Shen Xiuyun looked puzzled: “This is…?”
Tu Manli patted Li Chanyi on the shoulder, her expression warm and kind: “I just wanted you to take a look at this child’s aura.”
That wasn’t a problem. And since their Yushui Temple specialized in aura-reading, it made sense that they would come to him. But why read Li Chanyi’s aura specifically?
Though somewhat perplexed, Shen Xiuyun went ahead. He drew two fingers horizontally across his eyes, and when he opened them again, the two people before him had taken on a different appearance in his vision.
When he focused his spiritual energy on Li Chanyi, Shen Xiuyun discovered that this kid was actually quite unusual. His body was surrounded by a dense, grassy-green aura. Moreover, many wood-attuned energies swirled around him but couldn’t approach because he had not yet embarked on the path of cultivation.
“Top-tier wood-attuned talent, accompanied by the energy of benevolence.”
Director Tu’s smile grew even warmer: “Then it’s settled—just as I saw. Alright, sorry to trouble you with this trip. Go on back and get some rest.”
Shen Xiuyun acknowledged and walked to the door. Once certain Li Chanyi couldn’t hear, he asked one more question: “Director Tu, what exactly is this about?”
Normally, they would just confuse the memories on the spot. Bringing him back specially and having him come over to read auras… After all, Li Chanyi was Ye Yang’s good friend. Shen Xiuyun couldn’t just ignore it.
Director Tu had the expression of someone who had just found money: “It’s still too early to say. I need to report back and get approval. But rest assured—it’s a good thing for him.”
·
Ye Yang returned to school the next day.
“Ye Ye, I’m serious—you really can’t skip any more classes!” Class representative Ji Yunrou’s first words to him were these. “The class president has already tallied up all your missed class hours. If this continues, forget about scholarships—your GPA will take a major hit, and you might even fail several courses.”
“I’m sorry. It won’t be like this anymore.” Ye Yang apologized sincerely.
Ji Yunrou looked skeptical: “Really? Can you promise?”
Ye Yang: “…Probably.” He knew Ji Yunrou genuinely worried about him, but he really couldn’t promise. When well-paid missions came up, it was hard to resist taking them.
Ji Yunrou shot him a contemptuous look: “You and Professor Shen really are perfect for each other. One doesn’t come to class, the other doesn’t either.”
The short-haired girl beside Ji Yunrou, her good friend Ni Tao, also sighed: “Ah, Professor Shen is great in every way, but he’s always taking leave. Half of his course sessions end up being covered by other teachers.”
“Ugh, just because he’s not a full-time professor, he can be this carefree?” She gave the desk a little punch as she spoke.
Ye Yang felt compelled to defend Shen Ming a little: “Professor Shen also has work at the research institute. He’s been away on a business trip the past few days. Ye Qing discovered a new aquatic species…”
Ji Yunrou: “Alright, alright, stop. I don’t want to eat your and Professor Shen’s couple dog food today.”
Ye Yang: “…”
Thanks to Li Chanyi’s influence, he now understood what those words meant. His face flushed slightly as he instinctively protested: “That’s not true. Professor Shen and I aren’t in that kind of relationship.”
Eager to change the subject, he suddenly thought: “Why isn’t Li Chanyi here yet?”
Ni Tao sat up straighter: “Right, why isn’t Li Chanyi here? He’s not replying to messages either. Class is about to start.”
Ji Yunrou checked her memo: “He didn’t ask for leave either. Did he oversleep?”
Ye Yang opened his chat with Li Chanyi. They had messaged last night—Li Chanyi had said he found a very interesting part-time job and would take Ye Yang to check it out in a few days.
Nothing seemed wrong. And Director Tu had handled the aftermath yesterday—nothing bad could have happened, right?
Just as he was getting worried, Li Chanyi slid into the classroom right as the bell rang. As he passed the professor, he quickly greeted him—very polite.
When Li Chanyi sat down beside him, Ye Yang whispered, “Why are you so late?”
“Was too excited last night, couldn’t sleep, hehe. So I woke up late today.”
“Because of the new part-time job?”
“Hehe, I’m going to be your colleague~”
Ye Yang’s heart skipped a beat. But Li Chanyi put a finger to his lips: “Don’t rush. I’ll explain after class.”
That entire class was agonizing for Ye Yang. He barely absorbed anything, his mind full of the word “colleague.” What was going on? Could Li Chanyi still remember?
No way—Director Tu handled it personally!
Finally, class ended. Ye Yang immediately packed up his things, and without thinking, packed Li Chanyi’s things too, then grabbed Li Chanyi and ran.
Behind them, Ni Tao and Ji Yunrou stared in shock: “What’s with them? Eloping?”
…
“Hey, hey, slow down, slow down! I’m a fragile heart patient~”
Ye Yang pulled Li Chanyi to a stop near the garbage room, completely ignoring his plea for sympathy, and said sternly, “Alright, now talk. What’s going on?”
But the moment Li Chanyi opened his mouth, Ye Yang’s heart nearly stopped: “For just a little sea hare, you sure can run…”
“You… you still remember?!”
“Ow, ow, easy, easy!”
Ye Yang quickly let go: “Sorry, sorry, I wasn’t paying attention. What’s going on with you?”
“Okay, okay, here’s what happened.”
Li Chanyi briefly explained what had happened yesterday. It turned out that Director Tu had never contacted the Crisis Management Department at all. She had noticed Li Chanyi’s talent on the spot, then went back and looked into it further, even bringing in Shen Xiuyun for a second confirmation. Eventually, she decided to recruit Li Chanyi.
“Do you know about Suwen Chuandeng?”
