Chapter 58

Chapter 58

You Nan, startled and mentally drained from the evening's events, drifted into a deep sleep.

You Ruan observed the handsome brother standing guard by the small bed, then glanced down at himself and 007, who was already nestled beside his fluffy shoes, fast asleep. A sudden thought struck him: were they perhaps a bit superfluous?

You Ruan’s small hands clutched at his clothes. He wanted to ask the brother to make some room but felt too embarrassed.

It was so late—wasn't this brother going home? Weren’t his family worried?

You Ruan felt a little lost. He mustered his courage, addressing the unfamiliar, handsome, yet cold-faced brother.

Yi Jiahe, cradling You Nan’s hand, his gaze lowered in thought, suddenly felt a gentle tug on his clothes. He looked over.

The child, who was shorter than him even when standing, had a flushed little face. "Brother, are you staying at my house today?"

"If you stay, you can sleep in my brother’s room."

Someone had stayed over just last night, and You Ruan had learned the routine for hosting guests by watching his brother. He was already mentally sifting through his brother’s pajamas, deciding which set to offer.

Yi Jiahe followed the direction the child pointed.

Last night, You Nan and Jiang Songen had slept in that very bed.

Yi Jiahe gritted his teeth, a pang of jealousy shooting through him.

He softened his tone, trying not to scare You Nan’s brother. "No, I’ll be leaving in a bit."

You Ruan’s little face fell.

If that were the case, he’d have to wait until this brother left before he could sleep.

Children wear their hearts on their sleeves—whatever they’re thinking shows on their faces.

Yi Jiahe understood the child’s expression and realized his behavior was inappropriate.

Yi Jiahe changed his mind. "Then I’ll stay."

As he spoke, he took out his phone from his pocket and explained to the child, "I need to let my family know."

Xiao Youruan nodded, relieved. He ran to the door and locked it from the inside.

But as he turned off the living room light, he grew scared again.

He didn’t know this brother—today was their first meeting. He’d never even heard this brother’s name from his own brother.

And his brother had been fine when he left, so how did he come back unconscious all of a sudden?

Is this person bad?

Xiao Youruan’s belated vigilance surfaced and wouldn’t be suppressed.

The child was incredibly nervous. While the other was sitting by his brother’s bed making a call, he picked up the house phone, dialed the number he’d memorized for Brother Jiang Songen, and waited anxiously for him to answer.

On the other end, as soon as Jiang Songen returned home, his mother insisted he eat. After dinner, she came upstairs to ask what he and You Nan had been up to the past two days and how their relationship was.

She also subtly reminded him that they hadn’t taken the college entrance exam yet, so they should focus on their studies and keep any emotions in check, and so on.

At first, Jiang Songen found it annoying and didn’t want to listen. Later, he burned with shame and anger and still didn’t want to listen.

Finally, after his mother finished and went downstairs, Jiang Songen took a shower, got into bed, and prepared to replay last night’s sweet dreams in his head. Then he got a call from Xiao Youruan.

"Hello?" Jiang Songen heard the soft, small voice on the other end and automatically spoke more gently, afraid of scaring the child.

You Ruan’s voice was very quiet and low, as if the child was afraid that speaking too loudly would startle someone—or something—nearby.

The child held the receiver and asked, "Brother Jiang, are you asleep?"

Jiang Songen sat up. "Not yet, what’s wrong?"

If nothing was wrong, You Ruan wouldn’t have called him directly instead of contacting You Nan first.

Unless something had happened to You Nan, leaving him unable to handle things and making You Ruan panic enough to seek help.

The child bit his lip, his voice barely a whisper. Thinking of his brother lying in bed, his eyes welled up, and tears fell.

"After my brother saw you out, I waited for him for so, so long. He was just brought back, carried by a strange brother."

In his panic and confusion, the child stammered, his words tumbling out. "The strange brother said his name is Yi Jiahe. Brother Jiang, do you know him?"

Yi Jiahe?

What was Yi Jiahe doing near You Nan’s home?

Did Yi Jiahe go find You Nan after Jiang Songen left?

Jiang Songen didn’t have time to think it through. He quickly got out of bed, opened the wardrobe, and grabbed clothes. "Don’t be afraid, I’m coming over right now. Wait for me and open the door later."

The child agreed eagerly.

After hanging up, Xiao Youruan perked up, waiting for Jiang Songen, his rock, to arrive.

In the small room where he slept with his brother, Yi Jiahe had finished his call and returned to his cold, intimidating demeanor.

Xiao Youruan rubbed the back of his head.

"Brother, I found some clothes for you. You can go take a shower."

The child forced a smile, putting on a helpful act.

"Okay," Yi Jiahe said. He could tell the clothes the child was holding were You Nan’s size—they were You Nan’s clothes.

