The Riyueguang Shopping Mall is a well-known shopping complex in Tianhai City, consisting of several buildings interconnected by multi-level skywalks, offering a one-stop experience for shopping, dining, entertainment, and even themed hotels for couples.
To minimize the crowd exposure for his sister, Lu Qing brought her to this upscale location, hoping to filter out some of the foot traffic.
Unfortunately, he underestimated the purchasing power of the locals in Tianhai City during the weekend.
Even in such a large mall, the dense crowds were headache-inducing. Popular restaurants required reservations, and walk-ins could face hours of waiting.
Looking around, the only difference between here and the outdoor pedestrian street was the gentle lighting, built-in air purifiers, and comfortable temperature; otherwise, it was identical.
"Brother, there's no need to look elsewhere. Let's start here," Su Ling said, noticing Lu Qing's hesitation.
She didn't want to make things difficult for him by searching for less crowded shopping spots due to her illness. After all, good shops naturally attract crowds, which contradicted their needs.
"Are you sure it's okay?"
"Yes. Don't worry," she nodded, giving him a sweet smile.
Thus, they began their day's itinerary from the first floor with high efficiency.
According to Lu Qing's plan, they would first buy Su Ling some fitting clothes, including autumn coats, home dresses, sleepwear, everyday outfits, and anything else she liked;
Then, they would have lunch at an Italian restaurant, although he had never been there before, the high prices and good reputation should make it decent;
Next would be afternoon tea time—a bit of skincare and daily necessities shopping, followed by a coffee break, which would not only pass the lovely afternoon but also help Su Ling relax;
Finally, if she was willing, they would watch a movie before dinner, making the day complete.
Su Ling didn't know how he arranged everything, just blindly following her brother's steps.
For her, as long as her brother was by her side, it was enough. No matter where they went or what they did, as long as he held her hand, everything was fine.
"Oh, what a lovely girl. To find such a beautiful girlfriend, you're really a lucky guy," the milk tea shop owner said as he handed over the bag.
"With such a figure and condition, she'd look good in anything, even meeting the requirements for a model. Truly enviable," the shop manager at the campus-style women's clothing store praised.
Sir, would you like to experience our Gothic-themed couples' hotel? 3D large screen, surround sound, and various tools in the room. Wouldn't you like to try it with your girlfriend?" the flyer guy said with a flattering smile.
"……"
It seemed wherever they went, Su Ling became the center of attention.
Lu Qing, carrying several shopping bags, glanced at her who was silently clinging to his side.
If Su Ling at home was like a black cat that had finally found a warm nest, then outside, she was like a easily startled bird, any sound or approach would make her tense and at a loss.
She spoke very little, even not at all, in front of strangers.
So, she couldn't smoothly refuse others.
After all, she was soft-hearted and extremely socially anxious, unable to communicate normally with anyone other than him under her symptoms of depression and anxiety.
Therefore, protecting her and solving all her problems became Lu Qing's necessary duty.
He couldn't help but think about that night when his sister braved the heavy rain to find him, how much effort did she put in...?
What kind of determination did she have to make to go to a place she had never been to, to see someone she had never met, despite her illness?
"Ah."
Out of the corner of his eye, she was still trying to avoid the noise from the outside world, still lowering her head, pretending to be a normal person who could go out with family, an activity that shouldn't be considered difficult.
Thinking of this, Lu Qing felt a sudden pang of pain in his heart.
With complex emotions, he accompanied Su Ling to finish shopping at all the stores, buying various clothes she needed recently.
Except for a bit of awkwardness in the lingerie store, everything else went smoothly.
When selecting stockings, she quietly picked up two different textures, black in her left hand, white in her right, and then turned to Lu Qing, asking her brother's opinion with a serious face.
The moment all the shop assistants' eyes focused on them, Lu Qing felt like he was standing on pins and needles.
But he couldn't pretend not to see, nor could he avoid answering, so he raised his hand, extending two fingers...
"Both are nice."
This was what he wanted to express to his sister.
"I want both."
This was what outsiders thought he wanted to express.
Finally, Su Ling obediently put the carefully selected black and white stockings into the shopping cart, and then picked a few more according to her brother's taste, in case of future needs.
"……"
Her "understanding" was also unexpectedly worrying.
Lu Qing shook his head, not knowing how to respond.
