No strange things are allowed to evolve!

What no one could have imagined was that these two sworn enemies would meet again in the restroom a few moments later.

"Hurry up and tell me, bro, I'm dying of impatience!"

The goblin, which had been so aggressive just moments before, practically ready to fly up and attack Jiang Shu's knees, was now as restless as a wriggling maggot.

Jiang Shu counted the two hundred points that had just arrived in his account, cleared his throat, and then slowly said, "The small step I just mentioned only serves to get the other party to be willing to contact you, but the outcome of that contact will depend on the specific circumstances."

"I understand." The soft and cuddly goblin immediately got into character, transforming from the irritable demonic teddy bear into a calm and collected spirit pearl border collie: "Different tactics should be used depending on the opponent, right?"

"Wrong!" Jiang Shu glared at him as if he had been insulted, saying, "If my Burning Technique is not universal and has to be constantly changed and rearranged, what's the point of teaching it to me? Can I even teach it? I might as well just become your strategist."

"So you mean...?"

"By 'specific situation,' I mean, what are your needs?"

"need?"

"Simply put, what is your purpose in developing this relationship?" Jiang Shu explained, "Do you want to develop a relationship with the other person that is only physical and not life-related, or do you want to develop a relationship that is both physical and life-related, or do you want to develop a relationship that is mutually supportive and harmonious on a spiritual level?"

In that instant, the soft, goblin-like creature felt as if it had become Sun Wukong learning Taoism at Fangcun Mountain, with the Bodhi Patriarch in front of it asking it: "Very well, which one do you want to learn? There is one Heavenly Dipper number, which has thirty-six transformations, and there is one Earthly Fiend number, which has seventy-two transformations."

"This disciple is willing to learn the way of loving others," the soft, sticky goblin immediately said respectfully.

Jiang Shu had anticipated this, so he shook his head helplessly: "If that's the case, then I can only say, I'm sorry, I can't teach you this."

The goblin's smile froze instantly, and he was stunned for a moment: "What do you mean? You're taking my money and not doing the job?"

“That’s not the case.” Jiang Shu said with a wry smile, “It’s just that I’m still unmarried and I’m still exploring the way of love. To be honest, I’ve probably practiced the first two too much, and I feel like I’ve lost the ability to love. So I don’t really know how to practice this one.”

"Wait, what does being unmarried have to do with having a lover?"

Would you marry someone you don't love?

"this..."

The soft, goblin-like creature was stumped by the question.

Although he used to think that having someone to marry would be good enough, now that he has met Jiang Shu, he has changed his mind and feels that he deserves better.

That's why he wanted to learn how to love others.

But since Jiang Shu himself didn't know how, there was naturally no way to teach him. Even though he felt it was a pity, there was nothing he could do.

“However,” Jiang Shu then changed the subject, “I have always believed that the way of loving is built upon the way of being a lover, and is an extension of the way of being a lover. So I can teach you the way of being a lover, and then you can explore it yourself.”

Helpless, the soft, cuddly goblin had no choice but to nod.

But just as Jiang Shu was about to begin teaching, the soft-spoken goblin suddenly said, "But before that, you might as well tell me what the Way of Love is all about."

Upon hearing this, Jiang Shu appeared slightly surprised.

"Didn't you originally want to have a passionate romance? I didn't think you would study this, so even though this is what I'm best at, I only mentioned it briefly."

"Well..." The soft goblin blushed slightly, but still stubbornly insisted, "After all, I've already spent the money, so I definitely have to learn the complete version. As for whether I'll actually use it or not, that's another matter."

"Alright." Jiang Shu gave a meaningful smile, which made the soft goblin feel uneasy: "You little greedy devil."

Clearing his throat again, Jiang Shu said, "The way of lovers is very simple. It is nothing more than doing two things: one is to be interesting, and the other is to be beneficial. You can choose one of the two, but it would be even better if you could satisfy both."

"Why?"

"Now."

Jiang Shu slowly said:

"You have already established mutual recognition and initial contact with the other party. To maintain this relationship, you must keep it warm and never let it cool down. You can strike while the iron is hot."

However, you should know that maintaining a relationship with only one party is not sustainable. If one party is enthusiastic while the other is indifferent, over time, the enthusiasm will gradually be worn down because it will not be reciprocated. The filter created by the initial enthusiasm will gradually crumble.

