Right now he was happily studying the squat-workout photo Qiao Yinyin had sent.
You had to admit, as the undisputed queen of the streaming scene, Qiao Yinyin knew exactly what Jiang Cheng wanted to see.
The pose wasn't exactly graceful, but the mirror selfie of her M-shaped squat made his flagpole stand at full attention.
Jiang Cheng launched a video call.
She picked up at once, wearing yoga pants that hugged every curve.
He nodded in approval; compared with the evil of safety shorts, the inventor of yoga pants clearly understood what men liked.
Of course, such pants only worked on a body like hers—slim, curvy, and free of extra flesh.
The fabric traced every contour, especially the center seam, leaving everything to the imagination.
Anyone average-looking should stay away; instead of adding points, they'd lose them.
Without a word, Yinyin propped her phone on its stand and began a yoga flow for him. He raised an eyebrow. "When did you start yoga?"
She ignored the question, slid straight into a full split, and folded forward. "Looks like you've practiced," he said. "Last I checked, you couldn't even twerk on stream."
Pleased, she shot him a coy glance. "I signed up for a flexibility class just for you. Like what you see?"
"Very nice," he said. "But I heard there's a standing split—one leg up, straight. Can you do that?"
Understanding instantly, she stood, lifted one leg beside her ear, and held it. "Holy—" His eyes bugged. "Let me inspect your form. Leg straight enough?"
After holding it, she glanced at the screen, caught on, and dropped her leg. "Pervert. Good thing this isn't a stream—admin would ban me."
After Yinyin's tease, Jiang Cheng felt bottled-up.
He opened wechat and messaged Xiao Xia, letting her know he was back in town.
He'd planned to wait until Zhou Ying returned to Shanghai before asking Xiao Xia out.
But judging by the situation, Zhou Ying wouldn't be easy to settle quickly.
He needed to separate Fang Yuan from her.
Better to keep Fang Yuan in Chengdu; Shanghai was too small.
If everyone crowded together, time management became a nightmare.
If it weren't for Fang Yuan, he wouldn't be this frustrated right now.
While he racked his brain for an excuse to make Fang Yuan stay, his phone rang again.
He answered; Zhou Zhiyun's voice came through.
"Yo, Old Jiang, the market vendor said you're back?"
"Got in this morning, grabbed lunch there at noon."
"Haven't been in ages. I'm heading back to campus the day after tomorrow, so tomorrow—high-school reunion?"
"Reunion?"
"Check the group chat. Li Xudong's bragging again. If you're not up for it, Huang Cheng and I will just do barbecue and net-café like always."
Jiang Cheng remembered his unused gourmet-sharing coupon.
He'd gotten along well with classmates; as Zhou Ying said, he was popular.
Since graduation he'd never attended a reunion.
But he didn't need to treat the whole class just because of a coupon.
Feed them once and they'd expect it every year.
Never underestimate the dark side of human nature.
"Skip the reunion," he said. "Just us brothers."
"Sure, you're still Dad; your call."
"Good son."
"Piss off."
Zhou Zhiyun added, "Can I bring someone tomorrow?"
"Who?"
"Jiang Yun. Told you last time—me and her."
Jiang Cheng recalled Zhou's cringe-worthy posts. "You two a thing now?"
"Watch your mouth. Different schools, but we chat a lot… I want to make a move tomorrow. She won't meet me solo, too shy. In a group she'll show, right?"
Jiang Cheng went silent. Classic simp logic.
If she won't go out alone, she's just not interested.
He remembered the meme: "Saw you online, invited you to pubg, instantly rejected, then saw you already in a match—must be you didn't want to drag me down."
"If someone likes you, they're always free and understand everything—get it?"
Zhou Zhiyun didn't catch on. "Huh? You're rich, but I've lived 18 years without tasting anything soft—spare me."
"Get lost."
Zhou added, "If I bring a different Girl tomorrow, don't blow my cover."
Jiang Cheng sighed; he'd over-thought.
"Thought you were devoted to Jiang Yun—turns out you're a scumbag too."
Zhou shrugged. "Come on, ordinary guys like me can't match you. If I can't win on quality, I go for quantity. Happy today, I simp; unhappy, I quit. I cast a wide net—happy to be anyone's fish. As long as I rotate my simping, I stay calm. Watch, I'll line up several Girls tonight; I'll bring one tomorrow. If I simp for just one, I'd be anxious every day."