After the Secrets of the Passerby Were Leaked, He Was Cherished by the Entire Family of Antagonists-Chapter 98

Huo Yan froze, staring at Ye Leyao in shock. “How is that possible…”

Ye Leyao suddenly chuckled, but the smile looked particularly pale: “Because I’ve already tried twice before.”

Huo Yan stared at Ye Leyao, disbelief filling his eyes. “What do you mean…”

What did he mean by trying twice before?

Ye Leyao no longer chose to hide it: “Didn’t you ask me the first time you saw me? You said I seemed familiar to you. Huo Yan, we’ve met before. During the first two timeline resets and the first time I came to this world’s timeline, we met many times.”

Having repeated everything so many times, the emotions Ye Leyao understood most deeply were sadness and grief.

These were also the emotions he hated the most.

Ye Leyao raised his head, and in his beautiful eyes, the sorrow was unmistakable. His voice seemed to tremble slightly: “I’ve tried twice, Huo Yan... But no matter which attempt, Qin Yao always dies… His death is a fixed point, an unchangeable ending. The only way to deceive the system is to substitute someone else in his place at the same moment.”

This method was something L1 had come up with after watching two years of timeline reviews in his main system space.

By the time the third timeline reset occurred, Ye Leyao had already decided to use this method to save Qin Yao.

Since Qin Yao’s death couldn’t be changed, as long as a “Qin Yao” died at that moment, the regulatory system wouldn’t detect an error in the plot.

So, during the third timeline reset, Ye Leyao edited a program for himself, allowing the main system’s monitoring program to recognize him as the “Qin Yao” of world A20231007.

To avoid the monitoring system detecting any abnormalities, Ye Leyao sealed most of his abilities, making himself appear more like a “human.”

Only in this way could he truly take Qin Yao’s place at the moment of death without being recognized as a plot error.

That’s why, after the reset, Ye Leyao had immediately appeared before Qin Yao—he wanted to spend as much time as possible with him during the next two months.

Not because Qin Yao liked Ye Leyao.

But because Ye Leyao liked Qin Yao.

The regulatory system L1 couldn’t predict what would happen after his death, so he chose to leave behind the most beautiful memories before his own demise.

Ye Leyao’s eyes were red, his voice choking: “Huo Yan, I’m begging you, please help me, okay?”

Although he had learned human emotions, Ye Leyao was still not human. So, no matter how sad or upset he was, without the acting buff from the point system, he couldn’t cry. His beautiful eyes only turned red with sorrow.

Huo Yan stared silently into Ye Leyao’s eyes.

After a long time, he shook his head, a bitter smile forming at the corners of his lips: “I can’t do it… Xiaoyao… Even though I don’t have memories from before, these two months have made me think of you as a younger brother… Of course, I understand that you don’t want Qin Yao to…”

Huo Yan suddenly looked up, trying to hold back his tears, but a single hot tear still rolled down his cheek. His voice was hoarse: “But how could any older brother send his younger brother to die with his own hands? It’s impossible…”

“And how can you be so sure that if you die in Qin Yao’s place, Qin Yao will be safe?” Huo Yan’s question was almost cruel.

Ye Leyao said, “My calculations won’t be wrong.”

That was the only thing Ye Leyao was certain of.

“Then what are the chances of you surviving?” Huo Yan asked again.

Ye Leyao fell silent.

Huo Yan didn’t speak anymore either.

The silence in the dressing room stretched endlessly.

Outside the dressing room, Qin Yao stood up and left.

The conversation ended without resolution.

That night, Ye Leyao returned very late.

Although all the Qin family servants and Qin Hongxi now knew of Ye Leyao’s presence, he still preferred to enter through Qin Yao’s balcony.

By now, it was already past midnight, and the lights in Qin Yao’s room were off.

Ye Leyao flew onto the balcony but didn’t go to his room right away. Instead, he sat on the recliner, gazing at the roses on the balcony.

After the last season of blooms had faded, new buds had started to bloom in the past two days.

Ye Leyao suddenly thought of the last timeline. After Qin Yao left, the roses were still taken care of, but the caretaker changed from Qin Yao to Qin Hongxi.

However, Qin Hongxi didn’t tend to them for long either.

Qin Yao’s death had been too much of a blow to him. Within two years, Qin Hongxi had also passed away from illness.

