"So it really is you!" The bespectacled uncle finally smiled with relief the moment he saw Shen Nian.
"Hello, teacher!" Since things had come to this, it was best to be polite first.
"Alright, alright, I know you're not Cai Xukun either. Shen Nian, right? If I hadn't passed by the honor roll and taken a look, I would have almost been fooled." The bespectacled uncle waved his hand, letting those past unpleasantries be water under the bridge.
"Haha, sorry about that, teacher. I didn't want to get points deducted either."
"Ah, it's fine. After all, I went back later and deducted your personal conduct points anyway."
"..."
Damn it. The points are already deducted, what's with the friendly chit-chat now?
Shen Nian was about to turn into a sweating emoji.
The bespectacled uncle cleared his throat, walked over to Shen Nian, and patted his shoulder. "One thing at a time. Deducting points is the school's business. Has Shen Nian been selling fish lately?"
"Teacher, you're still thinking about the fish? I'll just give you a couple."
"How could I accept that? I'll buy them normally. I've tried fish from all over the market recently, but I still think the fish you sell is the freshest. It tastes great no matter how it's cooked. I'd feel bad taking them for free," the bespectacled uncle said with a laugh.
"It's really no problem, there are plenty of fish anyway."
"Well..." Shen Nian's insistence made the bespectacled uncle feel awkward about refusing. After hesitating for a moment, he finally nodded. "Okay."
But he wouldn't take a student's things for nothing. He was already planning to buy some crabs to give to Shen Nian later, treating it as a barter exchange, not a freebie.
"I've left the fish in the river, teacher. Just bring a net and a bucket tomorrow and scoop them up from the park."
Bespectacled uncle: ...?
This damn kid.
Next time I catch him being late, I'm deducting double the personal conduct points.
"Do you need anything else, teacher? If not, I'm heading to class."
Shen Nian grinned, his smile somewhat reminiscent of a villain from a dark cult.
Got caught being late, got lectured, got points deducted retroactively, and you still want my fish?
You want all the good things for yourself.
"I really just wanted to buy fish..."
The bespectacled uncle nodded.
The fish Shen Nian sold had exceptionally good texture—tender, smooth, and incredibly fresh, unforgettable, like gliding on ice.
It's hard to go from luxury back to simplicity.
Once you've had the good stuff, you can't stand the half-dead fish at the regular market. He'd even bought fish from anglers, but it always felt like something was missing. They were fresh and lively, but he just couldn't recapture that past feeling.
There are differences even among fish!
He thought maybe it was just that one particular fish, but... he'd searched the entire fish market and couldn't find fish that suited his taste so perfectly, that his whole family found so delicious.
He'd practically become obsessed.
He planned to buy another one from Shen Nian. If it wasn't as good, then it was just a shame, truly a problem with that specific fish, and he might never eat such delicious fish again. But if it was just as delicious, then it could only mean Shen Nian's fish were specially good, and he could enjoy them often in the future.
Shen Nian scratched his head. What kind of eccentric person was this?
In his opinion, the whole school might as well be renamed "Genius Retirement Home." Chasing after someone for a month or two just to buy a fish—there were no normal humans left.
It was all the fault of his "Fishing Mastery" skill; the fish he caught were all top-tier talents among their kind.
He was genuinely afraid that one day he might go deep-sea fishing and hook up an extinct creature.
"Alright then. I have time in the mornings. I'll sell for a while at the market around eight o'clock. Do you want some?"
"Yes!" The bespectacled uncle was delighted. "Classmate, you must save two for me!"
"Fine. But teacher, next time you catch me being late, can you not deduct points?"
"No. One thing at a time."
"..."
Forget it. At least he's an upright and honest school administrator.
Shen Nian wrapped up the conversation hastily and quickly made his escape, deciding to sell less fish after this time and retire from the business.
His hands were stained with the blood of too many talented fish. It was better to let the fish prodigies cultivate in peace.
When he reached the classroom, class hadn't started yet, so everyone was chatting. Xia Yanchun and Li Shiyan were still outside on the corridor catching the breeze.
The school didn't allow hair dryers, so girls who had washed their hair had wet locks. With no air conditioning or fans on in the classroom, everyone had come outside, filling the corridor with the scent of shampoo.
"Shen Nian's here..."
Li Shiyan, who had been laughing and talking with Xia Yanchun, caught sight of Shen Nian approaching out of the corner of her eye. She quickly tugged at Xia Yanchun's sleeve, whispered a reminder, and then turned her face away, pretending nothing had happened.
"So he's here. I usually curse him right to his face anyway," Xia Yanchun said indifferently.
"What's this? Talking behind my back, are you?" Shen Nian laughed, not the least bit angry.
