In the morning, the sky was clear and bright, but the temperature had dropped compared to the warmth of the previous two days.
As the Chinese New Year approached, it was time for it to get cold again.
Because Li Shiyan was around, Shen Nian hadn't hung out with Haji Chun for quite a while.
He had nothing to do all day yesterday. He studied in the morning and went fishing in the afternoon. He caught quite a few, but since he couldn't sell them, he had to bring them back, clean them, and put them in the fridge, giving more than half to his aunt and uncle.
Today was the fourth day the little loli girl had been here.
Shen Nian sat on the balcony basking in the sun. Today, he wore an extra long-sleeved shirt compared to the previous two days.
It was a bit chilly, but the sun shining on his body felt slightly warm. This was the most comfortable feeling.
Shen Nian had sharp ears. Hearing the sound of wheels rolling over the concrete ground below, he poked his head out and saw Xia Yanchun pushing an electric scooter out of the house, with Li Shiyan following behind, fully bundled up.
"Heading back?" Shen Nian asked out of the blue.
Xia Yanchun looked up. "Yeah, you can't get a cab here, so I'm dropping Shiyan off at the entrance of the town."
"It's market day today, so there will be a lot of cars. Drive safely." Shen Nian rested his head on his hands, then looked at Li Shiyan. "Bye-bye, come play again next time."
"Mhm, bye-bye." Li Shiyan waved her little hand.
Actually, there really wasn't much to do in town. Since returning from their picnic the day before yesterday, they had done absolutely nothing. Yesterday, they just played on their phones and watched TV all day.
If the town had any places worth visiting, it wouldn't be so underdeveloped. Li Shiyan still preferred the city.
It wasn't like she was spending the New Year here anyway. If she didn't head back soon, her family would start rushing her.
Xia Yanchun drove off slowly and leisurely, disappearing around a corner.
Shen Nian sat back down in his seat.
The little loli girl had gone back.
Shen Nian glanced at his phone. There were only four days left until the Spring Festival.
Shen Nian's family didn't have too many rules. The town was his hometown, and they didn't need to go to the village to worship the gods for the New Year. For their family, celebrating the New Year just meant staying home to paste spring couplets, eating a New Year's Eve dinner, spending a day visiting relatives, and giving and receiving red envelopes. Just like that, the New Year would pass.
Calculating the time, Shen Yue should be coming back soon too.
Time really flew by.
The Spring Festival was very late this year. After the festival, it would be almost time to go back to school. Right after returning to school would be the hundred-day pledge rally, and only after that would be the Lantern Festival.
With only a hundred days left until the college entrance examination, they would probably only get a half-day off in the afternoon for the Lantern Festival.
Shen Nian was in a good mood. At 11:40, he gave his older sister a call.
The call connected quickly.
"Hello, why are you calling me?" Shen Yue's lazy voice came from the other end of the line.
"When are you planning to come back?"
"Hmm... the day after tomorrow, I guess. Of course, if Lao Di can take care of all the chores and cooking, I can fly back tomorrow."
"So you're just avoiding coming home because you're afraid of splitting the chores with me?" Shen Nian sweatdropped. "And with the way you are, you complain all day about nobody pursuing you. You're so lazy, no wonder no one is chasing you. Anyone who could fall for a pig like you would have to be a god."
"..."
Shen Yue was practically brought to tears.
What's wrong with being single since birth? What's wrong with being single since birth? What's wrong with being single since birth?!
Harsh words hurt, and the people closest to you hurt you the deepest.
Hearing Shen Nian's words, Shen Yue wanted to go back even less. If she went back, she would probably be pressured to get married anyway.
But it was impossible not to go back for the Spring Festival...
Could this world really not tolerate a twenty-five-year-old, long-legged, curvy, pale-skinned, state-owned enterprise employee who had been single since birth?
"Just wait until I get back, I'm going to beat you up!"
Shen Yue shouted, and the call disconnected with a beep.
Shen Nian grinned. His sister really was something else.
He sent his sister two more WeChat messages.
[Shen Nian]: Come back soon, I'll take care of all the chores myself, okay?
[Shen Yue]: What about cooking?
[Shen Nian]: I'll do it, I'll do it, I'll do it.
[Shen Yue]: Then I'll go back tomorrow. If you're lying to me, I'll string you up and beat you.
If you knew, you'd know it was his sister. If you didn't, you'd think it was Xia Yanchun.
Shen Nian actually sensed Xia Yanchun's vibe from his sister's few words.
