This Damn System Argues with Me Every Day

Chen Mo, an overworked office drone, lives by the motto “the less trouble, the better.” Then one day, after working overtime until he nearly drops dead, a thing called [Sarcasm 999] gets bound to his mind. Other Systems hand out divine techniques and make you rich. This one starts by mocking him: “Oh, you’re awake? I thought you were going to sleep until the Earth exploded. Could you try having a little professional ethics?” The rules are simple: Do what it says and you get a guaranteed reward, though it’s usually outrageously bad. Prove it wrong and you get a bonus reward, provided you can keep from being angered to death. From then on, Chen Mo’s daily life goes like this: System: “You absolutely won’t get anywhere with Su Niannian at the front desk today. Don’t go embarrass yourself.” Chen Mo goes anyway, despite his nerves, and succeeds. The System falls silent for three seconds, then reluctantly hands over a huge reward: “…You got lucky.” System: “This pot of water won’t boil. The laws of thermodynamics don’t apply to you.” Chen Mo changes his stance, and the water boils. System: “??? That’s an insult to the laws of physics.” He talks back to bosses who make empty promises at work, starts a side gig reviewing products with a sharp tongue and calling out influencer brands, and even has to take on the whole extended family with the System when he goes home for the New Year. A man and his System, trading barbs day in and day out. Other people have their Systems carry their Hosts to success. Chen Mo spends every day wavering between “I’m uninstalling this piece of junk” and “Forget it, it’s kind of sweet sometimes.” A hilarious urban slice-of-life about a kindhearted but stubborn office drone and a sharp-tongued, softhearted AI: they can’t stand each other, but can’t live without each other either. “I’ll call you my brother. You dare answer?” “Get lost. Just because you managed to prove me wrong doesn’t mean I’ll admit you’re a person.”