Professor Xie, isn't this a case of forcing customers to buy products that don't match the

The group arrived at the First Municipal Hospital.

Shen Yan finally met his mother.

Although they couldn't communicate, and Shen's mother didn't know exactly what had happened, she still stared blankly at her son and tears streamed down her face.

Finally, after being comforted by Shen Yan's gentle words, Shen's mother fell asleep. Only after confirming that there was a reliable caregiver could take care of her did Xu Zhao and Shen Yan go home to wash up and rest.

Shang Song was also driven back to Genting Highlands by the driver.

When he returned to Genting Highlands, it was already close to 1 a.m.

Xie Jing sat at the dining table, flipping through an absurdly thick book, while the staff, having just received instructions to serve the food, were bringing it out one after another.

After Shang Song sidled over, Xie Jing first reached out and took off Shang Song's fluffy hat, touched Shang Song's ears to make sure they weren't frozen, and then told him to wash his hands and get ready to eat.

While eating, Shang Song chattered away, discussing the Lantern Festival's battle plan with Xie Jing.

Xie Jing listened and occasionally offered suggestions for improvement.

The two finished their lunch.

After lunch, Xie Jing did not return to his study or go downstairs. Instead, under the pretext that Shang Song needed to fulfill his "personal security" duties, he pulled Shang Song to sit on the sofa and started reading a book.

Shang Song was placed on Xie Jing's lap like a child, looking completely bewildered. "You're reading, so what am I supposed to do?"

Xie Jing, with one arm around the person and the other holding a book, said casually, "You can play games."

Shang Song: "..."

He glanced at his phone—Wednesday afternoon, 13:43 PM—then looked at the Starry Fantasy game icon, and muttered to himself, "If Ken and the others knew I took the day off to play games at home, wouldn't they kill me?"

Upon hearing this, Xie Jing tightened his grip on Shang Song's waist, his gaze still fixed on the book. "Then you should read too."

Shang Song: "..."

He glanced at the ridiculously thick philosophy book in Xie Jing's hand, then nestled against Xie Jing's chest, "...Then I'll just play games instead."

Compared to Xie Jing, he was so small that Xie Jing used him as a pillow, holding him in his arms and playing games.

The warm afternoon sun of winter streamed through the French windows, casting a slanting beam into the living room.

After finishing his daily tasks and controlling the little bear Songsong to help his alt account fight off several waves of mining raiders in the game, Shang Song became bored.

He tapped and clicked aimlessly on the game interface.

When he opened his friends list, he saw that Little Bear Songsong's zookeeper hadn't been online for many days. He poked Xie Jing and casually grumbled, "You spendthrift, you spent so much money and then you just quit."

Xie Jing looked up from the book, glanced at Shang Song's phone screen, then returned his gaze to the book, and said calmly, "I'll be there when your mine is robbed."

Upon hearing this reply, Shang Song stopped nagging and felt a sweet warmth bubbling in his heart.

He continued swiping down and saw the ID "Sky Star," which hadn't been online for many days.

To be precise, the stars in the sky have not been online since the first day of the Lunar New Year.

As he recalled that little incident on the first day of the Lunar New Year, a slightly narcissistic thought popped into his head.

He nudged Xie Jing's chin with his head and said in a slightly smug tone:

"Xie Jing! You mean this 'Sky Star' guy just stopped going online? Could it be that he really was trying to have an online romance with me?"

Xie Jing paused in his book-turning motion.

He lowered his eyes, looking at the little bear in his arms with its cunning eyes, and then said slowly:

"Hmm, you attract a lot of attention."

Shang Song: ? ? ?

He abruptly sat up straight from Xie Jing's embrace, his eyes wide, and retorted, "I'm a womanizer? Professor Xie, are you being reasonable?! I was just playing a normal game! Who knew my online friends would have so many ulterior motives!"

He felt utterly wronged. It was clearly Tian Shangxing's fault, yet Xie Jing suspected him of having an online romance behind his back?!

Seeing his flustered state, Xie Jing's subtle displeasure caused by Chen Yu vanished instantly.

He closed the book in his hand and casually put it aside. Then he adjusted his posture, wrapped his arms around Shang Song's lower back to hold him still, and then calmly made eye contact with Shang Song.

"Playing games normally?" He spoke as if conducting an interrogation, his tone subtle. "Playing games normally, someone with decent equipment who logs in every day, can suddenly stop playing altogether because of you?"

