Anyone who has been pressured to get married knows exactly what it feels like.
Approaching twenty-six, girls in the town at this age would usually have been set up on blind dates long ago.
Shen Yue was still doing fine, mostly because her parents were open-minded. Although they would occasionally urge her to find a boyfriend, they didn't nag her on a daily basis.
But the Chinese New Year was a different story.
Even if her parents didn't nag, the relatives who came over for dinner would. It was incredibly annoying. Especially now that Shen Nian and Xia Yanchun were dating, those people would definitely say things like, "Your younger brother has a partner, but you still don't have anyone in sight."
Just imagining it for a second was enough to bring on symptoms of depression.
"Shen Nian, do you have any ideas on how to stop them from pressuring me to get married this year?"
"No, and if they don't pressure you, I will."
"What kind of younger brother are you? When other people's older sisters get married, the younger brothers cry their eyes out because they can't bear to let them go."
Shen Nian smiled faintly. "I can only say they are good actors. If my lazy sister who constantly bosses people around got married, I would be flying with joy."
"Oh, you've got some nerve. Just wait, I'll make your future kids cry every single day."
"We can talk about that when the time comes."
Shen Yue's room had already been cleaned, ready for her to just move her bags in.
As for the household chores, Shen Nian could handle them all by himself.
He wouldn't get tired, and he had a lot of free time at home. If he didn't do some chores, he would just run off to play with Chunbao anyway.
Shen Yue flopped onto her bed, looking as if she had nothing left to live for, feeling like her life had lost its purpose.
Some of her college classmates were already married and had asked her in advance to be a bridesmaid in April. In another two years, they would probably all have kids, while she was still a single woman who had never even been in a relationship.
She had reached the age where she had no choice but to worry about marriage and dating.
"Do you want some green dates? I'll wash a couple for you," Shen Nian suddenly poked his head through the doorway.
"Yes, wash a lot."
"Deal."
Shen Nian washed a whole small basket of green dates and brought them to Shen Yue's room.
He took a bite of one himself; it was crisp and sweet. Just as he turned to leave, Shen Yue called out to him again.
"Shen Nian, if I can't get married in the future, you have to let your kids take care of me in my old age. This is an order."
"...Why are you thinking so far ahead?"
"Just tell me if you can do it or not."
"Fine, fine, fine. You will always be my older sister, okay? As long as I don't go hungry, you won't either."
"Now I can rest easy." Shen Yue waved her hand. "Go on, get out of here."
"..."
Scared to tears by the old fairy.
Whether Shen Yue could get married or not was actually something Shen Nian didn't take too seriously.
If Shen Yue wanted to get married, then he hoped she would. But if she ended up not getting married, it wasn't like the family couldn't afford to support her.
Not to mention, Shen Yue's own salary was quite good. She had even gotten a promotion recently. Even without relying on the family, Shen Yue could live a very comfortable life on her own.
Having his children provide for her in her old age was mostly just a joke.
"By the way, Sis, are you going to buy a car? If you have that plan, I can sponsor you a little."
"I do! I was just planning to buy a car myself." Shen Yue suddenly perked up. She propped herself up on the bed, swinging her lower legs up and down, and asked happily, "How much can you sponsor me?"
"I can help you out with a few tens of thousands. You can't expect me to pay for half of it, right?"
"A few tens of thousands, that works."
"How about you tell me your budget, and I'll help you pick one."
"Sure, but I haven't decided yet. I'll let you know in a few days when I make up my mind." Shen Yue dragged out her voice and muttered, "Oh man, it would be so great if someone could secretly upgrade the specs for me without me knowing when I get the car."
"Are you making a wish right now?"
"Ah, I accidentally spoke my mind! I'm definitely not hinting at you, Shen Nian. Just pretend you didn't hear anything."
"Got it, got it. I didn't hear a thing, hehe."
Shen Nian slipped away. When he said he didn't hear anything, he meant it.
Secretly upgrading the specs? Why didn't she just ask him to secretly buy her a BMW?
Daydreaming in broad daylight, his sister really was something else.
In the afternoon.
Xia Yanchun came up to the second floor to hang out with Shen Yue for a bit, and then went up to the third floor to find Shen Nian.
The room door was closed, and Xia Yanchun just pushed it open and walked right in.
Nowadays, she wasn't afraid of Shen Nian doing anything sneaky in his room, especially in broad daylight.
Things like politeness had a very low presence between nineteen-year-old childhood rivals.
"Ha!"
Shen Nian: "..."
Who could understand the crazy vibe of someone stomping over to open the door and just shouting "Ha!"?
