As the phone call ended, Gu Chenan hurriedly grabbed his clothes and started dressing.
Only after he finished dressing did he notice Su Qianmo on the bed, tied up thoroughly and gagged with a towel.
At this moment, Su Qianmo had been tied up by Gu Chenan in an extremely provocative manner, and she wasn't wearing any outer clothing!
If someone were to see Su Qianmo in this state, forget about whether Lin Mei would think Gu Chenan had kidnapped and violated Su Qianmo and call the police.
Even Gu Chenan himself would be so embarrassed he'd want to find a crack in the ground to crawl into.
Gu Chenan quickly untied the ropes and removed the towel from Su Qianmo's mouth.
Su Qianmo's face was flushed red, covered in a light sheen of sweat, and her eyes held a hint of haziness.
"Qianmo, quick, get up. My mom's here."
"Mmm~" Su Qianmo nodded, struggling to rise from her prone position, but her body was completely drained of strength.
Seeing this, Gu Chenan immediately bent down to help Su Qianmo up and grabbed her outer clothes to put on her.
"Take a moment to recover. I'll go greet my mom first."
Su Qianmo nodded and murmured softly, "Okay~"
Gu Chenan leaned down to place a gentle kiss on Su Qianmo's forehead, then quickly adjusted his clothes in front of the bathroom mirror before hurrying downstairs.
At the entrance of the residential complex.
Lin Mei spotted Gu Chenan from afar, and her face immediately lit up with joy. She wanted to ask about his recent situation, but suddenly remembering something, she forcibly changed her delighted expression to one of mild anger.
"Why are you so slow? Are you so absorbed in your video games that you've forgotten about your own mother? Do you know how heavy all this stuff is?"
As she spoke, Lin Mei pointed at a pile of food and daily necessities on the ground.
"I was just busy with something," Gu Chenan said, rubbing the back of his head as he picked up the pile of items. "I'll take these upstairs first."
Lin Mei: ?
"Are you that eager to get rid of your mother? Do you really think I'm just here to deliver supplies? What's the idea of grabbing the stuff and running off?" Lin Mei frowned.
Gu Chenan froze in his tracks. "No, of course not. I was just planning to take these things upstairs and then come back to accompany you for a walk."
"Hmph."
Lin Mei gave Gu Chenan a sidelong glance. "We'll go up together. I have a few things to say to you."
Right now, Su Qianmo was still in a dazed and confused state. If they went up now and his mother saw her before she had recovered, what would happen?
"That's... not necessary, is it?" Gu Chenan said, troubled. "Can't we just talk here?"
"What do you mean 'just talk here'? So everyone passing by can hear about how you hole up at home playing games all day, not looking for a job or a girlfriend?"
As she spoke, Lin Mei started walking resolutely. "You might not care about losing face, but I do!"
"But..."
Gu Chenan wanted to protest further, but was silenced by a single glare from Lin Mei.
Seeing his mother's determination to go upstairs no matter what, Gu Chenan sighed in resignation.
He could only hope that Su Qianmo had managed to get dressed properly...
Gu Chenan followed Lin Mei's pace as they walked and talked.
"Don't take the thing with Xiao Liu to heart. It's understandable that she looks down on you, given that she has a car, a house, and a good job."
"After all, this isn't a novel or a TV show. In this day and age, pure love has long since disappeared. If you don't have money or status, nobody will want to be with you."
"So, you need to hurry up and find a way to make a living. At the very least, you should have something to say when people ask about your occupation."
Lin Mei advised earnestly.
"I know," Gu Chenan nodded.
Lin Mei smiled with satisfaction and continued, "Once you have a means of making a living, it'll be easier to talk about getting you a girlfriend. You take after your mother in looks, you're quite the handsome devil!"
"Tsk tsk tsk." Gu Chenan clicked his tongue teasingly. "Are you complimenting me or yourself?"
Lin Mei gave him a sidelong glance and continued, "But seriously, what kind of girlfriend are you looking for?"
Gu Chenan was taken aback. He frowned and said, "Didn't I tell Dad that I already have a girlfriend?"
"Huh?"
Lin Mei clearly didn't believe him. Yesterday he didn't have one, but today he does?
Was he trying to fool her?
By this time, they had reached the door of the rented apartment.
"We're here."
Saying this, Gu Chenan took out his key and opened the door.
The two entered the small living room of the apartment.
In the living room, clothes and jackets were carelessly thrown on the sofa, and the coffee table was covered with bottles and cans.
"Look at this place, it's as messy as a dog's den. How do you expect any girl to want to be with you living like this?" Lin Mei immediately started scolding.
However, at that moment.
The bedroom door opened, and a fully dressed Su Qianmo appeared in the living room.
"Hello, Auntie."
Su Qianmo's greeting startled Lin Mei, who quickly turned her head. Her expression instantly changed from confusion to shock.
There's no need to describe Su Qianmo's beauty and figure again; suffice it to say, she was flawless.
Lin Mei was completely stunned. Her eyes widened as she looked Su Qianmo up and down.
She was too beautiful, simply too beautiful.
The exquisite face, the curvaceous figure, coupled with Su Qianmo's inherent refined and graceful aura, left Lin Mei dumbfounded for several seconds.
After regaining her senses, she abruptly stood up.
"Hello, hello."
Lin Mei turned back to Gu Chenan with a puzzled look. "Who is she?"
Before Gu Chenan could speak, Su Qianmo said, "Auntie, I'm Chenan's fiancée."
"Fian..."
Lin Mei was stunned again.
What do you mean fiancée?
Have you two gotten engaged?
How come I, as his mother, don't know about this?
Gu Chenan immediately realized something was amiss and quickly said, "Girlfriend, she's my girlfriend."
"Girlfriend?"
Lin Mei's heart started pounding.
She leaned close to Gu Chenan and whispered, "You're saying this heavenly beauty is your girlfriend? Is that true?"
Gu Chenan was speechless. Would I lie to you about this?
"Of course it's true, one hundred percent genuine."
Lin Mei's expression suddenly changed. With a blank face, she walked over and grabbed Su Qianmo's arm, pulling her to sit down, much to Su Qianmo's surprise.
"Young lady, what methods did our Chenan use to win you over? Did he coerce you? Or do you have some difficulty you can't speak about?"
"Tell Auntie, if he's threatening you, I'll send him to the police station right now!"
Listening to this, Gu Chenan's mouth twitched.
Good grief, you jump to the conclusion that I must have used some dirty tricks without even asking anything. Some mother you are...
One couldn't blame Lin Mei for thinking this way. After all, Su Qianmo's qualities were top-tier, while in Lin Mei's eyes, the current Gu Chenan was just a good-for-nothing who played video games all day.
However, upon hearing Lin Mei's words, Su Qianmo couldn't help but let out a chuckle.
"Auntie, you've misunderstood. Chenan and I are in a relationship of our own free will. He has never done anything bad to me."
"Oh, that's good, that's good!" Lin Mei felt a weight lift off her chest.
If her son had done something so beastly, she would have been utterly disgraced.
Just as Lin Mei was feeling relieved, Su Qianmo bit her lip and said, "Auntie, actually, there's one misconception in what you said."
"Oh? What misconception?" Lin Mei asked.
Su Qianmo glanced at Gu Chenan, her eyes full of affection, and said, "To tell you the truth, it wasn't Chenan who pursued me, but I who pursued Chenan."
"I'm truly happy that he accepted my love."
Hearing this, Lin Mei's eyes widened in disbelief, her mind unable to process the information.
What?
It wasn't Chenan who pursued this girl, but this girl who pursued Chenan?
No, no, is this girl blind?

