"Xinyan, I can't give you an answer because I'm not sure about the future. I have a bit of marriage-phobia."
That was Wu Zhishang's response at the time, neither agreeing to marriage nor proposing a breakup—utterly ambiguous.
Zhang Xinyan was furious, pointing her finger at Wu Zhishang's nose. "I'm asking you one more time, will you marry me or not?"
Seeing Wu Zhishang remain silent and unresponsive, Zhang Xinyan felt as if her heart was shattering.
She threw down her resignation letter. "Either we get married, or you'll never see me again. You'll regret losing me for the rest of your life."
As Wu Zhishang looked at the resignation letter on the desk and was about to tear it up, Zhang Xinyan spoke up.
"I've also sent a copy to your email. I look forward to Manager Liu's review!"
With that, she ran out to get back to work, tears streaming down her face as she worked.
So, it had all been her own wishful thinking.
Perhaps in Wu Zhishang's heart, he had never truly loved her.
Zhang Xinyan felt her brief romance was coming to an end.
Yet, before her heartbreak had even lasted 24 hours, Wu Zhishang rushed to her side.
"Zhang Xinyan, I've decided. I want to marry you."
Zhang Xinyan didn't understand why Wu Zhishang had changed his mind so drastically. Amidst her joy, she also felt a twinge of worry and sought confirmation.
"Are you sure?"
Wu Zhishang, with utmost sincerity, cupped Zhang Xinyan's face in his hands.
"I'm sure. You've been the one putting in all the effort in this relationship. I've never been brave. I was wrong. I'm certain I've fallen in love with you. I want to marry you. For the rest of our lives, it's my turn to love you."
Wu Zhishang had been completely awakened by Lin Ran's words: "Don't let your indecisiveness lead to a lifetime of regret."
It wasn't that he didn't like Zhang Xinyan; on the contrary, he liked her very much.
Who wouldn't like a girl who kept drawing closer to him?
Applying the hurt from his past relationship to this one was a mistake from the start.
He had avoided commitment in the past because he was afraid to love, but now he decided to be brave one more time.
Even if he got hurt again this time, he would accept it.
Zhang Xinyan threw herself into Wu Zhishang's arms, her tears smearing her delicate makeup.
"Don't worry, choosing me will absolutely not be a loss for you."
This was Zhang Xinyan's promise to Wu Zhishang, and it was precisely the promise that moved him the most.
Everything after that proceeded naturally.
After hearing all this, Lin Ran understood the gist of the situation.
"Brother Lin, thank you. Without your words, I might have really missed my chance with Zhang Xinyan."
Lin Ran yawned. "Clichéd, but... congratulations."
Lin Ran's blessing for Wu Zhishang was sincere; he felt a sense of his "son" finally growing up.
"Even if Zhang Xinyan hurts me this time, I'll accept it."
Lin Ran shook his head. "I don't know if Zhang Xinyan will hurt you, but I believe she at least wouldn't hurt you the way Zhao Miaomiao did."
There was a fundamental difference between Zhao Miaomiao and Zhang Xinyan: Zhao Miaomiao was a certified heartbreaker.
As for Zhang Xinyan, even if she and Wu Zhishang were to divorce someday, it probably wouldn't be over something like infidelity.
Wu Zhishang nodded. "True, the difference between them is quite significant."
Lin Ran took out two red envelopes. "These are the wedding gifts Yao Yao and I prepared for you. One is for you, and the other, please give to Shen Jingbing for me."
Wu Zhishang didn't stand on ceremony and reached out to take them.
These were gifts from his Brother Lin and sister-in-law; it would be a waste not to take them.
"So thin?" Wu Zhishang remarked, feeling the thickness of the envelopes.
Lin Ran raised an eyebrow. "They're checks."
Alright, Wu Zhishang was shocked once again.
Truth be told, he wasn't short on money these days, but if it was from Lin Ran, he had to accept it.
"Thank you so much, my righteous sworn brother!"
"My son is thoughtful. Off you go."
Wu Zhishang got up to leave, repeatedly reminding Lin Ran on his way out that he must attend his wedding.
As for Luo Yao, it was up to her.
She could go if she wanted to; Wu Zhishang wouldn't dare insist.
After seeing Wu Zhishang off, Lin Ran returned to the bedroom. Luo Yao was still resting.
However, Lin Ran noticed Luo Yao's brows were slightly furrowed, as if she was having a bad dream.
He reached out and gently stroked her forehead. Luo Yao instantly relaxed, her brows smoothing out, transforming into a gentle and docile little kitten, looking more and more adorable the longer he gazed.
Who would have thought this was the decisive and formidable top tycoon?
Lin Ran simply watched her quietly like this until, half an hour later, Luo Yao opened her eyes.
"Ah Ran, have you been here with me all this time?" Luo Yao's eyes were filled with affection and emotion.
Lin Ran helped Luo Yao sit up, leaning her against his chest. "After seeing Old Wu off, I've just been watching you sleep. Yao Yao looks so cute when she's asleep."
Luo Yao nuzzled against Lin Ran's chest.
"Ah Ran, I just had a dream."
"A good dream or a nightmare?"
"It started as a nightmare, then turned into a good dream, and after that, it kept repeating between nightmare and good dream."
Lin Ran was puzzled. She hadn't slept for long, but she'd had quite a few dreams.
"What was it about?"
Luo Yao wore a thoughtful expression as she recalled.
"I dreamed you died, on the very day of our wedding. I can't remember exactly how you died. I cried so bitterly. Later... later you came back to life, but you came back to life around the time we first met. Then you died again, then came back to life again, then died again, then lived again..."
