Surviving in the General's Mansion - Chapter 3: System

Chapter 3: System

“Congratulations, Host, on surviving the ‘killed-on-sight’ ending~

As a reward for unlocking the ‘First-Day Survival Achievement’,

you have received one ‘Upgradable Storage’~

Would you like to claim it and complete today’s check-in?”

Xia Heng had only just shut the door when Transmigration System 003 in her head could no longer hold back and enthusiastically came online.

“So, can you explain the current situation?” Xia Heng asked after a moment of silence.

“As I said, I am Transmigration System 003 of the Time and Space Administration Bureau. You may also call me Xiao San.”

The mechanical male voice spoke right on cue. It was just that what it said did not sound particularly intelligent.

“On September 1, 2023, you left a thousand-character review in the comments section of the novel The Tyrant Falls in Love with Me, which was released by our bureau.

The system automatically identified you as a loyal reader and has specially rewarded you with one transmigration experience~”

How to put it? The mechanical male voice technically carried no emotion whatsoever, yet Xia Heng somehow heard a deep, deep malice in it.

“So what you mean is, aside from arranging the transmigration itself, you can’t guarantee my identity after transmigrating, the situation I’ll encounter, or whether the transmigrator lives or dies. Is that right?” Xia Heng asked uncertainly.

“You may understand it that way,” the gentle male voice replied.

“Then when can I go back?”

“The transmigration system will guide you through the full splendor of the world within the book. Once you have experienced the entire plot and lived out the colorful life of a character in this book, you will naturally die of old age. At that time, Transmigration System 003 will bring your soul back to the real world you came from. Your body in the real world has already been locked in place to ensure that when you return, it will remain in the same state as when you left.”

Xia Heng had only just started to feel that this did not sound too terrible when she heard it continue.

“Please note that the condition for your return is dying of old age. In other words, if you suffer an abnormal death in this book due to any other factor, your soul will be judged by this system as an ‘In-Book Interference Factor’ and directly erased.”

Xia Heng’s heart, which had not fully settled yet, rose right back into her throat.

“You mean that if I don’t die of old age here, I’m completely gone?”

“This system recommends that the Host look on the bright side~ (*￣︶￣)”

To Xia Heng, 003’s voice was rapidly sprinting in the direction of sounding extremely punchable. She took a deep breath.

“So what can you do?”

“This system is primarily responsible for informing newly arrived transmigrators of important precautions~

As a transmigration benefit, this system has just granted the Host access to the check-in and storage functions.

Daily check-ins will grant points. Weekly, monthly, yearly, and special holiday check-ins will also come with additional gifts.

In addition, if the Host adapts well within this book, extra points may also be awarded. Points can be used to exchange for products in the marketplace.

The Host may explore these features on her own.

Note: All products in this marketplace come from parallel space-times, bringing you an unparalleled shopping experience!

All benefits have now been issued. In the event of special circumstances, the system will come online to serve you. Next, this system will enter automatic sleep mode.

Finally, may you enjoy your transmigration!”

The moment 003 finished speaking, it quickly went offline.

Xia Heng tentatively called out to it twice, but received no response at all.

She had transmigrated to an alternate historical era, needed to check in every day, and could purchase products from parallel space-times.

Xia Heng spent five minutes digesting this information before silently reciting, “Check in.”

A calendar-like page appeared in the void before Xia Heng.

It looked very much like a post-apocalyptic AI game she had played before.

Balloons and streamers floated up and down. At the very top, two large golden words shimmered: “Check In.”

Beside them was a small box labeled Storage (Upgradable).

Below was a calendar. The highlighted square was locked onto September 2.

In front of it, September 1 was marked with the three words “Not Checked In,” and beneath them was written “Free Make-Up Check-In.” In the upper right corner of the page were two lines of options.

The first line read: Points: 0. The second line read: Marketplace.
Xia Heng decided to open the storage first and take a look. At the moment, the usable storage slots added up to 6 by 10-sixty slots in total.

