Around eleven o'clock at night.
Xu Mo returned home with An Youyi in tow.
No more pretending—it was time to come clean with the old man.
He had to break the news about going out to make his own way in the world.
Sure, he could drag it out day by day,
but who knew what his father-in-law would think?
Better to come back and reassure them first.
Besides,
dinner time had long passed.
The family didn’t have a habit of eating late-night snacks.
Su Ting was firmly against anyone having midnight meals.
They were probably all asleep by now.
So, timing his return like this was perfect.
Xu Mo knew he couldn’t shake off the "Dragon Queen."
Even if he booked two hotel rooms,
An Youyi would still slip silently into his room.
It was a headache.
Might as well just bring her home.
Clean and simple.
"Youyi, while you were away, the cleaning lady kept your room tidy. Just head upstairs, take a shower, and go to sleep... Huh? Why is the living room light on?"
Xu Mo’s eyebrows shot up.
This wasn’t the scene he’d imagined at all!
Shouldn’t everyone be asleep by now?
Had a burglar broken in?
No, no… that couldn’t be.
Xu Mo quickly dismissed the idea—
because he heard Xu Fuqiang’s furious voice booming from inside.
"You little brat! You dare show your face here?!"
Xu Fuqiang was seething, storming toward them in long strides.
From a distance, he spotted a woman standing beside Xu Mo.
Though he couldn’t make out her face clearly yet,
Xu Fuqiang was already certain—
this unfilial son had gone too far.
Playing around outside was one thing,
but bringing her home?!
Disgrace! Absolute disgrace!!!
Cutting off his bank cards had been the right move.
A stroke of foresight.
In fact,
Xu Fuqiang now felt he’d been too lenient.
"You unfilial wretch!! How dare you bring some floo—"
Xu Fuqiang’s disappointment was immeasurable. The "Seven Wolves" belt was about to be unleashed.
It wasn’t that he wanted to break his promise,
but how could he face the ancestors with this shame?!
However, when he recognized the familiar face,
his hand froze mid-motion.
The old man was now stuck in an absurd pose—
one hand on his belt,
as if about to undo it,
while he stared at An Youyi, lost in thought.
An awkward, silent contemplation.
Xu Mo cleared his throat. "Dad, if you want to play, you’ll have to ask Mom first."
Xu Fuqiang wasn’t deaf to the teasing tone.
Then An Youyi calmly added, "I don’t agree."
Xu Fuqiang felt blood rising in his throat.
Were these two conspiring against him?!
He shot Xu Mo a glare. "Youyi, you can go ahead. This brat stays."
An Youyi didn’t budge, glancing at Xu Mo instead.
Xu Mo’s lips twitched. "Listen to Dad."
An Youyi nodded, then wheeled her suitcase inside.
None of them seemed to notice the strange, unspoken tension lingering in the air.
Once An Youyi was gone,
Xu Fuqiang glared daggers at Xu Mo.
"You’re married now, a grown man. Can’t you give your mother and me some peace of mind?"
Xu Mo’s mouth twitched again. "I understand."
Xu Fuqiang scoffed. "Understand? If you understood, we wouldn’t be worrying like this!"
Xu Mo nodded.
No matter what Xu Fuqiang said,
he’d respond with the same flat,
"Yes, yes, you’re right."
No impatience.
Just detached agreement.
Ironically, it was Xu Fuqiang who grew impatient.
He could see it now—
Little Xu was just humoring him.
"To prevent you from making unforgivable mistakes in the future, starting today, all your bank cards are frozen! And don’t even think about selling your cars for cash to fund your reckless lifestyle. Let’s see who in Shanghai dares buy them!"
Old Xu had laid down the law.
Money made people reckless.
Xu Mo had been born with a silver spoon in his mouth,
never knowing hardship.
Partly because Su Ting couldn’t bear to see him suffer,
and partly because Old Xu couldn’t bring himself to toughen up the family’s only heir.
But times had changed.
Xu Mo was married now.
If he kept acting like a spoiled child,
how could he ever inherit the family business?
So Old Xu hardened his heart.
He’d discussed this with Su Ting last night.
She’d agreed.
That meant this wasn’t just his unilateral decision.
He expected Xu Mo to beg,
to bargain.
Old Xu had even prepared his bottom line:
A million at most!
Three months, one million!
Not a cent more.
Otherwise, go starve.
As for whether Xu Mo might actually starve without money—
what a joke.
Was there no food at home?
No meal card at the company?
Weren’t his office snacks and drinks enough?
He wouldn’t starve.
But as for luxuries?
Old Xu’s stance was clear:
Not a chance!
Yet to his surprise,
Little Xu just nodded and gave an "OK" gesture.
"Got it."
Old Xu blinked. Was this some reverse psychology?
"All your cards are frozen."
"Mm."
"You’ll have no money for food."
"Mm."
"You’ll pay for your own gas from now on."
"Mm."
"And don’t ask Qiaoqiao for cash. Your mom talked to her this morning—no secret handouts either."
"Understood. Dad, if there’s nothing else, I’d like to rest now."
Xu Mo yawned lazily.
Xu Fuqiang’s face darkened.
Was this brat truly unfazed,
or just biding his time until tempers cooled before begging for mercy?
Old Xu ranted on for a while longer,
but Xu Mo remained unmoved.
If anything, he looked amused.
Using money to pressure him?
Did they forget who Xu Mo was?
As Xu Mo stepped inside,
Xu Fuqiang stood frozen for a long moment.
Finally, he gritted his teeth and muttered to himself,
"Keep pretending!! Let’s see how long you last. You’ve never had to manage a household—you don’t know the cost of firewood and rice. Just wait till reality hits you."
To seal all escape routes,
Old Xu made Xu Mo swear not to borrow from his "good-for-nothing friends."
Little Xu agreed.
Still uneasy, Old Xu rambled on,
only to find Xu Mo completely indifferent.
Old Xu was rattled.
But he was sure—
Xu Mo wouldn’t last long.
Soon, he’d come crawling back,
forced to accept his penniless reality.
Meanwhile, as Xu Mo entered the living room,
he spotted two figures waiting by the sofa—
one tall, one short,
chatting and laughing.
The taller one was petite, the shorter one… surprisingly not.
Dressed in pajamas,
the smaller figure’s "primordial energy" was barely contained.
A phrase popped into Xu Mo’s mind:
"Small in stature, mighty in presence."
The taller figure was his mother, Su Ting,
and the shorter?
No need to guess—his little sister, Xu Shi.

