The sky gradually darkened, and the streetlights in the city flickered to life.
Dragon Country's "City That Never Sleeps" unveiled another dazzling side, redolent with wealth and a top-tier allure...
Somewhere in the central district of Shanghai Major City, at the Lin Group property.
Inside the luxurious mansion of Lin Tianxiong.
"Dad, why hasn't Brother come over yet? It's been the whole day. Do you think something happened? Could you give him a call and check?"
Lin Baizhi, dressed in a little white skirt, sat on the sofa, swinging her fair, slender, almost perfectly shaped legs while staring intently at the clock on the wall.
A day!
A full day had passed, and Lin Baizhi had spent all of it doing the same three things: checking the time, waiting for Ye Cheng, and asking her father why her brother hadn't come over for dinner yet.
Repeating those three steps and boom—you've got Lin Baizhi's entire day right there.
If you're feeling bored, unsure if what you're doing has meaning, or starting to doubt yourself... just look at Lin Baizhi, who sat on the sofa all day, constantly checking the time and asking when Ye Cheng would show up.
Lin Baizhi would tell you with absolute conviction: it is very meaningful!
Just thinking about it had her heart racing already, her face blushing... Could this be love? Or was Brother over there thinking about her too?
It must be Brother thinking about her—the more she thought about it, the more excited she got!
Endless internal churning, endless excitement, building up, and then crashing down... yeah, kind of like, you know what I mean.
Of course, when I say "that," I mean... that.
Meanwhile, Lin Tianxiong was also sitting at the other end of the living room with a furrowed brow, staring at his phone without moving, as if lost in thought.
Indeed, today felt off.
Ye Cheng was a very punctual person. He might not arrive early, but he would never be late. Logically, their agreed meeting time and the plan for Ye Cheng to pick up some things at the house was supposed to be this morning.
But late last night, Ye Cheng sent a message saying he needed to reschedule.
He wouldn't be able to make it in the morning... then later, it changed again to saying he couldn't come in the morning at all, but would make it happen today.
Now... the better part of the day had passed, night had fallen, and there was still no sign of Ye Cheng showing up. It was hard not to think of something bad happening.
Could it be... that he got caught by the other girls?
The thought popped into Lin Tianxiong's head, a strange idea he couldn't shake. He still remembered those young women clearly.
One was fiercer than the next. Forget the Eastern family girl first—just that cold, distant girl from the Shen family was more than his own daughter could handle.
Those girls all had strong, dominant personalities. His own daughter could at least pretend to be a harmless little bunny.
But the other two didn't bother with any of that. They were scarily assertive. Just thinking about it, it made sense that they might have confiscated his phone or something.
But then... another thought arose.
With Ye Cheng's intelligence, wouldn't he have figured out another way to send word?
Unless something happened suddenly, without warning, giving him no time to even send a message... or maybe he was on his way over right now?
"Honey, don't rush it. Maybe Xiao Cheng is on his way. Just wait a little longer..." Lin Tianxiong said with a smile.
"How long am I supposed to wait? Quit dawdling and call him already—oh, and don't tell him I'm the one making you call. Hurry, hurry!" Lin Baizhi was absolutely frantic.
She'd been preparing for so long. There was no way she was letting her brother get away today.
The celebration wine has been opened for you—don't be too happy too early... no wait, I mean, she had already doctored the wine. Brother, you're not getting away if you show up today!
Yes.
Lin Baizhi had gone completely unhinged, to the point of actually using drugs. Even Lin Tianxiong didn't know about that. At the right moment, Lin Baizhi would send her old dad away, and then... land a devastating strike on her brother!
Just thinking about it had Lin Baizhi buzzing with excitement, her breathing growing quick, her cheeks flushed with red...
This agonizingly long wait feeling, after that little fantasy of a happy ending, seemed to give her a reason to keep holding on. Just a little more, just a little longer—as long as Brother showed up today, he wasn't walking out of here vertically!
Lin Tianxiong: "..."
On the other side, seeing the subtly sinister expression on his daughter's face, Lin Tianxiong fell silent.
Was she... seriously considering some kind of underhanded trick?
Cold sweat formed on Lin Tianxiong's forehead. Once that thought appeared, more extreme variants kept sprouting like weeds after rain.
And let's be real, she actually would be the type to do something like that... She'd already threatened her dad with a butcher knife, you think she'd hesitate to drug someone?
