The next day, the police immediately began interrogating the two teenage suspects.

Although she hadn’t gotten to bed until 4 AM the previous night, You Mingxu arrived at the police station on time. Along the way, many people asked concernedly: “Sister You, how is Author Yin after yesterday?” “Is Author Yin alright?”

You Mingxu answered, “He’s fine. He went to sleep as soon as we got home. The doctor will examine him again today.”

When she entered the office, both Xu Mengshan and Fan Jia looked up at her. You Mingxu sat down impassively and began organizing documents. Fan Jia’s chair “whooshed” over as she leaned in to whisper: “Sister You, I heard you and Author Yin got together yesterday?”

You Mingxu’s hand paused, but before she could answer, Xu Mengshan also “whooshed” over, wearing a punch-worthy expression while speaking to Fan Jia: “Or maybe Author Yin got together with Sister You. He was quite… passionate in the car yesterday.”

You Mingxu: “Nothing happened.”

“Oh really?” “Oh really?”

Just then, a colleague called from the doorway: “Meeting time!” You Mingxu was saved, immediately standing up and walking out with a stern expression. Xu Mengshan followed with a slight smile. Fan Jia rushed ahead a few steps, whispering: “Did you kiss Author Yin? What’s going on here?”

Her friend’s face showed not only curiosity and excitement but also concern and doubt. You Mingxu understood immediately what that concern was about, and it made her inexplicably uncomfortable.

In her mind, she recalled this morning when she’d quietly pushed open Yin Feng’s door to find him still sleeping in his usual frog-like position, sprawled out on the bed with drool at the corner of his mouth, snoring softly.

She rubbed her temples and, seeing Fan Jia still blinking expectantly, smiled and said: “Don’t take it seriously. Neither of us will. It’s no different from kissing a cat or dog.”

Despite saying this, after the briefing, as You Mingxu walked with Xu Mengshan toward the interrogation room, notebook in hand, her phone buzzed with a message.

She looked down to see Yin Feng’s text: “I’m awake!”

She put the phone down and turned it off. Looking up at the hallway, where thin daylight shone through clearly and brightly, last night’s scenes flooded her mind.

Yesterday… had she lost her mind?

Just thinking about it made You Mingxu’s mouth twitch, her mood plummeting.

She must have been completely senseless.

During the latter half of the car ride yesterday, they hadn’t kissed anymore, just held each other, faces touching, him holding her waist, her leaning into his embrace. Then somehow, with bright eyes, he’d kept talking to her about meaningless things.

“Ah Xu, I want to eat buns for breakfast tomorrow.” “Mm…”

“I’m going to wear that yellow Ultraman shirt tomorrow.” “Mm…”

“Ah Xu, are you hungry? I’m a bit hungry.” “I’m not hungry.”

“Ah Xu, are you still cold? I’m not cold anymore.” “I’m not cold either.”

…

Was this how children behaved when they were happy and excited, talking about such trivial things? Thinking of this, You Mingxu’s lips curved into a smile…

Wait! Why was she still smiling?

You Mingxu immediately forced her expression to drop, frowning deeper as she remembered how she’d been even more forward than him last night.

At that time… how had it felt? Her mind had been completely hazy, unwilling to think about what it meant. She just hadn’t wanted to resist.

Damn. She wanted to punch herself.

Later at home, Xu Mengshan had acted so calm, saying seriously: “Sister You, Teacher Yin, rest well.” Thinking of this, You Mingxu shot a sideways glance at her partner. Xu Mengshan’s eyes still held that faint smile, fox-like.

You Mingxu remembered how, under Xu Mengshan’s watching eyes, Yin Feng had held her hand as they went upstairs. At that moment, her heart had felt completely at peace, her mind still muddled, offering no resistance…

Once home, Yin Feng had collapsed onto his bed and fallen asleep. She too had fallen into her bed, sleeping incredibly sweetly, unwilling to think about anything…

Standing at the interrogation room door, You Mingxu flicked her forehead several times, hard enough to hurt. After finishing, she walked in expressionlessly with Xu Mengshan.

—

This was a very common yet completely unimaginable story.

From childhood, Li Biran had lived in a relatively privileged environment. His parents ran a small business away from home—not wealthy, but certainly comfortable. So he had always been a proud boy.

Proud and lonely.

His parents only came home during the holidays.

During these times, his parents were excited and full of accomplishment and self-satisfaction. After all, they’d worked hard all year and saved some money. Though their child wasn’t by their side, wasn’t all this struggle for him? Besides, he’d grown up fine with his grandparents before, and now with his aunt and uncle. Look at him, almost a young man now.

During the brief ten-day Spring Festival holiday, his parents would take Li Biran to visit relatives and friends, hurried yet lively, until the day of departure gradually approached.

As parents, they still felt somewhat uncomfortable. Both for their child and for their sacrifices and hardships. So they never let Li Biran want money. Before he entered high school, compared to his peers, he was well-off.

Li Biran’s personality was probably shaped by these various factors.

Compared to other children, he certainly felt superior. He had more money and more freedom, and his grandparents spoiled him, increasingly unable to control him. Although his parents weren’t around, which sometimes made him feel terrible, feeling they hadn’t sacrificed anything for him. He remembered crying sometimes in elementary school, calling to ask for his mother. Gradually, it seemed to matter less. Parents were just parents, that’s all there was to it. Raising him was their duty. As long as they didn’t shortchange him on money, it was fine. When they came back, they tried to control everything, which made him uncomfortable anyway.

As for Xie Huifang, she was truly the person Li Biran despised most. When he first started living with them, she had been polite, and though she liked to lecture, she didn’t dare go too far. But as time passed, the old witch showed her true colors. She started controlling everything—when he went to class, when he came back, where he went after school, who his friends were, whether he went to internet cafes…

Who did she think she was? If it weren’t for his mother giving her 1,000 yuan monthly, would she be willing to let him live there? Would she care about him?

What annoyed Li Biran most was how Xie Huifang always liked to lecture about how his parents, her sister, and brother-in-law, worked so hard away from home; how taking care of two kids plus watching him wasn’t for the 1,000 yuan but because they were family; how Li Biran didn’t study hard, while her daughter and son were so sensible, telling him to act more like an older brother… Worse, her daughter would act all high and mighty, immediately reporting to Xie Huifang whenever she caught him smoking or playing games. Damn it.

Li Biran grew increasingly tired of their home. This wasn’t his home at all. But he was trapped here like a caged beast.

Whenever the youth thought of this, he felt a deep sense of world-weariness, of being deeply wounded with no one to understand.