Ye Shuang and Chen Qin were tangled together, and he even realized that his strength was no match for Chen Qin's, as she pinned him down and had her way with him.
"I was wrong, wait!" Ye Shuang said.
"Hehe." Chen Qin pressed Ye Shuang down, wearing a triumphant, adorable expression, with a few strands of hair even sticking to her lips.
Yet Ye Shuang felt a strange sensation, his nose filled with the fragrance of a young girl, and even his injured area felt a bit swollen.
"Hmm?" Chen Qin sensed something at that moment, reached out and touched it, "Oh dear, how did you get hurt?"
Ye Shuang: "..."
"I want to use the restroom."
"Alright."
After Ye Shuang went to the restroom, he chose to wash his face. Once he dried it, he noticed Chen Qin standing beside him. "Are you okay?"
The two of them stood before the mirror just like that. Ye Shuang looked at his own reflection and Chen Qin, who stood with her hands behind her back, showing a concerned expression. He felt a sudden daze, as if seeing a phantom.
So, that's what they would grow up to look like.
The still young and tender Chen Qin, just beginning to blossom, would also ripen into a peach.
"I want to go out for a walk," Ye Shuang suddenly spoke.
"Oh?" Chen Qin, however, showed a cute smile, "Sure, I'll go anywhere with you."
Ye Shuang gave an affirmative hum.
This girl, she's been my little shadow since we were kids.
Ye Shuang took Chen Qin and left the house. The sun outside was blazing, its heat carrying the dusty scent of the concrete ground.
It was still winter over there, yet here I am, unexpectedly basking under this scorching sun.
Just as Ye Shuang was lost in thought, Chen Qin beside him asked, "A Ye, where are we going?"
"Just walking around."
"Oh, really?"
Ye Shuang led Chen Qin as they strolled. In the community's activity area, he noticed a few boys their age sitting together chatting. As soon as they saw Ye Shuang and Chen Qin, they immediately started teasing—
"Hey Ye Shuang, where are you taking your little wife this time?"
"Hahahaha." Followed by a burst of laughter.
Upon hearing this, Chen Qin immediately cutely wrinkled her little nose. She knew Ye Shuang disliked it the most when people said that. But just as she was about to speak, Ye Shuang simply smiled faintly,
"Just taking my little wife for a casual stroll."
The boys were stunned.
"Let's go." Ye Shuang took Chen Qin's hand and walked right past them, paying them no further mind.
In fact, many people have once fantasized about one thing—
That is, returning to childhood with their current mindset, then leveraging information asymmetry to move mountains and achieve the pinnacle of life.
This is also why many people enjoy rebirth-themed novels so much.
Ye Shuang was currently experiencing this very situation. During his middle school years, because he and Chen Qin were often together, he had indeed been teased quite a bit by his peers, being told he was always dragging his little wife around everywhere.
Back then, Ye Shuang naturally felt very awkward, even trying to avoid Chen Qin sometimes to escape hearing such comments.
But now, Ye Shuang felt nothing of the sort.
"A Ye~"
"Hmm?" Ye Shuang turned his head, only to find Chen Qin's face now as red as an apple. She pulled her hand back, then lowered her head to look at her own toes,
"What did you just... say?"
"What?"
"That thing!"
"Oh, 'little wife'?" Ye Shuang chuckled.
Chen Qin fiddled with a strand of her hair, "What you said to them just now... you weren't joking, were you?"
"What do you think?"
"I... I don't know." Chen Qin suddenly covered her face and ran off shyly.
Ye Shuang watched her retreating figure but did not give chase.
Because the clock in the upper right corner was almost up. It was just a pity he didn't get to see his parents.
Even just hearing their voices would have been nice, though he had tried calling the landline earlier with no answer.
"If I could stay in this timeline forever, it might actually be nice, right?" Ye Shuang murmured to himself.
If life could be lived over, perhaps there wouldn't be so many regrets?