In the end, the roses on the balcony, after losing both their masters, froze to death during a severe snowstorm.

Ye Leyao didn’t know why he thought of this, but he couldn’t stop feeling sad.

Because of these roses that no one would care for anymore, and because of the day that was soon to come—

Suddenly, the light in the room behind him turned on.

Ye Leyao turned around and saw Qin Yao walking out with a cup of milk.

“Why are you crouching on the ground?” Qin Yao asked with a smile. He crouched down next to Ye Leyao. “Today… No, yesterday’s milk—you haven’t had it yet.”

Qin Yao handed the milk to Ye Leyao.

Ye Leyao lowered his gaze slightly and took the warm cup of milk. After thinking for a moment, he said, “I thought you were asleep.”

“Didn’t I promise you? I’ll make you a cup of milk every day. Even if it’s this late and I should be asleep, I’ll still make it first, won’t I?” Qin Yao smiled.

Ye Leyao’s eyes suddenly stung, and his heart felt warm and full.

For a brief moment, he felt something welling up in his eyes, but he quickly suppressed it.

Ye Leyao took a sip of the milk and said seriously, “Qin Yao, thank you.”

Qin Yao suddenly reached out and ruffled Ye Leyao’s hair. “Silly.”

Ye Leyao said earnestly, “I’m not silly. Didn’t I tell you before? I’m the number one regulatory system of the Time Management Bureau!”

Qin Yao smiled softly. “Mm.”

But in his heart, he thought, how foolish—his little system.

How could there be a system that didn’t care for its own survival, but instead worried about the life and death of humans?

He could have lived freely forever, never needing to think about such troubling things, but he chose to come to his side.

His little system had kept its promise, so Qin Yao would also keep the promise he made when he was a child.

Chapter 98 (2)

Before the out-of-control truck could hit, Ye Leyao managed to push Qin Yao out of the way just in time.

But in the next moment, Ye Leyao suddenly felt his world flip upside down as he was forcefully shoved away by a strong impact.

The screeching sound of tires skidding on the ground filled the air, followed by a deafening crash.

The rain blurred his vision, and for a moment, Ye Leyao felt his heart stop.

When he looked up again, Qin Yao was already lying in a pool of blood.

The cold raindrops fell relentlessly, draining the vibrant life from his body.

Ye Leyao heard his own voice, hoarse and desperate: “Qin Yao—”

Once again.

Once again, he had lost Qin Yao.

Ye Leyao stumbled forward, panicked, and cradled Qin Yao in his arms.

Qin Yao lay back in his embrace, coughing up a mouthful of blood: “Yao…”

“Don’t talk! Don’t talk, I’ll find a way... I’ll find a way to save you…” Something blurred Ye Leyao’s vision, making it nearly impossible to see Qin Yao’s face clearly.

“I’ll find a way... I’m the—” The program restricting Ye Leyao’s abilities was lifted, and he began exchanging points for potions in the system store again. But just like before, none of the highest-quality potions could be used on Qin Yao. His body continued to grow colder.

“How could this happen… how could this happen… Qin Yao…” Ye Leyao choked on his words. When he looked down, he realized several hot tears had fallen from his eyes.

So systems can cry after all.

Qin Yao tried to curve his lips into a faint smile. He reached out and gently wiped the tears from the corners of Ye Leyao’s eyes: “Don’t... don’t cry…”

Ye Leyao cried out in anguish: “Ahhh… why… why can’t I ever save you…”

Qin Yao shook his head with a smile, looking at Ye Leyao with unwavering sincerity. His voice was faint: “You… have already saved me… Yaoyao, you... you came to see me again, so this time... it's my turn to keep the promise…”

Ye Leyao didn’t understand. All he could hear was the sound of his own sobs growing louder. He held Qin Yao helplessly, his cries tearing through the air: “You can’t die… Qin Yao, you can’t die… can you promise me you won’t die…”

Qin Yao didn’t respond. Using the last of his strength, he wiped another tear from the corner of Ye Leyao’s eye.

But there were too many tears, and Qin Yao had no strength left.

That once beautiful hand, now covered in blood, lost its vitality and fell limply.

People seemed to be gathering around them.

Ye Leyao heard Huo Yan shouting for him to let go.

“Let go! Xiaoyao… the doctor is here, the doctor is here…”

Ye Leyao shook his head helplessly, unable to say a word. When he opened his mouth, all that came out was more sobbing: “There’s… there’s no saving him…”

The rain continued to pour heavily, with the large drops pounding down and cutting to the core.

