That afternoon, Lin Ao was in his room, restless and irritable.
How had things gone so far off course?
By rights, once I brought up breaking off the engagement, Gu Wanqing should've agreed right away. She should've gone home and set off firecrackers to celebrate.
Hadn't she always been helping Xiao Fan before?
He still remembered the cold look in Gu Wanqing's eyes at their first wedding. It had been exactly like the look on his own face back then.
They really had been a perfect match!
Every time he was reborn, it was the same: Gu Wanqing would always bring up breaking off the engagement with him at least once.
She'd brought it up this time, too. The problem was, yesterday's events hadn't gone according to the plot! How had things gone off course this time?
Was it because Xiao Fan hadn't appeared yet? No, that couldn't be it!
By now, Xiao Fan had already started working as a security guard at her company.
At the thought, Lin Ao gave a scornful laugh. The Dragon Gate Sect Master had gone to work as a security guard just to show off and impress a woman, yet he couldn't even stand being treated poorly.
He remembered that Xiao Fan had caused quite a few incidents back then. It was laughable—utterly laughable.
And yet he'd been killed by someone so laughable!
"Ugh! This is so frustrating!"
The more Lin Ao thought about it, the more frustrated he became. With the way things were going this time, there was no way his ending would be any good!
He wanted to go out for a walk. If he stayed here alone any longer, he was afraid he'd think himself crazy.
"Uncle Zhang, take me to Jianghai Amusement Park."
Lin Ao wanted to go somewhere full of joy, and let the laughter there wash away some of his gloom.
Halfway there, Uncle Zhang spotted a little rat through the rearview mirror. This sort of thing was perfectly ordinary for the Lin Family.
With a family as powerful and wealthy as theirs, who knew how many people coveted their riches every day?
Uncle Zhang expertly dialed a number without saying a word.
The person on the other end knew exactly what to do.
Suddenly, several cars darted out from both sides, surrounding Lin Ao's car in a half circle.
The little rat was completely cut off from them.
By the time the cars pulled away, Lin Ao's car had vanished without a trace.
"Damn it! Lin Ao, just you wait."
The person in the car was Monkey, the same man who had appeared in the underground parking garage.
"We lost him. Should I call the others over for backup?"
Monkey called Xiao Fan.
On the other end of the phone, there was a moment of silence.
"I understand. The others have different tasks. Come back for now. There'll be plenty of chances later."
Xiao Fan hung up and slammed the phone onto the ground.
"That useless fool. He can't even handle one little thing."
Under Gu Wanqing's goading, Xiao Fan had lost all reason and grown quick-tempered. He wanted nothing more than to tear Lin Ao apart right now, to prove to Gu Wanqing that he, Xiao Fan, was the one she should choose.
He hadn't used to be like this. No matter how big the problem, he'd always faced it with confidence. What had been going on lately? It felt like nothing was going his way.
Lin Ao arrived at Haicheng Amusement Park. It was one of the Lin Family's properties. When Lin Ao was born, Father Lin and Mother Lin had invested in it, hoping to bring little Lin Ao there to play. It had been a small investment.
Lin Ao wandered through the amusement park alone. The laughter and happy chatter around him did indeed ease some of the gloom weighing on his heart.
Behind the amusement park was a scenic area connected to Lotus Mountain in Jianghai City.
There were plenty of benches at the foot of the mountain for people to rest on. They'd also built an artificial lake with a fountain.
Lin Ao sat down on a bench and stretched.
It was already evening. This was the perfect time to take in the sunset. He'd never had time to stop and admire the scenery before. He was either on the road to making money or on the road to being killed.
He reached for the hot dog he'd left on the bench, only to find it gone.
He turned around and saw a grubby little girl crouched behind the bench, munching on his hot dog.
She looked about five years old. Her clothes were tattered and covered in leaves.
She looked famished and hadn't even noticed the hot dog's owner watching her.
"Whose child is this? They just left her here?"
"Hey, little one, where are your parents?"
