Chapter 13: Good Child

Tao Fangyi was held in Ren Xinxin’s arms, while she sat on the sofa, unsure of what to do.

Li Yao had been led to her own room by Wang. Wang had promised Tao Fangyi that he would comfort Li Yao properly, but Tao Fangyi was still a bit worried.

Could Wang really play a guiding role?

Probably. At the very least, Wang was an adult.

Inside the room, Wang folded his arms and leaned against the door. “If I were you, I’d give that kid a beating.”

Li Yao remained silent.

“Even though she’s the reincarnation of a Water Buffalo, she’s only four years old. She’s just a bit stronger than other kids her age. You can still take her. If you’re really worried, grab a weapon and beat her up.” Wang offered his suggestion.

Li Yao still didn’t speak.

“Sulking by yourself does nothing but ruin your own health. You should make that child do the sulking.” Wang advised, “Look, don’t you have a badminton racket in your room? Swat that little brat with it!”

Li Yao looked up at Wang, but before she could say anything, the sound of the living room door opening reached them.

An angry male voice roared, “Ren Xinxin!!”

Li Yao was startled.

Wang walked to the door, leaned forward, and poked his head through it, seeing what was happening in the living room.

A middle-aged man, panting heavily, stood with eyes bulging in fury. His hair and body were drenched in sweat, likely from rushing over.

On the sofa, Ren Xinxin clutched the doll even tighter.

The man hadn’t even bothered to change his shoes. He spotted the bruises on Ren Xinxin’s arm and, in a panic, strode toward her. “Stretch out your arm!”

Ren Xinxin shrank back, holding the doll close. “I’m fine.”

“Stretch out your arm!”

Ren Xinxin didn’t move. The man grabbed her clothes with one hand and hoisted her up.

Ren Xinxin didn’t struggle; she just froze.

“What the hell happened?!” The man’s voice was deafening. “You ran off on your own in the middle of the night?!”

Ren Xinxin’s lips trembled, and tears fell.

The man looked at a loss, but he still held his daughter aloft.

Wang pulled his head back. “Well, that’s it. You dragged your feet, and her dad showed up.”

Li Yao pressed her lips together, sitting for a moment before she stood up.

“Fair warning: I’m not fighting your battles. Brawling with ordinary people is beneath me.” After saying that, Wang felt maybe he shouldn’t be so absolute given Li Yao’s current mood. “But I can hold her dad down for you. You and her can duke it out one-on-one.”

Li Yao ignored him and instead pushed the door open, shouting to the man, “Uncle Ren, I know what happened.”

The man holding Ren Xinxin looked embarrassed upon seeing Li Yao. He stammered for a while, scratched his head with his free hand, rubbed the back of his neck, and performed a series of fake moves.

Finally, the two sat down facing each other.

Li Yao had initially planned to grab a small stool for herself, but the man fetched a stool on his own and sat opposite the sofa.

During this time, Li Yao and the man had barely communicated directly; they had mostly relied on Yang Hongling to relay information.

Li Yao had originally only notified Yang Hongling, but Yang Hongling couldn’t get away and had sent the man over.

Li Yao recounted the whole story from beginning to end. The more the man listened, the angrier he grew. When he learned that the teacher had actually thrown Ren Xinxin out of the dormitory, he couldn’t hold back anymore and burst into curses.

However, halfway through his swearing, he remembered there was a child he had only recently met sitting before him, and he went silent again.

“Does he always make such a racket?” Wang noticed the man’s eyes were very large.

Actually, those big eyes would be quite pretty on their own—large eyes, long lashes.

Ren Xinxin had inherited her father’s eyes exactly. Anyone who saw Ren Xinxin would always praise the child’s good looks.

But Ren Xinxin’s father had a classic square-shaped face, dark skin, and a bulky build. Those eyes only served to intimidate on him.

When angry, the man’s eyes would widen even more, making him look like he was ready to throw a punch at any moment.

He probably knew how frightening he appeared, so he became even more restrained.

Li Yao glanced at the nervous Ren Xinxin beside her.

