[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-i-m-not-crazy-this-is-the-emperor-s-banner":3,"chapter-i-m-not-crazy-this-is-the-emperor-s-banner-i-m-not-crazy-this-is-the-emperor-s-banner-chapter-43":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","I'm Not Crazy—This Is the Emperor's Banner",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},2291383,4480,"Chapter 43","i-m-not-crazy-this-is-the-emperor-s-banner-chapter-43",43,"\u003Cp>“Sweet potato stew, sweet potato stew~”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“What?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Sister just took one more breath than me.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Dou Dou pointed at Yin Xingyue, cheeks puffed out in obvious annoyance.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yin Xingyue, startled by Dou Dou’s gesture, felt a little embarrassed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Shen Siyuan, however, looked utterly baffled—he hadn’t expected Dou Dou to argue with her best friend, her beloved sister, over something so trivial.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The specific incident was that Shen Siyuan was too lazy to go downstairs for dinner, so he boiled himself a bowl of instant noodles.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Though instant noodles lacked nutrition, their aroma was irresistible, especially to a child like Dou Dou.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ghosts couldn’t eat food, but they could absorb qi, so Shen Siyuan let them “eat” first.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He hadn’t anticipated Dou Dou would complain because her sister had taken one extra breath—he was both exasperated and amused.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In the end, Shen Siyuan had no choice but to turn on his computer and play an animated show to distract her.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After Dou Dou’s remark, Yin Xingyue no longer felt comfortable lingering by Shen Siyuan’s side; she went over to watch TV with Dou Dou.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As Shen Siyuan was eating his noodles, he received a text from Jiang Tingyu.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Back in Haibin?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Seeing the message, Shen Siyuan couldn’t help smiling.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Her sending this message meant she had hesitated repeatedly and was beginning to lower her own standards.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And she wasn’t really asking whether he’d returned to Haibin—she wanted to know how his blind date went.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But she was too shy to ask directly, so she chose an indirect approach.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Since she didn’t ask, Shen Siyuan chose to play dumb and replied simply: “Just got back.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Want to go out for dinner? I’m all alone and bored.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The moment Shen Siyuan sent his message, Jiang Tingyu replied instantly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Shen Siyuan took a photo of his instant noodles and sent it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You’re eating this? Come out—I’ll treat you to a fancy meal.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Nah, I’m almost done.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Oh, okay, then maybe next time,” Jiang Tingyu said.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Shen Siyuan sent her an OK emoji.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Seeing his reply, Jiang Tingyu immediately added: “You’re so lucky—you can go home anytime. I can’t even take a train back; I have to fly, and tickets are crazy expensive. I can’t afford it.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Distance creates beauty. I go home often, and my parents get tired of me,” Shen Siyuan replied.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Oh, really? I forgot to ask—how was your blind date? Did you hit it off?” Jiang Tingyu asked, feigning casualness.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Shen Siyuan didn’t want to call her out—was she really forgetting? She reached out to him precisely because she wanted to ask this.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“It was fine.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Shen Siyuan gave a deliberately vague answer.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"That answer is so dismissive. (pouting face.jpg)\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Do you think I’m annoying?” Jiang Tingyu followed up.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“No, the person was nice enough, but not right for me—and that’s why my mom scolded me and sent me back,” Shen Siyuan said, no longer playing games.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jiang Tingyu immediately sent a laughing-out-loud emoji.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then she pressed: “Was your date pretty?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She wasn’t really asking whether his date was pretty—she wanted to know if she was prettier than him. Women always liked to compare.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sure enough, when Shen Siyuan said: “She was quite pretty.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She immediately asked if she was prettier.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The fact that she asked this meant she had already started caring about Shen Siyuan’s opinion.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>So Shen Siyuan replied: “Not as pretty as you.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When a woman asks you who’s prettier between her and someone else, never say “different styles, each has their own beauty”—just say she’s prettier. That’s the correct answer.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sure enough, Jiang Tingyu immediately sent a happy-kicking-the-floor emoji.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then she sent a selfie: she wore a tight wetsuit, her damp hair pinned high, revealing a long neck and narrow, rounded shoulders—like a lotus emerging from water, beautiful and elegant.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I just got off work.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As Shen Siyuan zoomed in to examine the photo, she sent another message.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Working on Sunday?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Yeah, weekends are our busiest days. Weekdays are quieter, so we take turns off.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Shen Siyuan suddenly understood—she worked at an aquarium, where weekends were packed with visitors.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Did you perform today?\" Shen Siyuan asked, pretending not to know.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Yeah, I invited you, and you didn’t come. (sad face.jpg)”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Next time for sure.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Then next week—I’ll treat you to a fancy meal,” Jiang Tingyu said.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Shen Siyuan thought for a moment and replied: “I should be free next week.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He said this to leave himself an escape route—if he couldn’t make it, he could claim something came up last minute.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He didn’t refuse outright because they’d only just met; the cost of silence was still low. Repeated refusals would make Jiang Tingyu give up entirely.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But to Jiang Tingyu, this reply meant Shen Siyuan had agreed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She immediately sent an OK emoji, then added: “Then I’ll wait for you.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Mm, go eat. My noodles are getting soggy,” Shen Siyuan ended the conversation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When chasing a girl, never beg or grovel—especially not one who already likes you. Don’t show too much enthusiasm.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A girl is like a kite in the sky: pull the string too tight, it snaps; pull it too loose, it falls.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Keep it balanced—just enough tension and slack—to keep her curious, to make her want to learn more about you.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Though Dou Dou was watching cartoons, she kept an eye on Shen Siyuan. When she saw him finish his noodles in a few bites, she sighed heavily.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yin Xingyue, hearing her, asked curiously: “Dou Dou, what’s wrong?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Sweet potato stew is so lucky—he ate so many instant noodles at once,” Dou Dou said, full of envy.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yin Xingyue didn’t understand Dou Dou’s logic—what was there to envy about instant noodles? When she was alive, she ate them constantly, sometimes for all three meals.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“My mom says instant noodles are unhealthy and won’t let me eat them, but they smell so good—how can they be bad?” Dou Dou asked, puzzled.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yin Xingyue couldn’t help laughing at her.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Something that smells good isn’t necessarily good—just like someone who looks beautiful isn’t necessarily kind…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yin Xingyue’s voice trailed off, because these were lessons from her own experience.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At that moment, Shen Siyuan picked up the bowls and came over. “Stop watching cartoons. Come here.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Dou Dou rushed to him first, tilting her head up: “Sweet potato stew, are you going to eat more instant noodles?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Eat instant noodles? I’m going to teach you something.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Shen Siyuan glanced at the flickering blue flame above her head and pulled out [Bao Feng Mian].\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[Bao Feng Mian] had a calming, centering effect—it should help them.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Do exactly as I do,” Shen Siyuan said, assuming a posture of embracing heaven and earth.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Oh, so Sweet Potato Stew wants to play a game with us!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Dou Dou bounced and spun around happily.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Clearly, she wouldn’t learn [Bao Feng Mian]—she was too restless.\u003C\u002Fp>",1140,"2026-06-20T03:53:08.657Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","ae7b47c5d0f9c245ff5e84f01db8bedb0783cb014f7efa2ea9521158bf1a584d","i-m-not-crazy-this-is-the-emperor-s-banner-chapter-44","i-m-not-crazy-this-is-the-emperor-s-banner-chapter-42",623,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fi-m-not-crazy-this-is-the-emperor-s-banner-cover.jpg"]