1.
When Kỷ Vũ Lạc held the empty lunchbox out to me, I froze for a few seconds.
“Ma’am, you dropped this lunchbox yesterday. I picked it up for you.”
I said nothing, only thought to myself: This little girl sure has quite an appetite.
Yesterday I’d packed three dishes and a chicken drumstick, and she’d eaten every last bite.
The girl lowered her head and nervously twisted the hem of her shirt, as if she were hiding a little crime.
Only then did I notice that her hair tie had stretched out and lost its elasticity, and her hair was a tangled mess, like no one had brushed it.
I asked again:
“You dropped your lunchbox yesterday, and it was full of food. How come it’s empty now?”
The girl still wouldn’t meet my eyes. She mumbled:
“When I picked it up… there wasn’t anything left…”
The System started nagging in my ear again:
“See? She’s barely old enough to talk and she’s already lying! No wonder she grows up to hurt the male and female leads!”
“A child like that isn’t worth helping. Just leave her alone!”
I muttered:
“She didn’t do it on purpose… You can tell just by looking at her stepmother that she’s never let the girl have a full meal…”
Yesterday, as usual, I pushed my cart selling offal hot pot to the corner of the street and waited for the male and female leads to show up, just as the plot said they would.
Instead, I witnessed the future villainess being thrown out onto the street by her stepmother.
“Your father, your little brother, and I are moving. We can’t afford to keep you anymore.”
“If you want to live, go find someone else to take care of you. Otherwise, go die. Don’t come crawling to me.”
Her stepmother screamed, her face murderous. I panicked and hurriedly pushed my cart away without packing anything up, leaving the lunchbox by the roadside.
Now Kỷ Vũ Lạc, the little girl with big round eyes, looked up at me:
“What did you say, ma’am?”
I hurriedly changed my tune, putting on a stern voice:
“Nothing. You must be mistaken. My lunchbox had rice in it, and this one doesn’t, so it isn’t mine.”
The girl tilted her head. Her face was pinched with hunger, but her eyes were still bright and round.
I tried to suppress my compassion and waved her off.
“Go on now. I’m getting ready to open for business, and you’re in the way.”
The System immediately praised me:
“That’s right! According to the plot, after the villainess is kicked out of her home, she’ll meet the male lead here.”
“The male lead will take pity on her and invite her to eat offal hot pot. Later, he’ll sponsor her education.”
“She’ll fall for the male lead, but then discover that he loves the female lead. After that, she’ll be jealous and bully the female lead in every way…”
“Listen to me. This isn’t the role of an NPC like you. Your only job is to make sure the male and female leads meet at your food stall!”
I nodded dully, then turned to look at the girl sitting on the curb, chin in her hands, watching one parent after another pick up their children from school.
She wore a shabby backpack and had never even set foot inside a school.
I whispered something the System apparently didn’t hear:
“If I’m the one who helps her… could things turn out differently?”
3
When school let out, the kids poured through the gates like a swarm of bees.
My hot pot stall was always busy, and it was soon surrounded by customers.
“Ma’am, one skewer of tofu and seaweed, please!”
“Ma’am, I want a fried fish ball and some grilled corn!”
I smiled as I served them and took their money. “One at a time, everyone’ll get some!”
A little girl in a white dress with a delicate bow stepped out of a gleaming black car and handed me a 100-yuan bill.
“Ma’am, I’d like to try one skewer.”
I hesitated:
“Sweetie, each skewer costs one yuan. I don’t have enough change for that.”
I handed her a seaweed skewer. “Here you go. It’s on me. Next time, bring some smaller bills, okay?”
The System suddenly exclaimed:
“The female lead, Hà Tiêu Tiêu, has appeared! If things keep going like this, she’ll love your hot pot and come back often. The male lead is bound to show up!”
Hà Tiêu Tiêu thanked me shyly and went back to the car.
My gaze happened to fall on Kỷ Vũ Lạc.
The girl looked at the female lead’s white dress, then lowered her eyes to her own shabby clothes. Her gaze darkened.
The System declared triumphantly, “See? She’s already jealous of the female lead at such a young age!”
I cut it off. “That girl’s just deprived of love. Don’t be so hard on her.”
An hour later, the students had gradually drifted away. I was getting ready to pack up when I saw that Kỷ Vũ Lạc was still standing there.
Her thin silhouette fell beneath a towering streetlamp, two lonely shadows on an empty street.
I pretended not to see her and pushed my cart away.
