"Damn it! Don't you understand plain language? I want to uninstall! Uninstall!!!" Ethan jumped up and down frantically within the void space.
The Little Pixiu, which had been standing still, instantly teleported in front of Ethan, its front paws now planted firmly on its hips as it glared angrily. The previously cold, mechanical system voice transformed into the Pixiu's cute, soft, and slightly sticky tone: "Are you done yet? Do you think this System wanted to bind with you? Besides being married to a man, tell me, in what way do you even meet the requirements of a 'good wife and virtuous mother'?"
"Then unbind us!" Looking at the soft, cute Little Pixiu, Ethan's tone softened slightly too.
"Can't unbind." At this, the Little Pixiu couldn't help but turn towards the void, baring its teeth and throwing a flurry of ineffective "puppy punches" in frustration. Just a short while ago, it had been the top graduate of the Celestial Academy! Who knew that on its very first mission, it would be sucked into a dimensional rift halfway through? And inside this rift, there was an ancient divine beast! An ancient divine beast! How could a newly graduated system possibly defeat it? Luckily, the beast was trapped by some mysterious force and couldn't get out. But unlucky it, fresh and innocent, got caught and given away as a gift.
"Can't unbind? Why not?" Ethan asked, confused.
"Don't worry about that. All you need to know is that binding with me is entirely beneficial for you, with no downsides." The Little Pixiu nibbled its tail, sounding slightly annoyed.
"Then tell me, what are the benefits of binding with you? Can it send me back to the 21st century?" Ethan's eyes lit up. He'd read plenty of system novels where the protagonist could return to their original world after completing certain tasks.
"No." The Little Pixiu didn't hesitate for a second, shaking its head directly. Seeing Ethan's face immediately fall at this, it quickly explained, "Your body in the previous life was already cremated. Besides, your soul doesn't belong to that dimension. Even if you went back, you'd be struck down by the Heavenly Laws."
"What do you mean my soul doesn't belong to that dimension?" Ethan strongly disagreed. He was clearly born and raised in 21st-century Aldoria. How could he not belong there?
"Aiya! This... it's hard to explain. Just know that you can't go back, okay?" The Little Pixiu shook its head emphatically, looking like it was telling him to forget about going back and just stay put.
"Then let's just uninstall." Ethan lowered his head, losing all interest. If he couldn't go back, what damn use was this stupid system!
"I told you, it can't be uninstalled." The Little Pixiu jumped into Ethan's arms. Clasping its paws together, it pleaded pitifully, "They say it's better to live miserably than die well! This is my first mission! If I can't complete my first mission, I'll be erased and reprogrammed! Just take pity on me, please~"
Looking at the teary-eyed Little Pixiu, Ethan's heart wavered. He had always loved small animals in his past life and had absolutely no resistance to cute, fluffy creatures like this. Especially fluffy ones.
"Alright, tell me a few more benefits of staying here. If they're good, I'll stay and won't try to off myself."
"The air here is good," the Little Pixiu said without thinking.
"..." That was undeniable. Surrounded by mountains, with no industrial pollution, the air was indeed much fresher than the gasoline-tinged industrial air of the 21st century.
"The food here is all-natural and pollution-free."
".... That doesn't count! The food here tastes terrible." Thinking of the vegetable mush he'd eaten for the last two meals, Ethan's face darkened instantly. He'd rather eat 21st-century junk food.
"Umm~" The Little Pixiu hummed and hawed for a long time before finally saying, "Your husband is handsome!"
"Fuck! Way to hit a sore spot, huh? Believe me, I'll die right here, right now!" Ethan exploded, grabbing the Little Pixiu's cheeks and pulling them sideways.
"Oww~" The Little Pixiu rubbed its sore cheeks with its front paws, looked at him, and said cautiously, "There are no evil capitalists here! No demanding clients! No need to work! You can sleep until you wake up naturally!"
Ethan paused. That's right, wasn't this the life he had always wanted? He had planned that when he got old, he'd return to the countryside, build his own little house, start a vegetable garden, and get a small dog. So, had he basically retired early? Thinking about it this way, maybe this place wasn't so bad after all...
"So, shall we cooperate happily?"
"Yes! Happy cooperation! Let me fix the injury on your head first."
Such a good deal? Ethan's eyes lit up. Then, a sharp pain shot through his head, and his consciousness was pulled away from this space. As he drifted in unconsciousness, images flashed through Ethan's mind – the memories of this body's current life...
.....
"Ethan, you're awake?"
"Brother..." Ethan hadn't expected the first person he saw upon opening his eyes would be his older brother, Caleb. He looked at Caleb with complicated feelings. He had assumed that being married off to a man meant he would be despised by his family. But in reality, that wasn't the case at all. In his memories, he was incredibly spoiled at home; his family doted on him. Half of the family's debt was incurred paying for his medical treatments. He just didn't understand why his parents had acted so out of character this time, ruthlessly trading him away in marriage. Had the past decade or so all been an act? What shocked him even more was the realization that he hadn't just arrived now – had he been here since birth? Transmigrated into the womb? Ethan's mind was filled with too many questions, ultimately dissolving into a sigh.
"Damian was afraid you'd be hungry when you woke up, so he went to the kitchen to cook." Fearing a misunderstanding, Caleb quickly explained why Damian wasn't there.
Cook? Ethan snapped back to reality. Please don't let it be that vegetable mush again. The thought alone left a bitter taste in his mouth.
Right on cue, the system issued its first task: "Ding! Host, please cook a meal for the family. Reward: 1 pound of flour."
Although the reward was only a pound of flour, Ethan really, really didn't want to eat that bitter, foul-smelling vegetable mush that tasted worse than medicine. So, he looked up at Caleb and pleaded, "Brother~ help me up. I want to go check the kitchen."
"Absolutely not. The doctor said you need to rest more. If you want to see Damian, I'll go call him over right now." Caleb shook his head firmly, refusing his request and apparently misunderstanding him.
"Brother, I don't want to see Damian. I just want to look at the kitchen," Ethan explained helplessly.
"If you don't want to see him, why go to the kitchen?" Caleb asked, looking confused.
"Brother, do I have to spell it out? Damian... is a terrible! Awful!!! Cook!!!"
"..." Caleb hadn't expected that reason, but it did make sense. His younger brother had taken over cooking duties back home precisely because he complained about their mother's cooking being bad. "But your injury?" Caleb was still hesitant to let Ethan get out of bed.
"I feel much better after sleeping." Ethan pressed his palms together, looking at Caleb with puppy-dog eyes, turning on the charm. "Brother~ please? Otherwise, I'll starve to death!" Thanks to countless online videos, Ethan was a master of wheedling.
However, Caleb, who had never seen this side of his brother before, instantly melted. He felt an overwhelming urge to give his brother everything good in the world. "Alright, I'll help you over right now!"