His eyes sparkled with excitement. You Mingxu let out a scoff and was about to speak when Yin Feng, though still nervous inside, quickly added with his mind racing, “Are you afraid of losing? Officer Xu, you’re such a capable police officer, you should be braver!”

This made You Mingxu laugh, thinking to herself that this boy was becoming quite clever, even learning to use reverse psychology. She tapped the armrest of her chair twice and said, “Fine, I’ll take that bet. If I win, and this case proves not to be a revenge killing, you’ll have to stop following me around during investigations and do exactly as I say. When I tell you to go east, don’t you dare go west, and when I tell you to sleep, no more watching TV. Understood?”

Yin Feng hesitated for a moment, biting his lip as he nodded, then quickly glanced at her and said, “You listed two conditions, so I want to add one more.”

“What is it?”

He lowered his eyes and said slowly, “That person from today… don’t talk to him anymore.”

When he mentioned Luo Yu, You Mingxu was taken aback, thinking that the man was indeed like a mangy dog, both nasty and annoying. She replied, “I had no intention of dealing with him anyway. In the future, make sure Chen Feng accompanies you when you go out. If you encounter him, avoid confrontation and ensure your safety first. He’s not a good person.”

Yin Feng blinked, his lips quickly curling into a slight smile as he answered, “Mm.” Then he stood up to leave.

You Mingxu asked, “Where are you going?”

He replied, “I’m going to pack my bags. I’ll be investigating cases with you soon. I’ve never worked overtime before – should I bring enough food and water?”

You Mingxu suddenly had the urge to kick his perky bottom, but she pressed her temples and restrained herself.

Shortly after, Yin Feng returned. His handsome face wore a smile, and he had a bag slung over his shoulder as he sat back down beside You Mingxu.

You Mingxu couldn’t help but ask curiously, “What did you pack?”

This was exactly what he had been waiting for, and he immediately dumped out the contents of his bag. You Mingxu saw that he had packed quite sensibly: change of clothes, voice recorder, gloves, shoe covers, camera, notebook, bread, chocolate beans, water… he’d even included a compact retractable baton for self-defense.

You Mingxu watched him fiddle with the items and said, “Why are you so insistent on following me during investigations? Weren’t you an author before? Chen Feng mentioned that you had a large, well-decorated writing room set up for yourself. Wouldn’t you rather be there writing books and creating stories? It would be so much more comfortable, and it’s something you enjoyed doing.”

Yin Feng answered, “I don’t want to go there.”

“Why not?”

Just then, someone knocked on the balcony door, and Chen Feng came out carrying a plate of cut fruit.

Yin Feng replied, “I don’t know. I can’t remember much about my past life. Little Feng also suggested I continue writing, saying it might help me recover my memories faster. But whenever I think about going back to the writing room, to live the life that Yin Feng lived, it makes me very uncomfortable. I don’t want to go, Ah Xu, I won’t go.”

You Mingxu was stunned. Hadn’t he been… very successful before?

Chen Feng stood to the side, watching Yin Feng in silence.

You Mingxu glanced at Chen Feng and asked, “Yin Feng, do you remember what, or who makes you feel so uncomfortable that you don’t want to return to your previous life?”

Yin Feng shook his head.

You Mingxu: “Is it Chen Feng?”

Chen Feng’s expression changed slightly.

Yin Feng looked up at Chen Feng and said, “Little Feng is very obedient. Though not cute, I don’t dislike him.”

Chen Feng finally smiled.

You Mingxu asked again, “Then is it that woman from last time, called…” She glanced at Chen Feng, who supplied, “Su Ziyi.”

Yin Feng had to think for a moment before remembering who they were talking about, then shook his head and said, “She is a bit annoying, but she has nothing to do with me. I wouldn’t waste energy caring about her. The person who makes me feel completely uncomfortable isn’t her.”

You Mingxu asked casually, “Then who is it?”

Chen Feng’s face remained perfectly composed.

Yin Feng’s brows furrowed deeply, and after a while, he said, “I don’t know who it is. But every time I try hard to remember the past, I feel very uncomfortable. I always feel like there’s someone there, watching me, staring at me, threatening me. I can’t remember who they are, but I know they’re there! In my past life, like a dark cloud, always following me. I don’t want to go back to the past at all, I don’t want to see them!”

His emotions had become agitated, his complexion poor, lips tightly pressed together, somewhat resembling the frightened yet stubborn appearance You Mingxu had first encountered in Tibet.

You Mingxu and Chen Feng both remained silent.

Yin Feng, however, had fallen into fragments of blurry, disconnected memories. These days, he had been following the doctor’s orders, trying to recall his past. He hadn’t told You Mingxu, but some images were already hazily forming in his mind, and he knew his memories were probably slowly starting to return: such as himself working in a very large room, writing; holding a wine glass and chatting happily with a group of people; even that Su Ziyi, standing beside him, both of them silent.

There were also memories of himself alone in a dim room, crouching on the floor, clutching his hair. He couldn’t remember what he had been doing then, only that he must have been in extreme pain. That must be why wine glasses were shattered everywhere, and he saw himself laughing in a very strange way…

As for the existence of “that person,” it was more of a feeling. He could even sense that this person had been observing his past self’s life. Making the past Yin Feng feel like he had met his match, while also feeling lonely, frightened, and silently hysterical.

…

After remembering these few instances, Yin Feng felt somewhat annoyed. He felt his past self was too complicated, and affected, with too many troubles weighing on his mind. So he became reluctant to think about it anymore. Partly to avoid exploring the existence of “that person,” somewhat escapist. Also, compared to his past “self,” Yin Feng felt his current life was much more carefree and pleasant.

As Yin Feng gradually drifted into a trance, You Mingxu only saw him leaning back in his chair, eyes fixed on the night sky, not moving for long moments. This was the “half-dazed” state You Mingxu was used to, but at least his emotions had calmed down. She didn’t disturb him, instead turning to look at Chen Feng, saying softly, “It seems we need to find time to have a proper discussion about his past.”

When she said this, Chen Feng felt slightly hurt. After all, he was the one who had followed Yin Feng for many years, standing firmly on Teacher Yin’s side. Now You Mingxu’s tone carried something of an interrogative quality.

However, Chen Feng quickly adjusted his emotions. You Mingxu’s protectiveness of Yin Feng aligned with his position, which was naturally a good thing.

But still…

Chen Feng said, “Whatever I can tell you, I will hold nothing back. But some things, only the past Teacher Yin knew, and he alone.”