Although Xie Yubai didn’t specify what those four words were, they all had a feeling they weren’t anything positive.
Because when the man spoke, his tone carried a sense of nostalgia, and his eyes, along with the faint sorrow lingering around him, were tinged with sadness.
Perhaps influenced by this atmosphere, their own moods couldn’t help but sink.
The surrounding temperature gradually dropped, and the air grew heavy.
Song Yuanxing couldn’t stand the tension and exclaimed, “Hey, are you guys hungry? How about we go get something good to eat?”
Sheng Tianming pursed his lips. “All you ever think about is food.”
“What else am I supposed to think about, you?”
Sheng Tianming: “…” He didn’t want to bother with him!
Even if the method was clumsy, the effect was surprisingly good.
Liang Yicheng smiled sweetly. “Come to think of it, it’s been a long time since we all ate together. Should we take this chance to have a meal?”
Fu Nanchuan, sparing with his words, said, “I have no objections.”
“I’ll join.” Feng Jingchen’s lips curved into a gentle smile. “How about you, boss?”
Xie Yubai had long since reined in the emotions that had briefly surfaced. His pupils were as dark as ink, with no end in sight, nor any trace of light. Unsurprisingly, he refused. “I’m tired. You all go ahead.”
Song Yuanxing grinned and stepped closer, stopping at a certain distance. “Come on, boss, it’s more fun with more people. Sleeping all the time isn’t good for your health.”
Xie Yubai’s captivating fox-like eyes were veiled in indifference and a hint of ferocity. The pad of his right thumb lightly brushed against the bracelet on his left wrist, suppressing the bloodthirsty impulse.
“I don’t like repeating myself.”
His voice was slightly cold, devoid of any emotion.
Song Yuanxing’s body trembled inexplicably, and he took two steps back.
Despite his usual boldness and daring to provoke the tiger, he always calculated that Xie Yubai wouldn’t get too angry.
But for some reason, in that moment, he sensed danger—a threat to his life.
Sheng Tianming had intended to mock him for being cowardly, but when he inadvertently caught sight of Song Yuanxing’s trembling hands, the words stuck in his throat, unable to come out.
Liang Yicheng and Cheng Yuan huddled to the side, trying to make themselves as inconspicuous as possible.
The former didn’t want to add fuel to the fire, while the latter was simply afraid.
Cen Xi’s gaze remained fixed on Xie Yubai, her brow furrowed, not saying a word.
An absurd thought suddenly crossed her mind.
Was the Xie Yubai now the same as the Xie Yubai from before?
No!
He wasn’t anymore!
Apart from his appearance, the current Xie Yubai bore no resemblance to the young man he once was.
That spirited, unrestrained young man seemed to have been buried along with that person in the car accident three years ago.
Cen Xi bit her lip until the taste of iron spread in her mouth, and her muddled consciousness began to clear.
Someone lightly touched her shoulder, and she turned her head to meet Feng Jingchen’s concerned gaze.
She shook her head, signaling that she was fine.
Xie Yubai paid no attention to their reactions and took a step to leave.
“Then what are we to you!”
Fu Nanchuan clenched his fists, his voice cold and rigid. “Xie Yubai, I don’t know what exactly happened to you. You don’t tell us, and we have the sense not to ask. But do you really intend to keep sinking like this?”
“Aren’t we a team?”
“Or in your eyes, are we just like those people outside?”
The air grew completely frigid, filled with a tension so sharp it felt like drawn swords.
Song Yuanxing and Sheng Tianming also joined Liang Yicheng’s side.
Xie Yubai’s footsteps halted, his face showing confusion. “What’s wrong with that? At least I’m alive, aren’t I?”
“Besides, to me, you’re no different from those outsiders—just with a name attached. As for being a team? From the start, it was you who insisted on following me. I never agreed, and forming a team was your doing. It has nothing to do with me.”
He shrugged nonchalantly. “So you can do whatever you want. No need to report to me. I can’t be bothered, and I don’t want to be.”
Fu Nanchuan choked on his words, overwhelmed by a deep sense of defeat and helplessness.
He admitted that his earlier words had been preemptive, morally manipulative, and shameless.
But he was never good with words, and in the heat of the moment, he couldn’t find a proper topic to broach, so he blurted out whatever came to mind.
He regretted it immediately after saying it.
Yet, upon hearing Xie Yubai’s response, any thought of apologizing vanished instantly.
“What do you mean, ‘at least I’m alive’?” Fu Nanchuan snapped angrily. “How is that any different from being dead?”
It wasn’t that people had to have grand ambitions in life, but someone like Xie Yubai—filled with a sense of despondency and world-weariness, devoid of any will to live yet clinging to life—was beyond his comprehension.
With just a little effort, he could live a better life, but not a trace of such a thought could be found in him.
He didn’t understand. He truly didn’t understand.
Xie Yubai glanced at him, a hint of disdain barely visible. “The difference is that I’m alive.”
Fu Nanchuan: “…”
Well, he had completely run out of words to change Xie Yubai’s mindset.
Might as well give up!
This was fine as it was.
After all, he was alive, wasn’t he?
Xie Yubai took a long stride forward, but a voice rang in his ear, its content making him pause.
【