Chapter 52: The Rising Star Who Died from Cyberbullying (Arc End)

Xie Xingzhou got married unexpectedly early. His spouse was the daughter of a director whom he had met while filming. She majored in directing and learned the craft by staying by her father’s side.

After spending a long time together, they developed feelings for each other and eventually entered marriage. That same year, she was found to be pregnant and later gave birth to a pair of twins.

Xie Hui originally thought that in this world, since his mission target was already an adult, he wouldn’t have to take care of any children.

Unexpectedly, while he didn’t have to raise his own son, his grandchildren came knocking on his door.

Xie Hui would occasionally check in on his son’s life through video calls. The food, the environment he was in, and even the fierce goose that sometimes appeared on camera caught the attention of his two little grandsons.

When his grandsons turned three, Xie Xingzhou brought them to stay in Xie Hui’s courtyard for a few days. But when it was time for him to leave, one of the children clung to a dog and refused to go.

Since Xie Xingzhou was on a tight schedule due to work, and his wife was also busy, they had no time to drag things out.

So, like the elders in the village used to do when he was young, he resorted to the classic threat: “If you don’t leave now, Mommy and Daddy will go, and we’ll leave you here with Grandpa.”

Who could have predicted that these two little rascals would be absolutely delighted? Hugging the dog happily, they didn’t even spare Xie Xingzhou a glance. They patted the dust off their pants and leaped straight into their grandpa’s arms.

“Hooray!”

Their synchronized response left Xie Xingzhou helpless. Seeing that time was running out, he had no choice but to leave the two kids with his father, planning to pick them up once he and his wife were done with work.

At this age, children had just learned to walk steadily and were at their most mischievous.

In the city, with their parents constantly busy, they barely had time to play together, and their only outlet was the playground.

But now that they were in the countryside with Grandpa, it was as if a switch had been flipped. Every day, they happily ran from one end of the village to the other.

The village was mostly populated by elderly folks, as younger people had either moved to the city or gone off to work. Seeing children of this age around was a rare sight, and everyone was incredibly warm and welcoming.

Whenever Xie Hui let his guard down, he would soon find that his grandsons had run off to another house to play.

The fruit trees scattered throughout the village were usually left to ripen naturally, with fruits either pecked at by birds or rotting on the ground.

But ever since these two kids arrived, the elders who had fruit trees in their yards had to keep an eye on them again—afraid the little ones would fall while climbing.

Xie Xingzhou originally thought that after a while, his kids would lose interest in staying here. His wife thought the same.

After all, rural life lacked the conveniences of the city—there were no amusement parks, swimming pools, or ice rinks to attract children.

But when they finally had time to pick them up after work, the two kids, having tasted the joys of country life, refused to leave even more. Each clung to one of Grandpa’s legs, crying their hearts out with snot and tears mixed together.

Seeing them cry like that, Xie Xingzhou’s wife felt a pang of heartache and simply decided to let them stay. She had never been in favor of pressuring children with responsibilities too early—learning could start later when they entered kindergarten, but a carefree childhood was priceless.

Not long after staying with Xie Hui, the two little grandsons were completely won over by his cooking. They had no interest in returning home to eat food made by their nanny.

Grandpa could carve fun toys out of wood and bamboo for them. Aside from the slightly fierce goose, Zhaocai and Jinbao were well-behaved.

There were also countless wild fruits in the village, and sometimes they could even catch fish in the river—far more exciting than any store-bought toys!

Gradually, Xie Hui’s videos started featuring his two little grandsons. His content also began shifting toward children-related themes.

He made special pastries for them, took them to the river in the summer to catch fish and crabs, and occasionally brought them to the fields to help scatter seeds.

This seemingly mundane and uneventful life unexpectedly performed better than his previous videos.

Many viewers resonated with the content—memories of carefree childhoods, climbing fruit trees only to be chased away by the owner, digging up sweet potatoes and biting into them on the spot, making little trinkets out of sweet potato vines and hanging them on their ears.

Xie Xingzhou had always trusted his father, but his wife was initially worried that her father-in-law was too old to handle such energetic kids.

Later, she realized that while the two little troublemakers were indeed mischievous, they were also incredibly considerate of their grandfather. They rarely caused any real trouble and would even help him out with small tasks.

When they finally had to start kindergarten and leave the little courtyard, they cried their hearts out before getting into the car.

Xie Hui waved them off and promised, “I’ll come get you during summer break.”

In this lifetime, Xie Hui’s health began deteriorating when his grandsons were in their senior year of high school. But he didn’t want to affect their college entrance exams, so he held on in the hospital, enduring until the results came out.

When they finally received their admission letters, his son, daughter-in-law, and two grandsons were all by his bedside. With a smile on his lips, he closed his eyes for the last time.

Back in the system space, Xie Hui forced himself not to dwell on the events of his last mission world.

But just before he completely lost consciousness, the clearest thing in his mind was their voices.

Xie Xingzhou, now with strands of gray in his hair, clutched his hand and cried like a lost child at his bedside. His two grandsons did the same, and though his daughter-in-law was more composed, her reddened eyes and silent tears spoke volumes.

That scene didn’t affect Xie Hui as deeply as he had expected.

But just two simple sentences clenched his heart tight:

“I don’t have a dad anymore.”

“I don’t have a grandpa anymore.”

Even now, recalling those words made Xie Hui unconsciously furrow his brows.

The original client was still in the system space. When the system had prompted him to leave earlier, he insisted on staying, wanting to personally say one thing to Xie Hui—

He was truly grateful. Grateful that Xie Hui had helped him fulfill that one regret.

