bus, she obtained the spatial mustard seed and, without hesitation, bit her finger to bind it.
Afterwards, she placed her identification documents along with the gold and jewelry Lin Xi had passed to her into the spatial storage.
With the gold and jewelry as her security, Chi Qiushui's heart, which had been in her throat ever since she transmigrated, finally settled down a bit.
The saying 'money is the courage of the poor' is absolutely true!
When the bus arrived at her stop, she went straight to the bank, withdrew all the money inside, and put it in the bag she was carrying.
Just as she stepped out the door, her ear was pinched hard. Wincing in pain, she looked up and saw a woman in her thirties with rainbow-colored hair glaring at her fiercely.
"You wretched girl, what on earth is wrong with you! Didn't I tell you before to go dye your hair? Why are you still sporting this black mop?"
As the middle-aged woman spoke, her hand started to twist. Chi Qiushui reached up and grabbed her wrist: "Talk if you want to talk, why are you pinching me?"
Chi Qiushui's father, afraid she would be bullied outside, had her learn martial arts from a young age.
After transmigrating into this Mary Sue world, as a maid and bodyguard, the original host had also received professional training.
The middle-aged woman was Xu Cuiping, the original host's mother in this world. Although she had some strength, there was still a gap compared to Chi Qiushui.
Xu Cuiping's hand was held firmly by Chi Qiushui, unable to move. Chi Qiushui used a clever technique, gripping the bone on Xu Cuiping's wrist.
And she was gradually increasing the pressure. Xu Cuiping stared at Chi Qiushui in shock, unable to believe that her own submissive daughter would resist her.
"Chi Qiushui, have you lost your mind?" Xu Cuiping spoke while letting go of the ear she was pinching.
Chi Qiushui directly threw her hand away.
Xu Cuiping no longer thought about disciplining Chi Qiushui: "Fine, come home with me. Miss has already arrived home, and Madam and the others are all waiting for you."
Chi Qiushui rolled her eyes. That black-hearted capitalist Zhuge family—whoever wants to go back can go back. She had no plans to return.
"I'm not going back." Chi Qiushui turned and walked away.
Xu Cuiping wanted to chase after her, but as if remembering something, she stamped her foot and stayed put. Only after Chi Qiushui turned the corner at the intersection did she get into the black car waiting by the roadside.
Her giving up so easily surprised Chi Qiushui a little; she had thought Xu Cuiping would keep pestering her.
But it was a good thing she didn't follow. Otherwise, if she kept hovering around, Chi Qiushui really might not be able to resist hitting her.
The original host's servile nature was trained into her by Xu Cuiping. From the time the original host could understand things, Xu Cuiping repeatedly told her that their whole family were servants of the Zhuge family.
As their child, the original host was naturally also a servant of the Zhuge family. Since she was the same age as Zhuge Mo'er, she should learn all the skills to properly take care of Zhuge Mo'er.
And so, under this brainwashing, everything the original host knew and learned was for the sake of better serving Zhuge Mo'er.
Chi Qiushui posted all of this in the group chat.
After reading it, everyone felt something was off.
[Earth Girl Lin Xi: I have a thought...]
[Sixties Era Boxer Xiang Qianlan: Me too...]
[The Switched-at-Birth Real Heiress Qin Suyuan: I know what you're thinking. @ʟᴇxɪ Mary Sue World Minor Character Chi Qiushui, think about it, how does the original host's birth mother treat the Mary Sue female lead?]
[Mary Sue Minor Character Chi Qiushui: Of course, she's very good to her. Zhuge Mo'er is the only girl born into the top-tier conglomerate Zhuge family in three generations. They say she was adorable as a child, and there's no one in the whole world who doesn't love her. Didn't you just see? Because she dyed her hair rainbow-colored, the whole street followed the trend.]
Speaking of this, Chi Qiushui couldn't help but lament the brain-dead nature of this world again. Not a single brain could be found in the entire so-called Mary Sue world.
[Earth Girl Lin Xi: Then, who is older, the original host or Zhuge Mo'er?]
