Mini World Game Console-Chapter 788 - 789: One is Full, the Whole Family Goes Hungry

After Ren Suo left, a rare tranquility descended upon the Dong Chengling Family home.

The cool spring breeze played the wind chimes on the balcony, producing a tinkling sound; they were a handcrafted creation by Little Jiu.

Dong Chengling stood up to clear the dishes, Gu Yueyan followed to help, Lin Xianyu reopened the fridge to find dessert, and Ren Xingmei held the black cat in her arms, grooming its fur.

Qiao Muyi sat aside, not washing dishes or wiping the table. She suddenly realized that although Luna was friendlier with Gu Yueyan and Lin Xianyu, she actually preferred to stay in Ren Xingmei's arms. Lin Xianyu was her next favorite. As for Gu Yueyan…

Just then, Gu Yueyan had finished washing the dishes and came out. She saw the black cat acting coquettishly in Ren Xingmei's arms, making cute, kittenish purrs. Her normally calm and serious expression instantly melted into a sweet smile resembling ice cream, and she briskly walked over to pick up the black cat.

At that moment, Qiao Muyi clearly saw the cat's pupils suddenly constrict, as if it had encountered some crisis. However, the black cat quickly returned to normal, responding to Gu Yueyan's caresses with soft, contented meows and purrs.

To onlookers, it appeared to be a breathtakingly beautiful picture of a young girl with a cat. It was the type of image that, if photographed and posted on social media, would be reposted thousands of times.

Only Qiao Muyi noticed a slight dissonance: when an overjoyed Gu Yueyan hugged the black cat tightly, a clearly complex emotion flickered in the cat's eyes.

Because whenever Gu Yueyan hugged the black cat, it would often sink into an irresistibly soft, plush, and tender haven. At this point, the cat would rub its head back and forth. While others might assume it was being affectionate, Qiao Muyi quickly discerned the truth: it couldn't breathe properly!

This was clearly a fight for its life!

How could it withstand this?!

Even though Qiao Muyi was very satisfied with her own figure, she had to admit that Gu Yueyan had the greater 'firepower.'

Dong Chengling was almost the same. But being slightly taller, her impact wasn't as strong as Gu Yueyan's, who was a nearly perfect combination of youthful bloom and mature allure.

When Gu Yueyan was finally satisfied, the black cat hurriedly jumped from her grasp, finding sanctuary in Ren Xingmei's broad, smooth embrace.

The sheer joy of escaping peril and finding new life was so vividly expressed on the cat's face that Qiao Muyi couldn't help but marvel at the beauty of life.

No wonder Luna loves to hang out with Ren Xingmei and dislikes being 'tormented' by Gu Yueyan.

But what did it matter? Gu Yueyan and Luna were friends who would live and die together. Even if Luna wasn't fully mature mentally, she knew she shouldn't sadden this friend who adored her so much. So, whenever Gu Yueyan graced her with her attention, Luna not only couldn't refuse but also had to pretend to be 'so happy.' It was a sight that broke the heart of anyone who witnessed it.

Even if Xiao Suo saw it, he would certainly feel compelled to intervene with a roar, "Let go of that cat and let me take over!"

At such a young age, Luna had already recognized the harshness of life.

In this world, there are no purely good things; more often than not, there are established customs of give and take.

Children who are cared for and loved by their parents must also meet their parents' expectations.

To harvest a friendship akin to sisterhood, one must also endure the sister's flaws.

Life isn't just a torturous barrage of cumin and chili powder; sometimes it also marinates you, this little kitten, in brine. You're left helpless, even finding some perverse joy in it, but ultimately, you still get pickled.

When Dong Chengling came back and sat down, everyone exchanged glances.

They had been quite noisy when Ren Suo was around. Now, with him gone, it was as if the competition had no referee, and everyone entered a halftime break.

And in their hearts was a subtle feeling.

Just a few days ago, right here, they had reached a consensus to make a decision on the 20th. Each would launch their final, spectacular offensive within that single day. No matter who Ren Suo chose, they would accept it.

At the time, they were all mentally prepared; even if they didn't become enemies on sight, they might very well have become strangers who wouldn't acknowledge each other if they met.

Yet, no one launched an offensive.

Ren Suo chose no one, or rather, he chose everyone.

A few days went by, and they were once again sitting together.

The atmosphere among them couldn't be called harmonious and joyful, but 'endlessly fascinating' was closer to the truth.

Fighting with your beloved, fighting with your rivals—isn't that just endlessly fascinating?

Lin Xianyu hid to one side, awaiting the next storm's arrival.

