Chapter 101: Xin Liu: It’s really scary
Yu Shi didn’t say much to the Feng family. He picked up his luggage and walked toward Jiang Mang.
When he saw Yu Shi approaching, Feng Xuexiang stared at him and asked, “Who are you?”
Yu Shi didn’t answer, nor did he even glance at Feng Xuexiang. He only said to Jiang Mang, “Sorry to bother you, I’ll be staying here for a few days.”
Jiang Mang replied, “No problem, no problem! Stay as long as you want!”
Feng Xuexiang, seeing that Yu Shi ignored him and was about to leave, asked again, “What’s your name? Why are you ignoring me?”
Jiang Mang “kindly” responded, “Oh, he’s Zhou Shi, the one I asked if you remembered, and you said, ‘Who’s that?'”
Feng Xuexiang was speechless.
Sure enough, after hearing this, Yu Shi didn’t stop for even a moment and directly walked past them, leaving.
Jiang Mang secretly chuckled, quietly observing Feng Xuexiang’s expression. He noticed that Feng Xuexiang’s gaze was following Yu Shi’s departing figure and almost thought he was going to follow.
But he didn’t. Instead, after withdrawing his gaze, he walked toward Feng Zaiyin.
Second Brother Feng couldn’t let this big support slip away, so he stepped forward and tearfully complained about how his son, Feng Zaixing, had been killed by Feng Zaiyin and his men.
“Feng Zaixing… he’s dead?” Feng Xuexiang asked.
After waking up, many of his memories were vague. He could only roughly understand who these people were by looking at them.
His feelings toward them were mostly indifferent. He didn’t particularly like or dislike them, though some he found slightly annoying.
He remembered Feng Zaixing because of his connection to the jade scrolls—he was a deceitful fellow with ill intentions.
But he still needed to use him, so if he was dead, it would be a bit troublesome.
Xin Liu, in Feng Zaiyin’s body, remained calm and let Second Brother Feng complain, mocking him in his heart.
As expected, Feng Xuexiang was impatient with his complaints. After giving Second Brother Feng a glance, he immediately fell silent and was led away by the others.
Xin Liu felt a chill in his heart at the sight of this. Feng Xuexiang had grown even stronger than last year; it seemed he really could harness the power of the jade scrolls.
After discussing it with his junior sister, Huang Yuren, Xin Liu realized they couldn’t retrieve the jade scrolls intact. They decided it would be best to first win Feng Xuexiang over, then lead him to their master’s tomb to use him as a sacrifice for their master’s resurrection.
During this time, Huang Yuren was busy stirring up trouble within the Crisis Bureau, vying for power and gain, so she could serve their master well after his resurrection.
On the surface, Xin Liu, of course, appeared to be making similar preparations.
“Ninth Master, rest assured, although Feng Zaixing is dead, the people I promised you are still around,” Feng Zaiyin said, adopting a proper stance, his smile dignified and handsome. “As for the matter of the jade scroll, I will do everything in my power to assist you as agreed.”
Feng Xuexiang scrutinized his face for a moment before asking, “What did he just say to you?”
Xin Liu was momentarily stunned, only then realizing that by “he,” Feng Xuexiang was referring to Zhou Shi from earlier.
His expression immediately turned strange.
He was discussing the crucial matter of the jade scroll, and Feng Xuexiang was concerned about something so trivial?!
Rendered speechless, he couldn’t help but curse inwardly, “Annoying love-obsessed fool!”
“Ninth Master, are you asking about Zhou Shi? It was just a few pleasantries.”
“Are you close with him? Why did he only exchange pleasantries with you?” Feng Xuexiang asked.
Xin Liu: “…………”
“He even smiled at you. Are you two on good terms?” Feng Xuexiang asked again.
Xin Liu, whose mind was full of schemes and plots, was almost knocked off balance by the jealousy in Feng Xuexiang’s tone.
How presumptuous! Xin Liu, who was once a man of great charm, with dozens of beautiful companions, had no interest in men!
Suddenly, Xin Liu recalled how he had seen the two interact in the past.
If he could leverage Zhou Shi’s influence, perhaps he could gain an even tighter hold over Feng Xuexiang.
Although Feng Xuexiang claimed not to remember, his attitude clearly showed that he still cared about Zhou Shi.
