"Mm..."
Li Mucheng gradually woke up in bed. The first thing she did upon opening her beautiful eyes was to search the room for Ye Feng's figure. Sure enough, she found him sitting worriedly on a chair by the bedside.
"Mu Cheng, you're awake."
"Teacher..."
Li Mucheng propped herself up slowly, one hand pressing against her forehead as she swayed slightly from dizziness.
"Mu Cheng, lie back down!"
Seeing her like this, Ye Feng couldn't let her get up. He reached out, pressing both hands on her shoulders to guide her back onto the bed.
"Your physical condition isn't stable yet. Getting up so suddenly could be dangerous."
"Teacher..."
Li Mucheng lay on the bed, her expression complicated as she looked at Ye Feng. Taking a deep breath as if steeling herself, she asked,
"What did the doctors say? Do I have a serious illness?"
"Don't talk nonsense. Your health is perfectly fine. You just fainted from exhaustion. Speaking of which, how did you overexert yourself? Have you been thinking about something lately?"
"Yes... Every night, I can't sleep. Being alone in this empty place makes me feel uneasy."
"That makes sense. Even though this is a high-end apartment, it's still a far cry from the estate."
Ye Feng nodded in agreement, finding her reasoning sound. Though if it were him, he'd probably adore this place—he loved quiet, undisturbed environments.
"Maybe that's why... I'm sorry, Teacher... It seems today's lesson will have to be canceled again."
"It's fine. Your health comes first. If you feel unsettled in this apartment, why not invite your friends over occasionally?"
Ye Feng suddenly steered the conversation toward friends. On one hand, he wanted to understand why the relationship between Li Mucheng and Su Yuxin had deteriorated so much. On the other, he thought that if he could help mend their friendship, it might be a way to make it up to Li Mucheng.
A close friend was a meaningful part of life, just like how he and Shen Mengli were confidants.
If it were Mengli, she'd probably think the same way.
......
"Xiao Feng... When can I drop the label of 'friend'? I don’t want to keep being called just a friend forever. If this goes on too long, I might even get used to it."
Shen Mengli lowered her gaze to the stuffed bear in her arms, her emotions in turmoil. Every time Ye Feng left her side, it meant his feelings for those outsiders grew a little stronger. If this continued, one day something irreversible might happen, and she wouldn’t even have a place to cry.
The thought of an unknown woman wrapping her arm around Ye Feng’s, smirking at her mockingly, made Shen Mengli clench her fists tighter.
"No! I have to find a way to deepen our bond quickly."
Her finger hovered over the "Favorites" tab on Ye Feng’s phone, then tapped decisively.
"Huh... What’s this...?"
Staring at the browser filled with bookmarked novels, Shen Mengli froze mid-air.
"Wha—what?! Are novels really Xiao Feng’s only favorite thing? H-he’s so boring!"
Pouting, she squeezed her fists in frustration, clearly having misunderstood something. She redirected her embarrassment into blaming Ye Feng.
Only after pummeling the poor stuffed bear until it toppled over did she finally stop her rapid-fire punches.
"Phew... Calm down, calm down. That blockhead Xiao Feng is like a dense log. If I don’t drill some sense into him, nothing will change."
Just as she was about to close the browser and search for other clues, she stumbled upon a photo uploaded to his personal space.
"Hmm? What’s this?"
Her eyes widened like she’d struck gold as she stared at the discovery.
The moment her slender finger tapped the album, the image inside left her stunned.
It was a photo of her—herself—taken in the pavilion of the orphanage, sulking because Ye Feng hadn’t visited.
"This... This is..."
"My photo!"
Shen Mengli blinked in disbelief, her heart suddenly ablaze with excitement.
"Mm... Mm..."
She hugged the bear tightly, too overwhelmed to speak. Her cheeks flushed crimson, and her legs trembled involuntarily.
"Is... is this real? Xiao Feng actually took a secret photo of me... This is... so embarrassing..."
Flustered, she fanned her burning face with one hand, trying to cool down.
But the thought of Ye Feng sneaking a picture of her made her pulse race, an inexplicable heat surging through her body.
"Mmm~ I want... I want to see Xiao Feng right now..."
