Barney's Pain

"Get out of my way!"

"Get out of my way!"

"Get out of my way!"

"..."

"Woo~"

Over the next few nights, Barney was subjected to a barrage of attacks, to the point that he almost turned into Whining Monster.

That night.

"Barney, you can't let Adam go first again, or you'll really have no chance at all."

Ted reminded him, "These things always have to be done in a first-come, first-served manner. The first one to go has an advantage. And since you're competing fairly, you should take turns going first. If you keep letting Adam go first, you're disrespecting him, and that won't do."

"You're right."

Barney, having found a way out, immediately took the opportunity to roll down the aisle. "I'll go first this time."

Lily and Marshall sat to the side, smiling without saying a word.

When Adam arrived and heard Barney's words, he laughed and said, "Of course, no problem."

"Alright, now it's my turn to show off my real skills."

Barney stood up, tightened his tie, and looked triumphant.

Have you seen Barney?

Barney walked up behind a blonde woman, patted her lightly, and used his most common tactic.

He used to work with Ted and other partners, introducing each other to each other, taking pictures of the beautiful women and then leaving them for his partners.

Now, in order to compete fairly with Adam, he can only talk to himself.

The blonde woman turned around and looked, then paused, seeing that Barney was the only one there.

Barney Stinson.

Barney had already reached out and smiled.

"Amy."

The blonde beauty realized that Barney's demeanor and clothes were quite extraordinary, so she accepted Barney's unconventional way of greeting him, smiling and extending her hand.

In the United States, names like Amy, Emily, and Emma are similar to names like Xiaoming and Xiaohong in the East Country. There aren't that many; just look at how many Amy Adam has met to know.

So, Amy, do you like magic?

Barney unleashed one of his most powerful moves.

"It's alright."

Amy shrugged.

As soon as he finished speaking, a spark flew from Barney's right hand to his left. Barney opened his left palm, on which was written, "Not bad."

"Oh my god!"

Amy exclaimed.

Another spark flew to his right hand, Barney opened his right palm, on which was written, "Oh my god!"

Then, Amy started pestering Barney to ask about the secrets of magic, and was often amused by Barney.

"Looks like Barney won this round."

Ted smiled with satisfaction.

"Hehe."

Adam laughed and said, "It's not over yet."

After a while, Barney secretly made a success gesture to Adam and the others before getting up and going to the bathroom.

"It's my turn."

Adam took a sip of beer, then got up and walked toward the blonde beauty Amy.

"Hi."

Hi~

Barney stopped at the corner without going to the restroom.

He agreed with Ted's words; in a battle between two top-tier fighters, the first move is indeed very important.

In his mind, Adam's level had already been recognized.

His initial move was perfect; now, he's ready to watch Adam make a fool of himself.

Then, his face darkened.

Adam's simple greeting, "Hi," completely thrilled the blonde beauty. Her infatuated gaze blatantly told him that Adam's "Hi" was more effective than any magic trick he had painstakingly practiced.

Seeing that blonde Amy was about to leave with Adam, Barney couldn't hold back any longer, quickly walked back, and called out to her.

"Amy."

He wants to confront Adam head-on, leaving the choice to Amy blonde.

Although he didn't want to admit it, he was the first to enjoy the binding force of morality.

"Barney, I have something to do. Let's talk next time."

Amy, the blonde, casually remarked, took Adam's arm, and walked out, as if she wasn't the one who had been laughing so hard at Barney earlier.

Adam smiled at Barney and then left.

"No!"

Watching the two figures disappear into the distance, Barney cried out in frustration.

He did it first...

The days that followed became a complete nightmare for Barney.

No matter how many methods and tricks he prepared, none of them could compare to Adam's simple greeting, "Hi."

He was on the verge of exploding with frustration as he repeatedly failed in his proudest and most prized area, coupled with the hormones accumulating in Ji Xiaolan's physique.

"No!"

"No!"

"No!"

This is what he says most often.

"Adam, maybe we should just forget about it."

Lily said with a pang of pity, "Barney's losing like crazy."

"Yes."

Ted chimed in, "It would be good if you let him win a game."

"No."

Adam shook his head and said, "This is a bet, a fair competition. To intentionally lose would be the greatest humiliation for him."

"But you've already won."

Ted said discontentedly, "What's wrong with letting him win one game to recover?"

"This is one of his punishments."

Adam smiled enigmatically, "He knew when the bet was made. I believe that after this, he will no longer be so self-centered, caring only about what he wants and not caring what others think. But before that, we must ensure that the lesson is profound enough."

Then, he told the story of Lu Xiaobu and Zhang Wei.

"Ted, do you really think Barney would do something like that?"

Adam asked.

"..."

Ted was speechless.

Need you even ask? Barney is 100% capable of doing something like that, and it's not even something as unintentional as what Lu Xiaobu.

"Would you be willing to be Zhang Wei?"

Adam asked again.

Ted's lips twitched, but he still didn't want to answer.

Of course he didn't want that. If he were to marry the person he loved, but Barney ruined the marriage, he would probably go crazy.

That's right!

The story of Lu Xiaobu and Zhang Wei that Adam told them was altered. In this version, Xiao Li broke up with Zhang Wei because Zhang Wei missed their wedding, and Zhang Wei missed out on true love.

Otherwise, if it were the original version, Ted would probably say, "If I were Zhang Wei, I would wish her and her ex-boyfriend well."

After asking Ted to back down, and then calming Lily down because she was emotional about the story and wanted Adam to teach Barney a lesson he wouldn't stop, Adam continued the game with Barney.

A month passed quickly for Adam.

But for Barney, who was severely affected and in great pain, it meant that the long winter was finally over.

"I lost."

Barney announced the results, looking both dejected and relieved.

"I was wrong, I admit it!"

Barney repeated it a hundred times in front of everyone in the bar.

"I will give you the crown as soon as possible."

After saying that, Barney quickly walked out of the MacLaren's Pub.

"Barney ..."

Lily and the other two felt a little reluctant.

Should we go and comfort him?

"It's best not to. Right now, he needs to lick his wounds alone."

Marshall said.

"Hehe."

Adam couldn't help but laugh.

"You're still laughing!"

Ted was furious. "You've gone too far!"

Why can't I laugh?

Adam scoffed, "This is Barney Stinson. You guys don't really think he's been completely defeated and is just hiding away licking his wounds, do you? No way, no way?"

"Isn't that so?"

Ted roared.

"Hehe."

Adam sneered, "You're still too naive, and you don't understand him at all. The reason he left so quickly was partly because he was embarrassed, but the main reason was that he was rushing to lick his wounds, but he doesn't know how to lick his wounds himself."

"You mean..."

Lily and the other two suddenly realized what was going on.

Dancer Club.

Barney was enjoying the thigh dance with a big smile on his face.

"Oh."

"So fast?"

"No!!!"

Amid the dancer's astonished question, Barney's agonizing scream pierced the heavens and reverberated throughout the universe, seemingly shattering even the fourth wall...

P. S.: Thank you to No Nickname and Twilight of Leaves for the donation!