Gu Ximan’s eyelashes fluttered like startled butterfly wings.
Their noses were almost touching—she could see her own reflection in Gu Luo’s pupils.
Those usually smiling eyes were now filled with shock and barely concealed joy. The lips beneath her fingertips trembled slightly, like sun-warmed glass.
A breeze carried dandelion fluff from nowhere, brushing past the watch on Gu Luo’s wrist. The ticking of the second hand was unnervingly loud in the silence.
“Xiao Man...” Gu Luo’s voice came muffled through his palm, rough and broken.
Gu Ximan could see the shadows cast by his long lashes on his cheeks. Then, unexpectedly, he curled his hand, pressing the back of it against her lips.
Time froze into amber.
She caught the scent of soap lingering on his fingers, mingled with the warmth of sunlit school fabric and something indescribably, uniquely Gu Luo.
Her widened eyes glazed over with moisture again, and the hand braced against his chest unconsciously tightened around his collar.
This kiss, separated by his palm, wasn’t soft—it was almost reckless.
Yet it sent a jolt through her entire body, leaving the cold tea-brown-haired girl breathless and thoughtless, aware only of the heat and pulse of the boy’s lips against her skin.
Gu Luo’s kiss slid from her hand to her wrist, his fingertips still guarding her lips as if she were delicate porcelain.
His gaze was clearer than ever.
Staring into Gu Ximan’s watery eyes, he suddenly chuckled low, the sound carrying a sigh of relief:
“I can’t even kiss you properly without a barrier...”
He paused, exhaling softly before continuing:
“Xiao Man, I honestly don’t know how to face your feelings—your romantic feelings. I can sense them, but... I’m sorry, I can’t give you an answer yet.”
“But if you’re willing, I’ll start treating you as a girl my age, someone in the throes of adolescence. Once I’ve resolved things with Shu Ning and Shu He, I’ll give you a proper response.”
“The truth is... I’ve been drowning in self-deception, indecisive and hesitant about love. In the end, I hurt not just myself but all of you.”
“After these past few days of reflection, I’ve realized something: hesitation has no place in matters of the heart. You must say what you feel. The moment you hold back or fail to communicate, misunderstandings arise, driving people who love each other apart.”
“I don’t want any more regrets or pain. I’m even prepared to have my legs broken or be disowned.”
“That’s my answer.”
Every word was sincere.
Shu Ning’s actions—throwing away the letter, saying cruel things, getting into another boy’s car—had cut deep.
It wounded others, but it also wounded herself.
This was a calculated move, a scheme aimed at her own heart.
Luo Shuning’s approach was simple, childish, extreme. No matter the justification, such things were unforgivable.
Two people who loved each other ended up inflicting the deepest wounds.
How laughable.
How ironic.
Love was too complicated, like a potion that could transform you into someone entirely different the moment you drank it.
Hearing this, Gu Ximan suddenly seized his wrist, forcefully pulling his hand away from their lips.
The afternoon wind caught her hair,
brushing against Gu Luo’s cheek.
Her next move carried the desperation of someone burning their bridges.
Sunlight streamed through the rooftop railing, weaving golden patterns over their intertwined shadows.
The distant clamor of Guangya Academy’s students faded into background noise, leaving only the warmth between their lips
and the heartbeat that had waited far too long to be shared.
Gu Luo stiffened like the iron railing, forgetting even to breathe.
An eternity passed.
Just as his fingertips unconsciously curled, nearly grazing her waist, a sharp pain bloomed on his lip.
The metallic tang of blood spread between them.
Gu Ximan stood on shaky legs, stepping back with lips stained a vivid red, like a maple leaf on snow.
“Sort things out with Ning-jie and He-jie first...”
Her voice trembled as she nervously twisted the lace trim of her pleated skirt. “I... I’m just collecting interest!”
With that, she plopped back down, turning her face away as her small hands fluttered frantically before her burning cheeks.
Her uniform sleeve slipped, revealing a slender wrist glowing pearl-white in the sunlight.
The wind lifted her hair again, cold tea-brown strands skimming Gu Luo’s hand, leaving behind a faint, lingering itch.
............
............
he colors of other people’s emotions. Light red meant anxiety. Gray meant exhaustion. Orange meant excitement. Yellow... meant repression. At the same time, he could gain unlimited control over one of those colors. Pale cyan: relaxation. Using this ability, he started offering “two-yuan hugs,” spending an afternoon exchanging emotional-color experiences with others. Then came his final female customer of the day— a girl whose emotional color was pure black... —— A week later, Xu Chuan had become skilled at using pale cyan—Relaxation—treating it like a bottle of menthol balm whenever he needed it. That was when he discovered he had unlocked another unlimited emotional color: Purple, the color of fear. So these emotional colors refresh every week? Fine, I take it back—I’ll never call you useless again... —— Much later, after Xu Chuan had accumulated countless emotional abilities, one night, he suddenly found himself inside someone else’s dream. There, he could use the emotional colors he possessed to paint. And in her dream, he painted her a shower of pink shooting stars, spreading across the depths of the night sky...
ions, keeping it grounded and realistic】 After quitting his job, office worker Su Yang accidentally binds with the "Enjoy Life System." As the name suggests, simply by indulging in life's pleasures, he can earn random rewards from the system—no need to spend money on beautiful women or grovel before anyone. Just enjoy, and the money follows, making it all about effortless fun. The system comes with a scanning feature, allowing him to establish a favorability bond with women rated 85 points or above. Every 20-point increase in favorability unlocks additional rewards. After suffering through over twenty years of hardship, Su Yang trembles with excitement, his dull eyes suddenly gleaming with newfound hope. "Enjoy life? How hard could that be?"
] [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!"
d intelligence to keep the plot moving, and sometimes even the protagonists are forced into absurdly dumb decisions. Why does the A-list celebrity heroine in urban romance novels ditch the top-tier movie star and become a lovestruck fool for a pockmarked male lead? Why do the leads in historical tragedy novels keep dancing between love and death, only for the blind healer to end up suffering the most? And Gu Wei never expected that after finally landing a villain role to stir up trouble, she’d pick the wrong gender! No choice now—she’ll just have to crush the protagonists as a girl!
