Shen Leyuan felt a chill run down his spine.
He carefully recalled the plot details and vaguely realized that the initial world had indeed been normal.
The first time Little Deer ran away, everyone just found him adorable and even gave him directions or called the police for him. When the officers first learned of Little Deer’s situation, they’d spoken gently, telling him to rest before saying more. In the early campus play scenes, the boy’s shy flushed cheeks and budding crush were woven between the lines.
From others’ morbid fondness for Little Deer, to abandoning reason for indulgent debauchery, and later Little Deer collapsing on the roadside with a satisfied smile—yet no one tried to call the police anymore. Instead, the dark alleys echoed with the sounds of flesh entwining.
So it wasn’t the worldview that progressed gradually—it was the worldview’s collapse?
He sank into thought.
Seeing the teacher fall silent, Lin Yao’s heart grew more panicked. The look he shot at “Dad” was practically murderous.
His gut told him the old man was telling the truth.
But he couldn’t admit it. He didn’t want to be a “monster” in his teacher’s eyes.
“Don’t believe him, Teacher,” Lin Yao suddenly spoke up, his face pale as he said, “He must’ve burned his brain out with fever!”
Shen Leyuan snapped back to reality. “Hm?”
He subconsciously placed a hand on Lin Yuan’s forehead. The scorching heat made him frown. “You—”
“I’ve taken my medicine.” Lin Yuan cut him off, a somewhat clumsy smile slowly curving his lips as he said earnestly, “I’ve told you everything you wanted to know.”
Shen Leyuan hesitated. “And the point of telling me all this is…?”
Lin Yuan nodded. “Exactly.”
I’m coaxing you. Will you forgive my past mistakes and feel a bit more fondness for me?
“I understand.”
Shen Leyuan’s expression grew grave under Lin Yuan’s burning gaze… and he made a phone call.
Lin Yuan: ???
Shouldn’t my wife praise me and forgive me?
His wife’s voice came from the corner: “Hello, Director Hao, it’s like this…”
The smile on Lin Yuan’s lips vanished in an instant.
So, the person my wife trusts most this lifetime isn’t me—it’s my good brother?!
After selectively relaying the gist of the situation, Shen Leyuan returned. He first casually ruffled the dazed Lin Yao’s hair, then extended a hand to Lin Yuan. “Thanks for your honesty. Happy to cooperate?”
He figured it out now. The reason he’d come here was probably to prevent the world’s collapse.
He’d likely be stuck in this weird loop for the rest of this life.
A bit tired, a bit pained.
But nothing major. He could treat it like a long-term job—tough, but with hefty rewards.
At least he now had this second life.
Lin Yao was soothed by the teacher’s simple gesture and gradually calmed down. But seeing the teacher cozying up to the old man again, he suddenly clutched his forehead and slumped over. “Teacher, I feel awful.”
Shen Leyuan’s gaze was immediately drawn to the boy.
If not for saving him, Lin Yao wouldn’t have been kidnapped by those thugs. If not for protecting him, Lin Yao wouldn’t be hurt.
The young man’s damp eyes gazed at him, brimming with trust and dependence.
Sigh…
Shen Leyuan’s heart softened a little. He said gently, “Having no parents isn’t a big deal. Little Deer lived normally for many years without any issues. As long as you follow the rules, the state won’t trouble you.”
I don’t care what the state thinks of me!
Lin Yao griped inwardly, but he put on an even more pitiful expression, looking all wronged as he asked, “What do you think, Teacher? Do you see A-Yao as a bad person?”
Before Shen Leyuan could respond, a fit of incessant coughing erupted nearby.
Lin Yuan’s injuries were far worse than his cheap son’s. His lips were bloodlessly pale, but his cheeks were slightly flushed—a sign of a serious fever.
Still rational, he said nothing to Shen Leyuan and instead pressed the call button by the bed himself.
Shen Leyuan grew tense. “You feeling unwell?”
Lin Yuan glanced faintly at Lin Yao. “He’s the one who’s unwell. He needs a doctor.”
Lin Yao, full of vigor, mocked, “If you’re jealous of the teacher’s concern for me, just say it. What’s an old fart like you doing with all this petty rivalry?”
Lin Yuan neither got angry nor annoyed. He met Shen Leyuan’s eyes calmly. “Having him in the same room as me affects my rest. Can I request a transfer to another room?”
The feverish big shot seemed a bit obedient.
Shen Leyuan thought, glancing at the pitiful Lin Yao beside him. He cleared his throat. “Sure.”
Lin Yao’s eyes widened. “Teacher!”
Shen Leyuan said helplessly, “Don’t be willful. Don’t copy Little Deer, okay?”
Lin Yao was successfully grossed out by that line from his teacher.
Me, like Little Deer?
He reviewed their recent exchange. On one hand, he felt it was fine—the teacher was biased. On the other, he realized it was a bit much, fighting for attention when he knew the teacher was exhausted.
“Then…” He cautiously asked the key question. “Which room are you planning to stay in, Teacher?”
Lin Yuan pretended not to care, but his ears perked up.
Shen Leyuan slowly let out a question mark face.
