CHAPTER 17: CHAPTER 17: MISSION ACCOMPLISHED

The butler who was standing behind Old Madam Huo also covered her mouth in shock as she turned to look at Yue Ning who still had the look of confusion on her face.

"Take a look Ah Wen, isn’t this the gift that the old man gave to me? I thought I had lost it, but who would have expected it would appear here?" Tears fell out of the Old Madam’s eyes as she caressed the gold.

"Yes, Old Madam, this was the gift you cherished so much. You were devastated when it went missing," Ah Wen replied while wiping her tears which were about to fall.

Yue Ning, on the other hand, had her mouth opened in shock.

"System, what treasure have you given me?" Yue Ning asked fearfully.

’The antique which you had gifted her is the same as the one the Old Master gifted her when they were on a trip, but sadly, she lost it,’ the system explained.

"But how was it able to end up in your hands?" Yue Ning asked. She was shocked by the turn of events.

’I am the system, so of course, getting little things like this isn’t a problem. Besides, this is the original antique, it was a replica the Old Master gave her,’ the system replied with a sassy tone.

"Oh," Yue Ning let out a sigh of understanding. She had to give it to the system, it sure knew its game properly.

Huo Feng had an undescribable look on his face as he watched the entire drama play on. It had to be said that he was stupefied by the entire situation.

"Yue Ning, where did you find this?" Old Madam Huo asked with a grateful expression.

"That..." Yue Ning hesitated for a while. She couldn’t tell her that she had a system who gave her the relic.

Yue Ning racked her head on how to give a reasonable excuse which wouldn’t be too suspicious.

"System, I need your help, I don’t know what reply to give," Yue Ning pleaded.

’Host, it would be better to improvise. Didn’t you read a lot of novels in your original world?’ The system responded, but didn’t give a direct reply to Yue Ning’s question.

Yue Ning breathed out when she realized that the system had ’abandoned’ her.

"I bought it from an antique store, I guess it is just luck it landed in my hands," Yue Ning replied while hoping they would buy her excuse.

"Thank you so much. You have no idea how much this means to me," Old Madam Huo thanked her, and a smile appeared on Yue Ning’s face.

[Ding: Task completed.]

Yue Ning let out a sigh of relief when she heard the notification. Just as the system had predicted, the gift could make the Old Madam like her.

’Reward has been added to the reward bar. Does the host wish to check it out?’ The system asked.

"There is no need, I will check it out when I get home," Yue Ning declined.

"You both should stay for dinner," Old Madam Huo suggested.

"There is no need, Grandma," Huo Feng rejected.

Yue Ning turned to look at him. She wanted to say something, but she shut her mouth immediately.

Old Madam Huo watched the interaction between them, and she frowned. She could see that Yue Ning was scared of Huo Feng, or so she thought.

"We are having dinner, and it is final. Ah Wen, help me to my room, while you show Yue Ning to Huo Feng’s previous room, they will remain there till dinner is ready." She instructed while rising to her feet, with Ah Wen coming to help her out instantly.

Huo Feng let out a sigh when the two women had left.

"Why don’t you want to have dinner with your grandmother?" Yue Ning asked after a while, breaking the silence between them.

"I’m avoiding certain people," Huo Feng replied plainly.

"Oh," Yue Ning let out an exclamation as she tapped the sofa’s arm.

The atmosphere turned awkward as they had nothing to say to each other.

"Sister-in-law." Yue Ning heard a very loud voice, and she snapped her head to where she could hear the voice.

"Huo Yan?" She called out with uncertainty when she saw the figure.

"Yes yes, it is me," Huo Yan shouted as she hurried over to where Yue Ning was seated.

"I didn’t know you were coming," Huo Yan enthusiastically uttered.

"Well, I didn’t come alone. Your brother was the one who brought me here," Yue Ning replied, scratching the back of her head slightly. She wasn’t used to anyone’s enthusiasm.

Well, she couldn’t be blamed. In the real world, she didn’t have any friends. She could be considered a loner.

"Oh, hi brother." Huo Yan greeted him perfunctorily before turning to look at Yue Ning.

"Sister-in-law, I have gotten the novels you need, you can choose from it. Wait, you can have all of them," Huo Yan informed eagerly, a wide smile on her face as she informed Yue Ning.

Huo Feng felt a strange itch in his heart. He didn’t know how Yue Ning did it, but she was able to charm her way into his loved ones’ hearts.

He had to admit that she was quite different from what Yue Chen said. In fact, she kept surprising him, and they haven’t even been married for three days. He wasn’t ready for the immense surprise he would face in the coming days.

’It seems I have to investigate her,’ Huo Feng thought to himself as he watched both Yue Ning and Huo Yan enthusiastically talk about novels.

"Sister-in-law, follow me to my room, and you can see that I chose the best novels just for you," Huo Yan insisted.

"Fine," Yue Ning gave in. She knew that if she didn’t, Huo Yan would continue to pester her.

"Great, let’s go. Brother, I’ll just take her to my room to show her my novel collection, have fun staying alone, okay?" Huo Yan stuck out her tongue at Huo Feng who only shook his head.

As Yue Ning and Huo Yan headed upstairs hand-in-hand, they suddenly ran into a girl standing elegantly on the steps, arms folded.

"Yanyan, who is this?" the girl narrowed her eyes. "You know outsiders aren’t allowed in the ancestral home. Don’t tell me you dragged in some stranger again?"

Huo Yan groaned dramatically. "Oh, spare me the lecture, Cousin Feifei. This is my brother’s wife. Wife, you know? Married. Legal, with a certificate and everything. Not a stray cat I picked off the street.

Yue Ning coughed lightly, feeling a little awkward.

Huo Fei blinked, then smirked. "Brother Feng married her? Really? Even if she wears expensive clothes, they can’t hide the fact that she looks... ordinary. Certainly not young-mistress material." She flicked her hair with a self-satisfied grin.

Yue Ning tilted her head and smiled sweetly. "Oh? That’s good then, since I’m ordinary, I’ll be safe from people plotting against me out of jealousy. You must have it so hard, Cousin, being extraordinary."

Huo Yan’s jaw dropped. "Sister-in-law!" She quickly covered her mouth to stop herself from laughing, but her shoulders shook.

Huo Fei’s face turned bright red. "W-What do you mean by that?!"

Yue Ning clasped her hands innocently, "exactly what you think it means." She then turned to Huo Yan, ignoring Feifei’s sputtering. "Let’s go check out those novels you promised me.""

"Right! Sister-in-law, you’re the best!" Huo Yan stuck out her tongue at her cousin before dragging Yue Ning upstairs.

Behind them, Huo Fei stomped her foot so hard the steps almost rattled. "I’ll get you for this! Just you wait!"

The system chuckled in Yue Ning’s head. ’Host, you roasted her so hard I could smell smoke. I’m proud.’

Yue Ning, on the other hand, let out a proud smile.