162. Daily Life: Let's reward Xiaoming properly tonight!

"Phew..."

The boy breathed a sigh of relief as he looked at the surrounding crowd frozen in time. Fortunately, he had the cheat ability of time-stopping; otherwise, he really wouldn't have been able to walk away with the copy of *Make-Out Paradise* today.

Although the store owner had told him that the content of the book was actually quite tame, Matsubara Meii didn't think so at all. There are a thousand Uzumaki Narutos in a thousand people; just by looking at the stunning effectiveness of Naruto's Sexy Technique, one could tell that someone who had read *Make-Out Paradise* was on a completely different level compared to a pineapple-head like Boruto Uzumaki, who had only read ordinary magazines. The gap between them was as vast as that between clouds and mud.

Everyone is curious, and Matsubara Meii was naturally no exception. Today, he intended to experience for himself whether *Make-Out Paradise* was actually any good, acting as a pioneer for all his fellow cultivators in the real world to test the waters.

Thinking to himself, Matsubara Meii reached out, grabbed the small orange book, and tucked it into his tennis bag. After packing it away, he didn't forget to check if the zipper was securely fastened. To compensate the owner, he even slipped a few hundred-yen coins into the man's pocket.

As he walked along, he raised a hand and snapped his fingers.

*Snap!*

Following Matsubara Meii's gesture, the frozen scene instantly returned to normal. A broken leaf floated slowly to the ground and was ruthlessly crushed by a passing pedestrian; the newsstand owner continued to read his newspaper with relish while sitting on his small stool; and Matsubara Meii brushed off his sleeves, leaving no trace of his identity as he vanished into the bustling crowd.

Walking along the sidewalk by the roadside railing, Matsubara Meii pulled *Make-Out Paradise* out of his tennis bag, flipped it open, and muttered to himself with shifting eyes, "Well, well, this is actually pretty good. The writing is..."

Though he had only read the first line, Matsubara Meii could already tell that this book was extraordinary. Not only was the textual description captivating, but even the title page was designed to spark the imagination. It was clear that besides the author, the publishing house had also poured an immense amount of effort into this book, demonstrating a meticulous attention to detail pushed to its absolute limits.

Recalling the sentence he had just read, Matsubara Meii's mind began to wander. Indeed, people could not be lumped into the same category. For someone like the newsstand owner—middle-aged, balding, and greasy with fat—reading *Make-Out Paradise* would no longer yield any personal benefits, because he was already a lost cause.

Matsubara Meii, however, was different. Before reading *Make-Out Paradise*, he was a good boy who passionately loved reading *The Spring and Autumn Annals*, and it was good to give his brain a change of pace every now and then.

Good things, of course, should be enjoyed in secret after returning home, locking the door, and hiding under the covers. Besides, Matsubara Meii was currently on a public street; if someone were to notice the contents of the *Make-Out Paradise* in his hands and shout it out loud, wouldn't that become a textbook case of social death?

Putting the small orange book back into his tennis bag and before he even had time to zip it up, Matsubara Meii noticed a dark shadow gradually looming over his feet. The moment he raised his head, he crashed headfirst into someone!

"Ouch!"

Their paths and footsteps tangled together, and with a loss of balance, they both tumbled heavily to the ground. Matsubara Meii felt his vision go dark, and his face was suddenly squeezed hard by some soft, wriggling, gigantic object, a sensation that instantly cut off his air supply.

When the boy propped himself up, he was shocked to discover that he had knocked down a girl. But upon closer inspection, the girl turned out to be none other than his own elder sister, Matsubara Miba!

"Don't you look where you're going?!"

Matsubara Miba hadn't even realized she had been accidentally groping her brother. She rubbed her head with an expression of intense displeasure, evidently having bumped her head when she fell. She gritted her teeth, glared at the boy in front of him, and paused slightly. "Small Ming?"

"My bad, my bad... Are you alright, Sister Miba?"

With a dry laugh, Matsubara Meii pulled Matsubara Miba to her feet. The latter brushed down her skirt and clothes with both hands, scolding, "What's wrong with you, Small Ming? You really need to be careful when walking."

"I know... I wasn't looking ahead just now."

Matsubara Meii scratched his head, picked up the tennis bag that had fallen to the ground, and slung it back over his shoulder.

