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"It's about improving your mental resilience, so that certain things won’t affect your emotions as much."

"Does... does this really work?"

Li Mucheng asked hesitantly. In her heart, she doubted whether Ye Feng's method would actually help her, because whenever it came to matters involving him, she would always take them seriously—it had practically become a habit.

Though Li Mucheng suspected the upcoming exercises might not be useful, she would never refuse Ye Feng's suggestion. She knew full well that he had come up with these ideas for her sake. Besides, just being able to spend time with him was enough to make her happy.

"You won’t know until you try, Mucheng. Don’t be so pessimistic."

"O... okay."

"Then let’s start now—hm?"

Ye Feng suddenly felt a slight tug on the back of his clothes. Turning around, he saw Li Mucheng’s small hand clutching his sleeve. Her movements were delicate, almost cautious.

"Do you have something else to say, Mucheng?"

"Teacher... I... I..."

Li Mucheng stammered for a while, unable to voice her thoughts. Only under Ye Feng’s encouraging gaze did she finally speak.

"If... if during our lessons, I ever do something bad to you, I hope you’ll stop me right away! I would never intentionally hurt you."

"I... I understand. Mucheng, if you have any concerns, you can just say them outright. I’ll correct you if anything happens, but there’s one thing I need to make clear first."

"O-okay! I’ll agree to anything!"

"Hey, hey! I haven’t even said what it is yet. Why are you in such a hurry to agree?"

"Whatever Teacher says, I’ll accept!"

"I’m not asking you to blindly obey... Ah, never mind."

Ye Feng knew that no matter what he said now, Li Mucheng would still be this anxious. He understood that she was afraid her uncontrollable alternate personality might harm him, and that was why she acted this way. But he didn’t want her to live like this—he wanted her to realize that life wasn’t about living for others.

"First, Mucheng, you need to understand one thing: you are the master of your own life. You don’t have to change who you are for someone else."

"Teacher, do you mean I should go back to how I was when we first met?"

"Yes—though I’m not referring to the time you threatened me with a knife."

Ye Feng quickly added the reminder, recalling the incident.

"I... I know! I won’t ever be like that again! Please forget about it..."

Li Mucheng pursed her lips stubbornly, clearly unwilling for Ye Feng to bring it up.

"Ahem... Right, right."

Ye Feng coughed awkwardly to brush past the moment before continuing.

"Mucheng, do you have any hobbies? Things you really enjoy, like gardening, sports, reading?"

"Eh? Why are you asking this all of a sudden?"

Li Mucheng looked at him curiously. From the romance novels she’d read, she knew that when someone liked another person, they’d try to learn about their interests to create common ground and grow closer.

"I did say we’re working on your emotional resilience, didn’t I? Doing things you love is one way to cultivate that."

"Oh... I see."

Hearing his explanation, Li Mucheng’s expression dimmed briefly before she quickly lifted her head again. Now wasn’t the time for self-pity. Her gaze drifted to a flowerbed in the distance.

"The thing I like most... is probably attending your lessons..."

"Huh? Lessons don’t count as a hobby. Come on, think of something else—"

"But I really do love them."

Li Mucheng placed her hands gently over her chest, recalling every moment Ye Feng had spent teaching her.

"Whenever you teach me, I always feel this urge to study harder. I know you’re putting in so much effort to help me learn, to protect myself. Every lesson you give me, I cherish. After you leave, I spend the rest of my time going over what you taught, hoping to show you my progress the next time we meet... just so I can hear your praise."

"......"

"Sorry, Teacher... Was that a bad answer? I don’t even know what my interests are. Before I met you... I didn’t care about anything."

"It’s alright, Mucheng."

Just as Li Mucheng thought her response had made Ye Feng uncomfortable, he spoke again.

"Finding your interests takes time. Maybe one day, you’ll discover something you truly love. Until then, let’s search for it together, okay? As long as you don’t give up on yourself, I—as your teacher—won’t give up on you either."

"Teacher..."

Li Mucheng’s worries melted away at his words. Under Ye Feng’s puzzled gaze, she stepped into the flowerbed, plucked a single black rose, and held it gently in her palm. She brought it to her nose, inhaling its fragrance with a soft smile before turning back to Ye Feng.

With both hands, she offered the rose to him.

"Thank you."

A breeze brushed past her cheeks, sending her long, dark hair fluttering. Ye Feng studied her delicate features, reminded of their earliest days together—back when Li Mucheng, just like now, was a girl whose cold exterior hid a warm heart.

"Mucheng."

Ye Feng wouldn’t ruin the moment. In fact, he could see that, with his companionship, she was gradually growing stronger. Given time, she would surely return to her lively self.

"I’ll gladly accept your kindness. And I hope you’ll keep striving in your studies."

As Ye Feng took the rose, Li Mucheng understood the meaning behind his words—he was reaffirming their teacher-student relationship. But to her, that didn’t matter. What mattered was that he had accepted her feelings.

Teacher... No matter what, I’ll protect you. Just being by your side is enough for me...

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