Lin Tianxiong: "..."
"Uh... so, sweetie, I don't know if I should say this, but a healthy relationship should, you know, be healthy. Please don't go down some kind of extreme path."
As he spoke, Lin Tianxiong wiped the sweat off his forehead.
Lin Baizhi was still lost in her beautiful fantasy of her brother being defeated when she suddenly heard her dad say, "don't go down an extreme path," and her face instantly dropped.
"Just go make your call already! What's with all this talk about extreme paths? That's nonsense. Two people who want each other completely voluntarily—how can that be called extreme?"
Lin Tianxiong: "..."
So, you really are going to take that extreme route after all!
Upon hearing her answer, Lin Tianxiong's last sliver of hope officially died. His daughter never really lied to him; it was a kind of unspoken understanding between father and daughter—family trust.
Not lying didn't mean she had to say the whole truth. She could pick and choose, downplay things, dodge around certain bits. That was a craft Lin Baizhi had mastered thanks to Ye Cheng.
A bunch of true statements stitched together into a lie...
"Go on, go on! Stop standing there looking. Do you even see what time it is?" Lin Baizhi pressed him again.
Lin Tianxiong: "..."
Her old dad let out a helpless sigh, got up, and went outside to place the call. The second he got up, Lin Baizhi was already moving, creeping right behind him, ears strained to catch what he was saying.
"Beep... beep... beep..."
"I'm sorry, the number you have dialed is temporarily unreachable. Please try again later..."
Lin Tianxiong: "???"
"What do you mean it won't go through?" Lin Tianxiong froze, then dialed another number for Ye Cheng. Same result—still unreachable.
"Why won't it connect!" Before Lin Tianxiong could even panic, Lin Baizhi jumped out from behind him, eyes wide as saucers, looking ready to murder someone.
Are you kidding me?!
She'd been preparing for so long. The outfit, the details, and the wine—all ready to go... and now you're telling me he's not coming?!
Damn it, are you serious?!?!
A pained, twisted look took over Lin Baizhi's face, and it looked like she was about to burst into tears at any second.
Lin Tianxiong: “…”
No way, right?
Lin Tianxiong’s mouth twitched. He had no choice but to comfort his daughter first: “Baizhi, maybe Xiao Cheng’s phone ran out of battery, or maybe he’s just not in a service area right now. Give it a little more time—”
“How much longer do I have to wait! You old fool, your methods have gone soft!” Lin Baizhi bared her teeth, eyes red, looking like she was about to snap.
Lin Tianxiong: “???”
Old fool?
That rude?
Or was this some kind of family tradition — filial piety, father-daughter love, the whole package?
Back in the day, he’d treated the rest of his family the same way. Now karma had come full circle, and it was his turn. Without realizing it, he had become that soft, feeble old man…
Indeed, compared to the ruthless, scheming tyrant of Dahai City he’d been years ago, he had definitely gone soft now.
Both in personality and in how he handled things, he’d become weaker, gentler. When had that started?
From the moment Lin Baizhi was brought back to him. From the moment he went from a loner to a father. He had something to hold onto — and by the same token, something to lose. And that had made him weak.
That logic… was sound.
“Dad, I know you have ways. You know how important he is to me. You have to help me. You HAVE to help me!”
Lin Baizhi’s tone turned obsessive, just like the dark, hidden version of Lin Tianxiong in his youth — the mad, desperate man who had lost everything and snarled in the shadows.
Instead of feeling annoyed or hurt, Lin Tianxiong’s eyes actually showed a flicker of approval.
This was his daughter, alright. Yes, exactly. When you want something, you go after it — you fight for it, you take it, your own way!
“Alright, Baizhi. Some things are just not convenient for you to handle personally. Let your father do it. Just wait.”
Lin Tianxiong took a deep breath, his gaze turning resolute. He quickly started making calls, pulling strings to investigate Ye Cheng’s whereabouts.
This kind of thing required discretion. Because of Lin Baizhi’s status, and to avoid leaving Ye Cheng with a bad impression later — you know, the “possessive, controlling” type of image — certain things had to be kept under wraps.
Strictly speaking, Lin Tianxiong, as the doting father, should also have been discreet. But…
Not now. If he kept being discreet, his daughter was about to go full berserk. He had no choice but to step up. Sorry, Xiao Cheng!