Only...
It seems there are no 'ifs'.
...
When Ye Shuang slowly came back to his senses, he found himself back at the dining table at home.
"Brother, why have you been staring at Sister Chen Qin in a daze?" Tang Keke asked curiously, having noticed Ye Shuang seemed lost in thought just moments ago.
"It's nothing."
Ye Shuang withdrew his gaze, only to find Chen Qin had walked over to his side and was now touching his forehead.
"I thought you might have a fever." Chen Qin smiled at this moment.
The girl before him seemed to overlap with that young, concerned girl from earlier. Ye Shuang couldn't help but feel a wave of emotion. Chen Qin truly hadn't changed at all.
This love was too dazzling, so much so that Ye Shuang even felt a bit of inferiority.
"I'm fine."
After Ye Shuang finished eating, he also washed the dishes.
Chen Qin stood beside him—although she didn't know how to wash dishes, she chose to accompany him obediently like this, even reaching out to massage his shoulders.
"There's actually... something I haven't told you." Ye Shuang wiped the dishes, thought for a moment, and finally decided to confess honestly.
Regarding tomorrow's matter, Ye Shuang still couldn't bring himself to hide it from Chen Qin.
"Hmm?" Chen Qin blinked her beautiful eyes.
"I... actually also promised Yu You and An Shiyu to spend Christmas with them tomorrow," Ye Shuang said, his tone carrying apology, "Although I feel very selfish for this, I still thought it would be better not to keep it from you. I'm sorry..."
Chen Qin's hands, which were massaging Ye Shuang's shoulders, stopped. The kitchen fell silent.
"Are you angry?" Ye Shuang asked.
"A Ye, do you think I need to be angry?" Chen Qin's voice sounded slowly.
Ye Shuang was a bit puzzled. He turned his head to find Chen Qin smiling at him.
"I... I don't know if I should be angry either, or perhaps it would be better if I were angry?" Chen Qin's eyes lowered slightly, "But with what identity? If I get angry, would A Ye also be unhappy?"
"But rather than anger, I'd say I'm actually happier." Chen Qin gently clasped her hands together.
"Well, how should I put it..."
"A Ye, you probably don't remember the past events." Chen Qin spoke slowly, "For Zhao Mengyao's sake, you stood me up many, many times before. Afterwards, you'd apologize each time, and I would stop being angry. Besides, back then, you didn't seem to care much about whether I was angry or not."
"But now, you're telling me this, even worrying about whether I'll be angry... even unwilling to deceive me and choosing to be honest."
Chen Qin began to smile brightly, "Can I interpret this as my weight in your heart has increased?"
"I'm like a fool, always able to find excuses to comfort myself like this." Chen Qin looked at Ye Shuang, "A Ye, do you also think I'm very foolish?"
Ye Shuang's throat moved, "No."
"That's good, that's enough." Chen Qin smiled gently, "I never expected to receive all of your love."
"Neither in the past, nor now."
Every word Chen Qin spoke pierced Ye Shuang's heart.
rowess are unmatched, commanding a million-strong army! Yet, the Emperor wants to depose him for the sake of a false prince? Hold on, are you throwing me into some female-oriented romance plot? How can I tolerate this? With a grand wave of his hand—the Nine Clan Extraction Technique! Slander the Emperor? Very well, all of you shall die! ... The False Prince: "Although I am not the biological son, Father and Mother love me more. The throne should be mine!" The Female Lead: "Qin Xiao, you are the Emperor, and I am a commoner. If you wish to marry me, you must abdicate. Otherwise, you will never have me!" The Empress: "After we divorce, you must give me half the empire!" The Transmigrator Consort: "You worthless Emperor, why should I kneel to you? All men are equal—I advise you to be kind!" The Great General: "The enemy general is my childhood sweetheart. For her sake, I willingly abandon the frontier defenses!" The Retired Emperor: "Although Yu'er was adopted, I prefer him. Qin Xiao, you should abdicate and let him become Emperor!" ... Very well! So this is how you want to play? Facing this twisted world of female-oriented tropes, Qin Xiao grins and raises his hand to unleash—the Nine Clan Extraction Technique! I am the Emperor. Why would I bother reasoning with you? Seal the gates! Leave none alive!