"Honestly, you're already in your first year of middle school and you're still so rash."

Matsubara Miba lectured him with a tone of exasperated affection, wishing he would improve faster.

"Speaking of which, why is Sister Miba here?"

The boy looked around. This place seemed to be the neighborhood market where fruits, vegetables, and other produce were sold.

"Mom said she has to work overtime tonight, and Dad has a business dinner too, so the three of us will eat together today. I just came here to buy some ingredients for dinner."

As she spoke, Matsubara Miba opened a cloth bag filled with fruits, vegetables, and seafood.

"I see..."

Matsubara Meii nodded. Aside from their mother, the best cook in the family was none other than his older sister, Matsubara Miba. Although their father Matsubara Shou's cooking skills weren't bad either, they were still far inferior to Matsubara Miba, who had completely inherited their mother's culinary talent.

Walking along the road, the boy told Matsubara Miba the news that Seishun Academy had defeated Josei Shonan to advance to the semifinals of the Kantou Tournament. Hearing this, the girl smiled with gratification, patted Matsubara Meii's head, and said, "Then we should give Small Ming a nice reward tonight."

"Huh?"

The boy was slightly startled. A reward for me?

"Yeah, I was originally planning just to make fish tonight, but since I bought some extra fruit, seafood, and vegetables, let's add tempura to the dinner menu!"

Matsubara Miba smiled gently.

"Wow! Tempura is my favorite!"

Matsubara Meii's large eyes sparkled with shining stars, and drool practically pooled at the corner of his mouth.

Upon returning home, Matsubara Meii saw Matsubara Ayana rush down from the second floor straight into his arms. Smiling, he patted her little head. "Good girl, Ayana. Did you listen to your teacher at school today?"

"Of course!"

Matsubara Ayana rubbed her little head against the boy's chest, nodding like a pecking chick.

"How was Brother's match? Did you win?"

Matsubara Ayana asked expectantly.

"Yeah, I advanced to the final four."

The boy nodded.

"Yay, that's wonderful! That means the semifinals are coming up!"

The young girl clapped her hands happily and asked.

"That's right, the semifinals are in a week."

Matsubara Meii replied noncommittally.

Matsubara Ayana wore a happy expression and then coaxed coquettishly, "Then Brother shouldn't be busy anymore, right? Play with me!"

"Alright..."

Matsubara Meii didn't refuse. Since today happened to be Friday and tomorrow was the weekend, he simply agreed. However, just as his voice trailed off, Matsubara Miba walked out of the bathroom. "No way. Big brother has been playing matches all day; he needs to take a bath first. Play with Ayana after your bath. Be a good girl and go do your homework first."

"Yeah, I smell all sweaty. I'll play with Ayana after I get all nice and clean."

Matsubara Meii tugged at his clothes and said.

"Fine..."

Matsubara Ayana pouted slightly, then obediently went back upstairs. Leaning against the second-floor banister, she tilted her head, looked at Matsubara Meii, and waved at him. Seeing this, the boy smiled warmly, waved back, and silently mouthed the words: "I'll... play... with... you... in... a... bit!"

Matsubara Ayana also mouthed the response: "Okay!"

"Small Ming, I put your favorite bath salts in today. You should go while it's hot."

Matsubara Miba said.

"Sister Miba is getting more and more like Mom..."

The boy shook his head as he watched the girl tie her apron and fuss over him.

As the bathroom door closed, Matsubara Miba let out a soft sigh. Was this what it felt like to be a mother taking care of children every day? If one's energy wasn't abundant enough, it was very easy to feel exhausted.

At this moment, Matsubara Miba even felt a slight reluctance to have children in the future; taking care of her younger siblings was already quite a handful. Although her younger siblings weren't particularly disobedient, it couldn't be said that they didn't drain her energy at all.

"Ah... time to wash the vegetables."

Rousing herself, Matsubara Miba turned toward the kitchen. Noticing that Matsubara Meii's huge tennis bag had been left right on the coffee table, she shook her head helplessly. Small Ming was always so undisciplined, dropping his things wherever he pleased...

As Matsubara Miba picked up the tennis bag, a rustling sound echoed. Looking at *Make-Out Paradise* as it fell to the floor, the girl's usually calm and pretty face instantly turned as cold as an iceberg. "This is..."