Chapter 33

Wang Tianba often skipped class, and the Wang family’s driver was always waiting outside the school gate.
So, within five minutes, Su Momo was escorted into the car.
The school forum fell silent for a few minutes before a tentative post appeared: "Is this how fast relationships move these days? Meeting the parents already?"
Tao Shushu tapped the desk. "Li Anyu, class is starting. Are you sure you’re not putting your phone away?"
Li Anyu kept refreshing the page, acting like an excited melon-eating spectator. "But this gossip is just too good! Do you think Su Momo is really going to marry into the Wang family? Hugging in public at the school gate and rushing off to meet the parents?"
Glancing around the classroom, many students were secretly staring at their phones, eyes gleaming with excitement.
Li Anyu opened a video embedded in the post.
Someone with talent had added special effects to the 30-second clip: the first five seconds showed Su Momo falling into Wang Tianba’s arms, and the next 25 seconds captured them gazing at each other, Wang Tianba comforting her while Su Momo appeared delicate and submissive. The video was embellished with floating hearts, creating a overwhelmingly romantic vibe.
Tao Shushu glanced at it and said, "Anyu, if you hear any updates in the next few days, let me know."
Su Momo ended up missing two full classes.
Tao Shushu was having a PE class on the outdoor sports field when her classmates suddenly turned to look toward the school gate.
Tao Shushu also glanced over.
The Wang family's car was parked at the entrance. Su Momo got out first, slammed the door, and strode forward quickly.
Wang Tianba followed behind her with an ingratiating expression.
Su Momo completely ignored him.
One classmate asked, "Didn't they just go to meet the parents? Did they have a falling out?"
Tao Shushu watched all of this unfold while skillfully operating her phone, adding translations to some comments from foreign websites and sending them to the official email of Yancheng Museum.
Old Master Wang reacted quite quickly, it was time for her to add fuel to the fire.
On the other side, Su Momo, who had been scolded, wore a sullen expression. Wang Tianba kept chattering beside her, and she was about to lose her temper and tell him to get lost when she noticed everyone on the outdoor sports field staring in their direction.
To maintain her ladylike image, Su Momo had no choice but to grit her teeth and suppress her anger.
Just then, the teacher in charge of discipline appeared. The teacher stopped Su Momo and said, "You two, don’t forget to stay after school for cleaning duty. Especially you, Wang Tianba, no asking your friends to cover for you."
Su Momo’s face fell.
Wang Tianba, who was usually fearless, immediately wanted to argue with the teacher upon seeing his goddess being reprimanded.
Su Momo had to pull him back and obediently agree to accept the punishment.
"How embarrassing," Su Momo muttered under her breath.
Wang Tianba scratched his head. "Momo, I was just trying to stand up for you."
Su Momo and Wang Tianba walked away.
Photos of the scene were soon uploaded to the school forum.
Tao Shushu had already noticed that anything related to Su Momo, no matter how trivial, would spark heated discussions on the forum. Perhaps this was the plot’s preferential treatment for the female lead.
The female lead’s halo was in full effect after school.
Although Su Momo wore a mask and tried to hide in the shade of a tree, it didn’t stop the busybodies from spreading the word.
Since everyone had to pass the sports field on their way home, some curious onlookers made a point of walking back and forth near the area.
Su Momo adjusted her mask, wishing she could disappear into a hole in the ground.
She had never felt so humiliated before. Every time someone passed by, she felt they were staring at her disgrace.
Wang Tianba said, "Momo, if you’re not feeling well, I can handle the sweeping. You can rest."
As soon as he finished speaking, the supervising teacher cleared his throat disapprovingly.
Su Momo had no choice but to pick up the broom and sweep impatiently. As she worked, she thought bitterly, It’s all Tao Shushu’s fault. If she hadn’t deliberately thrown that pebble to trip me, I wouldn’t have been caught by the teacher, and those rumors about Wang Tianba and me would never have spread.
She shot Wang Tianba a disdainful glare.
The teacher spoke up, "What, still not convinced? You two threw trash from the car and got punished with cleaning duty, still not satisfied? We've never had such uncivilized students at Huiwen before."
Su Momo immediately felt wronged. She had only wanted to startle Tao Shushu when she saw her walking by the roadside.
After finishing her meal, Tao Shushu passed by the playground, glanced over, then uninterestedly averted her gaze. Studying and her virtual companion were far more interesting; the female protagonist’s combat skills were too weak, making things a bit dull.

The crisis brought by Wang Tianba was temporarily resolved.
Further developments would depend on Old Master Wang’s next move.
For two days, Tao Shushu settled into a routine: studying, practicing problems, and checking on her virtual companion.
Each day was fulfilling.
By Saturday, Tao Shushu had the rare luxury of sleeping in.
After waking up, she enjoyed a delicious breakfast while opening the game.
In her companion’s world, it was daytime, but unusually, the entire team had stayed back at the base.
Tao Shushu tapped her companion and softly asked, "What’s wrong, cub?"
Nan Yuan sat upright in the base’s main hall.
Without speaking, he wrote on a piece of paper: "I’m making my move."
Tao Shushu had already read the event log. Early that morning, her companion had overheard the lanky man and the scar-faced man feigning illness, scheming to stay behind at the base alone instead of joining the exploration.
Her companion had been prepared. Pretending not to know their plan, he led the team out as usual to search for supplies.