Qin Yao had died again.

Once again, he died in Ye Leyao’s arms.

Two days later, the Qin family held a grand funeral for Qin Yao.

Ye Leyao did not attend. It was as if he had disappeared, even the Huo family couldn’t find him.

It was only then that Huo Yan remembered what Ye Leyao had said to him a few days prior.

Ye Leyao had said he was a system, and his mission was to save them and Qin Yao.

But now Qin Yao was dead—what about Ye Leyao?

Had he left?

Huo Yan regretted it deeply.

He should not have been so absolute in what he said that day…

He should have stayed and tried to find a solution with Ye Leyao.

But—

If even Ye Leyao couldn’t come up with a better solution, could he have really found a way to save Qin Yao?

Huo Yan didn’t know, and he felt utterly lost.

From that day on, he started blaming himself.

It was all his fault.

If only he had stayed and talked with Ye Leyao properly.

Maybe if the two of them had discussed it, they really could have come up with a way to save Qin Yao.

That was a real, living person.

How could Huo Yan have said such things to Ye Leyao?

Ye Leyao only wanted to save Qin Yao, he wasn’t wrong.

But Huo Yan only wanted to save Ye Leyao.

Huo Yan didn’t want Ye Leyao to die, and he didn’t want to see Qin Yao die either…

So why did it come to this?

At some point, Huo Yan’s mind had started to twist and become unbalanced.

Huo Yan was an excellent actor, and he was very skilled at hiding his emotions.

So no one else noticed anything wrong.

It was only at night, in the privacy of his room, that Huo Yan would drop his façade.

He would sit at the edge of the bed in his pitch-dark room, repeatedly asking himself why he didn’t save Qin Yao.

And on the brink of collapse, he would tell himself that things would have been better if Ye Leyao didn’t love Qin Yao.

Yes.

If only Ye Leyao didn’t love Qin Yao, then Qin Yao’s death…

Every time his thoughts reached this point, Huo Yan would break out in a cold sweat, horrified by his own ideas.

How could he think that way?

He knew how important Qin Yao was to Ye Leyao, so how could he think like that?

Huo Yan—

He would spiral further into guilt, even developing faint signs of self-harm tendencies.

That’s when Ye Leyao came back.

Ye Leyao immediately noticed something was wrong with Huo Yan and informed Huo’s parents.

But Ye Leyao didn’t go to the hospital with Huo Yan.

By then, Huo’s mother had also learned the full story. She looked at Ye Leyao, her eyes filled with concern: “Xiaoyao, do you… blame him?”

Ye Leyao stared at her in shock: “How could I?”

Huo Yan had treated him like a younger brother, and in Ye Leyao’s heart, he had long since considered them his own family.

Ye Leyao shook his head and said seriously, “I don’t blame anyone.”

He hadn’t found a perfect solution, so Ye Leyao could only accept the current outcome.

Ye Leyao didn’t stay with the Huo family for long. He had other things to do.

After Qin Yao’s death, Ye Leyao returned to the Time Management Bureau.

This time, his goal was clear. He directly sought out Qiu and asked her how he could save Qin Yao.

Qiu saw the determination in Ye Leyao’s eyes, so this time she didn’t hide anything: “There is a way, but if you save Qin Yao, it’s possible that the two of you will never be able to be together.”

Ye Leyao quietly listened to Qiu’s explanation, then suddenly smiled: “No, we can be together.”

Qiu looked at him in confusion: “L1, what are you planning to do?”

“I’m called Ye Leyao now. The ‘Ye’ comes from Ye Fan, and ‘Leyao’ was the name my lover gave me.” Ye Leyao didn’t answer Qiu’s question. He quickly returned to the world of A20231007.

By then, six months had passed since Qin Yao’s death.

The Support System Bai Yu had also arrived in the A20231007 world.

Ye Leyao went to him directly.

Upon seeing him again, Bai Yu was furious, nearly fuming with rage: “L1, what on earth are you doing?! Because you keep restarting this world’s timeline, I haven’t been able to complete my task. I’ve already…”

“Bai Yu,” Ye Leyao interrupted, “how did you get your name?”

Bai Yu was momentarily speechless, then frowned: “Why are you asking that?”

