The Truth Spoken by Sister Lin

"Beep beep~"

Xia Lin's phone suddenly rang during her workout.

Picking up her phone and tapping a few times, she explained, "It's nothing serious, just a habit of mine. I set a timer when I start exercising to remind me every hour."

"An hour already…"

Su Bai felt a little dazed. A whole hour had passed since Xia Lin finished showering and joined him—time had slipped by without him even noticing.

Wordlessly, they both savored the allure of each other's bodies.

It was clear that Xia Lin was the sensitive type. By now, she could barely focus on any proper strength training. Fortunately, Su Bai's physique was more than up to the task. What was supposed to be him "spotting" her had essentially turned into him doing the workout instead.

Not that he minded.

Xia Lin, however, felt a pang of guilt. If things kept going like this, wouldn’t her trip to the gym be a complete waste?

Well… not entirely. At least she had enjoyed herself.

But Xia Lin had always prided herself on discipline. She used to look down on girls who came to the gym only to fool around instead of working out.

Who would’ve thought that one day, she, Xia Lin, would become the type to lose focus like this?

No!

She glanced at Su Bai, bit her lip, and as if steeling herself, suddenly asked, "Su Bai… little brother, you must be feeling a bit uncomfortable in this state, right?"

"Huh?"

Su Bai was momentarily confused. The past hour had been perfectly enjoyable—where was this "uncomfortable" coming from?

But then he looked down at himself and immediately understood what she meant.

Hmm… Was this sister under the impression he was suffering from pent-up frustration, like some cheesy romance novel protagonist?

The slow burn of flirtation had its own charm. Su Bai had long outgrown the phase of rushing headlong into the main event. Besides, he had plenty of opportunities to "discuss the main event" with the girls in his social circle.

Still, if Xia Lin was thinking along those lines, why not play along?

"A little, yeah. Think you could help me out?"

"...How?"

Su Bai leaned in and whispered something into Xia Lin’s ear.

A vivid blush spread from the tips of her ears, deepening in hue.

He noticed that when Xia Lin blushed, it was different from other girls—her flush was especially vibrant.

Maybe it was because she was in peak physical condition, her blood circulation robust.

"You little rascal… If you’re asking like this, then I guess I have no choice but to… Hmph."

Truth be told, this whole "big sister, little brother" dynamic had never been innocent from the start. Neither of them had pure intentions.

That was usually how these things went.

...

[Ding! Detected S-tier goddess Xia Lin’s affection level has surpassed 90. Reward skill: "Causality Healing (Master Level)" unlocked. Please check the system interface for details!]

[S-tier goddess Xia Lin has been bound to the "Spending Cashback" function!]

About ten minutes later.

Once they were done, Xia Lin shooed Su Bai to another section of the gym while she resumed her usual training routine.

"Such discipline, Coach Xia. Still managing to squeeze in some real exercise—impressive, truly impressive."

Su Bai couldn’t help but admire her.

Though, from another perspective, he had helped her work out her arms earlier.

Win-win!

Truthfully, Xia Lin wanted more with Su Bai, but her reserved nature held her back from making bolder requests. She needed time to process the progress they’d made today.

Still, after an intense hour of training, the restless heat inside her gradually settled.

Working out really did clear the mind of distractions. Many students, especially during spring when hormones ran wild, found that after a brutal gym session, they were too exhausted to even think about anything else.

Especially on leg day!

Then, all worldly desires simply vanished.

Su Bai reflected on himself—the reason he never lost those "worldly desires" was probably because his system reset his stamina and energy.

Damn you, System!

But deep down, Su Bai loved the reset feature, especially around Xia Lin.

When she saw him sweating it out in the weights section, training at such high intensity that even the gym’s elite members stopped to watch—only for him to finish looking as fresh as if he’d just started—

"Little brother, your body is insane. What on earth did you eat growing up?"

Xia Lin pinched Su Bai’s arm, murmuring under her breath, her gaze practically molten.

Thankfully, she had enough self-control to avoid more embarrassing reactions, like drooling.

"Just born lucky, I guess… Wanna grab dinner after this? I’ve been craving that private kitchen place."

"Sure, I’ll make the reservation."

Xia Lin’s eyes lit up with delight as she immediately pulled out her phone.

The joy in her expression made it obvious—she really wanted this dinner with Su Bai.

More than that, she’d been dying to do all sorts of things with him, to introduce him to every one of her socialite girlfriends as soon as possible.

But her pride as a young lady had slowed things down.

At least Su Bai didn’t seem to mind spending time with her…

"What about tonight? Any plans?"

Xia Lin was pushing her luck a little.

If Su Bai was free… then so was she!

When you liked someone, you just wanted to stick to them every second—even mature older sisters were no exception.

Su Bai thought for a moment, then smirked mischievously. "Tonight, I’m heading back to the dorm to watch some drama unfold."

"What drama?"

"Xue Tao’s back from her overseas trip. Gotta catch up on the latest developments."

After what had just happened, Xia Lin’s affection had crossed the 90-point threshold, binding her to Su Bai.

Though the circumstances of that binding were… questionable, to say the least.

"Repressed" didn’t even begin to describe Xia Lin!

But at least it confirmed she was now one of his own. Plus, she was a faculty advisor.

So Su Bai gave her a rough rundown of the Xue Tao situation.

Xia Lin frowned. "That Liu Yuanyuan… Ugh. Some girls are just born manipulators when it comes to relationships, just like some guys are natural playboys."

"Who’s a playboy?"

"You tell me."

Xia Lin shot him a coquettish glare—clearly teasing.

With so many female admirers already, yet still welcoming her with open arms…

But for Xia Lin, this was actually a good thing.

Early leads didn’t guarantee victory. She was confident she’d eventually win Su Bai over as his rightful wife.

Of course, her being the wife wouldn’t stop the other girls from staying in his life.

But given her status, she and Su Bai were the most compatible match!

"Girls these days… they’re all too shrewd, too calculating. If you overthink a relationship, you’ve already lost sight of what it’s about. Love is meant to be enjoyed. If you turn it into nothing but a game, isn’t that just torture? Even if you keep winning, it’s just mental exhaustion. Win-win-win, and in the end—lose it all!"