Is That You, Back Again?

Once the most important question had been laid bare, there was clearly no room left for them to avoid it.

In the end, Su Ze, Shen Yue's childhood friend, was the one who spoke first. "Yueyue has never worn her feelings on her face, so I don't know whether she can hear it. But you all know how absurdly tolerant she is of her younger brother."

Though he had been the same before—and far crazier than Shen Yue.

Thinking back to the past, the light in Su Ze's eyes dimmed behind his lenses. He continued, "We don't know why we suddenly started hearing that guy's thoughts, and there wasn't much time today, so we didn't get much information.

Right now, no one knows what exactly is going on with him, or whether it will affect our plans going forward. So for now, all we can do is lie low, draw more words out of him, and see how things develop."

Hearing that, Leng Shiyi nodded in agreement. "That's all we can do for now. As long as he stops doing stupid things, everything can be discussed. We'll see what happens afterward, and I'll make arrangements..."

As long as that guy stopped clinging to me. Even if the soul inside him had changed, I didn't care.

Though this was only a hastily assembled temporary squad, and Leng Shiyi had been pushed into the role of temporary captain like a duck driven onto a perch, everyone still gave his words some respect.

"Roger that, Captain~" Su Ze's lips curved. Whether his guess was true or not, something interesting was bound to happen next.

Cui Yang had no interest in the outcome of their discussion. He had come here only because he owed Shen Yue's parents a favor, and his sole purpose was to safely escort Shen Yue to the base.

Thinking so, he said as much.

"I am only responsible for Miss Shen Yue's safety. You can decide everything else yourselves."

"What a dull, poker-faced man. I don't know whether the other things in those voices are true, but their description of you is pretty spot-on." Su Ze chuckled and teased him outright.

Cui Yang gave him an expressionless glance, though the corner of his mouth twitched despite himself. "Likewise."

Su Ze clicked his tongue in surprise at the fact that he actually talked back. He stopped teasing him, then turned to Leng Shiyi and joked in a meaningful tone, "Doesn't Shen Mo like you? I'll leave the job of fishing for information to you. Remember to keep it from your cousin. He can't be allowed to learn about our plans again."

Hearing the troublemaking note in his voice, the vein on Leng Shiyi's forehead throbbed. He nearly failed to maintain his icy expression. "Is that what you call liking me? Who among you hasn't been pestered by him?"

Remembering how their plan had nearly been exposed in front of Shen Yue today, Leng Shiyi ultimately nodded with a dark expression, agreeing only to Su Ze's final suggestion. "I'll warn Yang Xuan and make sure he doesn't ruin our plans. I'm not going to fish for information. Doesn't Shen Mo have a thing for you too? If anyone's going, let this old fox go."

To his surprise, Su Ze merely smiled and spread his hands. As he raised his face, a glint flashed across his lenses, and his voice was lazy.

"Fine, I'll go. I think that little guy was rather interesting today. I've given you the chance—don't regret it later."

Leng Shiyi felt that last sentence had been said purely to disgust him.

But Su Ze had not been trying to disgust him. He merely remembered that when they were children, this guy had really competed with him for Shen Mo.

If he could say that now, then either he had forgotten, or he no longer liked him.

Either way, Su Ze had achieved his goal.

After they finished discussing matters, they each went about their own business. When Su Ze returned to his room, his face instantly turned cold. It was as though he had removed a mask, and fatigue showed in his expression.

He stared blankly at the hand that had injured Shen Mo. His entire hand trembled faintly.

A complicated gleam flashed through his eyes, the murky darkness within them impossible to read. His low, expectant voice echoed through the empty room. "Mo Mo, is that you, back again...?"

The room was dimly lit. Memories hidden away in the corners were uncovered, filling Su Ze with both longing and heartache.

In the blink of an eye, time returned to five years ago. Back then, Shen Mo had not been someone everyone avoided like the plague.

At that time, despite his young age, he had been a darling loved by all. He was especially endearing, and there were too many people vying to be his older brother or sister to count.

When had things changed? It seemed to have been the day Mo Mo came to find him, cried for no reason, and said a number of strange things.

After that, everything changed.

A sudden car accident had left the little brother they had cherished in the palms of their hands since childhood unconscious for three years.

Three years later, Mo Mo woke up. It should have been something worth celebrating.

But only later did he discover that this was the beginning of their suffering.

Mo Mo had changed after waking up, as though he had become another person. He had become unreasonable beyond all measure.

Later, Yueyue changed too.

No matter what her younger brother did, she could tolerate and forgive him—even when he eventually hurt her herself.

Su Ze could neither understand nor accept it.

Back then, he had felt utterly lost, as though everyone had changed and he alone had been left standing where he was.

And he did not even know the reason behind this change.

But whether he understood it or not, even though Shen Yue's attitude had not changed, Su Ze could no longer bring himself to feel close to the Shen Mo who had awakened.

Even though he still had the same face, even though he still had the same voice.

Other than disgust, Su Ze felt nothing else.

For no reason at all, Su Ze recalled the things Mo Mo had tearfully said to him that day, and suddenly seemed to understand something.

He was not certain of the thought in his heart, but his instincts told him that Shen Yue might know something.

Su Ze had wanted to ask Shen Yue, but when he found her and met the complicated pain in her eyes, the words would not leave his mouth.

At the same time, he had already become certain.

The person who had followed behind him every day, calling him Brother Su Ze in a soft, sweet voice, was gone.

Strange, wasn't it? This was completely unscientific!!

Yet he believed it anyway.

Later, he observed that "Shen Mo" from the perspective of an outsider, studying his behavior while also trying to find a way to bring the original Shen Mo back.

Unfortunately, none of the methods he tried worked. To avoid alerting the enemy, he did not dare make any major moves either.

Until later, he watched that "Shen Mo" wreak havoc day after day, approach him with a heart full of schemes, anger Shen Mo's parents, break with his sister, and turn what had once been a happy family into something shattered and unrecognizable.

He was furious, yet powerless.

He understood that Shen Yue, like him, had endured that "Shen Mo" only to see the person they had once held at the tip of their hearts again.

Had heaven finally shown mercy and let him return?

But could Mo Mo still accept the wreckage that remained?

He had nearly caused the deaths of his own parents and sister with his own hands, and had nearly died at the hands of the neighbor boy who had been like an older brother to him since childhood.

How despairing must he be?