In less than five minutes, a full rundown of Ye Cheng’s daily movements appeared on Lin Tianxiong’s phone. Before he could even read it clearly, a hand darted in from the side and snatched the phone away.
Lin Tianxiong: “…”
Lin Baizhi skimmed through it quickly, hunting for useful information, and soon zeroed in on a few key points.
Key point one: he went to the Tang residence. Spent the night there.
Key point two: after leaving the Tang residence, he went back to school, and eventually, along with some problem child, headed to Xia Tongxin’s villa.
And then… he didn’t come out the entire night.
Damn it. What were they doing in there? So hard to guess. It must have just been playing games, right? I mean, one guy, and a few girls — that’s all. Surely it was just a pure, innocent friendship, right?
Definitely just friends and classmates, right?
Lin Baizhi: “…”
“AAAHHH—”
“Are you kidding me!!!”
“You jerk… waaaah… Are you kidding me?! I was the one who came first! Waaaah… That shameless older woman, that old hag, no shame at all, robbing the cradle, waaaah…”
“Shen Qinghan, I swear I’ll never let this go, waaaah…”
Merely reading about Ye Cheng’s day was enough to shatter Lin Baizhi’s heart. Clutching the phone, she collapsed to her knees and wept, grinding her molars in fury.
In her mind, she had already conjured countless scenarios — different settings, different angles — of Ye Cheng’s “defeat CG.”
Damn it, are you serious?!
Those CGs were supposed to be unlocked by HER!!!
Ugh… waaaah…
Lin Tianxiong: “…”
Lin Tianxiong stood to the side, silent, trying to think of how to console his daughter, how to guide her toward a more positive perspective. Like, for example… listening outside the door would be a pretty decent choice.
At least that counts as some degree of participation or something…
The moment he thought that, even he himself felt a bit speechless. Then, suddenly —
Bzzz. Bzzz.
His phone vibrated. The Lin family’s support staff had sent over a fresh new post — just grabbed it, still hot off the press.
“【SHOCKING! The male lead of a satisfying power fantasy? The truth will bring you to tears — a tragic male lead!】”
Lin Tianxiong: “???”
He skimmed through the post briefly, and his pupils contracted sharply. His face turned grim. As if a thought had struck him, he hastily hid the phone and swiftly deleted the post.
Just as he breathed a sigh of relief…
“Dad… what was that you just deleted?” Lin Baizhi looked up without warning, eyes bloodshot, staring dead at Lin Tianxiong without blinking.
Lin Tianxiong: “…”
lities. One day, Qi Yuan was buying groceries when he unfortunately came face-to-face with a monster. Just when he thought he was going to die on the spot, he suddenly heard the monster's thoughts... "This aura, he's definitely not an ordinary master!" "So terrifying, so terrifying." "A fight with my back against the wall, I can't take it anymore." Qi Yuan: Ah, no one told me that my awakened ability isn't telepathy, but rather the stronger my enemies imagine me to be, the stronger I truly become. PS: Zhou Hai in the first chapter is not the protagonist.
to panic—he has a system. As long as an investment target dies, he can claim a reward. And since he is immortal, the one thing he has plenty of is time. ... Countless years later. “Immortal Emperor of Longevity? I invested in him.” “Supreme Celestial Venerable? I invested in him.” “Undying Empress? I invested in her.” “...” “Heh. Once they’ve all died, even the Heavenly Dao will have to kneel and call me Dad.”
s the Eldest Princess, renowned for her cold and aloof detachment, became the most docile of lambs, obeying his every command without question. But when the final move was played on the chessboard, as Gu Chenghan seized everything and ascended on the verge of apotheosis, that very Princess suddenly embraced him from behind, her tone carrying a dependence never heard before: "Wait... you haven't yet... commanded me to love you forever." Gu Chenghan froze abruptly. She... hadn't been hypnotized?! ... [The Eldest Princess's Diary] [When my soul was extracted, becoming the sole spectator outside my own shell] [At first, there was overwhelming fury, until I saw] [How he used my sword to effortlessly shatter my inescapable doom] [How he wielded my authority to eradicate fatal conspiracies I had never even detected] [Like a deity, he rescued me from the deep mire I was trapped in] [If not for those annoying vixens, he and I would be a match made in heaven] [I think I am ill, gravely ill] [My deity should belong to me alone] ... "Hypnosis? Oh, it succeeded, my dear Master." "Only this time, it's my turn to hypnotize you."
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.