After the interlude, they arrived at the last British-style lolita dress store.
Su Ling was originally more interested in Japanese campus and sweet girl styles, specifically choosing a few cute dresses and everyday clothes that completely met Lu Qing's aesthetic.
When they reached this British-style store and saw the exquisite long dresses hanging on the model racks, she couldn't help but stop again.
"What? Do you want it?"
Noticing his sister's hesitation, Lu Qing casually asked.
Looking around, the price tags of each dress in this store named "Maidolia" were no less than 1500 RMB, and the best-selling items in the center under the spotlight were even more exorbitant, heading towards 7-8 thousand.
He roughly understood that his sister was worried about his financial situation, so even if she liked it, she wouldn't go in and buy it as carefreely as before.
Sure enough, Su Ling shook her head and pulled his arm, wanting to continue walking.
"Wait."
Lu Qing stood still, pointing to the most eye-catching British-style gothic lolita long dress in the store, "You were looking at that one, right?"
"……No, I wasn't. Brother, I'm hungry. Let's go eat," Su Ling turned her face away, unwilling to admit.
Obviously, this lame excuse couldn't fool Lu Qing.
He looked thoughtful, imagining his sister wearing it.
"If it were something else, it would be fine, but since you like the orthodox high-end maid dress..."
As he spoke, his body unconsciously moved towards the store—
"Hello, how much is this Lolita dress? I want to buy one for my sister."
……
……
] [Lone Wolf, No Male Gaze] [Protagonist is pursued early on; extreme protagonist-stans, stay away!] The "Carnival Paradise" descends and slowly devours the real world in the form of a game. By chance, Zhu Yan awakens the talent [Roleplay], becoming one of the first beta players. He thought he could develop safely, but after clearing the first instance, he is branded by humanity as the chief culprit behind the game's spread—a traitorous villain. A villain? Who would ever... become one! He'll be the villain! From then on, Zhu Yan is not only a player but also a lackey for the Carnival Paradise. Between the straight path and the crooked path, he chooses the con. With his left hand, he dons the villain's mantle, staging scenes within instances, infuriating players who decry him as a despicable traitor, all while the game happily promotes him. With his right hand, he joins the non-human organization "Fangcun Mountain," which opposes the Carnival Paradise, transforming into a mysterious player who slaughters game bosses, earning cheers of "Long live the expert!" from fellow players. Gradually, Zhu Yan rises to become an S-rank human player in Fangcun Mountain's archives, while also being the Carnival Paradise's certified top game Boss. But when the final war erupts and both major factions place their hopes in him— Players tag his various aliases: "Experts, this offensive depends on you." The Carnival Paradise's supreme Boss throws an arm around his neck: "Bro, you're the iron, I'm the steel; you can't let me down again!"
saw a female celebrity tied up and stuffed in the trunk! Little did he know, countless cameras were aimed at him at this moment - this was a new type of reality show. The first randomly selected passerby was caught in less than an hour. But when Xu Moru was selected, things started to take an unexpected turn. "Damn, this isn't how the script goes. This Xu Moru is too bold, he's not following the rules at all." "Crap, is this guy taking it seriously?" "The female celebrity has been scared to tears!"
with countless casualties. As a top-tier gamer, Liu Xuan volunteered to join the fight, intending to dominate with his skills, but instead he obtained the hidden class: [Pacifist]. Unable to attack. Unable to use active skills. Fortunately, with each level gained, he acquired a new passive skill. And so, armed with a body full of passives, Liu Xuan slaughtered his way through the battlefield of ten thousand races! [You attacked Liu Xuan] [You gained the debuffs: 'Poison', 'Fear', 'Burning', 'Bleeding', 'Freeze', 'Silence', etc.] [Your attack speed has been reduced by 99%] [Your armor and magic resistance have been reduced by 99%] Warriors of the Ten Thousand Races: How the hell am I supposed to fight this?!
grated, and just when he finally managed to get into an elite academy, he discovered that he actually had a system, and the way to earn rewards was extremely ridiculous. So for the sake of rewards, he had no choice but to start acting ridiculous as well. Su Cheng: "It's nothing but system quests after all." But later, what confused Su Cheng was that while he was already quite ridiculous, he never expected those serious characters to gradually become ridiculous too. And the way they looked at him became increasingly strange... (This synopsis doesn't do it justice, please read the full story)
