Lin Mengyao looked somewhat surprised at the two people who had returned together; she glanced at the time to make sure she was not mistaken.

"Why are you two back together? It's so late." Wearing pajamas, Lin Mengyao walked over and said to Yu Xia in confusion, "Why are you dressed like this? It's so late. Are you planning to go out?"

"Something happened to her room. Let her sleep with you tonight; I'll sleep on the sofa outside," Xu Ke glanced at Yu Xia and said.

Yu Xia kept her head down without speaking, not opposing Xu Ke's decision. The unusual atmosphere between them made Lin Mengyao feel a bit strange.

"I have no problem with Xiaxia sleeping here, but I want to know what happened. Why do you two look so strange?" Lin Mengyao's eyes kept shifting between the two of them.

"Let her tell you herself," Xu Ke said, looking at Yu Xia, his face expressionless, as if he was quite angry.

"What happened exactly, Xiaxia?"

"Just ran into a little trouble," Yu Xia said, somewhat guiltily; she didn't want Lin Mengyao to worry.

"Is that a little trouble? If I hadn't gone out just now, if I hadn't bumped into you, do you know what could have happened? Why didn't you tell us when you encountered something like this? What if I hadn't found out today, and couldn't find you at the hotel tomorrow, or saw you on the news some future day? What should your sister and I do?" Xu Ke's face looked unpleasant, and his words were a bit harsh.

"What exactly happened? Stop talking in riddles, both of you. You're making me worry," Lin Mengyao was bewildered by their behavior and felt that this might not be a simple matter just by judging Xu Ke's expression.

"Let her tell you herself," Xu Ke said, glancing at Yu Xia.

Lin Mengyao turned her gaze to Yu Xia. Feeling both of their gazes on her, Yu Xia rarely felt nervous and began to softly recount what had happened yesterday and today, selectively omitting some details. But what Yu Xia did reveal was enough to make Lin Mengyao feel frightened.

"No wonder I thought you seemed absent-minded when I saw you today. Something like this happened, and you should have told us immediately. Why didn't you say anything? It was only because your brother-in-law saw it today. What if you hadn't left your food with us and he hadn't gone out to bring it to you—what would you do then? Would we never see you again?" As Lin Mengyao spoke, she became more angry and frightened, even giving Yu Xia a rare slap on the back.

Even though she was extremely angry, Lin Mengyao didn't use much force for that slap because she couldn't bear to.

But the slap landed right on Yu Xia's injured spot, causing her to groan in pain unexpectedly.

"What's wrong? Did I hurt you?" Lin Mengyao, whose fear hadn't faded, quickly asked with concern when she saw Yu Xia's reaction.

"It's nothing. I just bumped into something earlier; it'll be fine by tomorrow," Yu Xia whispered.

When Lin Mengyao heard that Yu Xia had hurt her back, she became very nervous and insisted on checking how badly Yu Xia was injured, but Yu Xia resisted every attempt.

Yu Xia clung to Lin Mengyao's arm, pleading, "Sister, please don't be angry with me, alright? I didn't do it on purpose. I just didn't want to make you worry, so I didn't think it through. I promise I won't do it again. From now on, no matter what happens, I'll tell you right away, okay?"

Yu Xia spoke sincerely, her pitiful appearance melting Lin Mengyao's heart, extinguishing her anger.

Lin Mengyao, being soft-hearted, was easily swayed by Yu Xia, but Xu Ke wasn't planning to let this matter go so easily.

"From the day you came to our home, Yaoyao and I have treated you like family. I hope you think of us the same way. If staying with us makes you uncomfortable, you can tell me directly. Considering the years of friendship, I'll give you a house and some money so you won't have to worry for the rest of your life."

Xu Ke's words were harsh, almost like a blow meant to wound deeply. Yu Xia's face visibly turned pale.

"I haven't—I also consider you as my closest family. I don't want to leave," Yu Xia looked at Xu Ke with panic in her eyes, gripping Lin Mengyao's hand tightly for strength.

Even Lin Mengyao thought Xu Ke's words were too harsh. "Xu Ke, you're being too severe," she quietly complained to him.

"Harsh? I don't think so," Xu Ke shook his head and looked directly at Yu Xia.

"You say you consider us family, but reflect on your behavior since you came to our home. Is it like treating us like family? Constantly thanking us, never telling us when something happens, rejecting all our goodwill—you're drawing a line between us. It's the same with this situation. Encountering difficulty and trouble, your first thought is never to inform us or ask for help but to hide it and solve it on your own."

With each sentence Xu Ke took a step closer until he stood directly in front of Yu Xia, "You never stop to think about how upset we'd be if we knew something happened to you. If you truly saw us as family, would you act like this, Yu Xia? What do we mean to you? Both Yaoyao and I treat you like family, but what are we to you?"

Xu Ke's questions left Yu Xia breathless, the pain in her chest feeling like repeated heavy blows, much worse than bodily injury.

"I really do think of you as my closest family; it's not that I don't like you, or see you as outsiders, I just—" Uncontrollable tears began to flow.

"I chose not to speak because I was too afraid of losing you. I thank you to show I haven't forgotten everything you've done for me. Not telling you, I didn't want you to think I'm troublesome, didn't want you to dislike me. I didn't want that. I'm sorry, I understand I was wrong, please don't make me leave, alright? I don't want to leave you; I don't want to leave this home."

Yu Xia was crying so hard she started hiccuping, making Lin Mengyao feel even softer.

Only at this point did Xu Ke's face show a slight smile. He assured her, "We won't make you leave."

"I hope in the future, you'll speak up promptly if you have any thoughts. We're family, no need to second guess, right? Alright, stop crying, wash up, and go to bed," Xu Ke said gently.

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