When Lin Yu returned home,
Chen Qimeng was the first to greet him.
"Xiao Yu, have you eaten yet?" Chen Qimeng asked with concern, already poised to head to the kitchen.
Thinking back,
Lin Yu had never had any close friends in the past.
Every time he went out, he would wander alone until late before coming home.
To save money, he often skipped dinner or just ate instant noodles.
Whenever this happened, Chen Qimeng would go to the kitchen to make him a late-night snack.
In his past life, Lin Yu would often refuse.
Only when he was truly starving would he silently wait on the sofa.
How foolish, how ungrateful.
He took her affection for granted, only realizing its preciousness after losing it.
Lin Yu stopped Aunt Qimeng and said,
"Don’t trouble yourself, Aunt Qimeng. I’ve already eaten outside."
"Since everyone’s still up so late, why don’t I make you all a refreshing late-night snack?"
"Maomao isn’t back yet, but by the time she returns, it should be ready."
Hearing this, Chen Qimeng immediately changed her tune:
"Then let me help you!"
Lin Yu placed his hands on Aunt Qimeng’s shoulders and gently guided her toward the sofa where Du Ruxue sat:
"No need. There are so many people here already."
"Instead of helping me, why not keep Aunt Ruxue company? I’m sure she needs it more right now."
[Ding!]
[Masterful move! The Saint’s thoughtful gesture warms his companion’s heart!]
[Reward: 50 Spirit Stones]
[Ding!]
[Masterful move! The Saint’s desire to work alongside his companion fills her with anticipation!]
[Reward: 50 Spirit Stones]
[Ding!]
[Masterful move! The Saint wants to…]
[...]
A flurry of system notifications suddenly flooded in, catching Lin Yu off guard.
Lin Yu: "!!!"
He had only casually said a few words.
Yet they were already reading so much into it!
With such a loving home, who would ever want to stay out late?
He couldn’t wait to come back early every day just to see which of his companions was home.
At the table, the others who had been petting the cat tried to act normal as Lin Yu approached.
Only Little Chi, ever the honest one, sprang up excitedly and asked:
"Xiao Lin, Xiao Lin! What kind of late-night snack are we making?"
"Head kitchen assistant, reporting for duty!"
"I’ll be the best helper ever, ensuring Chef Xiao Lin completes his mission!"
After declaring this, Little Chi stood at attention, startling the cat onto Mao Ruirui’s shoulder.
Lin Yu: "..."
Her enthusiasm for food was practically overwhelming, as if she might devour him before he even stepped into the kitchen.
Lin Yu couldn’t help but think—if he had just gotten a top-tier chef’s license, he wouldn’t have needed to put in so much effort to win her over.
She’d have stuck to him like glue.
Chi Qingshui pinched Little Chi’s ear and whispered:
"There are so many people here. Don’t shout such embarrassing things..."
Little Chi winced and obediently sat back down, not daring to defy her sister.
But while Little Chi sat, Chi Qingshui herself stood up.
In a tone befitting a "friend," she said:
"If you’re making a late-night snack for everyone, I can help too."
"It’s not like I have anything else to do. Might as well keep busy."
Every time they spoke like this in front of others, Lin Yu had to suppress a laugh.
Chi Qingshui shouldn’t have studied directing—she should’ve gone into acting.
Her performance was flawless, especially her delivery.
No one in the apartment could have guessed how she really behaved when alone with Lin Yu.
Hearing Chi Qingshui’s offer, Mao Ruirui quickly grabbed the mischievous cat on her shoulder and chimed in:
"I can help too!"
Her eagerness made it seem like she was afraid of being left out.
Little Chi pouted and grumbled from her seat:
"What’s the point? In the end, everyone’s helping anyway."
"And yet Sister still pinched my ear… As if she wasn’t thinking the same thing!"
Chi Qingshui remained silent: "..."
Idiot Little Chi!
No one would think you’re mute if you just kept quiet!
"I’ll join too! Count me in."
