Chapter 190: Variable

"I really... really don’t understand..."

Wang Gege let out a weak sigh. "I woke up and ended up in this world expecting to do nothing much. You know... just lying around like a salted fish..."

She then turned toward Xie Rong, who had his arms wrapped firmly around her shoulders, as though trying to calm her after the shock of being attacked earlier.

"But why do I keep getting dragged into a series of attacks by villainesses?"

Xie Rong remained silent for a few seconds before swallowing.

"This husband believes they were all targeting this husband..." His arms tightened slightly around her. "But because Furen is this husband’s wife, Furen has also been dragged into everything."

Wang Gege stared at him for a moment.

"So I am suffering because I married the wrong man?"

Xie Rong’s expression stiffened.

The carriage fell completely silent. For the next few moments, the only sound that reached their ears was the steady rumble of the carriage wheels against the road.

"Pfft... I’m joking..." Wang Gege finally pinched his cheek, breaking the silence.

Yet her words seemed to have struck harder than she had expected. Xie Rong remained stiff and silent, his expression showing no sign of relaxing.

Wang Gege’s hand slowly lowered.

"Gemi did mention something when I first opened my eyes in this world..." he said in a low voice.

Wang Gege blinked and turned toward him.

Xie Rong slowly lowered his gaze. "That this husband was not supposed to wake up in this world..."

"Huh?" Wang Gege’s eyes widened in surprise.

Xie Rong remained silent for a moment before continuing.

"The original Xie Rong was supposed to die. Once he died, that should have been the end of Xie Rong’s existence in this world."

Wang Gege’s expression slowly changed.

"But this husband woke up in his place."

His fingers slowly tightened around hers.

"Unlike Shen Taotao, this husband believes..." He paused briefly.

"Because this husband continues to live along a timeline where Xie Rong was never supposed to exist, perhaps whatever governs this world has been trying every possible means to force this husband out of it... to return everything to how it was originally meant to be."

Wang Gege stared at him for a few moments.

This time, she did not immediately interrupt him.

Her brows slowly drew together as the pieces gradually began falling into place.

Shen Yurou.

Xie An’an.

Gu Ruyan.

And now, even an assassin appearing out of nowhere in the middle of a festival.

One after another, problems continued appearing around Xie Rong.

At first, she had thought they were all directed at her. But thinking back now, it slowly began to make sense.

The problems had never truly started with her.

They had started with Xie Rong.

And somehow, because she had become his wife and remained by his side, she had been dragged into them as well.

Wang Gege stared at their intertwined hands for a moment before slowly shifting closer to him.

"Husband..."

"Hmm?"

"You are thinking too much again."

Xie Rong’s gaze lifted toward her.

Wang Gege pressed her lips together before giving his hand a small squeeze.

"Even if everything you said is true, it doesn’t mean all those people appeared because of you." She paused. "You didn’t ask them to attack you. You didn’t ask them to drag me into their mess either."

Xie Rong remained silent.

"And besides..." Her eyes narrowed slightly. "If the world is really trying so hard to get rid of you, then whoever is in charge of this place is seriously annoying."

Xie Rong blinked.

Wang Gege looked toward the carriage ceiling.

"What did we even do? You woke up. I woke up. We were both minding our own business."

"Furen..."

"No, really." She frowned. "I came here wanting to lie around and live as a salted fish, yet I somehow ended up fighting villains one after another. Husband just wanted to live peacefully too, but now apparently even the world itself has a problem with you."

A faint smile finally appeared on Xie Rong’s lips.

Wang Gege noticed it immediately. "Why are you smiling?"

"Honestly..." He lowered his head slightly. "This husband did not have any goal when this husband first arrived here..."

Wang Gege’s expression gradually changed.

"Since your death, this husband did not want to live anymore..."

"What nonsense—"

Her words were immediately cut off when Xie Rong reached over and gently pinched her lips together.

He chuckled. "When this husband arrived here and Gemi asked this husband to complete missions in order to survive, I only did it because the final mission was to return to our original world..."

The smile remained on his lips.

"Then Gemi gave this husband another mission involving Shen Taotao... basically Furen..."

Wang Gege slowly blinked.

"This husband thought it was troublesome."

"Hey!"

Xie Rong laughed softly before continuing, "But since Shen Taotao’s mission... this husband started smiling again..."

Wang Gege wanted to say something again, but Xie Rong beat her to it as he continued.

"Furen’s character was actually difficult to hide, and this husband fell for it again..." The faint smile on his lips remained. "Then, when Gemi told this husband that I could return to our world and choose the time we would return based on the favourability converter..."

