The Well-Behaved and Sensible Xie Yuyan

"Xie Yuyan, do you finally realize your mistake now?"

Ye Feng had been lecturing for so long that his throat felt dry before he finally stopped.

"I understand..."

"Alright, alright. Let's put this matter behind us, but you better remember this lesson well!"

"Okay... Ye Feng, stop talking now. You might aggravate your injuries."

"Now you’re worried about me?"

Ye Feng glanced at Xie Yuyan with a smirk. Hearing this, Xie Yuyan’s expression visibly dimmed.

"I... I’ve always cared about you..."

"Yeah... almost cared me to death."

"Wuwu... I’m sorry..."

"Enough. Let’s not dwell on other things for now. I still have some questions for you, Xie Yuyan. This time, don’t try to make excuses."

"O-okay... Ye Feng, I’ll tell you everything I know."

Xie Yuyan obediently sat sideways on the edge of the bed, staring at her palms as she mumbled softly.

"First, Xie Yuyan, are you hurt?"

Ye Feng asked this question first. Truthfully, when he heard that Xie Yuyan had single-handedly wiped out the entire Shadow Pavilion after leaving, his first reaction wasn’t fear—it was concern that she might have suffered severe injuries.

"Hurt?"

Xie Yuyan hadn’t expected Ye Feng to ask this. His concern warmed her heart, and she quickly shook her head in denial.

"No... no lasting effects or anything..."

"So you were hurt?"

"...Mhm."

"How bad?"

"I... I didn’t die..."

"......"

A sigh sounded beside Xie Yuyan’s ear, followed by Ye Feng’s voice from the bed.

"Lean your forehead over here."

"Mm..."

Thunk!

The sound of a flick echoed as a red mark bloomed on Xie Yuyan’s fair forehead. She obediently pulled her head back, accepting the punishment without complaint.

Seeing her so contrite and well-behaved, Ye Feng was somewhat surprised. Still, he pressed on, "Promise me you won’t do something like this again, understand?"

"I understand."

"Good. Next question... Xie Yuyan, why did you act this way?"

Ye Feng stared straight into Xie Yuyan’s eyes, searching for any clues. After hesitating for a long time, she finally answered with a hint of resentment.

"Because... because I thought you... didn’t want me anymore..."

"......"

"When I came home and saw someone else in the place that used to be mine, it felt like a knife had stabbed my heart. That’s why... I ended up like this..."

Xie Yuyan’s voice carried a trace of blame toward Ye Feng, but she eventually lowered her head.

"Then why didn’t you just ask me about the truth? I was waiting for you the whole time. Who’d have thought we’d reunite like this?"

"I... I wanted to surprise you, but that vixen made me lose my mind."

"Vixen? You mean... sigh..."

Ye Feng roughly guessed she was referring to Shen Mengli. Calmly, he explained, "Mengli is a child I took in from the orphanage. She needs care because of her health, so I’m living with her. It’s the same as when I saved you after you were injured."

"But why save her? I... I was here first."

Xie Yuyan’s dissatisfaction flared at Ye Feng’s affectionate tone for this girl named Mengli, but the memory of what she’d done to him quickly doused her anger.

"Why... why save her?"

"Because I have reasons I can’t explain. I’m sorry, but I can’t tell you."

"Why not? I could’ve helped you too!"

"Because it’s my mission."

Ye Feng vaguely framed the system’s tasks as a "mission."

"Mission? Wh-what kind of mission requires this?"

"To save you all... and myself, in a way."

"Save me? Save yourself?"

Xie Yuyan’s mind flashed back to how Ye Feng had once rushed to save Li Mucheng the same way. Then there were those mysterious pills that suddenly boosted his physical abilities, and the knife that had stabbed his heart earlier but bounced off inexplicably. These things defied logic, yet they’d happened.

Could Ye Feng... really have no choice?

"Alright. I’m just glad you’re back safely. But Xie Yuyan, care to explain why the house is such a mess?"

Ye Feng blew away a stray cotton fluff floating near his nose and weakly gestured at the slashed-up quilt beside his bed.

"I... I was so angry I needed to vent a little..."

"So that’s your excuse for nearly demolishing the place?"

"Sorry..."

"Forehead. Now."

Thunk!

......

After that, the two continued talking, and Xie Yuyan’s unease gradually eased. The fact that Ye Feng had been waiting for her all along was enough to soothe her heart.

"So promise me you’ll think before acting from now on, okay? We can talk things through."

"I promise." Xie Yuyan pressed her lips together and nodded, even proactively leaning her forehead toward Ye Feng.

"Xie Yuyan, what’s this?"

"I... I’m presenting myself for punishment."

"Enough fooling around. We’ll deal with the mess later. Right now, there’s something I want to tell you."

"Is... is it about that Mengli girl?"

"No. I wanted to say that while you were away from Shucheng, I prepared a gift for you."

"Huh? A gift? You got me a gift?!"

Xie Yuyan had been feeling off-balance because of Shen Mengli, but the mention of a gift from Ye Feng instantly widened her eyes, sparkling with anticipation.

"Mm. It’s in my bedside drawer. Just open it."

"Okay!"

Without hesitation, Xie Yuyan sprang up and hurried to the drawer. Sure enough, inside was the phone Ye Feng had once given her, a square gift box, and a key—though she wasn’t sure what it unlocked.