The Face-Changing King.

Lin Yu narrowed his eyes slightly. The light reflected off the snowy ground was a bit dazzling. Just as he was about to draw the curtains and lie down on the bed for a rest, his phone suddenly rang in his pocket.

Lin Yu took out his phone. When he saw the caller ID, a flicker of surprise passed through his eyes.

SugarZhongzhong.

Why was she calling him?

SugarZhongzhong was Tang Qinqin's online ID. He had added her as a friend last winter.

After adding her, they had barely exchanged any messages.

For her to call suddenly...

Lin Yu had a faint suspicion. Could it be because of Tang Manman?

Recalling the near-miss encounter with her at the hospital entrance, Lin Yu felt a headache coming on. He didn't know if she had seen him then.

But even if she had, it wasn't a big problem. He could use the timing discrepancy, saying he went south only after leaving the hospital. That would still hold up.

Thinking this, Lin Yu relaxed and calmly answered the call.

Before he could even speak, Tang Qinqin's urgent, tearful voice came through the phone.

She was sobbing, crying so hard she could barely catch her breath.

"Brother Lin Yu, come quickly! My, my sister... something's happened to her!"

"What?!"

Lin Yu's eyes widened in shock, and he nearly stood up from his wheelchair in his agitation...

...

Ten minutes earlier.

Tang Qinqin wandered idly into the kitchen, looked around for a bit, and after annoying her mom for a while, she secretly grabbed a handful of candies saved for the New Year, stuffed them into her pocket, and tiptoed out.

Leaving the house, Tang Qinqin sat down on a small stool outside the courtyard wall.

She took out the candies she had just pilfered from her pocket, made a quick selection, picked up a piece of corn-flavored soft candy, and put the rest back in her pocket.

Tearing open the wrapper, Tang Qinqin happily ate the candy.

When she went shopping with her sister this afternoon, she definitely had to buy more of this corn soft candy. It was super delicious!

Wait a minute...

Tang Qinqin suddenly sensed something was off.

Although her sister had said she'd be back later to take her shopping...

She had gone to find Lin Yu. Would she really come back this afternoon to drag her little sister, the third wheel, along for shopping?

Chewing the sweet, soft candy in her mouth, Tang Qinqin thought it was unlikely. Probably, the shopping trip would be postponed.

Just as she was thinking her sister probably wouldn't return, a pair of legs walked past her.

She glanced over and noticed the person's beige pants and shoes looked familiar. It seemed like the outfit her sister was wearing when she came back, the same set of clothes Lin Yu had given her.

Her sister had just returned home at noon today, absentmindedly ate a meal, and then ran off to find Lin Yu in the afternoon without even changing her clothes.

Mom had sighed at the time, feeling her precious daughter was probably going to be completely taken by that guy with dyed hair.

Thinking of this, Tang Qinqin felt a bit puzzled.

Logically, since her sister went to find Lin Yu, the two of them should be sweetly sticking together right now, maybe even doing some not-for-children things. There was no reason for her to come back so soon, right?

Could it be that the person in front of her just happened to be wearing the same outfit as her sister?

Curious, Tang Qinqin looked up and quickly saw her utterly dejected sister.

How dejected was she?

Judging by her dazed, wooden expression, she probably hadn't even noticed her sitting here!

"Sis!"

Tang Qinqin called out.

Tang Manman was visibly startled, only now noticing her sister sitting outside the gate.

"Why are you back?"

Tang Qinqin asked curiously. As she spoke, she turned to look at the empty intersection to the left and asked again:

"Where's Lin Yu?"

"He didn't come back."

Tang Manman said in a despondent tone.

"Didn't come back?"

Tang Qinqin's voice rose noticeably.

"No way, I just saw him not too long ago."

As she said this, Tang Qinqin recalled the person's features, then nodded firmly.

"Yeah, it should have been him."

"You saw him?"

"When did you see her?"

"Where did you see him?"

Hearing this, Tang Manman's eyes widened. She quickly crouched down facing Tang Qinqin and fired off a string of questions in disbelief, her urgent manner startling Tang Qinqin.

"At the hospital."

"A week ago, when Mom took me for a follow-up checkup at the hospital, I saw him get into a car with my own eyes."

Tang Qinqin described the situation truthfully.

"How could that be..."

The light seemed to drain from Tang Manman's beautiful eyes as she murmured:

"He clearly told me he's in the south now, that he hasn't come back."

Hearing her sister say this, Tang Qinqin also became unsure. She furrowed her delicate brows and thought of a possibility:

"Then maybe he went south after leaving the hospital?"

Tang Qinqin's words made Tang Manman pause. She thought for a moment, her exquisite features drooping, and shook her head like a dejected puppy:

"I don't know."

"I see..."

"Then I'll test him and find out!"

Tang Qinqin's clever little head instantly came up with a plan.

She took out her phone, found Lin Yu's chat window, and before initiating the voice call, she deliberately coughed twice to clear her throat and sniffled. Once prepared, she tapped the voice call button.

The call was quickly answered. The moment the screen lit up showing the call duration, Tang Qinqin instantly burst into tears. Her voice choked with sobs, her tone frantic, she cried out as if the sky had fallen:

"Brother Lin Yu, come quickly! My, my sister... something's happened to her!"

"What!"

Lin Yu's anxious voice came from the other end of the phone.

"What's wrong with your sister?"

"Where is she now?"

"What happened?"

Tang Qinqin cried and sniffled pitifully, but not a single tear fell, leaving Tang Manman beside her utterly dumbfounded.

"My sister was harassed. We're on Jiangbei's pedestrian street right now. Can you come help my sister?"

"I..."

"I, I'm not in H City right now!"

"What happened to your sister?"

"Wait a moment, I'll send someone to help you right away!"

Lin Yu's urgent tone came through the phone's speaker, clear as day to both of them.

Confirming that Lin Yu really wasn't in H City, Tang Qinqin, like April weather, changed her expression in an instant. She immediately dropped the pitiful, tearful act, her voice becoming calm and indifferent as she said:

"Is that so."

"Forget it then. Since you're not here, we'll handle it ourselves."

This sudden shift in Tang Qinqin's tone caught Lin Yu off guard. His voice was still urgent, but now tinged with confusion.

"What do you mean handle it yourselves?"

"What exactly happened to your sister?"

"Nothing."

Tang Qinqin said flatly:

"Just now some brat slapped my sister's butt. I'll go give him a couple of slaps later and that'll be that."

With that, and without waiting for Lin Yu to respond, Tang Qinqin quickly hung up the phone. She then turned to Tang Manman and said:

"It seems he really isn't in H City. He probably went south after leaving the hospital."

After listening to her sister's entire conversation with Lin Yu and confirming she hadn't been deceived, Tang Manman first breathed a sigh of relief. Then, she shot a somewhat reproachful look at her sister, as if blaming her for handling the matter in a rather underhanded way.

Nevertheless, she felt very happy.

She had heard the concern in Lin Yu's words, sensed his anxiety over worrying about her safety.

To her, this was undoubtedly music to her ears; she was delighted.

"Let's go, we're going shopping."

She stood up, her smile bright and sunny.

Tang Qinqin didn't understand why her sister had suddenly become so cheerful, but going out shopping was a wonderful prospect.

Let's go!

Time to buy some delicious treats!