Chapter 91 Illness Exposed, Turns Out I Also Have a Crush on Yu Xing…

Chapter 91: The Truth Comes Out... Turns Out I Also Had a Crush on Yu Xing...

Zhao Lan hadn’t expected those words from him. Following Di Shensi’s gaze, she saw Yu Xing feigning sleep. For a moment, Zhao Lan’s thoughts spun wildly, unsure whether to tell the truth or cover for Yu Xing.

Before she could make up her mind, Da Ya couldn’t take it anymore and blurted, "Xingxing was doing her business at the time, so she didn’t see anything. So what?"

Di Shensi clearly hadn’t expected that answer. He hesitated, then asked Zhao Lan, "Is that true?"

"It really is..." Zhao Lan was telling the truth. "She was indeed... taking care of personal needs at the time."

A muscle jumped in Di Shensi’s jaw. "But you just said all four of you were together when Bull Warrior appeared."

"Xingxing wasn’t far from us," Zhao Lan explained. "She was behind a big rock nearby. You’ve been there—you must remember the pile of large rocks, right?"

Di Shensi didn’t need to recall to know that there was indeed a pile of large rocks there. He had even discovered a corpse behind them and lingered for quite a while. His mood grew even more complicated.

From his observation, neither Zhao Lan nor Da Ya seemed to be lying. He doubted these young women were that good at acting. He’d reviewed their files—aside from Miao Yuanjin, they were all ordinary.

Seeing that he couldn’t get anything more from the others, Di Shensi turned his attention to the back of Yu Xing’s head. "Stop pretending to sleep. I have questions for you."

Zhao Lan and the others all stared at Yu Xing, who kept her eyes tightly shut, committing to the charade.

Whether she was asleep or not, everyone present knew the truth. Her blatant faking only made Zhao Lan and the others feel awkward.

The trio exchanged glances, thinking, *Xingxing’s shameless—no wonder she’s our group leader.*

"Tsk." Di Shensi was completely fed up. He stood up abruptly.

Zhao Lan and the others widened their eyes, afraid he might do something to her. They immediately started shaking her.

"Xingxing, wake up."

"Wake up, wake up."

"Come on, wake up..."

Yu Xing could no longer keep up the act. Putting on her best drama queen act, she gave a dramatic little moan and slowly opened her eyes, feigning confusion. "Huh? What? What happened?"

"..."

Da Ya and Miao Yuanjin cringed at her awful performance and looked away in secondhand embarrassment. Zhao Lan gritted her teeth and said, "The officer has questions for you."

Yu Xing reluctantly looked at Di Shensi, thinking he was a total pain in the ass.

Di Shensi acted as if he couldn’t see through her pathetic act and said seriously, "Bull Warrior’s whole spectacle was so big—I refuse to believe you didn’t see anything."

Yu Xing blinked. "I... did see it."

Di Shensi’s temple pulsed as he suppressed his anger. "Then why did you say you didn’t see anything when I asked you yesterday?"

Yu Xing blinked again, playing dumb. "You asked if I saw any *strange* people. Is Bull Warrior strange?"

"..."

Di Shensi nearly had an aneurysm.

He loomed over Yu Xing for a long time.

Unable to endure his intense gaze, Yu Xing burrowed into Miao Yuanjin like a scared rabbit. Miao Yuanjin raised a finger at Di Shensi. "Back off. We’re not criminals or your subordinates. Don’t think being a lieutenant colonel makes you so great. One call from me, and you’ll be sent home to a desk job—got it?"

Di Shensi drew a measured breath and stepped back, returning to his seat.

"Hmph!" Miao Yuanjin scowled at him with utter contempt before wrapping an arm around Yu Xing. "Let’s sleep!"

"Mhm." Yu Xing snuggled into Miao Yuanjin’s embrace and closed her eyes.

For the rest of the journey, Di Shensi didn’t speak to them again. He even changed seats to a spot where they couldn’t see each other.

They all exhaled in relief.

Miao Yuanjin was preening like a peacock. "He must be scared of me. He’s afraid of being sent home to a desk job."

Zhao Lan glanced at Yu Xing. She had noticed Di Shensi’s suspicion toward Yu Xing and wondered—what about Yu Xing could possibly make him suspicious? Was it related to Bull Warrior?

"Xingxing," Zhao Lan whispered, "did he board this train specifically for you? Do you know why he’s doing this?"

By now, Yu Xing had enjoyed a good nap and was refreshed, picking at the dessert Miao Yuanjin had bought for her. At the question, she froze mid-bite, eyes darting.

"Yeah, why *is* he doing this?" Miao Yuanjin chimed in. "Just say it. Whatever it is, I’ll handle it."

Yu Xing swallowed a bite of dessert, her Adam’s apple bobbing.

Her gaze swept over the three of them before she set her jaw.

The tension wasn’t just among Zhao Lan and the others—Di Shensi, though out of sight, could still hear their conversation. His back stiffened as he listened intently, waiting for Yu Xing’s bombshell.

After gathering her resolve, Yu Xing declared with absolute seriousness, "He has a crush on me."

"..."

"Wait, what?" Zhao Lan wondered if she’d misheard.

Miao Yuanjin and Da Ya wore equally dumbfounded expressions.