Under Xie Jing's gaze, Shang Song inexplicably began to stammer, "How...how would I know what he's thinking!"

"Hmm." Xie Jing nodded, a teasing smile playing on his lips. "But I think it's because he knows that, whether in reality or in the game, the place next to you is already taken, and he has absolutely no chance."

Shang Song was completely bewildered and speechless, not even noticing that Xie Jing had also used the word "reality".

"Furthermore," Xie Jing added, seeing Shang Song's stammering and incoherent expression, "based on the available information, his behavior pattern is consistent with typical avoidance behavior after a setback in one-sided emotional investment."

"He tried to create an exclusive space, but his actions were thwarted by the intervention of a third party—that is, me. He then chose to disappear completely. It was a rational withdrawal due to damaged self-esteem, and the initial trigger for all of this was..."

He paused, raised his hand and pinched Shang Song's puffed-up cheek, successfully earning a glare from Shang Song, before slowly continuing:

"It's your fault, Shang Song, that you failed to effectively manage your social boundaries in the virtual world, releasing unnecessary signals of friendliness. In short..."

"The evidence against you for attracting women is complete."

Shang Song: "..."

He was stunned by Xie Jing's long string of "reasoning" and wanted to refute it, but found that his vocabulary was pitifully poor in front of Professor Xie.

"I...I really didn't! I was just socializing normally! And he hasn't shown any signs of anything being wrong!"

Xie Jing's eyes were practically overflowing with laughter, but his face remained serious.

"Yes, what you consider normal social interaction has attracted unstable elements, leading to unnecessary emotional entanglements."

He paused for a moment, then suddenly realized, "That might explain why you've always seemed hesitant and evasive about marriage in real-life relationships."

Xie Jing, seeing Shang Song completely dumbfounded, finally revealed his true intentions:

"Is it because subconsciously you still enjoy the attention that comes with blurred boundaries? And that's why you don't want to be tied down by marriage?"

Shang Song: "????????????"

So, the topic is how did he go from traveling to Star A in the sky to the fact that he doesn't want to get married because he wants to have an online relationship?

It felt like a million little bears were driving mechs and rumbling through his mind.

He almost jumped off Xie Jing's lap, but Xie Jing held him firmly, leaving him only able to futilely gesture his name:

"What does this have to do with getting married! I just think it's too fast! I'm only 22! And it's only just after the New Year!"

Xie Jing: "So, it's really not because you still want to attract attention?"

Shang Song completely lost his temper: "Of course not!"

Seeing his red-faced and furious expression, Xie Jing decided to stop while he was ahead.

"Oh, so it's not because you want to attract attention, but just because you think 22 is too young..."

He reversed his previous forceful reasoning and seemed genuinely asking Shang Song's thoughts: "So, what age do you think is appropriate to consider marriage?"

Shang Song frowned.

He had already thought about marriage long ago.

He doesn't want to get married.

"Um...at least I need to..." He lowered his head further and his voice grew softer, clearly indicating he was stalling for time. "I need to wait until my job is more stable, I've gained more experience, and I'm more mature...at least until I'm 25, okay?!"

After saying that, he stole a glance at Xie Jing, his heart pounding.

Xie Jing quietly watched Shang Song sitting on his lap, his expression evasive.

He knew what Shang Song was afraid of, but he also knew that he couldn't let Shang Song continue to be afraid forever.

So, after Shang Song finished speaking, he solemnly nodded and replied:

"it is good."

Just as Shang Song thought his delaying tactic had worked and was about to smile, Xie Jing said again:

"Let's get married when you turn 25."

Shang Song: "...???"

Shang Song's mind went blank for a moment before he belatedly realized what Xie Jing was saying.

"Wait!" His eyes widened, and even the tuft of hair on his head almost stood on end in his anxiety. "I said you can only consider getting married after you're 25! Not that you have to get married at 25!"

"Why not?" Xie Jing retorted. "You just said that after 25, with a stable job and a more mature mindset, getting married is a natural progression, isn't it?"

He raised his hand and placed it on the back of Shang Song's neck, pulling him closer to himself. He also leaned forward slightly, his voice dangerous:

"Or were those reasons you gave me just to brush me off?"

"Even when you turn 25, do you still feel it's too fast, that you're still too young, or... that you still want to attract attention?"