Fu Teng immediately looked toward the corridor behind us.

The faint sound came again.

A curtain moved lightly near the far end of the hallway before becoming still once more.

Fu Teng’s expression tightened slightly.

Then he let out a quiet breath.

"It is probably the wind," he said.

His voice sounded calm again, though I could still see the tension beneath it.

I remained silent for a moment before speaking again.

"You should reconsider this," I said.

Fu Teng looked at me.

My gaze remained steady on him.

"Zhao Yin’s reputation is tied to this engagement now," I continued. "People already know she came into this house tonight."

The night air moved softly around us as I spoke.

"She is a woman," I added quietly. "Things are different for her."

Fu Teng lowered his gaze slightly.

I continued calmly,

"If you give it time, things may change."

He remained silent.

"You may eventually like her," I said. "Or at least grow comfortable enough with her for this marriage to work."

Fu Teng’s expression changed slightly at those words.

Then he shook his head slowly.

"That is not how it works," he replied quietly.

His answer came immediately.

Firmly.

As though he had already thought about this many times before.

I watched him carefully.

Then my brows slowly furrowed.

"...You are stubborn," I said.

Fu Teng looked slightly surprised by that.

But I continued before he could respond.

"Not in the way I expected," I added.

My eyes narrowed slightly as a thought slowly formed in my mind.

Then I looked at him properly.

"This kind of stubbornness..." I said slowly.

The courtyard suddenly felt quieter.

"...Do you already have someone in mind?"

The moment those words left my mouth—

Fu Teng froze.

Completely.

The reaction lasted only a second.

But it was enough.

I saw it clearly.

And suddenly—

Everything began making sense far too quickly.

I stared at Fu Teng carefully after seeing his reaction.

The silence between us suddenly felt much heavier than before.

Then I crossed my arms lightly and looked at him directly.

"So you do have someone," I said.

My tone was calm.

But firm.

Fu Teng quickly looked away.

"It is not like that," he replied immediately.

I almost laughed.

"Then why are you reacting like this?" I asked.

He remained silent.

I continued looking at him.

"If there really was someone," I said, "why did you not tell me? Or your brother?"

My voice remained steady.

"If you had brought her here from the beginning, then all of this would have been much easier for me to handle."

Fu Teng’s jaw tightened slightly.

But he still did not answer.

I narrowed my eyes at him.

"Well?" I asked.

Finally, he spoke quietly.

"There is nobody."

I scoffed immediately.

The answer sounded far too quick.

Far too forced.

"In that case," I said, "then live properly with Zhao Yin and see how things go."

Fu Teng frowned slightly.

I continued before he could speak again.

"You keep saying you do not like Zhao Yin," I said. "But at the same time, you claim there is nobody else."

I tilted my head slightly while looking at him.

"So now I am confused."

The courtyard became quiet again.

Then I spoke slowly.

"Or should I assume the person you like is someone we cannot openly acknowledge?"

The moment those words left my mouth—

Fu Teng became visibly tense.

His shoulders stiffened immediately.

And for the first time since this conversation started—

He looked genuinely cornered.

Fu Teng’s expression tightened immediately.

"What do you mean by that?" he asked.

His voice remained controlled, but there was tension beneath it now.

I looked at him quietly for a moment.

Then I smiled faintly.

"I do not mean anything," I replied calmly. "I am only stating facts."

The courtyard fell silent again.

Fu Teng continued looking at me carefully, as though trying to figure out how much I actually understood.

I stepped slightly closer.

"You are asking to end an engagement," I said. "But at the same time, you refuse to explain your reasons clearly."

My voice remained steady.

"You say there is nobody else," I continued. "Yet you react like someone hiding something."

Fu Teng remained silent.

The more he stayed quiet, the more obvious it became.

I folded my arms lightly.

"So until you are willing to openly bring the person you like before this family," I said calmly, "I will not allow Zhao Yin to leave this marriage."

Fu Teng’s brows furrowed immediately.