"If he didn’t like me, why would he track me down onto this train? Doesn’t he have his own things to do?" Yu Xing analyzed seriously. "The reason he’s been so on my case is to get my attention. But he’s reading too much into it. Sure, he’s handsome, but he’s *not* my type."

"..."

For a moment, Zhao Lan, the others, and even Di Shensi were stunned.

They felt... utterly disoriented, their minds too scrambled to process anything.

Miao Yuanjin stared blankly. Something felt off, but her brain couldn’t function. She asked, "Then who *is* your type? Shen Tanrong?"

Yu Xing’s expression turned conflicted. She had *zero* romantic interest in Shen Tanrong, but she couldn’t explain further, so she simply stayed silent.

Zhao Lan studied Yu Xing. Her expression was stone-cold serious—she didn’t seem to be joking.

But how could that be? Di Shensi’s behavior clearly showed suspicion toward Yu Xing, not a crush. Besides, after years in the military and reaching his current rank, was Di Shensi really the type to go lovesick puppy over someone?

Yet Yu Xing looked so earnest...

Suddenly, Zhao Lan felt a strange sense of familiarity. Hadn’t Yu Xing once said the same thing about Bishop Lance having a crush on her back in the church?

Zhao Lan gasped audibly. She looked at Yu Xing as if really seeing her for the first time, then said, "Xingxing, we need to talk."

With that, she stood and headed toward the restroom.

Miao Yuanjin said unhappily, "What's the matter that needs to be said privately? Can't we know about it?"

Zhao Lan wasn’t in the mood to deal with Miao Yuanjin. She grabbed Yu Xing's sleeve and dragged her into the bathroom.

Inside the restroom, Yu Xing crossed her arms; Zhao Lan’s intense stare made her nervous.

After closing the door, Zhao Lan turned around, locking eyes with Yu Xing. "Xingxing, does Fei Mingming have a crush on you?"

Yu Xing flinched, not understanding why she asked this. But since Zhao Lan asked, Yu Xing nodded anyway. "Yes... why?"

Zhao Lan's breath caught. She stared at Yu Xing, then suddenly went to touch her face.

Yu Xing quickly dodged—her face wasn't covered by the Celestial Serpent Feathered Robe, so it was off-limits.

"Xingxing." Zhao Lan lowered her hand and moved in close, her voice turning suggestive. She whispered, "Actually, I've always felt..."

What is she doing?!

Yu Xing's warning bells went off. Was Zhao Lan finally unable to suppress her surging emotions? Was she about to confess her love?

Yu Xing jumped back, but the restroom was too cramped, and she immediately bumped against the carriage wall. Trapped, Yu Xing hesitated and said, "Don't be like this. I just want to be friends with you!"

Zhao Lan: "..."

Now Zhao Lan understood everything—she liked Yu Xing too.

For a moment, she was at a loss for words. All the previous oddities suddenly made sense.

She fell silent, and so did Yu Xing. The bathroom was dead silent.

Finally, Zhao Lan spoke up again. She asked Yu Xing, "You..."

But as the words left her mouth, she suddenly didn't know how to phrase it. She realized something—she had discovered Yu Xing's issue, but Yu Xing herself might not be aware of it.

"Do you think you..." Zhao Lan said carefully, "are mentally different from other people?"

The question threw her off; Yu Xing just wanted to bolt.

"N-no difference," Yu Xing replied very seriously. "Actually, I've always thought I'm just an ordinary person, not worth all this attention."

Now Zhao Lan fully understood. She had long known that defective people who hadn't undergone genetic screening could develop various issues, with mental problems being quite common among them. But she never expected Xingxing to have such a problem too.

Poor Xingxing...

Zhao Lan's look softened as she stared at Yu Xing. If she told Xingxing that not so many people actually liked her, would she be unable to accept it?

Since the mental issue was caused by genes, as long as Xingxing's genes were repaired, she would naturally recover.

Zhao Lan quietly resolved. When the opportunity arose, she would persuade Yu Xing to undergo gene repair therapy. Xingxing would definitely get better!

"Let's go." Zhao Lan held out her hand to Yu Xing, wanting to hold her hand.

But Yu Xing leaned back slightly, avoiding Zhao Lan's hand.

"..." Zhao Lan's heart twisted, but then said, "Don't worry, I've got it now. From now on, we'll just be good friends."

Only then did Yu Xing relax. She cautiously observed Zhao Lan's expression—was she feeling heartbroken now?

Zhao Lan noticed and gave Yu Xing a bright smile. "Let's hurry back. Da Ya and the others must be worried."

When they returned to their seats, Miao Yuanjin and Da Ya both gave them suspicious looks. "What were you two whispering about?"

Yu Xing stayed silent, while Zhao Lan calmly replied, "None of your business."

She had thought it over carefully—it was best not to talk about Xingxing’s… situation to others. Xingxing wouldn't want to be pitied, would she?

The trip was uneventful after that. They didn't disembark at all and finally arrived at their destination, City 24, after five days on the train.

"City 24 is different from City 7. It's mostly farms," Zhao Lan explained to her companions while queuing to exit. "In fact, most new cities don't immediately bring in large numbers of citizens. They first develop agriculture. Only after the new city stabilizes and is deemed livable will mass migration begin..."

Looking at the bustling crowd in the station, Da Ya asked, "This isn't considered mass migration?"

"This is just the start," Zhao Lan chuckled. "Most people here are here for work and will return later."