Given this, Xin Liu thought that building a good relationship with Zhou Shi early on might not be a bad idea.
With these thoughts running through his mind, Xin Liu changed his tune and said, “We do have a pretty good relationship; perhaps we had some interactions in the past.”
“Pretty good relationship,” Feng Xuexiang chewed on these words in a strange tone, “some interactions.”
He lowered his long eyelashes, feeling a twisted sense of frustration: ‘That person ignores me, doesn’t want to talk to me, yet he’s on such good terms with you?’
‘And you dare to flaunt it in front of me.’
A sudden anger flared up in Feng Xuexiang’s heart, so intense that he even smiled faintly.
When Xin Liu saw him smile, although he felt something was off, he didn’t think much of it. Seeing Feng Xuexiang’s friendly demeanor, he suggested, “Ninth Master, shall we return to the Feng family now? The family affairs still rely on you.”
But Feng Xuexiang responded, “I’m not going. You can go.”
Xin Liu was taken aback. “What?” How could you change your mind so quickly?
He didn’t need to think hard to realize that Feng Xuexiang must have been swayed by that Zhou Shi, causing him to change his mind about leaving.
Xin Liu couldn’t help but curse a few more times in his mind but outwardly persuaded, “Is the Ninth Master thinking about Zhou Shi? Perhaps you could convince him to come along. The Feng family is where you’re both used to staying, and it has everything you need.”
Feng Xuexiang, surprisingly agreeable, nodded, “Then you go and convince him.”
He smiled outwardly while inwardly thinking that if this man could really persuade Zhou Shi to change his mind, then he would definitely kill him.
Xin Liu was at a loss for words. He wasn’t even sure why Zhou Shi had approached him earlier. As far as he knew, Zhou Shi had never had any dealings with Feng Zaiyin in the past.
He knew very well that he wouldn’t be able to convince Zhou Shi.
Seeing Jiang Mang, who was still watching the situation unfold, Xin Liu recalled that she seemed to have a good relationship with Zhou Shi.
“Miss Jiang Mang, could I trouble you to help persuade Zhou Shi? His relationship with Ninth Master is different, and this standoff isn’t good for him,” Xin Liu asked.
Jiang Mang showed a look of disdain. “You open your mouth and ask for my help—who do you think you are?”
This Feng Zaiyin really thought he could order her around like some big-shot young master. She found him even more annoying than before.
And saying that this standoff wasn’t good for Zhou Shi? Zhou Shi was doing just fine!
Jiang Mang huffed, “Once Zhou Shi makes up his mind, no one can change it. What could I possibly do?”
In the end, the Feng family couldn’t get Feng Xuexiang to return with them. Even after Xin Liu tried persuading him for a long time, all he got were a few perfunctory replies from Feng Xuexiang.
Feng Xuexiang simply told him to come back if he needed anything.
As Feng Xuexiang followed Jiang Mang back, she felt increasingly uncomfortable under his gaze, and her originally straight posture began to slump a bit.
Finally, with some reluctance, she pointed to the room where Yu Shi was staying. “He’s in there.”
She thought that as soon as she told him, her uncle would rush over to see him, but instead, he kept following her.
Jiang Mang was puzzled, she noticed him hesitating and asked, “Is he mad at me for ignoring him earlier?”
Jiang Mang realized what was going on—he was feeling guilty and didn’t dare to go.
Having seen enough of the drama, Jiang Mang said, “I’ve got things to do. I’m leaving!”
*
Yu Shi, with his hair still damp, came out of the bathroom.
Before coming over, he had been setting up a grape arbor in the yard, which left him covered in wood shavings and dust. When he received Jiang Mang’s message, worried that something might be wrong, he had quickly changed clothes and rushed over.
So, after setting down his luggage, he immediately took a moment to clean up.
He draped a towel over his shoulders, grabbed a bottle of water from the fridge, and downed half of it in one go.
Still holding the bottle, he sat down on a chair by the floor-to-ceiling window and slowly began to dry his hair.
As the breeze stirred the curtains beside him, Yu Shi’s hand paused briefly in the middle of drying his hair, then he resumed his movements as if nothing had happened.
