Chapter 304
The afternoon sun was just right, spilling all over the floor through the huge floor-to-ceiling windows in the living room.
Ye Zhenzhen let go of his hand and walked over to the sofa to sit down. The young man behind her followed suit.
Gu Ran leaned back comfortably against the fabric sofa.
His slender fingers quietly slipped past the throw pillow, firmly enveloping the soft, warm little hand of the girl beside him in his palm.
A faint blush appeared on Ye Zhenzhen's cheeks. She struggled symbolically a couple of times, but failing to pull free, she gave up resisting.
Her watery eyes cast vigilant glances toward the master bedroom from time to time.
Using her free hand, she picked up a strawberry, plucked off its green leaves, and stuffed it into Gu Ran's mouth.
She used the food to block his mouth, preventing him from blurting out any wild, inappropriate words.
The young man took the opportunity to bite the tip of the strawberry, his warm lips intentionally or unintentionally brushing against the girl's fair fingertips, causing Ye Zhenzhen to hastily withdraw her hand.
Accompanied by the faint click of the door lock turning, Ye Shulian walked out of the bedroom.
On the sofa, the girl hurriedly yanked her hand away and moved to the other end of the couch.
She tilted her head up, pretending to be deeply engrossed in studying the texture of the ceiling, though even her fair neck betrayed a suspicious shade of pink.
Gu Ran calmly picked up a magazine from the coffee table. His composed demeanor was so flawless that one would be tempted to give him a thumbs-up.
Ye Shulian took in all of her daughter's poorly concealed little movements.
She was overjoyed on the inside but pretended to have seen nothing.
She picked up her water cup from the table, added some water, and naturally sat down on the opposite sofa to fret over the arrangements for the Lunar New Year.
"Xiao Ran, there's less than half a month until New Year's Eve. Have you booked the rooms at the hot spring resort?"
Gu Ran put down the magazine, sat up straight, and replied in a brisk tone.
"Don't worry, Auntie Ye. I'll do some thorough research over the next couple of days and get the rooms and itinerary all sorted out."
As he spoke, he peeled an orange, handed it over, and continued.
"My plan is for us to head over a week early and stay there for half a month. It's the perfect chance for my dad to finally use the annual leave he's been saving up for eight hundred years, so the whole family can have a proper vacation and relax."
Ye Shulian beamed with delight. She took the orange and repeatedly praised Gu Ran for being so reliable.
Without thinking, she threw a certain eavesdropper in the master bedroom under the bus.
"Alright, Auntie is always at ease when you handle things. Don't let your dad's usual silence fool you; when he went back to the room just now, he was rubbing his hands together in excitement, constantly praising you for being so thoughtful."
Two deliberate, dry coughs came from the crack of the master bedroom door, interrupting the harmonious conversation in the living room.
Gu Xiangcheng walked out of the room with his hands behind his back, taking steady, measured steps.
An unnatural flush colored his face.
"What nonsense are you spouting in front of the kids? Who was rubbing their hands in excitement?"
To cover up the embarrassment of being exposed, he walked over to the coffee table, picked up a cup of tea that had long gone cold, and forced himself to take a sip.
Then, he plopped down onto the single sofa, picked up a newspaper, and gave it a shake.
"Well, staying there for half a month will definitely cost quite a bit. It's not easy for you young folks to start a business. If you don't have enough money, I can chip in."
Gu Ran stifled a laugh.
Lao Gu was feeling embarrassed.
It was a rare sight indeed.
To avoid getting beaten up, the young man replied obediently.
"Got it, Dad."
After saying that, he gave Ye Zhenzhen a look, signaling her to head back to her room first.
The latter immediately caught on. She stood up, smoothed the hem of her clothes, and said sweetly.
"Uncle Gu, Mom, you guys chat. I'm going back to my room to read."
Gu Xiangcheng nodded, his posture perfectly poised.
Ye Shulian rolled her eyes at him, her meaning self-evident.
Keep pretending!
Gu Ran chuckled inwardly and also stood up, ready to end this awkward conversation.
