HBWMA -Chapter 279 No! It’s You Who’s Amazing

“Ahhh—mmph~~~”

Jiang Huashan took a bite of the soup dumpling. The rich meat juices burst in her mouth, swirling around her tongue, so hot she wanted to swallow but didn’t dare.

Suddenly!

【Ding——】

【Congratulations, hidden “heart-throbbing arc” of the treasure storyline “Saving the Poor Little One” has been triggered. Completion progress: 80%】

“Pffft——”

The notification came out of nowhere, startling her so badly that she spat out the meat in her mouth.

Cough, cough, cough—

What the hell was that?!

“What’s wrong? Did you burn yourself?” Zhang Ru didn’t understand what was going on and quickly stood up to pour her some water. “I told you it was hot. Eat slower, you just wouldn’t listen.”

Looking like she’d seen a ghost, Jiang Huashan turned her head toward the flower rack. The “poor little one” was lying on its back sunbathing, completely at ease.

She muttered to herself, “But… I already ate slowly. Slower than humanly reasonable, honestly.”

In fact, from the very beginning, she had known who the real “poor little one” was.

But back then, she had just come into contact with the “script gate” and didn’t trust anything in this world. Even though she craved the rewards of the script pen, she didn’t want to become a puppet deliberately approaching someone for a goal.

On top of that, at that time, Shen Guiling was only fifteen years old—recently lost his mother, underage and emotionally deprived. A double debuff stacked to max. She judged she couldn’t “conquer” him and simply left him aside.

Heart-throbbing arc?!

Jiang Huashan pressed a hand to her forehead.

Damn homophone trap. She had originally heard the announcement as “action arc,” and naively thought it meant family, friendship, love—any kind of love would work as long as it taught Shen Guiling how to love.

She had even planned something big: make Shen Guiling fall in love with Grandpa. That way she might even gain an extra ally.

Turns out it was the heart-throbbing arc.

Wait a second—

Heart-throbbing?!

Shen Guiling has feelings?

For who?

“……”

Jiang Huashan’s expression shifted subtly. She forced herself to stay calm and fixed her hair. “I’ll say this much… his taste isn’t bad.”

Zhang Ru watched her—one moment furrowing her brows, the next slamming the table, then looking gloomy, then suddenly admiring herself in a mirror. She could only shake her head helplessly.

“Miss Jiang, what are you muttering about alone? Drink some water.”

Jiang Huashan took the cup, but immediately became alert again.

“Wait! Eighty percent? Why is he so strange? No gradual build-up at all—straight to full obsession?!”

Meanwhile—

Under the blazing sun, the courtyard was silent.

The three generations of the Shen family sat facing each other without speaking.

Shen Lanxi and Shen Guiling had both changed clothes. One gazed at the courtyard flowers absentmindedly, the other sipped tea with full concentration.

Shen Zhuang glanced between them, and seeing the heavy atmosphere, deliberately changed the topic.

“Truly, a scholar away for three days should be looked at with new eyes. I didn’t expect the dark horse this time to be Qingyu.”

It had already been two hours, and Shen Qingyu’s “black room” still showed no movement. The match had technically ended, but they hadn’t called it off yet—they wanted to see his limits.

“This trip to S Country will be handled by Qingyu. Any objections?” Shen Zhuang asked.

Shen Guiling set down his teacup, his eyes gentle. “A bet is a bet.”

Shen Lanxi looked at Shen Zhuang. “No objections.”

After a while, movement finally came from the third black room.

Shen Zhi quickly returned to report.

“Old master, Young Master Qingyu has broken through the drug’s effects. He’s awake now. Dr. Meng says he survived purely on willpower, so he needs some time to recover.”

Shen Lanxi and Shen Guiling both froze slightly.

During normal training, even with brainwave stimulation and simulated pain, Shen Qingyu couldn’t endure for long. This time, with drugs added and difficulty increased, he actually made it through?

Without comparison, there is no pain. The two of them couldn’t help but think of their own absurd desires, their expressions subtly shifting.

Shen Zhuang noticed this and assumed it was competitive pride between youngsters. After all, the competition was quite a test of ego.

