Chapter 21: The Doll Is Delicate and Incapable of Taking Care of Herself (14)

If Tu Jin had initially been able to smile while looking at the little doll gazing up at him with a bright, cheerful expression full of admiration, then that smile completely froze the moment he opened the favorability panel to check how she felt about him.

【Marking Method: The doll will automatically be marked once her favorability toward you reaches 70%.

Notice: The doll’s current favorability toward you is -50%.

P.S. The person with the highest favorability from the doll is currently her creator, Ye Jiujiu (60%).】

He stared at the little doll in front of him in disbelief.

“How did you manage to smile so brightly at me while keeping your favorability toward me in the negatives? You haven’t even given me a single point!”

One hundred thousand points! One hundred thousand points!

“If I’d spent a hundred thousand points warming up a rock, I could’ve heated it until it exploded! Yet your heart is somehow even colder and harder than a rock?”

He wasn’t even asking her to raise her favorability all the way to 70%. But surely she could at least bring it back into positive numbers? Original translation by Lhaozi, read at lhaozitranslation.com

If positive numbers were too much to ask, couldn’t she at least bring it back to zero?

Was he really not even worth a single point after spending a hundred thousand on her?

Had he committed some unforgivable offense against her?

“Do you even have a heart?!”

How could she be so cruel, so cold, and so unreasonable?!

Tu Jin genuinely felt wronged.

One hundred thousand points!

Who could possibly endure that?! Original translation by Lhaozi, read at lhaozitranslation.com

Under Tu Jin’s accusing interrogation, Ye Jiujiu was left speechless.

…

Well, this was awkward.

She had just tricked… received such a huge deposit of points, and she’d been so excited that she’d forgotten to adjust her favorability while she was at it.

Unfortunately, she obviously couldn’t tell Tu Jin that.

So…

It seemed she had no choice but to stop pretending to be a decent person for a moment and let this naive, gullible fool see just how cruel and treacherous the outside world could be.

“I’m just a doll. How could I possibly have a heart?” Original translation by Lhaozi, read at lhaozitranslation.com

Having come up with a plan, Ye Jiujiu immediately looked at Tu Jin, whose expression had darkened, with an utterly puzzled face. She spoke with such conviction that she sounded as though she were stating an undeniable truth.

“Besides, weren’t you planning to become my master? Upgrading me and making me stronger is simply what you’re supposed to do as my master, isn’t it?”

The more she spoke, the smoother her argument became. Without the slightest hesitation, Ye Jiujiu shifted all the blame onto Tu Jin.

“And if we’re being honest, were you really spending those points on me? You were investing in your future self! If I become stronger, doesn’t that mean you’ll become stronger too? You only agreed to spend those points upgrading me because you wanted to make yourself stronger!”

“Don’t try to KFC… CPU… PUA me!”

Faced with Tu Jin’s indescribable expression, as though he’d just swallowed a fly, she delivered her final verdict without hesitation.

“So those hundred thousand points weren’t spent on me at all. You spent them on yourself! Why should I increase my favorability toward you?”

Tu Jin, who had somehow become a scumbag trying to manipulate an innocent young girl: … Original translation by Lhaozi, read at lhaozitranslation.com

He had to admit, this little mouth of hers could really go on and on. If he hadn’t actually spent those hundred thousand points, he might genuinely have believed her!

Even though he hadn’t fallen for her argument, Tu Jin stared at the little doll standing before him with such a serious expression, speaking as though she even believed her own words. For a moment, he couldn’t think of a single thing to say in rebuttal.

They stared at each other in silence.

After a long while, Tu Jin was finally the first to surrender.

He was completely out of patience. With a complicated expression, he sat down on the sofa and covered his face with one hand, looking utterly hopeless.

Had he really done that many terrible things in his life?

How had he ended up with a doll like this…?

For one brief moment, Tu Jin even thought that it would’ve been better if he’d never obtained this doll in the first place. Or perhaps he should’ve returned her to that Puppeteer right at the beginning… Original translation by Lhaozi, read at lhaozitranslation.com

No, that wouldn’t have worked. That Puppeteer was far too clever. The moment an opportunity presented itself, she’d dumped this troublesome burden without the slightest hesitation.

