He doesn't like me, and he doesn't like you

"Are you saying Ye Yiyi is Gu Yi?" Lin Ning suddenly exclaimed.

She glanced at Xiao Cheng, who sat beside her with a frown. He was looking at her too, and both wore the same expression: It's over. Little Yuan has gone mad.

Lin Yuan closed his eyes as though recalling something. "Although I can't be sure it's him, he really is very similar."

Over the past three years, he had searched through so many people, but only Ye Yiyi carried that fresh scent of grass and trees.

Lin Yuan had already given up at first. He hadn't sensed Gu Yi's presence on him, but just as he handed over the wooden box, a faint, elusive scent suddenly drifted into his nose.

He had longed for that scent for three whole years.

"Uh... Little Yuan, if you've taken a liking to Yiyi, just pursue him. He might have two protectors, but I believe in you. If you pursue him, you'll definitely win him over."

Lin Ning patted Lin Yuan's shoulder. "There's no need to insist on treating him as a substitute for Gu Yi, is there?"

Lin Yuan frowned. "I'm not treating him as a substitute. If he isn't Gu Yi, I won't pursue him."

Xiao Cheng stepped in to smooth things over. "All right. Since we can't be certain, let's find another chance to test him."

Lin Yuan closed his eyes, recalling the details of the year he had spent living with Gu Yi inside the barrier.

Gu Yi's speech habits, his little gestures.

Ye Yiyi... are you Gu Yi or not...?

In Xie Wenyun's room, Gu Yi sat silently on the bed, hugging his legs.

After what had happened, none of them felt like browsing the market anymore.

Nor did they dare let Gu Yi stay alone, afraid that lecher Lin Yuan would come and bother him again.

Meanwhile, Gu Yi's heart was in a complete tangle.

He had considered the possibility that they might meet at the Illusory Demon Sect, but only that they might meet.

They would simply pass each other by. There probably wouldn't be much interaction.

His wrist still hurt, and the warmth of Lin Yuan's palm kept reminding him that Lin Yuan was looking for him.

He had leaned close because he wanted to verify Gu Yi's cultivation technique.

Fortunately, Gu Yi had already learned the Tianmu Sect's cultivation technique and was wearing the jade pendant Jiang Lingzhou had given him. That was how he had avoided being discovered.

"What's that Lin Yuan so arrogant about? He took liberties with Senior Sister Ye, then thought he could settle things with some lousy ring. The next time I see him, I'll beat him up." Seeing Gu Yi's distressed state, Jiang Lingzhou seethed.

"Enough. Junior Sister is already upset enough. Stop making things worse." Xie Wenyun shot him a sidelong look.

Jiang Lingzhou glared at Xie Wenyun indignantly, but said nothing more.

Remembering what the two of them had said in the room earlier, Jiang Lingzhou sat down sullenly in a chair to one side.

When they had first entered the room together, Jiang Lingzhou had claimed the bed for himself. "Hey, Senior Brother Xie, meditate on the floor tonight. You won't mind if I take the bed, will you?"

"No." Xie Wenyun took his usual meditation cushion out of his Qiankun Ring, set it beside the bed, and prepared to sit down.

Just as Xie Wenyun was about to sit, Jiang Lingzhou spoke again. "Hey, Senior Brother Xie, could you not meditate beside the bed? Stay a little farther away from me."

"All right." Xie Wenyun obligingly picked up his cushion and moved to the window.

He had only just sat down when Jiang Lingzhou spoke again. "I've prepared a surprise for Senior Sister when we visit the market tonight. You've had a tiring day, Senior Brother Xie, so don't come. I'll take Senior Sister myself."

Only then did Xie Wenyun frown. "Absolutely not."

How could he let Jiang Lingzhou, a frivolous man who kissed Junior Sister so casually, go out alone with him?

Junior Sister was only at Foundation Establishment and was physically frail. If Jiang Lingzhou gave in to lust...

"Hey, Xie Wenyun, don't push your luck. I've put up with you this whole way. If it weren't for Senior Sister Ye, I wouldn't have brought you along."

Jiang Lingzhou sat up on the bed and looked down at Xie Wenyun. "I'm not blind. I can tell you like Senior Sister Ye too, but I'll never give him up to you."

"Didn't you say you only saw Junior Sister as an older sister and would no longer harbor any improper desires toward him?" Xie Wenyun knew he was lying. He had never intended to give up at all.

"That's my business. It's not as if I swore an oath... I like Senior Sister Ye. If I want to pursue him, I will. Mind your own business."

Jiang Lingzhou lifted his chin and looked at Xie Wenyun smugly, as though he had won a battle.

Xie Wenyun remained expressionless, his tone level. "It's no use. Junior Sister won't like you."

Gu Yi had been in the sect for three years, and Xie Wenyun had watched him for those three years. Whether he liked someone was clear to him at a glance.

Junior Sister didn't like him, and he didn't like Jiang Lingzhou either.

At those words, Jiang Lingzhou immediately got off the bed, grabbed Xie Wenyun by the collar, and hauled him up. "He doesn't like me? What, does he like you instead? Haven't you noticed how often Senior Sister Ye has smiled at me these past few days? Maybe he's already starting to like me a little."

Frowning, Xie Wenyun pried Jiang Lingzhou's hand away. "Junior Sister is in poor health. His eyes are sensitive to light, and all his meridians ache on rainy days. Sometimes his spiritual energy becomes sluggish, so he needs to keep pills on hand..."

"Why are you telling me all this?" Jiang Lingzhou frowned and cut him off.

"Becoming Dao Companions isn't just a matter of saying it."

Xie Wenyun sat back down. "You need to care about him and look after him, not want to take him home and do frivolous things just because he's good-looking."

Jiang Lingzhou flushed and said angrily, "How do you know I'm not sincere? I am sincere! No one's more sincere than I am."

He lay down on the bed in a huff. "It's true I don't know as much about Senior Sister Ye as you do, but I'll learn little by little. He'll accept me sooner or later! Let me tell you, Xie Wenyun, I don't need you to tell me about Senior Sister Ye. I'll find out for myself. We're rivals in love, not friends."

Xie Wenyun closed his eyes, his voice indifferent. "All right."

Rivals in love? I'm just his senior brother.

"Senior Brother, Junior Brother Jiang, I'm tired. Can I sleep here tonight?" Gu Yi curled up under the covers. He didn't want to go out.

"Junior Sister, go to sleep. I'll keep watch over you," Xie Wenyun said, sitting down on the cushion by the window.

Jiang Lingzhou pressed his lips together and sat beside Xie Wenyun without a word. In truth, he wanted to sit beside Gu Yi's bed, or even hold him in bed.

But he couldn't do that. It wasn't time yet. He had to wait until Senior Sister Ye accepted him and became his Dao Companion, so he could rightfully lie beside him.

The two closed their eyes and began regulating their breathing.

Gu Yi closed his eyes too, but Lin Yuan's face kept turning over and over in his mind.

And his deep voice called his name again and again: "Gu Yi..."

It wasn't until the latter half of the night that Gu Yi finally drifted into an uneasy sleep...