When Ji Qingyi heard these words, a wave of helplessness and exhaustion washed over her, her expression darkening abruptly. Her eyes brimmed with complex emotions—indescribable in any language to capture her current state of mind.
Gu Ruoxue’s meaning was clear: she believed Su Cheng’s failure to consider them was his own issue.
He might have his own reasons. But that didn’t change her opinion of him.
She firmly declared that she wouldn’t abandon her convictions under external pressure or others’ judgments. She would stand her ground until the very end, until the outcome revealed itself.
This was a bold statement, a steadfast commitment to her true feelings.
She believed that even if Su Cheng disregarded them, it didn’t justify retaliating by drifting with the tide. What difference would there be between treating Su Cheng that way and how he treated them?
Such unyielding resolve left Ji Qingyi stunned.
She had never imagined Gu Ruoxue could possess such resolve, and it filled her with a sense of powerlessness.
She had only wanted Gu Ruoxue to yield before her, but instead, the other woman had turned the tables and begun lecturing her.
She had assumed Gu Ruoxue, like her, couldn’t voice her innermost thoughts. Now, it seemed that wasn’t the case.
A flicker of displeasure crossed her face, as if she had already lost this battle to Gu Ruoxue.
Hearing this, Ji Qingyi rose from her seat, looking down at Gu Ruoxue with a low, resolute voice: "I could never lower myself to please anyone the way you do."
Gu Ruoxue stood as well, meeting her gaze firmly. "If pursuing what truly matters to you is considered ‘pleasing’ in your eyes, then what in this world is worth striving for?"
Ji Qingyi’s eyes darkened like stagnant water, momentarily speechless. After a long silence, she finally spoke. "Since we can’t reach an understanding, I’ll take my leave."
"Take care," Gu Ruoxue replied calmly, her tone devoid of emotion.
After their curt exchange, Ji Qingyi left the café alone.
Meanwhile, Gu Ruoxue returned to her seat, sipping her tea in quiet composure, as if the earlier confrontation had left no mark on her. The tranquil afternoon carried only the faint aroma of tea and the unwavering determination in her eyes.
Inside a luxurious car, opulent decor exuded an air of extravagance.
Ji Qingyi stepped in and gracefully settled into the back seat. Two others were already inside—the driver, Ji Xiaze, and her maid, Liu Qingyue.
"It seems your discussion with that young lady didn’t go well," Liu Qingyue murmured softly, her eyes brimming with sympathy.
"You figured that out?" Ji Qingyi’s gaze flashed with irritation as she glanced at her.
Liu Qingyue nodded slightly. "I overheard a little. Even though the café had good soundproofing, I caught some of it."
But as she spoke, Ji Qingyi’s expression grew colder. Liu Qingyue quickly backtracked. "Miss, perhaps I should speak with her instead?"
Ji Qingyi replied icily, "No need. Drive."
With that, she turned to gaze out the window, as if she had lost all interest in continuing the conversation.
"Wait!" Liu Qingyue suddenly called out to the driver, then turned back to Ji Qingyi. "Miss, there’s no need to be upset. I have a way to make Gu Ruoxue bow to you willingly—just grant me permission to negotiate with her."
Ji Qingyi immediately turned to face her. "Are you certain you can make her yield?"
Liu Qingyue nodded. "Yes, Miss. If you authorize me, I guarantee our plan will proceed smoothly."
Ji Qingyi fell silent. Liu Qingyue’s refusal to disclose her methods made her wary. After all, this maid had repeatedly wounded her pride in the past—she couldn’t afford to trust her too easily.
So, Ji Qingyi closed her eyes, quietly resting.
"Miss, she sought you out today," Liu Qingyue pressed on. "That alone proves the situation is urgent. And I promise I won’t negotiate in any way that goes against your wishes."
Ji Qingyi frowned but didn’t respond immediately.
"As she said, every minute wasted could mean missing something crucial," Liu Qingyue coaxed, her tone persuasive. "If not for yourself, then for Su Cheng’s sake, you should at least try."
At these words, Ji Qingyi slowly opened her eyes.
She gave a slight nod. "Fine. Go ahead."
"Leave it to me." Liu Qingyue smiled in satisfaction before stepping out of the car.
Now, only Ji Qingyi and the driver remained inside, the atmosphere thick with tension.
"How exactly did she eavesdrop?" Ji Qingyi asked the driver while staring out the window. "I didn’t notice a thing."
"Well…" Ji Xiaze hesitated before pulling out a stethoscope-like device from his pocket. "She probably used this."
"What is this…?"
