Chapter 46 Pretty Ruthless

Chapter 46: Quite Ruthless

Yan Shunan actually wanted to stay up late reading. But alas, as the years caught up with him, his body simply couldn't keep up with his ambitions. Reading in bed for a while, he drifted off to sleep before he even knew how much time had passed.

The book even slipped from his hands and smacked him right in the face, leaving him utterly dazed.

With no other choice, he had to put the book down and get some honest sleep.

Over the next two or three days, whenever Yan Shunan wasn't working, he was reading. He read everywhere except during meals. Even when he went to the restroom, he would sit on the toilet bowl and flip through several pages.

Liu Xiuting clearly noticed that Yan Shunan's trips to the bathroom were taking longer and happening more frequently. Finally driven to her limit, she took to waiting by the hallway and confiscating the book just as he stepped toward the door.

Yan Shunan was utterly helpless.

"Is this book really that good? You even have to take it with you to the restroom."

That evening, Liu Xiuting couldn't help but ask him.

Yan Shunan had just returned home from work to rest and was sitting on the sofa reading. Hearing her question, he kept his eyes glued to the page and replied, "It's fantastic, even better than the first two. There are new settings, plenty of new characters, and some of the foreshadowing is finally paying off. I can't wait to reach the end."

In truth, he had been tempted several times to skip directly to the final pages of the third book just to satisfy his curiosity, but fearing spoilers, he had forcefully suppressed the urge.

Liu Xiuting complained, "This Doraemon is something else. The first two parts and his previous books were all quite short, so why is this third part so long? How long have you been reading it and you're still not finished!"

Having seen Lu Anzhi's signature on the flyleaf, she remembered the pen name "Doraemon" and had previously mocked it as both ugly and utterly inexplicable.

Of course, she only dared to keep those thoughts to herself. After all, her husband held this author in high regard; if she went around criticizing him carelessly and displeased her husband, it wouldn't be worth it at all.

Yan Shunan retorted, "That's called dedication on the author's part! Besides, writing so much at once makes it such a joy to read! I seriously wonder how many hands this guy has to write this fast."

Having missed out on the golden age of serialized web novels, he had never witnessed a true "tentacle monster" of writing speed. Lu Anzhi's publishing pace had already astonished him. There were plenty of posts online discussing and evaluating Doraemon's writing speed; while the moniker "tentacle monster" hadn't quite caught on yet, quite a few people were already calling him the "lightning-fast typist."

"Right, right, write writes a ton and you enjoy reading it! Just be careful not to read yourself to death!"

Liu Xiuting remarked sarcastically. Although she had been the one to buy the book set for Yan Shunan in the first place, that didn't stop her from taking gentle jabs at her husband. Mutual understanding, harmony, and warmth made up their daily routine, but snarky banter was part of it too.

Yan Shunan couldn't be bothered to engage with Liu Xiuting and replied without lifting his head, "Go on, I'm reading, don't bother me."

By this time, Wang Ping had also returned home from Sanwei Bookstore. Hearing the exchange between Yan Shunan and Liu Xiuting, she couldn't help but smile and shake her head, choosing not to get involved.

Yan Shunan continued reading, while Liu Xiuting went about her business. Once she finished her chores, she sat down on the sofa and turned on the television for a while.

She sat right next to Yan Shunan. One of them watched TV while the other read a book, each absorbed in their own activity, creating a quiet and pleasant atmosphere.

They sat quietly like this for quite a while, and the night grew very late. Liu Xiuting yawned, glanced at the clock on the wall, and asked Yan Shunan, "It's getting late. Aren't you going to sleep?"

Yan Shunan kept his head buried in his book and said, "I'll sleep a bit later tonight. I'm almost done; I'm determined to finish it tonight so I won't keep thinking about it tomorrow."

The book in his hand had already been switched to the third volume of *Dragon Raja III*, and he had flipped past the middle and deep into the latter half. Precisely because he wanted to read *Dragon Raja III* in one go tonight, he had refrained from returning to the bedroom to lie in bed, opting instead to sit on the living room sofa.

He was afraid that if he went back to the bedroom, he would give in to the temptation to lie down, and once he lay down, drowsiness would inevitably take over, leading right back to the book dropping onto the bridge of his nose.

"Then I'll stay up a little longer too. I'll watch a bit more."

Liu Xiuting continued to sit close to Yan Shunan, picking up the remote to flip through the channels until she found one broadcasting a variety show where someone was covering a song by Zhang Suxin.

Liu Xiuting couldn't help feeling a sense of nostalgia. With Zhang Suxin's wonderful voice and exceptional songwriting talent, why had she suddenly chosen to retire from the spotlight back then? If she were still active, she would surely still be releasing wonderful new songs, right?

Yan Shunan said, "You don't need to wait for me, go on to sleep first. Just leave the bedroom door cracked for me, and I'll slip in quietly so I won't disturb you."

Liu Xiuting gave Yan Shunan an eye-roll. "Am I not allowed to watch TV now? Who says I'm definitely waiting up for you!"

Yan Shunan shook his head with a helpless smile and said, "Watch whatever you like then, nobody's stopping you." Despite his words, he shifted his body slightly to adjust his arm and shoulder, making it more comfortable for Liu Xiuting to lean against him.

One hour, an hour and a half...

As nearly two hours passed, Liu Xiuting had already yawned several times. The channel on the television had changed as well, switching to a late-night drama she usually enjoyed, which finally helped her perk up and watch for a while.

Sensing movement beside her, she turned her head and saw that Yan Shunan had closed his book. He sat there in a daze, his eye sockets looking slightly reddish.

"What's wrong with you?"

Liu Xiuting couldn't help asking.

Yan Shunan shook his head, set the book aside, and said, "My eyes are a bit tired, let's go to sleep." With that, he stood up from the sofa.

Liu Xiuting used the remote to turn off the TV, got up to follow him, and said, "Who are you trying to fool? It's not like I've never seen you stay up late, you've never looked like this before! 'Eyes are a bit tired'? I remember when you finished *Dragon Raja II* you only felt a little sad, nothing like this. Oh-ho-ho, look at those red eyes..."

Yan Shunan was starting to lose his composure. "Cut it out! Time for bed, time for bed!"

With that, he walked into the bedroom, pulled back the covers, and lay down on the bed.

Having had her fill of teasing and knowing when to quit, Liu Xiuting lay down on the other side of the bed. She closed her eyes, ready to sleep. Yet even with her eyes closed, she could feel the person beside her tossing and turning restlessly.

"What is it? Can't sleep?"

Liu Xiuting opened her eyes and asked.

Yan Shunan shifted positions again and, just as Liu Xiuting had expected, stubborn about saving face, he gave a muffled, evasive reply, "A little bit."

What kind of answer was "a little bit"?

Too lazy to provoke him further, Liu Xiuting asked, "What on earth happens in that *Dragon Raja III* to leave you looking like this?"

Yan Shunan sighed, shifted again, and said, "Well... it's just quite ruthless. The author created another amazing female character, completely different from the second book. Just when everyone thinks she's the true heroine, the ending kills her off."

Liu Xiuting remarked, "Didn't you say this author pulls stunts like this all the time? Aren't you used to it yet?"

Yan Shunan: "..."