Su Bai had finally figured it out.
Jiang Qiuran had probably noticed he had money now and, in a sudden stroke of inspiration, decided to play the childhood-friends card to get closer to him again.
According to the system's assessment, Jiang Qiuran's affection for Su Bai had always been above 80—enough to consider dating him.
So why had she never shown any romantic interest in him all these years?
Simple. Because Jiang Qiuran was a materialistic girl.
Su Bai had known this for a long time.
Jiang Qiuran’s family background was somewhat unusual.
Her mother had once been set up with a wealthy suitor by her family.
But Jiang's mother already had someone else in her heart, so she eloped with her lover, cutting ties with her family.
Tch. The whole thing sounded like a cheesy soap opera from the early 2000s.
In any case, Jiang's mother and her beloved settled down in Ancheng, got married, and had Jiang Qiuran.
But their married life wasn’t ideal.
The man she had once devoted herself to without hesitation gradually became unrecognizable over time.
A few years later, he actually ran off, leaving the mother and daughter in poverty.
Thankfully, Jiang's mother was resilient. She raised her daughter while building a career, never making much money but at least keeping them fed and clothed. She even had enough to spare to take care of Su Bai after his parents passed away.
Honestly, that was pretty impressive.
Su Bai had always admired her for that.
Growing up in such a household, it was no surprise Jiang Qiuran didn’t believe in love.
At the end of the day, everyone in society chased after material comforts now.
But friendships discarded for the sake of money weren’t something you could just reclaim whenever you wanted. Su Bai wasn’t some doormat.
Little Jiang still needed to show a lot more sincerity.
Let her stew in regret for a while—maybe then she’d learn her lesson.
Su Bai sent Chen Yusheng a message, asking her to come downstairs for coffee.
The standard room at the Sheraton was admittedly a bit cramped—though still miles better than a budget hotel. Su Bai was just used to suites.
But the lobby was spacious and grand, perfect for sitting down with a cup of coffee.
Chen Yusheng came down without hesitation, took the coffee, and immediately asked:
"Big Goose, did you just ask Jiang Qiuran out… or something?"
"…Can you be normal? If I was asking anyone out, it’d be you!"
"But I saw her leaving and coming back all worked up… What happened? Did you two fight?"
Chen Yusheng was curious!
Su Bai realized she could be pretty nosy—it was just that most people’s business didn’t interest her.
But she was interested in Su Bai, which meant she was also invested in his childhood-friend drama.
As for being replaced by said childhood friend? Not a chance. Her place in Su Bai’s heart was unquestionably the highest.
"It wasn’t a fight. I just teased her a little. Think of it like dangling a cat toy in front of her."
Most of the time, Su Bai treated Jiang Qiuran like a big, dumb cat.
Not much going on in that head, yet always trying to be clever—and just as proud as a pretty little kitten!
As long as he didn’t think of her as a girlfriend or someone to pursue, teasing her in his free time was actually pretty fun.
But today, seeing Jiang Qiuran’s flawless makeup, Su Bai’s impression of her shifted from "cat" to "catgirl."
Overall, his attitude toward this childhood friend was different from other girls.
She needed to be kept firmly in check.
That was just how she operated, based on Su Bai’s understanding of her personality.
Dealing with women was like laning in a game—different heroes required different strategies.
"Cat toy…?"
…
Su Bai grabbed Chen Yusheng’s hand and dashed to the parking lot, driving the GLE to a more secluded area.
…
Especially when she saw Jiang Qiuran get in the car, sniff the air, scrunch up her delicate brows, and then visibly deflate—Chen Yusheng felt a secret thrill.
Hmph. Serves you right for fighting with Big Goose, for not cherishing your childhood friend.
Too bad. Now Su Bai is mine to enjoy—you can only catch a whiff and stare in frustration.
…
"In ancient times, the Jiangcheng region must have been a place of great strength but rough customs. You can see it in the layout of this old town…"
While touring the ancient town, Chu Mingzhe suddenly got excited, taking off his Sennheiser noise-canceling headphones to play tour guide.
Everyone listened, dumbfounded.
Wan Xinyan checked her phone and raised an objection: "But this ‘ancient town’ is a completely modern replica, right? It shouldn’t have anything to do with actual history."
"Huh?"
Chu Mingzhe froze mid-step. "It is?"
"Yeah. The Jiangcheng forums all say this used to be a cornfield. It was only built as part of the Tianrong Resort’s development plan."
"…"
Well, this was awkward.
So all that historical, cultural, and geographical analysis… was completely pointless?
