Jianghai High School, cafeteria.
Bai Qionglan looked at Leng Ling'er, who had food in front of her but hadn't touched her chopsticks, and couldn't help but ask with concern, "Ling'er, why aren't you eating? Did you eat too much this morning?"
Leng Ling'er shook her head, glanced at Bai Qionglan, and then at the cafeteria food.
Finally, she let out a long sigh.
Life is bitter! My heart is bitter! But I can't say it out loud!
Ever since she tasted Gu Yan's cooking, everything else just paled in comparison!
Sigh, that annoying Gu didn't come to cook yesterday, and not having that bite of his food made her feel like ants were crawling all over her body.
I wonder if that annoying Gu will come to cook tonight~
Maybe I can ask my sister to let Gu Yan just live at our house?
That way, I can go home for lunch and eat his food~
At that moment.
Bai Qionglan suddenly exclaimed with excitement, "Ling'er! It's your brother-in-law!"
Leng Ling'er didn't notice Gu Yan at first and just nodded, wailing, "Yes, it's my brother-in-law! Oh, I really want to eat his cooking!"
The next second.
A tray was placed next to Leng Ling'er, and Gu Yan's teasing voice came through, "You want to eat my cooking that badly? Aren't you going to pay for it?"
Leng Ling'er was stunned. She looked up and, upon seeing Gu Yan's handsome face, her eyes lit up with joy, "Brother-in-law! Why are you here?!"
Gu Yan shrugged, "Just came to check if you're behaving at school...."
As he spoke, he turned to the group behind him, "Grandpa Ge, I'll eat with Ling'er then."
Ge Tian, understanding the habits of young people, smiled and nodded, "Of course, of course. We won't disturb you youngsters."
"Thank you, Grandpa Ge, for treating me to lunch."
"Ah, it's nothing!"
After a brief exchange, Ge Tian and the other staff members went to another table.
Gu Yan then sat down next to Leng Ling'er, and the atmosphere immediately became more relaxed.
Leng Ling'er looked at Gu Yan with sparkling eyes and quickly asked, "Brother-in-law, be honest. Why are you at our school?"
"And why are my homeroom teacher and the principal so polite to you?"
"Why do you call Principal Ge 'Grandpa Ge'... Ouch!"
Before she could finish.
Leng Ling'er's head was lightly thumped by Gu Yan. She held her head, tears welling up in her eyes, and glared at him, "Brother-in-law, what was that for?!"
Retracting his fist, Gu Yan spoke while Leng Ling'er was still rubbing her head, "No manners. Principal Ge is a friend of my dad's."
"I came here today to discuss a charity donation."
"It's lunchtime, so I thought I'd grab a bite in your cafeteria."
"Little did I know I'd hear you whining from a mile away."
As he spoke, the corners of Gu Yan's mouth curled up slightly, "But... you're in luck today. I'm cooking for your sister tonight."
"You can tag along and have some too!"
Hearing this, Leng Ling'er's heart leapt with joy. Yes! Finally, I get to eat brother-in-law's cooking again!
But then...
"Hey! What do you mean by that? Am I not worthy of your cooking? What do you mean 'tag along and have some'?!"
Leng Ling'er glared at Gu Yan, clearly annoyed.
Gu Yan smirked dismissively, "You little brat, you sure have a lot of demands. Be grateful I'm even letting you have any!"
Leng Ling'er was furious now, raising her fist as if to hit Gu Yan, "You dare provoke me! Gu Yan! I'm mad!!"
Gu Yan, however, looked at her with a calm smile, "So what if I provoked you? Huh? Are you going to hit me?"
At those words.
Seeing Gu Yan's gentle smile.
And perhaps recalling the "tyranny" of the annoying Gu.
Leng Ling'er immediately put her fist down and grinned sheepishly, "Hehe~ If you provoke me, you're just kicking cotton~~"
She clung to Gu Yan's arm, whining, "Brother-in-law, dear brother-in-law, how could I ever be mad at you? So, tonight, can I have fried chicken legs too?"
Gu Yan pushed her away, "Stop making requests. This isn't a restaurant."
"What?! So if my sister asks for something, you won't make it?"
"Huh? Your sister? Did Qingqiu say she wanted something? Quick, tell me, is today some special occasion? Do we need to prepare something special? I didn't buy much groceries... Ling'er, why don't you come with me to the market?"
"......Brother-in-law, you're really something."
Bai Qionglan watched the two banter with envy, wishing she could join in. But no!
She couldn't reveal her true feelings just yet!
Gu Yan wasn't like Ling'er; he was sharp.
If he found out she had feelings for Ling'er... and then told her brother... it would be a disaster!!
Meanwhile.
Not far away, Deng Feng also noticed the commotion between Gu Yan and Leng Ling'er.
He suddenly found the food in his mouth as tasteless as chewing wax.
Especially when he saw how happily Ling'er was joking around with that Gu Yan, he felt even more dejected.
Gu Yan... his social status seemed so high, even the principal knew him.
Rich and handsome, it's no wonder Ling'er would like him...
Damn it... damn it...
"Deng Feng, what are you thinking about?"
Bai Lian didn't know what that dog Gu Yan was doing here, but she knew her main focus had to be on Deng Feng right now.
Hearing her soft, concerned voice, Deng Feng snapped out of his thoughts and looked at Bai Lian, who was gazing at him with worry.
For a moment... his heart felt touched.
Bai Lian... she actually cares about me so much.
Could it be...
Does she... like me?
As soon as this thought crossed his mind, Deng Feng felt a sudden clarity.
Yes! How else could he explain Bai Lian choosing to sit next to him in front of so many people?
He felt like he had grasped the truth and quickly shook his head in response to Bai Lian's question, "No, nothing. It's not important."
"Really?"
Bai Lian feigned concern, but deep down, she saw right through him.
In her mind, she recalled how he had looked at Ling'er and Gu Yan's playful interaction.
Oh~ I see~~
So you have a crush on Miss Ling'er, huh?
Heh, what a pitiful little clown, dreaming of the unattainable.

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.”

his freshman year, Su Bai accidentally bound the "Indulgence Tycoon System." 【Sleeping in? Reward: +$1,000】 【Spent $288 at a street barbecue stall? Cashback: +$2,880】 【Dropped $14,396 on in-game skins? Special reward unlocked: A brand-new Porsche Panamera!】 Luxury cars, penthouses, corporate shares, financial empires… College life was all about living freely and doing whatever he pleased! … When the adorably naive academic genius faced family medical bills and financial struggles, Su Bai waved his hand dismissively: "Your future is on me." "Wuwu~ Big Brother is so good to me! I’ll become a scientist to repay you!" When the genius girl got bullied by a shady professor? Su Bai casually dropped a billion-dollar investment, forcing the university to grovel and beg for her return. A company’s funding chain collapsing? Su Bai smirked—cash was the one thing he’d never run out of. Years later, when people traced the rise of the AI prodigy beauty, who was the man behind her success? Not just that—Su Bai also became the tsundere campus belle’s unattainable dream, the contrast senior’s daily necessity, and the beautiful counselor’s emotional anchor…

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.”

't think I'm that capable, I'm just trying my best to stay alive. I've been kind all my life, never did anything bad, yet worldly suffering spared me not one bit. The human world is a nice place, but I won't come back in my next life. A kind young man, who wanted to just get by singing, but through repeated deceits and betrayals, has gone down an irredeemable path.