In the brightly lit bedroom, Xu Mingyao had no idea how she had made it through the first half of the night.
Anxiety was like a hideous demon clinging to her back, tormenting her until she was restless and on the verge of tears.
Why?
Why isn't she back yet?
It's already eleven at night.
Why hasn't Tao Yaoyao returned?
Why hasn't she come back yet?
Didn't she say she was just going out for a bit in the afternoon and would be back by night?
Where is she right now?
It's already eleven o'clock!
Why isn't she back yet?!
The anxiety was driving Xu Mingyao crazy. She looked down at the phone in her hand once again.
Tao Yaoyao still hadn't sent a single message.
Now, the outcome seemed glaringly obvious.
If Tao Yaoyao had really been delayed by something, she would have called her like usual, or at the very least sent a text to let her know.
Drained of all her strength, Xu Mingyao slumped onto the bed, staring blankly ahead as she braced herself for the fate she was most unwilling to accept, yet had no choice but to face.
Was she going to leave her too?
Xu Mingyao sat numbly on the bed. A few seconds later, the corners of her mouth began to twitch uncontrollably.
Like the first few tumbling rocks before a devastating mudslide, Xu Mingyao's calm expression rapidly crumbled.
Her mouth twisted into a sob.
Choked whimpers spilled out along with her tears.
Bastard!
Bastard!!!
I knew you were just like the rest of them!
You're all just a bunch of money-grubbing jerks!
None of you are any good!
Xu Mingyao wept heartbrokenly.
Amidst her sobs, she curled up her smooth, pale legs. Even though she had a tall, flawless figure, when curled up like this, she looked like nothing more than a pitifully small ball.
On the screen of the phone that had been tossed aside, the timestamp of the last text message was frozen at 10:35 AM that morning.
Yes.
After 10:35 AM, not only had Tao Yaoyao stopped messaging Xu Mingyao...
Xu Mingyao hadn't sent a single message to Tao Yaoyao either.
Not even a basic question to check in.
Xu Mingyao cared about Tao Yaoyao.
But she didn't want anyone to know that she cared about Tao Yaoyao.
She had even been trying to deceive herself, forcing herself to believe that she actually didn't care about Tao Yaoyao.
She desperately wanted to hold onto her past self.
The old Xu Mingyao was just like that.
She was aloof and superior.
She didn't care about anything.
What did it matter if someone was beautiful or not?
The last thing this world lacked was pretty girls.
No one is eighteen forever, but there is always someone who is eighteen.
Beautiful women are always a renewable, cheap resource.
When she used to have money, status, and a position everyone looked up to, why would she care about a few pretty women?
So, to convince herself that she was still the same lofty and untouchable Xu Mingyao from before, the current Xu Mingyao...
She started imitating herself, even going further than before.
She refused to admit that she cared about Tao Yaoyao.
She refused to admit that she was no longer the old Xu Mingyao.
So she would rather die than show a pathetic display of needing them, or even being unable to live without them, in front of people like Tao Yaoyao.
Because the old Xu Mingyao would never do such a thing!
Get lost!
All of you, get lost!
So what if I don't have you?
I can live perfectly well on my own!
Xu Mingyao cursed viciously in her heart, but she was crying so hard that tears rolled down her face one after another, soaking a large patch of the soft silk nightgown on her legs.
As she cried, Xu Mingyao's shoulders suddenly trembled.
She looked up with a blank expression, panic flashing in her wet, red eyes.
In that instant, she thought of a terrifying possibility.
Could Tao Yaoyao have gotten into an accident?
Was that why she hadn't sent any messages?
At the thought of this, an unprecedented fear welled up in Xu Mingyao's heart.
This thought was like wildly growing weeds; the moment it appeared in Xu Mingyao's mind, it frantically consumed all her thoughts.
No longer caring about her childish self-deception...
She grabbed the phone beside her like a drowning person clutching at straws, her fingers trembling as she tried to send Tao Yaoyao a message, desperate for a reply.
Any kind of reply would do.
As long as she could answer her.
As long as it proved she was safe and sound.
Xu Mingyao's slender, pale fingers tapped shakily on the phone screen.
Before she could even finish typing a short question, a message suddenly popped up on the chat interface.
Tao Yaoyao: Sister Yaoyao, are you asleep?
Xu Mingyao's fingers suddenly froze. Staring at the pop-up message, she was stunned for a moment.