The wheels creaked, and little footsteps followed behind me.
When I looked back, Kỷ Vũ Lạc was trailing after me, her head bowed.
“Why are you following me?” I asked first.
The girl hurriedly rolled up her short sleeves, showing off her skinny arms.
“Ma’am, I really have nowhere to go… I can help you work! I’m very hardworking!”
“I may be skinny, but I’m good at cooking and doing laundry. I’m strong, too!”
Her eyes glistened with tears.
My hands tightened around the handlebars, then relaxed.
4
The System kept nagging:
“Typical villainess! Even an NPC is under her control! No wonder she betrays the male lead and hurts the female lead later!”
I asked Kỷ Vũ Lạc, “But what if your parents come looking for you?”
The girl shook her head. “They won’t. They’re moving to another city tomorrow. My stepmother just wants to get rid of me.”
The System hurried to stop me. “You absolutely must not agree! You have to wait for the male lead to come rescue her!”
I silently replied, “Wait for the male lead to lure the girl in with a bowl of offal hot pot? What if he’s a bad person?”
I pretended to be fierce, planted my hands on my hips, and glared at Kỷ Vũ Lạc with the grumpiest expression I could manage:
“Then you can help me out! You have to come straight here after school. I’ll provide food and a place to stay, but there’s no pay!”
Kỷ Vũ Lạc burst out laughing. “Thank you! But you’re really bad at pretending to be mean!”
There were only two shadows under the streetlamp on the road, and me.
Afraid I’d leave her behind, the girl clung to the cart as if she wanted to become one with it.
Even as an NPC who’d wandered through countless novels, raising a child was something I’d never experienced.
I took the girl home and tidied up the living room.
Luggage? All she had was a backpack with her books and school supplies. That was it.
The next day, the girl began her “work” right on schedule.
To my surprise, the little girl was remarkably capable and served customers without a hint of nervousness.
I told her to call me “Auntie” so her friends wouldn’t tease her.
After a week, Kỷ Vũ Lạc had become even more capable.
With regular meals and enough sleep, her face grew plump as risen dough.
On weekends, I sold food at the night market and usually didn’t get home until eleven.
I lined the storage compartment of the cart with blankets so the girl could nap and study there.
That place became her “territory,” decorated with a night-light she’d salvaged from the trash:
“Auntie, doesn’t it look like a secret princess castle?”
I nodded, pretending to be stern.
That afternoon, a boy with an LV backpack stood in front of the food stall.
The System suddenly popped up: “The male lead, Cố Cẩm Hoài, is here! Keep him around and create an opportunity for the female lead!”
I stared blankly at his mixed-race face, thinking he’d grow up to be unbelievably handsome.
Kỷ Vũ Lạc stared at him too and accidentally burned her hand with boiling water.
Cố Cẩm Hoài hurriedly took a bandage from his backpack and rinsed the little girl’s wound with cool water.
Kỷ Vũ Lạc’s face flushed. “Th-thank you! I’ll treat you to hot pot!”
The girl tugged at my sleeve and whispered, “Auntie, can I give him my portion?”
I didn’t answer. I just set a heaping pot of hot pot in front of them:
“Share it.”
That girl—if someone was even a little kind to her, she’d give them the whole world.
5
A few minutes later, Hà Tiêu Tiêu got out of school too.
As if led by the script, she headed straight for the hot pot stall.
Cố Cẩm Hoài exclaimed happily, “Tiêu Tiêu! Do you remember me? I transferred to this school too!”
His eyes lit up as he looked at the female lead.
I smiled. “Since you know each other, why don’t you eat together?”
When Hà Tiêu Tiêu sat down, Kỷ Vũ Lạc couldn’t take her eyes off the girl’s dress.
This one was even prettier than the white dress before, standing in stark contrast to the cheap plastic chair.
Kỷ Vũ Lạc looked down at her worn-out tracksuit she’d salvaged from the trash, its patch conspicuous.
The girl jumped to her feet. “You two eat. I’ll help Auntie chop vegetables.”
The System grumbled, “See? She’s already starting to hate the female lead! She’s jealous!” I replied silently, “If you lived in Kỷ Vũ Lạc’s circumstances, wouldn’t you be jealous too?”
“Besides, jealousy isn’t bad. What matters is turning it into motivation. If it pushes her to work hard, what’s wrong with that?”
The System snorted. It had already decided Kỷ Vũ Lạc was a villain.
I felt the girl was being treated unfairly.