Nian'an swallowed hard, then after a moment asked, "Master Lin, what do you want me to do?"
Lin Kunyuan smiled. "I want you to obediently become his son, and then..." He made a slashing motion across his throat. "That way, after he dies, you can inherit his estate." He knew very well that those officials only cared about profit; they didn't care who was in charge.
Nian'an's eyes lit up. That's right, why hadn't he thought of that? It had to be Master Lin, so clever indeed!
Only, he couldn't even get into the West Suburb.
The reason was a large sheet of paper pasted on the bridge leading into the West Suburb. It read, "Nian'an and dogs are not allowed to enter." The character for 'dog' had a cross drawn over it, and next to it was a portrait of him, drawn with striking likeness.
Now, there were even soldiers guarding the entrance to the West Suburb, so when they saw Nian'an, they unhesitatingly chased him back.
Fang Zhiyi was also amused. Still trying to play your double-agent games with me? I won't even let you through the gate, let's see how you play then.
Sure enough, Lin Kunyuan had anticipated some difficulty and had even prepared a few schemes for it, but he never expected it to be this difficult—he couldn't even get into the West Suburb!
Before he could figure out his next move, the other party's retaliation arrived.
First, a fight broke out in one of his shops. When the soldiers came to arrest those involved, the scuffle was a bit rough, and the shop was smashed to pieces.
Another shop had a customer who claimed to have bought a fake, holding up a tattered strip of cloth. The soldiers who rushed to the scene promptly sealed the shop.
Even his dye workshop was sealed shut because the smell was too strong.
When Lin Kunyuan tried to seek out County Magistrate Hu, he learned that Magistrate Hu had been transferred away just the day before, citing an urgent order from above.
"And the new county magistrate..." Lin Kunyuan asked, unwilling to give up.
A yamen runner glanced at him. "The new magistrate has gone to pay a visit to Master Fang."
Lin Kunyuan was stunned. Master Fang? Then he remembered Fang Zhiyi.
The runner, having received favors from him before, offered advice: "A word of advice, it'd be good to just kowtow and apologize."
Lin Kunyuan's face turned dark with rage.
He stormed back home, only to see his daughter giggling as she was being amused by Nian'an. His blood boiled instantly.
"You little bastard! Take this!"
Nian'an was beaten again, this time by the man he considered his future father-in-law.
After that, Lin Kunyuan realized his plans could no longer keep up with the changing situation. The reputation of that small area, the West Suburb, grew increasingly prominent. Many visiting dignitaries from other regions would pass through the city and head directly to the West Suburb.
He heard that Fang Zhiyi had also opened up something called 'investment recruitment.' He didn't understand what it meant, but from what people said, it involved opening women's vocational training schools and establishing branches of the Mianyue Workshop everywhere. Anyone who passed the assessment could become a branch manager.
Many people rushed over upon hearing the news, even boosting consumption in the city itself. The usually quiet inns were almost fully booked.
Lin Kunyuan wanted to go too. He had made up his mind: he would pay a high price to secure this 'manager' position, and once he learned the ropes, he would immediately start his own business!
But he didn't expect that when he reached the bridgehead, the person guarding it carefully examined his face and immediately blocked his way.
"Why are you stopping me?" Lin Kunyuan was annoyed. Although his business was currently in shambles, his family fortune was still substantial.
The man simply pointed behind him. Lin Kunyuan looked over and felt his blood pressure spike instantly.
Beneath the original paper forbidding Nian'an entry, his own name, Lin Kunyuan, had been added. Beside it was another portrait.
Fang Zhiyi couldn't even be bothered to use a new sheet of paper!
That day, Nian'an once again became Lin Kunyuan's punching bag. It wasn't that Lin Kunyuan didn't want to drive him away, but he had spent money to get him here. Even if he tried to send him back, no one would take him. He could only keep him as a servant, assigning him all the dirty and hard work. And on days like this, he could also beat him up to vent his anger.
He didn't notice the resentful glare in Nian'an's eyes. His admiration for Master Lin had already turned to hatred after the first beating, and he also came to hate Lin Yanqing, who had watched the spectacle.
She didn't even help him! That hypocritical woman!
After venting his anger, Lin Kunyuan wanted to send someone to deliver gifts to Fang Zhiyi. Yes, he was scared. Seeing the current momentum of the West Suburb and the stream of dignitaries coming and going, Lin Kunyuan felt a chill in his heart.
But everyone he sent came back shaking their heads. Fang Zhiyi accepted the gifts but indicated the matter was not over.
Whenever this happened, Nian'an, while working, would feel a cold chill run down the back of his neck.
"Fang, you're going too far!"
After his last shop was taken from him by Fang Zhiyi through strong-arm tactics, Lin Kunyuan finally erupted again.
He couldn't understand why Fang Zhiyi refused to let him off. He was just doing business—what merchant didn't want to make money?
But things had come to this. Lin Kunyuan decided to seek connections higher up. He refused to believe Fang Zhiyi could have won over every single official in such a short time.
And so, Lin Kunyuan took his family's remaining wealth and began making the rounds, from the county to the prefecture. Relying on the connections he had built over the years, he managed to meet with some officials. Things would seem promising at first, but as soon as they heard it was about Fang Zhiyi, they would immediately throw him out, gifts and all.
Lin Kunyuan became desperate. Gritting his teeth, he traveled north and found a distant cousin. Through many twists and turns, he managed to connect with a third-rank official. After offering sufficient benefits, the official agreed to have a meal with him.
"You said you want to deal with whom?"
"Fang Zhiyi."
"Never heard of him."
Lin Kunyuan was almost moved to tears. Finally, someone who didn't know Fang Zhiyi!
"Tell me, where is he from, what does he do?"
"A local bully in our county, he runs... gambling dens!" He thought of this term.
