"Ruirui-jie, I'm here. Are you busy?"
Lin Yu stepped into the shop, the bell above the door jingling as he entered.
He had expected to run into Chang Xiaoxiao first thing upon arrival.
But to his surprise—
There was no sign of her.
Not just her, but Mao Ruirui was missing too?
The shop was quieter than usual, with only the faint rustling and hopping sounds of small animals in their cages.
"Ruirui-jie? Are you here?"
"Xiaoxiao?"
"That's weird..."
Lin Yu frowned, scanning the entrance hall.
The door was open, yet not a soul in sight?
Had another clueless dog run off, and the two of them gone chasing after it?
Even if they were searching for a runaway dog, they wouldn’t just leave the door unlocked.
Lin Yu walked further inside, checking the other rooms.
If no one turned up, he’d have to call them.
However—
As he approached the usual pet bathing room—
The faint creak of floorboards didn’t escape Lin Yu’s sharp hearing.
What was that…?
The sound of shuffling footsteps?
From the outside, no one was visible.
But if he squinted past the glass, two dark figures lurked behind it…
They were hiding!
And there was more than one!
What were Ruirui-jie and Xiaoxiao up to, sneaking around like this?
Trying to scare him?
Were they pulling some kind of prank?
Lin Yu was completely baffled, unable to guess their intentions.
Still—
He wasn’t about to ruin their fun.
Feigning ignorance, he stepped inside.
"Strange, they didn’t tell me they were going out…"
"Where is everyone?"
Lin Yu muttered under his breath—
Of course, intentionally loud enough for the two behind the door to hear.
The next moment—
"Bang~"
"Bang~"
Two loud pops echoed from behind the door.
Colorful paper streamers rained down, covering Lin Yu from head to toe.
At least they weren’t glitter—that stuff was a nightmare to clean off.
"Xiao Yu, happy early birthday!"
"Lin Yu-senpai, happy birthday!"
Mao Ruirui and Chang Xiaoxiao jumped out from behind the door, beaming at him excitedly.
Lin Yu pretended to be startled before turning to them, clasping his hands together in gratitude.
The moment he saw the streamers, he’d figured it out.
Tomorrow was his birthday.
They’d all agreed to celebrate properly at the apartment.
But it seemed the two girls had decided to give him an early surprise at the shop today.
Mao Ruirui grabbed a box from a nearby table and handed it to Lin Yu.
Chang Xiaoxiao followed suit, placing a slightly smaller box on top of it.
Mao Ruirui: "We’re giving you our gifts early. Tomorrow, there’ll be so many people giving you presents—we wanted to stand out."
Chang Xiaoxiao: "Exactly! Ruirui-jie suggested we celebrate today, so I brought my gift from home too."
Both boxes were wrapped in decorative paper.
No way to guess what was inside just by looking.
"Thank you, really. So… should I…?"
Lin Yu mimed unwrapping the gifts, glancing at them for confirmation.
Mao Ruirui: "Open them at home!"
Chang Xiaoxiao: "At home!"
They spoke in perfect unison—
Even their tone and expressions were eerily identical.
Lin Yu couldn’t help but wonder…
Were these just ordinary gifts?
Or was there something else hidden inside that they didn’t want him seeing now?
The two girls noticed his puzzled look and quickly backtracked.
Mao Ruirui hurriedly explained:
"Because it’s not technically your birthday yet!"
Chang Xiaoxiao: "Right, exactly!"
Mao Ruirui: "If you open them now, there won’t be any surprise left for the actual day. Wait until after midnight!"
Chang Xiaoxiao: "Yeah, Ruirui-jie’s totally right."
Lin Yu nodded with an amused smile: "..."
Worried about spoiling the surprise?
Then why insist on giving them early?
Tsk tsk.
He really couldn’t follow Ruirui-jie and Xiaoxiao’s logic.
But since they’d put it that way—
He’d play along.
Otherwise, if he opened them now and found, say, two love letters inside, things might get awkward.
"Can I leave the gifts at the front desk for now?"
"Ruirui-jie, which dog am I training today?"
Chang Xiaoxiao politely took the boxes from Lin Yu and set them aside.
Meanwhile, Mao Ruirui led him back to the main area.
She opened one of the medium-sized cages and called out to the dog inside.
"Good Luck, come here."
But—
The dog didn’t budge.
It just lay there, head pressed to the floor, staring up at its owner with pitiful eyes.
It didn’t seem lazy—just too scared to step out.
Lin Yu gave Mao Ruirui a questioning look.
"This is the dog you’re entering in the competition?"
There was no way this dog had any competitive potential!
At the very least, they should’ve picked one with some basic training, right?
This one was clearly untrained and skittish—how was it supposed to compete?
Did they think Lin Yu was some kind of dog-whispering deity?
Could he magically turn any mutt into a champion overnight?!
Mao Ruirui looked sheepish.
"Xiao Yu, originally, it wasn’t supposed to be this one…"
"I just wanted you to see if Good Luck… had any potential?"
That only confused Lin Yu more.
Was this some kind of nepotism case?
Had some rich dog owner sponsored the shop?