uld barely embark on the path to immortality. Just as he was on the verge of death, his golden finger awakened. No matter whether it was poison, drained blood and vital energy, diminished lifespan, or any other physical debuff caused by paying a price—once midnight passed, everything would be refreshed. From then on, whenever someone asked what kind of person Chu Ran was, the answer was simple: Forbidden arts that other cultivators dared not learn? Chu Ran would learn them. Prices that even demonic cultivators dared not pay? Chu Ran would pay them. Lifespan that even righteous cultivators dared not burn? Chu Ran would burn it. All the blood essence in his body? Take it. Want both his hands and feet? He would cut them off and send them to you. You say he’s finished? He wasn’t built to sit idle. You think he’s gone mad? No—he was simply waiting for midnight. From that day onward, Chu Ran would respect neither Heaven nor Earth, bow to neither gods nor ghosts. He had only one wish: For midnight to arrive a little sooner.

lanned to earn money steadily and take life at a slower pace. But he never expected... his father's remarriage, and the stepmother bringing along a dependent, would completely disrupt his life's plans...

s the Eldest Princess, renowned for her cold and aloof detachment, became the most docile of lambs, obeying his every command without question. But when the final move was played on the chessboard, as Gu Chenghan seized everything and ascended on the verge of apotheosis, that very Princess suddenly embraced him from behind, her tone carrying a dependence never heard before: "Wait... you haven't yet... commanded me to love you forever." Gu Chenghan froze abruptly. She... hadn't been hypnotized?! ... [The Eldest Princess's Diary] [When my soul was extracted, becoming the sole spectator outside my own shell] [At first, there was overwhelming fury, until I saw] [How he used my sword to effortlessly shatter my inescapable doom] [How he wielded my authority to eradicate fatal conspiracies I had never even detected] [Like a deity, he rescued me from the deep mire I was trapped in] [If not for those annoying vixens, he and I would be a match made in heaven] [I think I am ill, gravely ill] [My deity should belong to me alone] ... "Hypnosis? Oh, it succeeded, my dear Master." "Only this time, it's my turn to hypnotize you."

to panic—he has a system. As long as an investment target dies, he can claim a reward. And since he is immortal, the one thing he has plenty of is time. ... Countless years later. “Immortal Emperor of Longevity? I invested in him.” “Supreme Celestial Venerable? I invested in him.” “Undying Empress? I invested in her.” “...” “Heh. Once they’ve all died, even the Heavenly Dao will have to kneel and call me Dad.”