Ren Xinxin was staring at her, equally tense.

Li Yao wasn’t as angry now. For one, she realized Ren Xinxin had likely blurted out that sentence in a moment of panic. For another, Wang had scared her a little.

Li Yao had only wanted to brood alone for a while, but Wang had given her no personal time at all.

Wang understood that Li Yao wanted to die; he just didn’t recommend that she kill herself using occult methods. If Li Yao could take this entire family with her before dying, Wang would admire her as a true hero.

Even the suggestion to “beat up this half-sister from the same mother” was something Wang only offered after making significant concessions.

Wang kept emphasizing Li Yao’s pain, guiding her to vent it out.

Instead, Wang’s antics had left Li Yao completely defanged.

After all, a four-year-old’s remark could never be blown up to such a degree.

【YaoYao doesn’t seem so upset anymore.】 Tao Fangyi transmitted to Wang, 【You really comforted her well.】

“My comfort didn’t work at all.” After all, the little brat had been pretending not to understand what he was saying.

【The child probably took it to heart.】 Tao Fangyi reassured Wang.

Is that so? Wang glanced at Li Yao.

But Li Yao never fight at all.

【I was worried you couldn’t do it, but I underestimated you.】 Tao Fangyi marveled, 【You’re actually a very gentle fierce ghost.】

Is that so?

Wang drew his neck back slightly.

Was he gentle?

Tao Fangyi continued: 【You’re very powerful, you know.】

“I am indeed very powerful.” Wang confirmed it—Tao Fangyi was complimenting him.

Gentle? That might just be a skill honed from dealing with those non-human old folks over the years.

Tch, “gentle” didn’t suit him at all.

It was a virtue forced upon him.

“Sigh, how could I be so gentle?” Wang felt troubled. He didn’t like the idea of having gentleness as a trait; it would diminish his aura of terror.

Li Yao couldn’t hold back. She turned her head toward Wang with a shocked expression.

Gentle? Who?

Just earlier, Wang had suggested she kill all three members of this family.

How could he possibly be associated with gentleness?!

“Who told you to climb the fence and run around at night?!” The man grabbed Ren Xinxin again.

Of course, this time he didn’t grab Ren Xinxin’s wrist; he grabbed the doll in her arms, which was Tao Fangyi.

Tao Fangyi’s entire head was gripped by the man’s large hand.

Only an upside-down triangle mouth was exposed, and it looked like it was still smiling.

Li Yao involuntarily let out an “Ah!”

“Do you have any idea how dangerous it is for you to be out alone at night?!” The man demanded. “What if you’d been kidnapped?!” He yanked Ren Xinxin toward him by pulling the doll.

Ren Xinxin dragged the doll back.

Father and daughter were in a tug-of-war.

At that moment, Tao Fangyi became the rope in their pulling contest.

“Are you okay?” Wang asked him.

【I’m sturdy.】 Two ordinary humans weren’t enough to cause him pain. 【Though I think I’ll need a wash. This gentleman’s hands might have been handling packages earlier; they’re a bit dirty.】

Ren Xinxin opened her mouth as if to bite the man, and he quickly let go.

Tao Fangyi, who had been squeezed in a grip, finally recovered.

His face bore a large, grimy handprint.

【How do I look?】 Tao Fangyi asked Wang.

“You have a new totem on your face.” Wang gestured to the upper half of his own head. “It’s a handprint. Very distinctive. Oh, right, human handprints aren’t round.”

Tao Fangyi: 【…I know. My previous handprints weren’t round, either.】

Wang was astonished.

Not round?! Did that mean Tao Fangyi used to be more realistic?

“How many fingers did you used to have?”

【Five.】

“Wow!”

【Please don’t be surprised by something like that.】 It was too weird. And Wang had tugged at his pants to see before, hadn’t he?

Even though this current body lacked certain parts, Wang knew his true form had them.

Who would have that part but not five fingers?

Tao Fangyi had no idea that at this moment, Wenren Fu, off work and bored, was sketching his true form.

Wenren Fu drew Tao Fangyi’s current shape on the paper, then frowned and erased the round hands, replacing them with sharply defined human hands.

