“You really know how to put on a show,” Long Aotian whispered softly beside Li Qingxue.
Li Qingxue nudged him gently. “Don’t stand so close to me. It wouldn’t be good if someone saw us.”
She glanced at Long Aotian’s neck and quickly pulled up his collar to cover it, where a faint red mark—caused by her scratching—was still visible.
Seeing Li Qingxue pretending to be all innocent, Long Aotian lightly tapped her head before stepping out of the sunroom. “Wanning, you’re back.”
Hearing Long Aotian’s voice, Li Qingxue fixed the hair he had just messed up and stood up, smiling as she said, “We’re having hotpot tonight.”
Lin Wanning put down the things in her hands and said, “Today’s my last hotpot meal. Starting tomorrow, I’ll try to eat lighter.”
With the performance just a week away and continuous rehearsals, she needed to take good care of her voice.
Winter’s dry climate only made things worse. Hotpot might be delicious, but it was notorious for causing inflammation. She couldn’t afford to mess up at such a critical time.
“Got it. Since I’m not joining any clubs, I’ll come home early from now on and take care of all the dinners,” Li Qingxue promised confidently.
“Thanks, Qingxue,” Lin Wanning said, pinching Li Qingxue’s cheek before sinking down into a chair inside the sunroom.
At that moment, Long Aotian handed Lin Wanning a beautifully wrapped apple he had bought.
“Thanks, brother. I really needed this right now,” Lin Wanning said with a smile.
Taking advantage of Li Qingxue not paying attention, Long Aotian leaned in mysteriously. “Have you ever heard about the English word for apple? It’s ‘Appie.’ They say if a girl accepts an apple from a guy, it means she might have to…”
Lin Wanning chuckled, looking at Long Aotian and whispered back, “I’ve heard that.”
Then she opened the package and took a bite of the apple. “So, brother, are you going to ‘open fire’ on me?”
“But I’m really a bit tired today. Can I owe you one and make it up later?”
“Alright then. Actually, I just wanted to ask if you’d heard of it. I didn’t mean anything else.”
Lin Wanning glanced sideways at Li Qingxue. “Could it be that you heard it from Qingxue?”
Then she looked at the apples on the table—only two left.
She gave Long Aotian a strange look. “Don’t tell me Qingxue’s already been ‘hit’?”
“I remember you’ve been training harder lately, right? The intensity must be even greater than before. Brother, you really have no mercy. No wonder sister can’t keep up—who could?”
Li Qingxue didn’t catch the whole conversation, but when she saw Lin Wanning’s playful glance toward her, she immediately leaned over. “What are you two talking about?”
Lin Wanning shrugged. “Brother was asking if I knew the English word for apple.”
“Oh no, Long Aotian, what nonsense are you talking about?”
“If you keep talking nonsense, just go outside. Don’t stay here.”
Li Qingxue looked shy and flustered, which only made her look even cuter.
“Then I’ll go pick up Aying,” Long Aotian said, grabbing one of the beautifully wrapped apples from the table as he left the sunroom.
Seeing Long Aotian leave.
Lin Wanning pulled Li Qingxue into her arms, holding her close. "Were you taking advantage of us not being home to do something naughty?"
"No, no! I absolutely hate Long Aotian. How could I possibly do anything like that with him?"
"Qingxue, you’re being naughty..."
...
At the entrance of University A, Long Aotian sent a message to Hu Yuying.
Then he waited by the door.
About ten minutes later,
Long Aotian received a message from Hu Yuying saying she was already on her way out.
Not long after, he saw Hu Yuying briskly walking over, carrying a backpack.
"Ta-da~~~" Long Aotian presented a beautifully wrapped apple in front of Hu Yuying.
Hu Yuying laughed, "I didn’t even tell you to buy anything, and you still got an apple? Must’ve been expensive, right?"
Usually, apples are pretty cheap, but today they probably weren’t.
"Not really expensive, just one yuan each," Long Aotian told a little white lie.
If the little girl knew he actually spent three yuan on one apple, she’d definitely scold him.
"One yuan? That’s okay then." After all, the fancy packaging must have cost quite a bit.
Hu Yuying reached out to take the apple.
Long Aotian pulled it back, glanced around, and whispered, "Have you ever heard what apple means in English? Apple means ‘appie.’ They say if you accept an apple from a guy, it might mean..."
Hu Yuying took the apple with a playful glare, "If I don’t eat it, can I avoid trouble?"
Long Aotian smiled, "Come home with me. Tonight we’re having hotpot."
Walking along, Hu Yuying explained the reason for today’s rehearsal.
"From now on, all the Hanfu outfits will come from me. We’re going to make a big profit again. I’m so happy!"
"So your backpack is full of Hanfu?"
"Yeah, and they’re pretty nice too." Hu Yuying explained enthusiastically, completely unaware of the mischievous smile curling on Long Aotian’s lips.
Back home, everyone gathered, and they started preparing the hotpot ingredients.
For them, happiness seemed to be this simple.
The scene was especially warm and cozy.
After dinner, Li Qingxue and Lin Wanning returned to their room.
Long Aotian and Hu Yuying went back to theirs.
As soon as they entered the room, Long Aotian eagerly opened the backpack Hu Yuying had brought back.
He took out the ethereal Hanfu.
"Long Ge, don’t mess it up! We have to return it in the end," Hu Yuying said, seeing Long Aotian holding the Hanfu. She simply thought he had never seen Hanfu before and just wanted to take a look.
Suddenly, Long Aotian wrapped his arms around Hu Yuying’s waist.
"You’d look amazing wearing this," he said.
Hu Yuying was about to nod but suddenly sensed a warning signal in her heart.
"Long Ge, what are you... what do you want to do?"
Long Aotian lowered his head, his voice husky with restrained desire, "Will you wear it for me?"
The rising heat between them and the ambiguous signals Long Aotian was sending made Hu Yuying feel uneasy. The warning bells in her heart went off, and she tried to escape to Qingxue and Wanning’s room.
But she was already held tightly by Long Ge.
"Just once," Hu Yuying said.
"I promise, if I lie, I’m a puppy," Long Aotian assured her.
Changing into the Hanfu, Hu Yuying felt completely drained after a few hours. "You lied!"
Long Aotian let out two playful barks, a satisfied grin spreading across his face as he wrapped his arms around the little girl's waist and said, "I lied. I'm a puppy."
Compared to barking twice, what could be more important than sharing some joyful moments with the little girl...
......
......
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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.
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!
lities. One day, Qi Yuan was buying groceries when he unfortunately came face-to-face with a monster. Just when he thought he was going to die on the spot, he suddenly heard the monster's thoughts... "This aura, he's definitely not an ordinary master!" "So terrifying, so terrifying." "A fight with my back against the wall, I can't take it anymore." Qi Yuan: Ah, no one told me that my awakened ability isn't telepathy, but rather the stronger my enemies imagine me to be, the stronger I truly become. PS: Zhou Hai in the first chapter is not the protagonist.
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】
