The next day.
Everyone at the Shanshui villas woke up pretty late.
This was only to be expected; after all, Su Bai had been a bit unbridled with his "rotational battles" the night before.
Su Bai decided to go for a run by the river, thinking he might bump into Old Man Liu.
Sure enough, just as he caught sight of the misty river and sprinted a stretch along the rubber track, he spotted Liu Chenhu practicing Baduanjin in a small plaza-like open space.
This practice seemed to have gained popularity among the middle-aged and elderly demographics over the last couple of years. To be fair, it was actually pretty good—at the very least, it was great for stretching out the muscles and joints.
"Young man, join in!"
Liu Chenhu instantly pinpointed Su Bai... though, honestly, no pinpointing was necessary. The guy stood out, whether in a wide-open space or a dense crowd.
In a way, he was probably even more noticeable in a crowd. The contrast effect of good looks was real.
True handsome men were far rarer than "beauties," mostly because makeup didn't do as much heavy lifting for men.
That's why on film sets, some actresses who look gorgeous on screen appear rather plain in person—sometimes barely distinguishable from the extras playing palace maids. Male stars, on the other hand, usually stood out from the flock like cranes.
"Ah, don't make me, Uncle. I don't know how to do this."
"It's fine, I'll teach you."
It was hard to refuse such hospitality, so Su Bai laughingly joined in.
There were two other old fellows practicing with Uncle Liu, and they clearly weren't simple folk. Su Bai had a vague feeling that Liu Chenhu had called him over on purpose, likely to introduce him to these old friends. It was much like when Su Bai drank with his circle of rich buddies at a newly opened nightclub.
Circles really were important; many things were easier to handle when you had one.
And Su Bai's passport into these circles was money... and perhaps his looks.
"Is this that kid? The one who helped clear up the cash flow for Old Wu's family?"
"It wasn't that big a deal. That venue is actually quite nice."
"Nice my ass. It's a dead asset nobody wants. I say Old Wu got too cocky, building some tennis court. He should have built a gateball court."
"Still gateball, still gateball... what decade are you living in?"
The old fellows chattered away. Su Bai understood what they were discussing, so he nodded in greeting, exchanged a few pleasantries, and began following the master standing at the front to practice Baduanjin.
The master was gaunt but spirited, looking like the type who had practiced martial arts since childhood. His movements were clean, precise, and devoid of any sloppiness.
Su Bai figured this man must have been hired by Liu Chenhu and his friends. After all, as successful, prominent figures in Jiang City, they certainly wouldn't be learning Baduanjin by following online videos like average people.
Not far from the master stood two young men who looked like his apprentices, with various items placed by their hands and feet.
Having assessed the situation, Su Bai stopped overthinking things. He simply followed the demonstrated movements, immersing himself in the wellness routine.
As for "wellness," he never had the means for it before. Who wouldn't enjoy a leisurely life, adopting a bit of that mysterious, sage-like vibe?
During the break between sets, the master smiled and asked him if he had practiced martial arts.
"I guess... you could say that." Su Bai figured it was probably the military combat skills granted by the System that gave his gestures a professional air.
It seemed plausible. After all, whether it was practical combat, performance art, or self-amusement, all martial arts were interconnected.
"Young man, why don't you exchange a few moves with his apprentices?" one of Liu Chenhu's old buddies suggested, stirring the pot.
The other one winked and chimed in, "Exactly. Just now, Huzi was bragging to us, saying you ran into a stray dog on the roadside last time and kicked it to death with one shot."
Good lord, so that's what they were waiting for.
Su Bai glanced at Liu Chenhu. The older man was wearing a weird, expectant grin. "Show us a little something, come on."
"Alright then..."
The atmosphere had already built up to this point; he couldn't really refuse.
The two apprentices were quite excited, too. Martial artists usually had a competitive streak.
The result, however, was that Su Bai "speedran" them in just a few moves.
It was military combat technique, after all—skills designed for killing or subduing. Combined with Su Bai's physical conditioning, even special forces soldiers wouldn't pose much of a threat, let alone martial arts students.
After chatting with the two brothers for a while and waiting for the old fellows to finish their practice, Liu Chenhu said he wanted to treat Su Bai to morning tea and discuss something.
Liu Chenhu had noticed last time that Su Bai quite enjoyed morning tea. He had even specifically asked Liu Chen'ang if Su Bai had a particular preference for Cantonese cuisine. The answer was no; Su Bai didn't seem to have any cuisine he *didn't* like. He was basically a bottomless pit.
Fair enough. At least morning tea had a relatively formal and business-like atmosphere.
After getting in the car, Su Bai noticed that Liu Chenhu was hemming and hawing, acting hesitant—a stark contrast to his usual iron-blooded tough-guy image. So, Su Bai asked casually, "Uncle, don't tie yourself in knots. If you need help with something, just say it."
"Sigh, I'm embarrassing myself... I really shouldn't be troubling the younger generation with this kind of thing. But things haven't been going smoothly lately, and since you're close with Chen'ang..."
After beating around the bush for a bit, Uncle Liu finally revealed his hand. It turned out he was having cash flow issues and wanted to ask Su Bai for a bridge loan.
In other words, a quick loan with a quick repayment.
"No problem, Uncle. How much? I can do one or two hundred million."
"...It's not that much. Just over twenty million. Let me be clear, it's not that I don't have channels to handle this, it's just a bit of a hassle. If it's easy for you, great, but if it's troublesome..."
"Only twenty million? No problem. I'll help."
Su Bai's breezy attitude made Liu Chenhu secretly click his tongue in amazement.
In this day and age, how many people in Jiang City could casually whip out twenty million in cash without breaking a sweat?
Not many, really. Don't let those bosses fool you, walking around all high and mighty. They go to bars to pick up girls, bragging about having hundreds of millions in assets, but damn it, those are all fixed assets. Most of it is probably mortgaged. What's even funnier is that some of them might go bankrupt in two months without anyone even pushing them.
Su Bai, however, was a godsend.
When Liu Chenhu heard that Su Bai had paid for a car worth thirty million in full, he immediately realized that this kid's financial foundation was terrifyingly deep.
He was the type who didn't treat money as money at all.
Funds in the tens of millions, if managed conservatively, would generate substantial interest.
But to Su Bai, none of that seemed to matter. His operations never took interest into account. After all, with the System's money-generating efficiency, he didn't need to care about that sprinkling of pocket change.
After discussing the details, Su Bai got the gist of it. It turned out one of Uncle Liu's business partners had run off, screwing him over. He needed to cover a payment within the next few days, but regular financing channels were having issues lately, and borrowing from them would cost an arm and a leg.
Su Bai said that didn't matter. "Uncle, since you're borrowing from me, just give me a friendship rate."
Liu Chenhu tried to be polite, and after some back-and-forth, he realized that Su Bai actually meant it. The kid really wanted to give him a friendship rate—hell, he wouldn't have cared if there was no interest at all.
] [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!"
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...
] 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.
