My System Forces Me to Live off Women

Chapter 280 243: The Show Begins

"Hold me."

Xu Manning felt cold inside; she came to Li Peifeng seeking comfort, and Peifeng, in return, felt a warm surge in his heart.

After hesitating for half a second, he still placed his hand on her waist. The pure cotton material of the tight-fitting top couldn't hide the firm and tight feel, nor could it block the warmth from her body.

This little bitch!

Wu Wenyue rolled her eyes. Xu Manning didn't toast with her and instead ran over to Li Peifeng. She didn't put down her drink either and simply clinked glasses with Huang Tianxuan: "Sister Xuan, let's drink."

"Sure."

Huang Tianxuan didn't really understand what the three of them were thinking; she just found it amusing to watch. Facing Wu Wenyue, she accepted gladly and drank with a smile.

This little bitch!

Xu Manning got even angrier, exhaling heavily through her nose but not yet acting on it. She leaned over and whispered in Li Peifeng's ear, "Those two definitely have something going on!"

Li Peifeng suddenly realized: "Really?"

"Change the name!"

"Change what name?"

Xu Manning gritted her teeth and whispered, "Change the studio's name; it can't be called 'Trinity' anymore. Wu Wenyue isn't worthy!"

Li Peifeng almost burst out laughing: "Oh, it's not that serious; I believe Wenyue still loves us."

"Like you do?!" Xu Manning lightly bit his ear and said angrily, "When I was dating you, she always had a soft spot for you, flirting ambiguously. Now that we're together, there's another Huang Tianxuan... By the way! You sly dog, you're still hung up on your mentor, right? I'm telling you, no way!"

Li Peifeng didn't respond; he just gave Xu Manning a peck on the cheek.

Wu Wenyue and Huang Tianxuan saw it clearly. The latter chuckled, while the former felt a bit awkward for the two and subtly changed the topic.

The two groups didn't chat for long like this, and when the barbecue main course arrived, the conversation ended.

Because Li Peifeng brought up his new book, using this as a pretext to avoid discussing anyone's past, focusing only on the characters and stories in the Otherworld, the three girls became very enthusiastic.

"I don't know if you guys have ever tried running a meditation practice in the real world. I've tried it many times after waking up. Initially, I couldn't get into it, but after trying to meditate every day and night for seven days, on the eighth night, I really entered that state, just like meditating in Narnia."

When Huang Tianxuan mentioned this, her eyes lit up.

Seeing her speaking so convincingly, the other two girls were half-skeptical: "Really? Did you feel the magic energy?"

"No... but it worked!" Huang Tianxuan added, "I used meditation to replace sleep. I woke up three whole hours later, feeling as refreshed as if I'd slept the entire night. My spirit was excellent, though my body felt a bit sore from the sitting posture, but I was very alert for work the next day. Since then, I've been trying to use meditation instead of sleep at night."

Xu Manning eagerly asked, "Did it work?"

"Fifty percent of the time," Huang Tianxuan laughed. "Sometimes it does, sometimes it doesn't, but my meditation time has basically increased from three to four hours, and the effect is better. I used to practice Qi Gong when I was little, but I feel none of it has as good an effect as meditation."

Wu Wenyue nodded slightly: "Actually, I tried it yesterday too, but I didn't succeed. Hearing you say this, I might try it again another day; I just can't quite recall the steps."

"First, you need to..."

As Huang Tianxuan explained, Xu Manning and Wu Wenyue were taking notes on their phones, while Li Peifeng interjected: "My suggestion is, if work is overwhelming, you can use meditation as an emergency measure, but it cannot completely replace sleep. Because, after all, the physical laws of the dream world differ from reality. In Narnia, meditation can regenerate energy and even slightly nourish the body with magic energy. That doesn't work in the real world; without magic energy, if you don't sleep, it will prevent your organs from getting enough rest."

He'd known this for a long time, having thoroughly studied both worlds, and he spoke up now to prevent Huang Tianxuan from harming her health.

"You know, you might have a point," Huang Tianxuan pondered, the enthusiasm in Wu Wenyue's and Xu Manning's hearts for meditation slightly dimming, but they continued discussing the effect of the dream world's impact on themselves...

"I actually remember some fighting skills, including archery skills."

Wu Wenyue handed out chicken wings to everyone, grabbing one for herself and saying as she ate: "Yesterday, I shot a short archery video at the archery range. The moment I picked up the bow, I felt incredibly familiar with it, but when I actually shot, my accuracy was only a bit better than a beginner's. I analyzed that it's a muscle memory issue; I have the knowledge but haven't yet merged it with this body. To truly master it, I'd have to start practicing again from scratch."

