I Once Picked Up a Beam of Light!

"Everyone, get up," Phoenix said. "Come on, we're neighbors. There's no need to keep kneeling."

She had heard the word "neighbors" from Tang Fei. She thought it sounded both intimate and amusing, and she liked the term very much.

On New Star, she had no neighbors.

Besides, she was a princess of the Phoenix Empire, but the Phoenix Empire's territory did not include Old Earth.

This was a land abandoned by the gods, and these people were refugees abandoned by the gods as well.

They could have chosen not to kneel, but they had knelt anyway.

For no reason at all, Phoenix felt a sense of responsibility rise within her, as though it would be her fault if they did not live well...

At Phoenix's call, everyone climbed to their feet. Someone shouted, "Your Highness the Princess, which country are you from?"

"The Phoenix Empire," Phoenix answered with a smile.

"Oh, I saw that big bird on the aircraft. So that was a phoenix."

"I heard the Phoenix Empire is incredible. It's a shame I'll never get the chance to go see it."

"Your Highness the Princess, what is New Star like? There aren't monsters that eat people there, are there?"

"No wonder you're so beautiful. You're a princess."

Phoenix answered everyone's questions patiently. For those she truly could not answer, she simply responded with a smile.

Her court etiquette lessons had taught her how to handle such situations, how to maintain the best possible bearing before the public, and how to win the favor of the greatest number of people.

This was not communication. It was a performance.

Yet Phoenix still wanted to be more genuine, to invest more emotion into it.

After all, this place held a different meaning for her.

"Your Highness, it's time to go back," Bai Qi urged from beside her.

Phoenix's status was special. Finding the Princess before the other squads was originally a great merit for him.

Old Earth was fraught with danger. Though they possessed formidable combat strength and advanced weapons, who knew what might happen?

The assassins from Wuyou Palace had come after them as well.

If anything happened to the Princess while she was in his care—if she was hurt or crippled somewhere—then he would have only death awaiting him.

He did not dare take that risk.

Phoenix nodded, waved to everyone, then walked toward the starship's light staircase.

Step by step, her mood grew heavier with every stair she climbed.

When she reached the starship hatch, she suddenly stopped.

She turned around and found that familiar figure in the crowd.

As the crowd surged forward after her, he remained where he was. He had become somewhat separated from the main group, looking entirely out of place.

He held a Pulse Rifle in his arms, stroking it with a satisfied expression, as though it were the most precious treasure in the world.

Phoenix wanted to say something, but she did not know what to say.

Yet if she said nothing at all, she was unbearably reluctant to leave.

Countless emotions welled up inside her, and her eyes immediately grew moist.

When she had first crawled out of the Escape Pod, she had seen that stunned face...

When she woke from unconsciousness, he had been carefully chewing Snake Skin Tree leaves for her wounds.

Black Robe had coveted her beauty. She had worried that Tang Fei would fear power and abandon her, yet he had secretly given her a meaningful look...

At that instant, she had suddenly felt safe. Safer than even the strength of her Qi Control Realm cultivation had ever made her feel.

When the acid rain struck, he had removed the conical hat from his own head and put it on hers. When she tried to resist, he had reached out and pressed down on her head...

And that heart-stirring slap in the cave...

They were all beautiful memories. All those harsh, irritating, petty, despicable, shameless scenes had vanished without a trace.

"Tang Fei."

Phoenix called out.

Tang Fei looked up, met her gaze, then waved at her with his trademark smile.

His smile was pure and brilliant, like a ray of sunlight.

Phoenix had once feared Tang Fei's smile the most. She had thought it looked terrifying when he smiled, enough to send chills down one's spine.

But now, she found it strangely warm and lovely. She had grown used to seeing it.

"Do you remember the bet we made?" Phoenix called out.

The wind was blowing, the rain was drifting down, the sky was too dark, and they were some distance apart.

It was as though everything in the world was trying to keep them apart.

So she had to raise her voice.

"I remember," Tang Fei said with a smile. "You lost."

"I prepared a gift for you," Phoenix said.

"Where is it?"

"Guess."

"..."

Guess whether I'll guess?

Tang Fei had originally wanted to answer like that, but it would look like the two of them were openly flirting.

If he actually did that, those Undying Army soldiers watching him like hawks might just gun him down.

"And one more thing." Phoenix waved at Tang Fei and shouted, "Remember, my name is Zhong Yuxue."

"Zhong Yuxue." Tang Fei rolled the name around in his mouth.

