You Mingxu hadn’t expected that upon meeting Yin Feng, she would immediately be pulled onto his lap.

There were two chairs available.

Feeling uncomfortable, she tried to push against his chest to stand up, but he caught her hand. “Don’t push,” he said. “What if you accidentally touch my wound and it starts bleeding?”

You Mingxu froze. Looking at him, she suddenly remembered how Jing Ping, right after being discharged from the hospital, had invited her to fight and even threatened to teach her a lesson, showing no concern for his wounds at all. Yet here was this guy, afraid of bleeding from a mere touch, shamelessly insisting on holding her. And look at him, acting like it was perfectly natural with that deep gaze of his.

You Mingxu couldn’t help but smile.

This was her choice after all. No matter how weak or thick-skinned he might be, she’d have to put up with it.

“How am I supposed to eat like this?” she asked.

Yin Feng raised his eyebrows. “Bring that plate over here too.”

“Fine,” You Mingxu answered decisively.

When Yin Feng loosened his grip, she immediately moved to sit across from him, picking up her knife and fork.

Yin Feng felt empty without her in his arms and was slightly displeased, but he didn’t rush, eating slowly instead.

They talked about what had happened to each of them recently – he spoke about his injuries, she about work. Before they knew it, they had finished eating.

“Don’t clean up, let Xiao Yan handle it later,” Yin Feng said. “Let’s go for a walk downstairs to help digest.”

You Mingxu glanced at him. “Can you walk?”

“As long as it’s not… too vigorous activity, everything’s fine,” he replied.

You Mingxu gave him another look, but he had already taken her hand, leading her downstairs.

The four people downstairs were still drinking. Seeing the two of them, they called out in unison: “Boss’s wife!” Nobody called out to Yin Feng. You Mingxu’s eyebrow twitched, but Yin Feng smiled, whispering to her, “Boss’s wife, shall we go?”

You Mingxu reached inside his jacket and pinched his waist. He just looked at her, offering no resistance. She withdrew her hand and turned to walk outside.

The weather was beautiful today, with bright, scattered stars and warm air. They strolled among the flower beds, soon leaving the house far behind. They were surrounded by trees and flowers, enveloped by the night, far from the world beyond the gates.

After walking in silence for a while, Yin Feng said, “Will you move in tomorrow?”

You Mingxu looked at a cluster of flowers by the path and replied, “I’m still more comfortable living alone.”

Yin Feng’s grip on her hand tightened.

You Mingxu brought up the old topic, partly teasing: “What about that thing? Have you remembered it? You just want me to move in?”

Yin Feng was quiet for a moment, his eyes seeming to surge with something, yet also appearing empty.

“The Punisher organization will seek revenge against me,” he said. “The villa has better security systems, and with Tu Ya and the others here, I’d feel more at ease if you lived here.”

So that was the reason. You Mingxu thought for a moment, then nodded. “Alright, but prepare a separate room for me.”

Yin Feng remained silent, walking a few more steps before pointing ahead. “There are some rare flowers over there that I brought back from abroad. Let’s go take a look.”

You Mingxu grabbed his hand. “Did you hear me?”

Yin Feng just smiled and said, “We’ll talk about it tomorrow.”

You Mingxu’s heart fluttered, inexplicable emotions seemingly spreading with the night air. She maintained a calm expression.

They looked at the flowers and walked to the edge of the pond, where Yin Feng pulled her to sit on a bench. Worried about tiring him, You Mingxu turned to check his expression.

Yin Feng pulled her into his arms and onto his lap.

This time, You Mingxu didn’t resist. Instead, she rested her head on his shoulder as they quietly gazed at the night scene together. It was extremely quiet around them, surrounded by flowers and plants, with occasional splashes from fish jumping in the pond.

After stroking her hair for a while, one of his hands slipped under the hem of her clothes as he leaned down to kiss her.

……

When they returned to the villa hand in hand, the night had grown deep. The house was quiet, and the four people had disappeared somewhere.

