Forced Me to Regress, Huh?

The piglet plushie Cheng Zhu was holding was indeed somewhat cute.

Its silly, chubby body looked endearing, and it felt nice to squeeze, though its expression was undeniably cheeky.

Clearly, this arcade still had some level of integrity. At least the plushies in the claw machines were of decent quality. But the machine settings were absurd, with the claws being ridiculously loose. It was clearly designed to maximize profit.

Little Youzi, being a sensible child, immediately nodded in agreement when her brother said he wanted to give this piglet plushie to the big sister.

Cheng Zhu was very satisfied and thought about helping her catch another piglet later.

Lin Lu looked at Cheng Zhu, surprise flickering in her eyes. She hadn’t expected him to be so skilled and catch the plushie so effortlessly. At the same time, she didn’t expect him to give it to her.

But his words were so infuriating that Lin Lu felt annoyed. What do you mean I’m too useless? What do you mean by silly sister?! Ah! Cheng Zhu, you’re driving me crazy again!

She had already failed miserably at catching a plushie earlier, and her bold words from before made her feel a little embarrassed. Now, her frustration escalated into shame and anger.

Fortunately, Little Youzi proved to be an excellent wingman. She pouted at Cheng Zhu and defended her beloved Big Sister Little Lu. “Big Brother, you’re wrong. Big Sister Little Lu isn’t silly!”

Lin Lu’s annoyance dissipated instantly, though she still harrumphed at Cheng Zhu.

She snatched the plushie from Cheng Zhu’s hand and handed it to Little Youzi. “You’re the sweetest. Take the piglet. I don’t want it.”

To her surprise, the little girl shook her head, her two pigtails swaying side to side, and waved her hands. “Big Brother and Mom said that once you promise to give something to someone, you can’t take it back.”

“Oh, is that so?” Lin Lu nodded, patting her little head. “Then I’ll reluctantly accept it!”

While speaking, she glared at Cheng Zhu, raised her small fist, and punched the piglet plushie twice to vent her anger at him.

Little did she know that all her emotional ups and downs were entirely within Cheng Zhu’s control.

Yes, this piglet plushie was his way of mocking her, teasing her for being a novice. It didn’t come across as a sincere gift—there was none of the overt flattery that usually came with such gestures.

But regardless of how it happened, the fact remained the same: the first item this boy ever gave her would appear in her home.

—This was an invasion!

Next, Cheng Zhu continued to do the same as before and trailed behind Lin Lu and Little Youzi.

If Lin Lu happened to catch a toy, he would skip that claw machine.

If she couldn’t catch anything after repeated tries, he would immediately step forward to take advantage of the ‘build-up’ she had created and scoop up a pile of plushies!

But none of these toys went to Lin Lu anymore. Cheng Zhu gave them all to his precious little sister.

As for Shen Minglang and Jiang Wanzhou, the moment they entered the arcade, they had headed straight for the King of Fighters machines. The two were engrossed in fighting and paid no attention to anything else.

Meanwhile, Shen Qingning was nowhere to be seen, completely out of sight.

Lin Lu guessed she had gone off on her own because she had mentioned on the way that claw machines were childish.

As time passed, Cheng Zhu noticed that Little Youzi was itching to try a claw machine herself, so he lifted her up to let her play.

Lin Lu stood at the side, her face almost pressed against the claw machine’s glass as she earnestly directed her. Her delicate brows knit together slightly, and her face was tense with focus. “Move the claw a bit to the left. Yes, yes, just like that. Little Youzi, move it forward a bit. Okay! Right here! Grab it, grab it!”

Any passerby watching from the side would probably think they were a young couple bringing their little sister to the arcade to have fun.

Seeing Lin Lu so close to the claw machine glass, Cheng Zhu couldn’t help noticing her impressive figure beneath her short-sleeved shirt that was almost touching the machine. Wow.

“What are you doing? Do you want to kiss the claw machine? Bless it or something?” he muttered irritably.

“Bless your foot!”

They had been playing for a while now, and Cheng Zhu figured his sister must be thirsty, so he said to Lin Lu, “Stay with her for a bit. I’ll go buy some drinks for everyone.”

“Go ahead. Your sister is under my protection!” the voice actress replied theatrical, her voice as exaggerated as an anime character.

There was a vending machine beside the arcade’s front desk, so Cheng Zhu strode over.

However, as he passed by a secluded corner, he spotted Shen Qingning standing in front of a small claw machine of keychains, intently operating the joystick.

This machine was essentially the same as a regular claw machine but smaller. The claw was tinier, and the toys were replaced with cartoon character keychains.

Cheng Zhu stopped a short distance to watch. After a failed attempt, she had a vexed expression on her face, and her usually cold and aloof face looked a bit more animated.

She lightly pursed her rosy lips and inserted another token, her movements a bit forceful. Clearly, she had failed many times already. She even mumbled something under her breath, but he was too far away to make it out.

This time, the claw tightened just enough, successfully catching a Pikachu keychain.

This cold and aloof girl raised her fair arm, made an excited fist-pump gesture, and softly exclaimed, “Yes.”

Her toes lifted slightly off the floor before dropping down lightly, repeating this motion several times.

She squatted down to pick up the fallen keychain. From a distance, the sight was undeniably eye-catching, especially from the side. Her perfectly proportioned long legs were utterly flawless.

If she wore stockings, most people probably wouldn’t be able to handle it.

After picking up the keychain, Shen Qingning held it delicately between two fingers, inspecting it closely in front of her eyes. A faint smile appeared on her face, tinged with a hint of pride.

The cold and aloof girl seemed a touch more vibrant.

Seeing that she was about to turn around, Cheng Zhu casually walked forward, going straight for the vending machine.

After Shen Qingning turned around, the first thing she saw was Cheng Zhu’s back.

The smile on her face vanished instantly, replaced by her usual cold and composed aura. With her expression restored, she quickly left the area.

After buying the water, Cheng Zhu didn’t immediately return to Lin Lu and Little Youzi. Instead, he raised an eyebrow as an idea struck him and strode towards the machine Shen Qingning had been using.

At this moment, a young couple had failed three times in a row to catch anything and left the machine in disappointment. Cheng Zhu grinned and started operating it skillfully.

As he pressed the button forcefully, he cursed under his breath, “Damn it. This thing is even harder than a claw machine. Such a black-hearted arcade. Really milking people, huh?

“And that guy just now, seriously? Bringing your girlfriend to catch keychains and giving up after only three tires? Couldn’t you have set me up with a few more tries? Your love is too shallow.”

He only had one goal—a Pikachu keychain!

Cheng Zhu tried five more times before finally catching the yellow electric mouse.

He stuffed the Pikachu keychain into his pocket, carefully hiding it, before casually picking up the bottles of water and heading back.