Romantisa Continent, Royal City.
On the bed in Li Ye’s room, the bedding bulged into a small lump, only two cat ears poking out.
Li You hadn’t slept a wink. He buried himself in the covers, his cat eyes wide open. He grew so hot under the blankets that he finally poked his head out just a bit to breathe some fresh air before shrinking back in.
The vast room was exceptionally quiet. He could hear the commotion outside the tightly shut door—voices he knew all too well.
Li Ye was out there too, blocking those people for him.
By etiquette and protocol, the visitors couldn’t barge into Li Ye’s bedchamber uninvited.
But the situation was complicated right now. Those few were worked up and impassioned, fearless even of punishment. Without Li Ye holding them back, they really might charge right in.
Li You’s circumstances were a bit tricky. It wasn’t that he didn’t want to see everyone…
“…”
Fine, he just didn’t want to see them much, especially Li Ming, Li Ze, and Li Weier.
Yulian was the exception—Yulian was his good friend.
But at this moment, Li You felt tremendously guilty and on pins and needles around Yulian. After all, the second person he’d deceived the worst was Yulian.
He’d asked the other man to help forge a furnace, tricked him by saying he had a great plan, then jumped right into the furnace in front of Yulian.
Li You’s heart raced in panic.
The argument outside stopped. He poked his head out and perked up his ears, glancing toward the door. He jumped at Yulian’s furious roar.
“Li You, get out here!!”
“Explain yourself clearly—what the hell is going on?!”
“You liar!!”
“You bastard!!”
“You heartless cad!!!”
Li You clapped his paws over his head, pressing down his ears. His heart pounded as he licked his lips nervously.
【What the…】
【Liar’s a liar, bastard’s a bastard.】
【What’s a heartless cad even mean…】
Outside the door, Li Ye stood with arms crossed in front of the bedchamber. He heard the inner voice, and his gaze shifted. He looked down at Yulian a few steps away, then lifted his eyelids toward the three Your Highnesses farther back.
He stood his ground, expression lax, showing no intention of stepping aside.
Yulian charged forward aggressively. Even after this overstep, he felt a twinge of fear deep down, but it was overshadowed by hurt and anger.
After the Kailenoa incident settled, Li Ye had taken Li You away. This left Yulian, who wanted answers about the past and more details, feeling deeply frustrated.
They had been good friends for years, after all.
Yulian looked at Li Ye, going all in. “Your Highness Li Ye, no explanation at all?”
The three silent Your Highnesses behind him fixed their gazes on Li Ye as well.
“What explanation do you want?” Li Ye’s tone was icy. “Haven’t you already seen?”
Peisengke and Qi Yu stood to his left and right, their expressions varied—one still dazed, the other smiling without a word.
Off to the side, the curly blonde female general Kris elbowed the stunned Peisengke twice and whispered, “Hey, you really saw Your Highness Youyou?”
Peisengke stared blankly. “Don’t touch me. I’m thinking.”
Kris: “…”
She tsked in disdain, circled to Qi Yu’s side, and whispered again, “What does Your Highness Youyou look like now?”
“Hm…” Qi Yu, hands behind his back, thought for a moment and summed it up. “Like ten years ago—a little boy.”
“Oh my god.” Kris was incredulous. “It really is Your Highness Youyou? I kinda want to see him.”
Behind them, Li Ming crossed his arms and snorted coldly. “No explanation? How do we know what you brought back isn’t another monster like you?”
Li Ye’s expression remained bland. “Aren’t you his brother? What, you can’t even recognize Li You?”
Li Ming: “You—”
“I recognize him! It’s Li You!” Yulian stared at Li Ye, cutting Li Ming off. “I’d know that bastard even as ashes! I just want to know why. What does his sudden return mean? Where has he been these ten years? Did he really…”
Yulian couldn’t say that word. He clenched his fists and played his trump card, throwing his head back to bellow inside.
“Li You, are you coming out?!”
“Have you forgotten I still hold a ton of your little secrets?”
In the room, Li You’s cat ears shot straight up.
“Who was it that sneaked into the mecha room on their thirteenth birthday and dismantled Your Highness Li Ming’s graduation project? Huh?!”
