Chapter 67: Getting Set Up by the System

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Bai Ning: "Stop calling yourself the feedback value system. You might as well just rename yourself the 'Free Female Lead Giveaway System.'"

System: [That has nothing to do with me. You just have to make contact with a villainess and there's a chance a quest will trigger. The more contact you have, the more quests are bound to trigger.]

Bai Ning had nothing to say to that. The one thing she could be grateful for was that things were only this hard when she was dealing with Jiang Xiyue. At least when she was with Nan Zha and Ning Xue, it probably wouldn't feel this awful.

Watching Jiang Xiyue draw closer with the stethoscope in hand, watching the smile on her face, a nameless frustration flared up inside her, only to be quickly doused. Being the female lead wasn't easy either, okay.

She'd already been drugged twice, nearly got run over like a speed bump, and on top of that she had to navigate her days surrounded by a bunch of villainesses, tiptoeing around every single move.

Even though she really wanted to just blow up at Jiang Xiyue, thinking back on how pathetic she'd looked just moments ago, Bai Ning chose to rage... by fuming for a second and doing nothing about it.

What could she even do? She couldn't win in a fight, couldn't talk her way out of anything, and she still had to complete the quest. Try to mess with her? You'd just be throwing punches at a cotton wall.

Just like before, Jiang Xiyue routinely checked whether Bai Ning's heartbeat was normal. Of course, she still believed Bai Ning's heart was on the right side, so she checked both sides anyway.

Face flushed red, Bai Ning bit her lip, still trying to figure out how she was going to complete this quest.

Actually trying to overpower Jiang Xiyue was completely off the table, so she had to find another way.

Watching Jiang Xiyue lean in to examine her closely, the figure beneath the white coat only half-visible, Bai Ning could even clearly make out certain things.

A flash of inspiration hit her. If she couldn't win by force, she'd fight fire with fire!

While Jiang Xiyue was still in the middle of her examination, Bai Ning moved with the speed of lightning and reached right in. She was going to turn Jiang Xiyue's own method against her. She couldn't always be the one getting pushed around, it was time to strike back!

Sure enough, grabbing someone else's felt completely different from your own.

A hint of surprise crossed Jiang Xiyue's face as she looked at the arm in front of her. She genuinely could not figure this out.

Bai Ning clearly knew she was no match for her, yet every single time she would still go and provoke her.

If it weren't for the fact that Bai Ning always looked so reluctant whenever she did this, she might have actually thought Bai Ning was doing it on purpose.

Seeing that the system still hadn't shown a quest completion notification, Bai Ning gritted her teeth, steeled herself, and with a firm grip, gave a hard twist.

That twist carried none of the female lead's defiance against a villainess. It was pure, unfiltered resentment toward Jiang Xiyue, with absolutely nothing held back. And so, the quest was completed.

[Ding! Correction quest complete. As the female lead, you have successfully struck back against the villainess. This is a great step toward the female lead's victory.]

"Ngh!"

A muffled grunt escaped Jiang Xiyue. She seemed genuinely caught off guard by that, her brow knitting slightly.

After that, Bai Ning had already braced herself for Jiang Xiyue to retaliate twice as hard, but that didn't happen at all.

Instead, a deep flush spread across Jiang Xiyue's face. She even wore the most expressive look Bai Ning had ever seen on her since they'd met, gazing at Bai Ning with a dazed, unfocused stare that made Bai Ning feel like something had gone very wrong.

[Jiang Xiyue: comfortable, satisfied, feedback value +346.]

You're absolutely broken, girl.

The corner of Bai Ning's mouth twitched. She had originally thought Jiang Xiyue was just some stat monster with ridiculously high numbers, but it turned out the mechanics behind those numbers were even more busted than the numbers themselves.

Watching Jiang Xiyue's breathing grow increasingly rapid, Bai Ning suddenly realized she was still holding on. She snapped out of it with a jolt, let go immediately, and took several steps back.

No good. She had to get discharged. For the next few days she'd be living with Nan Zha and Ning Xue, she absolutely had to minimize contact with Jiang Xiyue.

Face set with determination, Bai Ning stepped back and pulled open the curtain.

The moment she did, Nan Zha rushed over with a look of concern.

"N-nothing happened, I just had a bit of trouble breathing just now, it's no big deal."

Her eyes darting around, Bai Ning's face was still red.

"Really?"

Watching Bai Ning act all evasive, Nan Zha clearly didn't believe her.

"Really, really, I'm perfectly fine, I can get discharged any time now, I want to go home."

As she said it, Bai Ning even rolled up her sleeve and flexed to show off how strong she was. She genuinely did not want to stay here anymore.

"Hold on, let me go ask Jiang..."

Before the words could finish, a voice cut in from beside them.

"Mm, she's fine. If you'd like, you can handle the discharge paperwork now."

Jiang Xiyue had recovered quickly. Her expression was composed as she stepped up beside Bai Ning and struck up a conversation with Nan Zha.

Hearing that, Bai Ning blinked in surprise and looked over toward Jiang Xiyue with a puzzled expression.

"Are you sure she's alright? Shouldn't we observe her for another day or two?"

Nan Zha had clearly been shaken by the state Bai Ning was in just a moment ago, and spoke to Jiang Xiyue with some hesitation.

"It's fine. Her injuries are even lighter than yours, and you've been running around everywhere these past 2 days. Bai Ning doesn't have great physical fitness, but her recovery ability is very strong, she'll be perfectly fine."

Jiang Xiyue spoke with full sincerity. Bai Ning really was one of the strongest natural healers she'd ever seen. She hadn't suffered any serious injuries, but those scrapes and cuts had nearly healed completely in just 2 days, which was honestly a little baffling.

Seeing that Nan Zha still looked like she wanted to say more, Jiang Xiyue spoke again.

"If you're still worried, you can bring her in for a checkup every week. I won't charge you for the visits."

"Wouldn't that be too much trouble for you? I'll make sure to pay for each visit going forward."

"No need. It's nothing major. Besides, the payment. I already received it earlier..."

And that payment, she was extremely satisfied with.

A rare smile crossed Jiang Xiyue's face as her gaze drifted subtly toward Bai Ning nearby, sending a cold sweat running down Bai Ning's back.

"Payment?" Nan Zha looked confused. From the time she and Jiang Xiyue had started working together, Jiang Xiyue had always been the one helping her. She didn't recall giving any payment at all.

"Yes, it was given by Miss Bai earlier. It was very useful to me. Miss Nan, please don't worry about it. I still have things to take care of, so I won't be accompanying you for the discharge process."

Of course she would have liked Bai Ning to stay with her, but she still had a few things to handle, so it was better to let Bai Ning and Nan Zha head back first.

"Then... thank you for everything, Dr. Jiang."

Jiang Xiyue had already said what she needed to say. Even though Nan Zha was still puzzled about what kind of payment from Bai Ning could possibly satisfy a family like the Jiangs, she figured it must have been a considerable price.

With that, Nan Zha finally set her worries aside, her heart filled with gratitude toward both Bai Ning and Jiang Xiyue.

Just thinking about how she'd be going home with Bai Ning soon, a small smile spread across Nan Zha's face.

She took Bai Ning's hand in hers, said a quick goodbye to Jiang Xiyue, and with a light, happy step, headed out through the door.