The old man smiled and comforted them. “You two don’t need to be discouraged either. One or two failures don’t mean anything. The most important thing is to adjust your state.”

The two fell even more silent. They both understood clearly that this complete defeat happened because they had given up resistance. Without resisting, the outcome would be the same no matter how many times they tried.

Shen Lanxi stood up, his expression calm. “Grandfather, I’ll head back first.”

Shen Zhuang nodded, then looked gently at Shen Guiling beside him. “A-Ling, you should go back and rest too. Take care of your leg injury.”

“Okay.”

Shen Guiling rarely refused anything today. He stood up and took his leave.

The two walked out of the wellness hall one after the other. Even though they were heading in the same direction, neither broke the silence.

They passed through the corridor and entered the central courtyard. The four courtyards—plum, orchid, bamboo, and chrysanthemum—came into view. Among them, the Chrysanthemum Garden, filled with flower walls, was the most eye-catching.

Shen Lanxi paused slightly, his gaze deepening.

Before he could act, someone brushed past him and went straight down the steps as if heading directly toward something vital.

That figure didn’t pause even for a second, as if unconstrained by anything.

Shen Lanxi stood under the corridor, watching as Shen Guiling pushed open the door to the Chrysanthemum Garden. Until that figure completely disappeared from view, a crack finally appeared in his calm eyes.

“Aah~ so full, so full~”

Jiang Huashan rubbed her little belly, resting her chin on one hand, brows tightly furrowed, looking confused.

Even though she was beautiful, rich, well-endowed, and had both charm and substance—and people who liked her could line up from Country A to Country S—still, that was Shen Guiling, the top playboy of Country A. She hadn’t even done anything, so how had he already “given his heart”?

This was way too unbelievable.

She hadn’t even made a move, and she was already at 80% “spark level.” If she actually tried, wouldn’t it blow up completely?

Tch. This damn charm of hers.

Shen Guiling pushed open the courtyard gate and saw Jiang Huashan sitting in the sunlight, hand propping her cheek, staring up at a 45-degree angle, spacing out like an idiot.

Everyone said she was beautiful. Even the sunlight favored her, making every strand of her hair seem to glow.

But in Shen Guiling’s eyes, it was the opposite. There were people in this world who couldn’t see light—like him. It was only because he looked at her that he realized there was still a faint glow in this world. She was the one who gave sunlight the chance to be praised.

The boy stood at the entrance. His fingers curled slightly. After a brief silence, he stepped into the sunlight.

“What are you thinking about?” His voice came from against the light, eyes deep and unreadable.

Jiang Huashan sighed slightly. “Thinking about Shen Guiling.”

The boy paused slightly, his eyelids lifting.

【Ding——】

【Congratulations, hidden plot ‘Heart-Throbbing Arc: Saving the Little Miserable One’ has been triggered. Progress: 90%】

Jiang Huashan was shocked and looked up at him.

Under the sunlight, her face looked almost translucent. Her eyelashes were rimmed with light, her pupils lighter than usual, lips slightly parted—dazed and adorable.

Shen Guiling lowered his gaze, a dark light hidden in his eyes as he stared at her without blinking.

【Ding——】

【Congratulations, hidden plot ‘Heart-Throbbing Arc: Saving the Little Miserable One’ has been triggered. Progress: 99%】

“!”

Jiang Huashan’s eyes lit up with excitement.

Has Shen Guiling gone crazy?

Was this kind of effortless good fortune finally her turn?

Shen Guiling watched her bouncing energy and raised a brow. “What are you thinking about me?”

Although she wasn’t fully prepared yet, Jiang Huashan instantly got into character. She clasped her hands to her chest. “I was thinking you’re so amazing, those two idiots must’ve been completely crushed by you, right?”

Just one percent left—little, little miserable one! Got you!

Shen Guiling smiled faintly. “No. It’s you who are impressive.”

【Ding——】

【Warning: Hidden plot ‘Heart-Throbbing Arc: Saving the Little Miserable One’ has backfired. Completion reduced by 4%.】

“……”