"What are you 'ha'-ing about? Can't you see I'm playing on the computer?"
"Playing games again."
"If I don't play games, what should I play? Play with you? Stop joking, Xia Yanchun, playing with you is worse than playing Legends of the Three Kingdoms."
"Stop talking to yourself and putting people down, okay!"
Xia Yanchun was furious. She came over with good intentions to hang out with Shen Nian, but all she got was a round of belittling. Anyone would be angry for a couple of seconds.
Shen Nian paused his game, took off his headset, swiveled his chair around, and wrapped his arms around Xia Yanchun's slender waist. "So, what are you looking for me for?"
"Can't I just come find you to hang out? If not, I'll just leave."
"Come sit together for a while."
She was originally a bit reluctant, but since Shen Nian insisted, Xia Yanchun had no choice but to sit sideways on his lap.
The closer she got to Shen Nian, the taller she felt he was. Even sitting on his lap, her line of sight was only parallel to his.
"Are you going to take me along in the game?"
"If you want to play, it's not impossible."
"I don't really want to play. I'll just watch you play."
"Really?"
"Yeah."
"Then here's the headset for you." Shen Nian gently placed the headset over Xia Yanchun's small ears.
Xia Yanchun rarely wore this kind of over-ear headset and found it uncomfortable. When she live-streamed, she always used wired earphones. In her stereotyped impression, only gamers used this kind of headset.
Sure enough, it was very uncomfortable, making her ears feel stuffed.
Shen Nian resumed playing his game at this moment, and unfamiliar drumbeats echoed in Xia Yanchun's ears.
"Doesn't it bother you not to hear the game audio?" Xia Yanchun looked sideways at him.
"Not really."
"Then you play. I'll sit here."
Xia Yanchun slid down and sat between Shen Nian's legs, facing the computer. This way, Shen Nian's arms could reach out from both sides of her, making it more comfortable for him to hold the controller.
She was the one who gifted him this controller, after all!
The computer screen was flashy and colorful, with characters flashing in and out. She didn't understand it, and her mind was only on Shen Nian. She leaned back softly, gently resting her feet on the edge of the desk. It didn't block Shen Nian's view, and she could be perfectly comfortable. She was simply too smart.
"This headset feels really uncomfortable to listen to. Should I buy a new one for you?"
"This headset of mine cost over six hundred. If you buy a new one, it'll have to be in the thousands."
"Is it that expensive?!"
"Hehe, if Chunbao wants to give me a gift, it should be a four-figure one."
"I'm not giving you one then. Buy it yourself."
"No love anymore?"
"Nope."
"Alright, alright, I can't be bothered with you. Just don't interfere with my gaming."
"..."
And so, Xia Yanchun lay in Shen Nian's arms for half an hour.
She enjoyed the leisure time, looking at the computer screen for a while and then checking her phone. Fortunately, the chair Shen Nian bought was large and soft enough, otherwise she wouldn't have been able to stay there for so long.
When Shen Nian's game screen went dark, he would reach out and massage her shoulders. It felt like she was sitting in a massage chair, so comfortable she could just melt.
his freshman year, Su Bai accidentally bound the "Indulgence Tycoon System." 【Sleeping in? Reward: +$1,000】 【Spent $288 at a street barbecue stall? Cashback: +$2,880】 【Dropped $14,396 on in-game skins? Special reward unlocked: A brand-new Porsche Panamera!】 Luxury cars, penthouses, corporate shares, financial empires… College life was all about living freely and doing whatever he pleased! … When the adorably naive academic genius faced family medical bills and financial struggles, Su Bai waved his hand dismissively: "Your future is on me." "Wuwu~ Big Brother is so good to me! I’ll become a scientist to repay you!" When the genius girl got bullied by a shady professor? Su Bai casually dropped a billion-dollar investment, forcing the university to grovel and beg for her return. A company’s funding chain collapsing? Su Bai smirked—cash was the one thing he’d never run out of. Years later, when people traced the rise of the AI prodigy beauty, who was the man behind her success? Not just that—Su Bai also became the tsundere campus belle’s unattainable dream, the contrast senior’s daily necessity, and the beautiful counselor’s emotional anchor…
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.”
end. Thus one must continue to cultivate, and become a saint or great emperor, in order to prolong one's life. Chen Xia, however, completely reversed this. Since his transmigration, he has gained immortality, and also a system that awards him with attribute points for every year he lives. Thus between the myriad worlds, the legend of an unparalleled senior appeared. "A gentleman takes revenge; it is never too late even after ten thousand years." "When you were at your peak I yielded, now in your old age I shall trample on you." - Chen Xia
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.