The official nodded. "A bully, a scourge on the local community, running gambling? Don't worry, I'll take care of this for you."
Lin Kunyuan was overjoyed. He felt his decision to travel north was absolutely correct.
Just you wait, Fang Zhiyi. You will pay the price.
However, his fantasy lasted only until that evening. The door to his room was kicked open. The cousin who had dined with him that afternoon glared at him furiously. "I treated you as family, and you actually tried to harm me?"
Lin Kunyuan was bewildered. "What's wrong?"
"What's wrong?" The cousin rolled up his sleeves. At his signal, two servants grabbed Lin Kunyuan.
After a slap across the face: "Let me tell you what's wrong! If I helped you with this, I wouldn't live to see tomorrow's sun!"
Lin Kunyuan was wronged. "Fang Zhiyi is just a bully, how could you..."
"I don't know who Fang Zhiyi is, but have you heard the name Huang Weixing?"
Lin Kunyuan had some vague recollection.
"Today he informed me that Fang Zhiyi is his teacher and the influential figure backing him! Do you know who stands behind Fang Zhiyi?"
Lin Kunyuan stood there dumbfounded.
His cousin continued, spittle flying: "Three first-rank officials in the imperial court are his backers! And you tried to trick me into dealing with him? I..."
If it weren't for their familial ties, Lin Kunyuan would have died there that very night.
s the Eldest Princess, renowned for her cold and aloof detachment, became the most docile of lambs, obeying his every command without question. But when the final move was played on the chessboard, as Gu Chenghan seized everything and ascended on the verge of apotheosis, that very Princess suddenly embraced him from behind, her tone carrying a dependence never heard before: "Wait... you haven't yet... commanded me to love you forever." Gu Chenghan froze abruptly. She... hadn't been hypnotized?! ... [The Eldest Princess's Diary] [When my soul was extracted, becoming the sole spectator outside my own shell] [At first, there was overwhelming fury, until I saw] [How he used my sword to effortlessly shatter my inescapable doom] [How he wielded my authority to eradicate fatal conspiracies I had never even detected] [Like a deity, he rescued me from the deep mire I was trapped in] [If not for those annoying vixens, he and I would be a match made in heaven] [I think I am ill, gravely ill] [My deity should belong to me alone] ... "Hypnosis? Oh, it succeeded, my dear Master." "Only this time, it's my turn to hypnotize you."
nd fell into a coma while saving his younger sister from an out-of-control car. He became a vegetable. No one knew that his consciousness had crossed into a world of cultivation. Over the course of sixty years, he began as the lowest kind of mine slave, struggling to survive amid mountains of corpses and seas of blood. By sheer chance, he eventually obtained the complete memories of a fallen Immortal King. Alchemy, medicine, formations, feng shui, physiognomy, artifact forging… Every great inheritance of the cultivation world was now his. But when he opened his eyes again, he discovered that ten full years had passed in the modern world. To pay for his treatment, his father had sold the family’s shop and house, leaving himself covered in lasting injuries and illness. His mother had cared for him day and night, and more than half of her hair had already turned white. His younger sister, who had been only fifteen back then, was now twenty-five. To help repay the family’s debts, she had been forced to lower her head and put on a smiling face in places of glittering lights and endless revelry. Only then did Chen Xuan understand that what he had lost was not merely ten years. He had lost the life his entire family was meant to have. The good news was that he had brought back the memories of an Immortal King’s entire lifetime. The bad news was that his soul had returned alone—his cultivation had not come with him. Spiritual energy was scarce, resources were depleted, and the modern world still had firearms, surveillance, capital, and laws. If he wanted to protect his family, break free from everyone’s control, and become truly invincible beneath the heavens, he would have to start all over again.
] This is a dark fantasy-themed dating simulation game. The main gameplay involves containing various monster girls and investigating the truth of a world shrouded in mist alongside your companions. However, due to his love for the dark and bizarre atmosphere, Luo Wei ended up turning a dating game into a detective mystery game. Women? Women only slow down his quickdraw! To Luo Wei, the female leads in the game are more like tools to perfectly clear levels and squeeze out rewards. For Luo Wei, flirting with every girl he meets and then discarding them is standard procedure. Worried about characters losing affection points? No need. With his maxed-out charm stat, Luo Wei is practically a "human incubus." A little psychological manipulation and those points come right back. It's a bit scummy, but the paper cutout heroines in the game won't actually come at him with real cleavers. However... Luo Wei has transmigrated. He's accidentally entered the second playthrough of this game. His past actions have caused all the girls to transform into terrifying yanderes. Due to the game's setting, most of the heroines he once contained are "troubled girls." Obsessive, twisted, mentally unstable, all aggressive yanderes... The type who will kill you if they can't have you... Luo Wei wants to cry but has no tears left. "I really just want to survive..." In short, this is a story of battling wits and engaging in a love-hate relationship with yanderes.
uld barely embark on the path to immortality. Just as he was on the verge of death, his golden finger awakened. No matter whether it was poison, drained blood and vital energy, diminished lifespan, or any other physical debuff caused by paying a price—once midnight passed, everything would be refreshed. From then on, whenever someone asked what kind of person Chu Ran was, the answer was simple: Forbidden arts that other cultivators dared not learn? Chu Ran would learn them. Prices that even demonic cultivators dared not pay? Chu Ran would pay them. Lifespan that even righteous cultivators dared not burn? Chu Ran would burn it. All the blood essence in his body? Take it. Want both his hands and feet? He would cut them off and send them to you. You say he’s finished? He wasn’t built to sit idle. You think he’s gone mad? No—he was simply waiting for midnight. From that day onward, Chu Ran would respect neither Heaven nor Earth, bow to neither gods nor ghosts. He had only one wish: For midnight to arrive a little sooner.