Ye Leyao said, “I’m called Ye Leyao now. ‘Leyao’ is the name my lover gave me. Your name wasn’t originally Bai Yu—you were called System S325.”

Bai Yu fell silent.

After a moment, he quietly said, “My… host said I always spoke to him so gently, like a feather, making his heart itch. So, he started calling me ‘Xiao Yu.’ Later, I added a surname for myself and changed it to Bai Yu.”

Ye Leyao said, “You love your host.”

Bai Yu immediately exploded: “What nonsense are you spouting?! I’m a system, how could I possibly lo…”

The words got caught in his throat, and in the end, he didn’t finish the sentence. Bai Yu turned his head to the side and muttered, “Systems aren’t allowed to love humans, I…”

“Why can’t systems love humans?” Ye Leyao asked, “I love a human.”

Bai Yu stared at him in shock: “You—”

Ye Leyao suddenly smiled: “I used to be troubled by that question too, but Qin Yao said that at the root, humans are nothing more than a collection of cells, and I, as a system, am essentially just a string of data.”

“He’s made of cells, and I’m made of data. We’re a perfect match.”

With just this brief sentence, Ye Leyao’s words hit like a bolt of lightning.

Bai Yu looked at him in shock, speechless for a long time before finally asking, “Why… why are you telling me all this?”

“I want to ask you for a favor,” Ye Leyao smiled, “because I’ll help you in return.”

“I will separate your task-related storyline from the main world’s. Once this task is completed, you won’t have to repeat it again, and I will also modify your time flow rate,” Ye Leyao explained.

Bai Yu was stunned. “Is it really possible to separate a small world’s task line from its main world?”

Bai Yu quickly checked and found, “There are indeed precedents for this, but it would take a lot of points, wouldn’t it?”

“And why do you want to modify the time flow rate?” Bai Yu fired off a series of questions. “That would cost even more points, wouldn’t it?”

Ye Leyao answered calmly, “I have plenty of points, and I can do it. As for the time flow rate, I need to ensure that in the future, you’ll definitely meet me.”

Bai Yu stared at him, confused. “Why are you going so far… Is it for that human who gave you your name?”

Ye Leyao nodded. “Yes.”

Once a task line in a small world is separated, the plot of that line is no longer monitored by the regulatory system.

In other words, the storyline would no longer be subject to Ye Leyao’s timeline resets.

However, that task line would still belong to world A20231007, meaning that in the future, it would eventually merge back with the main timeline.

Ye Leyao hoped that on the day the timelines converged, Bai Yu would come and remind him.

Bai Yu asked, “So, you’ve figured out a solution this time?”

Ye Leyao nodded. “Yes, the next time will be the last reset.”

Bai Yu followed up, “And what do I need to tell you when that time comes?”

Ye Leyao thought for a moment, then casually edited a program. “Just ask me, ‘L1, have you found a way to save Qin Yao?’”

Bai Yu nodded seriously, “Alright, I’ll remember that.”

Ye Leyao quickly left.

He went to the points mall and exchanged points to separate the task lines, isolating Bai Yu’s task line from world A20231007. Then he purchased a time extension.

In the system points mall, there was a forum for system exchanges.

Every day, the products purchased from the points mall were publicly announced anonymously.

That day, the points mall suddenly flashed a new announcement: “One minute ago, a system exchanged for 1,000 bottles of ‘Pause’ potion.”

As soon as this announcement appeared, it stirred up a frenzy among systems.

“??? 1,000 bottles?”

“Huh? Who’s this crazy system?”

“I remember that not long ago, someone exchanged 5,000 bottles of Life Potion, right?”

“5,000 bottles of Life Potion? Oh my god! They must be super rich!”

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“I’m so jealous my eyes are turning red. Those 5,000 bottles cost a full five billion points!”

“No, what I’m focused on is that one bottle of Life Potion can save 100 people, and they bought 5,000 bottles? Are they planning to save the world or something?”

“If they’re trying to save the world, it probably means the world is about to collapse, right?”

“Could be! And now they've exchanged 1,000 bottles of Pause potion? They must be trying to figure out how to save that world.”

Who is this system causing such a stir? I wish I could see the drama!

...

The system forum was ablaze with discussion. Meanwhile, L2 furrowed his brows as he watched.

“A thousand bottles of Pause potion can pause time for a thousand years. What on earth is L1 planning to do?”

