Chapter 379: Smile

Morning.

Private island.

For once...

Nothing exploded.

No protagonist appeared.

No hidden inheritance activated beneath Shen Tian’s feet.

No ancient monster awakened.

No secret organization attacked.

No Fate blessed idiot challenged him.

No system emergency appeared.

Nothing.

Peace.

Actual peace.

Shen Tian opened his eyes.

Then...

Immediately became suspicious.

He stared at the ceiling.

White.

Expensive.

Perfectly normal.

He waited.

Five seconds.

Ten.

Nothing.

Xu Ning appeared above him.

[Good morning, Host.]

Shen Tian narrowed his eyes.

"What’s wrong?"

She blinked.

[Nothing.]

"Impossible."

[Why?]

"Too quiet."

Xu Ning stared.

Then...

[You’ve developed protagonist related paranoia.]

"I’m a villain."

[Same disease. Different branding.]

Shen Tian ignored her.

He sat up.

The enormous bedroom overlooked the ocean through floor to ceiling windows.

Sunlight stretched across the floor.

Blue water.

Clear sky.

Private beach.

Palm trees.

No smoke.

No bodies.

No giant craters.

No collapsed mountains.

Good.

He checked his phone.

Seven forty three.

Then...

Messages.

Many.

Very many.

Shen Tian stared.

"Why do I have eighty seven messages?"

Xu Ning smiled.

[Family group chat.]

He froze.

"What family group chat?"

[The one they created last night.]

"I wasn’t informed."

[You were added.]

"That’s not informing me."

He opened it.

The name...

Island Headquarters

Shen Tian stared.

Then...

At Xu Ning.

"Who named it?"

[Chu Chuchu.]

Of course.

He scrolled.

6:03 AM.

Chu Chuchu: WHO TOOK MY STRAWBERRY MILK

6:04 AM.

Chu Mei: Why are you awake?

Chu Chuchu: THAT DOESN’T ANSWER MY QUESTION

6:05 AM.

Bai Xue: Me.

6:05 AM.

Chu Chuchu: WHY

Bai Xue: I was thirsty.

Chu Chuchu: THERE IS WATER

Bai Xue: I wanted strawberry milk.

Shen Tian smiled.

Continued.

6:11 AM.

Chu Zijin: Anyone want breakfast?

6:11 AM.

Li Lian: Yes.

6:12 AM.

Ruan Yizhen: Yes.

6:12 AM.

Tang Meilin: Yes please.

6:13 AM.

Rose: Coffee first.

6:13 AM.

Gu Qingya: Correct.

6:14 AM.

Ling Shuangxue: Agreed.

6:14 AM.

Qin Ruobing: Why are all of you awake this early on vacation?

6:15 AM.

Shen Yan: Training.

6:15 AM.

Rose: Vacation.

6:15 AM.

Shen Yan: Training.

6:16 AM.

Rose: Vacation.

6:16 AM.

Shen Yan: Weakness does not take vacations.

6:17 AM.

Bai Xue: That sounded like something Shen Tian would say.

6:17 AM.

Shen Yan: Thank you.

6:18 AM.

Rose: That wasn’t a compliment.

Shen Tian nodded.

"She understood me."

Xu Ning stared.

[Of course that’s what you took from that.]

He kept scrolling.

6:40 AM.

Chi Lingxi: Has anyone seen Shen Tian?

6:40 AM.

Rose: Sleeping.

6:41 AM.

Chi Lingxi: How do you know?

Silence.

Shen Tian stopped scrolling.

Then...

Slowly...

Looked toward Xu Ning.

She was already smiling.

"No."

[Keep reading.]

"I don’t want to."

[You do.]

He continued.

6:42 AM.

Rose: His light was off when I walked past.

6:42 AM.

Chi Lingxi: Why were you walking past his villa?

6:43 AM.

Rose: Why are you interrogating me?

6:43 AM.

Chi Lingxi: Girlfriend privilege.

6:44 AM.

Rose: Not a real legal authority.

6:44 AM.

Gu Qingya: Correct.

6:44 AM.

Tang Meilin: Why are you awake too?

6:45 AM.

Gu Qingya: Work.

6:45 AM.

Everyone: VACATION

Shen Tian laughed.

Then...

Another message appeared.

Now.

Chi Lingxi: He’s awake.