young master of the Shen family—a figure of immense power and wealth beyond measure—and awakened the "Destined Ultimate Villain System"! His starting scenario? Running into his icy fiancée who shows up with a mountain-descending divine doctor to break off their engagement. The divine doctor arrogantly taunts: "What does your Shen family have besides a bit of stinking money? You're not even worthy of tying Qingxue's shoelaces!" Shen Fei just smiled. He completely defied the usual script: "Fine, I agree to break off the engagement. Also, notify the finance department to withdraw all investments from the Su family." Minutes later, with its capital chain severed, the Su Group teetered on the brink of bankruptcy! The once aloof and proud ice queen CEO was thrown into utter panic. That very night, she went to Shen Fei's villa, casting aside all dignity to beg and plead desperately... From then on, in this world teeming with Sons of Destiny, Shen Fei embarked on a path of extreme dimensional suppression! A mountain-descending divine doctor? Peerless medical skills? Shen Fei: "Reporting you for practicing medicine without a license! I'll gladly take your ancient medicinal cauldron and twin sister assassins." The Crooked-Smiling Dragon King? Commanding a hundred thousand soldiers with a single order? Shen Fei: "Illegal assembly and suspected treason! Let a fleet of attack helicopters sanitize the area and teach you what the state apparatus really means!" A reborn tycoon? Knows all the golden opportunities of the next decade? Shen Fei: "A trillion in capital to reverse and pump the stock market, making you blow your margin and jump on the very first day of your rebirth!" What Chosen Ones? What bearers of Heavenly Fortune? In Shen Fei's eyes, they're all just chives (i.e., suckers/marks) waiting to be harvested! Shen Fei: "Sorry, but as the Destined Ultimate Villain, I don't play by the rules of honor. I only play the game of dimensional suppression."
] [Lone Wolf, No Male Gaze] [Protagonist is pursued early on; extreme protagonist-stans, stay away!] The "Carnival Paradise" descends and slowly devours the real world in the form of a game. By chance, Zhu Yan awakens the talent [Roleplay], becoming one of the first beta players. He thought he could develop safely, but after clearing the first instance, he is branded by humanity as the chief culprit behind the game's spread—a traitorous villain. A villain? Who would ever... become one! He'll be the villain! From then on, Zhu Yan is not only a player but also a lackey for the Carnival Paradise. Between the straight path and the crooked path, he chooses the con. With his left hand, he dons the villain's mantle, staging scenes within instances, infuriating players who decry him as a despicable traitor, all while the game happily promotes him. With his right hand, he joins the non-human organization "Fangcun Mountain," which opposes the Carnival Paradise, transforming into a mysterious player who slaughters game bosses, earning cheers of "Long live the expert!" from fellow players. Gradually, Zhu Yan rises to become an S-rank human player in Fangcun Mountain's archives, while also being the Carnival Paradise's certified top game Boss. But when the final war erupts and both major factions place their hopes in him— Players tag his various aliases: "Experts, this offensive depends on you." The Carnival Paradise's supreme Boss throws an arm around his neck: "Bro, you're the iron, I'm the steel; you can't let me down again!"
grated, and just when he finally managed to get into an elite academy, he discovered that he actually had a system, and the way to earn rewards was extremely ridiculous. So for the sake of rewards, he had no choice but to start acting ridiculous as well. Su Cheng: "It's nothing but system quests after all." But later, what confused Su Cheng was that while he was already quite ridiculous, he never expected those serious characters to gradually become ridiculous too. And the way they looked at him became increasingly strange... (This synopsis doesn't do it justice, please read the full story)