+【Epic Battles!】 "Your Highness, they say Linxi Temple is miraculous. Won’t you make a wish?" "A wish? It should be making wishes to me." "That may be so, but since you’re already here..." "..." "Fine. Then grant this princess a consort to play with." "He must be obedient, devoted, and utterly infatuated with my body—so much so that he’d kneel and kiss my feet." "Your Highness, that’s not a consort. That’s a dog." "Then add clever, witty, heroic, ambitious yet pragmatic..." "Hmm, that’s enough for now. I’ll add more later." After tossing out these words half in jest, Princess Anle departed the temple—only to catch a fleeting glimpse of the Bodhisattva statue smiling at her. Meanwhile, Yang An, fresh out of university, was having a very bad day. Good news: He’d transmigrated into another world with a cheat granting tenfold combat power. Bad news: He’d immediately fallen into the clutches of a certain villainess. Good news: Said villainess possessed peerless beauty and royal status. Bad news: She was absolutely monstrous!!! In the frozen wilderness, Yang An knelt beneath Qin Guo’er’s feet, drenched in sweat despite the cold. Desperately clutching her porcelain-perfect foot—the very one poised to crush his throat—he could only think: How do I survive this?! Need answers NOW!

saw a female celebrity tied up and stuffed in the trunk! Little did he know, countless cameras were aimed at him at this moment - this was a new type of reality show. The first randomly selected passerby was caught in less than an hour. But when Xu Moru was selected, things started to take an unexpected turn. "Damn, this isn't how the script goes. This Xu Moru is too bold, he's not following the rules at all." "Crap, is this guy taking it seriously?" "The female celebrity has been scared to tears!"

d intelligence to keep the plot moving, and sometimes even the protagonists are forced into absurdly dumb decisions. Why does the A-list celebrity heroine in urban romance novels ditch the top-tier movie star and become a lovestruck fool for a pockmarked male lead? Why do the leads in historical tragedy novels keep dancing between love and death, only for the blind healer to end up suffering the most? And Gu Wei never expected that after finally landing a villain role to stir up trouble, she’d pick the wrong gender! No choice now—she’ll just have to crush the protagonists as a girl!

th】 【No prior gaming knowledge required】【The First Cultivation + Game Design Novel on the Platform】 In a world where the righteous path dominates and crushes the demonic sects, Lu Ze unlocks the "Son of the Demon Path" system. Killing righteous cultivators now grants him power-ups. Wait—deaths in illusions count too? As a former game designer, Lu Ze decides to give the cultivators of this world a little—no, a massive—shock... Sect Elders: "What is this 'Escape from the Demon Sect' game? Why have all our disciples abandoned cultivation to play it??" Elite Disciples: "You're saying... mastering 'Demon Slayer' can help us counter demonic schemes?" Reclusive Masters: "Why did I leave seclusion? Ask that backstabbing rat who ambushed me in 'Eternal Strife' yesterday!" Rogue Cultivators & Civilians: "'Immortal Abyss Action' is addictive! You can even earn spirit stones by loot-running..." Sect Prodigy: "My Dao heart is unshakable... except for that cursed black hammer." Royal Scions: "Can skins have stat boosts? I’ll pay 10,000 spirit stones for one!!" Sect Leader: "WHO IS CORRUPTING MY DISCIPLES?!!!"