He recognized the breed.
He’d crammed a ton of dog knowledge to prepare for today.
A Dogue de Bordeaux—
Also called a French Mastiff or Bordeaux Bulldog.
In terms of size and breed—
They were actually great for training and competitions.
Highly intelligent, obedient to commands, easy to shape into winners.
But this one?
A clear exception.
Lin Yu answered honestly:
"Potential… is very low."
"Is there some story behind this dog?"
"Or does it… have powerful connections?"
Mao Ruirui awkwardly lowered her gaze.
Lin Yu: "..."
Bingo.
Seeing her discomfort, Chang Xiaoxiao stepped in.
"Lin Yu-senpai, you’re really sharp. This dog belongs to Aunt Chunxia—she’s the landlord’s wife."
"When she heard about the city’s dog competition, she wanted Good Luck to participate."
"It’s not that Good Luck isn’t a good dog, just…"
"It’s not the competition type."
Close enough to what Lin Yu had guessed.
But one thing still puzzled him—
"So that’s how it is. Makes sense."
"Let me ask—"
"Ruirui-jie, is your landlord’s name Wang Biao?"
...
(Bonus chapter delivered!)
reezy rom-com) Good news: Jiang Liu is quite the ladies' man. Bad news: He’s lost his memory. Lying in a hospital bed, Jiang Liu listens to a parade of goddesses spouting "absurd claims," feeling like the world is one giant game of Werewolf. "Jiang Liu, I’m your first love." "Jiang Liu, you’re my boyfriend—she’s your ex." "Jiang Liu, we’re close friends who’ve shared a bed, remember?" "Jiang Liu, I want to have your baby." The now-lucid Jiang Liu is convinced this must be some elaborate scam... until someone drops the bombshell: "The day before you lost your memory, you confessed your feelings—and got into a relationship." Jiang Liu is utterly baffled. So... who the hell is his actual girlfriend?! ... Before recovering his memories, Jiang Liu must navigate this minefield of lies and sincerity, fighting to protect himself from these women’s schemes. But things spiral even further out of control as more people show up at his doorstep—each with increasingly unhinged antics. On the bright side, the memories he lost due to overwhelming trauma seem to be resurfacing. Great news, right? So why are they all panicking now?
u Chenyuan transmigrated into a female-oriented novel about a real and fake heiress, becoming the CEO elder brother of both. Unfortunately, the entire Lu family—including himself, the CEO—were mere cannon fodder in the story. Determined to save himself, Lu Chenyuan took action. The spoiled, attention-seeking fake heiress? Thrown into the harsh realities of the working class to learn humility. The love-struck real heiress? Pushed toward academic excellence, so lofty goals would blind her to trivial romances. As for the betrayed, vengeful arranged marriage wife… the plot hadn’t even begun yet. There was still time—if he couldn’t handle her, he could at least avoid her. "CEO Lu, are you avoiding me?" Mo Qingli fixed her gaze on Lu Chenyuan. For the first time, the shrewd and calculating Lu Chenyuan felt a flicker of unease.
th】 【No prior gaming knowledge required】【The First Cultivation + Game Design Novel on the Platform】 In a world where the righteous path dominates and crushes the demonic sects, Lu Ze unlocks the "Son of the Demon Path" system. Killing righteous cultivators now grants him power-ups. Wait—deaths in illusions count too? As a former game designer, Lu Ze decides to give the cultivators of this world a little—no, a massive—shock... Sect Elders: "What is this 'Escape from the Demon Sect' game? Why have all our disciples abandoned cultivation to play it??" Elite Disciples: "You're saying... mastering 'Demon Slayer' can help us counter demonic schemes?" Reclusive Masters: "Why did I leave seclusion? Ask that backstabbing rat who ambushed me in 'Eternal Strife' yesterday!" Rogue Cultivators & Civilians: "'Immortal Abyss Action' is addictive! You can even earn spirit stones by loot-running..." Sect Prodigy: "My Dao heart is unshakable... except for that cursed black hammer." Royal Scions: "Can skins have stat boosts? I’ll pay 10,000 spirit stones for one!!" Sect Leader: "WHO IS CORRUPTING MY DISCIPLES?!!!"
close your eyes and open them again, only to find yourself transmigrated into the role of a villainous male supporting character. Readers familiar with urban wish-fulfillment novels know that it is only through the relentless antics of the villainous male supporting character that the plot between the male and female leads can progress. As the villainous male supporting character, Long Aotian not only has to bully the female lead, harass the second female lead, and flirt with the third female lead, but he also has to go all out to antagonize the male lead. In the end, when his body is discovered, he is still clutching half a moldy fried dough stick in his hand. Fully aware of the plot, Long Aotian is determined to change his fate, starting with the female lead! In the beginning, the female lead lacks confidence: "Big brother, I hope I didn't scare you?" In the middle, the female lead treads carefully: "Brother Long, please don't hit me, okay?" Later on, the female lead becomes coquettishly clingy: "Aotian, it's time to pay the 'public grain' tonight." Long Aotian's legs go weak, and he feels like crying: "I taught you to be thick-skinned, not shameless!"