Xu Manning was a bit envious: "Then, Yueyue, you should keep practicing. You might soon reach the point where you can hit the bullseye in your dreams, unlike me and Sister Xuan, who are mages in dreams and don't know how to shoot arrows."

"There's no use practicing anyway," Wu Wenyue chuckled. "Even if I become an excellent archer, what does it matter? If I abandon everything to train for a few years, at best, I might win an Olympic gold. Not to mention whether I can win it, even if I do, can such an obscure Olympic title earn me more than being an influencer? It's not worth it."

Huang Tianxuan laughed heartily: "True enough, unless one of your parents is a foreigner, you become a dual national in Dong, win an esoteric Olympic gold, maybe earn billions, and then come back to..."

"We can't talk about this!" Li Peifeng's face changed: "Stop!"

The three girls laughed for a moment, Xu Manning deep in thought: "So, it seems the magical powers we experience in dreams can't be brought back to reality. But I remember some designs for really beautiful and practical clothes, styles that never existed in the real world. After waking up, I intended to draw them out, but..."

Huang Tianxuan speculated: "Couldn't remember them?"

Xu Manning nodded with a wry smile, "Yes, I only remember it was incredibly beautiful. If brought into the real world, it would definitely be a bestseller, maybe even spark a new aesthetic trend. But I can't remember the details for the life of me, and the sketches I managed to produce look bizarre. I don't know if you guys still remember."

After speaking, Xu Manning began to describe the names and general appearance and colors of the clothes, but both Wu Wenyue and Huang Tianxuan shook their heads.

"You're the expert in the field, so sensitive to fashion, and even you don't remember, how could we possibly remember?"

"Yeah, all those details are a blur now."

Xu Manning then looked at Li Peifeng, "Do you remember?"

Li Peifeng shook his head lightly and smiled, "In my memory, there's only the trivial days spent with a few people around me and endless romantic moments. Besides that, I've forgotten everything else."

Xu Manning pursed her lips, too lazy to say anything.

"What if..."

Huang Tianxuan hesitated.

Wu Wenyue and Xu Manning both understood what she wanted to say and fell silent, their thoughts coincidentally aligned.

If they could dream again, that would be nice.

This atmosphere?

Li Peifeng's heart stirred. Under the table, he extended his long leg and kicked Huang Tianxuan, muttering, "I'll go to the bathroom. I'm out of wine, too. I'll ask the owner to bring some more."

Saying this, he stood up and left.

After greeting the big sister downstairs to bring more wine, he headed to the restroom downstairs, not bothering to close the door. Li Peifeng stood at the doorway, looking up at the nearby staircase, muttering to himself.

"I wonder if Tianxuan gets it. She probably will."

"Tap~ Tap~"

The sound of small high heels coming down the stairs made Li Peifeng's eyes light up. Subsequently, he saw Huang Tianxuan's khaki suit pants legs from around the stair corner.

Great, so clever!

"All done?"

Huang Tianxuan wasn't surprised to see him at the door, squeezing past to enter while saying, "Then step aside. I need to wash my hands. I accidentally touched some sauce earlier..."

Really? Is that the excuse you used to come out? To prevent any suspicion of both of us leaving one after another under the guise of using the restroom? You're quite the schemer!

"Go ahead."

Li Peifeng chuckled, stepped aside to let her in, then, seeing no one else was looking, closed the door and locked it!

"Click~"

"What are you doing?"

Even though Huang Tianxuan had her back turned to him, she could observe his actions through the mirror on the sink. It was a bit cramped in the small restroom with two people in it.

"Why are you locking the door?" Huang Tianxuan hurriedly washed off the sauce from her hands, seemingly startled as she turned around. The two were face to face, only about twenty centimeters apart.

Li Peifeng struggled to suppress a smile, "Why did you come down? Was it really because your hands were dirty, or was it because I gave you a little nudge?"

Huang Tianxuan arched her eyebrows, smiling slyly, "Then why did you kick me?"

Li Peifeng wrapped his arms around her, leaning in for a kiss, but something felt off!

"I... ate garlic."

Huang Tianxuan's eyes glimmered with amusement, "Before coming down... I purposely... ate some." As she spoke, her wet hands moved around on Li Peifeng's clothes, seemingly using them as a towel.

"You wicked woman!!"

Li Peifeng, sensing the trick, frowned as he released her, took a deep breath, and prepared to kiss her again, "I have to kiss you three times to punish you!"

With great force, Huang Tianxuan's already flushed face turned even redder from the slight tipsiness. Her eyes drifting with a dazed look, she murmured, "Pervert... I'll tell them about this... when I go upstairs."

"Then it will have to be five times!"