Chapter 244
Alarm bells rang loudly in Gu Xiangcheng's heart.
He put down his teacup and cleared his throat.
"Gu Ran ah."
This drawn-out tone made Gu Ran's scalp tingle.
"What's wrong, Dad?"
Gu Ran kept a straight face, maintaining his shameless, unfazed smile.
"Come with me to the balcony for a moment, I have something to ask you."
Gu Xiangcheng stood up, his gaze sharp.
Conversations between men had to happen on the balcony, accompanied by a cigarette.
Gu Ran's heart skipped a beat.
Was Lao Gu going to interrogate him?
Just then, a hand appeared out of nowhere and grabbed Gu Xiangcheng's arm.
"What are you asking! The kids just got back, what can't you say right here?"
Ye Shulian, holding a bunch of celery, shielded Gu Ran like a protective mother hen.
"The kids have been on the bus all the way, they're exhausted, and you still want to do your interrogation routine? Hurry up and go to the kitchen to help me prep the vegetables!"
"No, I just want to ask a couple of questions..."
Gu Xiangcheng tried to struggle.
"Ask my foot! Hurry up and go!"
Ye Shulian didn't give him a chance at all, pushing him directly toward the kitchen.
"I want to eat the braised prawns you make tonight, hurry up!"
Gu Xiangcheng stumbled from the push.
"No... since when do I know how to make braised prawns..."
Without giving him any chance to retort, Ye Shulian dragged him away.
Just before entering the door, Gu Xiangcheng turned back and gave Gu Ran an I'll deal with you later look, walking into the kitchen helplessly.
The young man stood there, watching the meaningful smile Ye Shulian flashed over her shoulder as she pushed his dad away.
In that smile, there was maternal love, tolerance, and a kind of... insight?
Gu Ran touched his nose, a thin layer of sweat breaking out on his back.
Aunt Ye's look was even scarier than Lao Gu's.
Could she have figured something out?
"Alright, don't just stand there like an idiot, go back to your room and rest for a bit."
Seeing the alarm lifted, Ye Zhenzhen breathed a sigh of relief, picked up her luggage, and headed toward her room.
"Wait."
Gu Ran grabbed her wrist and lowered his voice ambiguously.
"See you in a bit."
Ye Zhenzhen blushed, glared at him, shook off his hand, and ran into her room.
...
Gu Ran returned to his room and casually tossed his luggage aside.
He paced around the room a couple of times, listening to the conversation and chopping sounds coming from the kitchen.
He couldn't suppress the restlessness in his heart no matter what.
Was this the thrill of stealing?
No wonder Ye Zhenzhen was addicted, it was so damn thrilling!
Even though they were a legal couple, acting like underground spies at home was something else.
Gu Ran walked to the French window and skillfully undid the latch.
Knock, knock.
He gently knocked on the French window of the girl's room next door.
The curtains were drawn, and rustling sounds came from inside.
A few seconds later, the curtain was pulled open a crack, revealing a startled little face.
Ye Zhenzhen was just about to change into her loungewear and had her top half off.
Clutching a pajama shirt to her chest, her eyes nearly popped out when she saw Gu Ran outside the window.
She frantically threw on her clothes and unlocked the window.
She pulled Gu Ran in and quickly drew the curtains.
"Are you crazy!"
The aloof girl lowered her voice, punching him in exasperation.
"We just got back, what if we get caught!!"
"Relax, I've already scouted the area, it's very safe."
Gu Ran reached back and locked the bedroom door.
The loungewear the girl had just changed into was loose and soft, emitting a faint osmanthus scent that hit his face.
Gu Ran took the opportunity to collapse onto her large pink bed, stretching his long legs out like a boss.
"Dr. Ye, did you see Aunt Ye's look just now? It was a bit off, I keep feeling like she knows something."
"Stop overthinking!"
Ye Zhenzhen felt her hair stand on end from his words. She went over and pulled his arm, trying to drag him up.
"If my mom knew, she would have whipped me with a feather duster long ago, you think she'd still make you braised pork? Hurry back! You'll be discovered in a minute!"
"What's the rush, let me recharge for a bit."
Gu Ran grabbed her wrist back and pulled slightly.
Losing her balance, Ye Zhenzhen cried out in surprise and fell into his arms.
Gu Ran naturally wrapped his arms around her waist, resting his chin on her collarbone and taking a deep breath.
Even though they were together every day, it just didn't feel as good as hugging like this right now.
The unique fragrance on the girl, mixed with her panicked heartbeat, brought back his soul that had just been scared away by Lao Gu.
"Gu Ran... stop messing around..."
Ye Zhenzhen's body went half limp, her pushing hands lost their strength, and her voice was as soft as a cat's meow.
"The door isn't deadbolted... what if..."
Before she could finish her sentence.
A furious roar suddenly came from the direction of the living room.
"Gu Ran!!!"
This shout scared the two of them so much they sprang apart instantly like they'd been electrocuted.
Ye Zhenzhen's face went pale, her hand trembling as she pointed at the window.
"Quick! Go quickly! Uncle Gu is calling you!"
Gu Ran's heart also skipped a beat. Lao Gu's loud voice was really wasted by not being a tenor.
"Where the hell did that brat go! Hurry downstairs and buy a big bottle of cola! We're out of drinks!"
Gu Xiangcheng's voice drew closer, and from the footsteps, it sounded like he was heading toward Gu Ran's room.
"Hurry up!"
Ye Zhenzhen was so anxious she was about to cry, desperately pushing Gu Ran toward the balcony.
Gu Ran was about to leave but suddenly stopped.
He turned around, looked at the panicked girl, and pointed to his lips with a roguish look.
"Toll fee. No kiss, no leave, otherwise I'll just walk out the front door and tell Lao Gu I was exploring human anatomy with you."
