After investigating Su Bai's family background, Xia Lin came to a conclusion:
Su Bai was likely the illegitimate child of some overseas family, while Aunt Jiang, the neighbor from Ancheng, was the one who raised him.
As for the deceased parents who died in a car accident...
Well, it was probably just another cliché soap opera story.
Having grown up surrounded by similar tales, Xia Lin could easily imagine a whole dramatic backstory with just a little mental effort.
Never mind how far her imagination strayed from reality—at least it gave her a direction for her next steps.
That meant, aside from playing the role of a caring older sister to Su Bai at school, she also needed to build a good relationship with Aunt Jiang.
After all, as Su Bai's academic advisor, it was only natural for her to communicate with his guardian.
As for what Aunt Jiang thought of her afterward... well, that was another matter entirely.
Hehe~
"Being a single woman running a handmade goods shop while raising two kids, she must be the steady, resilient type, right?"
On her way to go jogging with Su Bai, Xia Lin couldn't help but speculate about Aunt Jiang's personality.
However, in reality...
"Hey everyone, heading to the provincial capital today to see my godson! Word is the kid's struck it rich—how rich? No clue. I deliberately didn’t ask, treating it like a surprise lottery draw."
At the Ancheng long-distance bus station, Jiang Lijuan had arrived a bit early. With over ten minutes before departure, she decided to go live.
The moderators weren’t around—just a quick little stream.
Since starting her livestreams on the music app, Aunt Jiang’s handmade shop had gained another sales channel.
Sometimes, most of her weekly revenue even came from online orders.
These days, people’s shopping habits had changed—if they could buy something online, they wouldn’t bother with physical stores.
Besides, handmade goods were all about catching the right buyer’s eye, and livestreaming allowed her to reach audiences from all over, uncovering more potential customers.
The stream’s viewership wasn’t huge, but it was enough to keep things going.
Though Aunt Jiang was still an attractive middle-aged woman, she absolutely refused to resort to suggestive content.
After all, her streams were just for selling products—if they started affecting other parts of her life, it wouldn’t be worth it.
Even so, a few viewers occasionally popped up in the chat trying to flirt with her.
A quick glance at their profiles revealed the usual suspects—middle-aged, greasy men like "AAA Building Materials Brother Xue"...
But then again, a charming woman like Aunt Jiang really did attract these types.
As Aunt Jiang chatted about her plans for the day, the audience was left baffled.
[Wait, seriously, sis? You don’t even know how much your godson made?]
"Nope! That kid’s always been independent, not like my daughter, who’s been a handful since she was little."
[Shouldn’t you at least ask for a rough estimate? What if it’s something shady?]
"Eh, he’s sharp. Even if it were shady, he wouldn’t get caught."
[Auntie, how old is your godson?]
"Eighteen, just started college."
[And he’s already rich? Sounds sketchy…]
"What’s sketchy about it? You doubting his skills? Maybe he became a male model!"
Though Aunt Jiang’s streams were completely clean, her humor and carefree attitude still drew in a loyal audience who stuck around just to chat with her.
Honestly, most parents these days were strict with their kids.
Especially those who got into top universities—they’d usually been meticulously groomed since childhood.
Someone like Aunt Jiang, who basically let her kids run wild, was a rare sight.
Just as the discussion shifted to "whether Auntie’s godson has what it takes to be a male model," AAA Building Materials Brother Xue chimed in.
[Students should focus on their studies, not waste time on nonsense.]
[Xiao Jiang, if you’re short on money, you should find a reliable man to depend on, not pin your hopes on some college kid striking it rich.]
Hearing this, Aunt Jiang rolled her eyes and fired back:
"Reliable man? Give me a break. At your age, stop pretending to be some noble gentleman. Men are either after money or looks—what’s the point? A kid you raised yourself is way more dependable."
Truth be told, this was Aunt Jiang’s real opinion.
Qiuran might be a bit of a gold-digger, but after all these years relying on each other, her desire for wealth came from wanting a better life for them both.
And Aunt Jiang had no issue with that—their family wasn’t well-off, so why not aim for a partner with good prospects?
Of course, the key was not to hurt others or play games.
In that regard, Jiang Qiuran had indeed taken after her mother’s teachings.
As for Su Bai…
That kid was wild. Quiet on the surface, but stubborn as hell when it came to his own plans.
When Xia Lin, his advisor, called to update Aunt Jiang on Su Bai’s situation, it was a pleasant surprise. To savor it fully, Aunt Jiang deliberately didn’t ask for details—she wanted to see the truth for herself when they met.
Maybe he’d made millions helping Xia Lin with stocks.
It wasn’t impossible—Su Bai had always been great at math.
Weren’t those legendary traders abroad all math whizzes?
With that hope in mind, Aunt Jiang ended the stream.
The bus was about to leave, and streaming on the road would just make her carsick. Better to nap instead.
A glance at her notifications showed AAA Building Materials Brother Xue still rambling in her DMs.
