Jiao Bai watched the friends on his account go from 1 to 8.

→My Friends 1/8

The main character and important supporting characters of this comic were all there.

Currently, only Qi Yilao was online.

Whether a friend was online or not was probably calculated based on proximity. Qi Yilao was right next to him right now.

Jiao Bai scanned the four different categories.

→The fate of this lifetime[1] 0/0

→Will never betray you in this lifetime[2] 0/0

→Protector through all lifetimes[3] 0/0

→Unforgettable for a lifetime[4] 0/0

Jiao Bai felt so dizzy and confused, he almost couldn’t recognise the two characters “生” and “世” anymore[5].

This was worse than the previous categorisation scheme. At least, the term "My Boyfriend" had been self-explanatory. What was up with these ones? Was there any difference between the four of these?

Jiao Bai blinked and his account had disappeared, replaced by a long passage of key player information.

In short, all of Jiao Bai's friends would be automatically sorted into groups based on their level of activity with him.

If his progress was too slow, a compulsory task would directly activate.

When every category in the list was filled up, Jiao Bai would gain full control over this body and live out the life he wanted.

Jiao Bai inwardly rolled his eyes. He wanted to get away from the main plot as soon as possible but now his plans were dashed.

He would just have to take things one step at a time.

Couldn’t he still check his friends’ profiles? This was still a golden finger.

Jiao Bai mentally accessed his account and discovered that Qi Yilao's profile picture consisted of two sections. One took up two-thirds of the space, showing a cat with pallid, dull fur and pure gold pupils. Its eyelids drooped and there was a red collar around its neck.

Something felt off about this image. He examined it intently and then couldn't help but gasp.

That wasn’t a collar, but a thin wire that was tightly rsqzmfkhmf the cat's neck. The bright red colour was its blood.

Jiao Bai unconsciously reached out and brushed his fingertips over the dust. It felt like he had really touched the cat. It was an icy furry sensation. He suddenly came to his senses, and noticed that Qi Yilao's profile information column was a lock, with a prompt indicating that the activity level[6] must reach 50 to unlock. At this moment, it was at 0.

“...” Golden finger my ass.

Jiao Bai examined the other section of Qi Yilao's profile picture. It was too small for him to make out what it was.

Did the profile picture represent the person’s innermost feelings?

Jiao Bai's attention shifted to the 0 activity level. It didn't seem like the activity level was based on the number of conversations they’ve had—perhaps it needed to be heart-to-heart interactions?

Jiao Bai stepped backwards, eyes fixed on the list. When he reached the door, Qi Yilao's profile picture turned black like the other seven friends, accompanied by a notification: Your friend Qi Yilao has gone offline.

He took a small step forward, and the notification changed to: Your friend Qi Yilao has come online.

After several attempts, Jiao Bai roughly grasped the distance—about five meters.

Jiao Bai snuck a peak at Qi Yilao on the sofa. Fortunately, he only needed to deal with activity levels, not intimacy, otherwise it would be even more frustrating.

After all, he had a hidden rebellious streak. He wasn’t the type to suffer in silence. Over the years, his aunt treated him with disdain, and he would find opportunities to make her life difficult as well.

He would never defencelessly expose his belly to anyone and let that person stroke his fur.

Jiao Bai saw Qi Yilao pick up a water cup and look at the jar of tea leaves near Jiao Bai. Jiao Bai moved a few steps and handed the jar over.

Qi Yilao put down the water cup.

Jiao Bai lowered his head. He was standing and Qi Yilao was sitting, but he couldn’t see even a glimpse of Qi Yilao’s chest muscles. Qi Yilao wore the bathrobe like how an old monk wore his kasaya.

“Chairman Qi, if I leave now. Mr. Shen will not be happy with me." Jiao Bai was nauseated by his own lotus breath[7], and swallowed.

Qi Yilao said, “I will give him an explanation.”

Jiao Bai blurted out, “Your explanation and his being unhappy with me have nothing to do with each other. They are two different matters.”

The air brushing past his cheeks seemed to freeze over. The consequences of his unconsciously talking back...

Was it too late to take it back?

Jiao Bai wasn’t an actor. He only had his way of survival that he had figured out himself. He covered his mouth to hide a yawn, and few physiological tears formed in his eyes, making him look like he was about to cry. “I'm sorry. I don't know what got into me, Chairman Qi, please don't be angry with me.”

