After dinner, Shen Mengjie helped clean up and then mentioned she needed to return to school.
"It's already so late—why not go back tomorrow?" The days were short, and night had fallen completely by then. It wasn’t ideal for a girl to walk alone in the dark.
Besides, she had already stayed for several days—one more night wouldn’t make a difference, Hu Yuying thought. And the bruises on Shen Mengjie’s face hadn’t faded yet. Wouldn’t returning to school now invite unnecessary gossip?
Shen Mengjie looked at Hu Yuying intently.
She had once said that no one in this world was purely innocent.
Yet this sudden concern made Shen Mengjie wonder—could Hu Yuying be an exception?
She was a girl, one who considered herself decent-looking.
To ask her boyfriend for help—did Hu Yuying really feel no discomfort or suspicion at all?
If their roles were reversed, Shen Mengjie didn’t think she could do the same.
With a soft laugh, she shook her head lightly. "It’s fine. I’ve already overstayed my welcome. It’s the start of the semester—the streets will be lively."
If only Hu Yuying could hear Shen Mengjie’s thoughts.
If she could, she would tell her firmly:
Her trust was in Long Aotian alone. It had nothing to do with anyone else—just him.
"Then let Long Aotian walk you back."
"Just to the subway station." This time, Shen Mengjie didn’t refuse.
As they walked, Shen Mengjie glanced at Long Aotian. "Sorry for the trouble."
"No trouble at all. Consider it a post-meal stroll," Long Aotian said with a smile. "Take your time on the way back. With so many students returning, the streets should be busy."
"And also..." He paused before continuing, "Get some ointment."
At this, Shen Mengjie suddenly stopped walking.
"What’s wrong?"
"I suddenly regret something."
"Regret what?"
Shen Mengjie stared at Long Aotian.
The intensity of her gaze made him uneasy.
"Why are you looking at me like that?"
After a long moment, Shen Mengjie finally turned away. "The subway’s just ahead. You can go back now."
"Are you okay?" The shift in her mood was unmistakable.
It felt like she had something to say but held back.
"Really, I’m fine. The station’s just across the street. If you keep walking me, will you escort me all the way to school?"
"Alright then."
"Be careful." Long Aotian waved and turned to leave.
Watching his retreating figure, Shen Mengjie murmured under her breath, "This is the third time you’ve shown concern for me. Hurry up and go, or I might really regret it..."
She exhaled slowly, touching the still-tender corner of her mouth. Everything dissolved into a bitter smile.
......
Back at home, Lin Wanning and Li Qingxue had already retreated to their rooms.
They had stayed up late talking the night before and hadn’t slept well on the train, so exhaustion had taken over early.
Hu Yuying, meanwhile, was tidying up and putting away clothes.
Lin Wanning had already cleaned the room the previous night, so they could go straight to bed without any extra fuss.
Hearing the door open and footsteps, Hu Yuying spoke without turning around. "You’re back."
"Yeah, just walked her to the subway. It was quick."
As he spoke, Long Aotian wrapped his arms around her from behind. "Stop cleaning. Let’s sleep early tonight."
"I’m almost done unpacking the suitcase. You go warm up the bed."
"Mission accepted."
In no time, he was under the covers.
Watching his speedy undressing, Hu Yuying couldn’t help but laugh. "No one strips faster than you!"
"Come on, I’ve already warmed it up for you."
"Leave the rest for tomorrow. We still have two more days—no rush tonight."
Under Long Aotian’s coaxing, Hu Yuying glanced between their half-unpacked suitcases and him, his presence thoroughly distracting.
In the end, she gave in and slipped into bed.
The blankets were warm, as if heated by a little furnace.
"Aren’t you tired?"
"Exhausted."
"Then sleep!"
......
The next morning.
"Chen, thanks for seeing me off." Gao Quan turned to Ye Liangchen, his voice low.
"It’s the least I could do." Ye Liangchen took a deep breath. "Keep in touch when you’re at school, okay?"
"I will." Gao Quan’s chubby face betrayed a flicker of reluctance, though he fought to hide it.
Since the class reunion, his life had changed drastically.
He had experienced things he never imagined—all because of Ye Liangchen, the person he respected most.
Honestly, he hadn’t been able to accept it at first. It felt like the sky had collapsed.
