Looking at the time, it was already 6:15 PM.
Long Aotian stretched lazily and said, "Let's call it a day."
Hu Yuying, who was still buried in her homework, looked up and glanced at the sky outside.
She nodded and began packing her things.
If Long Aotian was leaving, she would leave too.
At this hour, apart from a few diligent students still lingering in the school, the campus was almost empty.
As they left the teaching building, the wide-open school gate came into view effortlessly.
"Bye, Long Aotian," Hu Yuying said.
"See you," Long Aotian replied.
After exchanging goodbyes, Long Aotian headed in the direction of his home.
Hu Yuying watched his retreating figure, feeling a pang of melancholy, but she quickly composed herself and walked off in the opposite direction.
As she walked, Hu Yuying overheard a group of students in school uniforms talking about a fight that had just happened at the school gate.
It had even drawn the attention of the school security staff.
She glanced back at the school gate, a strange feeling welling up inside her.
But she couldn't quite put her finger on what felt off.
Soon, she passed the group of chatting students, and their voices faded into the distance as she walked further away.
Before long, Hu Yuying arrived at a narrow alley.
She walked to the very end, took out her keys from her backpack, and unlocked the door.
Pushing the door open, she locked it behind her.
Entering the inner room, she set down her backpack and pulled out her homework to start solving problems.
Hu Yuying's life was monotonous, as if studying was the only thing she had to do.
For her, the tedium of studying was oddly enjoyable.
But today, as she looked at her homework, she found herself unable to focus as usual.
She stood up and walked to the mirror, staring at her reflection.
She poked her cheek with her finger.
The tip of her finger pressed gently into her soft cheek, and as she pulled it away, the flesh sprang back instantly.
"Has my face gotten thicker?" she wondered.
Her finger couldn't tell.
So, facing the mirror, she pursed her lips, took a deep breath, and said, "Long Aotian is the most handsome!"
"Big bro is the best."
"Long Aotian, you're so gentle..."
After saying these things out loud, she couldn't help but recall the times Long Aotian had smiled, pinched her cheek, or gently tapped her head.
Her ears began to burn uncontrollably.
A faint blush crept up from her neck to her cheeks.
Looking at her reflection, Hu Yuying quickly covered her face with her hands. "Looks like my face isn't thick enough yet," she muttered.
"I need more practice."
She stepped out of the inner room and stood in the courtyard, taking a deep breath. The warmth in her face gradually subsided.
As the sky grew darker, Hu Yuying finished cooking and climbed up a ladder to sit on the edge of the roof.
While eating, she looked up at the stars in the sky. "I wasn't bullied today," she said softly.
"Because I met a big bro who looks out for me. From now on, no one will bully me at school."
"Mom, Dad, did you hear my prayers?"
They say that when people die, they become stars in the sky.
Though she knew it wasn't true and had no scientific basis, Hu Yuying wished it were real.
The stars didn't answer her, but that didn't stop her from talking to them.
This was her most peaceful time of the day—no one to bully her, no one to disturb her. It was her time alone.
"Long Aotian is amazing. Everyone says he's really good at fighting, so no one dares to mess with him."
"It seems like everyone in class is scared of him, but I'm not. Because he's really nice to me."
"He knows so much, and I love listening to him talk. It makes me feel like I'm a good person too."
When she finished eating and talking, Hu Yuying reached out toward the sky, instinctively stroking the two brightest stars.
Climbing down the ladder, her time for relaxation and venting was over.
Now it was time to study. Only by constantly improving herself could she avoid being bullied.
Only by becoming better could she help Long Aotian with his studies.
...
On the other side, Long Aotian returned home to find the table still clean.
But his father wasn't in the house.
After changing out of his school uniform and washing it, he left the house again.
He headed toward the large market not far from their neighborhood.
The market was always bustling, no matter the time.
Vendors' stalls were lined up one after another, separated by white chalk lines.
Further in was the meat section, where several meat stalls were set up.
Long Aotian walked through, looking for his father.
In the original novel, this place was only briefly mentioned, with no detailed description.
So Long Aotian didn't know exactly where his father's stall was.
Soon, he spotted his father in the second row.
His father, wearing an apron, was chopping meat on a cutting board. Despite the late hour, the market was crowded and stuffy.