However, on this dinner table where a storm seemed imminent, it's unknown who started it, but a smile first appeared on one face, followed by a soft chuckle.

Soon after, the others couldn't hold back either and began to laugh, covering their mouths with their hands.

"We're being so silly." Qiao Muyi covered her mouth, her eyes crinkling with laughter. "Are we really doing all this for one man?"

She pointed at herself. "I, Young Master Mu Qiao Muyi, am the Deputy Director of the Tactical Bureau and Mysterious Country's newly promoted Fourth Transformation Cultivator. I'm a big V with a million followers on Weibo, recognized as a representative of the new era's women. Whether I continue in public service or switch to a celebrity career, I'm destined to succeed and become a powerful woman."

Pointing at Dong Chengling, she continued, "You, Dong Chengling, are the most popular female teacher at Heavenly Lotus Academy and a Fourth Transformation Space Cultivator. You can go on to benefit the world, or step back and focus on your own cultivation. With the fastest promotion rate, you are very likely to become one of Mysterious Country's top cultivators."

Then she looked at Gu Yueyan. "Gu Yueyan, although you're still a student, your father is Gu Wenyi, a Fourth Transformation Cultivator, and your brother is Gu Yuexuan of the Tactical Headquarters. He's expected to be assigned to the Great Wall project once he reaches his fourth transformation. Even if you don't care, your family background is powerful. You yourself reached the Third Turn at such a young age and carry the legacy of a Moon Chanter. Your future is immeasurable; Cheng Ling and I might not even compare to you."

Lastly, she addressed Ren Xingmei, "Little Star, your awakened spell is a Time Spell. That alone makes you stronger than all of us. You could possibly remain eternally youthful, achieve immortality, foresee the future, and revisit the past. Even without mentioning these, your learning and thinking abilities surpass us all. Your skill in financial speculation could even extract vast fortunes from market makers. Regardless of whether Spiritual Energy resurges, you'd thrive."

"And there's Luna, a Moon Chanter's other half, who might become a Demigod once she grows up, with a starting point far beyond ours."

Finally, Qiao Muyi spread her hands, a smile curling her lips. "Do we really need to squabble over a man?"

"Indeed, it's ridiculous," Gu Yueyan nodded.

Ren Xingmei sighed. "My time is worth hundreds of thousands a second; investing time in romance indeed feels somewhat wasteful."

Dong Chengling nodded silently, while the black cat meowed.

Lin Xianyu listened and blinked.

Wait, do I really have so many impressive figures around me?!

I thought Big Brother Ren, with his connection to the Fairy Palace World Tree, was the main support, but now it seems he's nothing; they're the real titans!

Look at these four! Their influence spans government and commerce, local and central authorities, encompassing everything from brute force to financial power. If I can latch onto all these patrons, do I, Lin Xianyu, even need to put in any effort?

Upon graduation, I could just let them find me a job with high pay, few responsibilities, and little work, allowing me to just eat and wait for death for the rest of my life!

Lin Xianyu admitted that besides being pretty, she didn't have much going for her. She wasn't diligent, hardworking, ambitious, or goal-oriented. So, her main ambition was to become a cherished mascot by the side of powerful figures and then live comfortably under their protection for a lifetime.

If life can be easy, why struggle?

Not trusting friends, not relying on friends, fighting alone is just foolish arrogance!

Making good use of the resources at hand to have a better life is the smart way to go!

I, Lin Xianyu, understood the art of survival long ago.

That's why Lin Xianyu was rather envious of Ren Suo: It's so good for you, Big Brother Ren; you just need to lie back and trade on your looks.

Although that's what she thought, if it were up to Lin Xianyu herself, she was unwilling to do so. Even if she considered Ren Suo a powerful support, her attitude towards him was to keep a respectful distance.

Lin Xianyu had no concrete evidence, and Ren Suo's gaze towards her was very pure, seemingly devoid of any cunning, but she always felt that if she clung to Big Brother Ren's thigh, she'd end up having to sell her looks too...

Actually, selling looks wasn't out of the question, and it wasn't that Ren Suo was unacceptable, but... if she were to sell her looks to him, Lin Xianyu felt her life would be in danger.

Just look at the people at this table.

They're saying 'yes, yes,' and 'arguing over a man is really stupid,' but they can't hide the murderous intent in their eyes at all.

Their backgrounds are increasingly formidable, their strengths ever greater; Lin Xianyu couldn't stand up to any of them!

She was just an ordinary transcendent, beautiful university student, planning to graduate with her Second Turn Cultivation, that's all!

For the sake of her life, Lin Xianyu decisively gave up on clinging to Ren Suo and switched to clinging to the thighs of these four women and one cat!

