"Hmph." The old lady turned and walked away, and as she left, the others also shook their heads and dispersed.
No one helped Li Mei stop Fang Zhiyi—they never liked that little Fang girl anyway.
Eldest Aunt's family just stood there watching. Fang Yu stood with her hands on her hips, taunting Li Xue, who gritted her teeth and turned her head away.
And just like that, Fang Zhiyi spirited Fang Ruoruo away.
The medical check-up was real, but the key was to quickly bond with Fang Ruoruo.
That very night, Fang Ruoruo stayed in the apartment Fang Zhiyi had rented. He apologized, "Dad just got back from out of town, so this place isn’t great. Can you bear with it for now?"
Fang Ruoruo nodded, but soon asked, "Where’s Mom? I miss Mom."
Fang Zhiyi sighed—he knew this would happen. The child had always been with Li Mei, so of course she’d constantly think about her mother.
But this would take time. After coaxing the child to sleep, Fang Zhiyi turned to see Fang Yu smoking in the living room. She looked him up and down and sneered, "Well, well. Never thought you’d grow a spine. Hah."
Fang Zhiyi caught the sarcasm in her tone—his sister had always been like this. But for now, she was an ally. He smiled, "It’s for my daughter."
Fang Yu glanced toward the bedroom, stubbed out her cigarette, and said, "Go ahead and play the good dad. I’m leaving. Tsk, look how broke you are."
Fang Zhiyi didn’t argue, watching as she opened the door and stepped out.
Suddenly, Fang Yu paused. "Listen, I don’t care if you starve, but don’t let the kid go hungry. If you can’t feed her, send her to me."
Fang Zhiyi nodded repeatedly. "After all, she calls you Auntie."
The words made Fang Yu freeze mid-step. The sharpness on her face softened slightly, and she gave an awkward half-smile before shutting the door.
The next day, Fang Zhiyi didn’t send Fang Ruoruo to school. Instead, under Lawyer Yu’s guidance, he took her for a medical check-up. Thankfully, aside from mild malnutrition, she was healthy. After a brief chat, Lawyer Yu left to prepare the legal documents.
Fang Zhiyi then took Fang Ruoruo straight to the mall.
Her initial wariness soon melted into bright smiles.
Dad bought her a new backpack, a new dress, treated her to fried chicken and burgers, and even got her a complete set of fairy tales.
A warm sense of happiness blossomed inside her.
As Fang Zhiyi watched his delighted daughter, his phone rang.
It was his ex-wife. "Fang, bring my daughter back right now, or I’m calling the police!"
Fang Zhiyi scoffed. "Go ahead. Everything I’m doing follows legal procedure. I have every right to suspect you’ve been pocketing the child support I sent for Ruoruo! Expect a court summons."
There was a long pause on the other end. Li Mei clutched the phone in disbelief—this spineless man was actually suing her? Panic crept in. "Fang Zhiyi, you agreed to let her stay with me. We have an agreement!"
Fang Zhiyi chuckled. "A handwritten one, full of predatory clauses. Let me educate you—that’s legally invalid."
"You—"
"Save it. Like I said, wait for the summons." He hung up.
Li Mei was distraught. She paced around the house, tearfully apologizing to everyone until her relatives reluctantly forgave her. It wasn’t until Old Mother asked about her granddaughter’s whereabouts that Li Mei remembered Fang Ruoruo had been taken away.
But after that call, unease gnawed at her. Eldest Aunt cracked sunflower seeds nearby. "Him, sue you? On what grounds? Honestly, you’re such a fool—can’t even control a useless man. But then again, why bother with a little girl? She’s not worth much. You’d be better off dumping her on Fang and remarrying. Actually, that carpenter from the east end of the village isn’t bad."
Old Mother chimed in, "Listen to your sister. We’re family—we only want what’s best for you."
Li Mei kept her head down. In her heart, Eldest Aunt was always right, but she couldn’t stand the carpenter—he was over a decade older and missing an eye. As for her daughter… she couldn’t explain it, but she refused to let her ex-husband have anything, not even the child.
Seeing her silence, Li Xue rolled her eyes. "Still being picky? I’m only looking out for you."
Fang Zhiyi hadn’t expected the legal process here to be so different. Disputes like theirs were handled swiftly, and soon, he and Li Mei were summoned for mediation.
The outcome: Li Mei had to provide monthly records of how the child support was spent, and Fang Zhiyi had the right to audit them. Their original agreement wasn’t legally binding, but since Fang Zhiyi lacked stable income or property, he was granted two days a week with Fang Ruoruo—no interference allowed.
