You Man thought to herself that she must be going crazy, fantasizing at a time like this.
"Let me pour that for you, Sis Man."
"Ah, okay."
When Zhou Yi let go of her hand, she actually felt a twinge of regret.
As she sipped her water, You Man tentatively asked, "Xiao Yi, is there anyone you like at school?"
The moment the words left her mouth, she regretted it.
She felt like a lovestruck teenager—how could someone her age be so immature and impulsive?
She scolded herself inwardly, trying to regain her composure before she did something reckless.
Zhou Yi didn’t try to hide anything. With a bitter smile, he said, "I wasn’t going to talk about this, but since it’s you asking, Sis Man, I’ll tell you."
"Actually, there’s a girl I like. But yesterday, she humiliated me. They all said I was a toad unworthy of a noble swan. Sis Man, do you think someone like me just doesn’t deserve to be loved?"
You Man’s heart ached for him. "Of course not! They’re the ones with no taste. I think you’re wonderful."
Yet hearing that Zhou Yi had feelings for someone else made her chest tighten. So, he already had someone he liked.
Zhou Yi shook his head and took a gulp of water. Only after swallowing did he realize—he had just drunk from You Man’s cup. His face flushed as he stammered an apology, "Sorry, Sis Man… I drank from your cup."
His expression and tone were the picture of innocence.
Even a system would have to applaud the boy’s expert-level acting.
You Man stared at the cup in Zhou Yi’s hand. Didn’t that mean… they had indirectly kissed?
"It’s fine. It’s just a cup. It’s not like we actually kissed."
The moment those words slipped out, the air between them froze.
What on earth was she saying?!
Zhou Yi propped his chin on his hand and smirked at her. "Sis Man, what do you mean by ‘actually kissed’?"
Her mind went blank. She had no idea how to face him. Trembling with nerves, she abruptly stood up, her eyelashes fluttering.
"I need to go prep the ingredients." She turned to leave, but a hand suddenly gripped her wrist.
—Zhou Yi had stopped her.
"Sis Man, I think this is the first time I’ve seen you wear lipstick."
He stepped closer, his words vague yet loaded, making You Man’s ears burn.
She knew—he had noticed.
He had seen right through her. Not only had he picked up on her deliberate effort to dress up today, but he might have also sensed her unusual behavior… or even guessed the inappropriate thoughts she harbored for him.
She didn’t dare turn around, yet she didn’t pull her hand away either.
"I found an old tube of lipstick yesterday and thought I’d try it."
"Sis Man, you seem… different from before."
Her heart skipped a beat, her breath quickening. She took a deep breath and asked, "Do I? I’ve always been like this, haven’t I?"
Zhou Yi’s tone remained deceptively innocent as he leaned in, his breath brushing her ear. "No. The way you look at me now… it’s soft, like spring water."
Biting her lip, she finally turned to face him. She felt utterly exposed under his gaze.
Struggling internally, You Man mustered her courage.
"Xiao Yi, you’ve figured it out, haven’t you? I know I shouldn’t feel this way—shouldn’t have these thoughts about you. But I can’t help it. I want your attention. I want you to look at me tenderly. I want to be held in your arms and comforted."
"Maybe it’s just been too long since anyone cared about me like this, so I… Ugh, I don’t know. I’m a mess right now. Just pretend I’m rambling."
She had laid her heart bare. Her last words were both a cover-up and a genuine admission of her flustered state.
She had no idea how to face this boy, over a decade her junior.
Covering her face in distress, she suddenly felt strong arms wrap tightly around her.
"Sis Man, whether you’re 30 or 18, it doesn’t matter."
"You’re still you, and you’re wonderful at any age. I just wish I’d met you when you were 18—not because you were younger or prettier then."
"But because if I’d known you back then, I could’ve changed your fate. You wouldn’t have had to live like this, endure so much hardship. Every time I see you sitting alone in the kitchen, washing dishes with that distant look, it breaks my heart."
Tears spilled down You Man’s cheeks as she buried her face in Zhou Yi’s shoulder.
"Xiao Yi, I…"
She clung to him, sobbing uncontrollably.
No one had ever spoken to her like this in all these years.