Ye Yang thought it sounded familiar, as if he had heard it somewhere before.
Li Chanyi looked quite pleased with himself: “Suwen Chuandeng is one of YCG’s medical divisions. I’m working there now as a part-time consultant.” Though he wasn’t a medical major, his family had a deep medical background—he was more than qualified for the role.
Ye Yang suddenly remembered—wasn’t Wu Rong part of Suwen Chuandeng?
He looked at Li Chanyi in astonishment: “So that’s how it is. Does that mean you’re officially part of YCG now?”
“Not only that—I’m starting my cultivation training this weekend! If I successfully draw energy into my body, I’ll be able to become a cultivator!” Li Chanyi’s eyes sparkled with anticipation. “Director Tu said I have talent and excellent medical skills—a rare find.”
Thinking about how desperately YCG needed people, Ye Yang instantly understood.
But after hearing about Li Chanyi’s benefits, he found it all a bit surreal.
The world was too bizarre. Li Chanyi, a pure human, had learned about the existence of non-humans less than a day ago, and yet he was already a formal YCG employee with a fixed salary!
In contrast, Ye Yang had to study, take exams, train, go on numerous missions—and after all that, he was still just an auxiliary member with no salary and loads of debt…
“Wow, I really didn’t expect this,” Li Chanyi said, still finding it unbelievable. “Turns out there’s this whole fascinating world beyond ordinary human life. I really need to brush up on my mythology knowledge.”
“Good thing I went herb-picking that day.”
Hearing that, Ye Yang remembered a question he hadn’t had time to ask yesterday: “Why did you go herb-picking that day anyway?”
Li Chanyi’s gaze drifted evasively. “…There’s some medicinal herbs my cousin planted on that mountain. I noticed Ni Tao had a bit of a cough, so I thought I’d get her some herbs to steep in water…”
Ye Yang narrowed his eyes: “You went to steal herbs?”
Li Chanyi got defensive: “We’re family—how is that stealing? I just didn’t have time to tell her! And is that really the point?!”
At that reminder, Ye Yang suddenly put two and two together: “…You like Ni Tao?”
Even though he had brought it up himself, being called out so bluntly by Ye Yang made Li Chanyi suddenly shy. His face flushed as he stubbornly insisted, “We’re classmates. It’s only natural to care about each other.”
Ye Yang: “…” He truly had nothing more to say. He just wished Li Chanyi the best of luck.
·
Shen Ming had been away on a business trip since the previous week. Unexpectedly, he was gone for five full days. The next time Ye Yang saw him was on Sunday.
Early Sunday morning, Ye Yang was woken up by rustling noises from the kitchen.
He rushed over to look—sure enough, it was Ling She rummaging through the cupboards.
Seeing Ye Yang, Ling She showed no awareness whatsoever that rummaging through someone else’s home was inappropriate. Instead, she complained, “Why aren’t there any potato chips?”
Ye Yang was speechless. He ignored her, washed his face, and went next door to find Shen Ming.
“Professor Shen? Haven’t had breakfast yet, have you? Want to eat together?”
Shen Ming had already washed up. The moment Ye Yang appeared, he immediately got up from the sofa: “I’ve prepared breakfast. Come over and eat with me.”
Ye Yang: “? Professor Shen, you made breakfast?” He repeated in disbelief. As far as he knew, Shen Ming had lived for ages and had never cooked a single meal in his life.
Ling She wandered over leisurely, chewing on a pack of French fries: “Little rabbit, you ran too fast. I was about to tell you~”
Ye Yang abandoned his half-made breakfast wrap in just one second. He plopped down at the dining table. Shen Ming cooking? He absolutely had to taste that.
Shen Ming was uncharacteristically nervous. He rubbed his hands together and turned into the kitchen.
Ye Yang rested his chin on one hand and watched with interest through the transparent glass door. Shen Ming was wearing a newly bought apron. He picked up a pot very awkwardly, then put it down again. It took him a while to find a suitable frying pan. Then he pulled eggs and ham out of the fridge and plugged in the oven…
His kitchen had hardly ever been used, but the cookware was surprisingly complete.
After a clattering bout of effort, Shen Ming emerged with two large plates. On each was an identical sandwich and some sausages. They both looked quite decent.
Ye Yang thanked him and took a bite immediately. “!” So good!
The sandwich looked simple, but for some reason, it was absolutely delicious. The fragrance of wheat and egg, combined with the crispness of finely chopped vegetables, exploded in his mouth with an indescribable aroma.
Shen Ming brought over two glasses of milk. Ye Yang took a sip and let out a comfortable sigh: “What’s going on?!”
“Why is even the milk so much better than what you buy outside?”
Shen Ming relaxed, a small smile appearing on his face: “The ingredients are all spiritual herbs. On this trip, Ye Qing and I passed by Shennongjia, so I bought some on the way. The milk is the same—I happened to see it there.”
Ye Yang suddenly understood—so they were spiritual herbs. No wonder they tasted so good. Then he felt a little embarrassed: “This is too precious.”
Inside Shennongjia, there was a Hundred Herbs Valley that had existed for a thousand years. It was the only place left in the human realm capable of producing spiritual herbs on any scale. Scarcity made them valuable—spiritual herbs were extremely expensive.
Shen Ming: “Not precious.”
He paused, then added, “I made it for you. So it’s not precious.”
Ye Yang hadn’t yet noticed anything unusual about the atmosphere. He swallowed the last bite of his sandwich and glanced at Shen Ming’s untouched plate.
Shen Ming pushed his own plate toward Ye Yang.
Just as Ye Yang was struggling with whether to eat that portion too, he suddenly heard Shen Ming say, “I’m sorry.”
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