Haji Chun was practically Shen Yue's head disciple. When it came to bossing people around and dealing with him, the two of them were cut from the same cloth.
If his sister was coming back tomorrow, he would have to cook a table full of good food to welcome the return of the Empress.
Just as he was thinking this, Xia Yanchun returned on her electric scooter.
"Whew—" Standing by the railing, resting his head on his hands looking down, he let out a whistle.
Xia Yanchun parked the scooter and looked up in annoyance. "Can you act like a proper human being for once? You're just idling about all day, not acting at all like a high school student about to take the college entrance exams."
"Hey, hey, I don't like the sound of that. I just finished studying, alright? My books are right here. I also read all morning yesterday. What about you? Did you study properly yesterday?"
"I did. I studied with Shiyan yesterday too."
"I don't believe you."
"Don't believe me then," Xia Yanchun huffed, pulling out her keys to enter the house.
A moment later, the balcony window next door was pulled open. Xia Yanchun ran out in her slippers, having changed her clothes. When she left, she was wearing black sweatpants and a dark jacket, but now she was in her pajamas.
Xia Yanchun lay on the armchair with her legs crossed, leisurely basking in the sun, ignoring Shen Nian.
Her feet tapped against the railing one by one, kicking to rock herself back and forth. Shen Nian looked at her and chuckled foolishly.
"Hey, didn't you miss me?"
"Who are you? We're not close. I didn't miss you."
"But I missed you." Shen Nian suddenly vaulted over the balcony.
Xia Yanchun panicked for a second, thinking he had held back for days and finally couldn't take it anymore, about to do all sorts of things to her on the balcony in broad daylight.
She tensed up and shrank back, but Shen Nian just walked right past her into the room, pulled out a matching desk chair, and placed it beside her.
Shen Nian plopped down, smiling cheerfully as he took Xia Yanchun's small hand and placed it on his lap to play with.
Xia Yanchun pouted. "Have you been holding it in so much these past three days that it's driving you crazy?"
Shen Nian's face darkened. The more he listened to her words, the weirder they sounded.
"That sounds way too vulgar."
"I meant, did you miss me a lot these past three days? You have such a dirty mind."
"Talk about reversing right and wrong." Shen Nian blew a puff of air at her. "But it's true that I missed you."
Xia Yanchun rested her toes high up on the railing. The loose pant legs fell to her knees, but she didn't feel cold. Under the sunlight, her bare feet looked fair and clean, glowing softly.
"Heh, well I didn't miss you."
"Like I care." Shen Nian bared his teeth, pinching Xia Yanchun's soft, smooth cheek. "Let's go buy some fireworks later."
"Mhm, your treat."
"We can each buy a big box of firecrackers and go blow up cow dung."
"How old are you, still blowing up cow dung? Psycho," Xia Yanchun scolded.
"It's fine, Chunbao. We'll wear masks, so we don't have to worry about it exploding into our mouths."
Xia Yanchun was furious. That infuriating Shen Nian was bringing this up again!
"I told you I didn't eat any of it! Bring it up again and I'll kill you!"
"..."
Damn, she really was exactly like Shen Yue.
] [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!"
d intelligence to keep the plot moving, and sometimes even the protagonists are forced into absurdly dumb decisions. Why does the A-list celebrity heroine in urban romance novels ditch the top-tier movie star and become a lovestruck fool for a pockmarked male lead? Why do the leads in historical tragedy novels keep dancing between love and death, only for the blind healer to end up suffering the most? And Gu Wei never expected that after finally landing a villain role to stir up trouble, she’d pick the wrong gender! No choice now—she’ll just have to crush the protagonists as a girl!
n Our Village Many years later, Xiushui Village had transformed from a remote, impoverished hamlet into the renowned and flourishing Xiushui City of the Shifang Continent. All of this, solely because it was the birthplace of the Shifang Continent's number one sect—the Lingxian Sect. This is the story of a group of village youths, family, and friends, building a sect and growing together. Lin Xiao: As the sect master, my days are filled with countless tasks. Cultivating really gets in the way of building the sect. System: Received. Understood. Arranging it immediately. [Ding—Congratulations, Host, on successfully activating the Auto-Cultivation Function] Lin Xiao: Oh no, we're out of spirit stones. System: Received. Understood. Arranging it immediately. [Ding—Sect Mission issued. Mission Reward: Spirit Stones xN] No one loves their host more profoundly than this System!
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)