......
"Teacher, are you talking about Su Yuxin?"
The faint smile on Li Mucheng’s face instantly stiffened, though she managed to maintain her composure in front of Ye Feng.
"Yes. Mu Cheng, I didn’t bring this up lightly. When I was tutoring Su Yuxin, she told me you were her best friend."
"Right. Her former best friend."
Li Mucheng let out a cold laugh, which Ye Feng didn’t miss.
"Mu Cheng, can you tell me what happened between you two?"
"Teacher, do you really not know, or are you pretending?"
Li Mucheng frowned, clearly reluctant to answer.
"Mu Cheng, I genuinely don’t know. By the time I started tutoring both of you, neither of you would mention the other. I’m asking because I want to help."
Ye Feng nodded firmly.
"Friends are incredibly important in life. You shouldn’t lose a close friend over some trivial dispute."
"Teacher..."
Hearing his words, Li Mucheng realized Ye Feng truly didn’t know the real reason for their fallout. It seemed Su Yuxin hadn’t told him either.
"Actually... The main reason Su Yuxin and I became like this is..."
She trailed off, her gaze lingering on Ye Feng.
"......"
s + Rent Collection Wealth】 At the start, he inherited a rundown house in the urban village from his grandfather. The house had no tenants, but the moment he was diagnosed with a terminal illness, a self-proclaimed empress from the Tianxuan Continent arrived as his first tenant. Ye Chuan soon discovered that with every new tenant moving in, not only did he receive massive daily payments, but he also obtained unique items related to their backgrounds. 【Acquired Bai Qianshuang’s related item: Tiger Strength Pill—dramatically enhances physical power!】 【Acquired Bai Qianshuang’s related item: Deer Blood Pill—significantly boosts vitality!】 …… From that day on, all sorts of bizarre tenants began appearing in the house: the empress from Tianxuan Continent, an apocalyptic sorceress from the Magic Realm, a mysterious scientific girl who fell through a spacetime rift… Every single day, he received strange, powerful items and endless money. Then one day, he suddenly realized—he had become invincible. Enough, enough! Stop giving me more!
th】 【No prior gaming knowledge required】【The First Cultivation + Game Design Novel on the Platform】 In a world where the righteous path dominates and crushes the demonic sects, Lu Ze unlocks the "Son of the Demon Path" system. Killing righteous cultivators now grants him power-ups. Wait—deaths in illusions count too? As a former game designer, Lu Ze decides to give the cultivators of this world a little—no, a massive—shock... Sect Elders: "What is this 'Escape from the Demon Sect' game? Why have all our disciples abandoned cultivation to play it??" Elite Disciples: "You're saying... mastering 'Demon Slayer' can help us counter demonic schemes?" Reclusive Masters: "Why did I leave seclusion? Ask that backstabbing rat who ambushed me in 'Eternal Strife' yesterday!" Rogue Cultivators & Civilians: "'Immortal Abyss Action' is addictive! You can even earn spirit stones by loot-running..." Sect Prodigy: "My Dao heart is unshakable... except for that cursed black hammer." Royal Scions: "Can skins have stat boosts? I’ll pay 10,000 spirit stones for one!!" Sect Leader: "WHO IS CORRUPTING MY DISCIPLES?!!!"
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?"
. As long as he maintains the villain image and follows the plot to the grand finale, he can obtain generous rewards and return to the real world. So Gu Chen'an entered the role and began to act as a scumbag villain, but who would have expected that the female leads could hear his inner thoughts. Miss Su from the Su family was shocked: "I originally thought Gu Chen'an was a scumbag, but I didn't expect he turned out to be a gentleman! What? You said I have to call off the engagement? I definitely won't, I'll piss you off!" Bai Yuan Tian was dumbfounded: "Young Master Gu is usually unreasonable and a complete brat, but he actually calls me little sweetie in his heart? What, Young Master Gu even said he likes me?" As the female leads' images collapsed more and more, the plot also collapsed with it. Gu Chen'an looked at all this chaos. "Ladies, don't aggro me, if you keep this up the male lead really will stab me, I still need to survive to the grand finale!"