"Dad, I'm heading back to my room too. You and Auntie Ye enjoy the TV."
He turned around and took a few steps before seemingly remembering something important. He turned back to earnestly remind his old man.
"Oh right, Dad. You can bring some of your favorite tea leaves. I'm worried you might not be used to the tea at the resort."
Gu Xiangcheng gave a very pleased grunt of acknowledgment, his eyes still fixed on the newspaper in his hands as he feigned indifference.
Gu Ran looked at his father, who had grabbed the newspaper in a panic and was holding it upside down.
His eyes darted around, and he offered a kind reminder.
"Dad, the newspaper is upside down again."
Having said that, he immediately slipped away.
He hurried toward his room, as if afraid he'd get a beating if he was even a second late.
Gu Xiangcheng's old face flushed red as he watched his son's fleeing back.
He cursed with a secret smile and silently turned the newspaper right-side up.
"Brat! Exposing his old man's flaws again."
Despite his words, a comfortable smile that he didn't even notice graced his face.
...
Inside Ye Zhenzhen's room.
The girl, wearing fluffy pink pajamas, stood with her arms crossed behind the curtains by the balcony door, silently waiting for a certain guy who had a habit of climbing balconies.
She knew Gu Ran's modus operandi like the back of her hand, fully aware that as long as there was an opportunity, this guy would absolutely not stay put in his own room.
Sure enough, a few minutes later, a familiar dark silhouette appeared outside the glass door of the balcony.
Gu Ran, familiar with the route, sneaked into the bedroom like a thief, peering around.
He gently closed the floor-to-ceiling window while muttering quietly, his gaze searching the room for the girl's figure.
"Where is she? Did she go take a shower?"
Before he could finish his sentence, Ye Zhenzhen, hiding in the shadows of the curtains, reached out her slender fingers and grabbed the young man's slightly cool ear.
Gu Ran gasped in pain, startled by the sudden movement.
As the pain set in, he repeatedly begged for mercy.
"Hiss, you scared me! Ye Zhenzhen, you've learned to be bad, actually launching a sneak attack. Let go, it hurts, hurts, hurts!"
Ye Zhenzhen secretly applied more force, a triumphant smile on her pretty face.
"Sneak attack? Your big sister here calls this catching a turtle in a jar! I knew you, you little rascal, wouldn't be able to sit still! As soon as I entered the room, I camped out here waiting for you, and sure enough, you didn't disappoint me."
She grabbed the boy's ear and dragged him all the way to the single sofa in the middle of the room, striking an interrogative pose.
"Speak! Uncle Gu and my mom are still home! What kind of shady idea are you plotting again? Is your skin itching for a beating?"
Enduring the pain, Gu Ran could only tilt his head following the force of her hand and pretend to be pitiful.
"Sister, those words are too hurtful. Given our relationship, how could you use such hurtful words?"
The girl suddenly paused, her little brain starting to spin.
What relationship?
Lip-friendship?
At this thought, Ye Zhenzhen's small face turned red, and the force in her hand unconsciously loosened a bit.
But she still maintained a proud posture, unwilling to lose the upper hand in momentum, and lowered her voice.
"Stop being glib! We're at home, not in our little apartment. If we get discovered, how will we explain it?"
Gu Ran took the opportunity to pull her hand down and hold it firmly in his palm, rubbing his reddened earlobe with his other hand.
He muttered nonchalantly, trying to muddle through.
"They've known for a long time. Besides, during the New Year, I'm going to pro..."
Halfway through his sentence, Gu Ran bit the tip of his tongue.
He forcefully swallowed the word 'propose' back down, his heartbeat skipping a beat in that instant.
A layer of cold sweat seeped from his back as he secretly cried out that was close in his heart.
He almost spilled the beans about proposing.
His eyes darted around as he stiffly changed the subject.
"I mean, just thinking about carrying heavy luggage to the villa for the New Year makes me feel tired. I need to plan the route in advance."
Ye Zhenzhen: "......"
Who are you trying to fool?