[Mary Sue Minor Character Chi Qiushui: They share the same birthday. They were both born at a hospital under the Zhuge group.]
[The Switched-at-Birth Real Heiress Qin Suyuan: Does Zhuge Mo'er look like the Zhuge family members?]
Just as Chi Qiushui was about to answer, she suddenly saw Qin Suyuan's group nickname. A chill ran down her spine, and she began to recall carefully.
[Mary Sue Minor Character Chi Qiushui: That's actually hard to tell. The makeup skills in this world are exceptionally advanced. Zhuge Mo'er started wearing makeup at age twelve, and the original host hasn't seen her real face in many years. Are you suspecting she was switched at birth or intentionally swapped?]
Chi Qiushui rubbed her head. She felt her head was itching; most likely, a brain was about to grow.
[That probably can't be, right? As a top-tier conglomerate, the Zhuge family undergoes regular annual health check-ups. If there was anything off about Zhuge Mo'er, the Zhuge family would have known long ago.]
Hearing Chi Qiushui say this, Lin Xi and the others felt somewhat disappointed.
She casually packed a couple of clothes, called Chi Xiangping, and then left.
The weather was getting hotter, and more and more tourists were coming out. The homestay, along with nearby hotels, started raising their prices. Even so, her homestay was fully booked every day.
Chi Xiangping was at the homestay every day and didn't come back anymore.
Lin Xi was going out, and she didn't mind. She didn't think there was anything wrong with Lin Xi going out every day. After all, back in the day, her own son would also go out on trips every few days.
Lin Xi drove straight to the airport.
Two hours later, Lin Xi got her ticket, passed through security, and boarded the plane. In the group chat, Chi Qiushui had also found a place to stay.
She sent Lin Xi a gold ring, the one Xu Huanhuan had given her.
Lin Xi accepted it and used the system to convert it into this world's currency. Soon, tens of thousands appeared in her bank account. This was money Chi Qiushui asked her to use to buy nail art tools.
The group chat remained lively.
In the Mary Sue world, Chi Qiushui was cleaning her rented apartment. Away from the Mary Sue characters, the cost of living in this world was quite normal. The rent for this apartment was a thousand dollars a month, two bedrooms and a living room, eighty square meters.
Chi Qiushui had just browsed through this world's social media and short video platforms. The nail art industry here was all about exaggerated, flashy styles; things like hand-painting or ink-wash designs simply didn't exist.
She wanted to take up her old profession again.
As for whether to continue her studies, Chi Qiushui didn't care. After all, the original host had attended school for so many years without really learning much from the textbooks. Chi Qiushui herself had also graduated many years before her transmigration, and all that high school knowledge had long been returned to her teachers.
Since she was here, she might as well settle in. Before figuring out if she could return, Chi Qiushui decided she would live well—a principle her parents had taught her since childhood.
Before starting to clean, Chi Qiushui ordered some takeout. When a knock sounded at the door, thinking the food had arrived, she put down her rag, took off her gloves, and went to open it.
The door opened to reveal three exceptionally handsome young men, each with a strikingly different style, standing outside. In front of them was a girl, around 1.5 meters tall, dressed exquisitely.
They were all wearing the uniform of Oliston Academy: white suit jackets and sky-blue suit pants. Zhuge Mo'er's shirt was the same style as theirs, but her pants were replaced by a sky-blue plaid skirt. Her rainbow-colored hair was styled into two pigtails. Recalling what Lin Xi and the others had said earlier, Chi Qiushui's gaze swept over Zhuge Mo'er's face, but seeing the makeup that looked light but was actually very thick, she gave up trying to discern anything.
"Qiushui, why are you living here? I've been looking for you for so long~" As Zhuge Mo'er spoke, she tried to push past Chi Qiushui to enter.
Chi Qiushui shifted slightly to the side, blocking the center of the doorway, looking down at Zhuge Mo'er.
This Mary Sue world heavily featured the "most adorable height difference" trope, exemplified by the nearly 1.9-meter-tall Duanmu Xiu and the barely 1.6-meter-tall Zhuge Mo'er.
