Chapter Fifteen
At the entrance of No. 1 High School.
As soon as Gu Ran walked out of the school gate, he saw Lao Gu's black Jetta parked by the side of the road.
Seeing this car, Ye Jinliang instinctively shrank his neck, and Gu Xiangcheng's dignified and stern face automatically appeared in his mind.
"Brother Ran, your dad!"
He nervously grabbed Gu Ran's arm and quickly whispered a warning.
In his impression, nine times out of ten, Gu Ran and his dad would get into an argument whenever they met. But that was at home; right now, they were at the school gate.
If they started arguing here, it would be a huge loss of face for Director Gu.
"Yeah, I saw."
Gu Ran replied calmly, and with that, he was about to walk over.
Seeing this, the chubby boy immediately grew anxious and hurriedly pulled back the impulsive Gu Ran. "Why are you still going over if you know? Don't you two start fighting at the school gate!"
"Uh... I'm not going over to fight. He came to pick me up today to meet my stepmother."
Stepmother?!
Ye Jinliang's hands froze, and he stared at Gu Ran with a face full of astonishment, as if he couldn't believe his ears.
What did he just hear?
"Stepmother?!"
"Yeah, I'll explain it to you later."
Saying that, he waved his hand.
Upon seeing him, Lao Gu drove the car over.
The driver's side window slowly rolled down, revealing Gu Xiangcheng's stern and solemn face. Ye Jinliang instantly lost his voice and lowered his head, acting like a frightened quail.
"H-hello, Uncle."
He forced himself to greet him, squeezing out a stiff smile on his face.
"Mhm, hello."
Lao Gu responded softly, returning the greeting.
As the window rolled down completely, the two boys noticed an attractive, mature woman sitting in the passenger seat. She also looked somewhat familiar.
Gu Ran secretly guessed in his heart that this was most likely the rumored stepmother. He just didn't know if her daughter was also in the car.
As for her looking somewhat familiar, he figured he must have seen her somewhere in his past life, so Gu Ran didn't think much of it.
"Hello, Auntie."
He first flashed a bright smile, greeting the woman obediently and politely, then peeked toward the rear window of the car.
Unfortunately, the car windows were tinted, making it impossible to see the situation in the back seat.
Watching Gu Ran act like a proper, decent human being, the corners of Ye Jinliang's mouth twitched uncontrollably.
Turning his head and seeing Gu Xiangcheng, his twitching mouth instantly settled down.
Sensing the increasingly weird atmosphere around him, he felt more and more that he shouldn't stay there. He quickly found an excuse and fled the scene as fast as he could, as if a dog were chasing him.
"Oh, hello. You must be Gu Ran. You're such a handsome young man."
Seeing Gu Ran take the initiative to greet her with such a bright smile, Ye Shulian, who was sitting in the passenger seat, was momentarily stunned. After recovering, she hurriedly got out of the car, warmly held Gu Ran's hand, and started making small talk.
"Not at all. You are the true beauty untouched by time, Auntie. Standing here, people who don't know any better would think you're my older sister."
Gu Ran was more than happy to see his stepmother's friendliness. After all, they would be living under the same roof in the future, so it was never a bad idea to build a good relationship.
After a few rounds of mutual flattery, the relationship between the two became increasingly harmonious.
During this time, Ye Shulian glanced back at Gu Xiangcheng sitting in the car, and couldn't help but raise an eyebrow.
The meaning in her eyes was clear: Is this the boy with the terrible personality and bad temper you were talking about?
Gu Xiangcheng: "..."
He was just giving her a heads-up in advance. Heaven knew when this kid would have one of his episodes!
The two talked for a little while longer before Gu Ran turned his head to look at Lao Gu. "Dad, aren't we leaving yet?"
"Wait a moment. Aunt Ye's daughter hasn't come out yet."
Hearing this, Lao Gu replied leisurely, which made Gu Ran pause in surprise.
His stepmother's daughter went to the same school as him?!
Before he could ask for details, Ye Shulian patted his arm and pointed in the direction behind him.
"Look, she's out!"
...
After class, Ye Zhenzhen immediately slipped into the restroom.
Although her mother had said that she and her future stepfather were already waiting at the school gate, she frowned slightly as she stared at the stain on her clothes that just wouldn't come off.
Would this... make her look very sloppy?
She looked at herself in the mirror. Her face was delicate, her lips were a tender pink, and her parted bangs made her whole person look gentle.
She had already let down her high ponytail, and her long, straight black hair draped over her shoulders, exuding the innocence of youth.
The only fly in the ointment was the spotted stain on her white padded jacket, which made her sigh helplessly.
She reached out, caught a little water, and rubbed it, but there was still no change. She gave up in resignation.
Gently tucking a few strands of hair behind her ear, she turned and walked out of the restroom, heading toward the school gate.
From a distance, she spotted her mother at a glance.
It was just that...
Who was that boy standing next to her mother?
Why did those clothes look so familiar?
As she got closer, her mother, who was chatting with the boy, had already seen her and pointed in her direction, probably introducing her daughter.
However, Ye Zhenzhen's attention was no longer on her mother. Her mouth fell slightly open in surprise, and her cold, aloof eyes were filled with astonishment.
She had already recognized the boy beside her mother. He was the very culprit who had knocked her down this morning.
Even though that bad guy had his back to her, she still recognized him at a glance.
...
Hearing Ye Shulian's words, Gu Ran smiled, turned around, and looked behind him.
The next second, the bright smile on his face froze, and his brain instantly crashed.
What the hell was going on?!
The top student in the grade, the unattainable flower on the high peak, was his stepmother's daughter?!
Did it have to be this melodramatic? Was the world really this small?!!!
Thinking about how he had just offended this aloof-tempered girl earlier this morning, he couldn't help but wince.