“Hehehe.” Wenren Fu tapped the doll’s head on the paper with his pencil. “What a strange doll.”

He pulled out his phone, snapped a photo, and then chuckled to himself for a while.

His laughter suddenly stopped.

Tao Fangyi was indeed amusing, but Wenren Fu was bound by him, and the fury in his chest could find no outlet.

Wenren Fu pulled off his white gloves.

A whimpering sound arose. Wenren Fu didn’t look toward its source. He removed his jacket and shirt and changed into a looser T-shirt.

“You ran away on your own, you know.” Wenren Fu turned to face the corner, where a mass of red-black shadow was trembling.

That shadow didn’t seem like a creature of this world. Its form was grotesque, with two giant black holes for eyes and no lips. As it quivered, extremely fine black lines flickered within its body, sometimes even stabbing out of it—though only for an instant.

“You faked your death, didn’t you?” Wenren Fu crouched before the red shadow. “The people hunting you all think you’re dead.”

“So it wouldn’t matter if you really died, right?” Wenren Fu reached out to stroke the red shadow, but it shrank further into the corner.

“I’m sorry, really.” Wenren Fu’s smile didn’t change. “In the past, I wouldn’t have taken such a risk. But now that I’m being watched, I can only satisfy my desires with my true form. You understand, don’t you?”

The shadow didn’t respond, but Wenren Fu’s face was already flushing. “Thank you. You’re so kind.”

“How many lives do you have on your hands? Oh! Four! You’re a treasure～” Wenren Fu stood and drew a short knife from his waist. “Now, let’s begin the game.”

The surroundings instantly turned black and white. Wenren Fu closed his eyes. “You have one minute to find your hiding place…”

The red shadow lunged at Wenren Fu but was repelled the moment it touched him.

“No cheating.” Wenren Fu opened his eyes, his brow slightly furrowing.

The red shadow trembled.

Wenren Fu’s smile remained the same as usual, still gentle, as if he might ask in the next second, “How may I help you?”

“But I can forgive you this once. Let’s start the countdown again.” Wenren Fu closed his eyes and began counting.

On the other side, Wang felt inexplicably excited.

Tao Fangyi noticed Wang’s face turning red and heard his heavy breathing.

Even though Ren Xinxin could barely speak clearly, she was already arguing with her father.

Li Yao was at a loss.

How exactly did this Uncle Ren manage to argue with his four-year-old daughter?

Tao Fangyi waited a moment and confirmed that no one was paying attention to him. He quietly directed his attention to Wang: 【Come here, I’ll pat your head.】

“What is it?” Wang was puzzled.

【I’m worried something’s wrong with your body.】 Tao Fangyi felt Wang’s soul was becoming unstable. 【How are you feeling right now?】

“Very happy.” Wang answered honestly.

【Then lean your head closer, let me touch it.】 Tao Fangyi moved his hand a little.

Wang thought for a moment, then walked over.

Tao Fangyi was being held by Ren Xinxin, so he couldn’t raise his hand high; he could only let Wang lean in.

Wang lowered his head and tried, but Ren Xinxin was too short.

So he knelt on one knee and brought his head toward Tao Fangyi’s round hand.

Tao Fangyi sensed for a moment: 【Huh, there’s really nothing wrong. Do you blush when you’re happy?】

“Occasionally.” Wang lifted his head. At this moment, Tao Fangyi was still disheveled, with that handprint still on his face.

Li Yao could see this scene.

She found it very strange, the gesture a bit odd.

But Wang had always been a little odd.

“So gentle.” Wenren Fu lay in a pool of blood. His freshly changed clothes were now stained with dark red blood.

Wenren Fu turned on his side, gathering the solid debris within the blood.

His spirit was in a state of extreme excitement, all his emotions amplified.

Wenren Fu extended his bloodied hand and imitated Tao Fangyi’s gesture, rubbing his own head. His silver hair was also smeared with blood.

After mimicking the motion, he smiled cheerfully for a good while. “Uncle… Tao～”