How could Chen do something like that to him?
But after Ye Liangchen’s tearful pleas and promises, he had eventually forgiven him.
"I’m leaving." With that, he turned to go.
"Do you hate me?" Ye Liangchen stubbed out his freshly lit cigarette, his voice hoarse.
Gao Quan was his closest friend.
Making one mistake with him had already filled him with guilt.
Yet by some twist of fate, he had wronged him again—this time while Gao Quan was fully conscious.
Afterward, sober and regretful, he hadn’t known how to face him.
Deep down, he didn’t want any rift between them.
There was no one else in this world who would take a knife for a brother like Gao Quan had.
"I do."
At this answer, Ye Liangchen closed his eyes briefly.
"But what can I do? You’ve already taken my body. What choice do I have?"
Ye Liangchen’s eyes brightened slightly. "I’ll take responsibility."
He stepped forward, placing a hand on Gao Quan’s shoulder. "Quan, can you still trust me?"
"How am I supposed to?"
Ye Liangchen looked up at the sky. "Then let time prove it."
As Gao Quan’s figure disappeared into the station, Ye Liangchen lit another cigarette.
"Long Aotian, the humiliation you’ve caused me—I’ll repay it a hundredfold."
Just then, his phone rang.
Ye Liangchen answered. "Are you back in the capital yet?"
"My train’s tomorrow."
Listening to Xue Shaohua’s concerned questions, Ye Liangchen sighed bitterly.
"You have no idea how much what happened has torn me apart."
"We’ll talk later. I’ll tell you everything once I’m in the capital."
......
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+【Epic Battles!】 "Your Highness, they say Linxi Temple is miraculous. Won’t you make a wish?" "A wish? It should be making wishes to me." "That may be so, but since you’re already here..." "..." "Fine. Then grant this princess a consort to play with." "He must be obedient, devoted, and utterly infatuated with my body—so much so that he’d kneel and kiss my feet." "Your Highness, that’s not a consort. That’s a dog." "Then add clever, witty, heroic, ambitious yet pragmatic..." "Hmm, that’s enough for now. I’ll add more later." After tossing out these words half in jest, Princess Anle departed the temple—only to catch a fleeting glimpse of the Bodhisattva statue smiling at her. Meanwhile, Yang An, fresh out of university, was having a very bad day. Good news: He’d transmigrated into another world with a cheat granting tenfold combat power. Bad news: He’d immediately fallen into the clutches of a certain villainess. Good news: Said villainess possessed peerless beauty and royal status. Bad news: She was absolutely monstrous!!! In the frozen wilderness, Yang An knelt beneath Qin Guo’er’s feet, drenched in sweat despite the cold. Desperately clutching her porcelain-perfect foot—the very one poised to crush his throat—he could only think: How do I survive this?! Need answers NOW!
] This is a dark fantasy-themed dating simulation game. The main gameplay involves containing various monster girls and investigating the truth of a world shrouded in mist alongside your companions. However, due to his love for the dark and bizarre atmosphere, Luo Wei ended up turning a dating game into a detective mystery game. Women? Women only slow down his quickdraw! To Luo Wei, the female leads in the game are more like tools to perfectly clear levels and squeeze out rewards. For Luo Wei, flirting with every girl he meets and then discarding them is standard procedure. Worried about characters losing affection points? No need. With his maxed-out charm stat, Luo Wei is practically a "human incubus." A little psychological manipulation and those points come right back. It's a bit scummy, but the paper cutout heroines in the game won't actually come at him with real cleavers. However... Luo Wei has transmigrated. He's accidentally entered the second playthrough of this game. His past actions have caused all the girls to transform into terrifying yanderes. Due to the game's setting, most of the heroines he once contained are "troubled girls." Obsessive, twisted, mentally unstable, all aggressive yanderes... The type who will kill you if they can't have you... Luo Wei wants to cry but has no tears left. "I really just want to survive..." In short, this is a story of battling wits and engaging in a love-hate relationship with yanderes.
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!
ither go to a cultivation world where a single sword strike can defeat ten thousand enemies. Or they travel back to historical dynasties to alter history and wield imperial power. At the very least, they'd go back a few decades to get rich using their future knowledge and build a harem. Who the hell would transmigrate here!