A massive wave of emotion crashed over her, and for a moment, she couldn't even taste the joy in it.
Xu Mingyao didn't reply, but Tao Yaoyao's messages kept coming one after another, as if she was anxiously trying to explain something.
Tao Yaoyao: My phone ran out of battery and died. I was busy earlier and only just found the time to charge it.
Tao Yaoyao: Oh, right!
Tao Yaoyao: I found a job!
Tao Yaoyao: The salary for this job is very high,
Tao Yaoyao: And there's a lot of room for promotion.
Tao Yaoyao: It's just a bit busy.
Tao Yaoyao: Tonight I was busy with work stuff the whole time.
Tao Yaoyao: I forgot to tell you, Sister Yaoyao.
Tao Yaoyao: I'm sorry. (Cute little bunny with hands clasped in apology sticker)
Looking at the string of messages from Tao Yaoyao, Xu Mingyao silently tapped the backspace key, deleting the text she hadn't finished typing one character at a time.
After doing all this, she still didn't reply to Tao Yaoyao. Instead, she covered her crying face with her hands and let out a long sigh of relief.
Thank goodness.
It's so good that she's still here.
People don't cherish the good things they've always had.
Only after losing and regaining them do most people realize they are treasures.
Even if that loss was just a false alarm.
Tao Yaoyao: Sister Yaoyao, are you there?
Tao Yaoyao's message quickly followed.
Tao Yaoyao: I see there are still a lot of food stalls open on the street.
Tao Yaoyao: Is there anything you want to eat?
Xu Mingyao looked at Tao Yaoyao's latest message. After a brief hesitation, she chose to remain silent.
After thinking for a long time, she still wasn't willing to completely cast aside that lofty, superior version of herself in her heart.
But subconsciously, she had already elevated Tao Yaoyao's position in her heart by a lot, a whole lot...
nce】【Lighthearted Comedy】【Ultimate Gentleman's Novel】【Viewer Discretion Advised for Under 16】 The mightiest human hero, Sharen Morian, is resurrected after a thousand years by his wife—the Demon King. This is not your typical hero-vs-demon-king tale.
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!
for mindless slaughter, this isn't for you.] My name is Ye Shu, and I'm a transmigrator. It seems I'm supposed to be the protagonist, but that feels pretty unlikely. This world has been invaded by a system. The antagonists on the other side have suddenly become pure, flawless saints. The female leads have been force-fed the so-called "original plot," making them think they've been reborn. Now, everyone thinks I'm scum. Including the old lady in my ring. And here I am, in the Monster Beast Mountain Range, braising pork. To put my situation in perspective— It's as if, the moment Xiao Yan stepped into the Monster Beast Mountain Range, the Soul Emperor already knew he would become the Flame Emperor, and Yao Lao had been turned to the enemy's side. I have nothing right now. Oh wait, that's not true. I do have a white-haired loli child-bride who's the Heavenly Dao, and her only skill is acting cute. So, tell me guys... what are my chances of making it to the end?
shall grant"] ["Inscribing the glory of our race upon tombstones"] ["All that is threatened, I shall protect"] How his younger sister sees her brother: A brother who only makes eye contact once a day, mostly fading into the background as he tinkers with who-knows-what in his room all day. Their life paths should have remained largely separate. Until one day. Su Qi created an equipment card for his never-met "online girlfriend." His sister fell into silent contemplation upon receiving the "white stockings." [Card can be upgraded] [Upgrade by fulfilling any of the following conditions] [Condition ①: Consume one hundred higher-tier cards] [Condition ②: Complete one 'Heart-Pounding Adventure'] What constitutes a Heart-Pounding Adventure? [Heart-Pounding Adventure (Beginner Level): Equip the card and invite 'Su Qi' to admire it.] [Heart-Pounding Adventure (Easy Level): Equip the card, invite 'Su Qi' to touch it, and analyze the equipment's texture.] [Heart-Pounding Adventure (Entry Level): Equip the card and invite 'Su Qi' to...] [Heart-Pounding Adventure (Challenge Level): Freely combine the words 'Brother' 'Out' 'Brother' 'Me' 'Please' into a complete sentence...] "Please help me analyze both teams' mistakes in this match, brother..." His sister exhaled in relief—surely... surely there couldn't be anything more difficult? [Heart-Pounding Adventure (Suicide Mission Level): Sneak a peek at the names of the galgames in 'Su Qi's' hidden E-drive folder]