Qi Yilao didn’t look like he was planning to hold it against him and still spoke in a gentle tone of voice, “I can't interfere in your personal matters with Lao Shen, so you’d best talk to him yourself.”

Jiao Bai tried to laugh bitterly, but the emotion in it wasn’t right so he sounded sarcastic instead. He closed his mouth and fell silent.

“Child, you’re truly...” Qi Yilao shook his head as if he was dealing with a difficult and unreasonable child, helpless and exasperated.

Jiao Bai glanced at the list. His activity level with Qi Yilao was still 0, frozen, like it was dead.

A few moments later, Jiao Bai's thoughts were interrupted by a ringtone. The ringtone was the sound of a xūn[8] being played, and sounded mournful and desolate against the quiet of the room.

“Answer the phone.” Qi Yilao seemed to find the sound too noisy. When he said this, his face was a little gloomy.

Jiao Bai composed himself, walked to the table and picked up the phone. The caller ID displayed Li Jue, the protagonist shou. The person playing the xūn in the ringtone was him.

This comic was mostly told from Li Jue's perspective, beginning with his life in the countryside. In this particular chapter, Li Jue, exhausted from doing homework, was sprawled on the old desk by the window, daydreaming. He then grabbed his coat and ran out. He ran all the way to the village chief's house to borrow the phone to call his Xiao Qiu-gege[9]. This led to the part of the storyline where Wang Chuqiu, the original owner of Jiao Bai's body, was on the phone with Li Jue in a room in “Di Ye.”

It was only one panel.

In the panel, Qi Yilao stood by the window drying his hair while Wang Chuqiu knelt at his feet, holding a cell phone in one hand and unbuttoning his already half-unbuttoned shirt with the other. He listened to Li Jue talking on the other end, his eyes full of love and tenderness, as if as long as Li Jue said a word, he would give up his life and soul.

Now, the contents of the panel had changed.

Qi Yilao sat on the sofa typing away on his laptop. Jiao Bai wasn’t kneeling or unbuttoning his shirt. He was leaning on the wall with his phone in his hand, his quick-witted eyes looking around vigilantly.

Jiao Bai felt conflicted. As a protagonist-devotee, every time he read a comic, he would love the protagonist. Now, hearing the youth’s voice over the phone, he could no longer muster any affection.

The original Wang Chuqiu was going to die in a car accident tonight. A few days later, the protagonist shou would come collect the corpse of his neighbour brother. He would accidentally run into the scum gong Shen E’ran and fall in love with him at first sight and their painful, toxic, ozrrhnmzsd, dog-blood story would officially begin.

In the comic, Wang Chuqiu was nothing more than a etbjhmf plot device.


[1] 这一世的缘 (zhè yī shì de yuan) – ‘the fate of this life’ – refers to the connections, relationships, or experiences that one encounters during their current life.

[2] 此生永不负 (cǐ shēng yǒng bù fù) – ‘never to betray in this lifetime’ or ‘never to disappoint in this lifetime.’ It conveys a strong sense of commitment or devotion, implying that one will remain loyal or true to something or someone throughout their entire life.

[3] 生生世世的守护 (shēng shēng shì shì de shǒuhù) – ‘will protect/guard over you through all lifetimes’ – means to protect or watch over someone across multiple lifetimes.

[4] 一生难忘 (yī shēng nán wàng) – ‘unforgettable for a lifetime’ – something that is so significant or impactful that it leaves a lasting impression on someone for their entire life.

[5] The characters “生 (life)” and “世 (life, world, lifetime, age, era)” appear lots of times in the phrases above.

[6] 活跃度 (huó yuè dù) - "activity level" or "degree of activity"

[7] Nauseated by himself talking like a white lotus – someone who acts pure and innocent.

[8] 埙 (xūn) - a traditional Chinese musical instrument, specifically a type of ancient clay vessel flute, often used in classical Chinese music.

[9] 小秋哥哥 (xiǎo qiū gē ge) - Xiao Qiu-gege is Li Jue’s nickname for Wang Chuqiu.

小 (xiǎo) means little/small. When used before a name or title it adds a layer of warmth and closeness and is used to address someone in a familiar and affectionate way.

秋 (qiū) is the last character of Wang Chuqiu’s name and means autumn.

哥 (gē)  means older brother. gege is a more childish way of saying big brother. A younger person may call an older male friend or acquaintance as their brother 哥 (gē) as a sign of respect or affection even if they’re not related.