"Aunt Qi Meng, did you and Aunt Ru Xue stay up late chatting again last night?"
"Why hasn't she come down yet? It’s almost eight o'clock."
Lin Yu asked curiously.
Aunt Ru Xue wasn’t the type to be late.
She was the one who had set the time herself.
By all logic, she should have appeared by now.
Chen Qimeng shook her head with a smile and said,
"No, we went to bed early last night and slept... very well."
"Ru Xue should be almost ready by now."
"But don’t be shocked when you see her later."
Lin Yu: "???"
Da Xiao and Er Chi: "???"
Shocked?
What did Aunt Qi Meng mean by that?
Was Aunt Ru Xue going to come downstairs wielding a kitchen knife?
Just as they were puzzling over this,
Aunt Ru Xue’s voice came from the living room...
"Sorry, I had to take a quick shower because of my hair."
"We’ll be out all day today, and if there were stray hairs sticking to me, it’d be annoying."
Lin Yu, Da Xiao, and Er Chi curiously stepped out of the dining room.
The moment they saw Du Ruxue, all three froze in place.
Her hair...
She had cut it short!
No wonder Aunt Qi Meng had said that.
And what was with the sportswear?
Paired with the baseball cap in Du Ruxue’s hand,
If they ran into her on the street, they’d never connect her to the elegant woman they’d met just days ago.
If outsiders would be stunned,
Xia Yiwei and Maomao were even more shocked.
"Aunt Ru Xue, your... your hair..."
Xia Yiwei stammered, unable to form a complete sentence.
Du Ruxue had always been meticulous about her appearance.
Even something as simple as a haircut—
For years, she had only trusted one stylist.
Every trim was nearly identical, with no major changes.
How much resolve had it taken for her to cut her hair short today?
"Aunt Ru Xue..."
"You look really good like this."
Maomao’s reaction, aside from shock, included genuine praise.
She didn’t know why Aunt Ru Xue had cut her hair or why she was dressed this way,
But something felt... different about her now.
"Qi Meng’s haircutting skills are just so-so, so bear with it."
"Maomao, today, no one can help you."
"Today’s test is just between you and me."
As soon as the topic shifted to the day’s challenge, everyone snapped back to attention.
Maomao, the one being tested, didn’t find it strange at all.
Yesterday,
Without everyone’s help, she never could have completed the task alone.
Today’s rule—limiting it to just her—was completely expected.
She didn’t say anything, just waited quietly,
Listening for Aunt Ru Xue to continue.
At the same time,
She couldn’t stop admiring Aunt Ru Xue’s sportswear.
From childhood until now, she had never seen Aunt Ru Xue wear athletic clothes.
This outfit had to be Aunt Qi Meng’s.
The size looked about right,
But if you looked closely, the pant legs were just a bit too short.
Aunt Ru Xue never bought clothes with sizing flaws.
Du Ruxue walked up to Maomao and held out her hand.
"Maomao, give me your phone."
Maomao didn’t ask why or what for.
She obediently handed it over, even entering her passcode so Aunt Ru Xue could see it clearly.
Du Ruxue pocketed the phone, then took out her own and handed it to Maomao.
Maomao took it hesitantly, her face full of question marks.
Du Ruxue pointed at the phone.
"No passcode. There’s enough money in Alipay and WeChat."
"Today, you’re the adult. You’re taking me out for a day in Pingchuan."
"Eat, drink, bathroom breaks—everything except sleep—we’re doing it all outside!"
Maomao took a deep breath, her expression unreadable.
Yesterday’s test was about whether she knew how to spend money wisely—
What was worth paying for, what wasn’t.
Today’s test was basically...
To see if she could take care of someone!
If she couldn’t even look after Aunt Ru Xue, whom she knew well, in a single day,
How could she possibly take care of herself living alone?
Aunt Ru Xue’s reasoning made perfect sense.
Lin Yu nearly laughed out loud at the request.
What kind of test was this?
Wasn’t this just an excuse to go out and have fun with Maomao under the guise of a challenge?
And making the inexperienced Maomao take care of her?
Hahaha—
Could this even be called a proper outing?
Maomao had no way out. Even though she felt this task was even harder,
Her only option was to agree.
Du Ruxue added,
"No need to rush. I’ll give you an hour to prepare."
"You can ask them for advice or look things up online."
"At least figure out what we’ll be doing today."
"Don’t push yourself into something you’re not good at—it’ll just cause unnecessary trouble."
Maomao’s tension eased a little.
Aunt Ru Xue was so kind!
She was giving her time to prepare.
That made it much less daunting.
If they had to leave right now, Maomao would be completely lost.
Snap!
Xia Yiwei flicked her fingers and gave Maomao a thumbs-up.
As a local, she knew exactly where to go and what to do to kill time.
This was no challenge for her!
......
At 8:30 a.m.,
Lin Yu and Aunt Qi Meng arrived at the shopping street.
Maomao didn’t need Lin Yu to stay and help.
With the Xia sisters’ tips, things seemed to be going smoothly.
Lin Yu had come to Mao Ruirui’s pet shop, so he and Chen Qimeng left together.
"Yu, these bags are light. I can carry them to the shop myself."
"Go see Ruirui. She’s been at the shop since early morning—she’s probably been waiting for you."
"Be careful training the dogs. Don’t get scratched or bitten."
Chen Qimeng insisted on taking the bags from Lin Yu so he could tend to his own business.
A few rolls of wrapping paper weren’t heavy enough to need his help.
"Alright, I’ll head straight to Ruirui’s then."
"I’ll come by the shop at noon to bring you lunch. Don’t go out."
Lin Yu glanced around—no familiar faces on the street.
Then,
He quickly kissed Chen Qimeng on the cheek.
Chen Qimeng’s face flushed instantly, and she turned and hurried across the street.
......
(Second update for today. More coming soon!)
e school belle recognized by the whole school, a genius girl from the kendo club. She also has a hidden identity, the youngest legendary demon hunter. Chen Shuo just transmigrated and found himself turned into a weak, helpless little vampire. He was caught by Su Xiyen and taken home at the very beginning. Since then, Chen Shuo's life creed only had two items. "First, classmate Su Xiyen is always right." "Second, if classmate Su Xiyen is wrong, please refer back to item one." Many years later, Chen Shuo, who had turned back into a human, led a pair of twins to appear in front of all the vampires to share the secret of how he turned back into a human. "It's simple, I tricked a female demon hunter into becoming my wife!"
grated, and just when he finally managed to get into an elite academy, he discovered that he actually had a system, and the way to earn rewards was extremely ridiculous. So for the sake of rewards, he had no choice but to start acting ridiculous as well. Su Cheng: "It's nothing but system quests after all." But later, what confused Su Cheng was that while he was already quite ridiculous, he never expected those serious characters to gradually become ridiculous too. And the way they looked at him became increasingly strange... (This synopsis doesn't do it justice, please read the full story)
with countless casualties. As a top-tier gamer, Liu Xuan volunteered to join the fight, intending to dominate with his skills, but instead he obtained the hidden class: [Pacifist]. Unable to attack. Unable to use active skills. Fortunately, with each level gained, he acquired a new passive skill. And so, armed with a body full of passives, Liu Xuan slaughtered his way through the battlefield of ten thousand races! [You attacked Liu Xuan] [You gained the debuffs: 'Poison', 'Fear', 'Burning', 'Bleeding', 'Freeze', 'Silence', etc.] [Your attack speed has been reduced by 99%] [Your armor and magic resistance have been reduced by 99%] Warriors of the Ten Thousand Races: How the hell am I supposed to fight this?!
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.
