Lin Yuan gazed at the screen, where Lu Chenyuan and Mo Qingli stood side by side in battle.
Another face, equally proud and resilient, surfaced in his mind.
Ren Qian.
Ever since that day at Cloud Peak Pavilion, when he had witnessed Qian Shanshan's betrayal firsthand and Ren Qian helped him cut through the chaos with swift decisiveness, they had naturally gravitated toward each other.
There had been no grand confession, no romantic ceremony.
It was like two soldiers who had fought side by side for years, reaching for each other’s hands in a rare moment of respite.
They knew each other too well.
So well that a single glance was enough to convey their thoughts.
They were also busy.
One commanded "Lianshan," carving a path through the jungle of global supply chains.
The other led "Hanqing," pioneering the uncharted territories of fundamental science.
They were the two most crucial wings of Lu Chenyuan’s grand plan.
And they had grown accustomed to this rhythm.
Leaving early, returning late, fighting their battles on separate fronts—only in the dead of night would they find a moment to meet, to exchange a few words.
They both thought this was enough.
They both believed they had plenty of time.
But when Lin Yuan saw Lu Chenyuan and Mo Qingli’s wedding, an unfamiliar panic seized his heart for the first time.
It was the fear of loss.
He suddenly realized how similar he and Ren Qian were to Lu Chenyuan and Mo Qingli before their union.
They shared the same mission, the same unshakable foundation of trust—yet neither had dared to pierce that final layer of hesitation.
What were they waiting for?
For "Lianshan" and "Hanqing" to become titans?
For them to reach the pinnacle of their careers?
For old age to claim them?
What if the unexpected arrived before tomorrow?
Lin Yuan couldn’t bear to dwell on it.
He stood from his chair and grabbed his coat from the backrest.
"Cancel all my afternoon meetings," he told his assistant as the man walked in.
"But President Lin, the video conference with the A-Continent Chip Alliance—"
"Cancel it."
Lin Yuan cut him off, his tone leaving no room for argument.
He strode out of the office.
Some things couldn’t wait.
He had to act now.
Immediately.
---
The headquarters of Hanqing Technologies exuded a stark, industrial futurism.
There was no clamor of commerce here—only hushed corridors and laboratories bearing the names of complex research projects.
The air itself seemed laced with the scent of code and equations.
Lin Yuan’s car came to a stop outside the building.
He didn’t go up. Instead, he sat in the driver’s seat, quietly watching the structure.
He knew Ren Qian was in a meeting right now.
Her work ethic was something he understood all too well.
Once she immersed herself in her tasks, she became an indefatigable machine of precision.
He didn’t want to disturb her.
He was willing to wait.
Just as he had waited all those years for her to turn her gaze away from her admiration of Lu Chenyuan and finally see him.
He pulled out his phone and skimmed through the wedding news once more.
There was Lu Chenyuan, under the eyes of the world, slipping that engraved silver ring onto Mo Qingli’s finger.
In that moment, his expression wasn’t that of a tech emperor or a business titan.
Just a husband—one terrified of losing his wife and willing to give everything to prevent it.
Lin Yuan closed the news page and opened his chat log with Ren Qian.
The most recent message was from that morning.
Ren Qian: "Don’t forget to eat breakfast."
His reply: "Got it. You too."
Simple. Understated. Like an old married couple.
But Lin Yuan knew it wasn’t enough.
Not nearly enough.
What he wanted to give her—what he wanted for himself—wasn’t just morning greetings and late-night companionship.
He wanted to give her a rightful place by his side.
A bond that would stand firm whether the future brought storms or serenity.
Time passed.
Eventually, people began trickling out of Hanqing’s main building.
The meeting must have ended.
Lin Yuan took a deep breath, pushed the car door open, and stepped inside.
The receptionist recognized him instantly and stood.
"President Lin, welcome. Should I inform President Ren of your arrival?"
"No need, thank you." Lin Yuan shook his head with a faint smile. "I’ll wait for her here."
He moved to the seating area and settled in.
He didn’t want his sudden appearance to feel like some kind of "surprise inspection."
This was his way of respecting her.
Another half hour slipped by before Ren Qian finally wrapped up her last task.
Rubbing her temples, she stepped out of the conference room.
She had been in meetings all day.
A high-energy particle collision simulation project had hit a snag in its core algorithm.
Ren Qian had spent the afternoon listening to scientists argue, mediating between them until her throat felt raw.
