Chapter 249
Amidst their playful banter, the two had already arrived at their front door.
Taking advantage of the moment he was opening the door, the young woman caught him off guard and pinched the soft flesh of his waist.
"Hiss!"
Gu Ran turned around in disbelief, looking at Ye Zhenzhen, whose small face was flushed from climbing the stairs.
"Ye Zhenzhen! That's not something a gentleman would do!"
The named girl playfully stuck out her tongue and made a funny face.
"I'm a lady, not a gentleman. Also, call me older sister! Show some respect..."
The young man laughed out of exasperation, looking at Ye Zhenzhen with doting affection before shaking his head.
This girl. Her cheeky remarks always came one after another.
The two put away their jokes and pushed the door open.
The lights in the living room were already on.
Ye Shulian, wearing an apron, was wiping the dining table with a rag.
Gu Xiangcheng sat on the sofa, holding a purple clay teapot in his hand, zoning out while watching the morning news replay on the TV.
Hearing the door open, they both turned their heads at the same time.
"You're back?"
Ye Shulian put down the rag and came over to greet them.
Seeing the steaming hot breakfast in their hands, a pleased smile appeared on her face.
"Where did you go? I saw you weren't here early this morning. You even bought breakfast? Go wash your hands and get ready to eat."
She reached out and took the plastic bags from Gu Ran's hands.
Gu Ran replied as he handed the breakfast over.
"I went running with Sister Zhenzhen. We passed by the shop, so we just bought it on the way back."
Hearing the boy's words, Ye Shulian's gaze swept over Ye Zhenzhen, and her movements suddenly paused.
Gu Ran stood to the side, his complexion normal and his breathing steady.
The black sportswear on him was dry and neat, without a single wrinkle.
In contrast, her own daughter's cheeks were bright red, revealing an unnatural flush.
Fine beads of sweat hung on her forehead, and a few strands of wet hair clung to her cheeks.
The most crucial thing was those usually rosy lips.
At this moment, they were obviously a bit swollen and even had a watery sheen.
Ye Shulian was an experienced woman.
This kind of state was definitely not something that could be produced just by running.
She quietly put the breakfast on the dining table, her mind racing.
Could the physical gap between boys and girls really be this big?
Little Ran didn't even break a sweat, but Zhenzhen was this exhausted?
And these lips...
A strong sense of crisis rose in Ye Shulian's heart.
She secretly gritted her teeth and made up her mind.
She absolutely could not let the two of them go out alone anymore.
Tonight, she had to have a good discussion with Old Gu. From now on, she would make Old Gu run with them every morning!
But what about when school starts...
"Mom, I'm going to wash my face first."
Ye Zhenzhen felt a chill in her heart from her mother's stare. Leaving those words behind, she slipped into the bathroom as if fleeing.
Ten minutes later, the family of four sat around the dining table.
The atmosphere was a bit subtle.
Gu Xiangcheng took a sip of soy milk, his piercing gaze sweeping back and forth between his son and his future daughter-in-law.
He didn't speak, but the look he gave Gu Ran was full of an extremely obvious warning.
Translated, that look meant:
I know exactly what you were doing outside just now, you little punk!
Restrain yourself and don't go overboard!
Gu Ran sat upright in his chair, meeting his father's gaze with a calm expression.
He picked up a tea egg, cracked the shell on the table.
He skillfully peeled it and placed it in Gu Xiangcheng's bowl.
"Dad, eat more to supplement your protein. Is the bureau not too busy these days?"
On the surface, he was playing the role of the perfect filial son, but under the table, his foot quietly reached over.
He accurately found the girl's calf and tapped it gently twice, sending a comforting signal.
Ye Zhenzhen was looking down, biting into a steamed bun. When he tapped her, her body stiffened slightly.
She didn't dare look up, so she could only stretch out her foot under the table.
Stepping hard on someone's instep, she ground down forcefully.
Gu Ran's facial muscles twitched, but he forcefully held back from making a sound.
"The bureau has standby duty for the National Day holiday. I'll go tomorrow."
Gu Xiangcheng snorted, picking up the tea egg and taking a bite.
In order to break the tense atmosphere of being scanned back and forth by two human detectors.
Gu Ran swallowed the fried dough stick in his mouth and took the initiative to arrange their schedule.
"Dad, Aunt Ye, today at noon, Zhenzhen and I will stay home and have a nice meal with you."
He pulled out a tissue to wipe his hands, his tone natural.
"As for the afternoon, Ye Jinliang and Pei Susu are coming to find us. The four of us agreed to go eat barbecue and watch a movie, so we might be back a bit late tonight."
Hearing this arrangement, Gu Xiangcheng's expression softened quite a bit.
Knowing to eat with his elders meant this kid still had a conscience.
However, the hand Ye Shulian used to hold her chopsticks paused.
She subconsciously wanted to speak up and stop them.
These two kids were in such a dangerous state right now. If she let them go out to watch a movie, heaven knows what would happen!
Little Ran might get completely eaten alive by Zhenzhen!
She looked at Ye Zhenzhen with worry, hoping that the child had listened to some of their conversation from last night.
Otherwise, in the future, if the mother and daughter ended up bagging the father and son entirely, what would people say if word got out?
But when the words reached her lips, she swallowed them back.
After all, their two classmates, Ye Jinliang and Pei Susu, would be there. With the four of them hanging out together, nothing too out of line should happen.
If she forcibly stopped them now, it would seem too deliberate.
It might even directly pierce through that thin layer of window paper, making everyone embarrassed.
Thinking of this, Ye Shulian could only suppress the worries in her heart.
She managed to squeeze out a smile and nodded.
"Alright, you young people have your own circles. It's good to go out and gather more. But be careful tonight and come home early."
"Don't worry, Aunt Ye, I'll take good care of Sister Zhenzhen."
Gu Ran agreed extremely readily.
Ye Zhenzhen finally looked up and shot Gu Ran a glance.
This guy had arranged everything perfectly, even calculating their parents' psychological expectations.
This thrilling morning tug-of-war finally came to an end during the family's seemingly harmonious breakfast.
After the incident of being caught red-handed last night.
The two were quiet all morning, rarely interacting with each other.
Seeing this situation, Ye Shulian was naturally very satisfied.
Gu Xiangcheng was different. Looking at the somewhat deliberate distancing between the two kids.
He felt puzzled.
Did they... have a fight?
This brat usually wished he could stick to that girl Zhenzhen for 25 hours out of a 24-hour day.
What was going on today?
As a stepfather, it wasn't appropriate for him to ask Ye Zhenzhen directly.
He couldn't swallow his pride to ask Gu Ran, and asking Shulian would simply be a confession of his own snooping!
He took a sip of tea and realized he was just worrying for nothing.
The kids were grown up and had their own plans. What was he doing blindly speculating here?
Having thought it through, Gu Xiangcheng refilled his teacup, picked up the newspaper next to him.
And began reading it leisurely.
...