Zhong Yuxue. It sounded nice enough, though it took rather a lot of strokes to write.

"Take care of yourself!"

"Okay," Tang Fei replied with a smile.

"Stay alive!" Phoenix shouted even louder, her voice hoarse with desperation.

"Okay."

"Think of me."

"..."

Phoenix did not hear Tang Fei's answer.

Perhaps he would answer. Perhaps he would not.

But she heard the voice in her own heart, and she received a very certain answer.

Think of me!

Because I'll think of you!

Whether it was friendship forged through hardship or that innocent, ignorant love, she did not know, nor did she care.

They were about to part. Perhaps this farewell would be their last...

Then let her be brave just once.

Phoenix turned and entered the starship, then immediately hid herself in the restroom.

She did not want anyone to see her face, because she knew she was already crying uncontrollably.

Phoenix's figure disappeared.

As Bai Qi entered the hatch, he turned to glance at Tang Fei. His eyes were deep, as though he was contemplating something.

Quite a few young officers were also secretly studying Tang Fei, wondering about the relationship between Her Highness the Princess and this man.

The last thing Her Highness the Princess had shouted was simply shocking. If those three words, "Think of me," reached the Empire, no one knew what kind of uproar they would cause.

Of course, no one showed any emotion in public.

The officers and soldiers boarded the starship in orderly fashion according to rank.

Click!

The starship door sealed shut, then slowly rose. The scattered golden phoenix reassembled into a whole once more.

With a whoosh, it vanished from sight, leaving not even a lingering shadow behind.

Tang Fei looked up at the gray, overcast sky. Cold rain slid across his face and head.

"Okay," he answered softly.

The Old Man, who had hidden himself and disappeared earlier, came running out. After glancing at Tang Fei, he said, "If you like her, say so. If you love her, go after her. Why are you standing here wiping tears? Acting all girly."

Hearing the Old Man describe him as "girly," Tang Fei could not help laughing.

When Phoenix had spoken to him earlier, he had also scolded her for "acting all girly."

She was a girl to begin with, and a princess of the Empire. Wasn't she supposed to be girly?

Of course, he could not admit defeat in front of the Old Man.

Tang Fei wiped the rain from his face and said irritably, "Who's wiping tears? Can't you see it's all rainwater? Like her? Like what?"

He patted the Pulse Rifle in his arms. "With this thing, what do I need a woman for?"

"As if I don't know you." The Old Man curled his lip and mocked, "You deliberately acted heartless while she was here. Wasn't it because you were afraid that if you showed your feelings and got no response, you'd lose face?"

"I don't even care about my face. Why would I be afraid of losing face?" Tang Fei retorted. He felt that the Old Man was truly annoying.

The Old Man narrowed his eyes and studied Tang Fei's face for a while before asking in a deep voice, "Do you really not have even a trace of regret?"

Tang Fei fell silent.

Did he have regrets? Of course not.

Fine, perhaps a little.

After all, at this moment, his heart felt empty, as though someone had carved a piece out of it.

But what could he do?

This had been the destined ending from the very beginning.

She was a cherished guest from New Star, an Imperial Princess, an important figure watched by countless people. She was the kind of heroine who should hold a glass of red wine and move through crowds in a sexy evening gown slit all the way to her thighs, receiving endless envy and praise.

And what was he?

A refugee from the ruins? A hunter from Hate Mountain? Or a master barbecue chef?

As the Old Man put it: Was she drawn to the fact that he never bathed, or did she like that he never cut his hair? Or perhaps she loved the thrilling life of never knowing whether he would have another meal after this one?

A person had to know their own place.

Tang Fei had not understood that before, but he did now.

I'm not worthy of her, he told himself.

After a long while, he finally answered, "What is there to regret? Didn't the book say it? I once picked up a beam of light, and returned it to the sun at sunset. Did I lose anything? No. That light was something I picked up anyway."

Smack!

The Old Man slapped Tang Fei on the head and cursed angrily, "How many times have I told you? Don't read Zhiyin, don't read Zhiyin. Read more Story Club. The stories in Story Club are the good ones. What kind of nonsense have you been reading all day? So sappy."

"..."

Seeing Tang Fei fall silent once again, the Old Man tilted his face toward the dark, desolate starry sky and said softly, "Young man, perhaps your story has only just begun."

Distance was not the problem, nor was status. Hatred was.

(PS: A new week has begun. Old Liu is rolling around begging for votes.

Girls, boys, our story has only just begun.)