“Is there a possibility that I’m just a college student who’s already overstayed his three-day leave?” he said sincerely. “I want to graduate on time.”
Lin Yao: …
Lin Yuan: …
A few words left the father-son duo speechless. Shen Leyuan smiled and bid farewell, leaving the room.
Once he’d walked a good distance away, the smile faded from his face.
What am I to this world?
From Little Deer to Lin Yao to Lin Yuan and Huo Tingfeng—everyone was a “monster,” everyone had an excessive fondness for him. Was this attraction really normal?
Am I antivirus software? A vaccine? The hero who saves the world?
His phone suddenly buzzed with a new message from Hao Mingrui. He was probably worried Shen Leyuan would blame Lin Yuan for the kidnapping and had carefully revealed a secret.
[Those families hired killers for complex reasons: one, their kids went to prison; two, business friction with the Lin Family; three, Lin Yuan paid off all your debts for you—they think you’re very important to Old Lin.]
[You really are important to Old Lin.]
[Old Lin’s been alone too long. He doesn’t know how to interact normally with people.]
Only then did Director Hao add the main point: [Regarding what you just reported, since it’s only Lin Yuan’s one-sided account and your speculation, we’re only flagging Huo Tingfeng for now—not classifying him as “anomalous.”]
[If possible, we’d like you to be his temporary monitor.]
Seeing “Huo Tingfeng,” Shen Leyuan couldn’t help glancing back. Sure enough, a large Huo Tingfeng was stealthily trailing him.
The man wanted to be spotted but feared it, ducking away with a whoosh—behind a skinny tree.
As if that thin trunk could hide you…
Shen Leyuan tugged at his lips, wanting to laugh but unable. He beckoned Huo Tingfeng over.
Me? The man pointed at himself, utterly incredulous.
Shen Leyuan nodded.
Huo Tingfeng strode over, unsure where to put his hands and feet, tense as he said, “I’m…”
His body wounds were hidden by clothes, but the facial ones were hard to conceal—purple bruise at his lip, deep red on his face, who knew how he’d gotten them.
Shen Leyuan’s gaze swept over the injuries, holding back questions. He only asked the question they both knew the answer to. “You like me?”
As expected, Huo Tingfeng nodded vigorously, full of passion as he declared loudly, “I like you! I like you a lot!!!”
Like a silly dog.
“Why? Didn’t you like Little Deer?”
Huo Tingfeng’s passion cooled to icy dread. “I… back then, I was…”
Shen Leyuan said, “I get it.”
In short, like Lin Yuan and Lin Yao—after meeting him, that fondness shifted to him. His pull on them was essentially the same as Little Deer’s.
Calmly mulling this, Shen Leyuan considered what to discuss with Director Hao later.
Pushing aside the discomfort from “Mr. Ghost is Huo Tingfeng” and “Mr. Ghost doesn’t really like me,” he said politely, “First, thanks for coming to save me yesterday.”
“Second, I’m sorry for hurting you yesterday. If needed, I’ll compensate you for it.”
“Then…” Shen Leyuan met his eyes seriously. “Let’s break up.”
Huo Tingfeng: !!!!!!
His first reaction wasn’t heartbreak, but shock and delight.
So before didn’t count as breaking up?
Sorrow and panic followed belatedly. Pale-faced, Huo Tingfeng refused, “No, I won’t agree!”
Shen Leyuan said, “I’m not asking your opinion. I’m telling you.”
His heart ached a little. That was normal.
Even friends parting hurt—what about “Mr. Ghost,” who meant so much to him? Double blow, hard to accept reality.
If Huo Tingfeng hadn’t saved him, if he hadn’t recognized “Mr. Ghost” just from the embrace, if he hadn’t accidentally stabbed Huo Tingfeng—Shen Leyuan wouldn’t be this calm talking to him.
He kept his voice steady, analyzing his feelings at the time. “I had no family, no one to trust. Then you appeared.”
“My thinking was a bit despicable—you couldn’t communicate with others, dependent on me, so I developed excessive trust and possessiveness. When I learned you’d vanish soon, I lost it.”
Huo Tingfeng sensed something off the more he heard.
My boyfriend’s denying he ever liked me!
“It’s not like that,” he said, the tough guy tearing up as he choked out, “Back then, we both…”
“Our understanding of each other was wrong.”
Shen Leyuan said, “I thought you were the martyred officer Mr. Chu, so I had a baseline fondness from the start. Our relationship heated up on lies—fragile as glass.”
“And your feelings for me…” He paused, frowning. “Not convenient to discuss now. We’ll talk later.”
What’s wrong with my feelings for him?
Not only denying his feelings for me, but mine for him too?
You can’t whitewash a breakup like this!
Unable to hold back anymore, face be damned, Huo Tingfeng shouted, “I liked Little Deer because I’m impotent, but seeing him got me hard at first sight!”
“You know it—he’s the abnormal one, not me. I was blinded by that revelation, so… I don’t like him! I like you! Only you!”
The man cried pathetically, enough to tug heartstrings.
But…
A masked guy passing by stared in shock, his face twisting to disgust. He spat, “Scumbag!”
What level of scumbag excuse is this?
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