And she didn't even have to sell her looks, delightful!

Lin Xianyu then went over and massaged some shoulders, poured tea for others, working as diligently as a young palace maid at a tea party hosted by imperial concubines.

After a few polite exchanges, Qiao Muyi finally revealed her fangs and claws. "As agreed, I went on a date and confessed to Ren Suo on the 20th. We even discussed our honeymoon plans, and he accepted. So, you all should accept this outcome, right?"

Qiao Muyi ignored the tear she shed in the Ferris wheel pod.

Ren Xingmei immediately said, "On that day, I also asked my brother to team up with me for life, and he accepted!"

Ren Xingmei forgot the grievance she felt in that internet café.

Dong Chengling nodded gently, calmly stating, "That morning, he promised me a lifetime, and I accepted."

Dong Chengling didn't remember rejecting Ren Suo at all.

Gu Yueyan just couldn't handle it. Her cultivation level wasn't strong enough, and her skin wasn't as thick as others. She stammered, "I... I... He snuck into the girls' dormitory at dawn to confess to me!"

"That was the next day!"

"You lost! We agreed it was supposed to be on the 20th!"

"Yueyan, that's unfortunate..."

The girls' eyes immediately lit up. Even Dong Chengling didn't hold back. They all started 'comforting' Gu Yueyan with regretful tones, trying to persuade her to back down, speaking until Gu Yueyan was on the verge of tears. She snatched the black cat from Ren Xingmei's arms.

She sat to one side, hugging the black cat, looking aggrieved. The black cat, too, wore a wronged expression.

Lin Xianyu couldn't hold back any longer and spoke up for Gu Yueyan, "Not at all! That night, Big Brother Ren said so many cheesy love phrases to our class president. If I hadn't jumped out to protect our class president, I suspect Big Brother Ren would have wanted to take her home right then and there!"

Qiao Muyi gave her a look. "You're even stalking Ren Suo?"

"I'm just worried about the class president!" Lin Xianyu put her hands on her hips, proudly saying, "Our class president is my treasure; I have to protect her well!"

Touched by her words, Gu Yueyan showed a moved expression, and Lin Xianyu secretly rejoiced: Hehe, now you know who your real best friend is, right? Such good besties aren't easy to find, yeah? Remember to find me a well-paying job with minimal work and responsibility later!

Lin Xianyu was a master at this sort of lip service to win favor!

The others didn't think they could persuade Gu Yueyan with this matter; they just wanted to tease her for fun. Here was an honest, naive person; it felt like too much of a waste not to tease her a bit.

At that moment, Qiao Muyi suddenly pulled Lin Xianyu to sit down and then asked everyone, "By the way, the girls Ren Suo usually hangs out with, it's just a few of us, right?"

"If we're only talking about females, then yes, it's indeed just us."

Dong Chengling nodded and said, "Me, you, Xingmei, Yueyan, Luna, Xianyu. Even if other girls interact with Ren Suo, they definitely don't meet him more than once a week."

"We've also known each other for quite a while now, right?" Qiao Muyi asked.

"About a year," Gu Yueyan let go of the black cat and said. "Even Little Star met us last summer vacation."

Ren Xingmei hugged the black cat, smiling. "I never expected our relationships, and my relationship with my brother, to change so much in just one year."

"Yeah," Qiao Muyi said. "If you and I weren't friends, we definitely wouldn't be able to sit here discussing this so peacefully... At least, I wouldn't be able to."

Even Gu Yueyan, the most naively cute among them, didn't doubt Qiao Muyi's words at that moment.

They could even guess that if they weren't familiar with Qiao Muyi, she would definitely use any means necessary to win his love, including but not limited to arranging personnel transfers for them, confronting them head-on, or even ambushing them with a blow to the head.

In fact, they still underestimated Qiao Muyi. If it weren't for Ren Suo's 'moistening' influence, she might have even become a character on the level of Yukiho Karasawa from *Journey Under the Midnight Sun*. In that case, the depths of Qiao Muyi's unscrupulousness would be far lower than they could imagine.

But life has no ifs.

Because they knew each other and were friends, Qiao Muyi couldn't bring herself to be ruthless. That's why Dong Chengling was hesitant, why Gu Yueyan was accommodating, and why Ren Xingmei retreated.

That's why they could sit down and have this discussion.

But at that moment, they found it strange: Why is Qiao Muyi suddenly saying these things now? Is it a threat?

It wasn't; Qiao Muyi, generally a woman of few words and decisive action, would never resort to such low-level intimidation tactics.

Qiao Muyi continued, "Although deducing cause from effect is overly subjective and unscientific, Xiao Suo himself has never been one for the scientific, and his life is full of miracles, so this approach suits him perfectly."

