The Abusive Novel System Pleads with Me to Resign
Chapter 142

Lien looked at the medal in his hand without saying a word, instead running his fingers over it before pressing the polished, rounded center.

The medal, no larger than half a palm, began to transform instantly, extending several nanotech clasps that interlaced with his hand, rapidly spreading to encase it.

But Lien didn’t activate it further. He immediately pressed the button again, and the medal reverted to its original form.

Lu Yu whistled. "Now that’s a big move."

"Your people on the outside must have serious connections to bribe the inspection team and smuggle in an unactivated mech for you."

"With this, as long as you create the right opportunity, breaking out of this prison isn’t impossible, is it?"

Lien: "It’s not that simple. The prison has anti-mech systems, and aside from the warden, no one knows the full layout of this place."

The sheer scale of the airborne prison rivaled that of a small town. Everyone’s movements were restricted, and even with deliberate reconnaissance, grasping its full structure was impossible.

So Lien wasn’t blindly optimistic. "Besides, doesn’t this feel too easy to you?"

It was like being stranded on a deserted island, struggling just to make a stone axe, only for a fully equipped industrial set to fall from the sky.

Lu Yu knew this too, of course, but it wasn’t a bad thing for him if Lien took the risk.

So he offered a half-hearted consolation: "Look on the bright side—at least we’ve skipped the step of procuring a mech."

Lien was well aware of this sly deer’s intentions and ignored him.

Instead, he found himself thinking that the woman from earlier seemed familiar. He hadn’t paid much attention before, but now a faint impression lingered.

Meanwhile, Zheng Yanhui, having accomplished her goal, walked back with the group in high spirits.

Her actions were all guided by the system’s instructions. The system claimed this was the best way to stay true to the plot, and she was happy not to think for herself.

Unlike those diligent hosts who constantly complained about wanting to unbind, she was perfectly content with this carefree life where everything was arranged for her.

Once the mech in Lien’s possession activated, its built-in tracking system would lock onto it—effectively pinpointing the airborne prison’s location.

According to the plot she’d transmigrated into, the Crown Prince would deal Lien a harsh blow upon his release from prison.

Though Lien would escape, he’d still suffer significant losses. Her current actions would be a timely salvation for him then.

Coupled with the merit of connecting with the Crown Prince, the system calculated that this trip would effortlessly harvest favorability from both sides.

How convenient was that?

With this in mind, Zheng Yanhui and the group returned to the warden’s office, where she smiled and asked, "Team Leader Yan, how did your discussion with Warden Shen go?"

"The higher-ups only gave us two days. Should we prepare the transport ship first?"

Team Leader Yan’s voice, however, turned icy. "No. We’re not leaving."

"Until Warden Shen lifts the communication blackout, our entire team will remain here. For the safety of the prison—and the Crown Prince’s safety—this is necessary."

Zheng Yanhui was stunned. The entire group, including Secretary Zhu, was dumbfounded.

Secretary Zhu quickly interjected, "Team Leader Yan, this isn’t appropriate, is it?"

Team Leader Yan remained resolute. "There’s nothing inappropriate about it. Our personal freedom for a year or two is nothing compared to His Highness’s safety."

"With the current situation unclear, if someone tracks the prison and attempts to harm the Crown Prince, we’d be the ones to blame."

Zheng Yanhui thought, If they don’t leave, how will the prison’s coverage system activate? Without it, how can Lien’s mech be located through the gap?

Most importantly—if they didn’t leave, how would the Crown Prince ever get out??

This wasn’t what the system had told her at all.

She hurriedly said, "Team Leader Yan, I can’t stay here. I have other missions—I must report to the Prime Minister."

Team Leader Yan glanced at her. He knew this young subordinate had significant backing. Though they shared the same initial stance, they weren’t truly aligned.

Precisely because of this, he was willing to stay in the prison—to ensure no one could leave.

So he replied coolly, "Warden Shen will grant us one communication opportunity to report."

When she tried to speak again, Team Leader Yan cut her off. "Enough. This is a joint decision between Warden Shen and myself."

"I’ll explain the reasoning to headquarters."

His tone left no room for negotiation.

Zheng Yanhui was floored. Secretary Zhu was equally shocked, and the rest of the team was bewildered by Team Leader Yan’s sudden decision.

Secretary Zhu approached Team Leader Yan and whispered urgently, "Then what about the Crown Prince’s matter—?"

Team Leader Yan’s earlier enthusiasm was gone. "No matter what, His Highness’s safety comes first. Everything else is secondary."

Secretary Zhu’s vision darkened. He glanced at the warden seated behind the desk, despair creeping in.

Team Leader Yan’s shift in attitude made it clear—he’d switched sides. In such a short time, how had the warden convinced him?

What he thought was an imminent escape had now stretched into an endless ordeal. Secretary Zhu’s composure shattered.

Zheng Yanhui, caught completely off guard, immediately called out to her system: "What’s going on? This isn’t what we agreed on!"

"Did your host figure something out?" Her first suspicion was whether the items she’d brought in had been discovered.

But she dismissed it. "Even so, why would Team Leader Yan change his stance too?"

The system was also reeling but forced itself to stay calm. [It’s—it’s fine. He’s just acting on a whim.]

