Volume 1, Chapter 33: The "Sharp-Tongued" Lin Zhiwan

Song Jinhe was braiding Jinxing’s hair when she paused at the mention of "Lin Zhiwan."

"Do you like Lin Zhiwan very much?" she asked.

Fu Jinxing tilted her head, thinking it over. She nodded at first, but then, remembering how long it had been since Lin Zhiwan had spent time with her, and recalling the things Granny Yu had said, she shook her head instead. She turned to look at Song Jinhe and suddenly wrapped her arms around her mother’s neck.

"I like Mom the best..."

Because this was her real mother. She was her mother’s child, not Lin Zhiwan’s. In the future, Lin Zhiwan would have other children with her father, and by then, she would be unwanted. Only her real mother would never abandon her.

The old station was no longer in service. Over the years, foot traffic had dwindled significantly, and most of the shops had moved away. The night was very quiet, with no passersby in sight. A few lonely streetlamps lined the road, aged and rusted, casting a dim, murky light.

She carefully inspected the hole, but still found no secret markings. She shone her torch onto the ceiling of the cave, but there were no signs left by her "Stinky Socks" master either.

He picked up his phone and checked it, seeing a transaction notification indicating that one thousand yuan had been deposited into his account. A smile appeared on his face; it seemed the CEO’s bonus had arrived.

As soon as these words were spoken, Liu Mingjue fell silent. The vast house was so still that one could hear a pin drop.

The story Elder Xuanbing told fascinated Mo Fei; she was desperate to know what happened to Nishang afterward.

His expression was filled with anxiety. Zhao Quan noticed his movements, quickly grabbed him, and shook his head.

Lu Chuan rubbed his brow. Ever since Luo Yiran left, she was all he could think about every single day.

***

Su Xiangyun watched her happy expression and nodded, saying, "You heard it right. You didn't mishear. He called you Mom. Xinxin has accepted you—congratulations." As she spoke, even her tone became light and easy.

"Oh, please, don't say things like that! It's creepy. I sometimes have to walk along this road at night. If you talk like that, how am I supposed to go out?" Qing Cheng said.

"A surprise attack. We can end the fight within a minute; they won't have a chance to fire," Liang Shangjun said with a grin, pulling a foot-long steel blade from his waistband.

Being able to carry enough money to buy three horses when leaving home was already quite impressive. It showed that Yalan had considered the possibility of unforeseen circumstances before boarding the carriage, hence the preparation.

"There's such a thing? It's incomprehensible. She robbed you of a bottle of potion and then jumped off a building? Isn't that just mental illness?" Gao Jun asked in surprise.

Amidst the stunned crowd, Zhang Jiao finally gathered her courage and said, "See? This is the evidence of murder."

"I don't care where you came from, Officer. I said you can't pass, so you can't pass," the Nationalist major replied stubbornly, facing Lu Yuan’s questioning.

The reason Baiyun Provincial Satellite TV had such confidence was partly due to the 30% discount quota Li Tianyi had offered them, and partly due to political considerations.

It was already the middle of the night. Deng Houfang looked at the moon obscured by dark clouds outside the window, feeling not a hint of sleepiness. For Deng Houfang, Ouyang Hongxue, and everyone else in the room, it was destined to be a sleepless night.

Even so, Zhang Jiao still trusted him. His previous actions had won her over, and she believed that with Gao Jun’s involvement, they would surely break this loan shark syndicate.

Ling’er turned over quietly, gazing at Brother Jian’s handsome face and listening to his steady, rhythmic snoring. Overwhelmed with love, she reached out to embrace him, her mind wandering in a sea of thoughts.

Within the instance dungeon, players could set their own modes, monster counts, and so on, though the background settings had to be chosen from a range of dungeons they had personally experienced.

On this day, having entered the territory of Jiyang, Suyu heard that once they crossed the Yellow River and traveled another thirty to fifty miles west, there would be a canyon called Jiming Gorge. He was very happy to be meeting his master soon, but Yun’er, having had a previous conflict with Miao Feiyu, felt somewhat hesitant and uneasy.

Su Bao’er curled her lip. Even if these were sanitary pads, they were newly sewn and had never been used—shouldn't he be grateful instead of disgusted? She wasn't asking him to wash them, anyway.

"This won't do. The Young Mistress doesn't earn much in a year, and her health is poor; her medicine is incredibly expensive. All the money has been lost, so how can she afford her medicine?" Wei Qing worried.

Su Bao’er glanced at the display screen steadily floating in the center of her sea of consciousness; the number on it was now less than five digits.

"Why does that sound a bit like some kind of playboy? Still, it’s much better than calling me 'Boss' directly." Xu Ran had no choice but to nod silently.

***

He had previously intended to give her a status and bring her into the household as a concubine, but since she refused to know her place, she could remain an unsanctioned mistress. When he grew tired of her, he would send her back to the Su family.

Yun’er still refused a head-on collision. She twisted her waist and crouched to dodge, seizing the opportunity to strike with her right-hand blade toward the opponent’s instep, while using her left-hand blade to counter-stab toward the armpit just as the opponent’s armor-piercing awl swept over her head.

The team’s most experienced player, No. 7 Sean Long, dropped back to the attacking midfield position to manage the team’s organization. The other positions were filled with players who had experienced several relegation battles.

The historical progress of Soul Armaments was driven by the players themselves, and demonized equipment clearly belonged to the gear-related advancement.

Following Gu Yi’an’s return, Zhou Jinzhi and Gu Jinlin also arrived back from the capital.

Chang Yu knew clearly that as a scientific department, their primary duty was to provide the most detailed and reliable research reports for the Federation’s top-level decision-makers.

"Mr. Satan, the World Martial Arts Tournament prohibits the use of items. Please do not carry any items onto the stage..." the referee in sunglasses attempted to intervene, but Mr. Satan’s confident words dismissed the referee’s doubts.

Thus, when Luo Yan arrived at the Compilation Office the next day, many Confucian scholars who previously held themselves in high regard came over to greet him.

As for the Crown Prince, it was best to let Li Chengqian continue in that role. He figured that with the health-nourishing prescriptions he gave to Empress Zhangsun, she would surely live for several more years. In this way, the unfortunate incidents for which Li Chengqian was later criticized could be effectively mitigated.

Behind Zhang Liao, Guo Jia and Sima Lang both twitched, and Guo Jia even offered a wry smile. He had tried to advise his lord before they came... Hadn't his lord also said he would win people over with virtue?

Nie Kong had a certain understanding of these dungeons and could even enter those of other factions, though he wouldn't receive dungeon rewards; he could, however, pick up the experience and items dropped by the monsters inside.

One of them was a youth in his twenties, while the other was in the growth phase from a teenager to a young man; yet, it was the latter who felt more imposing.

Therefore, Cellu could only watch helplessly as Majin Buu gathered once again from all directions, transforming back into his unscathed form.

Previously, Lu Ziqin hadn't known much about Xiao Zhirou, only that she was the second princess of the Rui Prince’s mansion, with no knowledge of her true background.