Men had pursued her before, but they only ever wanted her face and body. She knew none of them truly cared for her.
So she had rejected them without hesitation, remaining single all this time.
But Zhou Yi was different.
He saw her—her heart, her pain, her struggles.
[Host, You Man’s affection for you has skyrocketed to 89.]
This wasn’t just fondness anymore. There was love in it now.
Zhou Yi gently rubbed her back, comforting her as she poured out years of pent-up sorrow and frustration.
She didn’t know how long she cried, but when exhaustion finally overtook her, Zhou Yi carried her upstairs.
"Sis Man, rest here. I’ll handle the customers downstairs."
He laid her on the bed and carefully tucked her in.
Just as he turned to leave, You Man grabbed his hand.
"Xiao Yi."
He looked back at the beautiful woman in the bed. "Hmm? What is it?"
After a brief hesitation, she bit her lip and asked softly, "Do you… want me?"
Realizing what she meant, Zhou Yi bent down and stroked her hair. "Sis Man, don’t do anything you’re not comfortable with. Everything I said wasn’t for this. You know that, right?"
You Man blinked, then warmth and gratitude flickered in her eyes.
Sitting up, she wrapped her arms around his waist. "I know. But I want you to understand—I’m not unwilling. It’s just… I’ve already… Would you even want someone like me?"
Zhou Yi pressed a finger to her lips, his expression solemn. "Don’t think like that. To me, you’re precious—not some gift to be unwrapped. Don’t ever put yourself in that position. I don’t need you to give me your body to prove anything."
Zhou Yi wasn’t impatient. Besides, things between them were still undefined—they were caught in this ambiguous tension, not officially together. What would it make him if he took advantage now?
He might play the field, but he wasn’t a scumbag.
His words sent You Man’s affection soaring straight to 90.
077 had never seen anyone level up their romance stats this fast.
Just two days! You Man's affection level had already reached 90—this young man was truly remarkable. It couldn't help but marvel at its own excellent judgment.
When Zhou Yi went downstairs to attend to the customers, You Man stood by the escalator, watching the boy's busy figure with deep affection shimmering in her eyes.
transmigrates into the world as the sect master of the Heavenly Yan Sect, which is on the verge of being wiped out. He binds a system that grants him cultivation power based on the number of disciples he has: for each disciple, he automatically gains a year's worth of cultivation every single day! Take one disciple: every day he gains 1 year of cultivation power. While others struggle through a year of bitter training, he gets the same just by sleeping through a single night. Take ten disciples: every day he gains 10 years of cultivation power. Foundation Establishment, Core Formation, Nascent Soul—he breezes through all bottlenecks without lifting a finger. Take one hundred disciples: every day he gains 100 years of cultivation power. Even a Soul Transformation Venerable before him can’t survive a single blow. Take ten thousand disciples: every day he gains 10,000 years of cultivation power! With a wave of his hand, he topples empires. With a single step, he crushes the sacred grounds of the universe. ... While others fight tooth and nail for secret techniques, Lin Yan casually hands out Nascent Soul-level cultivation manuals as beginner textbooks. While others strain to find talented recruits, Lin Yan opens his doors to anyone—so long as they’re human. In just three short years, the Heavenly Yan Sect went from a backwater sect made up of three crumbling huts to a sacred land that every cultivator under heaven would kill to enter. ... One day, otherworldly demon gods invade, with a million demon soldiers pressing down upon the realm. Lin Yan, yawning, rises from his lounge chair and glances at the system panel: [Current Disciples: 1.28 million] [Daily Cultivation Increase: 1.28 million years] He waves his hand casually, and the countless demon soldiers are reduced to ashes in an instant. “So noisy… interrupting my fishing.”
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?"
lities. One day, Qi Yuan was buying groceries when he unfortunately came face-to-face with a monster. Just when he thought he was going to die on the spot, he suddenly heard the monster's thoughts... "This aura, he's definitely not an ordinary master!" "So terrifying, so terrifying." "A fight with my back against the wall, I can't take it anymore." Qi Yuan: Ah, no one told me that my awakened ability isn't telepathy, but rather the stronger my enemies imagine me to be, the stronger I truly become. PS: Zhou Hai in the first chapter is not the protagonist.
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...
