Ginger is still the oldest, and she wants to stay too (Bonus update)

Lin Yu: "!!!"

His momentarily relaxed nerves instantly tensed up again.

Auntie Ru Xue’s remark… was an unintentional but direct broadside attack?

No… no!

Judging by how she had accurately deduced everyone’s dynamics from fragmented information the moment she stepped inside,

her perceptiveness was undoubtedly at a monstrous, superhuman level.

This was something Lin Yu had experienced deeply while using the [Virtual Du Ruxue] simulation.

She was definitely not the type of socially inept person who would unconsciously "attack" others in public, especially with multiple people present.

Therefore,

those words were deliberate!

On the surface, she appeared to be playing the role of a youthful auntie who had just met an "outstanding junior,"

casually joking about pairing the talented young man with her own precious daughter.

But in reality,

based on the information Lin Yu currently had,

Du Ruxue harbored an almost "control-freak" level of doting affection for Maomao.

She was also a woman known for her cold, detached demeanor in social interactions.

How could she, after just one meeting, casually joke about pairing Maomao with someone?

Following this line of thought…

Auntie Ru Xue was truly ruthless!

Perhaps she had already deduced that within the apartment,

there was at least one or two girls who shared an unusual, non-platonic relationship with Lin Yu.

By openly suggesting that he and Maomao were a good match in front of them,

those one or two girls would inevitably raise their guards.

If Lin Yu wanted to maintain his special relationship with them and keep things harmonious,

he would have to take a firm stance regarding Maomao and make a clear-cut separation.

In other words…

whether Maomao stayed in the apartment or not,

it would be extremely difficult for Lin Yu to pursue her.

The moment the two of them interacted even slightly too closely,

Auntie Ru Xue’s "perfect match" comment would resurface in those girls’ minds.

Shifting blame, covert maneuvers, deliberate misdirection, using others to eliminate rivals…

A seemingly harmless joke was, in fact, a masterclass in social manipulation!

Ever since his rebirth, Lin Yu had managed to get along so well with everyone in the apartment,

largely due to his overwhelming superiority in emotional intelligence.

But Du Ruxue’s appearance marked the first time Lin Yu felt like he had met his match.

Saint vs. Saintess!

Was this how battles for sect leadership always played out?

At this moment,

aside from Maomao, whose face was flushed with shock and a hint of shyness,

the expressions of the other girls ranged from subtle to outright dramatic.

The one who stepped in to interrupt was, naturally, Chen Qimeng.

She quickly pulled Du Ruxue toward the dining table:

"Xiao Xue, stop teasing Lin Yu and Maomao like that."

"Now that everyone’s acquainted, let’s sit down and eat together."

"Today, we’re celebrating Lin Yu and Chi Qingchi winning the gold medal at the comic convention!"

Chen Qimeng steered the conversation back on track, finally bringing the prolonged opening act to an end.

Du Ruxue followed up by congratulating Lin Yu and Chi Qingchi.

Then,

holding up a bag of ingredients, she added:

"Mengmeng, let the youngsters chat a bit longer. How about you and I whip up a couple more dishes for everyone?"

"It’s so hot in the summer—no need to worry about the food getting cold, right?"

"Consider it a favor to me, to fulfill a long-held regret of mine."

As she spoke,

Du Ruxue looped her arm through Chen Qimeng’s.

The kind of intimate closeness Lin Yu had witnessed before was only seen between Aunt Qimeng and He Jing.

Chen Qimeng glanced hesitantly at the group.

After all,

if they waited any longer, it wouldn’t just be the two of them.

Everyone present would have to wait along with them.

Mao Ruirui volunteered, stepping forward and saying,

"Qimeng-jie, Ruxue-jie, I can help."

"Chopping veggies or prepping ingredients—no problem at all."

Once one person offered, others naturally followed.

Tang Yimian stood up as well, moving closer to the kitchen:

"I’ll pitch in too. If we all work together, it’ll go faster."

Seeing everyone so eager to help, Chen Qimeng stopped resisting, and they all headed back into the kitchen.

Watching Aunt Ruxue’s retreating figure,

Maomao felt like she was trapped in a dream.

Instead of facing any crisis, everything was harmonious and cheerful?

Was this really not a dream?

In the past,

Lin Yu would’ve walked straight to Maomao without hesitation to discuss what came next.

But now?

Chi Qingshui, Mo Shangying, Ye Mengfu, Shen Buyao…

So many pairs of eyes were secretly watching Lin Yu and Maomao.

There was no way to pretend he didn’t notice their gazes!

Tsk!

Aunt Ruxue’s move was downright ruthless!

Left with no choice, Lin Yu approached the Xia sisters and asked about today’s events.

At the moment, both Xia Yiwei and Xia Xiashan still wore expressions of lingering shock.

Their eyes remained fixed on the kitchen, unable to snap out of it.

"Yiwei-jie, Xiashan-jie, did you also just find out today that Aunt Ruxue and Aunt Qimeng are this close?"

Xia Yiwei tapped her temple, wiping sweat from her forehead, and muttered in bewilderment:

"Their relationship… my sister and I only found out slightly before you did…"

"How can they actually be this close? It feels unreal."

"Like a dream?"

"I feel like all these years, I’ve known a completely different Aunt Ruxue?"

"Hey, sis, have you ever seen Aunt Ruxue step into a kitchen before?"

It was clear Xia Yiwei was beyond stunned.

Even the rarely used "sis" slipped out repeatedly.

Xia Xiashan wasn’t faring much better.

She shook her head and said,

"Never! This is way too out of character!"

"So… what about Maomao staying here? Is the crisis over?"

Xia Yiwei mirrored her sister’s headshake:

"You’re asking me? Who am I supposed to ask?"

"Aunt Ruxue already said—if Qimeng-jie agrees, she’s staying the night too."

"Oh, right, Lin Yu, Aunt Ruxue seemed really interested in you. She asked about you a lot."

"You know how I am—I can’t hide anything from her. So I spilled everything: your writing, martial arts, Chinese medicine, photography, singing… the whole deal."

Lin Yu: "…"

Couldn’t you at least pretend to have some loyalty?

No torture, no pressure—just a full confession?

No wonder Aunt Ruxue called him multitalented.

Thinking back to the mission details tied to Aunt Ruxue…

Maybe, in her mind, she’d already completely separated "ZerO" from the opponent who had outsmarted her!

If Aunt Ruxue really stayed over tonight, the apartment was in for some chaos!

…

(Extra chapter delivered! More to come tomorrow. Hope you’ll take a moment to check out an ad and support this little author!)