🤟🏻🌸😋🏜️🤟🏻🌸😣💧👆🏻🌸🥵🌧️🖕🏻🌸😇🌊🧻🤲🩲

Uh…

Good thing I don’t have to wash the sheets.

The girl sighed in relief.

Another Day Zero had passed. Hua Xin wiped her hands with a grimace, tossed the dumpling wrapper in a perfect arc straight into the trash bin, then collapsed onto her bed like a starfish.

Only this brief post-storm clarity could calm her mind.

Her wrist ached faintly.

Her thoughts drifted empty as she stared blankly at the ceiling.

The sweltering heat had finally driven her to open the window. The pre-dawn breeze felt deliciously cool against her skin.

*"Let’s go home."*

The wind brushed her bare arms, and Xia Yan’s words by the motorcycle echoed unbidden in her head.

All the way back, Hua Xin’s mind had been foggy, unable to process why tonight’s events had veered so wildly off-script.

*What was that about…?*

*What did it even mean?*

Wasn’t Lin Qingyu supposed to be in cahoots with him? Wasn’t their joint appearance tonight part of some grand trap? 🤔

Or…

Hua Xin’s eyes narrowed. She suddenly rolled over and unleashed a flurry of punches on her innocent *Two Character* game pillow (ORA ORA ORA ORA 👊🏻👊🏻…), as if the cute wife plushie were Xia Yan himself.

*Ah-ha! I’ve got it!!*

She sat bolt upright, wisdom gleaming in her eyes.

*Playing a trick on me, huh?*

Shanghai was massive. How could Xia Yan *just happen* to take her to the Bund? How could he *just happen* to bump into Lin Qingyu jogging there?

*Midnight snacks…*

More like whispering *"Not the right time yet"* the whole way, wasn’t it? 😡

Those two on Jianfu Road were trying to lull her guard down. Then they’d use the *"cheer me on at the welcome party"* excuse to drag her somewhere crowded…

Only to cruelly reveal the truth and laugh at her 😰…

Hua Xin snorted coldly.

The same trick wouldn’t work on her twice.

Just wait—she’d flip this whole game around!

“Hssk…”

A sudden twinge in her ankle jolted her memory.

*Oh shit—wait!*

Right! The jackpot!!! 😋

Hua Xin remembered this critical detail. She grabbed her phone, anticipation bubbling up.

The icy resolve melted, replaced by a mischievous thrill. A sly grin spread across her face.

*Hehehe… old buddy who’s been with me five years… sorry, but I’ll still tuck you into a shoebox. Won’t leave you out in the cold 🥺.*

*Time for your honorable retirement.*

Her lips curled upward without her noticing.

But just as she was about to send the message, she deleted the typed words (*Send money send money send money send money*).

*Is this too blunt?* 🤔

Scrolling up through their chat history… besides demanding his gold and calling him a pervert, she’d only ever sent him three leg pics…

*Ah! 😉👆🏻 Time to hit Little Red Book for research!*

This was definitely *not* Tieba forum material.

Hua Xin flopped onto her stomach, chin propped on the pillow, intensely studying the post *"How to Get Your Online Boyfriend to Spend Money."*

*"1. There’s no such thing as a man who won’t spend a dime—only honest guys you’ve bled dry…"*

*"4. Sisters who care about money must understand exchange. Love isn’t one-sided. He treats you to dinner? You buy him coffee. He gifts you? You prepare something heartfelt…"*

Hua Xin murmured the last line, thoughtful: *"Turn money into a token of love. It strengthens your bond—not making him pay while he gets treated like dirt…"*

*Wait… 😨*

*Since when did Little Red Book sisters get this… reasonable?*

*Is this even the right app?*

*…Though it does make sense.*

To keep milking this cash cow sustainably, she’d need to give him *some* motivation. Otherwise, how’d he have energy to grind for cash?

Anyway—they’d never meet in real life. Absolutely no IRL meetups! 😡

For new shoes… selling her soul online once in a while wasn’t *that* bad, right? (She felt a twinge of guilt.)

*Sigh…*

Hua Xin exhaled softly.

*It’s just online scamming. Just online scamming. It’s fine. All for a brighter tomorrow…*

She pressed the voice note button, face flushing with shame: ▶️|ııı|ıı|||5″ (*Bǎo bèi… I want to buy something…*) Then she buried her face in the blanket, squealing silently.

*(Ohgodohgodohgod😭😭…)*

*(My soul’s tainted now😭… pour the drinks, let’s sing loud: Best friends, best friends…)*

*(Is this enough? 🤧…)*

Maybe she should…

After the mental chaos, Hua Xin hesitated. Then she sat on the edge of the bed, hand trembling slightly as she aimed her phone camera at herself.

*Click.*

*Buzz.* Even at 2 AM, he replied instantly.

CashCow: *"Wifeyyy you finally acted cute for me 😭🥵"*

*"QQ Wallet: ¥200 received -🥰🥰"*

————————

Xia Yan lay in bed wearing shorts, volume maxed out as he replayed the voice note word by word. That opening *"bǎo bèi"*—soft, sweet, adorably pitched—followed by clear, slightly hesitant words thick with shyness and tension. Clearly her first time using such an intimate term for anyone…

*What if I pinned her wrist to the pillow mid-run, leaned close to her 👂🏻, and whispered: "Call me 👨🏻‍🦳👷🏻‍♀️. Refuse, and I’ll give you the train treatment!" Then kept sprinting on the treadmill while she froze, face flushed, expression crumbling into pure 😋…*

😨!

*Slap!*

Xia Yan smacked his own thigh hard, forcing himself to take slow, deep breaths. His "little brother" was, once again, full of spirit.

His handsome face twisted like he’d just eaten leftover rice stir-fried with thirteen-spice chicken rack and chili sauce. His Adam’s apple bobbed as he swallowed hard.

*What’s wrong with me?* 🤔

*Did Day 901 hit this hard??*

*Could I… be sexually frustrated?* 😰

*Buzz.*

Another photo from the girl.

Saved instantly. Encrypted to hidden album. Uploaded to cloud. Favorited on QQ.

Key details extracted: long hair 😍, ample chest 🥰, favorite outfit… Xia Yan zoomed in on the dimly lit night photo.

Short shorts. 🥵

Familiar single-handed peace sign ✌🏻.

The photo plus that *"bǎo bèi"* had him reciting the *Heart-Clearing Mantra* again.

*Well, no face shown… but she’s gotta be prettier than Lin Qingyu. Her figure alone crushes her. Those jelly-like curves must be at least a D-cup… 🥵*

He glanced at his bulge and chose to format that mental image, deleting it from his brain cache.

*Speaking of Lin Qingyu…*

Xia Yan’s brow furrowed.

How could it be *that* coincidental? If Lin Qingyu jogged nightly, Tieba forums would’ve exploded with rumors ages ago…

Which meant… a mole in his circle.

Xia Yan climbed out of bed, grabbing his dumbbells with a thoughtful expression.

*Right, Xiang Guan?* 😈😈😈