Chu Mingzhe wanted to ram his head into the nearest wall.
Luckily, the town wasn’t big. The whole group finished exploring in under two hours—including watching a performance.
A few hanfu-clad girls were dancing, livestreaming the whole thing.
Su Bai stopped to watch for a bit but quickly lost interest.
Not a single S-tier beauty here—at best, they were average.
The high standards of the girls around him lately had completely skewed his taste.
"Seems like every ‘ancient town’ in the world looks the same. Pretty boring," Chen Yusheng concluded.
"True. Even the street food is identical—fried noodles, stinky tofu, sausage sticks, jianbing…"
"I want fried noodles."
"Let’s get some!"
Su Bai and Chen Yusheng held hands as they went to buy fried noodles.
After their anime-watching session in the car, Chen Yusheng seemed to have awakened—she was bolder now, openly affectionate with Su Bai in front of other girls. While waiting for the food, she even couldn’t resist pecking his lips a few times.
Su Bai had such nicely shaped lips—kissing them felt amazing.
Nothing beat kissing as the most direct way to express affection.
Jiang Qiuran tried to look away but couldn’t help stealing glances at Su Bai and Chen Yusheng being all lovey-dovey.
Her mood was in shambles.
This couldn’t go on. Was she really going to let Su Bai drift further and further away?
She had to do something to win back his favor.
Unconsciously, under Su Bai’s calculated maneuvering, Jiang Qiuran was slowly adopting the mindset of a simp.
If the guys who adored her found out, they’d probably lose their minds.
+【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!
u Chenyuan transmigrated into a female-oriented novel about a real and fake heiress, becoming the CEO elder brother of both. Unfortunately, the entire Lu family—including himself, the CEO—were mere cannon fodder in the story. Determined to save himself, Lu Chenyuan took action. The spoiled, attention-seeking fake heiress? Thrown into the harsh realities of the working class to learn humility. The love-struck real heiress? Pushed toward academic excellence, so lofty goals would blind her to trivial romances. As for the betrayed, vengeful arranged marriage wife… the plot hadn’t even begun yet. There was still time—if he couldn’t handle her, he could at least avoid her. "CEO Lu, are you avoiding me?" Mo Qingli fixed her gaze on Lu Chenyuan. For the first time, the shrewd and calculating Lu Chenyuan felt a flicker of unease.
close your eyes and open them again, only to find yourself transmigrated into the role of a villainous male supporting character. Readers familiar with urban wish-fulfillment novels know that it is only through the relentless antics of the villainous male supporting character that the plot between the male and female leads can progress. As the villainous male supporting character, Long Aotian not only has to bully the female lead, harass the second female lead, and flirt with the third female lead, but he also has to go all out to antagonize the male lead. In the end, when his body is discovered, he is still clutching half a moldy fried dough stick in his hand. Fully aware of the plot, Long Aotian is determined to change his fate, starting with the female lead! In the beginning, the female lead lacks confidence: "Big brother, I hope I didn't scare you?" In the middle, the female lead treads carefully: "Brother Long, please don't hit me, okay?" Later on, the female lead becomes coquettishly clingy: "Aotian, it's time to pay the 'public grain' tonight." Long Aotian's legs go weak, and he feels like crying: "I taught you to be thick-skinned, not shameless!"
Explosive Plot Song Gua crossed over into another world, bringing along a whole crew of his doppelgangers—all of them mischief-makers. This was a world where everyone could choose a class. Song Gua became a "Bondweaver," capable of borrowing power, while his doppelgangers took on a wide variety of classes, covering just about everything. The number of doppelgangers grew day by day, each one a talented individual with a charming way of speaking. Under Song Gua's brilliant leadership, they would "greet" each other daily and engage in friendly "sparring," pulling off one major scheme after another on Earth. Sometimes they were bandits—stealing bosses, plundering mines, snatching resources. Sometimes they were saviors—descending like divine warriors to face world bosses threatening to massacre cities. Sometimes they even went undercover, infiltrating various major factions to stir up trouble from within, keeping their enemies constantly on edge. To prevent their doppelganger abilities from being exposed, Song Gua made them wear masks with mahjong tile patterns and don Taoist robes in various colors. "Remember, in front of outsiders, call me 'The Dice.'" "Got it! Boss!" "Not 'Boss'—it's 'The Dice.' Think about the vibe, pay attention to the vibe." "Yes! Boss!" "For crying out loud..." From then on, whenever they appeared, they would have their own theme song playing: ~Hey~ paying respects at the mountain stronghold at night~ whose arm is draped over whose shoulder~ gather your courage and follow along...
