Chapter 62: No Response

Chapter 62: No Response

Ye Man's reaction, as if he had committed a heinous crime and was afraid of being discovered, left the system speechless.

"Why are you freaking out? Lv Junxing..." The system uttered the name, only to find Ye Man trembling at the mere mention of it, which made the system even more exasperated.

"It's just seven hamburgers. Don't you trust your guy? You think he’d dump you over seven stolen burgers?"

If the system recalled correctly, these two weren’t even officially dating. Is this how relationships work?

Ye Man looked down, his tone quite gloomy: "If he finds out, he will definitely break up with me."

"What kind of relationship is this? Do you even like Xu Huaiting? You don’t trust him at all, do you?"

"I do like him," Ye Man muttered sheepishly.

The system was skeptical.

It carefully pondered Ye Man's reaction and cautiously probed to confirm: "It’s not like how you feel about Royal Blue, is it?"

Then it saw Ye Man's confused expression.

At that moment, the system's host went cold.

Oh no, this greedy little liar just grabs whatever’s handed to him. Xu Huaiting confessed, and Ye Man latched onto him without thinking, even though he’s still a total mess!

Now, not only is Ye Man on edge in this relationship, but the system is also on edge.

If Xu Huaiting finds out this little liar likes him the same way he likes Royal Blue—full of half-truths and lies! Forget getting dumped—he might get chewed out later!

The system wanted to beg its Host again: "I was gonna say you’re a scaredy-cat over seven burgers, but now you’re acting all bold? Xu Huaiting isn’t someone you can just mess with!"

Isn’t this way worse than stealing a few burgers? If Xu Huaiting ever finds out Ye Man’s been toying with his feelings, it’s game over!

The system thought it could chill, but now it was back on edge.

"I don’t really get this stuff... It’s my first relationship..." Ye Man answered very guiltily. Xu Huaiting treats him well, and Ye Man wants that to never change. He doesn’t want Xu Huaiting to be as good to others as he is to him. Xu Huaiting must be his, Ye Man wants to keep him all to himself—no one can take him away, not even Xu Huaiting.

He’s downright scary.

Ye Man stubbornly said: "Then I’m not breaking up with him."

The system really didn’t know what to say to him.

"How am I supposed to relax with you acting like this..."

Ye Man didn’t hear the latter half of the sentence, as Chi Jue came knocking on the door to call him for dinner.

The Chi family ate their New Year’s dinner early, with another meal planned before midnight to ring in the New Year.

The Chi family hadn’t celebrated the New Year so lively in many years. Ye Man’s grandma cooked a few dishes herself and handed him the chopsticks: "Try it, it’s different from what the home chef makes."

Perhaps it was a bit of a psychological effect, but Ye Man really felt an indescribable aroma of the food, even though the ingredients used were similar—shrimp, fish, meat, and the like.

He nodded vigorously, and his grandma, seeing that he enjoyed it, was also happy. She patted his head and said that if he ever missed her cooking, he should call her.

Ye Man thought of Lv Junxing, that little girl who only had her grandmother by her side but was very happy, and he felt a sense of dislocation, suspecting that he was in a dream.

He squinted, trying to make out his surroundings—if only he could see clearly now. But after a while, he gave up, realizing it was hopeless.

Throughout dinner, the atmosphere was lively, with Chi Jue and Chi Yan sitting on either side of him, ready to look after him at any time.

After the meal, the elders asked about the younger generation's well-being. Ye Man, blushing, showed off his origami skills to everyone.

A sheet of paper folded into various shapes in his hands, and soon, a cute rabbit came to life. Though he thought it wasn't much, he received hearty praise from the elders.

Grandma Chi took the rabbit from his hands and admired it repeatedly: "Our Xiao Man is so handy. How can you fold something so complex so well?"

His grandmother snapped a photo and posted it on her social media.

Ye Man, who is always quick to praise others, now felt elated by the compliments, his head spinning with joy. Surrounded by his grandparents and grandmother, he excitedly declared: "I! I can also fold a rose!"

This was met with a round of hearty applause from those around.

Chi Jue, watching from the sidelines, shook his head, smiling, and said to Chi Yan, who was still busy on his computer despite the festive season: "Look, four kids."

Chi Yan glanced up, a faint smile playing on his lips.