"Sister-in-law—"

I cut him off before he could continue.

"For now," I said firmly, "she remains your fiancée."

The night wind moved softly through the courtyard.

Then I added quietly,

"Even after the warriors leave."

The moment those words settled between us—

Fu Teng’s expression changed completely.

"You cannot decide something like that for me," he said.

His voice was lower now, but much more tense than before.

I held his gaze steadily.

"And you cannot ask me to destroy a woman’s reputation because you are confused," I replied immediately.

Fu Teng froze slightly.

The words struck directly.

I continued calmly,

"Right now, Zhao Yin has entered this house openly as your future wife," I said. "People already know about this engagement."

My expression remained firm.

"If this suddenly ends without reason, who do you think people will blame?"

Fu Teng lowered his gaze slightly.

He already knew the answer.

Not him.

Zhao Yin.

I let out a slow breath.

"I understand that you are troubled," I said quietly. "But you cannot drag someone else into uncertainty while refusing to face your own feelings honestly."

Fu Teng remained silent for a long moment.

Then finally, he spoke quietly,

"...You make it sound easy."

I shook my head slightly.

"No," I replied.

"I know it is not."

The courtyard became quiet again after that.

Neither of us spoke for a while.

The lantern light flickered softly between us while the cold night wind moved through the open space.

Fu Teng lowered his gaze slightly, his expression more exhausted now than angry.

For the first time since this conversation began, he looked lost.

Not confused about the engagement.

Not confused about Zhao Yin.

But confused about himself.

I watched him quietly before finally speaking again.

"You should go back inside," I said.

My voice softened slightly.

"It is late."

Fu Teng remained still for a moment.

Then he nodded slowly.

"...Alright," he replied quietly.

He turned slightly as if to leave.

But before walking away completely, he stopped again.

"Sister-in-law," he said.

I looked at him.

Fu Teng hesitated briefly before speaking.

"I never wanted to hurt anyone."

His voice was low and honest.

I believed him.

"That is exactly why you need to think carefully from now on," I replied calmly.

Fu Teng nodded once more.

This time, he did not say anything else.

He finally turned and walked away toward the inner corridor.

I stood there quietly and watched his figure disappear into the house.

The courtyard became silent again after he left.

But my thoughts did not settle.

Because the more I replayed this conversation in my mind—

The clearer one thing became.

Fu Teng was hiding something far bigger than I originally thought.

And somehow—

I had the feeling I was only beginning to see the truth.

Meanwhile,

Far from the quiet courtyard of the Fu residence, another figure moved through the night streets of Unit 50.

Fu Sheng walked alone beneath the dim lantern light, his steps calm and unhurried as he passed through one narrow alley after another.

The deeper parts of Unit 50 were quieter at this hour.

Most homes had already gone dark, and only a few scattered lanterns still remained lit outside certain houses. The night air carried the faint smell of smoke, rain-soaked earth, and food that had long gone cold.

Fu Sheng continued forward without hesitation.

His expression remained unreadable.

But his eyes were focused.

Careful.

As though he was retracing something from memory.

He turned another corner and slowed slightly.

The houses here were smaller and more crowded together. Old wooden fences separated narrow pathways, and the sound of distant voices occasionally drifted through open windows before fading again into silence.

Fu Sheng looked around briefly.

Then his gaze settled ahead.

A small house stood near the end of the alley.

A lantern burned quietly outside the entrance.

His steps finally stopped.

For a brief moment, he remained standing there silently, staring at the house.

Then slowly—

He walked toward it.

The closer he got, the clearer the familiar feeling became.

This was the place.

Meilin’s house.

Fu Sheng’s expression darkened slightly as old memories surfaced quietly in his mind.

He had not expected to see her again here.

Not after all this time.

Not after believing the past had already ended long ago.

The faint light from inside the house spilled softly through the window.

Someone was awake.

Fu Sheng stood outside for several seconds without moving.

Then finally—

He raised his hand and knocked on the door.