Returning to the courtyard house once more,
Li Qingxue couldn’t help but marvel at how much it had changed with each passing day.
The overgrown mess from before was nowhere to be seen now.
Preserving some of the traditional charm while blending in modern architectural trends, even in its unfinished state, it left a striking impression.
"Will it be completed soon?" Lin Wanning asked softly.
"Almost. We should be able to move in by this winter," Long Aotian replied with a touch of emotion.
His grip on Hu Yuying’s hand tightened slightly.
Having a home wasn’t just a dream anymore.
Feeling the pressure of his hand, Hu Yuying leaned gently against his arm.
Once the house was finished, they’d be living together, wouldn’t they?
The thought brought a tender smile to her lips.
She had lost her parents at a young age, raised only by her grandparents.
Though they loved her dearly, there were things they simply couldn’t give her.
But Long Aotian had given her those things.
He had guided her out of the darkness, taught her life’s lessons, and helped her understand herself in ways her grandparents never could.
Loving him had come naturally.
In those days, when a woman gave herself to a man, it was with complete devotion—a lifelong commitment, for better or worse.
Hu Yuying had truly prepared herself for this. As she often said, she was willing to do anything for him, ready to care for him for the rest of her life.
Quietly slipping her hand free, she turned to tidy up the room.
Watching her, Li Qingxue and Lin Wanning exchanged a glance before following her inside.
They flanked her, each wrapping an arm around her slender waist, teasing, "Are you going back tonight?"
Hu Yuying’s cheeks flushed as she shook her head lightly. "Not tonight."
"Does being held by your Long Aotian feel better than being hugged by us?"
"Our bodies are much softer, you know."
"And we’ve got something for you to hold onto~"
Some embraces were irreplaceable, each unique in its own way.
As if I don’t already know what you’ve got to offer, Hu Yuying thought to herself.
"Look at you, so ready to give yourself away. You’re never escaping Long Aotian now."
"Why would I want to?" Hu Yuying murmured. "After finally finding my way to him, standing by his side..."
It wasn’t just blind devotion—without him, her life wouldn’t feel so complete.
Simple desires led to simple dreams.
A partner, a couple of children, and a lifetime together.
By the time she finished making the bed, dusk was settling in.
She turned to Li Qingxue and Lin Wanning. "It’s getting late..."
"Are you kicking us out? So much for friendship!"
"After last night’s cozy sleepover, now we’re just in the way, huh?"
Hu Yuying panicked, waving her hands. "No, no, that’s not what I meant—I didn’t—"
Unfazed, Li Qingxue and Lin Wanning pointed to their cheeks, smirking. You know what to do.
Hu Yuying stepped forward, pressing a light kiss to each of their cheeks.
"Happy now?"
"You squeezed my little treasures last night," Li Qingxue huffed. "And for so long too."
"Next time, you can squeeze mine, okay?"
After a moment of consideration, Li Qingxue nodded. "Fine."
Stepping outside, they called to Long Aotian, "It’s late. We should head back."
"Stay for dinner. I’ll go buy groceries," he offered.
"No, we wouldn’t want to delay someone’s early bedtime. Next time."
With that, they left.
Long Aotian watched them go, puzzled. "What’s with them? They’re usually the first to jump at a meal."
Hu Yuying bit her lip. "They’re probably tired and want to rest early."
Turning to her, Long Aotian leaned close, his breath warm against her ear. "Is that so?"
The sensation sent a shiver down her spine, her pulse racing. That electrifying touch—only he could make her feel this way.
It had been too long since the last time.
Her body awakened, toes lifting slightly as she instinctively pressed closer.
Eyes hazy, heart pounding, she wrapped her arms around his neck.
Watching the bob of Long Aotian’s Adam’s apple, a mischievous glint flashed in Hu Yuying’s eyes. She suddenly pulled his neck toward her, lightly licking his throat before quickly pulling away, her lips curled in a playful smile as she waited for him to take the lead.