Li Ming behind him: “…”
Yulian, fuming, unleashed a barrage. “Who begged me one night to sneak you out of the Imperial Palace, then trampled Your Highness Li Weier’s half-year labor of love in the back garden for her graduation thesis?”
Li Weier: “…”
Li Ze nearby felt a chill down his spine.
“And who suddenly wanted to try baking a cake, left it uneaten, only for Your Highness Li Ze to mistake it for food, eat it, and burn with fever for three days and nights?!”
Li Ze rubbed his forehead with his left hand. “…That was my fault. I shouldn’t have eaten something of unknown origin.”
Yulian heard a huge crash from the room. He grinned triumphantly and glanced at the frowning Li Ye. “And which guy went camping with me, had a weird dream, then all shy and embarrassed asked me what it meant when he dreamed of—”
A loud smack.
The bedchamber door flew open. Li You burst out, hair a mess. His lips quivered with embarrassed fury. “Shut your mouth!”
Everyone stared in shock at Li You—clothes disheveled, face flushed beet red.
Kris spoke first.
“Wow, pretty boy.”
Li You stormed forward to clamp Yulian’s mouth but only took two steps before Li Ye hooked his collar from behind and yanked him back.
Like a startled kitten, he was effortlessly hauled back into the bedchamber. He yowled nonstop, “Wait—let me go!! Li Ye—bro—”
That one “bro” stirred long-buried indulgence in many hearts. Li Ming frowned and stepped forward. “Li Ye, didn’t you hear him tell you to let go?”
“Talk it out properly, okay? Let go of Youyou!” Li Ze chimed in.
Li Weier nearby hesitated to speak. Peisengke and Qi Yu had no standing but still tried to persuade.
“Your Highness, why not sit down for tea and a chat?”
“Oh my, Your Highness, you can’t be so rough.”
Kris, however, covered her mouth, lips pursed as she eyed the scene inside—Li Ye’s arm around the boy’s waist, Li You clawing at the door. A strange smile tugged at her lips.
The scene grew chaotic. Li Ye, far from rough and actually quite gentle, paused silently. With his free hand, he gently pried Li You’s hand from the door. His shoe tip nudged it shut, locking out the group entirely before swiftly bolting it.
Hanging off his brother’s arm, Li You’s heart hammered. The next moment, Li Ye scooped him up lightly. With a spin, Li Ye pinned him against the door with a leg. He lowered his gaze. “I didn’t know about those things Yulian mentioned.”
Li You leaned back to escape their too-close proximity, but his head already pressed against the door. No escape. He averted his eyes and mumbled, “Those are the only secrets…”
“Add in that big thing you hid from me, and these—you’ve got quite a few secrets.” Li Ye pinched Li You’s ear tip.
His face showed nothing, which made it all the stranger.
Li You blinked rapidly, sneaked a peek at his brother’s eyes, grabbed Li Ye’s sleeves with both hands, and pulled the cute card. “Brother, besides these, I really haven’t hidden anything else. Don’t be mad. Ask me anything, I’ll tell you.”
“I’m not mad.” Li Ye eased his hold on Li You but kept him pinned there. He looked down at him. “I’m just a bit annoyed.”
Li You tilted his head. “Then you…”
“What did you dream about?”
Li You’s breath hitched. His lashes fluttered fast. He pressed his lips shut and said nothing.
Li Ye narrowed his eyes. “Won’t you tell me everything?”
“I…” Li You’s throat bobbed. “Can I take back what I said earlier?”
“Too late.” Li Ye stared at him. “I want to know what you dreamed—and when.”
Li You met Li Ye’s eyes, silent, his face showing inexplicable stubbornness. But his ears slowly turned red.
Then came a knock. Yulian’s high-pitched voice rang through again. “Li You! Get out here!!”
Li You pressed his paws together at his lips, pretty eyes pleading at Li Ye. “Bro, I want to talk to Yulian.”
Li Ye’s face stayed blank, but the annoyance inside thickened.
He reached out, slowly straightening Li You’s collar. He fully released him, glanced at Li You’s single-slippered foot, turned to fetch the other, crouched, gripped Li You’s ankle, and slipped it on.