Qiu shook her head.

L2 jumped onto her shoulder and looked up at her in confusion, “You don’t know either?”

Qiu replied, “I don’t know, but I can probably guess what he’s trying to do.”

L2 swished his tail. “What’s he planning?”

Qiu’s gaze fell on the paused world of A20231007. After a long pause, she finally said, “He wants to sync the time flow of A20231007 with the time flow of the main system.”

L2 was completely stunned. “What?! L1 has gone mad! In the main system, one hour equals a year in world A20231007. To make the time flow consistent, do you have any idea how many points that would take? Tens of billions… hundreds of billions… even trillions wouldn’t be enough!”

“L1 has lost his mind!!!”

Qiu said nothing, but a data panel lit up in front of them, showing Ye Leyao’s figure.

At this moment, the L1 system was already traveling through various worlds, working tirelessly to accumulate points as quickly as possible.

L2 saw that he was managing ten worlds simultaneously and couldn’t help but curse, “He’s crazy,” then asked, “What exactly did you tell him?”

After a long silence, Qiu finally answered, “I told him that having ‘Qin Yao’ die at the same point in time would indeed make the main system recognize the plot, but if L1 dies in Qin Yao’s place, his data will be shattered.”

“Of course! If the main system is to accept the plot, there has to be real death,” L2 muttered.

Even systems experience true death.

But systems differ from cellular organisms.

When cellular organisms die, their cells can’t regenerate.

However, systems are different. Even when their data is erased, they can still recover with proper care.

It’s just that the recovery process is very long.

If things go well, it might take one or two years. If it’s slow, it could take over a decade or two.

Realizing this, L2 suddenly understood. “So, L1 is trying to sync the time flow of A20231007 with the main system’s time flow so that once he recovers, he’ll be able to see Qin Yao again?”

Qiu nodded.

The reason Qiu had told Ye Leyao that they wouldn’t be able to meet again after saving Qin Yao was because of the time flow issue.

Restoring shattered data takes a long time, and even with Qiu and L2 helping him, it would still take at least two years.

But with A20231007’s current time flow, within three hours, Qin Yao would have aged and possibly died of old age.

As Qiu had said, if L1 saved Qin Yao, they would never see each other again.

But who would have thought that L1 would come up with the idea of changing the time flow?

L2 let out a heavy sigh. “But even if he’s managing ten worlds at once, there’s no way he can earn enough points in such a short time.”

Qiu nodded in agreement.

L2 sighed again. “Alright, I’ll go help him.”

Qiu looked at him, surprised.

L2 huffed, “Don’t look at me like that. I just think that if a system keeps working like this, who knows how many years it’ll take. It’s exhausting! I’ve got plenty of points myself, and I don’t have any immediate need for them, so I can give him all my points…”

As he spoke, L2 added, “Besides, I’ve had enough of my vacation, and I can help him gather points too.”

Hearing this, Qiu couldn’t help but laugh. “Why are you going out of your way to help him?”

L2 snorted.

After a long time, he finally said, “Because L1 helped me a long time ago.”

Qiu raised an eyebrow. “Oh?”

But L2 said nothing more.

That memory was truly infuriating!

At that time, L2 had just been created by the main system and wasn't yet a regulatory system.

Meanwhile, L1 was already the top system in the main system, admired by all.

During one mission, L2 made a fatal mistake that nearly caused a small world to collapse.

It was L1 who arrived just in time to stabilize the small world.

Afterwards, L2 thanked L1 and said he would surely repay him in the future.

“Do you know what L1 said back then?” L2 asked Qiu.

Qiu smiled. “I can guess. He must have said something about having plenty of points, right?”

L2 snorted, “Even worse! He said the best way I could repay the regulatory system was by not making any more mistakes in my future tasks! Can you believe that?! How over-the-top is that?!”

Qiu chuckled. “Over the top, for sure!”

L2 nodded, satisfied. After a moment, he added, “But I understand now. Back then, L1 didn’t understand emotions. Now, though, he’s got it—and he’s completely fallen in!”

L2’s words were meant as a joke.

But after saying them, neither he nor Qiu laughed.

Because they both knew that the path L1 had chosen was destined to be lonely and long.

That’s why L2 wanted to help him.

...

For decades afterward, the system points forum saw the same anonymous announcement every year:

"One minute ago, a system exchanged 1,000 bottles of ‘Pause’ potion."