Not only was he badmouthing Su Bai, but he’d also invited Jiang Lijuan to visit him in Jiangcheng.
Claiming to be a local with four properties from demolition compensation, formerly driving a Cayenne but recently upgraded to a Mercedes S450…
Aunt Jiang couldn’t help but laugh.
[Enough with the nonsense. You buying handmade goods or not? If not, shut it—or I’ll block you.]
With that, she muted her phone, put on her earphones, and dozed off.
Three hours later, the bus arrived.
Stepping out of the Jiangcheng bus station, the sun blazed overhead.
A brilliantly clear day.
"Aunt Jiang, over here!"
Hearing the familiar voice, Jiang Lijuan’s lips curled into a warm smile. She turned—and her eyes lit up.
Wow, this kid… looked completely different from before.
Like a whole new person.
But what really stunned Aunt Jiang was the stunning woman standing beside Su Bai.
Dressed in form-fitting athletic wear, her toned, curvaceous figure was on full display—enough to put even the top gym saleswomen to shame.
Her flawless, radiant beauty made Aunt Jiang instantly fond of her.
Could this be Su Bai’s advisor, Xia Lin?
A bold idea popped into Aunt Jiang’s head.
Walking up to them, she pretended not to recognize Xia Lin and cheerfully exclaimed, "Oh my, is this your girlfriend, Xiao Bai? What a perfect match!"
"...Aunt Jiang, this is Advisor Xia Lin. The one who called you."
"Ohhh, right! Silly me!"
"..."
] [Lone Wolf, No Male Gaze] [Protagonist is pursued early on; extreme protagonist-stans, stay away!] The "Carnival Paradise" descends and slowly devours the real world in the form of a game. By chance, Zhu Yan awakens the talent [Roleplay], becoming one of the first beta players. He thought he could develop safely, but after clearing the first instance, he is branded by humanity as the chief culprit behind the game's spread—a traitorous villain. A villain? Who would ever... become one! He'll be the villain! From then on, Zhu Yan is not only a player but also a lackey for the Carnival Paradise. Between the straight path and the crooked path, he chooses the con. With his left hand, he dons the villain's mantle, staging scenes within instances, infuriating players who decry him as a despicable traitor, all while the game happily promotes him. With his right hand, he joins the non-human organization "Fangcun Mountain," which opposes the Carnival Paradise, transforming into a mysterious player who slaughters game bosses, earning cheers of "Long live the expert!" from fellow players. Gradually, Zhu Yan rises to become an S-rank human player in Fangcun Mountain's archives, while also being the Carnival Paradise's certified top game Boss. But when the final war erupts and both major factions place their hopes in him— Players tag his various aliases: "Experts, this offensive depends on you." The Carnival Paradise's supreme Boss throws an arm around his neck: "Bro, you're the iron, I'm the steel; you can't let me down again!"
e school belle recognized by the whole school, a genius girl from the kendo club. She also has a hidden identity, the youngest legendary demon hunter. Chen Shuo just transmigrated and found himself turned into a weak, helpless little vampire. He was caught by Su Xiyen and taken home at the very beginning. Since then, Chen Shuo's life creed only had two items. "First, classmate Su Xiyen is always right." "Second, if classmate Su Xiyen is wrong, please refer back to item one." Many years later, Chen Shuo, who had turned back into a human, led a pair of twins to appear in front of all the vampires to share the secret of how he turned back into a human. "It's simple, I tricked a female demon hunter into becoming my wife!"
ions, keeping it grounded and realistic】 After quitting his job, office worker Su Yang accidentally binds with the "Enjoy Life System." As the name suggests, simply by indulging in life's pleasures, he can earn random rewards from the system—no need to spend money on beautiful women or grovel before anyone. Just enjoy, and the money follows, making it all about effortless fun. The system comes with a scanning feature, allowing him to establish a favorability bond with women rated 85 points or above. Every 20-point increase in favorability unlocks additional rewards. After suffering through over twenty years of hardship, Su Yang trembles with excitement, his dull eyes suddenly gleaming with newfound hope. "Enjoy life? How hard could that be?"
he colors of other people’s emotions. Light red meant anxiety. Gray meant exhaustion. Orange meant excitement. Yellow... meant repression. At the same time, he could gain unlimited control over one of those colors. Pale cyan: relaxation. Using this ability, he started offering “two-yuan hugs,” spending an afternoon exchanging emotional-color experiences with others. Then came his final female customer of the day— a girl whose emotional color was pure black... —— A week later, Xu Chuan had become skilled at using pale cyan—Relaxation—treating it like a bottle of menthol balm whenever he needed it. That was when he discovered he had unlocked another unlimited emotional color: Purple, the color of fear. So these emotional colors refresh every week? Fine, I take it back—I’ll never call you useless again... —— Much later, after Xu Chuan had accumulated countless emotional abilities, one night, he suddenly found himself inside someone else’s dream. There, he could use the emotional colors he possessed to paint. And in her dream, he painted her a shower of pink shooting stars, spreading across the depths of the night sky...