Chi Jue: "Xiao Man's rabbit is quite cute. He gave me two, and I set them on my office desk. My assistant always takes a second look whenever she comes in."

Chi Yan turned to look at Chi Jue.

Chi Jue slapped his forehead, pretending to be surprised: "No way, could it be that big brother hasn't received a paper rabbit from Xiao Man?"

Chi Yan's smile faded.

"Oh, really not." Looks like big brother will be upset all night.

Chi Jue chuckled quietly.

At half-past eleven at night, Ye Man, overwhelmed by all the praise, decided to step out onto the balcony to cool off and clear his head.

"If the CPU overheats, it won't work right," Ye Man muttered, though his tone was cheerful. "I really don't want to be turned into a fool by all this praise."

Everything was going great, almost too good to be true.

"..."

"Brother Tong?"

"..."

Ye Man felt his heart sink.

"Brother Tong? Why aren't you talking?"

"Zzz... speaking... here..."

"Brother Tong? Are you okay?"

Ye Man strained his ears to listen, feeling a bit nervous. Fortunately, the system's disconnection was brief and quickly resumed.

"...the signal was poor, I fixed it. What were you saying?"

"Nothing," Ye Man said, "Brother Tong, you need to stay with me."

"...Okay."

Ye Man breathed a sigh of relief.

The door behind opened, and Qin Fangrui, wrapped in a shawl, came out holding a thick sweater. "Your grandma was worried you'd catch a cold, so she told me to bring you a coat."

"Thank you, Mom."

After handing over the coat, Qin Fangrui didn't leave. She leaned on the railing, mirroring Ye Man's posture.

It was quiet; neither spoke.

After a while, Ye Man heard the person beside him speak in a distant, almost dreamlike tone: "I'm fifty-two this year, to be honest, I've lived more than half my life."

Her voice was more of a low murmur, as if talking to herself.

As midnight approached, the distant sound of firecrackers echoed from outside, indistinct as to where it originated, nearly drowning out her words.

"Suddenly being told there was a mix-up with the child, that I had to switch sons, at that moment, I felt..."

She took a deep breath, the cold air rushing straight into her lungs, making her whole body feel as if it were frozen.

"What a mess," she said, her tone sounding somewhat indifferent.

"Why did this have to happen to me, why not someone else's family, making me deal with this at my age," she complained, rubbing her arms, not daring to look at the person beside her.

She murmured, "...Sorry, that sounds quite hurtful."

Ye Man, surprisingly, felt little, shaking his head, "It's okay."

Qin Fangrui looked at the shadow under the light, "I've thought about it, if it were the kind of situation where a child was lost, searched for decades, and finally reunited with their mother, they would probably cherish the child like the apple of their eye and cry on the spot."

She finally turned to look at Ye Man, examining the young man beside her, as if in a daze, "It was quite painful when I gave birth to you, I thought I would remember it for a lifetime."

Leaning on the railing, her waist bending more and more, she suddenly buried her face in her arms and broke down crying.

She cried and said, "Now I can't remember it at all!"

Ye Man was startled, flusteredly patting her back. He didn't know what she was crying about, it seemed both trivial and deeply painful.

On the other side of the wall, Chi Jue sat on the ground leaning against the wall, his head bowed low.

Chi Yanrong walked over, sat beside him, patted his shoulder, and let out a silent sigh.

"I'm sorry..." Qin Fangrui cried, "I've... missed the chance to love you unconditionally..."

Ye Man's hand patting Qin Fangrui's back paused.

He stubbornly pursed his lips, saying seriously, "I won't love you unconditionally either."

He felt that Qin Fangrui, or perhaps the Chi Family, might have misunderstood something about him all along.

He wasn't a child who had always stayed in an empty room, desperately waiting for them to turn around and love him.

Nor was he someone who, upon being told these people were his real family, would immediately and joyfully rush to be affectionate with them.

Ye Man had grown up.

He had his own past and life trajectory, he had long been a complete and independent person. They were originally two parallel lines that did not intersect, only intersecting at a certain moment, after which Ye Man still had to be Ye Man.

If he was unhappy, he would retaliate against those who bullied him in his own way; he might fail, he might get hurt, but after that, he would still stand up; his methods might not be the most sophisticated, but he never considered himself completely defeated, next time he would gather himself and come back again.

