Reborn as a high school freshman with an awakened system, a fat boy transforms into a male god.

Wang Xiulan was stunned for a moment.

The ball of yarn in my hand rolled to the ground, spun around twice, and came to rest on the side of the coffee table leg.

"I told her that her mother borrowed 10,000 yuan from our family years ago, and now she's paying back 2,000 yuan first." Lin Bei didn't dare look his mother in the eye when he said this, staring at the remote control on the coffee table.

There were three buttons on the remote control with worn-out paint: volume up, channel up, and power. It wasn't because of poor quality; it was simply because he'd pressed them too many times. In his previous life, he'd spent countless boring weekends in front of this TV until he got a computer.

"Her mother never borrowed money from our family," Lin Bei said in a lower voice. "I made that up."

The evening news was still on TV, and the anchor was reporting on rising pork prices. "Pork prices have risen 15% year-on-year this month..."

Wang Xiulan reached out and turned off the TV.

The living room fell completely silent.

Lin Bei looked up and saw his mother's expression. He couldn't quite place whether she was angry or something else; she was just looking at him, waiting for him to continue. He was very familiar with that expression; it was the same expression his mother had when he was a child and had gotten into trouble. "Let me hear you finish first, then I'll decide whether to use slippers or a clothes hanger."

"Her dad moved away, and she lives alone now, with no money for food," Lin Bei said, his voice lower than before. "I wanted to help her, but I was worried she wouldn't accept it for free. So I made up a lie."

Wang Xiulan remained silent for a moment.

Lin Bei's heart skipped a beat. It wasn't nervousness, but rather a premonition of "the calm before the storm."

"Where did you get two thousand dollars?" she asked.

Lin Bei had prepared for this question long ago, rehearsing it in his mind at least twenty times, and even thought about how to explain it when his mother pressed him for an answer. But when it came time to actually say it, his throat still tightened a little.

"I earn money by writing for people online," Lin Bei said, speaking more fluently than before, because he had rehearsed it many times in his mind. "Writing proposals, summaries, and the like, I earn tens or even hundreds of yuan per piece, and I've saved up for several months."

"You earned that?" Wang Xiulan looked at him, her eyes filled with surprise and suspicion. "When did you start writing online?"

"Second semester of the third year of junior high school."

When Lin Bei said those words, his expression was remarkably calm. The secret to his composure was simple: not blinking. He had read in an article in his previous life that liars unconsciously blink frequently. So he deliberately controlled himself from blinking, reducing the frequency from the normal fifteen to twenty times per minute to about five times per minute.

The effect is very obvious.

This is Lin Bei's second lie.

The first layer is "her mother borrowed money," and the second layer is "I write things online." Two lies, stacked together like Russian nesting dolls. He now only hopes his mother won't dig any deeper, otherwise the third layer might be "actually, I was reborn with a system."

Then his mother should take him to see a psychiatrist. No, she should beat him up first, then take him to see a psychiatrist.

Wang Xiulan remained silent for a long time.

Lin Bei thought she was about to lose her temper.

But she just sighed, her voice carrying a gentle tone.

"You child..." she said, "you've always loved meddling in other people's business since you were little."

Lin Bei was taken aback.

This line wasn't in his plan.

He anticipated all the things his mother might say: "Where did you get the money?" "Why did you lie to people?" "Are you dating someone?" "Are you out of your mind?" "Explain yourself!" "Come here, Mom won't hit you, really won't hit you (and then hits you)."

But he didn't presuppose that sentence.

"Always a busybody since childhood"?

Does this mean... we won't pursue the matter?

[Ding! Host's mother's emotional fluctuations detected: Helplessness 65%, Heartache 25%, Pride 8%, Want to Hit Someone 2%. Conclusion: Safe landing, parachute deployed.]

Lin Bei: You're going to analyze my mom for me?

[The system is omnipotent. By the way, the host should not ignore the 2% "want to hit someone" value; continuing to push your luck might trigger it.]

Lin Bei: ...

Wang Xiulan bent down to pick up the ball of yarn from the ground, dusted it off, and stuffed it back into the pile of yarn. Her movements were slow, as if she were organizing her thoughts.

"You...you don't blame me?" Lin Bei asked cautiously.

"What's it to blame you for?" Wang Xiulan said. "It's to blame you for lying? You should blame me. But you lied to help people, and... Mom doesn't know how to settle this. Let Mom think about it."

She paused for a moment, then said, "But there's one thing you have to tell Mom the truth."

Lin Bei's heart jumped again. "What?"

"Do you like that girl?"

Lin Bei was stunned for a moment, then his face turned red instantly.

"Mom!" Lin Bei's voice rose half an octave. "I just want to help her."

"Oh." Wang Xiulan looked at his bright red ear tips and smiled slightly.

"Really, nothing else!"

"Mom didn't say anything else." Wang Xiulan's smile faded, her tone becoming serious, but the slight curve at the corner of her mouth betrayed her. "Then tell me, what do you need me to do?"

Lin Bei took a deep breath.

Now, let's get down to business.

"I'll cook an extra portion next time and bring it to her. I'll say it's to thank her for helping me with my English."

"OK."

"Also, if she asks about that ten thousand yuan someday, just say... that it did happen."

Wang Xiulan remained silent for a few seconds.

"Her mother definitely never borrowed money from our family," she said.

"I know. But if I don't say it that way, she won't accept it."

Wang Xiulan sighed.

"Her mother is a good person," Wang Xiulan said, her voice lower than before. "When I was in postpartum confinement, your father was on a long-distance trip and couldn't come back. It was her mother who brought me food every day for a whole month."

Lin Bei was stunned for a moment; he had never heard this story before.

"Back then, your dad was out of town, and I was raising you all by myself. I couldn't even get a hot meal. It was her mother who cooked and brought over meals every day. One day it was crucian carp soup, the next day it was pig's trotter soup, and the day after that it was chicken soup. She made a variety of dishes, never repeating the same thing. Sometimes when you were fussy at night, she would come over and hold you so I could get some sleep."

Wang Xiulan paused for a moment, as if recalling something.

"If her mother had really lent our family money, I would definitely have paid it back. But now that she's gone, that favor... I can't repay it."

She looked up at Lin Bei.

"I'll cover up your lie for you. Consider it as me... repaying a favor to her."

Looking into his mother's eyes, Lin Bei suddenly felt a lump in his throat.

He fabricated this lie simply to give Su Wantang a reason to accept the money. He never imagined that behind this lie lay a genuine bond. It wasn't just about borrowing money; it was something far more significant. It was something that couldn't be measured in monetary terms, nor could it be repaid with money.

"But you have to promise me one thing," Wang Xiulan said, changing the subject.

"What?"

"Don't get yourself involved." Wang Xiulan's voice wasn't loud, but every word was weighty. "You need to know when to withdraw. You're only sixteen; your life hasn't even begun yet. Helping others is fine, but don't get yourself involved, understand?"

Lin Bei looked at his mother's serious face and nodded.

"I see."

He knew what his mother was worried about. It wasn't that she didn't support him helping others; she was afraid that he would end up getting himself involved. Su Wantang's problem wasn't something a sixteen-year-old high school student could solve.

But he's different.

He wasn't a real high school student. He had lived fourteen years longer, he knew a lot of things, and he could do many things that people his age couldn't.

But he couldn't tell his mother these things.