Why are you always thinking about dating me?

Why do you ask that?

"I'm just curious. She seems really smart, and she's really nice to you. She even helped you pursue other girls."

"Xu Qinghuan... is a very cute, smart, well-behaved, and rational girl," Lin An replied. Luo Shuishui nodded thoughtfully.

So, a girl like that probably doesn't like Lin An, right? Since she helped Lin An pursue Qin Xueming before, that possibility should be ruled out. Since she's so smart, she should have been able to make Lin An like her from the beginning. That makes things interesting. Lin An clearly has someone he likes now. Who could that person be?

If it's not Su Yuejin, not Xiao Chacha, not Xu Qinghuan, not Qin Xueming, then... what is the answer to the question?

It felt like cat claws were scratching at Luo Shuishui's heart, making her itchy and eager to know the answer, but Lin An would definitely not tell her... How annoying.

What time did she ask you to have dinner?

"Seven o'clock in the evening."

"It's only twelve o'clock now, there are still seven hours left, what are you planning to do?"

"I don't know, didn't you bring me to your house?"

"Would you like something to eat?" Luo Shuishui asked him.

"Ah... okay."

"Then let's go, come and help me."

Luo Shuishui then led Lin An to the kitchen and took out two marinated steaks from the refrigerator. Lin An glanced at them and said, "So high-class."

"A steak isn't expensive at all. It's actually quite cost-effective to make it yourself, and it's not that difficult. You'll get the hang of it after a few tries."

"How well-done would you like it?" she asked.

"Fully cooked."

“Good taste! Me too.” She said, taking down the apron hanging on the wall, putting it on, turning around, and asking Lin An to help her tie the apron ties. Lin An tied a bow for her, and the little cook tied her hair into a ponytail and began to fry the steak.

Before long, Lin An smelled the fragrance, which made him feel hungry. But when he looked at the girl's profile, a desire seemed to surge up, even stronger than the feeling of hunger.

"Why are you looking at me like that? Go and chop some garlic for me, you idiot."

"Oh, oh." Lin An turned his head to pick up two cloves of garlic with his palm and handed them to Luo Shuishui. Luo Shuishui hummed a song softly. The window was open, and the sky outside was a bright and clear blue. She seemed to be in a good mood.

Luo Shuishui is always like this. She doesn't act coy or pretentious, nor does she deliberately act cute or coquettish. She is a clean and warm girl with a lingering fragrance. She seems innocent and naive, so innocent that you want to take advantage of her, yet you can't bear to tarnish that pure and beautiful quality.

After she finished cooking the steak, she took the plate and sat down at the living room table with Lin An. Lin An looked at the plate in front of him and said, "I'm not very good at cutting steaks."

"It's okay, we're all family here, so it doesn't matter."

"That's true." Lin An's slight embarrassment vanished without a trace. After praising Luo Shuishui's cooking skills, he happily started cutting the steak into small pieces. He didn't rush to cut a bite and put it in his mouth; he wanted to wait until it was all cut into small pieces before he planned to start eating.

Then he finished cutting it, and Luo Shuishui kept watching him with her chin resting on her hand. After a second or two, Luo Shuishui smiled at him and gently said thank you.

Lin An's lips twitched slightly.

"No, please?"

"Thank you so much, that's very kind of you, hehe."

"..."

Lin An pushed the steak on his plate towards Luo Shuishui, and then Luo Shuishui pushed hers back to Lin An. Lin An's eyes were filled with resentment, but the girl seemed to be smiling especially happily.

"Hey, don't be angry, here's a piece for you."

She used her fork to pick up a small piece of the steak he had cut in front of her, leaned forward slightly, and brought it to his mouth. Lin An was stunned for a moment, looked into her clear eyes, and then took a bite.

"It's so hot," he said blankly, then chewed a few times and swallowed it in one gulp.

"Hmm? What's wrong?" Luo Shuishui tilted her head slightly, seemingly confused.

"It's nothing, I just suddenly realized how charming Shui Shui is."

"Hehe, well, thank you for the compliment?" Luo Shuishui said softly, then lowered her head and forked a small piece of steak into her mouth, chewing and mumbling indistinctly, seemingly not caring at all about her image.

"Anyway, if one day you say you like me, I will definitely reject you without hesitation, to get revenge for the grudge of being dumped by you once, hmph."