However, the person who had intruded into his room showed no signs of restraint and was completely unaware that he had long since been exposed. He sat on the bed opposite Yu Shi, resting his chin in his hand as he observed him. As he continued to stare, his Adam’s apple bobbed.
Sensing the other person’s gaze lingering on his chest, shoulders, and waist, Yu Shi stood up, put on a T-shirt, and sat back down in the chair to continue drying his hair, his expression indifferent.
As he dried his hair, he noticed a certain “butterfly” quietly approaching, circling around him again and again, seemingly very curious. Not only did it observe him, but it also leaned in to sniff at the back of his neck, nearly climbing onto him.
Yu Shi suddenly asked, “How much longer do you plan to watch?”
Feng Xuexiang was startled and said in surprise, “You can see me?”
Yu Shi put down the towel. “You don’t know me, do you? Why did you come here?”
Feng Xuexiang walked over to him, growing a bit nervous under his gaze. Suddenly, he tried to be endearing and said:
“I don’t remember why I liked you, but I do remember that I like you—I love you.”
Yu Shi’s eyes flickered slightly.
“When I see you, I feel at ease. I was really anxious before, but seeing you calmed me down.”
Feng Xuexiang then asked, “They say your name is Zhou Shi, is that right?”
Yu Shi replied, “My name is Yu Shi.”
“Yu Shi… Yu Shi.” Feng Xuexiang’s eyes lit up. “I remember that name!”
He didn’t question why Yu Shi had two different names. Noticing that Yu Shi’s demeanor had softened a bit, Feng Xuexiang’s true nature suddenly emerged. He wore a pained expression and said:
“When you ignored me earlier, I felt really scared… Ashi.”
The name slipped out naturally, and Feng Xuexiang felt even more content, less empty and lost than he had been since waking up.
“A few months ago, I told you that it didn’t matter if you couldn’t remember,” Yu Shi said slowly. “But just now, when I heard you ask who I was, I suddenly felt really hurt.”
At that moment, he found it far more difficult to remain calm than he had imagined, so he left without saying a word.
He hadn’t shown any outward signs of sorrow or pain, but Feng Xuexiang’s heart clenched tightly at his words. The pretense of helplessness and pity that Feng Xuexiang had deliberately put on suddenly became real, with a touch of anxiety added.
“Don’t be sad!” Feng Xuexiang exclaimed urgently, grabbing Yu Shi’s hand and pleading softly, “Don’t be upset!”
Hearing the person in front of him express sadness, Feng Xuexiang felt an overwhelming urge to do something, anything, to make him happy again.
A twisted sense of delight mixed with anxiety and restlessness welled up inside him, making it hard to maintain his composure.
“I was a bit angry, so I didn’t plan to come see you. But then I worried that if you woke up early, maybe something was wrong. I was afraid that after you woke up, not only would you forget me, but you’d forget everything else, and be left scared and uneasy, all alone.”
Yu Shi allowed Feng Xuexiang to hold his hand as he spoke, one sentence after another.
A flood of inexplicable emotions surged in Feng Xuexiang’s heart, and as he blinked, two tears rolled down his cheeks.
Yu Shi gently wiped the tears from his face. “You always know how to make my heart ache.”
“Yu Shi… Ashi…” Feng Xuexiang murmured.
“Is your body alright? Are you feeling any discomfort?” Yu Shi asked him.
Feng Xuexiang shook his head.
“Let me take a look.” Yu Shi, sitting on the large chair, spoke softly, “Undo your buttons and let me see.”
Feng Xuexiang obediently unbuttoned his shirt. Yu Shi held his waist and saw a fierce, bright red scar that nearly severed him at the waist.
He understood that this scar was from when Feng Xuexiang had failed to molt and had broken free halfway through.
Yu Shi leaned down and kissed the scar.
Feng Xuexiang trembled all over, feeling Yu Shi’s thumb gently rubbing the red mark on his waist, sending a tingling sensation throughout his body.
“Waking up on your own—was it exhausting? Was it difficult?”
Hearing Yu Shi’s gentle questioning, Feng Xuexiang couldn’t take it any longer. He melted like clay, collapsing onto Yu Shi, clinging to him, and murmured, “I don’t remember. I wasn’t tired, and it wasn’t difficult.”
