Tang Manman visibly froze upon hearing the nickname "Manman," her expression growing increasingly hesitant.
Seeing Tang Manman wavering, Lin Yu decided to push her further.
As he opened the cake box, he beckoned Tang Manman over.
"Manman, come here. This cake is delicious—let me feed you."
A flash of temptation crossed Tang Manman's face.
She glanced at Tang Qinqin, who was watching them with a look that screamed "Don’t you dare betray the cause," then lowered her head sheepishly and slowly walked over to Lin Yu.
"Here."
"Ah~"
Lin Yu sat on the stool, scooping up a spoonful of mango cake and holding it out to Tang Manman.
She bent down, tucking a loose strand of hair behind her ear with one hand, revealing her flushed cheeks before taking the offered bite.
"Manman, did I force your sister to drink that chicken soup?"
Lin Yu set down the spoon, smiling as he asked.
Tang Manman chewed the cake twice, not daring to meet her sister’s dagger-like glare. With a red face, she shook her head weakly and murmured,
"I... I didn’t hear anything."
"Didn’t hear what?"
Lin Yu pressed, still grinning.
"I..."
Tang Manman stole a glance at her sister on the hospital bed, then quickly averted her eyes. After a pause, she spoke even softer, her voice barely audible:
"I didn’t hear you say anything threatening."
"Waaah!"
Before Lin Yu could even mock her, Tang Qinqin completely lost it. She slid down from her sitting position, flopping onto the bed like an overturned turtle, kicking and flailing as she wailed:
"WAAAAAH!!!"
"You two are bullying me!!!"
"I’m telling Mom!"
"I’ll tell Mom how you’re both ganging up on me!"
As Tang Qinqin threw her tantrum, Lin Yu scoffed, unimpressed.
"Tell your mom?"
"Hmph!"
"Won’t do you any good!"
"Your mom’s on my side too!"
"Huh?"
Tang Qinqin stopped mid-fit, gaping at Lin Yu in shock, her jaw practically hitting the floor.
From her stunned expression, Lin Yu quickly realized the unintended implication of his words.
He glared at her and scolded,
"What are you imagining, you little brat?"
Tang Qinqin pouted, her face scrunched up in displeasure.
Ignoring her sulking, Lin Yu picked up another clean spoon and shared the rest of the cake with Tang Manman, taking turns feeding each other.
Tang Qinqin watched furiously from the bed.
Her favorite mango cake was being devoured bite by bite, and her sweet, gentle sister was being led astray by that annoying guy!
After finishing the cake right in front of Tang Qinqin, Lin Yu asked for her contact info.
Though reluctant, she eventually handed it over.
With her details secured, Lin Yu didn’t linger. He retrieved a stuffed toy hidden outside the door, handed it to the now wide-eyed Tang Qinqin, then left the hospital amid her sweet farewells, heading home by taxi.
Outside the hospital, taxis waited around the clock like spawn points in a game—no matter how many left, new ones appeared in the blink of an eye.
Lin Yu chose the nearest cab and turned to say goodbye to Tang Manman.
"I’m off."
"Bye."
Tang Manman nodded lightly, a faint smile on her lips.
"Bye."
Lin Yu nodded back, opened the car door, and got in.
"Lin Yu."
A soft voice called from behind. He paused mid-motion and turned to look at her.
Tang Manman’s face was flushed—whether from the cold or something else, it was hard to tell.
She bit her pink lips, as if struggling to speak.
Finally, with resolve flashing in her eyes, she met his gaze and said firmly,
"I’ll become rich someday."
"So..."
"Please give me some time, okay?"
Lin Yu blinked, quickly understanding her worry.
He couldn’t help but laugh before reaching out to ruffle her hair, chiding gently,
"Didn’t I tell you not to overthink it?"
"Relax."
"I’m not interested in her."
He almost added that he didn’t care much about money either, but remembering her academic struggles, he held back—better not kill her motivation. Instead, he teased,
"Sure."
"I’ll wait for you."
"Work hard, okay?"
Tang Manman nodded seriously, as if sealing an important promise.
Lin Yu found it amusing but didn’t comment further.
After closing the door, the taxi pulled away smoothly.
Too impatient to wait until home, Lin Yu took out his phone and grilled Tang Qinqin: Why did she have Xia Yueshan’s phone? Why did she pose as him to invite Lin Yu to a hotel?
And what was the deal with hiding the phone behind the potted plant?!
After relentless badgering, Tang Qinqin caved and spilled everything.
The truth left Lin Yu feeling oddly hollow.
No grand conspiracy, no mastermind pulling strings—just two idiots stumbling into a mess through sheer coincidence.
In the end, he could only sigh at fate’s whims.
But was it really fate?
Gazing at the snow-blanketed world outside the window, Lin Yu fell silent.
Whatever.
No point dwelling on it.
He shrugged it off. Screw fate.
At this point, he’d already shaken off the second female lead, Xia Muzhu.
Even if Xia Yueshan remained a loose thread, what could that kid possibly do?
The fourth lead, Su Yuyao, was easy too—they had zero ties now. He wouldn’t seek her out, and he’d shoo her away if she tried.
The only tricky one was Qing Mo, but even that wasn’t a big deal.
Even in the worst-case scenario, it’d just be Qing Mo and Tang Manman together.
The depraved orgy from that hentai-esque ending would never happen.
He’d keep his principles, resist temptation—no way he’d sleep with all four and knock them up.
Unless they overpowered him!
Which was impossible.
Xia Muzhu alone would never do such a thing.
She was far too gentle for that.
] [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!"
with countless casualties. As a top-tier gamer, Liu Xuan volunteered to join the fight, intending to dominate with his skills, but instead he obtained the hidden class: [Pacifist]. Unable to attack. Unable to use active skills. Fortunately, with each level gained, he acquired a new passive skill. And so, armed with a body full of passives, Liu Xuan slaughtered his way through the battlefield of ten thousand races! [You attacked Liu Xuan] [You gained the debuffs: 'Poison', 'Fear', 'Burning', 'Bleeding', 'Freeze', 'Silence', etc.] [Your attack speed has been reduced by 99%] [Your armor and magic resistance have been reduced by 99%] Warriors of the Ten Thousand Races: How the hell am I supposed to fight this?!
end. Thus one must continue to cultivate, and become a saint or great emperor, in order to prolong one's life. Chen Xia, however, completely reversed this. Since his transmigration, he has gained immortality, and also a system that awards him with attribute points for every year he lives. Thus between the myriad worlds, the legend of an unparalleled senior appeared. "A gentleman takes revenge; it is never too late even after ten thousand years." "When you were at your peak I yielded, now in your old age I shall trample on you." - Chen Xia
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)