Yin Feng didn’t turn on the lights as he led You Mingxu upstairs, step by step, surrounded by pitch darkness. You Mingxu didn’t think to turn on the lights either; something was intoxicating about the darkness.

Even when Yin Feng pulled her into the master bedroom and closed the door, You Mingxu hadn’t thought much of it. Since he had just been discharged from the hospital, she didn’t think he could do anything to her, so she planned to keep him company for a while before going home.

But after they entered the room, he still didn’t turn on the lights. You Mingxu watched his dim silhouette in the darkness, remaining silent.

He kept holding her hand as they walked to the bed. He turned on a bedside lamp, then sat down and pulled her into his arms, holding her just as he had by the pond. His voice was hoarse: “I already showered this afternoon.”

You Mingxu said, “Are you crazy? You just got out of the hospital, what are you planning to do?”

His features looked somewhat dreamy in the dim light, his eyes carrying an unfathomable smile. “It’s fine if we’re not too intense. Worst case, I’ll be on the bottom again this time. It’s been so long – don’t you want to?”

You Mingxu had never felt her heart beat so fast before. Suddenly, something clicked, and she caught the slip in his words. She got off his lap and sat beside him, asking, “You remembered?”

Though she hadn’t specified what she meant by “remembered,” they both knew what she was referring to.

He caressed her face, leaned in for another kiss, and said, “Yes, I remember everything.”

You Mingxu’s emotions suddenly became difficult to control, even becoming somewhat agitated. She asked, “When did you remember?”

Holding her waist, Yin Feng said, “The night of the surgery, I kept dreaming for a while. When I woke up, I remembered everything.”

“Why didn’t you tell me?”

“It was enough that I knew.” His hand slipped under her clothes again, but she blocked it.

They stared at each other silently for a moment, then Yin Feng simply wrapped both arms around her waist and, with a gentle force, pushed her down onto the bed.

In the darkness, after kissing for a while, he tried to unbutton her clothes but was blocked again.

He was very close to her, looking down as he said, “Xu’er, you don’t want to?”

His voice was deep yet somewhat soft, carrying You Yingjun’s characteristic petulance. You Mingxu’s heart suddenly churned as she thought about what he’d said – that he remembered everything. This meant that all those days spent with Yingjun, his careful pursuit and persistent attachment, her hesitation and entanglement, and Yingjun’s silent waiting, all of Yingjun’s joy and sorrow – the man before her remembered it all?

You Mingxu’s eyes suddenly grew hot. She flipped them over, very smoothly pinning him beneath her. He still looked up at her, his gaze even deeper than before.

“If you remembered, why did you…” You Mingxu trailed off, “…what’s been bothering you all this time? And why only admit it today?”

His gaze flickered, but he remained silent.

This confirmed You Mingxu’s suspicions that something had been off about him since he woke up. It had been over a month, and he hadn’t told her the truth. But she couldn’t figure out exactly what was wrong.

So she asked, “Could it be that you find your past self as Yingjun embarrassing? That you felt disappointed after remembering?”

Yin Feng’s Adam’s apple bobbed as he answered, “I had been hurt so badly back then, yet I could become Yingjun, help you solve cases – that just proves how exceptional I am. What’s there to be embarrassed about? Besides, most of the embarrassing moments were only seen by you.”

His narcissism knew no bounds. You Mingxu felt somewhat relieved and asked again, “Then what is it? Did you remember something else?”

Perhaps with You Mingxu’s lifelong straightforward and clear approach to emotions, she could never guess the reason for Yin Feng’s melancholy these past months, even if she racked her brains.

And Yin Feng, looking at her clear, concerned eyes in the dim light, slowly took a breath.

Should he tell her?

Should he tell her that his depression and anxiety after waking up were simply because he was afraid of losing her? That he couldn’t face it at all.

Because he had never loved someone like this before.

Once spoken, he feared he would be past the point of no return.