"Now, she should be able to sleep peacefully, right…"
Midnight.
Lu Qing, dragging his exhausted body, arrived at the entrance of Unit C in Tianhe Platinum Apartments.
"Meow~!"
Big Orange Cat immediately approached, leading a group of little followers to welcome him.
No matter if it was day or night, whenever Lu Qing returned home, Big Orange Cat would always be waiting here. As a result, Lu Qing's journey upstairs was always slow—
He would spend a few minutes playing with the cats, providing them with some emotional comfort, and he never grew tired of it.
"Haha, why aren't you all asleep yet?"
Lu Qing stopped, bent down, and reached out his hand.
Big Orange Cat affectionately leaned in, showing none of the wariness or distance it had earlier when a certain girl was present. It was clear favoritism.
Nearby, the window was opened by Uncle Ge:
"Little Lu, why are you back so late today?"
"Ah, I had a dinner gathering, so it took some time. Uncle Ge, aren't you resting yet?"
Lu Qing rubbed Big Orange Cat's chin, gently combing its fur with his fingers, as if playing a soft melody on a piano.
Big Orange Cat was thoroughly enjoying it, and the little followers behind it were also curious, wanting to join in.
"Ah, rest? What rest? This neighborhood looks good on the surface, but there are always outsiders trying to sneak in and cause trouble. Just the other night, I saw a young girl, braving the heavy rain, force open the main gate and sneak into our Unit C. She hasn't left much since then, and of course, the surveillance cameras didn't catch her face clearly.
And just now, your neighbor next door was asking me if you were the one feeding Big Orange Cat. I didn't say much, because who knows if she's interested in you or what. It's not my place to say."
Uncle Ge took a puff of his Furongwang cigarette, his old eyes fixed on the slowly burning ember, generously sharing this information.
"Ah?"
Hearing this, Lu Qing thought to himself that based on Uncle Ge's description, the latter could only be Bai Xing.
After all, the unit to his left was empty, and the only neighbor he ever saw on the right was the young girl.
She might have remembered him mentioning feeding the cats and came to ask about it.
No big deal.
But… something felt off…
The first girl Uncle Ge mentioned seemed to be Su Ling??
Braving the rain, sneaking into a heavily guarded neighborhood, alone, caught on camera but with an unclear face.
This kind of move might be a bit difficult for Tang Hua, but if it was Su Ling from that day, she might have been able to pull it off.
Yes, very likely.
Lu Qing thought this as he patted Big Orange Cat's head.
Then he reached out, picked up the cat water bowl from the grass, and got up to enter the building, deciding to chat a bit more with Uncle Ge.
"Uncle Ge, what did she say?"
He walked to the small utility room on the right side of the entrance, where the cleaning lady kept her tools. Next to a row of mops and brooms, he turned on the faucet and rinsed the cat bowl under the running water.
While preparing fresh water, he continued the casual conversation.
"She didn't say much, just seemed really troubled. The girl didn't want to go upstairs and lingered here. She wanted to talk to Big Orange Cat, but the cat ignored her, which made her pretty upset. She even cried before getting on the elevator."
"……"
"Kids these days, why are they so prone to crying?"
Uncle Ge took a final drag of his cigarette, then stubbed it out in an empty tuna can on the windowsill.
He patted the dust off his clothes, turned around, and walked back into the surveillance room with his hands behind his back.
"Thanks, Uncle Ge."
Lu Qing was deep in thought.
…
He had successfully gathered "new intel" and now understood Bai Xing's true state.
"Looks like that pack of cigarettes was worth it."
Lu Qing returned the cat bowl to its place, refilled it with Baisui Mountain mineral water from the windowsill, and then tapped Big Orange Cat's nose before finally heading toward the elevator, satisfied.
It would take over two minutes for the elevator to reach the 19th floor.
Standing in the slowly ascending elevator, Lu Qing's mind wandered in a numb state, pondering his next move.
—Bai Xing's grandmother would enter the treatment phase next weekend, and she would need someone to accompany her.