[Actually, this is good. Staying here means more opportunities to interact with the male lead.]

[This woman humiliates and punishes the male leads on a whim. Their favorability toward her is rock-bottom, especially Lien’s. He—]

Here, the system abruptly stopped. It pulled up Lien’s favorability meter—and what the hell? How was this possible?

Weren’t you cursing her out every day? Didn’t you keep complaining about how she screwed you over?

But it couldn’t let its substitute host know. After finally finding someone who followed its orders without question, it couldn’t let her lose confidence.

So it awkwardly changed the subject. [Never mind that. I’ll go probe her for information. You focus on drafting the report.]

By then, the inspection team had already been escorted out.

The prison would assign them rooms, and guards would inform them of their permitted activity zones and access to prison resources.

Once everyone had left, the system didn’t actually go to gather intel as it had told Zheng Yanhui—it already knew Shen Ying’s schemes and had no interest in humiliating itself further.

But before it could speak, Shen Ying addressed it first.

"That new host you picked for yourself—they’re in the inspection team, aren’t they?"

The system, already disheartened, broke into a cold sweat at her words.

Shen Ying smiled. "That young girl?"

Her tone wasn’t questioning—it was absolute certainty.

The system was losing its mind. How did she see through it at a glance? That makes no sense!

The inspection team was only supposed to stay for a day. With such a brief appearance and blending into the group so seamlessly, there was no way she should’ve been exposed so quickly.

The system stammered, [H-how did you—?]

Shen Ying: "How did I know? Didn't you tell me yourself?"

The ​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​​​​​​‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌​​​​‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​​​​​​‌‌​​​‌‍system exploded: [When did I say that?]

Shen Ying: "The moment the Crown Prince revealed himself in front of Team Leader Yan, you seemed quite surprised."

At the time, Shen Ying had just pocketed a huge sum of money, leaving the system so furious it nearly short-circuited.

It had been closely monitoring Shen Ying, so when the Crown Prince suddenly appeared without warning, its already agitated state caused an unusual reaction.

Shen Ying continued, "One advantage of this world is that its technological level isn’t too far below yours, so your sensing abilities are significantly weaker here."

In an ordinary world, the system would be nearly omnipotent within data networks, but a high-level world is different.

Whether it’s a cultivation world with high energy levels or a futuristic world with advanced technology, both suppress its power.

That’s why it couldn’t see through the Crown Prince’s holographic disguise.

Shen Ying added, "The Crown Prince was brought here by my people when Secretary Zhu went down to greet the investigation team."

"If your attention had stayed on me, you wouldn’t have been surprised. The fact that you found the Crown Prince’s sudden appearance unbelievable means you didn’t know he was already here."

"Why? Did you zone out when Secretary Zhu went to receive them? But even if you did, it wouldn’t make you completely overlook someone as prominent as the Crown Prince."

"That means you temporarily left me. Didn’t you say before that systems aren’t allowed to abandon their posts? If you left me but didn’t abandon your post, doesn’t that mean you went to another host?"

She sighed dramatically. "Flirting with another host right in front of me, System… you’ve wounded my heart."

The system wanted to scream. It didn’t want to live anymore.

This wasn’t how things were supposed to go. The show hadn’t even started, and this woman had already recited the entire script. Every single time.

It had gone through so much trouble to find a backup host, and it wasn’t for fun.

The system was too furious to speak, unsure of what to do next.

Shen Ying, however, ignored it and reactivated the projection, making the Crown Prince’s figure reappear.

He was still bound, though the gag had been removed. Earlier, when everyone entered the office, Warden Shen hadn’t even acknowledged him.

Once again, he’d been ignored.

The worst part? After everyone left, the woman had spaced out for a while before remembering he was still there.

Since when was his presence so insignificant?

The Crown Prince glared coldly at Shen Ying, who merely smiled and, with a mental command, released his restraints.

He rose from the chair and walked gracefully to stand opposite her.

Calmly, he admitted, "This time, you’ve won. To be honest, very few people have ever made me feel powerless—you’re one of them."

"But you don’t actually think detaining these people will stabilize the situation, do you?"

"The investigation team came with an agenda. If the factions don’t get the answers they want, they’ll keep desperately searching for the prison’s coordinates."

Shen Ying nodded. "True. Seeing how intense the reactions have been, with the prison receiving thousands of contact requests daily, it’s clear how desperate everyone outside is."

She looked at the Crown Prince, her gaze meaningful. "But tell me, Your Highness—how many people like Team Leader Yan would it take to dig you out of my hands?"

The Crown Prince frowned. "What are you implying?"

If they were all as incompetent as that fool from the Yan family, he couldn’t rely on outside help at all.

Shen Ying answered, "Rather than pinning your hopes on others, Your Highness should consider asking me for help."

Meeting his incredulous stare, her smile deepened. "After all, I’m not part of your political opposition. I couldn’t care less about who wins this power struggle."

"I just don’t appreciate your arrogant attitude when asking for favors."

"Have you ever learned how to ask for help properly, Your Highness?"

A nerve in the Crown Prince’s mind snapped. He stared at her, teeth clenched. "Ask—for—help?"

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