Don't you think that sounds ridiculous yourself?
Listening to this nonsensical explanation, Ye Zhenzhen frowned her delicate eyebrows.
She looked at the person in front of her suspiciously, clearly not believing his nonsense.
"Carry? Carry what? Gu 'Dog' Ran, stop trying to trick me. That's definitely not what you wanted to say just now, you..."
Seeing that things were going south, Gu Ran thought quickly and leaned in a bit closer, shortening the distance between them.
"What's wrong, sister? You're so nervous, could it be you're scared? Relax, the ugly daughter-in-law has to meet the father-in-law eventually, right?"
Hearing the words ugly daughter-in-law, Ye Zhenzhen raised her leg in embarrassment and anger, pretending to kick Gu Ran's calf.
"Are you asking for death? Who's an ugly daughter-in-law? You're ugly, your whole family is ugly!"
Gu Ran backed away toward the balcony while continuing to deal verbal damage, refusing to lose out in the argument.
"When it comes to being vicious, it has to be you. You didn't even forget to include yourself when cursing people."
Hearing this, the girl's small face turned red with anger.
Her chest heaved slightly due to her rapid breathing, and her large, watery eyes glared at him fiercely.
She ground her long-unused little canine teeth, revealed a friendly smile, and said word by word.
"Gu 'Dog' Ran... I haven't taught you a lesson in a while, your skin is itching for a beating, isn't it..."
Sensing the danger, the boy decisively chose to retreat to the edge of the balcony.
He casually dropped a sentence and then made a quick getaway.
"I suddenly remembered that the rooms at the villa haven't been booked yet. I need to go right now."
After saying that, under the girl's murderous gaze, Gu Ran swiftly fled the dangerous place.
Watching the boy's disappearing figure, Ye Zhenzhen angrily fell back onto the soft bed, her hands punching the pillow twice to vent her frustration.
Due to inertia, the girl's petite body bounced up and down with the sinking of the mattress, causing the neckline of her pajamas to open slightly.
She reached out her small hand to fan her cheeks, trying to calm her racing heart, while not forgetting to mutter complaints.
"Dog, he runs pretty fast."
After calming down for a while, Gu Ran's unfinished sentence echoed in Ye Zhenzhen's mind again. She felt that something was not quite right.
During the New Year, he's going to propose...
Propose?
The girl's sixth sense was pushed to the limit at this moment, and a bold thought gradually formed in her mind.
Could it be a marriage proposal???
Ye Zhenzhen: "!!!"
That dog was going to propose to her during the New Year.
Thinking of this, the girl's anger from just now instantly vanished without a trace.
An indescribable sense of shyness and nervousness quickly took over her heart.
She reached out both hands and patted her burning cheeks hard.
Calm down, Ye Zhenzhen. This is just your guess.
Do not be presumptuous.
The girl's wildly beating heart just couldn't calm down.
Her mind was full of Gu Ran's flustered appearance as he tried to cover it up just now. The more she thought about it, the more suspicious it seemed.
If it really was a proposal, what should she do?
She wasn't ready yet. This was too sudden!
Realizing that her thoughts were going off track, she silently spat at herself.
Ye Zhenzhen!
How could you think like that?
That's scumbag behavior!
That being said, how was she going to face Gu Ran over the next few days?
Should she pretend not to know, or ask him indirectly about what on earth he was up to?
If it was true, then she would just pretend she didn't know!
That's right! She absolutely couldn't let that dog laugh at her, nor could she let him think he had her in the bag.
Thinking about this, she suddenly sat up.
Her gaze fell on the huge plush bear at the head of the bed. It was a birthday gift from Gu Ran.
She grabbed the doll into her arms, and her petite body fell into the bedding along with the big bear, her slender legs kicking happily in the air twice.
The girl tightened her arms and buried her burning cheeks deep into the plush toy's furry chest, trying to use the doll's warmth to calm her mood.
After a good while.
A burst of difficult-to-suppress, shy laughter unique to a young girl came from the quiet bedroom.
......
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.
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!
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.