Seeing that Gu Ran seemed even more surprised than she was, Ye Zhenzhen actually calmed down. She walked gracefully to her mother's side and gave Gu Ran a slight nod.
"Zhenzhen, this is Gu Ran, your Uncle Gu's son. He goes to the same school as you."
Ye Shulian took Ye Zhenzhen's hand with her other hand and introduced them with a smile.
"Yes, we just met this morning."
Ye Zhenzhen nodded and turned to look at Gu Ran, a trace of teasing flashing in her cool eyes. "We meet again. The world really is small."
"Ha... yeah, it really is a small world." Gu Ran's mouth twitched.
Seeing the interaction between the two, Ye Shulian felt a bit curious, but before she could say anything, she saw Gu Xiangcheng getting out of the car.
"You must be Zhenzhen. Your mother mentions you to me often, saying how pretty you are and how good your grades are.
Now that we've met, I realize your mother was being far too modest. This isn't just pretty; you look exactly like a heavenly fairy."
Lao Gu's compliments flowed smoothly, sounding like they came straight out of a textbook.
Moreover, he tried hard to be polite, doing his best to put on an amiable and approachable front.
As soon as he finished speaking, Ye Zhenzhen blushed a little, which was rare for her. Ye Shulian also covered her mouth and chuckled, saying he was exaggerating.
Only Gu Ran had a weird expression on his face. He turned to look at the seemingly enthusiastic Lao Gu, secretly guessing that the man had probably rehearsed this speech all night yesterday.
But regardless, the atmosphere of the first meeting between the two families and the four people was pretty good.
They didn't block the entrance for long. After exchanging a few pleasantries, they all got into the car and headed to the restaurant.
Inside the car.
Gu Ran and Ye Zhenzhen sat in the back, keeping to opposite sides of the seat.
Even though the two of them did not say another word to each other, Ye Shulian did a wonderful job of keeping the atmosphere lively.
Every now and then, she would make small talk with Gu Ran and draw the quiet Ye Zhenzhen into the conversation. She also occasionally exchanged a few words with Lao Gu as he drove, ensuring that no one was left out...
ng to die together with you." Lin Xuan is dead, his body thrown into the river by his scumbag lover and her accomplice. She, the president of the Su Group, is decisive, ruthless, and ice-cold. For three days and three nights, she had his body fished out of the river, and without hesitation, she kissed the bloated corpse of Lin Xuan. She laid down beside him in a cold coffin, their fingers intertwined, a smile lingering on her lips as she closed her eyes. The noble and cold-hearted woman, only bending for one man—Lin Xuan. Lin Xuan, with his golden finger, is reborn and returns to the day of his wedding to the treacherous woman. Su Qiang comes to steal the bride. Lin Xuan's eyes light up, eager to pledge his loyalty on the spot, but instead, her kiss transfers a glass of drugged wine into his mouth, causing him to pass out... 【Male Protagonist with Single Female Lead】【Yandere Tycoon】【Action-Packed】【True vs. Fake Heir】
ut it can buy an entire year of absolutely perfect training results! Su Yu stared at his empty wallet and decisively opened up various online loan platforms. “Borrow a thousand bucks! Recharge my vitality!” Boom! His vitality broke a hundred points, shattering the limits of the human body! “Borrow ten thousand bucks! Recharge my combat skills!” Boom! A basic punching technique so common it was everywhere instantly maxed out, revealing the ultimate assassination technique of Five Elements Unity—Inner Force! When a rich kid hired assassins for a midnight ambush, aiming to break both of his legs, they instead ran headfirst into a monster—a human-shaped tyrannosaur, brimming with dragon-like vitality. With just two fingers, Su Yu snapped a steel staff reinforced with alloy. Staring at the killer’s stash of stolen cash—a staggering quarter-million dollars—he showed a corporate-sincere smile: “Thanks for the pre-exam gift pack, Mr. Zhao! I’m gonna go re-invest this!” Three days later, at the National Martial Arts College Entrance Exam, while everyone else struggled just to reach the passing line, Su Yu threw a single punch—and more than a thousand vitality points literally detonated the entire arena!
ive and Ruthless] Before his transmigration, Ye Xuan was playing a game called "Severing Emotions to Attain the Dao." The game's core wasn't about leveling up by fighting monsters, but about conquering various "bad women" with wicked personalities and cold, fickle natures. There was only one method to conquer them: stay unwaveringly by their side, then die at a critical moment, driving them to madness after losing the protagonist. The higher their level of regret, the higher the player's score. To dominate the server, Ye Xuan conquered all the bad women. In the early stages, he showered them with boundless tenderness, only to choose to sacrifice himself for them later, making them weep bitterly and drown in regret. Among them were: Xia Lengyue, the unfaithful immortal wife who chased after powerful men and discarded her husband like trash. Ye Qingcheng, the Demonic Venerable of the Joyous Union Sect, who appeared pure and innocent but was, in reality, promiscuous. Wu Lingxiao, the Empress of the Great Xia Dynasty, who lusted after men and loved maintaining a harem. Bai Qiangu of the Endless Demonic Sect: a bloodthirsty mass murderer. However, when the protagonist transmigrated into the game world, he made a horrifying discovery. Eight hundred years had already passed. The bad women he had conquered had now each become deities and revered ancestors. Faced with the endless stream of toxic women coming for him, Ye Xuan could only rely on his god-tier acting skills to carve a path of survival through this world of treacherous women.
't think I'm that capable, I'm just trying my best to stay alive. I've been kind all my life, never did anything bad, yet worldly suffering spared me not one bit. The human world is a nice place, but I won't come back in my next life. A kind young man, who wanted to just get by singing, but through repeated deceits and betrayals, has gone down an irredeemable path.