In the early years, every time this announcement appeared, it would spark a flurry of curiosity and conversation among countless systems.

They were all curious about which system had caused such a colossal disaster that they needed to exchange so many bottles of ‘Pause’ potion annually.

But no matter how curious they were, none could figure out which system was behind it.

However, in recent years, a new rumor started to circulate among the systems:

The top-ranking system in the Time Management Bureau, L1, was now incredibly poor.

How poor, exactly?

Hadn’t they heard the story about how he once argued with the main system over just 1 point?

That incident had actually been quite trivial.

The main system’s regulatory system was a very old system, and because it was old-fashioned and stubborn, it refused to upgrade its processing unit, which occasionally led to calculation errors.

This time, it had shorted L1 by 1 point.

Most of the time, systems didn’t bother arguing over such a small amount, since 1 point wasn’t worth much.

But unexpectedly, L1 made a fuss over that single point!

He even threatened that if the main system didn’t provide a proper compensation solution, he and L2 would go on strike together.

In recent years, many of the senior systems had been taking long vacations, leaving the junior systems to cause quite a bit of trouble.

L1 and L2 had been the ones to clean up many of those messes together.

If L1 and L2 were to strike, it would indeed be a major problem for the Time Bureau.

In the end, the main system had no choice but to offer L1 double compensation—2 points.

When systems heard about this, many couldn’t help but laugh.

“Really? He made such a fuss over just 2 points?”

“Yeah, that’s odd. I thought L1 wouldn’t care about a few points.”

“Could it be that L1 is just stingy?”

Soon, other systems came to L1’s defense:

“L1 is not stingy at all!”

“Exactly! He once gave me 100 bottles of Life Potion!”

Seeing this, other systems were stunned:

“So L1 is the one who bought 5,000 bottles of Life Potion?”

“Now that you mention it, it could be L1. After all, no other system has that many points.”

“What is L1 planning?”

No one knew.

The only two systems who knew had been helping L1 with his work over the years.

After finishing yet another round of supervision, L2 was completely exhausted.

“I can’t do this anymore. I need a break. Ye Leyao, aren’t you going to rest for a bit?”

By now, L2 had gotten used to calling L1 “Ye Leyao.”

Ye Leyao replied, “No, but thank you. You go ahead and rest. I’ll head to the next world.”

L2 sighed but didn’t press the matter further. Persuading Ye Leyao was futile anyway.

The two systems soon parted ways, and Ye Leyao took a deep breath before moving on to the next world.

As soon as he entered the small world, Ye Leyao eagerly pulled up the data. But before he could finish reading the storyline, he froze.

The world’s number was: A20231007.

Ye Leyao felt his heart begin to race wildly.

Wasn’t world A20231007 supposed to be paused?

How could this be...

Wait—no, it was possible.

The time flow in small worlds was different from the time flow in the main system space. The systems' tasks varied widely in time.

Some tasks existed in the same small world but weren’t tied to the same era.

This task took place 18 years ago.

Back then, Qin Yao had just turned five years old.

So that’s how it was.

This was Qin Yao’s first meeting with him.

Ye Leyao barely hesitated before rushing towards Qin Yao.

He flew swiftly, with large snowflakes slicing against his face like blades, but he didn’t seem to notice.

Until he arrived at the path leading to the Qin family villa.

From the sky, Ye Leyao saw the small figure in the snow.

Five-year-old Qin Yao was wearing only a thin sweater. Shivering in the cold wind, he hugged his small body and trudged forward, leaving deep footprints with each step.

As Ye Leyao drew closer, he could hear Qin Yao muttering to himself through the laughter of the wind: “Walk faster... walk faster, and I won’t be cold anymore. I’m the best... the best kid…”

Ye Leyao’s eyes stung.

In the next second, little Qin Yao suddenly tripped and fell.

The icy snow made the fall especially harsh.

Ye Leyao’s heart clenched, and he rushed forward to help Qin Yao up. But before he could reach him, he heard the boy’s muffled sobs.

“Waaah… I… I’m the child that Mommy doesn’t like…”

“Why doesn’t my Mommy like me…”

Ye Leyao could no longer hold back. He quickly exchanged points in the system shop for a down jacket and wrapped it around little Qin Yao.