He'd be annoyed if Huang Chen badmouthed him behind his back, since they weren't close and didn't interact much normally. But Chun Bao could curse him all she wanted—after all, he cursed her out plenty too. As for Li Shiyan, it didn't matter at all, especially if she was cursing him together with Chun Bao. What kind of curse could they even muster?
“Don't flatter yourself. I can't even be bothered to curse you,” Xia Yanchun retorted with a sneer.
"And you?"
"Not me, not me! I didn't curse you!"
Li Shiyan had only complained to Xia Yanchun about how fierce Shen Nian could be. Now she'd been sold out by her treacherous friend.
"Whatever, I won't curse you."
Teasing her a bit was enough. This little loli girl couldn't handle being scared.
"I really didn't curse you..."
Li Shiyan felt wronged and was quite angry. Did he really think she was a soft pushover made of clay?
She had already decided to fiercely draw little stick figures of Shen Nian on her scratch paper during evening self-study, to take her revenge, and make the little stick figures lift heavy stones as punishment.
Shen Nian didn't speak. He stared blankly at Xia Yanchun and Li Shiyan in front of him.
To be precise, he was staring at the system interface that had appeared before him.
[Side Quest Triggered: The Blood Demon's Lament
You have encountered a dying blood demon. Legend says saving a dying blood demon will grant you its treasure. Please try to save her.
Reward: 5000 gold coins.]
Shen Nian: ?
What the hell? Who? Who's the blood demon?
Shen Nian looked up, his gaze falling on the somewhat silly, somewhat timid, somewhat cute, and well-behaved little loli girl.
It was right after speaking to this little loli girl that the system quest had popped up...
Could this possibly be a bloodthirsty, flesh-eating blood demon?
System, are you sure about this?
Who turned this little loli girl into a blood demon?!
.
Double update, yay! Please leave likes and little gifts ♥
Yanxi reminds you: Due to Tomato Novel's request for over 3 million daily updates causing excessive server pressure, it is now recommended that you use sources from other big players.
tions: attribute allocation, analysis, proficiency, and simulation. Specializing in mechanical alchemy, from crafting sorcerous battle armor to handcrafting mechanical maidens, his mechanical legion conquers endless realms... Relying on his wits, he begins with a student-teacher romance, wins over a female director, enslaves a female assassin and a underworld queen, becoming the husband of a Grand Duchess... He enslaves the Goddess of Magic from the divine realm, developing his power simultaneously in both the Wizard World and the Realm of Gods...
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)
] [Lone Wolf, No Male Gaze] [Protagonist is pursued early on; extreme protagonist-stans, stay away!] The "Carnival Paradise" descends and slowly devours the real world in the form of a game. By chance, Zhu Yan awakens the talent [Roleplay], becoming one of the first beta players. He thought he could develop safely, but after clearing the first instance, he is branded by humanity as the chief culprit behind the game's spread—a traitorous villain. A villain? Who would ever... become one! He'll be the villain! From then on, Zhu Yan is not only a player but also a lackey for the Carnival Paradise. Between the straight path and the crooked path, he chooses the con. With his left hand, he dons the villain's mantle, staging scenes within instances, infuriating players who decry him as a despicable traitor, all while the game happily promotes him. With his right hand, he joins the non-human organization "Fangcun Mountain," which opposes the Carnival Paradise, transforming into a mysterious player who slaughters game bosses, earning cheers of "Long live the expert!" from fellow players. Gradually, Zhu Yan rises to become an S-rank human player in Fangcun Mountain's archives, while also being the Carnival Paradise's certified top game Boss. But when the final war erupts and both major factions place their hopes in him— Players tag his various aliases: "Experts, this offensive depends on you." The Carnival Paradise's supreme Boss throws an arm around his neck: "Bro, you're the iron, I'm the steel; you can't let me down again!"
villain is the number one simp for the book's leading female protagonist, Shen Wan'er. As expected, he later becomes a tool for the main character to show off and slap faces, ultimately meeting a tragic end with his family ruined and his life in shambles. Fortunately, he awakens the [Universal Pure Love System], which allows him to earn points by performing acts of pure love. To change his fate, Gu Yan makes a decisive choice to seek warmth and companionship with the book's biggest villain—Cold Qingqiu. ........... My name is Leng Qingqiu. To find the murderer who killed my parents years ago, I deliberately blinded myself so that everyone would lower their guard around me. Just as I was secretly accumulating power and capital according to my initial plan, a man walked into my world. "Lengleng, Qingqing, Qiuqiu, which nickname do you prefer?" I don't like any of them. You'd better leave quickly! "Why aren't you saying anything? How about I call you my baby wife?" Leng Qingqiu thinks to herself, this man is truly annoying! (Stubborn pure love warrior + single female lead + true pure love + 1v1)