Lin Ao found it strange. How could someone not realize their child was missing? The amusement park had a PA system, but he hadn't heard any missing-child announcements. It was closing time already. How could they still not have noticed their child was gone?
The little girl was startled by Lin Ao, like a frightened rabbit.
She scrambled to her feet and tried to run, but Lin Ao was quick. He scooped her up in one swift motion.
The moment Lin Ao touched her, a current surged through her body. Her vision went black, and a flood of memories poured into her mind. A wisp of red energy emerged from both her and Lin Ao, then dissipated into the air.
Just like with Gu Wanqing, but the little girl had completely passed out. It was probably because she was so young.
Lin Ao was startled. How could a gentle hug make someone faint?
He quickly told Uncle Zhang to get the car ready and take her to the Lin Family's hospital for a checkup. At the same time, he asked the amusement park staff to check the security footage and find out who had left her behind.
Once he found that family, Lin Ao was going to give them a piece of his mind. What was the point of having a child if they couldn't even keep an eye on her? Didn't they know there were plenty of kidnappers out there?
Lin Ao carried her to the hospital. After examining her, the doctor found nothing wrong. She'd just been frightened.
Lin Ao breathed a sigh of relief. What lousy parents.
"Hey, Manager Cheng, did you find them?"
Lin Ao called the amusement park manager to see if they'd found the irresponsible parents.
"Y-Young Master Lin, we checked all the camera footage from today. She suddenly appeared near Lotus Mountain this morning. The cameras on the mountain also caught her climbing through the fence over there."
She'd come in from the mountain? A five-year-old girl?
"Okay. Go check with the police station and see if anyone's reported a missing child recently. I'll ask her when she wakes up."
Lin Ao hung up and sat beside the hospital bed. The little girl really was adorable.
Her little face was rosy and chubby, like a porcelain doll.
If I manage to live to ninety-nine this time, could I have a kid this cute?
Lin Ao sat there, bored out of his mind, and started scrolling Douyin again. Lately, he'd been really into watching those short online dramas.
An hour passed, and night had fallen.
Lin Ao was still watching web dramas.
"Haha! The male lead's such an idiot. The female lead clearly likes him, and he still doesn't know it."
Suddenly, he felt someone tugging at his clothes.
He turned around and saw that the little girl had woken up. She stared at Lin Ao in a daze.
"Oh, you're awake! You didn't faint because of anything I did, okay? Now that you're awake, tell me, who are your parents?"
The little girl only stared blankly at Lin Ao. But when she heard the word "parents," it was like someone had flipped a switch.
Tears streamed from her eyes. She opened her mouth wide and wailed.
Lin Ao panicked at once. What did I do now?
He was completely helpless in the face of a woman's tears. He had no idea how to comfort her.
Suddenly, the little girl let out a giggle.
She looked at the panel that had appeared before her and laughed.
[Name: Lin Ao] [Appearance: SSS] [Personality: Complex.] [Hidden Traits: Tsundere, sharp-tongued but soft-hearted, completely helpless against women's tears.] [Relationships: Father: Lin Dong, Mother: Li Wanyu, Fiancée: Gu Wanqing (unconfirmed).] [Current State/Thoughts: At a loss, flustered, wants to run away.] [Favorability: 80.] [Heartbeat: 110.] [Current Objective: Help the girl find her parents. Currently changing to: Leave the hospital room.] [H-Index: 0.] [All data is updated in real time.]
Then a pop-up window appeared.
[Congratulations on breaking free from the Destiny Path.]
The little girl stared thoughtfully at those words.
"Heh... ahaha..."
At that moment, faced with a little girl who was crying and laughing at the same time, Lin Ao awkwardly laughed along with her.
[Current Mood: Confused, awkward] [Current Objective: Help the girl find her parents]
The little girl kept laughing as she watched Lin Ao awkwardly laughing in front of her.
A light shone in her eyes that didn't belong to a child her age.
It's you, Uncle Lin Ao.
This time, I finally met you first.
Before you continue