—At that time, the girl would definitely go to the hospital, staying by her side during the initial days, even skipping school.
—This Friday is the premiere day.
—A preview video needs to be prepared before the premiere.
Tang Hua had already sent it to him, so he couldn't sleep tonight.
Before bed, he needed to write the script and use the account Tang Hua provided to edit and upload the video.
"Ah… I probably won't be able to close my eyes before 3 AM."
Lu Qing sighed softly, planning his next steps.
"Tomorrow is Thursday, the last day to finalize the premiere plan and go over the details with Bai Xing. But I don't know if she'll be able to recover quickly after today and adjust her emotions to the best state."
The text message he sent earlier hadn't been answered.
But Uncle Ge said she cried in front of the elevator.
That meant she had a strong emotional reaction after seeing the message.
So, was he right?
Her current situation was indeed tough.
Lu Qing strategized, constantly reviewing the situation:
"She's lacking 'cash flow,' only spending without any extra income."
This meant she had no choice but to pin all her hopes on the upcoming VTB premiere this Friday.
Living like this…
"The pressure must be immense, right…?"
Lu Qing sighed inwardly.
He could empathize, trying his best to understand the girl.
He felt for her, knowing how hard it must be.
"Today, I met Tang Hua. On the surface, everything was cordial, but she must have been hit hard too."
After all, Tang Hua's existence itself was like a bug.
Her qualities seemed like glitches, impossible to combine into a perfect individual in reality.
It was as if she herself was the "prototype" from the underground city.
Even if she were to represent the "Amethyst-Eyed Succubus," there would be no issues at all.
"Sigh, if I see Bai Xing again, I'll try to fulfill an even more excessive request for her."
Lu Qing murmured to himself,
murmured to himself,
as the elevator doors slowly opened on the 19th floor.
"Really?"
At the entrance.
The girl stood there, holding her phone, waiting.
Her frail body bore the traces of tears.
It seemed she had been waiting for a long time.
"…Bai Xing."
Lu Qing stepped out of the elevator.
"Have you been waiting for me?"
"Yes."
The girl averted her gaze, looking lonely as she stared at the night sky over the complex to the left of the hallway.
The starlight was breathtakingly beautiful.
But in the chilly autumn breeze, the cold wind made her long hair flutter behind her.
Lu Qing watched her silently.
"Did you get the thing?"
"Yes."
"Not sleeping, not going home… do you have something to say to me?"
"Yes."
"What is it?"
He walked up to her, looking down at her adorable face, which was a head shorter than his.
"I want a reward."
Bai Xing pursed her lips, no longer caring about anything else.
"Huh?"
Lu Qing was slightly taken aback, glancing over her shoulder toward the full-view monitor at his door, 1901.
He instinctively wanted to assess something.
"Wait, what's that?"
In his line of sight, the monitor seemed to be covered by a thin layer of foam-like substance.
"???"
Bai Xing smiled shyly, awkwardly explaining, "I thought it was in the way, so I sprayed some graffiti over it. If you mind, Senior, I'll pay you back when I have the money."
"……"
Wow.
Lu Qing was at a loss for words.
He wanted to say something but stopped.
Then, after some thought,
he stopped again.
"Alright. So, what's the reward?"
"You said it yourself, something a bit excessive is fine, right?"
"……"
Lu Qing's heart tightened, replying with some uncertainty, "Well, in theory, yes. But don't go too far…"
"Senior."
"Ah…"
Suddenly,
the girl stood on her tiptoes, bringing her tear-streaked face close to his:
"Can you hug me… with the same gentleness you use when hugging Su Ling?"
……
……
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?"
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...
end. Thus one must continue to cultivate, and become a saint or great emperor, in order to prolong one's life. Chen Xia, however, completely reversed this. Since his transmigration, he has gained immortality, and also a system that awards him with attribute points for every year he lives. Thus between the myriad worlds, the legend of an unparalleled senior appeared. "A gentleman takes revenge; it is never too late even after ten thousand years." "When you were at your peak I yielded, now in your old age I shall trample on you." - Chen Xia
] [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!"
