17: Memories of Youth

It was already late at night when Qin Shou arrived home. After a day like that, Qin Shou was truly exhausted. He collapsed into bed and slept until noon the next day before groggily waking up.

Qin Shou rubbed his sleepy eyes, stretched, then picked up his phone from the nightstand, only to find the screen filled with unread WeChat messages.

Most of these messages were from Yan Yourong.

"Babe, are you out of the detention center yet?"

"Babe, did you miss me?"

"Babe! When are you coming to see me?"

"Hmph! You scoundrel, you didn't reply to my messages all night."

"Are you out or not? Reply, I'm so worried."

Qin Shou looked at the long string of WeChat messages and sighed, thinking that for a man, being firm was indeed the hard truth. That one shot to the sky had directly sparked love.

However, on second thought, Yan Yourong had genuinely helped him, and she was infinitely better than Pan Lian, who only knew how to extort money from him in the past. It was like night and day. Thinking of this, Qin Shou was still very moved.

"I'm out. Thank your friend for me. Don't worry, babe."

"Hehe, how about that? My bestie is amazing, right? She's a real beauty, tell me, were you tempted?"

Qin Shou didn't expect Yan Yourong to reply instantly.

"She is indeed beautiful," Qin Shou answered truthfully.

"Hehe, I'm telling you, my bestie is impervious to charm. She doesn't think much of any man in the world. Babe, you're so powerful, why don't you win her over someday, let her know how good men can be, and maybe she'll change her mind."

Yan Yourong sent a meaningful message, not forgetting to add a playful emoji at the end.

"..."

Qin Shou was speechless, a few black lines appearing on his forehead. He sighed, thinking, 'Don't try to guess a Mature woman's thoughts.'

"Aren't you jealous?"

"What can jealousy do? You're stronger than an ox, I can't handle you alone! Jingjing is my good bestie. We even promised each other when we were little that we'd marry the same man when we grew up!"

"..."

Qin Shou was even more speechless. What kind of thought process did these wealthy sister duos have?

"Alright, babe, I still have things to do. I need to prepare for making money."

"Hehe, then good luck! Let me know if you need anything!"

"Hehe, what could I need? I just need you!"

Qin Shou deliberately teased her.

"You scoundrel, don't even think about it. I can barely walk right now."

Yan Yourong on the other end of WeChat turned pale with fright, thinking, 'Did this guy recover in one day?'

Yan Yourong had no idea that Qin Shou now possessed a host of divine skills. With Skill: Plucking Yin to Supplement Yang activated, he could fight with even greater vigor.

After maintaining his relationship with Yan Yourong, Qin Shou casually scrolled through his WeChat. To his surprise, Ren Jing had actually messaged him. He had always thought that after last night's events, the aloof Mature woman wouldn't bother with him for a while.

Qin Shou opened Ren Jing's WeChat.

"Did you get home?"

Ren Jing's message was only five short words.

"Yes, did you?"

Ren Jing wasn't Yan Yourong; she didn't reply to Qin Shou's WeChat instantly. Qin Shou didn't think much of it. A scumbag should have the appropriate calm and composure; WeChat messages are things one replies to or not.

Back in his student days, Qin Shou, in pursuit of his goddess Zhu Xinyao, would stare at his phone every day, eagerly awaiting her reply. Little did he know his rank was too low. Seeing how much he fawned over her, the goddess ignored him, yet never directly rejected him, always giving Qin Shou a glimmer of hope.

Qin Shou still remembered that summer in his freshman year. Qin Shou finally mustered the courage to confess to Zhu Xinyao. That day, Zhu Xinyao wore a beautiful floral dress, looking exceptionally pure and lovely under the sunlight. Zhu Xinyao licked her small pudding ice cream and calmly said to Qin Shou, "I think you're very good. I think love needs to withstand tests. How about this, if you can persist in pursuing me for three years without wavering, maybe we'll be together."

Social media wasn't as developed back then; everyone still used QQ. Qin Shou didn't know that he had actually been 'friend-zoned.' He foolishly pursued Zhu Xinyao for three years. During those three years, he wasn't even a spare tire; he was a jack. Every time the goddess needed a tire change, she would temporarily use Qin Shou. Yet, even so, Qin Shou, whose heart was clouded by lard back then, still hoped that one day the jack could become permanent.

Unfortunately, good times don't last. After university, Qin Shou fawned over Zhu Xinyao for another three years. It wasn't until the third year, when Qin Shou received a wedding invitation from Zhu Xinyao, that he suddenly realized he was just a clown. It was precisely for this reason that Qin Shou wasted his prime youth, ultimately resorting to frantic blind dates, then finding Pan Lian, that piece of junk, leading to his tragic life in his previous existence.

So, after being reborn, Qin Shou understood one truth: with women, only go for the body, not the heart.

Qin Shou also had a roommate named Guo Gang, who was also an extreme simp, even more tragic than Qin Shou. Qin Shou was a jack, at least able to support the goddess when changing a tire. Guo Gang was an air pump. When Guo Gang's goddess, Feng Meimei, had an abortion, she went to Guo Gang.

However, Guo Gang was indeed an extreme among simps. At the time, to please Feng Meimei, Guo Gang, having read some joke from who knows where, actually said, "Give birth, I'll raise it."

But Feng Meimei was also very direct. She coldly glanced at him and unceremoniously replied, "Stop being so self-pitying. You can't even support yourself, you stinking poor guy, and you want to raise a child? Just come with me for an abortion and stop being so sentimental."

Guo Gang's face at that moment was uglier than if his own mother had died.

Coincidentally, the third WeChat message was from Guo Gang.

"Old Qin, Zuiyue Tower, second floor, Room 201, city center. Class reunion. Second-generation rich Zhang Wei is treating. Come quickly."

"I won't go, what's the point of these class reunions!"

Every year, these so-called class reunions were nothing more than a bunch of Second-generation rich showing off, utterly unoriginal. Especially this Zhang Wei, he was the king of show-offs, overwhelmingly arrogant. Qin Shou was currently dirt poor and couldn't be bothered to go and get looked down upon.

"Your goddess Zhu Xinyao is there. You're not coming?"

"She's already married, what she does has nothing to do with me!"

"Don't you know? She divorced her husband a long time ago. I heard her husband not only kept a mistress but also lost several million in an investment last year, owing a ton of debt. They broke up."

"What the hell does that have to do with me? A good horse doesn't eat old grass."

"Hehe, you little rascal, you didn't say that back then."

"Back then was back then. Now I just want to make money. Women only hinder my progress in making money."

"Are you my brother or not? If you're my brother, come. You're the only one I'm close to in class. If you're not there, I'll feel uncomfortable."

"I'm not saying this, Nicknamed Guo Gang, but why are you joining such an event? A bunch of show-offs. Did you pay your rent last month? Are you just going to trot over there and let those show-offs piss all over you?"

Qin Shou looked at him with a 'hating iron for not becoming steel' expression.

"Brother, you don't understand. My 'white moonlight' Feng Meimei is there!"

"Damn it, how many abortions has she had? She's probably even had her tubes tied. You're still not giving up? Brother, you're amazing."

Qin Shou sent a thumbs-up emoji, sighing that this guy was completely beyond help. Even reincarnation probably couldn't save him.