Shen Tian froze.

He looked around.

Then...

At the window.

Nothing.

He typed.

Shen Tian: How do you know?

Immediate response.

Chi Lingxi: Girlfriend privilege.

He stared.

Then...

Rose responded.

Rose: Still not a legal authority.

Then...

Ling Shuangxue.

Ling Shuangxue: Breakfast in twenty minutes.

Qin Ruobing.

Qin Ruobing: Come downstairs.

Bai Xue.

Bai Xue: Bring strawberry milk.

Chu Chuchu.

Chu Chuchu: NO.

Shen Tian closed the phone.

Silence.

Xu Ning floated beside him.

[Your empire.]

He stared.

Then...

"Too late to sell the island?"

[No refunds.]

"Of course."

. . .

Twenty minutes later.

Main villa.

Kitchen.

Chaos.

Absolute chaos.

The island had private chefs.

Highly trained.

Professionals.

People who had cooked for billionaires.

Politicians.

Royal families.

Celebrities.

None of them were cooking.

They had been dismissed for the morning.

Why?

Chu Zijin wanted to make breakfast.

Which somehow became...

Everyone making breakfast.

Shen Tian entered.

Then...

Stopped.

Flour.

On the floor.

Eggshells.

On the counter.

Fruit everywhere.

Smoke.

Why was there smoke?

He stared.

Then...

At Rose.

She stood beside the coffee machine.

Completely uninvolved.

Cup in hand.

Shen Tian pointed toward the smoke.

"What happened?"

Rose took a sip.

"Chu Chuchu."

"I HEARD THAT."

Chu Chuchu appeared from behind the kitchen island.

Apron.

Flour on her cheek.

She pointed at Rose.

"It was the pan."

Rose stared.

"The pan attacked you?"

"It got too hot."

"Because you turned the stove too high."

"Technicality."

Shen Tian looked toward Chu Mei.

She was cutting fruit.

Perfectly.

Normal.

"You’re not helping her?"

Chu Mei didn’t look up.

"I tried."

"What happened?"

"She said she knew what she was doing."

Chu Chuchu nodded.

"I did."

Smoke continued rising behind her.

Shen Tian stared.

"Clearly."

She glared.

Then...

Threw a strawberry at him.

He caught it.

Ate it.

Chu Chuchu froze.

"That was supposed to hit you."

"Skill issue."

Her mouth opened.

Bai Xue laughed from across the kitchen.

. . .

Qin Ruobing stood beside Ling Shuangxue.

Both making dumplings.

Shen Tian approached.

Ling Shuangxue immediately looked at him.

Then...

Away.

Too fast.

He noticed.

"What?"

"Nothing."

"You’re bad at lying."

She frowned.

"I wasn’t lying."

"You looked at me."

"People look at people."

Qin Ruobing smiled.

"She was waiting for you."

Ling Shuangxue froze.

"Mother."

Shen Tian’s eyebrow rose.

Qin Ruobing continued calmly.

"She asked three times when you were coming downstairs."

"I did not."

"Four?"

"Mother."

Shen Tian smiled.

Ling Shuangxue’s cheeks warmed.

Then...

She shoved a dumpling wrapper toward him.

"Help."

He stared.

"Is that punishment?"

"Yes."

"Fine."

He stepped beside her.

Qin Ruobing looked toward him.

Then...

At the dumpling in his hand.

"You know how?"

Shen Tian paused.

"Obviously."

Ling Shuangxue looked suspicious.

"You’ve made dumplings before?"

"No."

Silence.

"Then how is it obvious?"

He looked toward hers.

Then...

Copied the fold.

Perfectly.

Ling Shuangxue stared.

Shen Tian smiled.

"Talent."

She narrowed her eyes.

"Arrogance."

"Also talent."

Qin Ruobing laughed.

. . .

At another counter...

Li Lian and Ruan Yizhen prepared vegetables.

Li Lian looked toward Shen Tian.

Then...

Smiled.

He noticed.

"What?"

She shook her head.

"Nothing."

"Everyone keeps saying that."

Ruan Yizhen looked toward him.

"Maybe stop asking."

"No."

She smiled.

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(Author’s Note: IMPORTANT!)

SEND POWESTONES!!!

ALL SUPER GIFTS (Magic Castle, Space Ship, Golden Gachapon) = MORE ChapterS!