Therefore, both parties need to be involved in maintaining this relationship.

So this raises the question: what can attract the other person to maintain the relationship?

Or, to put it another way, what can the other person get out of this relationship?

Jiang Shu paused briefly at this point.

In this deliberately left-out pause, the soft, goblin tentatively asked, "Interesting, or profitable?"

"Yes."

Jiang Shu nodded before continuing:

"This 'fun' doesn't have to be something you find interesting. After all, you're just lovers. Your ultimate goal isn't to live with them, so you don't need to think too much about it. You need to know that you're the one who needs to be compatible."

The key to making someone interesting is to make them feel very comfortable and natural around you. So it's not enough to just not be averse to them; you must make them happy and interested in you, so that they look forward to the next meeting.

There are two main approaches. One is to explore hobbies together with the other person. For example, if she likes fishing, you go fishing with her; if she likes cooking, you cook with her. Then, by repeatedly acknowledging and affirming her hobbies, you can further enhance her happiness by satisfying her self-confidence and vanity, while she is already enjoying her hobbies.

Secondly, it's about maintaining a sense of novelty. Simply put, it's about taking the other person to do things that they don't know how to do themselves and haven't done with anyone else. But be careful, since it's something they haven't done before, there's a risk of making a mistake. You must do your own research and testing first to make sure they don't mind before trying it.

If all goes well, you will be able to create a memory that belongs only to the two of you in the other person's heart.

This is why the blond guy can always fool rich heiresses with cheap street food and actually dangerous motorcycles. Because the rich heiresses have never tried these things before, they are easily misled by the novelty and mistakenly believe that it is love. But in fact, it may just be a kind of stimulation out of defiance and first experience.

Therefore, when creating this sense of novelty, you don't necessarily have to think about engaging in some difficult activities; as long as it's something the other person hasn't done before, that's fine.

As long as you remember these two points, you can apply them to anyone, regardless of who they are, their hobbies, or their life experiences.

"A revelation!" The soft, goblin-like creature's eyes lit up.

But after a moment's thought, he asked again, "General Motors, bro?"

"It's definitely universal. Even in extreme situations, as long as you can tolerate it, this strategy is universal."

Jiang Shu gave an example:

"Take Landmine Girl for example. If you're not afraid of pain, you can just work with her to modify the knife. Nobody else will be with her, only you will. Not only will you be cutting her while insulting her enemies, but you might even be able to cut out a Qingming Scroll. To put it bluntly, you might never be able to get rid of her for the rest of your life."

"That's not quite right." The soft goblin grimaced and waved his hand. "Modifying a knife is not something a normal person can do; it usually involves some kind of serious illness."

"..."

"Teacher, what's wrong?"

"It's okay... um... it's okay... I've already taken the money... never mind..."

Did I say something wrong...?

"No." Jiang Shu casually changed the subject: "I've pretty much covered what's interesting, now let's talk about what's beneficial."

"How do you say that?"

"It's easy to understand; your presence can drive her self-development."

Jiang Shu explained:

"Many people have a one-sided view that if you want the other party to feel that there is something to gain, you have to throw money at them."

Of course, I don't deny that this is the simplest, most direct and effective way. Jewelry, clothes, bags, luxury cars and mansions—no one dislikes these material improvements.

So I won't go into too much detail about this part, since that's what you were thinking and planning anyway, and I'm sure you've already done a lot of research.

So just remember, if you try to win people over with money without any preparation, normal people will only feel disgusted with you. Even if they seem to agree on the surface, they will only feel annoyed with you in their hearts. Do you understand what I mean?

To put it bluntly, even professional hostesses know how to treat people differently. If you act too unpleasant, they might cut corners on your service.

"Mmm." The soft, goblin-like creature nodded shyly, feeling embarrassed for its past naiveté.

"So the point I'm trying to make is..."

Jiang Shu continued:

There will always be some romantics in this world.

This approach won't work against people who are aloof or who already possess material wealth comparable to yours.

For such people, improving their spiritual qualities or abilities is of paramount importance.

For example, what this kind of person values ​​more is the ability to bring convenience and success to the other person's career through their own capital, or to improve the other person's abilities by teaching them knowledge.

In other words, if you can help them in areas they care about, you will gain their favor. If your help is significant enough to cause a qualitative change, then even slightly excessive requests will generally not be refused.

Of course, you need to strike a balance and keep these demands within the bounds of mutual benefit, rather than resorting to coercion or threats.

