"..."

Opposite, watching Yan Huan smile, Ye Shiyu gently put down the notebook in her hand, with a nearly imperceptible smile at the corner of her mouth.

Yan Huan leaned on the window sill and invited her,

"You come over too."

"Sha... shasha..."

Ye Shiyu seemed aware that other girls were in the villa, so she decisively shook her head.

Immediately, she looked downstairs, saw her mother had entered the villa, and then lowered her head, flipping the page and writing,

"Mom has already gone inside. You should go down too. See you later at the company."

"..."

Then, she closed her notebook, pulling the curtain while looking at Yan Huan.

That seemed to signify the end of the conversation.

"Ah..."

Yan Huan reached out, wanting to keep her, but the curtain across had already closed, blocking the sunlight and view.

The bedroom was plunged into silence and darkness. Ye Shiyu held the notebook, lingering by the window briefly, her eyes gazing at the little cat face emoji she had drawn inside.

"Hello, Aunt Ye."

"Aunt Piggy!"

"Why do you always call me Aunt Piggy..."

Opposite, within the villa, faint voices of conversation could be heard, reaching Ye Shiyu's ears.

She glanced over there but ultimately didn't crumple and discard the apparently finished page, merely placed it back on the desk, then turned around to lie on the bed.

On the bed was also a jellyfish plushie Yan Huan had given her earlier.

She extended her hand, hugging the not-too-big, not-too-small jellyfish plushie to her chest, curling up and holding it tightly.

Then, she closed her eyes.

"..."

"Sha..."

"Sister Shiyu?"

Yet in the next second, Yan Huan's voice came from behind.

Hearing this, Ye Shiyu opened her eyes, thinking she was hearing things.

But out of caution, she turned to take a look.

As a result, upon turning, she happened to see her bedroom window open, with Yan Huan clinging to the wall, looking at her.

"Xiao Huan?"

Seeing it was indeed Yan Huan, Ye Shiyu's expression didn't change, but she quickly sat up, smoothing her black long hair at her temples.

Her expression didn't change, but her skin seemed to warm up, turning pink.

"Why are you..."

Yan Huan didn't enter the room, just leaned outside the window and explained,

"Ah, I jumped straight down from upstairs, then climbed up to find you..."

"..."

Ye Shiyu blinked, somewhat at a loss for words,

"If you wanted to say something, you could've just used your phone..."

Hearing this, Yan Huan smiled, replying in the same way,

"I forgot."

"..."

Yet for some reason, on the bed, Ye Shiyu's face reddened a bit more, her gaze slightly evasive.

Perhaps because she had been so liberated when communicating via the notebook across the window earlier, she now subconsciously looked for the notebook to substitute for her words.

But she had long discarded it onto the workbench, so it couldn't be used as a shield for her shyness.

Fortunately, Yan Huan didn't wait for her to respond, simply inviting her again,

"Aunt Ye went too, why don't you come?"

"...Aren't they... there?"

"Indeed they are..."

Ye Shiyu re-hugged the jellyfish, blocking it in front of her, speaking as she lowered her eyes,

"So, I still..."

As expected, it was so.

Indeed, Ye Shiyu was aware of her attitude towards others, even without the page showing favorability in the Crab Coin Store.

However...

"It's fine, just come on."

In the next second, Ye Shiyu looked once more at the straightforward gaze before her, from Yan Huan.

"..."

Faced with his direct gaze, Ye Shiyu's lashes lightly trembled,

"I..."

"Hurry, they're probably calling for me over there. Sister Shiyu, I'll wait for you at home!"

"Xiao..."

Ye Shiyu's eyes narrowed, just extending her hand, when by the window, Yan Huan seemed to have already heard Wang Yulu's voice.

So, with another glance at Ye Shiyu, he turned and leaped down from the side rail, disappearing floor by floor.

"..."

Leaving Ye Shiyu standing there, mouth agape, hesitating.

...

...

"Lanlan! Long time no see..."

Opposite, within the villa.

Ye Lan smiled as she walked into the villa. Before even changing shoes, she was met with the intense gazes of the "Four Heavenly Kings," making her body stiffen slightly.

Of course, their gaze wasn't directed at the highly respected Ye Lan.

They just didn't expect Ye Shiyu not to come with Ye Lan.

Upon confirming Ye Shiyu hadn't entered, they revealed puzzled expressions, slowly retracting their gazes.

"..."

Before Ye Lan could sigh in relief, Wang Yulu pulled her into an embrace, with Sakuragi Hitomi, who seemed inherently to possess the aura of a hostess, standing behind her.

Sakuragi Hitomi smiled gracefully, politely greeting Ye Lan,

"Aunt Ye, good afternoon~"

"Classmate Sakuragi, good afternoon..."

In contrast to the enthusiastic, accompanying Sakuragi Hitomi, An Le and Tong Yingying sat awkwardly in the luxurious living room, akin to guests.

That woman!!

First, you cared for her at the hospital! Just now, you went to greet her mom! Now, you act like a daughter-in-law accompanying her mother-in-law receiving guests!

Might as well just assign you to Yan Huan!

"..."

In this scenario, Tong Yingying and An Le were outclassed by the systematically trained Sakuragi Hitomi.

Their dining etiquette barely sufficed for common family dinners and surely wouldn't know where to sit in more upscale social settings.

As for Aria?

Hmm...

Let's just say, beyond the mundane world, not bound by the five elements.

Noticing Ye Lan arrived alone, Wang Yulu expressed a puzzled look,

"Hey, where's your Shiyu?"

"Ah, she..."

At the mention of this, a sheepish look crossed Ye Lan's face.