Lin Ran's face was full of question marks.
What was all this about dying, living, dying again, living again?
"That's a very strange dream."
Luo Yao nodded. "It is strange. What's strange about it? I don't know either."
"If you can't figure it out, don't dwell on it. It's just a dream; it's not real. What was the final outcome?"
Though Lin Ran said it wasn't real, he still wanted to know the ending.
"Finally, we got married, loved each other deeply, and had a lovely baby."
Lin Ran smiled, dotingly stroking Luo Yao's head.
"You actually think a child is cute? Then that really is a good dream."
Luo Yao lowered her head and touched her own stomach.
Perhaps a child or something like that wasn't so detestable after all.
"Ah Ran..."
"Not possible. You'll have to bear with it for now..."
Luo Yao's eyes instantly turned cold and sharp, glaring daggers at her own stomach.
What a rotten child, not cute at all.
Might as well get rid of it.
Forget it, it's the fruit of my love with Ah Ran.
Better keep it.
(Baby: ??? I feel like I'm teetering on the brink of life and death.)
"Ah Ran, what name should we give the baby?"
Lin Ran was instantly stumped. He thought for a long time but still couldn't come up with a good name.
In terms of his cultural knowledge, he wouldn't dare claim it was exceptionally high, but he was a top student. Yet now, he couldn't even think of a name for his own child.
He hadn't even decided on a surname.
His surname was Lin, as in Lin Tianba.
Although he had cut ties, having the child bear the Lin surname still felt strange.
But have the child take the Luo surname?
The Luo family weren't exactly good people either. What a dilemma.
nd fell into a coma while saving his younger sister from an out-of-control car. He became a vegetable. No one knew that his consciousness had crossed into a world of cultivation. Over the course of sixty years, he began as the lowest kind of mine slave, struggling to survive amid mountains of corpses and seas of blood. By sheer chance, he eventually obtained the complete memories of a fallen Immortal King. Alchemy, medicine, formations, feng shui, physiognomy, artifact forging… Every great inheritance of the cultivation world was now his. But when he opened his eyes again, he discovered that ten full years had passed in the modern world. To pay for his treatment, his father had sold the family’s shop and house, leaving himself covered in lasting injuries and illness. His mother had cared for him day and night, and more than half of her hair had already turned white. His younger sister, who had been only fifteen back then, was now twenty-five. To help repay the family’s debts, she had been forced to lower her head and put on a smiling face in places of glittering lights and endless revelry. Only then did Chen Xuan understand that what he had lost was not merely ten years. He had lost the life his entire family was meant to have. The good news was that he had brought back the memories of an Immortal King’s entire lifetime. The bad news was that his soul had returned alone—his cultivation had not come with him. Spiritual energy was scarce, resources were depleted, and the modern world still had firearms, surveillance, capital, and laws. If he wanted to protect his family, break free from everyone’s control, and become truly invincible beneath the heavens, he would have to start all over again.
ts me of treason?" "Correct. The host must return to the capital and gradually build up influence." "Wait—I have half a million soldiers, and you want me to go back to the capital to 'build influence'?" "Host, you are currently the Northern Garrison General, loyal to the Great Xia Dynasty." "Of course I am loyal to Great Xia! Absolutely loyal!" "But you keep referring to yourself as 'We'..." "Never mind the details! Summon all the regional commanders and military officers! We suspect treacherous officials are manipulating the court! They shall march with Us to the capital and purge the corrupt!" "......"
y came from. The chests contained supplies, currency, class-change scrolls, skills, talents… and even godhood! The laws of the world were completely rewritten. This became a world where everyone gambled with their fate! Some people, despite having nothing, opened a divine artifact and rose to the top, eventually ruling the world. Others went bankrupt, opened nothing but worthless junk, and leaped from skyscrapers in despair. Lin Ye arrived in this world from another reality, utterly bewildered. “What is going on? Why is everyone a gambling addict?!” “Opening chests? No way. I refuse to gamble. I’ll start with myself!” Until— On his first chest, he obtained a Mythic Talent: Void Incarnation! He could become completely intangible, pass through all things, and reduce everything to nothingness! … On his fiftieth chest, he obtained a Mythic Weapon: Blade of Karma! With a single slash, karma shattered, twisting the universe and overturning the myriad phenomena of creation! … On his ninety-ninth chest, he obtained a Mythic Divine Treasure: Primordial Purple Energy! It could split open the heavens and earth, create all things, and evolve countless worlds with a single thought! Lin Ye: “Now that I think about it… shouldn’t someone have told me that every chest is guaranteed to contain something Mythic?!”
s + Rent Collection Wealth】 At the start, he inherited a rundown house in the urban village from his grandfather. The house had no tenants, but the moment he was diagnosed with a terminal illness, a self-proclaimed empress from the Tianxuan Continent arrived as his first tenant. Ye Chuan soon discovered that with every new tenant moving in, not only did he receive massive daily payments, but he also obtained unique items related to their backgrounds. 【Acquired Bai Qianshuang’s related item: Tiger Strength Pill—dramatically enhances physical power!】 【Acquired Bai Qianshuang’s related item: Deer Blood Pill—significantly boosts vitality!】 …… From that day on, all sorts of bizarre tenants began appearing in the house: the empress from Tianxuan Continent, an apocalyptic sorceress from the Magic Realm, a mysterious scientific girl who fell through a spacetime rift… Every single day, he received strange, powerful items and endless money. Then one day, he suddenly realized—he had become invincible. Enough, enough! Stop giving me more!