Long Aotian froze for a moment, utterly overwhelmed by her teasing. Without hesitation, he captured her lips, parting them gently as he savored every bit of her sweetness. His kisses trailed down her neck, lingered at her collarbone, and finally returned to the sensitive spot behind her ear. “Who taught you that?” he murmured.
Hu Yuying couldn’t very well admit she’d learned it from a video. Instead, she half-lidded her eyes, shivering at the warmth of his breath against her skin. “No one taught me… I just thought it would make you happy,” she whispered, instinctively arching her neck to meet his kisses.
The body never lies—no pretense could replace its raw honesty.
Desire ignited in an instant.
As Long Aotian lifted her into his arms, Hu Yuying no longer hesitated like before. Her slender legs wrapped around his waist, steadying herself as her body melted against him.
“Long-ge, it’s getting late… Shouldn’t we go to bed?”
The man who had always been her dependable older brother now seemed like a flustered rookie, staring at her with nothing but a dazed grin.
He carried her into the bedroom.
The moment they crossed the threshold, Hu Yuying nudged the door shut with her foot.
Burrowing under the covers, only her flushed face remained visible. “Long-ge, take off your jacket. It’s uncomfortable to sleep in.”
“Turn off the light.”
In the darkness, Long Aotian slid beneath the sheets, his fingertips brushing against her soft skin, sending a tremor through his chest.
Hu Yuying tensed, tossing her black dress out from under the blankets.
Moonlight seeped through the curtains as she fought to keep her voice steady. “Long-ge… your heartbeat is so fast.”
“Why did you take everything off?”
“Not everything,” she protested shyly. “I still have my bra and panties.”
“Long-ge, you—you’re pressing against me…”
“I’ll stay on the outside… is that okay?”
Her face burned as she buried herself deeper into the covers, the last shreds of reason long forgotten. “Mmm… okay,” she breathed, her voice feather-light with embarrassment.
In the dark, Hu Yuying’s brows knitted together, her breath uneven as she stiffened. “You liar…” she whimpered.
Their heartbeats synced, time itself seeming to pause as if nothing else existed but the two of them.
The moonlight spilling through the window bathed them in silent warmth, as though this was the most natural thing in the world.
[Please support with power stones, dear readers~]
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 vast world of cultivation, where he becomes the master of the Heavenly Ruins Sacred Hall, a dying old man with barely a tenth of his former cultivation remaining. He is immediately confronted with a deadly crisis: his subordinates have rebelled, and his protectors are forcing him to abdicate. At the critical moment, the system descends from the heavens: [Ding! The host has been detected facing a life-or-death crisis. The system is now officially activated!] [As a gift, you have received the Supreme Beginner’s Pack and awakened the ultimate cheat: ten thousand years of pure cultivation essence every second!] Yin Tianjue: “Wait… ten thousand years of cultivation every second? That’s six hundred thousand years a minute, and in one day… I can’t even calculate it. Either way, I’m already invincible!” You’re a peerless prodigy rarely seen in ten thousand years? Sorry, I gain ten thousand years of cultivation every second. You’re an undying ancestor who has guarded a sacred land for countless ages? Sorry, I gain ten thousand years of cultivation every second. You’re the strongest chosen one, blessed with heaven-defying destiny? Sorry, I gain ten thousand years of cultivation every second. From this day forth, I have only one thing to say: “I gain ten thousand years of cultivation every second. Now, how exactly are you supposed to deal with that?”
ing gift was a patch of barren land, and disciples were all picked up along the way. He spent fifty years diligently building three "ramshackle little sects," thinking he could finally live a carefree life relying on his disciples. But right at the fifty-year mark, he was suddenly swept away by a spatial rift and exiled to the Chaos Desolation, the Disorderly Ruins. There was no spiritual energy there, only slaughter. Relying on the cultivation feedback from his disciples, Gu Changyuan hacked his way through a sea of blood for eleven hundred years. When the system finally fished him back out, he discovered the ramshackle little sects he'd built back then had developed a rather... unusual style. Hold on... I vanished for a thousand years, so how did my ramshackle little sects become holy lands?!
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.