"..." Lin An looked at her smug, joking expression and smiled helplessly.

Chapter 86 The Girl You Can't Win Over

After lunch, Luo Shuishui and Lin An went to the lawn outside to sunbathe.

"Did your family all go out? This manor feels so empty with you all here alone."

Luo Shuishui quickly turned her head away, "Don't try to imply that I'm not alone."

"...What kind of person do you think I am?" Lin An looked helplessly into her eyes and smiled wryly. Luo Shuishui was also smiling. She was lying on a large recliner, her delicate legs bathed in the afternoon sunlight of autumn. She was still wearing that pink hoodie, which had two cute cat paw patterns on it, making her look especially adorable.

"Who knows? I think you're scary."

"Isn't it usually you who has me completely under your thumb, Shui Shui? There's nothing scary about it." Lin An weakly defended himself, realizing that you really can't reason with girls.

"That's because I know you don't have any feelings for me right now. But what if you do one day? I always feel like if you get serious, you might really trick me and take advantage of me."

"Huh? You think too highly of me?"

"Lin An, let me ask you an interesting question."

"You said."

"Let's assume we go back a month, to after my eighteenth birthday. What steps would it take to trick me into bed?"

"Is it really okay to talk about something so explosive?" Lin An's eye twitched slightly.

Ke Luo Shui Shui remained gentle and calm, her eyes slightly narrowed as she basked in the warm sunlight, gazing at the yellow flower buds on the osmanthus tree in the garden before her, emitting a faint fragrance that gently caressed her cheek.

"I just want to see if you have a solution. If you do, I'll consider it a lesson learned so that it will be easier to prevent future outbreaks."

“Let me think about it… This is indeed an interesting question.” Lin An lay down on another chair next to her, looking at the azure sky, his mind wandering to possible solutions.

If I asked you out on the weekend, would you go out?

"That depends on whether it's day or night, and also on fate. I can assume that you can go out at any time."

"Then I'll ask you to watch a movie first, preferably an art-house romance. Luo Shui Shui, you'll probably be a little touched, since we already kissed on your birthday before, so you shouldn't be too resistant to the second time, right?"

"Yes," Luo Shuishui had no choice but to answer.

"Kissing is the first step. Many things, once you start, will come back for a second time. But there are different kinds of kisses. So after watching this movie, for our next date, I'll probably ask you to go to a haunted house or a roller coaster during the day?"

"why?"

"If you're scared in the haunted house, I can put my arm around your shoulder. If it's a roller coaster, we'll be scared together. Simple empathy can bring us closer. Then in the evening, we can suggest going for a drink. Sweet cocktails are much better than sweet milk tea."

"And then you felt like you succeeded?"

"How could that be? This time, I'll only let you have one drink at most, just enough to make you slightly tipsy. Then I'll repeatedly remind you to be careful and drink less when you go out, and then I'll safely take you home."

"And then what?" Luo Shuishui's lips curled up, as if she was very interested in this.

"Of course, I haven't finished speaking. The last time I took you home after drinking, I wanted to kiss you again. I guess you wouldn't refuse when you were slightly tipsy. But this time I would last longer. I would gently hold your shoulders and not just give you a quick kiss."

"Because your psychological defenses will be lowered at that time, and you'll be going home soon. Plus, you'll be a little tired after a day of excitement, so you probably won't hate this kiss, but you'll remember the feeling."

"and then?"

"Then the first step is complete. The rest of the dates can proceed as normal. Once something has happened once or twice, the third and fourth times will follow. The intensity of the kisses can be increased or decreased appropriately, as long as you don't do anything that makes you hate it."

"Hmm? And then?"

"Then one day I casually bring up the topic of premarital sex. Of course, you will definitely not accept or understand it. I will only mention it once and never bring it up again."

"In the time to come, I'm thinking of guiding and suggesting in one direction. For example, I'll convince you that I will be with you for life, and then link this to having sex. The more you believe that we will be together for life, the less resistant you will be to premarital sex."

"Then... we'll probably need a trigger point. This trigger point has to be a small mistake you made, something that makes you feel guilty and remorseful. Even though I led you into the mistake, it can't be my fault; it has to be yours, and then..."

Luo Shuishui's face darkened because she felt that what Lin An said seemed to make sense. "Then I'll wag my tail at you like a puppy?"