Li You watched his brother, heart anxious.
【What do I do, how do I soothe this…】
【I can’t really tell him the dream was about him, right…】
【Aah, Li You, you idiot!】
Li Ye’s gaze and movements paused. He stood, ruffled Li You’s head, then stepped aside to open the door. “You two chat. I’ll be outside. Call if you need me.”
Li Ye let Yulian in and went out himself.
Seeing no more annoyance in Li Ye’s eyes, Li You blinked blankly, then locked eyes with the incoming Yulian.
Seconds later, Yulian gestured over Li You’s head twice and laughed unkindly. “Heh, shorty.”
Li You bristled and shot back, “Oh yeah? You’re so tall? Even after ten years, you’re barely taller than me. Got the guts to compare with my bro?”
“Oho, short and feisty?” Yulian thumbs-downed him mockingly. “Always bragging about your bro. Your bro’s so awesome.”
“So what? My bro’s the best!”
“Which bro of yours?”
“Who else…” Li You paused, realizing he had more than one brother, then specified precisely. “I mean Li Ye.”
He looked Yulian up and down in his lab coat. “Actually, you’re shorter than those three.”
Then added, “Ten years ago, you were shorter than me too.”
Li You held up a finger. “By one centimeter.”
“I’m taller than you now!” Yulian snapped.
“You’re ten years older than me now, Dr. Yulian.” Li You put hands on hips and huffed. “Practically pushing thirty, and you wanna compare height with someone not even twenty? How childish are you?”
“You’re childish! Super childish!” Yulian stopped abruptly, turned away spitting “pth pth pth” for ages, then frowned at Li You. “What’s up with you anyway?”
The topic turned serious. Li You blinked. “Due to some accident, I came back to life. I can’t explain it myself.”
He forced a grin. “Anyway, I’m back now.”
“…” Yulian eyed this carefree idiot and took a deep breath. “So ten years ago, you really died, huh?”
“Yeah.” Li You nodded.
“You bastard…” Yulian covered his face with both hands.
No follow-up. Li You leaned to peer up at him and blinked. “You crying?”
Still no answer.
“Yulian?” Li You checked left and right. “You really crying?”
“Scram!” Yulian scrubbed his face hard, uncovered it, and glared at Li You with red eyes, voice trembling. “Have you no conscience?!”
“Li You, I treated you like a brother. You said you had a way to fix the disaster. I begged so many mentors to learn forging the purifier dispersal device. I pulled so many all-nighters for that thing. I was so dumb back then—I double-checked every imprecise calculation by hand. And what did you do?!” Tears welled in Yulian’s eyes. “You used my proudest, greatest creation to die. You died right in front of me…”
Li You fell silent, stepped forward, and patted the head-buried, sobbing Yulian. He had no words—just silent comfort and apology.
“You bastard, you heartless jerk…” Yulian drooped, repeating it over and over.
They hadn’t talked much in years. Time would handle the rest.
That evening, Li You sat on the sofa, cheeks puffed as he munched cake Yulian had just bought. He glanced at the still-pouty Dr. Yulian beside him, looked down at his cake, and generously offered it. “Want some?”
“Beat it, eat it yourself, pig!” Yulian’s eyes were still red.
“Oh.” Li You took another bite, thought, then asked, “Not going to the lab?”
“Nope! Whoever wants to go can go!” Yulian crossed his arms, clearly still mad.
“Alright…” Li You opened his light brain and saw a message from his brother.
Li Ye: [Yulian still there?]
Li You replied: [Yeah, cried all afternoon, snot and all.]
Li Ye: [What do you want to eat tonight?]
Li You looked at the cake in his hand.
A bit too full…
He thought for a moment and replied: [I want the steamed fish from Dong’s.]
Then he added: [Thanks, Brother. You’ve been working hard.]
A few hours earlier, Li Ye had sent away the group of people at the door, given some instructions upon returning, and then headed to the Imperial Military.
The matter in Kailenoa was not fully resolved yet. Li You had originally wanted to go along, but since Yulian was in a poor mood, he discussed it with his brother and decided to stay behind to accompany Yulian.
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