But shortly after leaving, Nan Yuan quietly doubled back with the others and caught the scar-faced man poisoning the group’s food.
Meanwhile, the lanky man was tampering with the spaceship’s propulsion system.
With their plot exposed, the lanky man and scar-faced man decided to fight back.
Only to realize they were no match.
Nan Yuan swiftly subdued their resistance.
He confiscated the processed ore they had been handling and began interrogating them.
Tao Shushu checked the mission progress bar, the task of collecting spaceship propulsion materials had reached 27%.
Even with the two villains secretly gathering materials every night, they had managed to produce this much. With Nan Yuan leading the team openly, the collection speed would surely accelerate.
On the screen, the lanky man, having nothing left to lose, tried to provoke them: "I’d rather die than reveal the ore processing method. If you want to gather enough power sources to leave, you’ll have to listen to me."
Tao Shushu chuckled. What a coincidence, since no one else could see her, she had often switched to the villains’ workshop to observe while they thought they were discreetly processing the ore.
She had already memorized the entire method.
Just as Tao Shushu was about to tell her companion, she saw him order the lanky man and scar-faced man to be locked in separate rooms.
Standing at the doorway, he declared, "The spaceship has limited capacity. Whoever confesses the method first and helps process the ore energy gets a spot on the ship. The other will be left in the Bloodsucking Grass field."
Tao Shushu: Well then, my companion is both brave and resourceful.
Nan Yuan deliberately stomped loudly toward the lanky man’s room. "Fine, I’ll hear what you have to say first."
In the other room, the scar-faced man panicked, shouting hoarsely, "I’ll talk first! I’m the one who usually handles the operations, I know the process best!"
Under Nan Yuan’s signal, the other ability users entered the scar-faced man’s cell.
Only then did Tao Shushu tap her companion. "Cub, I also know how to process the ore."
"Mhm." Nan Yuan turned and walked out without even glancing at the tall, thin man whose mouth was gagged.
Tao Shushu first instructed Nan Yuan on how to process a piece of ore.
Nan Yuan learned quickly and finished the task in just a few minutes.
Next, Tao Shushu and Nan Yuan searched the rooms of the two troublemakers together.
Tao Shushu said angrily, "They’ve hoarded so many weapons and food. They really deserve a good lesson."
Nan Yuan smiled and replied, "Alright, I’ll go beat them up."
Tao Shushu was taken aback. "Well, that’s not really necessary. They’re already incapable of resisting now."
"Mhm," Nan Yuan said.
An hour later, the tall, thin man and the scar-faced man were thrown into a room again.
The footsteps of the people in the base could be heard as they moved back and forth, transporting equipment and solutions for processing the ore.
The tall, thin man scowled darkly. "You knew about our plan all along."
"Yep," Nan Yuan tapped his ear. "I thought if I worked you hard during the day, you’d snap and rebel sooner. But you actually held out until now."
Every night, the tall, thin man and the scar-faced man had acted like thieves, nervously carrying out their misdeeds. To avoid raising suspicion, they had to work diligently during the day when assigned tasks, not daring to slack off even a little. Dark circles had formed under their eyes from exhaustion, their nights sleepless, their days filled with physical labor. It was even more grueling than the pre-apocalyptic 9-to-5 grind.
In the end, it turned out Nan Yuan had known all along.
The tall, thin man fumed, "You were toying with us!"
"The spaceship and the ore are enough for everyone to leave this barren planet together," Nan Yuan said coldly.
It was these two who had planned to hoard all the resources for themselves from the start.
One of the ability users spat fiercely at the tall, thin man. "Spit! You tried to run off with the supplies back then, and even now, living in a safe base, you still pull this kind of stunt."
The others joined in, expressing their contempt.
Tao Shushu tugged at the cub’s hand.
Then, everyone saw the emotionally charged tall, thin man suddenly start swaying left and right like a roly-poly toy.
Just as the tall, thin man was about to curse, a piece of wood flew into his mouth, gagging him.
After thoroughly humiliating the two troublemakers, Tao Shushu said, "Cub, I’ve helped you vent your anger."
Nan Yuan abandoned his plan of throwing the two into a patch of Bloodsucking Grass. "Thank you, Shushu."
"By the way, Shushu, let me show you something." Nan Yuan walked out of the detention room and headed toward his own room.
Curious, Tao Shushu followed.
As soon as the door opened, Tao Shushu saw the white fibrous material spread over Nan Yuan’s bed. At first glance, it looked like cotton.
Nan Yuan explained, "The fibers from the Bloodsucking Grass stems and leaves have excellent elasticity, making them suitable for producing resilient fabrics."
Tao Shushu examined them carefully and exclaimed in admiration, "You're amazing, cub."
As Nan Yuan watched the ordinary stem and leaf fibers floating in the air, the girl's clear voice kept showering him with praise.
Nan Yuan did have a bit of a desire to show off, and now, with Shushu's continuous compliments, the tips of his ears turned slightly red.
He cleared his throat lightly and said, "I only discovered it by chance."
"But you really are amazing! No one else noticed how special the stems and leaves of the Bloodsucking Grass are. Not only did you discover it, but you also found a use for the leaves. That's incredible!" Tao Shushu praised sincerely.
She tapped on the processed stems and leaves to inspect them.
Information about the Bloodsucking Grass appeared: Malleable fibers, excellent material for making bulletproof vests.
Tao Shushu showered him with another round of effusive praise when suddenly, she noticed an option below: "Craft?"