Chen Zhi looked at Pei Ningxue, who was tightly entangled around his body, and broke out in a cold sweat.
Lin Wanwan was already waiting downstairs at her dorm!
He carefully moved Pei Ningxue's pale leg off his waist. This woman was a restless sleeper; the moment he moved her even a little, she let out a soft groan and prepared to snuggle up to him again.
With quick reflexes, Chen Zhi grabbed a down pillow from the side and stuffed it into her arms.
Pei Ningxue hugged the pillow, rubbed her cheek against it, and her breathing became even again.
Success.
Chen Zhi got dressed, splashed some cold water on his face in the bathroom, and rushed out the door.
The morning rush hour traffic in Beijing was so congested it made one doubt the meaning of life.
By the time the taxi pulled up to the entrance of the Central Conservatory of Music, it was almost eight-thirty.
From a distance, Chen Zhi spotted Lin Wanwan standing in the cold wind.
The little girl was wearing a long off-white down jacket today, with a matching off-white scarf wrapped around her neck, revealing only a pair of clear, expressive large eyes.
She was standing on her tiptoes, looking toward the intersection. The tip of her nose was red from the cold.
Chen Zhi hurried over.
"What took you so long?" Lin Wanwan looked at Chen Zhi as he ran over, her tone carrying a hint of grievance and complaint.
Looking apologetic, Chen Zhi took her freezing little hands and stuffed them into his pockets to warm them up.
"I'm sorry, baby. There was an emergency at the company yesterday, and I had to fix bugs overnight, so I went to bed a bit late." Chen Zhi lied without batting an eye.
Lin Wanwan was originally still angry, but when she looked up and saw Chen Zhi's face clearly, most of her anger instantly vanished.
He had faint dark circles under his eyes, and his face was somewhat pale. The word haggard was written all over his face.
Little did Lin Wanwan know, those dark circles were entirely the result of being kept awake all night by a certain female hooligan.
She actually thought Chen Zhi was working desperately hard for their future.
"Don't work yourself too hard." Lin Wanwan reached out with heartache and touched Chen Zhi's cheek. "Why don't you go back and rest today? I'm fine, we can go shopping another day."
"How could I do that?" Chen Zhi refused righteously. "Accompanying my girlfriend shopping is the most important thing in the world. No matter how tired I am, it's still a blessing."
Feeling a sweet warmth in her heart, Lin Wanwan pulled Chen Zhi over to a nearby bench.
"Sit here and wait for me. I'll go buy you some breakfast!"
"You don't have to, I'm not hungry..." Chen Zhi had actually eaten the late-night snack Pei Ningxue ordered last night.
"No refusing!" Lin Wanwan widened her eyes, threatening him in a cute, fierce manner. "Otherwise, I'll hate you!"
Seeing the little girl's puffed-up cheeks, Chen Zhi had no choice but to obediently sit down on the bench.
Lin Wanwan turned and sprinted into the nearby cafeteria.
Ten minutes later.
She ran back carrying a steaming plastic bag.
"Here, freshly steamed meat buns." Lin Wanwan handed the piping hot buns to Chen Zhi.
Chen Zhi took a large bite. The skin was thin, the filling was generous, and rich juices filled his mouth.
Lin Wanwan then took out a cup of soy milk, carefully inserted the straw, and the moment Chen Zhi swallowed the bun in his mouth, she immediately brought the soy milk to his lips.
Chen Zhi took a big sip of the soy milk directly from her hand.
Watching Lin Wanwan's focused expression as she fed him, a strong wave of guilt suddenly welled up in Chen Zhi's heart.
This sweet girl was here feeling sorry for him staying up late to work, yet he had slept in another woman's bed last night.
Was he even human?
However, this sense of guilt lasted for less than five seconds before he snuffed it out.
Those who achieve great things do not bother about trifles. To be a qualified scumbag who wants to give every girl a home, this was a necessary psychological trial.
Finishing the bun in two bites, Chen Zhi wiped his mouth.
"I'm full. Where are we going to play today? It's all up to you." Chen Zhi stood up, ready to set off.
But Lin Wanwan grabbed him and shook her head.
"We're not going."
Chen Zhi froze for a moment. "What's wrong? Didn't we agree to go to Wangfujing to buy a bag, and then watch a movie in the afternoon?"
Lin Wanwan looked at his tired eyes and bit her lip.
"You must have stayed up really late last night. Today, as long as you just hold me and chat for a bit, I'll forgive you for ignoring me these past few days."
After saying that, before Chen Zhi could react, Lin Wanwan took a step forward.
She unzipped Chen Zhi's down jacket and then snuggled inside like a little kitten.
Chen Zhi naturally wrapped the large down jacket around her, his arms circling her waist.
In November, the winds of Beijing were piercingly cold.
But the small body in his arms was fragrant, soft, and warm.
Lin Wanwan had been standing outside for quite a while, and her cheeks were icy from the cold wind. She buried her face deeply into the crook of Chen Zhi's neck.
It felt cold and ticklish.
"Chen Zhi," Lin Wanwan's muffled voice came from inside the down jacket.
"Yeah, I'm listening."
"My agent took on another newcomer last week. It's a little boy who really loves to show off."
"A super nice teacher came to the recording studio recently. She has a very gentle temper and patiently guides me on my vocal techniques every day."
"But practicing singing every day is really, really tiring. Sometimes I sing until my throat feels like it's smoking."
The little girl chattered away in his arms.
She poured out all the daily events she hadn't been able to share with Chen Zhi during this time, piece by piece.
"Oh right, yesterday my roommates actually started asking me for autographs on behalf of students from other departments! Chen Zhi, am I getting a little famous?"
"And also, the stray cat I've been feeding for days finally let me pat its head nicely yesterday."
Lin Wanwan's arms wrapped tightly around Chen Zhi's waist, hugging him tighter and tighter.
"And..." Her voice suddenly became very soft, like a murmur.