There was an auto-sort function at the bottom. Each slot could stack up to 999 items of the same type, and there were still gray, locked storage slots. Unlocking the first row required 10 points.

The requirements for the rows below were not yet displayed. She scrolled down a little and found there didn’t seem to be any upper limit.

After exiting the storage, Xia Heng tentatively completed the first physical check-in of her life.

“Congratulations. You have completed today’s check-in and received 5 points.”

After making up for yesterday’s missed check-in as well, the points in the upper right corner of the page had already reached 10.

She opened the shop and was greeted by a wide range of goods.

From rice, flour, eggs, and vegetables to modern medicine, everything was available. It was practically like modern Taobao.

There were also some products she had never seen before, but each one came with a detailed description that was simple and easy to understand.

On the initial recommendation page, the cheapest item was steamed buns: 10 for 1 point. The prices could only be described as unbelievably low.

For the sake of staying alive, Xia Heng flipped through the weapons category and the medical supplies category as well.

The smallest dagger cost 15 points, and the farther she scrolled, the higher the prices climbed.

And it wasn’t just cold weapons. There were firearms too. A handgun with 12 bullets cost fifteen thousand points…

A price she absolutely could not afford.

There was even a railgun…

All right, no need to count the zeros. Had weapons in parallel space-time already advanced to this level?!

The medical category was the same. Basic medicines cost about the same amount of points as they would in modern times, but anything labeled advanced or special grade was in an entirely different price range…

Xia Heng silently exited the Check-in System, her mind full of thoughts.

This cheat could only serve as support. If someone like Cang Chuli wanted to chop her down directly, not even ten systems would be able to block him…

But since she could buy food, medicine, weapons, and other goods from the system, Xia Heng felt a tiny bit more secure.

At the very least, it could help her avoid starving to death or dying of illness to a great extent, and it gave her some ability to protect herself.

After all, those were already among the leading causes of death in ancient times.

So, from here on out…

Be an honest person! Do practical work!

Find a chance to clear her name first, then cling tightly to a powerful backer, make sure she didn’t die, and survive all the way to a natural death!

Having made plans for her future, Xia Heng encouraged herself while turning her gaze toward the window.

Speaking of which, among the girls who had been sent here with her, some were like her-spies and assassins dispatched by various factions. But there were also one or two who genuinely wanted to enter Cang Chuli’s rear courtyard.

Cang Chuli had achieved success at a young age, held the title of general, was highly regarded by the emperor, and on top of that, he had an elegant, refined appearance.

When he wasn’t speaking or taking action, he really did look like a noble young master. From a distance, he was quite capable of fooling people.

What a pity. This lord might be handsome, but when his temper flared and he started killing, he cut people down like he was chopping radishes, with no regard for time or place.

Among the great aristocratic families of the capital, there were always one or two who had seen him with blood on his hands.

Coupled with the yearly reports of victory from the border and the severed heads sent back to the imperial court, most court officials and noble families who cherished their daughters had long since given up on the idea.

But there were always some people who refused to believe in evil!

Cang Chuli might be brutal, but if someone could truly become the person dearest to his heart, then surely she would be different from the rest. Power and influence aside, who wasn’t a sucker for a handsome face?

Besides, given how Cang Chuli currently looked completely uninterested in women, his rear courtyard would probably have far fewer problems in the future.

Of the six people sent to this courtyard, aside from her, there seemed to be someone who had truly come for him.

After what happened today, though, who knew how long they could last?

Xia Heng stopped thinking about it. Why worry about other people? Right now, she was still just a pitiful little newbie who had freshly transmigrated.

She had not forgotten how miserably the people in the Left Prime Minister’s faction ended up dying.

Her current identity was still that of an undercover agent, and she had no idea how long she could hold out. The most urgent task was to break away from her undercover identity and establish her political stance!