"We, the vicious side characters, are like this," Ye Man said to the system with a sinister pride, "Even when everything is settled, we'll keep popping up to cause trouble!"

"Brother Tong! Bonus points!"

The system let out a sigh, never before so sincerely saying to him: "Ding."

It used the same stern tone as Ye Man: "I declare, Ye Man, you are an outstanding graduate of our villainous cannon fodder league!"

"Yay!"

Qin Fangrui gazed at him, stunned. The boy, who had always been obedient and well-behaved, now raised his eyebrows in delight, proud and radiating vibrant energy.

He had already grown up well.

Tears streamed down her face as she laughed softly, "That's good too."

He’s just fine the way he is now.

His phone buzzed.

Ye Man picked up the call.

Xu Huaiting's voice came through the phone, accompanied by an odd noise.

"Woof woof!"

The sound came through the receiver, echoing from outside the wall.

"Xiao Man, happy New Year!"

Ye Man gasped, "How did you get here?"

"I just wanted to spend New Year’s with you where I could see you. I’ll leave soon."

"Wait a sec!" Remembering Qin Fangrui was nearby, he whispered, "Don’t leave. Wait for me."

After saying goodbye to his family, Ye Man went back to his room to grab something and took it to Xu Huaiting.

Ye Man stepped out of the courtyard gate and joyfully leaped into Xu Huaiting’s arms, saying, "This is for you."

The boy, his face flushed, presented a glass jar filled with colorful origami rabbits to Xu Huaiting.

"Every day since I got back from the boat, I folded one. I saved up so many, all for you!" He tiptoed closer to him, showing off his treasure.

For a moment, Xu Huaiting felt his chest swell with emotion, a mix of sweetness and ache, almost too much to bear.

He couldn’t help but hold the person who had come close, leaned in to kiss him, and lightly bit: "Micio."

"Woof woof!"

Something was barking at Ye Man's feet.

Xu Huaiting kept kissing Ye Man’s face, his affection seemingly endless. Initially shy and enjoying it, Ye Man eventually had to push away the man who was almost sticking his mouth to his face, "Did you bring a dog?"

"Mm," Xu Huaiting took his hand, leading him to touch the big golden retriever: "Guide dog."

Ye Man exclaimed, turning his head in surprise.

The golden retriever licked his palm, tickling.

Xu Huaiting: "I brought it over for you to see. It just finished training, and I got a bit of training too. So, I’ll be training you next."

The process of certifying a guide dog is quite complex, requiring not only the training of the dog but also the training of the person.

Ye Man didn't make a sound, and Xu Huaiting gave his ear a playful but firm pinch: "Not willing?"

"No..." Ye Man replied, "Ricardo, will you always love me?"

"Hmm..." Xu Huaiting hesitated, thinking.

Ye Man puffed up his face unhappily, "You know there's no turning back, right?"

Xu Huaiting pinched his face: "You're silly."

"Woof!"

Ye Man felt ganged up on by both the person and the dog.

But the night was still enjoyable overall.

Maybe it was the joy, or perhaps hearing Lv Junxing's name mentioned earlier that day, Ye Man had that dream again when he slept at night.

He hadn't had a dream in a long time.

In the dream, he was back in that dark, old, narrow stairwell.

The air was thick with dust.

Ye Man ran with a limp, drenched in sweat. He ran desperately, as if something was hot on his heels.

Ahead, he spotted a small figure standing in the distance.

Ye Man heard himself calling out a name, but it was lost in the chaos of the dream.

He finally caught up to the person, close enough to see the pattern on their dress.

Ye Man's heart pounded like thunder, his breath caught in his throat as he forced out the words: "Quick... report... jin..."

Suddenly, a massive hand reached out from behind, covering his face and yanking him back into the darkness.

With one eye, he peered through the fingers at the figure fading into the distance.

A voice whispered to him: "Shh, be quiet."

...

Ye Man's eyes snapped open.

Sweat trickled down his neck.

His throat dry, he fumbled for his phone.

『Current time: 3:15 AM』

It had been a long time since he'd woken up in the middle of the night.

The room was unnervingly silent.

After a moment, he noticed the system's storytelling voice, which usually played all night, had stopped.

Ye Man stayed half-upright, clutching his phone.

In a faint, shaky voice, he called out, "Brother Tong?"

Seconds ticked by.

There was no reply.

A heavy silence filled the room, amplifying his unease.