The Host is Clearly A Scumbag (Quick Travel)

After He Gu put away the silver, Mingting handed her the ginseng that had been nibbled on by a rabbit.

"Mom, this ginseng is not good-looking anymore, so let's keep it for our own use. You and Sister have worked hard for the family all these years and need nourishment. Brother-in-law is preparing for the imperial examination and should also replenish his health."

Originally, He Gu had been heartbroken over the ruined ginseng, but after hearing Mingting's arrangement, she didn't say much.

"My youngest son is truly blessed and so thoughtful!"

He Gu was utterly satisfied with Mingting.

She cut some cloth and worked under the oil lamp to sew clothes for him.

Mingting's clothes were torn and unwearable, while Xiaosong's were already too short for him, so they were really inappropriate to wear.

Since Mingting had to go to the cloth shop early the next morning to help with the accounts, he needed to appear neat and presentable.

Under the dim lamplight, He Gu threaded her needle and sewed, while Jiang Xiao'e, after putting the children to sleep, came to help her.

Wang Zhi admired Mingting's arithmetic skills very much, so he took him to the study room, wanting to test his knowledge and see which foundational texts he had studied.

Compared to Mingting, who had smoothly integrated into his new family and was living a happy life, Jiang Meimei was faring much worse.

That day, after Jiang San returned home, he gave Jiang Meimei a severe beating.

Even though she begged for mercy and cried until her voice was hoarse, Jiang San's heart didn't soften at all.

"Don't give her any food, let her go hungry for two meals!" Jiang San locked Jiang Meimei in her room, "This girl has grown too bold. She needs to learn her lesson."

To this, Guihua wholeheartedly agreed.

Guihua knew all too well the hardships one faced as a woman without a son.

Take He Gu, for example. Even though she was the wife of a scholar, without a son, she lacked confidence in daily conversations and couldn't hold her head high.

Guihua had finally been blessed with a precious son, but her daughter dared to scheme against him.

The mere thought infuriated her, and she hardened her heart, refusing to bring Jiang Meimei even a bite of food.

"Great Immortal..." Jiang Meimei lay in bed, her body aching terribly, her stomach so empty it felt like her chest was pressed against her back.

How long had it been since she'd suffered like this?

Jiang Meimei couldn't even remember.

She had been a difficult birth, which caused Guihua to hemorrhage and nearly die.

Afterward, she was plagued by misfortune. Even cats and dogs hated her. No one played with Jiang Meimei and they all regarded her as a jinx.

It wasn't until she was three years old that she accidentally met the Great Immortal. After receiving the Great Immortal's advice, she absorbed the luck from Jiang Xiao'e's younger brother, and her life gradually got better.

Back then, she had the misfortune of falling into the water, and Jiang Xiucai's son came to save her.

The first time she absorbed luck, Jiang Meimei couldn't control it well and accidentally drained all of the boy's fortune...

In the end, she watched helplessly as he struggled in the water and sank, scaring her so badly she had nightmares for days.

Even though Jiang Meimei was young at the time, she knew that this matter could not be known to others, otherwise, Jiang Xiucai's family would surely kill her in retaliation.

The Great Immortal told her that she had committed evil deeds in her past life, and in this lifetime, she was cursed with misfortune. The only way to survive was by absorbing others' luck.

Jiang Meimei didn't want to die, especially after personally experiencing the benefits of stolen fortune firsthand, she trusted the Great Immortal even more.

She pointed at Guihua's belly and said her mother was pregnant with a brother, and sure enough, a boy was born.

When she went up the mountain with others, Jiang Meimei always gathered the most mushrooms.

When she waded into the river together, she would catch the biggest fish, and most shrimp and crabs would leap into her basket.

The sows she fed gave birth to litters of ten piglets, all of which were healthy and strong.

The hens she tended laid eggs every day, and the vegetables she planted grew better than anyone else's.

Jiang Meimei even once dug up ginseng. Even though the ginseng wasn't very old and its roots were damaged during the digging, it was still sold for dozens of taels of silver.

Obviously, everything had been going so well, and Jiang San and Guihua had repeatedly praised her as the family's little lucky star.

So why was it that today, with just a few words, Mingting had turned her parents against her and made them beat her?

Jiang Meimei couldn't understand this.

[This is the suppression of fortune.] The system explained to Jiang Meimei.

[With his level of fortune, it is not an exaggeration to call him as the 'Child of Heaven'. He absolutely crushes you. If an ordinary person's fortune is a bowl of water, his is an entire river.]

As it spoke, the system swallowed its saliva greedily.

'If I could extract Mingting's fortune, I could level up. I would no longer have to be sneaky and carefully hide from the Space-Time Bureau.'

'Unfortunately, that kid was too cunning.'

"Great Immortal, I'm in pain, and I'm so hungry..."

Jiang Meimei whimpered softly.

[Eat, eat, eat, all you think about is eating! How useless!] The system was disappointed.

However, it still relied on Jiang Meimei to absorb the luck, and did not scold her too much, [10 grids of fortune in exchange for an Energy Pill. It'll heal your injuries and fill your stomach.]

Jiang Meimei checked her fortune reserves, she had a total of 100 grids, with 75 currently available.

Though the Energy Pill was expensive, fortune came easily to her, and she couldn't bear the physical suffering any longer. She immediately exchanged for the pill.

As soon as she swallowed it, the pain vanished, her hunger disappeared, and her entire body felt revitalized. It really is true that you get what you pay for.

[Alright, now we need to figure out how to get close to Jiang Mingting.]

The system did doubt Mingting's identity.

'The day before, I had clearly sensed the presence of someone with immense fortune by the river, but Jiang Meimei had searched the entire bank and found nothing.'

'It was possible that person had been that Jiang Mingting!'

'But dwelling on that now was pointless. With his incredible fortune, that kid's sixth sense for danger was naturally sharper… that was probably why he had avoided Jiang Meimei that day.'

"I'll listen to whatever the Great Immortal says! Whatever you command, I'll do." Jiang Meimei spoke with devout sincerity.

The system was very satisfied with her obedience.

It had chosen Jiang Meimei in the first place precisely because she was young, easy to control, and as malleable as a blank sheet of paper.

Though their relationship was purely transactional, after all these years, the system had developed some affection for her.

"Your parents beat you today purely because they favor sons over daughters."

"No matter how much a daughter contributes to the family, a son will always come first in their hearts. I was mistaken before, we need to subdue them first..."