transmigrates into the world as the sect master of the Heavenly Yan Sect, which is on the verge of being wiped out. He binds a system that grants him cultivation power based on the number of disciples he has: for each disciple, he automatically gains a year's worth of cultivation every single day! Take one disciple: every day he gains 1 year of cultivation power. While others struggle through a year of bitter training, he gets the same just by sleeping through a single night. Take ten disciples: every day he gains 10 years of cultivation power. Foundation Establishment, Core Formation, Nascent Soul—he breezes through all bottlenecks without lifting a finger. Take one hundred disciples: every day he gains 100 years of cultivation power. Even a Soul Transformation Venerable before him can’t survive a single blow. Take ten thousand disciples: every day he gains 10,000 years of cultivation power! With a wave of his hand, he topples empires. With a single step, he crushes the sacred grounds of the universe. ... While others fight tooth and nail for secret techniques, Lin Yan casually hands out Nascent Soul-level cultivation manuals as beginner textbooks. While others strain to find talented recruits, Lin Yan opens his doors to anyone—so long as they’re human. In just three short years, the Heavenly Yan Sect went from a backwater sect made up of three crumbling huts to a sacred land that every cultivator under heaven would kill to enter. ... One day, otherworldly demon gods invade, with a million demon soldiers pressing down upon the realm. Lin Yan, yawning, rises from his lounge chair and glances at the system panel: [Current Disciples: 1.28 million] [Daily Cultivation Increase: 1.28 million years] He waves his hand casually, and the countless demon soldiers are reduced to ashes in an instant. “So noisy… interrupting my fishing.”

tions: attribute allocation, analysis, proficiency, and simulation. Specializing in mechanical alchemy, from crafting sorcerous battle armor to handcrafting mechanical maidens, his mechanical legion conquers endless realms... Relying on his wits, he begins with a student-teacher romance, wins over a female director, enslaves a female assassin and a underworld queen, becoming the husband of a Grand Duchess... He enslaves the Goddess of Magic from the divine realm, developing his power simultaneously in both the Wizard World and the Realm of Gods...

villain is the number one simp for the book's leading female protagonist, Shen Wan'er. As expected, he later becomes a tool for the main character to show off and slap faces, ultimately meeting a tragic end with his family ruined and his life in shambles. Fortunately, he awakens the [Universal Pure Love System], which allows him to earn points by performing acts of pure love. To change his fate, Gu Yan makes a decisive choice to seek warmth and companionship with the book's biggest villain—Cold Qingqiu. ........... My name is Leng Qingqiu. To find the murderer who killed my parents years ago, I deliberately blinded myself so that everyone would lower their guard around me. Just as I was secretly accumulating power and capital according to my initial plan, a man walked into my world. "Lengleng, Qingqing, Qiuqiu, which nickname do you prefer?" I don't like any of them. You'd better leave quickly! "Why aren't you saying anything? How about I call you my baby wife?" Leng Qingqiu thinks to herself, this man is truly annoying! (Stubborn pure love warrior + single female lead + true pure love + 1v1)

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."