As the maid, Chi Qiushui was now 1.7 meters tall. This was slightly shorter than her height in the modern world, but she was only sixteen in this world and could still grow taller.
She was quite satisfied with this height, especially now as she looked down at Zhuge Mo'er with a faint, mocking smile. "What do you want from me?"
Zhuge Mo'er felt Chi Qiushui had changed. In the past, Chi Qiushui would never have spoken to her like this.
"I'm hungry, Qiushui. I want the steak you pan-fry. I want mine medium-rare. Duanmu Xiu wants his medium. As for Xiuming and Shan, you can decide how to make theirs; they're not picky," Zhuge Mo'er stated matter-of-factly.
She was used to eating the meals Chi Qiushui prepared and truly couldn't stomach anyone else's cooking now. When she returned to the dorm after class and didn't find a ready-made meal, heaven knew how furious Zhuge Mo'er had been.
But remembering that Chi Qiushui had just been bullied, she magnanimously decided to forgive her. She had even condescended to call Chi Qiushui, and how angry she was after being hung up on!
So she called Chi Qiushui's parents and even went home, waiting for Chi Qiushui to return, apologize, and cook for her. When Chi Qiushui didn't come back, no matter how angry she was, for the sake of her own stomach, Zhuge Mo'er had no choice but to come find Chi Qiushui.
Chi Qiushui was so angry she almost laughed. Her gaze swept over Zhuge Mo'er's three flower-protecting escorts before finally landing on Zhuge Mo'er herself, whose face seemed wider than a washbasin.
"If you're hungry, cook for yourself. You want me to cook for you? Just how full of yourself are you? I served you diligently for so many years, how much salary did you pay me? Not a single cent! Not only did you not pay, you even made me cover the costs for your meals. If you're so amazing, why don't you just fly up to heaven?"
Zhuge Mo'er looked bewildered for a moment. Just like Xu Cuiping couldn't believe Chi Qiushui would talk back, Zhuge Mo'er was utterly incredulous that Chi Qiushui would refuse her.
After a pause, she put on a hurt expression. "Qiushui, I never thought you were that kind of girl. Is our friendship really worth less than a bit of salary? Didn't we agree when we were eight? I would just borrow your salary for a while, and you could ask for it back whenever you needed it?"
Zhuge Mo'er's words left Chi Qiushui speechless. She dug through the original host's memories and found that there was indeed such an incident.
Even as a child, Zhuge Mo'er was a big spender. By seven or eight years old, her monthly allowance of hundreds of thousands wasn't enough. What to do when she ran out of money? She'd have the original host give her own salary to her.
She called it a "loan," but she never paid it back. Later, the butler even started directly depositing the original host's salary into Zhuge Mo'er's account.
Zhuge Mo'er forbade the original host from touching her things. When the original host was young, she had asked for her salary a few times, but after being scolded by Zhuge Mo'er, she stopped mentioning it. As she grew older and more introverted, she simply forgot about the salary altogether.
"Then calculate all my salary over the years and transfer it to me." The original host's salary wasn't low. Over these eight years, it should amount to nearly a million. If Zhuge Mo'er transferred that money, Chi Qiushui would be much better off.
Zhuge Mo'er pursed her lips, tears welling in her eyes. "I don't have any money. I bought a sports car."
Hearing this, Chi Qiushui felt a pang of anger in her liver. She had money to buy sports cars worth tens of millions, money for bags worth millions, but no money to pay the original host's salary of less than ten thousand?
Her face instantly turned cold. "No money, yet you still want to buy services? Get lost, get out of here."
She directly pushed Zhuge Mo'er away. The second male lead, Ouyang Xiuming, caught Zhuge Mo'er in his arms.
The male lead, Duanmu Xiu, stepped forward, bent down, and whispered in Chi Qiushui's ear, "Woman, you have successfully caught my attention."
A greasy, cloying scent seemed to hang in the air. Chi Qiushui couldn't hold back and made a gagging sound.