"We know each other, we've known Xiao Suo for a long time, then we each had extraordinary adventures with Xiao Suo, and subsequently, we fell in love with him."

Lin Xianyu suddenly felt an ominous premonition and wanted to run, but Qiao Muyi had already laid a hand on her shoulder—how could a mere Lin Xianyu resist the suppression of the Great Demon King?

"So, in Ren Suo's circle of friends, is there anyone else who is familiar with us, who also knows Xiao Suo, but who hasn't had a special experience with Xiao Suo yet, and therefore hasn't fallen in love with him yet... hmm?"

Everyone's gaze converged on Lin Xianyu.

Lin Xianyu had never hated her own weakness more than at this very moment.

I swear, I must practice diligently!

I swear, I will achieve great power!

I swear, my fate is in my own hands, not dictated by the heavens!

So, Sister Qiao, can you please let me go? I just want to leave this terrifying place and go back to my dorm to take a nap and digest my lunch!

I'm not afraid, I still have friends!

Teacher Dong, Teacher Dong is so sensible, she will definitely help me!

Lin Xianyu looked at Dong Chengling with hopeful eyes. Dong Chengling met her gaze calmly and nodded slightly. "Speaking of which, Xianyu, you used to be very close to Suo."

I was wrong before, okay!

And Little Star, Little Star and I are good friends!

Lin Xianyu looked expectantly at Ren Xingmei. Ren Xingmei narrowed her eyes slightly. "Xianyu, you often call him Big Brother Ren. People even say you act more like his sister than I do..."

Next time I'll call him Little Brother Ren, okay!

But Lin Xianyu was still not panicked. She had her bestie, Gu Yueyan!

Class president! Save me!

Lin Xianyu looked at Gu Yueyan with hopeful eyes, only to find Gu Yueyan looking at her with a complicated expression.

"Xianyu, you've known for quite a while that I like Mr. Suo, haven't you?" Gu Yueyan said softly. "You've always been strategizing for me, encouraging me to take the initiative... So, you also think he's a good man, someone worth liking, don't you?"

No, that's not it! I was only considering our friendship when I encouraged you! I didn't want you to pick a boyfriend from the trash heap!

"No, no!" Lin Xianyu shook her head hastily. "I just see Big Brother Ren as a friend! There's absolutely not a shred of romantic feeling!"

"That's not right." Gu Yueyan mercilessly pierced through her lie. "You've suggested to me several times that we should just marry Mr. Suo together. You said Mr. Suo likes games, and you like games, so your married life would surely be harmonious..."

Can I even be besties with her anymore? I was joking!

Watching the murderous intent at the dining table about to shift toward her, and with Qiao Muyi's hands still on her own shoulders, Lin Xianyu knew that this moment was the greatest trial of her life.

My mood right now is like a peeled potato.

A big potato is POTATO. Take away the P, and what's left is OTATO.

No matter how much she declared she didn't like Ren Suo, it was useless with the traitor class president there—this group of Female Demons wouldn't believe her.

And having her intentions exposed, she wasn't sure she could still tell the perfect lie.

After all, she was just a girl whose face turned red when shy, and who got nervous when lying.

So now, she needed to be confident!

"How could Big Brother Ren possibly like a girl like me, the type who eats her fill while her whole family starves?"

Lin Xianyu, with hands on hips, burst into hearty laughter. "If I don't show up for dinner next time, he'll definitely be thrilled that there's no one to fight him for food."

Right at that moment, their phones all received a message.

It was from their WeChat group, "Seven Snow Whites"—who even came up with that name? The five of them, plus Lin Xianyu and Ren Suo, were all in this group. It was nicknamed the "Meal Group," and all dinner invitations were sent there.

It was a message from Ren Suo: "Zhao Huo is treating us to dinner tonight! He invited us all to join! Xianyu, don't eat any snacks this afternoon! Save your appetite; we're going out for a big meal tonight!"

"..."

Qiao Muyi, Gu Yueyan, Dong Chengling, Ren Xingmei, and even the Black Cat, all stared silently at Lin Xianyu.

Lin Xianyu: (っ*´Д`)っ

It would be a lie to say I'm not happy; after all, I get to fleece Zhao Huo for another meal tonight.

But this message was just too coincidental!

Big Brother Ren, I suspect you're plotting against me! Are you trying to raise my affection score?

Help! I'm surrounded by the Demon King, a Spatial Ability User, a Time Ability User, a Moonlight Ability User, and a Demigod! I'm just a weak little Storm Ability User! How am I supposed to survive this? Online, urgent!