Chapter 9: Unfamiliar Life

Chapter 9: Chapter 9: Unfamiliar Life

The daycare was far noisier than Xi Yunxui had expected.

The moment she entered the classroom, three children were arguing over a toy truck.

"It’s mine!"

"No, Teacher said I can play with it!"

"You played with it yesterday!"

Xi Yunxui stopped at the doorway.

She looked at the three children.

Then at the toy.

Then back at the children.

It’s one toy.

She walked over and crouched beside them.

"Alright. Who had it first?"

The three children pointed at one another.

"He did!"

"She did!"

"He’s lying!"

Xi Yunxui stared at them.

This was strangely familiar.

Her siblings had once argued over a single steamed bun in exactly the same manner.

She sighed.

"Fine. Since none of you knows who had it first, I’ll decide."

The children immediately became quiet.

Xi Yunxui picked up the toy truck.

"Whoever can tell me what color this is gets to play with it first."

"Blue!"

"Blue!"

"Blue!"

All three shouted at once.

Xi Yunxui stared at them.

"That was too easy."

One little boy raised his hand.

"Teacher, ask something difficult."

"Oh?"

Xi Yunxui smiled.

"Alright. What color is the sky?"

"Blue!"

She nodded.

"What color is grass?"

"Green!"

"What color is your teacher’s dress?"

The children looked at her.

Then one little girl answered seriously.

"Ugly."

The classroom became silent.

Xi Yunxui’s smile froze.

A teacher standing nearby immediately turned away, trying not to laugh.

Xi Yunxui looked down at her clothes.

Then at the little girl.

"Why is it ugly?"

The girl tilted her head.

"Because Mama said adults shouldn’t wear boring clothes."

Xi Yunxui slowly nodded.

"I see."

She looked toward the other teacher.

"Children today are very honest."

The other teacher finally burst out laughing.

The children laughed too.

Xi Yunxui shook her head.

"Fine. You can play with the truck."

She handed it to the little girl.

The two boys immediately protested.

"Why does she get it?"

"Because she answered the question."

"But she said your clothes are ugly!"

Xi Yunxui paused.

"That’s true."

She took the truck back.

"New rule. Nobody gets the truck."

The three children gasped.

"Teacher!"

Xi Yunxui laughed.

"Go play with the blocks."

They reluctantly ran away.

She watched them for a moment.

Then she smiled.

Raising three children wasn’t enough.

Now I’m surrounded by twenty.

---

The rest of the afternoon passed surprisingly quickly.

Xi Yunxui helped with lunch, cleaned up after the children, assisted another teacher with some paperwork and spent a few minutes reading a picture book aloud.

She was beginning to understand why the original Xi Yunxui had liked working there.

It was tiring.

Very tiring.

But there was something comforting about it.

When the final child was picked up by their parents, Xi Yunxui waved goodbye.

"Goodbye, Teacher Xi!"

"Goodbye."

She watched the little girl from earlier leave while holding her mother’s hand.

The child suddenly turned around.

"Teacher!"

"Yes?"

"Your clothes aren’t ugly!"

Xi Yunxui blinked.

The girl smiled.

"I like them now!"

Then she ran away.

Xi Yunxui stood there for a moment.

Then she laughed.

"Children are really strange."

---

By the time Xi Yunxui returned to her apartment, she was exhausted.

She closed the door behind her and immediately kicked off her shoes.

"I’m tired."

She walked toward the bathroom.

Then stopped.

Although the original Xi Yunxui’s memories had already explained what everything was, actually seeing the modern bathroom still fascinated her.

She walked toward the shower.

She turned the handle.

Water immediately poured down.

Xi Yunxui jumped slightly.

"Ah!"

She stared at it.

Then slowly placed her hand beneath the water.

Warm.

Clean.

And it came out whenever she wanted.

She looked at the showerhead.

"If people in my old world had this..."

Her imagination immediately went wild.

No carrying buckets.

No heating water over a fire.

No struggling with cold water during winter.

She sighed dramatically.

"How convenient."

Then she looked toward the toilet.

The water closet still fascinated her.

She pressed the flush.

Whoosh!

Xi Yunxui jumped backward.

She stared at it.

The water disappeared.

She slowly walked closer.

"It’s eating it?"

The toilet, naturally, gave no explanation.

Xi Yunxui stared at it suspiciously.

"Modern technology is frightening."

After freshening up, she changed into comfortable clothes and sat on her bed.

Then she noticed the phone lying beside her.

She picked it up.

"Now..."

She stared at the black screen.

"How do I open you?"

The original Xi Yunxui’s memories surfaced.

Fingerprint.

Pattern.

Password.

Xi Yunxui pressed her finger against the screen.

The phone unlocked.

Her eyes widened.

"It actually recognizes me?"

She turned her hand over.

She looked at her finger.

Then at the phone.

"So there are things in this world that can recognize someone’s finger."

She pressed the screen again, fascinated.

After exploring the phone for a while, she opened the contacts.

She scrolled through the names.

Then stopped.

Mom.

Xi Yunxui stared at the name.

Her finger hovered over it.

The original Xi Yunxui’s memories told her about her mother.

Her father had already passed away.

Her mother was still alive.

And suddenly, Xi Yunxui felt a strange heaviness in her chest.

She had inherited this woman’s body.

Her memories.

Her relationships.

Her life.

But she wasn’t her.

Could she really call this number?

What would she even say?

Hello, I’m your daughter.

Except I’m not.

Xi Yunxui quickly locked the phone.

"No."

She placed it beside her.

She lay down and stared at the ceiling.

A long breath escaped her lips.

"This new life..."

She paused.

"It’s really strange."

For a while, there was only silence.

Then—

[What’s wrong, Host?]

Xi Yunxui immediately sat upright.

"Ah!"

She looked around.

Her heart jumped.

"Don’t do that!"

[Do what?]

"Suddenly speaking inside my head!"

The system went silent.

Xi Yunxui pressed a hand against her chest.

"You’re frightening sometimes."

[...]

After several seconds—

[Apologies, Host.]

Xi Yunxui sighed.

"It’s fine."

She lay back down.

"This life is just..."

She stared at the ceiling again.

"Different."

She had spent her entire previous life caring for her siblings.

Then, just when she thought she could finally enjoy the fruits of her hard work, she had died.

Now she had opened her eyes in another person’s body.

A strange world.

A strange household.

A strange system.

And a completely unfamiliar future.

Xi Yunxui closed her eyes.

"I don’t know what will happen next."

The system remained quiet.

For once, it didn’t issue a mission.

It simply stayed with her in the silence.

And somehow, that made the unfamiliar world feel a little less lonely.