Once mediation ended, Li Mei glared at Fang Zhiyi. Fang Ruoruo dashed over and hugged her. "Mom!"
Li Mei looked down at her daughter’s new dress and bit her lip. What was Fang Zhiyi trying to prove? That he knew how to treat a child? That a new dress and backpack made him a good father? Disgusting! But with the mediator still present, she didn’t dare act out.
Li Mei took Fang Ruoruo back to her family home. Seeing the girl’s fresh new look, Li Xue sneered, "Oh? Done living the high life with your dad? Back so soon?"
Fang Ruoruo’s smile faded. She could feel the weight of invisible expectations pressing down. Quietly, she went to her room, carefully took off her new clothes, folded them neatly, and put them away. Back here, she had chores—she couldn’t afford to dirty them.
Dinner that night was lavish—at least by Fang Ruoruo’s standards—but she still sat in the corner.
"Fourth Sister, feeling generous today?" Li Xue remarked. "Win the lawsuit?"
Li Mei pressed her lips together and quietly explained the mediation result.
Li Xue’s eyes bulged. "What? He gets to check the accounts? What’s he implying? That we’d steal a child’s support money? How shameless!"
Elder Uncle’s expression darkened too.
Li Mei hurried to explain, "It’s fine, it’s fine. We’re family—no need to split hairs. I’ll keep the records, but we all eat together, right, Ruoruo?"
Fang Ruoruo, who had been eyeing the braised pork across the table, hesitated. But under her mother’s gaze, she nodded.
Eldest Aunt finally smiled. "Not ungrateful after all. I thought the little brat had turned into a white-eyed wolf after one day with her dad."
Fang Ruoruo earned her mother’s approval—a single piece of braised pork.
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."
e bizarre and supernatural had descended. The previous emperor was a thoroughgoing tyrant; no longer satisfied with human women, he had set his sights on a stunningly beautiful supernatural entity. He met his end in his bedchamber, drained of all his vital essence. As the legitimate eldest son and crown prince, Wang Hao was thus hastily enthroned, becoming the young emperor of the Great Zhou Dynasty. No sooner had he awakened the "Imperial Sign-In Intelligence System" than he was assassinated by a Son of Destiny—a classic villain's opening. The Great Zhou, ravaged by the former emperor's excesses, was in national decline. The great families within its borders harbored their own treacherous schemes, martial sects began to defy the imperial court's decrees, and border armies, their pay and provisions in arrears, grumbled incessantly against the central government. Fortunately, the central capital was still held secure by the half-million Imperial Guards and fifty thousand Imperial Forest Army who obeyed the court's orders, along with the royal family's hidden reserves of power, barely managing to suppress the realm. As the Great Zhou's finances worsened and supernatural activities grew ever more frequent, the court sat atop a volcano. Ambitious plotters everywhere dreamed of overthrowing the dynasty, and even some reclusive ancient powers emerged, attempting to sway the tides of the world. At the first grand court assembly, the civil and military officials nearly came to blows, fighting tooth and nail over the allocation of fifty million taels of silver from the summer tax revenues. The spectacle opened Wang Hao's eyes—the Great Zhou's bureaucracy was not only corrupt but also martially proficient, a cabinet of all-rounders. Some officials even had the audacity to suggest the emperor release funds from the imperial privy purse to address the emergency. Wang Hao suddenly felt weary. Let it all burn.
close your eyes and open them again, only to find yourself transmigrated into the role of a villainous male supporting character. Readers familiar with urban wish-fulfillment novels know that it is only through the relentless antics of the villainous male supporting character that the plot between the male and female leads can progress. As the villainous male supporting character, Long Aotian not only has to bully the female lead, harass the second female lead, and flirt with the third female lead, but he also has to go all out to antagonize the male lead. In the end, when his body is discovered, he is still clutching half a moldy fried dough stick in his hand. Fully aware of the plot, Long Aotian is determined to change his fate, starting with the female lead! In the beginning, the female lead lacks confidence: "Big brother, I hope I didn't scare you?" In the middle, the female lead treads carefully: "Brother Long, please don't hit me, okay?" Later on, the female lead becomes coquettishly clingy: "Aotian, it's time to pay the 'public grain' tonight." Long Aotian's legs go weak, and he feels like crying: "I taught you to be thick-skinned, not shameless!"
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.”
