Hearing such a request, Nan Yu was stunned for a moment. "Have my name engraved on the ancestral stele?"
Shen Yanche quickly explained, "It's just for show. The old folks in the family are just superstitious. It won't affect you in any way."
Nan Yu was skeptical.
If it really had no impact, why go through all this trouble?
She felt something fishy but didn't voice it. She knew Shen Yanche wouldn't tell the truth, so she just ended the topic. "Let me think about it. I'm going to sleep today."
"Yuyu..."
Nan Yu feigned a yawn. "You should go back. Get some rest early."
After saying that, she got up from the sofa, clearly showing the gesture of seeing him off.
Seeing this, although Shen Yanche was displeased, he had no choice but to stand up too. "Then I'll leave first. Yuyu, take care and get some rest."
Nan Yu played the host and saw Shen Yanche to the door.
While putting on his clothes, Shen Yanche suddenly remembered something and asked her, "Yuyu, did Uncle buy Ye Nanwan for you?"
"It was a loan," Nan Yu replied. She had anticipated Shen Yanche's question and had already thought up a story. "I'll pay him back when I save enough money in the future."
Shen Yanche's eyes flickered. He smiled helplessly and said, "I originally planned to buy it as a gift for you. I didn't expect Uncle to beat me to it."
It sounded like he was regretting it.
Nan Yu knew he was just saying it. If he really wanted to help her, it wouldn't even have been put up for auction.
As long as the Shen family wanted, there were plenty of ways.
But she was too lazy to expose his false pretense.
Shen Yanche bent down to change his shoes. Then he voluntarily put Nan Yu's slippers into the shoe cabinet for her. As he did so, he caught sight of a pair of men's leather shoes inside.
It was Tan Linyuan's pair.
She had been so careful but still missed this.
Nan Yu: …
Before Shen Yanche could ask, Nan Yu walked over and explained casually, "I prepared that on purpose."
Sure enough, suspicion flashed in Shen Yanche's eyes. "Why do you keep a pair of men's shoes at home?"
"For safety," Nan Yu said nonchalantly as she took out the shoes, opened the door, and placed them outside. "It's a habit from when I lived alone. Having a pair of men's shoes at the door makes bad guys think there's a man inside, reducing the possibility of danger."
Her movements were smooth and natural, and her expression was open and aboveboard. There was really no sign of lying.
Shen Yanche only doubted for a second before believing her. "If you're ever in danger, remember to contact me at once."
Nan Yu nodded perfunctorily. "I know."
When she was in danger, who knew which woman's bed Shen Yanche would be in!
Finally seeing Shen Yanche off, Nan Yu heaved a sigh of relief. The tense nerves that had been on edge finally relaxed.
Now, as long as she could send Tan Linyuan away from the room, she could sleep in peace.
Nan Yu walked to the bedroom door and opened it.
Tan Linyuan had already taken a shower. Wrapped in her bath towel, he was standing at the end of the bed looking at her.
Tan Linyuan asked indifferently, "Is he gone?"
There was a look of surprise in Nan Yu's eyes. "… Gone."
Only after she answered did she realize something was off. "No, why did you take a shower…"
"If he's gone, I'll dry my hair." Tan Linyuan nodded and walked to the head of the bed to get the hair dryer.
Nan Yu watched as Tan Linyuan sat on her bed and used her hair dryer to dry his hair. She felt a sense of disbelief.
"Who told you to take a shower?" Nan Yu was patient. She waited until he had dried his hair before confronting him.
Tan Linyuan glanced at her. "Didn't you push me into the bedroom?"
Although that was true… she didn't mean for him to stay the night!
Seeing Nan Yu speechless, Tan Linyuan couldn't help but laugh.
He coughed lightly and his tone became serious. "What did Shen Yanche talk to you about? Tell me."
His tone was so calm. His soft hair hung over his forehead, making him seem less aloof than usual.
There was a lazy and homely atmosphere about him.
Nan Yu lowered her eyes and told Tan Linyuan what Shen Yanche had said.
She noticed that Tan Linyuan's expression gradually became serious from his initial feigned formality.
Nan Yu tentatively said, "I think what Shen Yanche said is definitely not just for show. There must be something fishy going on."
"Your guess is correct," Tan Linyuan said.
Nan Yu was taken aback. "So I shouldn't agree?"
"You shouldn't agree."
"Why?"
Tan Linyuan's eyes swept across her face and his voice softened. "Once your name is engraved on the Shen family's ancestral stele, you'll become a puppet of the Shen family, tied to the ancestral hall and sacrificed."
Nan Yu almost gasped. Countless fantasy and immortal cultivation scenes flashed through her mind. Her face turned a little pale. "… Is what you said true?"
"What do you think?" Tan Linyuan said indifferently, his eyes fixed on her.
His eyes were so deep and full of meaning that Nan Yu felt a rush of blood and cold hands.
"… Of course it's false," Tan Linyuan said, seeing that she was really scared. He couldn't stop laughing. "Our Yuyu is so easy to deceive."
Only then did Nan Yu realize that she had been tricked again.
She was both angry and anxious. She raised her hand to hit him, but he grabbed her wrist.
Then, he pulled her closer by the shoulder and pressed her forehead against his shoulder.
Nan Yu could easily smell the freshness of the water vapor and his aloof aura.
It was like mint blooming in the middle of the night.
Nan Yu's heart seemed to be floating in the night, rising and falling with the night wind.
His hand still held her right wrist, but he clearly controlled his strength, as if afraid of hurting her.
His voice was deep. "Is your wrist better?"
Nan Yu's voice came out muffled from Tan Linyuan's chest. "… It's been better for a long time."
"Good," Tan Linyuan said.
Only then did Nan Yu notice that Tan Linyuan always cared about every injury she suffered.
No matter how serious it was, he would always confirm if she had recovered.
The time before last when she sprained her foot, last time when she cut her finger with a kitchen knife, and this time when she sprained her wrist.
He had said that he couldn't bear to see her get hurt.
The more she got to know him, the more she understood the meaning behind his words -
He didn't want her to be affected by him.
After a moment of silence, Tan Linyuan said, "I have a very bad fate. Everyone around me will be hurt without exception."
Since she was so close to his chest, Nan Yu could almost hear his voice directly from his chest cavity.
This vibrating feeling made her a little dizzy.
Especially because of his words.
Tan Linyuan pursed his lips, a bitter self - mocking smile on his face. "Maybe this is the will of heaven."
Nan Yu felt a tightness in her chest. She asked softly, "What will of heaven?"
Just as she asked this, she felt Tan Linyuan's hand on her back tighten slightly.
"I'm not allowed to love someone as I wish," Tan Linyuan's voice sounded extremely calm. "Whoever I want to get close to, I'll hurt."
The more he cared about someone, the more that person would be hurt.
He didn't dare to take the risk.
Nan Yu leaned against his chest and listened to his voice quietly.
Until it was quiet again.
"What are you afraid of?" Nan Yu heard her own voice say word by word. "I don't believe in Buddhism."
"I'm not afraid."