"We can’t let Xiao Lin do all the work. If we want to eat, we should help make it!"
Xia Yiwei rose from the sofa and quickly joined the group.
Lin Yu could tell—Nurse Xia wasn’t actually eager to help.
She just wanted an excuse to escape Aunt Ruxue’s side.
Lin Yu saw through it but didn’t call her out.
Instead, he led everyone to the kitchen, leaving the TV area to the two aunts.
Du Ruxue glanced back at the lively group of young people, feeling a twinge of envy.
If she had lived in such a warm environment when she was younger…
Maybe she, like Maomao, would have moved in and never wanted to leave.
But alas.
She was already in her thirties—no longer young.
"What an energetic bunch of boys and girls," Du Ruxue murmured wistfully.
But life…
Who decided how old was "young" or when someone was "grown up"?
Before she could dwell on it further, Chen Qimeng pulled her up:
"Come on, let’s go help too."
"Waiting here for Maomao…"
"You’re feeling uneasy, aren’t you?"
"When your heart is unsettled, keeping busy helps ease the tension."
"That’s a life lesson I’ve learned over the years!"
Du Ruxue hesitated.
"Help? But they’re all young, and we…"
Before she could finish, Chen Qimeng had already linked arms with her and steered her toward the kitchen.
"What ‘young’ and ‘we’?"
"Aren’t we young too?"
"You’ve never even been married—stop acting like some elder."
"In my apartment… everyone is young!"
Du Ruxue: "..."
When she first reunited with Chen Qimeng, Du Ruxue thought she hadn’t changed since college.
But now…
She realized Chen Qimeng had changed quite a bit.
And somehow… it was nice.
---
In the kitchen:
Xia Yiwei: "The lotus seeds are already soft. Aren’t they done yet?"
Little Chi: "Sister Yiwei, Chef just said three more minutes! It’s only been two minutes and sixteen seconds!"
Chen Qimeng: "Little Chi is so meticulous, even using a timer. Hehe."
Chi Qingshui: "Aunt Qimeng, don’t mind her. She’s only this serious about food. The bowls are ready."
Mao Ruirui: "I’ll handle it. The spoons are already set on the table, just like Xiao Yu said."
Du Ruxue: "The presentation of the sweet soup should be elegant. Leave the plating to me."
Chen Qimeng: "Xiao Xue, technically, it’s a bowl. So… bowl arrangement?"
"..."
Lin Yu stood in a corner of the kitchen, watching the bustling women.
In the end, he had become a hands-off supervisor, merely reciting the recipe while they did all the work.
This life… was truly wonderful.
Finally, as the lotus seed sweet soup was served…
Maomao returned!
...
(First update today. There will be more later tonight!)
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!
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?!
iaobai: "Councilor Dad, front me some funds. I want to hire ten thousand professional miners for a project!" [Five-Star Mission Issued: Capture the leader of the Blood Heaven Pirate Gang, who is on the run in the Radiant Star Sector. It is said the gang has over a hundred members. Proceed with caution.] Lu Xiaobai: "Councilor Dad, lend me the family's hundred-thousand-strong Lu Army!" [Seven-Star Mission Issued: Subdue a juvenile Void Dragon Beast.] Lu Xiaobai: "Councilor Dad, I'm taking your tamed Void Dragon Beast King out for a family reunion!" I said, System, don't you have any slightly more challenging missions? You're just not up to par! [Nine-Star Mission Issued: Become the Human Councilor.] Lu Xiaobai: "Dad, there's a small matter I'd like to discuss with you..."
d intelligence to keep the plot moving, and sometimes even the protagonists are forced into absurdly dumb decisions. Why does the A-list celebrity heroine in urban romance novels ditch the top-tier movie star and become a lovestruck fool for a pockmarked male lead? Why do the leads in historical tragedy novels keep dancing between love and death, only for the blind healer to end up suffering the most? And Gu Wei never expected that after finally landing a villain role to stir up trouble, she’d pick the wrong gender! No choice now—she’ll just have to crush the protagonists as a girl!