"You... scoundrel!"
Hearing the footsteps in the living room already reaching Gu Ran's door, Ye Zhenzhen was dying of embarrassment.
She gritted her teeth and stood on her tiptoes.
Closing her eyes, she leaned in and gave the young man a quick peck on the corner of his mouth.
The touch was warm and soft, separating as quickly as it met.
"Happy now! Get out!"
Gu Ran licked his lips in satisfaction, and just before a sock could hit his face...
He dodged nimbly and ran back to his own room.
After entering, he adjusted his breathing and shouted toward the door at the top of his lungs.
"Got it, Dad! Going right now!"
His voice was loud and righteous, without the slightest hint of a guilty conscience.
In the next room.
Ye Zhenzhen leaned against the door panel, listening to the commotion on Gu Ran's side, her heart still dancing wildly in her chest.
A moment later, the sound of Gu Ran's door opening came, followed by the sound of the front security door closing.
"This brat, dawdling just to buy a cola..."
Gu Xiangcheng's muttering faded away.
Ye Zhenzhen let out a long breath, slid down to sit on the carpet, and touched her burning cheeks.
The rich aroma of braised pork wafted through the air, mixing with that kiss carrying the boy's scent.
Was the sense of immorality really this strong?
She felt like she was going to break...
...
s the Eldest Princess, renowned for her cold and aloof detachment, became the most docile of lambs, obeying his every command without question. But when the final move was played on the chessboard, as Gu Chenghan seized everything and ascended on the verge of apotheosis, that very Princess suddenly embraced him from behind, her tone carrying a dependence never heard before: "Wait... you haven't yet... commanded me to love you forever." Gu Chenghan froze abruptly. She... hadn't been hypnotized?! ... [The Eldest Princess's Diary] [When my soul was extracted, becoming the sole spectator outside my own shell] [At first, there was overwhelming fury, until I saw] [How he used my sword to effortlessly shatter my inescapable doom] [How he wielded my authority to eradicate fatal conspiracies I had never even detected] [Like a deity, he rescued me from the deep mire I was trapped in] [If not for those annoying vixens, he and I would be a match made in heaven] [I think I am ill, gravely ill] [My deity should belong to me alone] ... "Hypnosis? Oh, it succeeded, my dear Master." "Only this time, it's my turn to hypnotize you."
nd fell into a coma while saving his younger sister from an out-of-control car. He became a vegetable. No one knew that his consciousness had crossed into a world of cultivation. Over the course of sixty years, he began as the lowest kind of mine slave, struggling to survive amid mountains of corpses and seas of blood. By sheer chance, he eventually obtained the complete memories of a fallen Immortal King. Alchemy, medicine, formations, feng shui, physiognomy, artifact forging… Every great inheritance of the cultivation world was now his. But when he opened his eyes again, he discovered that ten full years had passed in the modern world. To pay for his treatment, his father had sold the family’s shop and house, leaving himself covered in lasting injuries and illness. His mother had cared for him day and night, and more than half of her hair had already turned white. His younger sister, who had been only fifteen back then, was now twenty-five. To help repay the family’s debts, she had been forced to lower her head and put on a smiling face in places of glittering lights and endless revelry. Only then did Chen Xuan understand that what he had lost was not merely ten years. He had lost the life his entire family was meant to have. The good news was that he had brought back the memories of an Immortal King’s entire lifetime. The bad news was that his soul had returned alone—his cultivation had not come with him. Spiritual energy was scarce, resources were depleted, and the modern world still had firearms, surveillance, capital, and laws. If he wanted to protect his family, break free from everyone’s control, and become truly invincible beneath the heavens, he would have to start all over again.
y came from. The chests contained supplies, currency, class-change scrolls, skills, talents… and even godhood! The laws of the world were completely rewritten. This became a world where everyone gambled with their fate! Some people, despite having nothing, opened a divine artifact and rose to the top, eventually ruling the world. Others went bankrupt, opened nothing but worthless junk, and leaped from skyscrapers in despair. Lin Ye arrived in this world from another reality, utterly bewildered. “What is going on? Why is everyone a gambling addict?!” “Opening chests? No way. I refuse to gamble. I’ll start with myself!” Until— On his first chest, he obtained a Mythic Talent: Void Incarnation! He could become completely intangible, pass through all things, and reduce everything to nothingness! … On his fiftieth chest, he obtained a Mythic Weapon: Blade of Karma! With a single slash, karma shattered, twisting the universe and overturning the myriad phenomena of creation! … On his ninety-ninth chest, he obtained a Mythic Divine Treasure: Primordial Purple Energy! It could split open the heavens and earth, create all things, and evolve countless worlds with a single thought! Lin Ye: “Now that I think about it… shouldn’t someone have told me that every chest is guaranteed to contain something Mythic?!”
close your eyes and open them again, only to find yourself transmigrated into the role of a villainous male supporting character. Readers familiar with urban wish-fulfillment novels know that it is only through the relentless antics of the villainous male supporting character that the plot between the male and female leads can progress. As the villainous male supporting character, Long Aotian not only has to bully the female lead, harass the second female lead, and flirt with the third female lead, but he also has to go all out to antagonize the male lead. In the end, when his body is discovered, he is still clutching half a moldy fried dough stick in his hand. Fully aware of the plot, Long Aotian is determined to change his fate, starting with the female lead! In the beginning, the female lead lacks confidence: "Big brother, I hope I didn't scare you?" In the middle, the female lead treads carefully: "Brother Long, please don't hit me, okay?" Later on, the female lead becomes coquettishly clingy: "Aotian, it's time to pay the 'public grain' tonight." Long Aotian's legs go weak, and he feels like crying: "I taught you to be thick-skinned, not shameless!"