"No, I was just referring to a possibility. If you were the one who suggested this, I would definitely refuse."

"why?"

"This is an interesting psychological mechanism. People know that what is easily obtained is not cherished, and girls certainly understand this as well. Once she easily gives herself to you, she will be afraid that you will not cherish her. However, since she is the one who brought it up, she will be conflicted and hesitant. At this time, you should refuse her once and tell her that we will be together forever, and it is okay to do this again in the future."

"This way she'll probably feel more secure, and after avoiding a last-minute resistance, things should fall into place naturally. But, okay, please note the 'but' I said."

"People are all different, and we treat each person differently. But what's interesting is that people are never absolute; they are creatures that can change according to their environment. No one can remain steadfast."

"But what's the point of doing this? This is a question I haven't been able to figure out for years. If love can be obtained through various tricks and methods, and liking stems from your reproductive desires and emotional needs, then what is love?"

Lin An turned his head and stared directly into Luo Shuishui's eyes, wanting to get answers about her.

"What is love?" she repeated Lin An's question.

"Yes, what is love? Liking stems from your psychological support and reproductive desires, from your needs, whether psychological or physiological. That's why liking arises. But love is something you can obtain through your own methods. Everyone is the same. Human psychological mechanisms cycle through just a few sets. Different methods are needed for different people. But in the end, is the goal to sleep together or to be together for a lifetime? Even so, what is love?"

Luo Shuishui was speechless.

She was truly speechless. Her original beliefs were challenged once again, so she began to seriously consider the problem. But the more she thought about it, the more confused and bewildered she became, as if she had fallen into some strange logical loop.

Her eyebrows furrowed slightly, and she remained silent, as if deep in thought; her expression was quite endearing.

But a few seconds later, Lin An's laughter pulled her out of her chaotic thoughts.

“You lose when you take it seriously, Luo Shuishui. If you really think about this question and figure it out, it’s like you’ve figured out the three classic philosophical questions: Who am I? Where am I? What do I want to do? Then you’re not human anymore, you’re a fool, an idiot, a pitiful person who’s stuck in your own thoughts.”

Are you insulting me?

"Let me give you an example, Shui Shui... You need to know that you never need to think about these things. Just follow your heart. If you like someone, you like them; if you don't like someone, you don't like them. If you like someone, treat them well. If they don't love you back, that's a pity. Know when to back down, improve yourself, and you'll meet the next one. If you don't, that's fine too. Gradually, everyone will see the truth and understand... The most important thing is to be happy!"

Luo Shuishui remained silent for a minute.

"That makes sense, being happy is the most important thing." She seemed to have suddenly seen the light and understood.

"But thinking about it carefully, Lin An, you're really dangerous. If one day you decide that being happy is the most important thing and want to devour me, even if you tell me this now, you'll still have some unknown ways to trick me... So, shouldn't we just cut ties now?"

"No, please." Lin An looked into her eyes.

"Of course I was just kidding." Luo Shuishui closed her eyes, basking in the sunlight. After a short while, she said softly, "Just like you said, being happy is the most important thing, which seems pretty good. Oh, I see..."

"I had a great time chatting with you. Now tell me, is there anyone you can't win over?"

"There are so many."

"why?"

"Actually, there is a type of person who is the hardest to pursue... because their brains are already rotten. If you earn 3,000 a month and don't spend 2,000 on her, then you don't love her. If you play games and don't work hard and improve yourself, then you're not thinking about your future together. If your family isn't well-off, then that's your fault. If you don't give her the freedom to dress as she pleases and advise her not to smoke or drink, then you're a dead straight man. They don't actually love anyone; they only love themselves. They are the most foolish yet the most intelligent, which is why they live the happiest lives."

"They wish they could celebrate every one of the twenty-four solar terms as a holiday, drink some sweet 52 milk tea, receive small gifts on every holiday, and take pride in having a bunch of lovey-dovey backups. They are not lacking in love at all. They also have a complete set of evaluation criteria. When you are nice to them, you have already been passed over and are worthless. When they meet someone they love, they hysterically use their little tricks and pretend to be innocent, longing to be loved, and then are rejected by the right person. They are self-righteously hurt by love. In the end, they are never the ones who are wrong. They take pride in their charm. They have empty shells. They are self-righteous. They think they are omnipotent. Hehe, you stinky dog."