Ji Qingyi took the peculiar object and instinctively placed it over her ears. After a moment of careful listening, she looked at Ji Xiaze in confusion.
"Why can’t I hear anything?" She removed the device, puzzled. "What trick did she use? Did she turn it off?"
"No, Miss." Ji Xiaze pointed out the window toward another shop, where a one-way mirror faced their direction.
"She pressed this stethoscope against the glass to listen in," he explained cautiously. "This device can pick up conversations clearly through the one-way transparency. And she was extremely careful in positioning it."
An awkward image flashed through Ji Qingyi’s mind, leaving her momentarily stunned.
But she quickly snapped out of it.
"That’s impossible. Even if someone was hiding outside, my instincts should’ve detected them at that distance." She shook her head, unconvinced, then suddenly glared at Ji Xiaze. "Are you hiding something from me?"
"I wouldn’t dare! I’m telling the truth," Ji Xiaze hurriedly defended.
"Prove it," Ji Qingyi commanded. "Show me how it works—and listen in on what they’re saying now."
Without hesitation, Ji Xiaze took the stethoscope, stepped out of the car, and crossed the street to the shop’s window.
She pointed at the glass, then approached it.
Crouching down, she raised the stethoscope and pressed it against the window.
The pose was utterly undignified.
Even passersby couldn’t help but let out mocking laughter.
"How utterly pathetic…"
Ji Qingyi averted her gaze in disdain, but soon, the driver returned to the car and explained to her, "She noticed me and gave a warning by tapping on the window."
However, before Ji Qingyi could respond, she was surprised to see Liu Qingyue emerge from the café and walk straight toward her.
"So soon? How is that possible?"
Ji Qingyi’s face was filled with bewilderment.
"Young Mistress, please be aware—Gu Ruoxue is about to come out and will soon approach you," Liu Qingyue’s tactful reminder made Ji Qingyi whip her head around.
At that moment, she caught sight of a familiar figure stepping out of the café. Gu Ruoxue, dressed in her school uniform, walked toward her, confirming Liu Qingyue’s words—she was indeed coming for Ji Qingyi.
A flicker of doubt flashed in Ji Qingyi’s eyes.
She had originally intended to eavesdrop on Gu Ruoxue and Liu Qingyue’s conversation, but things had escalated far quicker than expected. What’s more, Gu Ruoxue hadn’t stubbornly held her ground—instead, she was taking the initiative to approach.
Soon after, Liu Qingyue calmly entered the car and took her seat with effortless grace.
Meanwhile, Gu Ruoxue strode forward without hesitation.
Ji Qingyi silently watched her. Gu Ruoxue met her gaze head-on, unwavering.
For a moment, their eyes locked in the air, as if time itself had frozen.
After a long pause, Ji Qingyi finally looked away, her voice as cold as a frozen lake. "I thought you’d refuse to yield."
Gu Ruoxue shook her head. "My only goal is for us to stand on the same side in this matter."
"Oh? Is that so." Ji Qingyi’s tone was icy. "How convenient for you. Fine, get in. We have plenty of time to talk."
Gu Ruoxue stepped into the car and sat across from Ji Qingyi.
Yet her first words were, "There’s no time for lengthy discussions. We need to head to Su Cheng’s house immediately—we can talk on the way."
【Prologue: The Beginning of It All – Use holy water to heal the saintess tainted by demonic energy, then converse with her.】 Shen Nian stared at his older sister sipping yogurt, lost in thought. So you’re telling me my sister is the saintess, and yogurt is the holy water? 【Main Quest 1: Brave Youth, Become an Adventurer! Reward: Rookie Adventurer Title.】 【Side Quest 1: Find the Adorable Kitty! Reward: 1000 Gold Coins.】 Shen Nian: "Wait, I’m a high school senior here—did some guy who got isekai’d accidentally bind his system to me?" Hold on, completing quests gives gold rewards? Titles even boost stats? Is this for real? (A lighthearted, absurd campus comedy—not a revenge power fantasy.)
] [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!"
ing gift was a patch of barren land, and disciples were all picked up along the way. He spent fifty years diligently building three "ramshackle little sects," thinking he could finally live a carefree life relying on his disciples. But right at the fifty-year mark, he was suddenly swept away by a spatial rift and exiled to the Chaos Desolation, the Disorderly Ruins. There was no spiritual energy there, only slaughter. Relying on the cultivation feedback from his disciples, Gu Changyuan hacked his way through a sea of blood for eleven hundred years. When the system finally fished him back out, he discovered the ramshackle little sects he'd built back then had developed a rather... unusual style. Hold on... I vanished for a thousand years, so how did my ramshackle little sects become holy lands?!
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!
