Just four simple words.
All the words Wen Ke'er had been holding back, all the grievance and resentment she had nursed along the way, deflated in an instant at those words like a punctured balloon, most of it leaking away with a soft hiss.
An indescribable feeling welled up inside her, a mix of the bitterness of being understood and a strange sense of peace.
She suddenly realized that Shen Yi had not forgotten her, nor had he failed to value her.
He had his own considerations and arrangements, and perhaps that "You've worked hard" was his greatest acknowledgment of her seven years of holding the line, researching, and giving everything on Blue Star.
Though his tone was flat, anyone who understood Shen Yi knew that for him to say something like that was already rare.
Wen Ke'er stood where she was and opened her mouth, but in the end, no words came out. She merely turned her face aside and gave a soft "Mm" in response.
The fiery air she had carried with her wilted in an instant, replaced by a complicated, subtle emotion.
Seeing this, Fei Mi curved her lips in understanding, while the other women exchanged glances, all sharing the same unspoken knowledge.
They all understood Wen Ke'er's temperament, and they also knew how much she had missed him all these years.
Kolun, meanwhile, stood quietly at the side with a gentle smile on his face, waiting for Shen Yi and Long Aoshuang to finish talking.
Only after Wen Ke'er's emotions had calmed a little and the atmosphere in the room had eased did Kolun take a step forward, respectfully bow to Shen Yi, and ask in a low voice, "Lord Shen Yi, have you been well Beyond the World?"
There was concern in his eyes, and