The Strange Silhouette

"Because of me..."

Seeing Li Mucheng's intense gaze fixed upon him, Ye Feng could roughly guess what she wanted to say. He pointed a finger at himself.

"What do you think, teacher?"

"......"

Noticing Ye Feng's silence, Li Mucheng didn’t spell it out directly. Instead, she continued to question him.

She wanted to see his reaction firsthand.

"So that's how it is..."

Ye Feng understood that Li Mucheng’s words were practically confirming the answer for him. He never imagined that he was the one who had truly damaged the friendship between Li Mucheng and Su Yuxin.

"But... why would that happen? Was it because I was tutoring you that caused your relationship to fall apart?"

"It wasn’t because of the tutoring... It was because... you’re special."

"Special? I’m just an ordinary person—what’s so special about me?"

Ye Feng let out a self-deprecating laugh, clearly skeptical of her answer. But seeing Li Mucheng’s unwavering expression, his smile froze.

"You’re special because you mean something different to us. Just like you always say—everyone sees things differently, so the results they get will vary too."

Hearing Li Mucheng’s words, Ye Feng’s emotions grew even more complicated. But considering that one of his students was right beside him, he couldn’t afford to be overly emotional. Since this conflict stemmed from him, he also had the responsibility to resolve it.

"Li Mucheng, I have a favor to ask. Would you be willing?"

"Of course I’ll agree!"

Li Mucheng answered without hesitation.

"Whatever you ask of me, teacher, I’ll do it. No matter what it is~"

"R-Really...?"

Ye Feng paused. There was something oddly suggestive in her tone, but her expression remained completely serious.

Maybe I’m overthinking it. Li Mucheng has always been quietly supporting me—why would I even suspect anything?

Shaking off the distracting thoughts, he continued, "I’d like you to come with me to Su Yuxin’s house this Thursday. Would that be okay?"

"Go to Su Yuxin’s house? Do you want me to make up with her?"

"Yes. Since you two were once good friends, and your relationship broke down because of me, I feel obligated to mend it. Otherwise, I’d never forgive myself."

Ye Feng’s eyes burned with determination, though he also regretted secretly tutoring Su Yuxin before.

If I had just told Li Mucheng openly, maybe their friendship wouldn’t have fallen apart.

Even now, he still hadn’t realized that the issue wasn’t the tutoring itself—it was him.

"Hmm..."

Li Mucheng closed her beautiful eyes, thinking for a long moment before finally nodding.

"Alright, teacher. I’ll go with you."

"Whew... That’s a relief."

Ye Feng let out a sigh of relief. To him, Li Mucheng’s agreement meant she still cherished her bond with Su Yuxin—there was still hope for reconciliation.

But Li Mucheng’s reasons for agreeing were far different. In her eyes, Su Yuxin was nothing more than a sneaky vixen trying to steal what was hers.

The only reason she agreed was because she would give Ye Feng anything he asked for—even herself. Now that she had him physically, the next step was winning his heart.

She didn’t love him just for his handsome appearance—though that was part of it. What truly drew her in was his heart.

He was the one who lit up my world when everything was dark. He was the one who gave me a new life.

As for Su Yuxin, Li Mucheng knew her all too well. The reason they had been close friends in the first place was because they were so similar. Ye Feng had merely been the spark that ignited their rivalry.

Now that she knew Ye Feng was tutoring Su Yuxin, she wasn’t foolish enough to let them be alone together. That would be like handing over her prize to someone else.

Fortunately, Ye Feng is only close with me right now. A latecomer like Su Yuxin could never catch up to our relationship.

With just one rival, winning him over will be easy.

"Don’t worry, Li Mucheng. I’ll make sure you and Su Yuxin reconcile."

"Then I’ll leave it to you, teacher~"

The two smiled at each other, each harboring entirely different thoughts...

......

"Hngh!"

Shen Mengli gripped the armrests of her wheelchair, straining to push herself up. But just as she managed to stand for a brief moment, her legs gave out, and she collapsed back onto the seat.

"Hah... Hah..."

She reached down, rubbing her thighs, but she didn’t seem discouraged by her failure.

"Good... This time, I managed to stand for a little while without Ye Feng’s help. If I keep this up, my legs will recover soon."

A faint smile curled on her lips, her hopeful eyes already picturing herself standing tall.

"Once I can walk again, I’ll go everywhere with Ye Feng! We’ll do so many things together! But first... I need to pull his heart toward me. Lately, it feels like he’s been avoiding me..."

"Never mind. It’s getting late. I should send him a message and see how he’s doing. Sooner or later, those sneaky vixens will get what they deserve."

Just as she pulled out Ye Feng’s phone—warmed against her chest—a sudden wave of dizziness struck. Before she could react, her vision blurred into darkness.

"Wh-What’s... happening?"

Before she could process it, she found herself lying on Ye Feng’s bed, curled up in his arms. But his face was frozen in horror as he stared at the doorway.

"Ye Feng? What’s wrong?"

Her heart clenched at his terrified expression. She patted his cheek, but he didn’t respond. Puzzled, she slowly followed his gaze toward the door—and what she saw stunned her.

A tall, slender figure stood there, silently watching them. Though she couldn’t see the person’s face, the aura radiating from them was unmistakably dangerous.

In that instant, Shen Mengli’s hearing vanished. All she could see was the shadow’s lips moving slightly, as if whispering something.

Then—

A sharp blade came flying straight for her throat.