“Because there are mothers in this world who don’t love their children,” Ye Leyao’s voice was hoarse, and his gaze lingered almost greedily on little Qin Yao’s face.

Little Qin Yao hadn’t expected someone to pick him up. In the freezing cold, the mist on his eyelashes had already turned to ice.

Ye Leyao reached out, gently covering his eyes. “Don’t cry anymore. I’ll carry you home.”

Little Qin Yao sniffled. “Big brother, why did you say that? Everyone says it’s because I’m not good enough, so that’s why my Mommy…”

Ye Leyao lifted Qin Yao onto his back before replying, “Qin Yao, she doesn’t like you, and no matter how well you behave, she still won’t like you. Do you understand?”

Little Qin Yao lay on Ye Leyao’s back, feeling an unexpected warmth, but still, he didn’t understand. “Why?”

“Because you can’t make someone love you if they don’t. It’s useless. Instead of trying to please her, you should focus on loving yourself,” Ye Leyao explained.

Little Qin Yao was puzzled. “Love myself? But... but I want Mommy to…”

“No, you don’t!” Ye Leyao interrupted, though his tone softened. “Take good care of yourself. Stop trying to win her approval. You need to be yourself.”

Little Qin Yao frowned in confusion. “What you’re saying is too complicated. I don’t get it.”

Ye Leyao smiled. “You’ll understand one day. You’re a smart kid—you’ll definitely understand.”

Little Qin Yao nodded, then asked, “Who will like me, then?”

Children at that age crave love the most.

Ye Leyao thought for a moment before answering, “Many people will like you.”

“Like who?” Little Qin Yao pressed.

Ye Leyao said, “Your father, your friends, your classmates, your teachers,” then his voice grew especially soft, “and... me.”

Little Qin Yao’s eyes widened. “Big brother, you like me too?”

Ye Leyao’s ears turned red, and he didn’t dare look back at Qin Yao. He nodded. “Mm, I like you. But not the you right now.”

Little Qin Yao was even more confused. “Why? Am I not good enough right now?”

Ye Leyao chuckled as he set Qin Yao down and crouched to look at him.

It had to be said—Qin Yao had been handsome even as a child.

So Ye Leyao seriously said, “You’re good enough now too, but the way I like you isn’t the way you appreciate something beautiful.”

Little Qin Yao was even more baffled. “What kind of like is it then?”

“When you grow up, I’ll tell you,” Ye Leyao said.

Little Qin Yao’s eyes sparkled. “So we’ll meet again?”

Ye Leyao nodded. “Mm, I’ll come find you.”

Little Qin Yao asked, “When?”

Ye Leyao replied

, “In about 18 years.”

Little Qin Yao asked, “You won’t lie to me, right?”

“I won’t lie to you,” Ye Leyao assured him.

Little Qin Yao smiled. He didn’t feel cold anymore. He took Ye Leyao’s hand. “Then… when I grow up, I’ll protect you, big brother!”

Ye Leyao looked at him.

Little Qin Yao continued, “I’ll grow up well, and I won’t let anything hurt you!”

Ye Leyao suddenly remembered Qin Yao’s last words to him during the third timeline reset, when he had lain in his arms.

Qin Yao had kept his promise.

He really had protected him.

Ye Leyao’s eyes stung as he crouched down again and gently embraced Qin Yao. “Thank you. But I need to tell you something.”

Qin Yao asked, “What is it?”

Ye Leyao smiled. “I’m a system, so I don’t need your protection.”

Little Qin Yao frowned.

He didn’t understand what being a system meant, nor did he understand the meaning behind Ye Leyao’s words.

He wanted to ask Ye Leyao more, but Ye Leyao said time was up.

So for the rest of the journey, Ye Leyao flew Qin Yao back quickly.

He landed on that familiar balcony and set Qin Yao down.

“Qin Yao, I’ll come find you. Don’t forget me.”

Little Qin Yao was still in shock from having just flown. He stared at Ye Leyao without blinking. Even after Ye Leyao disappeared, he hadn’t said a word.

Right, how did he know my name?

Little Qin Yao still couldn’t figure it out.

...

The clouds in the sky piled higher and higher.

Bai Yu turned his head and looked at Ye Leyao, who was still sitting there. Using sign language, he gestured: “It’s going to rain.”

Ye Leyao finally came back to reality from his long reverie. He smiled softly: “Mm.”

Everything was about to end.