It was all his fault for being blinded by greed, letting his avarice cloud his judgment, and having absolutely no self-awareness.

Even the creator who made this doll couldn’t put up with her. What had made him think he could?

Was he even qualified?!

A look of utter anguish gradually settled over Tu Jin’s face.

Honestly, if he hadn’t spent another hundred thousand points upgrading this doll earlier, he would’ve taken her straight to that Puppeteer by now, demanded that she take her creation back, and asked her to transfer enough points to cover his room expenses.

But the problem was that he’d already spent the points!

If he returned her now, Tu Jin didn’t even need to think twice. Judging by how eagerly that Puppeteer had run away, there was no way she’d accept the doll back, let alone compensate him for the hundred thousand points! Original translation by Lhaozi, read at lhaozitranslation.com

Destroying the doll was out of the question, too. After spending a hundred thousand points and considering the doll’s own value, Tu Jin simply couldn’t bring himself to do it anymore.

Or perhaps…

Should he sell this doll to that shameless fox?

Three trillion points…

Tu Jin’s expression paused.

Come to think of it, when he did the math, wouldn’t it be better to let the little doll torment that shameless fox instead?

However…

When he recalled how the little doll had stared at Qing Guizhu without looking away… Original translation by Lhaozi, read at lhaozitranslation.com

He had every reason to suspect that Qing Guizhu would be able to take advantage of that pretty face and get the little doll to acknowledge him as her master on the very first day.

And when he compared that possibility with her current negative favorability toward him…

It would be better to keep her for himself! At least if he made her his wife, he might be able to recover some of his losses!

Tu Jin had finally come to terms with it.

He took a deep breath and at last managed to look calmly at the little doll beside him.

Actually, if he took a good look at her, the little doll wasn’t entirely without redeeming qualities.

Sure, she was spoiled, troublesome, unreasonable, argumentative, lecherous, shameless, and… but she was also very pretty. Very, very pretty.

Having finally found one redeeming quality in the little doll, Tu Jin practically had to hypnotize himself into accepting it. Original translation by Lhaozi, read at lhaozitranslation.com

Beautiful things deserved to be cherished. Wives deserved to be pampered…

Therefore, there was absolutely nothing wrong with the little doll!

And even if there was something wrong, it was his problem.

Yes. That was right…

After all, this little doll was worth… one hundred thousand points!

Unable to hold back, Tu Jin forcibly pulled Ye Jiujiu into his arms, his eyes glistening with tears.

“Darling, I love you.”

Forget it. He must have accumulated too much bad karma in his previous life. Only today had he finally received his punishment! Original translation by Lhaozi, read at lhaozitranslation.com

“Let’s get married.”

He’d spent a hundred thousand points, after all. Even if he couldn’t obtain the status of her master, surely he could at least get the title of her husband?

Ye Jiujiu had absolutely no idea what had gotten into Tu Jin.

…?

Was this naive fool really that desperate to ruin his own life?

“That’s not…”

She tried to phrase her refusal as tactfully as possible. But when her gaze slowly met Tu Jin’s rather murderous stare…

She changed her tune in a single second. Original translation by Lhaozi, read at lhaozitranslation.com

“…That’s exactly what I wanted to say!”

Heh.

Tu Jin withdrew his gaze.

He buried his face in the crook of Ye Jiujiu’s neck, continuing to soothe his wounded heart.

Ye Jiujiu thought he would remain depressed until dinnertime.

But then—

A muffled voice suddenly came from his chest.

“Quick. Call me hubby.” Original translation by Lhaozi, read at lhaozitranslation.com

Ye Jiujiu, who thought she must have misheard: …?

“Don’t you want to?”

Tu Jin slowly raised his eyes.

Ye Jiujiu: …

“Of course I do!”

A sweet smile appeared on her face.

“How could you possibly think that? Hubby~”

Mm. Original translation by Lhaozi, read at lhaozitranslation.com

Tu Jin was satisfied.

Just as he was about to bury his face against her again and resume sulking—

Ye Jiujiu reached up and cupped his cheeks.

She gazed at Tu Jin with such deep affection, and then…

As his face gradually turned red, she said—

“Hubby, I want some points. I wanna buy stuff~”