"Sorry, brother, you just look too good in photos. I couldn't help taking a few extra shots."
Luo Shuning curved her lips into a bright smile as she put away her phone and settled back beside Gu Luo.
The sweet aura around her seemed to warm the very air.
The little angel in her heart was overjoyed.
Since Shu He had made her move, she wouldn’t back down either.
After everything they’d been through, she would never willingly give her brother up to anyone—not even her own sister.
When it came to matters of the heart, there was no room for compromise.
The best outcome would be for Shu He to retreat on her own.
But knowing her sister’s stubborn nature, that wasn’t likely.
So, a head-on, fair competition it would be.
"It’s all thanks to your photography skills. Oh, send me that group photo later." The faint fragrance drifting from Luo Shuning left Gu Luo feeling utterly at ease.
"Of course."
The night at East Lake was serene and beautiful.
Moonlight spilled like liquid silver over the water’s surface, each ripple a kiss left by the glowing beams.
Gu Luo and Luo Shuning sat on the lakeside steps, letting the gentle breeze caress them.
They basked in the peaceful moment, savoring the quiet intimacy between them.
Luo Shuning tilted her head slightly, her gaze softening as it landed on Gu Luo—so tender it could melt him. She suggested softly,
"Brother, let’s dip our feet in the lake. It’ll feel amazing~"
Her voice, clear and melodious like a mountain spring, carried a hint of playful pleading that was impossible to refuse.
"Sure." Gu Luo nodded without hesitation, captivated by her expectant eyes.
They slowly took off their shoes and lowered their feet into the water.
Notably, Luo Shuning was wearing sneakers, so she had to remove her socks first.
The cool lake water wrapped around their feet, sending a wave of refreshing comfort through them.
Gu Luo’s gaze inadvertently drifted to Luo Shuning’s petite feet—the porcelain-white skin, the delicate pink toes, all glowing enchantingly under the moonlight and streetlamps.
His heartbeat quickened slightly, an indescribable emotion quietly blooming in his chest.
Oops, forgot to turn off auto-aim.
Luo Shuning seemed to sense his gaze, a faint blush dusting her cheeks. But instead of shyly pulling away, she leaned into the moment even more.
She playfully kicked at the water, sending tiny splashes dancing into the air.
Watching her lively, carefree joy, Gu Luo felt as if his soul had been cleansed.
His eyes kept drifting back to her feet and legs, mesmerized by the picturesque beauty before him.
As a self-proclaimed leg and foot enthusiast, this was pure bliss.
They played like this for a while, laughter filling the air.
Then, as if struck by inspiration, Luo Shuning suddenly suggested, "Let’s play rock-paper-scissors! The loser has to put the winner’s shoes on!"
"Deal." Gu Luo agreed instantly.
After all, no matter the outcome, it was a win-win for him.
Of course, he’d still go easy on his little sister.
While having the angelic Shuning put his shoes on would be nice, the idea of doing it for her was far more appealing.
No further explanation needed—those who know, know.
With that in mind, Gu Luo confidently threw out "paper."
Luo Shuning’s lips curled into a sly smile. "Surrendering already? That eager to help me with my shoes?"
She blinked mischievously.
Gu Luo simply chuckled, his silent reply clear—what kind of brother wouldn’t let his sister win?
"Then let’s begin."
"Rock—paper—scissors!"
Luo Shuning announced with dramatic flair before revealing her choice: "rock."
Clearly, she was trying to lose on purpose.
But Gu Luo was quicker. The moment he saw her commit to "rock," he swiftly switched his hand to "scissors."
Game over—rock crushed scissors.
"Brother, you’re so sneaky!" Luo Shuning’s eyes widened in surprise before she burst into laughter, her face alight with amusement.
Waving his "scissors," Gu Luo teased, "Why’d you suddenly go for rock? Good thing I reacted fast."
"Because I wanted to put your shoes on for once. You’re always taking care of us—I want to take care of you too." Her voice was soft, brimming with sincerity.
Gu Luo felt as if Cupid’s arrow had struck him straight in the heart.
He adored this little angel beyond words.
Too sweet.
At that moment, he considered himself the luckiest man alive, cherished by someone so gentle, kind, and thoughtful.
"But since you lost, brother, I’ll have to wait till next time~~~"
Luo Shuning lifted her snow-white feet from the water, shifting up two steps before casually shaking them dry. Then, with practiced ease, she rested them on Gu Luo’s lap.
The motion was natural, as if it were the most ordinary thing in the world.
But the blush on her cheeks betrayed her.
Gu Luo stared at the flawless feet now resting on his legs, a fierce protectiveness surging within him.
Pulling a tissue from his pocket, he gently dabbed them dry.
Then, picking up her white ankle socks, he carefully slid them onto her feet.
Foot enthusiasts would lose their minds.
Under the moonlit East Lake sky, the breeze wrapped around them, painting a scene of pure romance.
"Do you like my feet?"
Luo Shuning wiggled her sock-clad toes playfully.
"Ahem..." Gu Luo cleared his throat, nodding sheepishly. "They’re beautiful."
"You’re not as shy as before. The old you would’ve just muttered ‘they’re nice’ and left it at that." She propped her chin in her hand, studying his profile intently.
"People grow."
Gu Luo smiled. These days, he was far more comfortable around his little angel.
After all, they spent hours together daily in the kitchen, their bond deepening amid the warmth of home-cooked meals.
Not to mention the school festival incident.
"You’ve become more mature, more handsome." Luo Shuning reached out, pinching his cheek lightly. "I want to do so much more for you."
Gu Luo’s heart swelled. He puffed his cheeks slightly. "There’s plenty of time ahead of us."
Pausing, he turned to her and murmured, "I look forward to our future together."
Time to tease the angel back.
Can’t always be the one getting flustered.
A man’s gotta retaliate.
"Me too." Luo Shuning smiled.
Seeing his chance, Gu Luo grinned. "Shuning, I was actually talking about the title of your new composition."
"Brother, I was talking about my feelings."
............
............
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?!
] [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!"
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!
. 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!"