All she wanted now was to retreat to her office, drink some water, and collapse into her chair, mind blissfully blank.
She pushed the door open and closed it behind her—only to hear a familiar knock.
Tap. Tap. Tap.
Soft. Polite.
"Come in," she said without turning.
The door opened.
"President Ren, the reports from this afternoon—" a subordinate began.
"Leave them for now," Ren Qian cut in.
She turned, about to say something else—then froze.
Lin Yuan stood at the doorway.
He was dressed in a crisp suit, car keys in hand, wearing the same gentle smile she knew so well.
But his eyes were different.
They held a tension she had never seen before—a quiet, desperate resolve.
Ren Qian blinked, then dismissed the subordinate with a wave.
"What are you doing here?" she asked, genuinely surprised.
At this hour, he should have been in Lianshan’s office, locked in verbal sparring with someone halfway across the globe.
Lin Yuan stepped inside and closed the door behind him.
He didn’t answer her question.
Instead, he walked toward her—slowly, deliberately—until he stood right before her.
The office was silent.
So silent she could hear their breathing.
Ren Qian studied him.
A premonition flickered in her chest—one that sent her pulse racing beyond her control.
"Senior," Lin Yuan finally spoke, his voice rougher than usual.
"Hm?" Ren Qian responded instinctively.
She watched his Adam’s apple bob slightly.
Senior.
That title, carried through so many years, was achingly familiar. Yet today, the way Lin Yuan said it carried something new.
Lin Yuan seemed nervous.
This man, who never flinched in billion-dollar negotiations, now looked like a teenager stepping onto a stage for the first time.
"I…"
He inhaled sharply, as if gathering every ounce of his strength.
"I watched Old Lu’s wedding."
Ren Qian’s heart plummeted.
Had something happened to Lu Chenyuan in Country J?
She assumed this was about business.
"Yeah, I saw it too," she nodded, forcing her voice to remain steady.
] [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, Immortal Body, Transmigration, System, Progression Fantasy, Academy Setting, Third-Person Perspective. Alternate Title: Transmigrating into a High Martial World and Reading Live Comments. Bad news: I transmigrated. This is a terrifying high-martial world, and my original, pathetically weak body fell into a coma and never woke up. Good news: I got a Popularity Points system upon arrival. I can see live comments and even create an unkillable alternate identity. Starting out, the alternate identity has all stats at 1. The system tells me that to grow stronger, I must participate in the plot, gain popularity points to allocate stats and grow stronger, and ultimately awaken my original body. And so, carrying my original body on my back, I officially entered Huaqing Academy, where the story's protagonist resides. From that moment on, Chen Guan kicked the original plot to pieces. Live Comments: [Doesn't anyone find this mysterious coffin guy creepy? He can summon indescribable grey misty hands.] [Is this guy a hero or a villain? What kind of onion became a spirit?] [By the way, does anyone know who's in the coffin? Shouldn't the debt for saving his life be repaid by now?] [According to unofficial histories, the person in the coffin was Chen Guan's first love. Their love was once passionate and earth-shattering, but they were separated by life and death due to worldly circumstances. What a star-crossed pair.] ... Years later, the world knew of a demon god born from a coffin, shrouded in grey mist, impossible to gaze upon directly. His foremost divine emissary often wielded a scythe, reaping lives like the god of death. As war approached, facing former friends and a boundless sea of enemies, Chen Guan merely raised his scythe. "Would you like to dance as well?"
Cheng's father told him he was getting remarried—to a wealthy woman. Cao Cheng realized his time had finally come: he was about to become a second-generation rich kid. Sure, it might be a watered-down version, but hey, at least he'd have status now, right? The wealthy woman also had four daughters!! Which meant, starting today, Cao Cheng gained four stunning older sisters?? But that wasn't even the whole story... "My name is Cao Cheng—'Cheng' as in 'honest, smooth-talking gentleman'!"
grated, and just when he finally managed to get into an elite academy, he discovered that he actually had a system, and the way to earn rewards was extremely ridiculous. So for the sake of rewards, he had no choice but to start acting ridiculous as well. Su Cheng: "It's nothing but system quests after all." But later, what confused Su Cheng was that while he was already quite ridiculous, he never expected those serious characters to gradually become ridiculous too. And the way they looked at him became increasingly strange... (This synopsis doesn't do it justice, please read the full story)
