Sprain

In the end, Alice went back to her seat and ate obediently. The reason was quite simple: when Ye Shuang saw her sitting on his lap, he just patted her head as if she were a little kid.

Tang Keke and Bai Yuyou didn't pay much attention to it either, treating her just like a brat who loved to act spoiled. The two of them then started chatting about other topics.

"Hmph, treating me like a child, what a bunch of immature kids," Alice muttered with her chopsticks in her mouth, secretly plotting her own little schemes.

As the night deepened, Ye Shuang returned to his room to rest. After taking a shower, he lay on his bed, pondering over Bai Yuyou's situation. If his hypothesis was correct, then many clues could be linked together.

However, a crucial piece of information was still missing: whether Bobo was actually brought back by Alice's biological mother. Regardless, to figure this out, he could only wait for Chen Qin. After all, she had promised to help investigate, and with her connections, it shouldn't be too difficult.

"I can't sleep." Ye Shuang sat up and slightly pulled back the translucent white curtains, casting his gaze at the night view outside the window.

For some reason, the bustling night cityscape had a soothing effect, gradually calming his mind.

After a long while, he withdrew his gaze, yet he didn't feel the slightest bit sleepy.

"I'll play on the computer for a bit." Ye Shuang got up and sat at the computer desk. Looking at the icons in his game list, he had no desire to open them, perhaps because he didn't have any friends to play with.

After thinking for a moment, he chose to start writing his novel.

Click, clack, click. Ye Shuang's fingers tapped against the keyboard. The crisp, pebble-like sound coming from the mechanical switches completely settled his mind.

After routinely updating the first chapter of his novel, Ye Shuang browsed through the latest comments and then silently typed out:

[It's a new month, dear readers, please drop some free little gifts!]

Having done all this, he stretched lazily, planning to continue writing the second chapter.

Suddenly, there was a knock on the door behind him. Though the sound was faint, it caught Ye Shuang's attention. He turned his head and saw the door slowly opening, revealing a small face.

Bai Yuyou was holding a pillow with one hand, quietly peeking through the crack of the door.

"Ye Shuang, let's sleep together," Bai Yuyou said softly.

The girl was wearing a white nightgown. Perhaps because it was too thin, a hint of her skin color showed through. Recalling what Bai Yuyou had done for him before and that slime-like sensation, Ye Shuang knew he could no longer treat Yuyou like a child.

"I still have to write one more chapter of my novel," Ye Shuang said with a smile. "Yuyou, you go to bed first."

Hearing this, Bai Yuyou looked around. She first placed her pillow on the bed, then pulled up a chair and sat down next to Ye Shuang.

Sitting there so obediently, it was obvious she intended to wait for Ye Shuang to finish writing his novel.

"Ye Shuang, you keep writing. I'm fine like this." Ye Shuang was just about to turn off the computer to keep Bai Yuyou company when the girl spoke up the next second.

Hearing this, Ye Shuang thought for a moment and then continued tapping away at the keyboard.

After another forty minutes or so, Ye Shuang finally finished updating his novel. He slightly stretched his stiff neck, and when he turned around, he saw that Bai Yuyou had already fallen asleep leaning against the chair.

She was clearly exhausted, yet she still insisted on keeping me company...

Ye Shuang reached out and gently brushed aside her hair. Perhaps feeling his touch, Bai Yuyou slowly opened her beautiful eyes and reached up to rub them.

"Ye Shuang..."

"Yeah, I'm here."

"Are you done writing?"

"I'm done. Shall we go to sleep?" Ye Shuang asked.

"I want to sit on your lap, Ye Shuang," Bai Yuyou suddenly said.

"Sit on my lap?" Ye Shuang was momentarily stunned but didn't refuse. Seeing him nod, Bai Yuyou sat on his lap and rested her head against his chest.

Feeling the soft sensation against his thighs, Ye Shuang instinctively wrapped his arms around Bai Yuyou and simply asked, "What's wrong?"

"I just wanted this," Bai Yuyou whispered.

"Is that so?"

Holding Bai Yuyou, Ye Shuang suddenly recalled the scene at dinner when Alice sat on his lap. Could it be that this silly girl was jealous?

However, Ye Shuang didn't dwell on it, because her steady breathing caught his attention. It seemed Bai Yuyou had fallen fast asleep in an instant.

Ye Shuang initially wanted to wake her up, but considering that she had just settled onto his lap, he thought about it and eventually just held the girl, closing his eyes to rest for a bit.

I'll just nap like this for ten minutes.

But as it turned out, he slept right through until morning.

...

"My legs... they're numb." Ye Shuang hadn't expected to sleep holding Bai Yuyou until dawn. Now, his completely numb legs made it difficult for him to even walk, forcing him to support himself against the wall with his hands.

Furthermore, because his head had been hanging down while he slept, moving it now sent a sharp pain through his neck.

"You're so useless, Ye Shuang." Alice watched from the side. She didn't know the exact reason and just assumed Ye Shuang had a bad sleeping posture.

"If you don't sleep properly, it affects your condition the next day."

Ye Shuang: "..."

At this moment, Bai Yuyou was beside him, helping to massage his thighs, while Tang Keke was behind him, rubbing medicinal oil onto his neck.

"Ow, ow, ow! Keke, please be a little gentler."

"Oh, really?"

Compared to Ye Shuang's slightly disheveled appearance, Bai Yuyou's face was rosy, clearly showing she had rested well. After all, sleeping in Ye Shuang's arms meant she wouldn't suffer from insomnia.

"Brother, I actually know how to do bone-setting," Tang Keke suddenly said.

"Really?"

"Yeah, I saw it in a cartoon. Just a few cracks and you're all good," Tang Keke giggled.

"I don't know if I'll be good, but I might die, right?"

"The neck is a very fragile area. You can't just casually snap bones back into place," Bobo, who was standing nearby, chimed in. "A slight mistake could paralyze someone."

Ye Shuang was a bit surprised. "Bobo, you know about traditional Chinese medicine too?"

"Hehe, of course." This time, it was Alice who spoke up proudly. "Last time, some bad guys tried to do bad things to me. Bobo gave them a few bone-settings, and they ended up lying on the ground unable to move, crying about their bones."

Ye Shuang: "Uh..."

Alice, is that your understanding of bone-setting?

"Well then, Mr. Ye Shuang, we should be leaving. Sorry for bothering you for the night."

Alice was very busy, so she had to leave in the morning.

"Yeah, come visit often when you have time," Ye Shuang said with a smile. In truth, he wanted to chat more with Bobo, but his overly eager attitude last night had clearly put Bobo on guard.

"Hmm?"

Just as Alice opened the door, she found a familiar figure standing outside.

The person outside also looked quite surprised, their hand still slightly raised in the motion of pressing the doorbell.

"..." Aunt Xian looked at Alice, but just as she was about to speak, Alice bit her lip and pretended not to see her. Giving a soft snort, she said, "Bobo, let's go."