Seeing that his son’s life had not been ruined by baseless accusations and that those responsible for his suffering had been punished, the client felt relieved. The man who had caused his son’s misfortune was imprisoned for his crimes. Later, due to repeated fights in prison, his sentence was extended by several more years.

By the time he was released, everything had changed. The once-glorious family he had dragged down was no longer what it used to be, and nearly everyone resented him to the core.

Although the woman he had wanted to marry was still around, when they finally got together, all their passion had long been consumed by the daily struggles of life.

They argued over mere pocket change for groceries, and their lives became a constant mess of petty quarrels.

Meanwhile, the woman who had suffered because of their so-called love devoted herself to her career after the divorce, raising her child alone. Eventually, she became a well-known and highly respected businesswoman in her field.

The client watched his son get married and start a family. His two little grandsons were sometimes mischievous, sometimes well-behaved. As for his daughter-in-law, he had no particular expectations—so long as she treated his son and grandsons well, nothing else mattered.

He felt that his life was already fulfilling, with no regrets left behind.

—

“Host, do you wish to receive the next client?”

The ever-evolving system had grown accustomed to waiting for Xie Hui to exchange all the mission rewards for merit and bind them to the child’s soul before speaking up.

“Hmm.”

Each world left a significant impact on Xie Hui by the time it ended, but he had never considered stopping. Even with the rewards from his previous missions, which were enough for him to switch to a cultivation realm and achieve an eternal, peaceful life, he pressed on.

Only now did Xie Hui finally understand why many other task-takers, who, like him, had achieved perfect scores in counterattack missions, ended up failing miserably when faced with emotionally complex worlds.

He could wield the sharpest sword to cut through darkness, but he struggled to remain indifferent when relationships inevitably ended due to the passage of time, illness, and death.

“Next mission. Select a client at random.”

Lazily reclining on the couch, Xie Hui shut his eyes and gave the system a casual command.

“Understood, Host.”

This time, the person who entered was a man dressed in dragon robes, exuding an air of authority. Unlike other clients, he did not approach Xie Hui with caution.

With a single glance, Xie Hui could see through this client’s life story.

It was rare—this was someone who had not earned his place here through the merit of a past life.

Most clients were only able to request Xie Hui’s help because they had accumulated a great deal of merit in previous worlds, which they were willing to exchange for a chance to correct their regrets.

“Speak. What do you need me to do?”

Facing this emperor, who had amassed countless merits during his reign, Xie Hui sat up straight, his demeanor respectful.

“That unfilial son of mine—I want you to raise a competent heir for me. Also, depose the crown prince and eliminate that vile woman!”

Xie Hui nodded slightly, then stepped into the mission world.

—

Upon arrival, even before opening his eyes, he caught the faint scent of incense. Coincidentally, he had arrived at a time when the client usually rested. Deciding to take advantage of the moment, he remained still and absorbed the world’s relevant memories.

The story revolved around a modern woman who had transmigrated and become the neglected crown princess (Crown Prince’s Consort). Due to her unique traits from modern times, she attracted the crown prince’s attention, and he fell in love with her.

However, she wanted nothing to do with a prince who had a harem full of concubines, nor did she wish to share a husband with others. So, she ran away.

Blinded by love, the crown prince neglected state affairs in search of her. His actions infuriated his father, causing him to fall gravely ill. In the end, after the emperor’s death, even the throne was taken by another.

In this world, the male lead was a great general, while the crown prince was merely a tragic supporting character who could never obtain what he wanted.

The general, in order to be with his beloved, went so far as to defy his father and grandfather, violating the Lin family’s ancestral oath of loyalty to the throne by leading his army in rebellion.

“I want that traitorous son of mine deposed!”

Just as Xie Hui finished absorbing the memories, the client’s voice echoed furiously in his mind.

“A crown prince who loses himself in romance, allowing the throne to fall into another’s hands—I would rather die than face my ancestors in shame!”

“And to blame everything on that vile woman! He has no self-control, no sense of responsibility!”

“Even if my throne did not fall into the general’s hands, leaving it to that disgraceful son would have only led to suffering for the people.”

“He must be deposed! The heir I personally raised cannot be someone who indulges in love affairs while the people remain unsettled and the borders remain unstable. He is utterly useless!”

Watching the client’s furious expression as he vented his grievances, Xie Hui did not share his viewpoint. Instead, he asked:

“What if the problem lies in your way of raising him?”

As an emperor, the client had likely never been questioned so bluntly before. He was momentarily stunned, but instinctively followed Xie Hui’s words, considering them carefully.

After a pause, he shook his head and refuted the idea.

“Impossible! I hired the best scholars to teach him, the top martial artist to train him, and personally brought him to court at the age of ten to learn state affairs by my side.”

After reviewing the original host’s memories, Xie Hui became even more convinced of his own assessment.

“Would you be willing to follow my approach and see for yourself?”

The emperor seemed reluctant. Yet, after recalling the crown prince’s childhood, he furrowed his brows, hesitated for a while, then let out a dry cough.

“Since you have taken my place, you may act as you see fit. I am curious to see how you plan to shape that disgraceful son of mine.”

With the client’s permission secured, Xie Hui finally lifted the blankets, preparing to get out of bed and meet his new mission target.

Hearing movement from inside, the eunuch outside rushed in to assist, kneeling before him to report:

“Your Majesty, the crown prince is requesting an audience outside.”