His father's clothes were soaked with sweat, but he kept working diligently.
After finishing the chopping, he wiped the sweat from his forehead and prepared to pack the meat for a customer.
Before he could grab a bag, an open one was held out in front of him.
Thinking it was a customer, his father smiled and said thank you. But when he looked up, his smile froze for a moment.
He seemed surprised, momentarily forgetting to pack the meat.
"If you keep staring, the customer will get impatient," Long Aotian reminded him.
Hearing his son's voice, his father snapped back to reality and mechanically packed the meat into the bag.
"Here you go, ma'am," Long Aotian said, handing the bag to the customer.
Long Aotian, now out of his school uniform, looked even more handsome. His polite words and efficient movements made the customer smile. "Is this your son?" she asked.
His father glanced at Long Aotian before nodding with a smile. "Yes, he is."
Watching his father's smile shift from stiff to natural, Long Aotian sighed inwardly.
In the original novel, Long Aotian had blamed his father for his parents' divorce.
This had created a rift between them, leading to a strained relationship.
His father, a rough man, didn't know how to talk to his son.
Long Aotian, filled with resentment, had grown increasingly stubborn.
Deep down, though, they both cared about each other.
"Why are you here? Did you run out of the money I gave you?" his father asked, wiping his hands on his apron and reaching for the cash box.
Usually, his son was cold toward him, so the only reason he could think of for Long Aotian coming here was to ask for money.
Still, he was happy that his son had come to see him.
"Can't I come see you without asking for money?" Long Aotian said.
His father paused, and Long Aotian stepped forward to close the cash box. "Dad, let's leave the past behind."
Hearing the word "Dad," his father stared at Long Aotian, unable to speak for a long moment.
"Dad, there's a customer," Long Aotian said.
His father looked at him, a smile spreading across his rough face. "Right, right."
In his previous life, Long Aotian had grown up in an orphanage, never experiencing familial love. In this world, he wanted to give it a try.
Even though he knew this rough man wasn't his real father, it didn't matter.
No one who offered genuine care should be let down...
ver to a world of cultivation and returned invincible. Modern medicine is child's play compared to elixirs; technological might crumbles before true cultivation. My name is Qin Ning, Earth's sole cultivator!
ng to die together with you." Lin Xuan is dead, his body thrown into the river by his scumbag lover and her accomplice. She, the president of the Su Group, is decisive, ruthless, and ice-cold. For three days and three nights, she had his body fished out of the river, and without hesitation, she kissed the bloated corpse of Lin Xuan. She laid down beside him in a cold coffin, their fingers intertwined, a smile lingering on her lips as she closed her eyes. The noble and cold-hearted woman, only bending for one man—Lin Xuan. Lin Xuan, with his golden finger, is reborn and returns to the day of his wedding to the treacherous woman. Su Qiang comes to steal the bride. Lin Xuan's eyes light up, eager to pledge his loyalty on the spot, but instead, her kiss transfers a glass of drugged wine into his mouth, causing him to pass out... 【Male Protagonist with Single Female Lead】【Yandere Tycoon】【Action-Packed】【True vs. Fake Heir】
ut it can buy an entire year of absolutely perfect training results! Su Yu stared at his empty wallet and decisively opened up various online loan platforms. “Borrow a thousand bucks! Recharge my vitality!” Boom! His vitality broke a hundred points, shattering the limits of the human body! “Borrow ten thousand bucks! Recharge my combat skills!” Boom! A basic punching technique so common it was everywhere instantly maxed out, revealing the ultimate assassination technique of Five Elements Unity—Inner Force! When a rich kid hired assassins for a midnight ambush, aiming to break both of his legs, they instead ran headfirst into a monster—a human-shaped tyrannosaur, brimming with dragon-like vitality. With just two fingers, Su Yu snapped a steel staff reinforced with alloy. Staring at the killer’s stash of stolen cash—a staggering quarter-million dollars—he showed a corporate-sincere smile: “Thanks for the pre-exam gift pack, Mr. Zhao! I’m gonna go re-invest this!” Three days later, at the National Martial Arts College Entrance Exam, while everyone else struggled just to reach the passing line, Su Yu threw a single punch—and more than a thousand vitality points literally detonated the entire arena!
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.