Yi Jiahe’s Adam's apple bobbed. He stood up, took the clothes from the child, and went to the bathroom.

The child immediately locked the bedroom door, climbed onto the bed, and burrowed into his brother’s arms.

But as soon as he nudged You Nan inward a little to make space so he could lie on the outside, protecting his brother, he heard his brother softly whimpering.

"Brother?"

The child froze. He poked his head out from under the covers and leaned in to look at his brother’s eyes and face.

But his brother still hadn’t woken up; he was just talking in his sleep, as if he was in pain.

The child reached out to pat his brother’s back, hoping to comfort him, but as soon as his small hand touched his brother's back, You Nan cried out in pain, which startled him.

The child's eyes reddened again, tears pooling.

"Gege? Does your back hurt? Did he hit you?"

Xiao Youruan was utterly heartbroken.

The 007 bonded to him was also awakened by the noise. The little kitten yawned.

It opened its bleary eyes and effortlessly hopped onto the bed.

It crouched beside You Nan's head, meowing at the little boy.

"Silly child, your brother wasn’t hit by Yi Jiahe. He was punished because he violated the rules."

But even after 007 spoke, Xiao Youruan kept crying.

He couldn’t understand the kitten's meows and thought the little cat, like him, was protesting the unfairness toward their brother.

When You Nan was punished, 007 received a signal from the Leadership System.

However, it noticed a small box module had appeared in its back-end, seemingly containing some data.

When 007 tried to access it, it found its back-end key would not unlock it no matter what.

Curious, it consulted its system manual and found the answer.

This box didn’t belong to it but to You Nan.

It was likely some emotional memories stripped from the Tasker by the "Executors"—the "Leaders" who oversaw their missions.

This was to help Taskers better integrate into the world, play their roles effectively, and accumulate more Energy Points.

For instance, if a Tasker’s past experiences made them confident and self-reliant, but the assigned plot required them to submit meekly, their "pride" would need to be stripped away.

Only if the Tasker could fully control their emotions and avoid disrupting the world’s timeline due to personal reasons could they retain these traits.

Looking at this small, inaccessible box in its back-end, 007 had a premonition.

Given You Nan’s situation, such small boxes would likely only increase in the future.

The little kitten sighed. Just then, the small bedroom’s doorknob jiggled from the outside.

"You Ruan, can you open the door and let me in?"

The kitten: "???"

Wait, who was speaking outside just now?

The aloof and noble Yi Jiahe from Campus F4? He actually called himself "gege"?

007 felt like it couldn’t understand these locals of this world.

Yi Jiahe called You Ruan’s name from outside, but You Ruan, huddled under the covers, stayed silent.

He turned to look at the door he had locked, feeling a mix of nervousness and unease, but more than anything, it was anticipation.

Once Jiang Songen arrived, they would have someone to rely on for support.

Yi Jiahe stood at the door.

He had showered and changed into You Nan’s clothes.

You Nan’s clothes carried the familiar scent of laundry detergent, so intense it nearly engulfed him entirely.

Perhaps his attitude had shifted.

Yi Jiahe had never felt such clarity as he did now.

He actually found the laundry detergent You Nan used quite pleasant, invigorating and calming.

He even breathed in deeply the scent from You Nan’s clothes.

Yi Jiahe jiggled the doorknob, but there was no sound from inside.

The child who had been so enthusiastic earlier, coaxing him to leave, now ignored him.

Yi Jiahe was amused by the child’s childish ploy. He wasn’t angry with You Ruan.

He knew it was because You Ruan was worried about You Nan.

That was a good thing.

Yi Jiahe returned to the bathroom and used You Nan’s towel to dry his hair.

The brothers’ towels were easy to distinguish.

You Ruan, being a child, had a towel with a cartoon character logo, while You Nan used a solid dark blue towel.

Perhaps from long use, the towel was coarse and wasn’t very absorbent.

It took Yi Jiahe a while to dry his hair thoroughly. He then went to the living room to look for a hairdryer.

He had seen it earlier in the side table drawer.

The house phone in the living room rang shrilly in the darkness.

Yi Jiahe turned off the hairdryer and watched as the child, who had ignored his calls earlier, suddenly flung open the small room’s door and bolted for the front door.

Xiao Youruan yanked the front door open, and Jiang Songen, who had rushed over, made eye contact with Yi Jiahe, who stood composed inside.

Both boys were stunned, and the atmosphere instantly grew tense.

Jiang Songen hadn’t expected it to really be Yi Jiahe.

His handsome face tightened suddenly. "What are you doing here?"

Yi Jiahe didn’t answer immediately. Instead, his gaze fell on the child.

The moment Jiang Songen stepped inside, Xiao Youruan darted behind him to hide.

His brother had said that if he was ever in danger, he could go to Jiang Songen.

Because You Nan said Jiang Songen was a really good guy.