"Hmm..." The soft, goblin-like creature fell into deep thought.

After a while, the soft, goblin-like creature finally asked, "Is that all?"

"More or less." Jiang Shu nodded. "Although there are some advanced fighting techniques, I always teach according to the individual. You won't need those. But you can rest assured that these are enough to deal with most situations. If you still can't handle it after using this set, then I advise you to run away as soon as possible. You might be facing a monster that is more terrifying than me. Even I have to avoid its edge for the time being."

"More terrifying than you..." The soft goblin suddenly felt as if it were staring into an abyss, sensing that the waters were incredibly deep and endless: "You mean, there are people who know even more skills than you?"

"Do not."

Jiang Shu shook his head, his expression serious and earnest, even with a hint of trembling:

"I'm talking about a Love Cthulhu-esque situation that has transcended the realm of normal people, defies common sense, and is utterly devouring without spitting out the bones..."

I've been there once; if I hadn't been experienced, I almost got arrested and locked up.

"That's terrifying..." The soft, goblin-like creature shivered for no apparent reason.

How is this any different from the fact that the Desolate Emperor almost perished on the Dark Plateau?

"Then... what about the way of lovers?" The soft-spoken goblin changed the subject to dispel the gloom in his heart.

"If the way of lovers is about high efficiency and going all out from the start, then the way of romantic relationships is the opposite: it's about taking things step by step to gradually reach a better state."

Jiang Shu said:

"The way of lovers is to be restrained and tolerant."

This restraint means that you can't treat your partner like a shared bicycle to ride; you can't start with high intensity. You have to take it slow and steady. So, while the techniques I just mentioned are also applicable, you must master the right degree.

If I had to put it into words, the difference between the two is like that between a short story and a novel. The former needs to be eye-catching enough with constant surprises, while the latter needs to be captivating and keep the reader patiently reading on.

Therefore, although the core principles are also fun and beneficial, maintaining it is more difficult than the way of lovers, and rhythm is crucial.

You need to learn to restrain yourself and break down your core competencies into small surprises to maintain your passion and enthusiasm.

As for tolerance, it's not just about you to tolerate the other person; it requires mutual tolerance.

Just like in the art of being a lover, you only need to consider the other person's interests and hobbies. But in the art of being a romantic partner, it's best if you also have interests in the other person's hobbies. Otherwise, over time, all you'll get is exhaustion, and without your efforts to maintain the relationship, it will quickly die out.

"Then can I understand it as..." the soft goblin thought for a moment and asked, "The way of lovers is to normalize the way of lovers and make it a part of my own life?"

Hearing this, Jiang Shu nodded with satisfaction: "You are very perceptive."

"So, the key is restraint, to prolong the passionate period of the love affair?"

"It doesn't seem that high."

Jiang Shu sighed:

"The key is tolerance, which is much harder than restraint because all sorts of trivial matters and unexpected events will happen. With a lover, you can only have happiness and take an irresponsible attitude of ignoring any troubles. If things don't go well, just run away."

But when it comes to lovers, you are a community, and many times you have to compromise yourself.

Unless you are backward compatible and can lead the other party to follow your pace, your efforts, the emotional and material value you provide, may be wasted due to the other party's lack of cooperation.

In short, this is a high-stakes gamble.

From the moment you embark on this path, you are destined to be alone and misunderstood.

You need to understand what it means to be right even when you're wrong; you need to understand when companionship is more important than career; and you also need to know that the moon has its phases, and people have ovulation and menstruation...

Go ahead and learn it.

Once you fully grasp it, perhaps you'll be able to touch that threshold that even I haven't reached—the way of loving others.

"Is...this...that difficult...?"

Upon hearing this, the soft goblin's expression became very strained, as if it were struggling with something.

After a long silence, he sighed:

"In that case, I suddenly don't want to be in a relationship anymore."

Jiang Shu was taken aback at first, then smiled and said earnestly, "Then it seems you really have learned it."

Chapter 226 Could he really be a genius?

The soft, cuddly goblin doesn't find things difficult or troublesome because it doesn't understand them.

It was precisely because he understood that he was able to sense the helplessness in Jiang Shu's words.

If even someone like Jiang Shu, whom he now takes as his teacher, says that it is an absolutely lonely and desolate path, then where does he get the confidence to walk it smoothly on his own?