"Oh—wait, wait..." Wang Gege suddenly looked panicked. "Can Husband tell Furen about your mission? Won’t it break the rules?"

Xie Rong paused before slowly nodding. "It did."

Wang Gege’s eyes widened. "What?!"

"But never mind..." Xie Rong’s smile deepened slightly. "Gemi will just close one eye about it..."

Ding!

A blue fluorescent screen suddenly appeared before them inside the carriage.

[HOST IS BREAKING THE RULES.]

[BASICALLY, GEMI CANNOT CLOSE ANY EYE UNTIL HOST RETURNS PART OF THIS SYSTEM’S BODY.]

Both of them fell silent for a moment before bursting into laughter.

Xie Rong looked at the floating screen, his smile widening slightly.

"Are you being petty with this husband, Gemi?"

The blue screen remained silent for a moment.

Then, new words slowly appeared.

[THIS SYSTEM IS MERELY REMINDING HOST THAT THIS SYSTEM CANNOT BREAK THE RULES.]

Xie Rong raised a brow and titled his head a bit.

[UNLIKE SOMEONE WHO BELIEVES THIS SYSTEM CAN SIMPLY ’CLOSE ONE EYE’ WHENEVER IT IS CONVENIENT.]

Wang Gege immediately burst into laughter again.

Xie Rong stared at the screen for a moment before slowly leaning back against the carriage. "That certainly sounded petty."

[THIS SYSTEM DOES NOT UNDERSTAND WHAT HOST IS TALKING ABOUT.]

Xie Rong’s lips twitched. "Of course you don’t."

Wang Gege covered her mouth as she continued laughing, while Xie Rong merely watched the floating screen with an amused expression.

"Gemi is totally different from Mini!"

[CORRECT.]

Wang Gege blinked.

The screen continued.

[GEMI HAS A BETTER PERSONALITY.]

The carriage immediately fell silent.

Xie Rong slowly turned toward Wang Gege.

Wang Gege stared back at him.

Then both of them burst into laughter again.

"Oh..." Wang Gege wiped the corner of her eyes. "That was definitely petty."

Xie Rong nodded in agreement. "This husband believes so too."

[HOSTS ARE ALLOWED TO HAVE THEIR OWN OPINIONS.]

Wang Gege covered her mouth again, trying to stop herself from laughing. "Mini would never say something like that..."

Xie Rong’s eyes narrowed slightly as he looked at the screen.

"Perhaps Gemi truly is jealous of Mini."

[THIS SYSTEM HAS NO SUCH EMOTION.]

"Of course you don’t," Xie Rong replied, his lips twitching again.

The screen remained silent for a few moments.

[THIS HUSBAND ALSO WISHES TO STATE THAT HOST HAS NOT YET EXPLAINED WHY HOST IS DISCLOSING INFORMATION ABOUT THE SYSTEM TO ANOTHER HOST]

The laughter inside the carriage gradually stopped.

Xie Rong blinked once.

Wang Gege slowly turned toward him. "Oh... right. Go on..." She gestured toward him. "You are the one who spilled it..."

Xie Rong pressed his lips together.

His eyes then slowly shifted toward Gemi’s floating screen.

"As this husband was saying..."

[HOST IS ADVISED NOT TO CHANGE THE SUBJECT.]

Xie Rong’s lips twitched.

Wang Gege immediately covered her mouth again, trying not to laugh.

Finally, he let out a helpless sigh. "Since this husband has already told Furen about the mission, just tell this husband what the punishment is..."

The blue screen remained silent for a few moments.

Wang Gege instinctively leaned closer to him.

Xie Rong, however, appeared surprisingly calm. "This husband is already prepared."

[GEMI HAS REVIEWED THE VIOLATION HOST DID]

Both of them immediately focused on the screen.

[DUE TO SPECIAL CIRCUMSTANCES, THE SYSTEM HAS DECIDED NOT TO IMPOSE ANY IMMEDIATE PUNISHMENT.]

Wang Gege blinked. "That’s it?"

Xie Rong slowly raised a brow.

[HOWEVER, HOST IS ADVISED TO BE MORE CAREFUL IN THE FUTURE.]

His lips twitched. "So Gemi truly did close one eye."

[HOST SHOULD NOT PUSH IT.]

Wang Gege immediately burst into laughter again.

Before Xie Rong could reply, the blue screen suddenly flickered.

A new message ap

peared.

[FINAL MISSION POINTS ALMOST MAX OUT — HOST MIGHT RETURN TO HOST WORLD SOONER THAN HOST EXPECTED.]

"What?! Suddenly?!"