"I missed you so much every single day."
Chen Zhi didn't interrupt her.
He rested his chin on the top of Lin Wanwan's head and listened quietly.
Through the two layers of clothing, he could even clearly feel Lin Wanwan's steady, rhythmic heartbeat. The faint scent of shampoo from her hair lingered at the tip of his nose.
At this moment, Chen Zhi truly felt that Lin Wanwan was incredibly, incredibly cute.
So cute it was almost a crime.
He really, really liked Lin Wanwan.
Lin Wanwan seemed to have tired herself out from talking. With her cheek pressed against his chest, she didn't speak again for a long time. The two of them just held each other quietly by the campus bench in the winter cold.
"Wanwan," Chen Zhi suddenly spoke softly.
"Mhm?" A very soft nasal sound came from inside the down jacket.
"I like you so much," Chen Zhi rubbed his chin against the top of her hair.
The person in his arms visibly stiffened for a second, then tightened her arms a bit more.
"I like you so much too, Chen Zhi."
A cold wind blew past their ears, and Chen Zhi pulled the hem of his jacket closer, wrapping her up even tighter.
"When you graduate, let's get married, okay?" Chen Zhi blurted out. Even though he still had Li Zhiyi and Pei Ningxue in his heart, in this exact second, all he could think about was completely locking down this soft girl in his arms.
Chen Zhi felt the girl in his arms move.
Lin Wanwan poked her little head out from the collar of the oversized down jacket, tilting her head up and staring at him unblinkingly with those large, watery eyes.
"I won't say yes to you," Lin Wanwan wrinkled her nose with a touch of playful arrogance. "You haven't even formally proposed to me yet. You can't just be so casual about it."
"Then I'll pick an auspicious day, buy a huge diamond ring, and officially propose. Will you marry me then?" Chen Zhi smiled, leaning his head down close to hers.
"No."
"Why not?" Chen Zhi was taken aback.
"Hmph, it depends on your performance," Lin Wanwan blinked slyly.
"That won't do. You have to marry me, it's non-negotiable." Chen Zhi deliberately put on a stern face.
"Why are you so bossy, Chen Zhi!" Lin Wanwan laughed, reaching out to playfully punch his chest. "Why must I marry you?"
"Because when we played house as kids, you said you would marry me and be my wife. We've been betrothed since childhood, there's no way you're backing out now."
Hearing Chen Zhi bring up their childhood, Lin Wanwan suddenly remembered something.
She slipped her hand out from his down jacket and gently pulled Chen Zhi's left arm toward her.
Through the thick winter clothes, she couldn't actually feel his skin, but her fingers pressed accurately on a specific spot on his forearm. Right there lay a faint scar, left behind from a boiling water burn he suffered while saving her years ago.
"If you..." Lin Wanwan lowered her head, her voice suddenly becoming incredibly soft, carrying a mix of shyness and earnestness. "If you bully me a little less in the future, I'll give you lots and lots of babies, okay?"
Chen Zhi blurted out without hesitation, "Okay!"
Time flew by as the two exchanged sweet nothings. Chen Zhi kept his down jacket unzipped, keeping Lin Wanwan wrapped up in his arms as they chatted the entire morning away.
At noon, the two had a simple lunch at a restaurant outside the university gates.
After eating, as they stood at the restaurant entrance ready to part ways, Chen Zhi actually felt reluctant to let her go.
"How about we go hang out for a bit this afternoon?" Chen Zhi held her hand. "We haven't bought your bag yet, and we haven't seen a movie either."
Lin Wanwan firmly pulled her hand back and gave him an exasperated look, reaching out to poke the faint dark circles under Chen Zhi's eyes.
"Hang out? No way! Hurry back to your dorm and get some rest!" Lin Wanwan scolded with a stern little face. "You're as exhausted as a giant panda and you still want to run around. If you ruin your health, who's going to take care of me?"
Chen Zhi felt a twinge of guilt.
This silly girl. Her mind was entirely focused on his well-being, to the point where she was willing to drop the date she had been looking forward to for so long at a moment's notice.
"Alright, I'll go back and catch up on my sleep." Chen Zhi leaned in and planted a quick kiss on her lips.
Watching Lin Wanwan walk through the university gates, glancing back at him every few steps, the sleepiness on Chen Zhi's face vanished without a trace.
He did leave.
But of course, he wasn't going to obediently head back to his dorm at Peking University to sleep.
Chen Zhi stood by the road, casually hailed a taxi, pulled the door open, and got in.
"Driver, to Renmin University."
He certainly couldn't rest right now.
Because he had a date with Li Zhiyi this afternoon.

ver to a world of cultivation and returned invincible. Modern medicine is child's play compared to elixirs; technological might crumbles before true cultivation. My name is Qin Ning, Earth's sole cultivator!

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."

ine. During your journey, you save an abandoned baby girl and become her elder brother】 【You rely on each other, becoming each other's support】 【At the end of the simulation, you shield the now-grown girl with your life, sacrificing yourself to block numerous demonic cultivators. You die, and the light in the girl's eyes fades】 …… 【Second Simulation: You are transported to a world where steam and magic coexist】 【You immerse yourself in the study of magic, obsessed with its research. One day, while out, you encounter a half-blooded demon girl wandering the streets. You take her in as your student】 【You teach the demoness what it means to be human, show her the beauty of the world, and nurture her into a miracle that surpasses even the gods】 【At the end of the simulation, you die of old age in front of the nearly immortal demoness due to your mortal lifespan】 …… One simulation after another, one encounter after another. Xu Xi suddenly felt something was off: "Wait, you said you're coming to the real world to find me?"

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.”