“No.”
Lu Yi denied it immediately.
Of course she had seen it.
Not only had she seen it, she had practically lived there before…
An old town street left behind between changing eras, red plastic storefront signs carrying white bold Chinese characters—
Everything in the painting belonged to Earth.
She had originally believed this world had nothing to do with Earth.
Yet Lin Yu had somehow painted it.
Worry and hope tangled inside her heart.
If Earth truly existed somewhere, then maybe… she could go home and find her mother again.
The day before she transmigrated, she had argued with her mom and made her cry.
She never even got the chance to apologize before being dragged into this world.
The tall figure before her received the answer and quietly turned to leave, disappointment flashing across his face.
On impulse, Lu Yi reached out and grabbed his sleeve.
“May I ask… what planet is the place in that painting from?”
Lin Yu turned around.
Beneath the girl’s curled lashes, those startled black eyes concealed countless lies.
Commoners could not be trusted.
“Miss Lu Yi.”
His voice remained gentle, yet impatience faintly surfaced within his gaze.
The retro lotus-patterned cuff brushed lightly against Lu Yi’s wrist as he silently withdrew his sleeve.
“Before asking me questions, shouldn’t you first explain why you were hiding in my studio?”
“I was looking for a seal…”
Lu Yi avoided his eyes and spoke pitifully.
“My resignation confirmation needs the Lin family seal.”
“Lin Che’s seal?”
Lu Yi nodded.
Feigning difficulty, Lin Yu leaned lightly against the window, lips curling into a smile that wasn’t quite a smile.
“You don’t like him?”
The sudden question left Lu Yi stunned.
She hurriedly waved her hands.
“Of course not! He’s my student…”
“But after today, he won’t be anymore.”
“……”
Lu Yi fell silent.
Powerlessly, she said,
“I won’t appear before him again in the future, Mr. Lin Yu. I’m just a commoner. I won’t affect Lin Che’s… marriage happiness.”
“Miss Lu Yi seems far too nervous.”
Lin Yu lowered his head with a soft laugh, though there was no warmth within it.
For a moment, Lu Yi even felt that the internet’s descriptions of Lin Yu had probably been heavily exaggerated.
Under the gold-threaded lotus cuff, his pale slender fingers turned lightly, revealing a snow fox seal.
“As far as I know, any seal carrying family authentication should be sufficient for confirmation.”
The seal engraved with the character “Yu” pressed against the optical screen.
Soon, Lu Yi’s part-time work center received the resignation confirmation.
There was even an additional one-thousand-credit compensation attached.
“Thank you…”
Lu Yi wanted to leave this dangerous place as quickly as possible.
She almost ran toward the door.
But just as she reached for the handle, she froze.
“What’s wrong?”
Lin Yu raised a brow.
For a moment, he thought Lu Yi had changed her mind and planned to use Lin Che to blackmail him for compensation money.
“Brother Yu… is there someone else inside?”
A familiar young voice rang from outside the door.
Lu Yi’s heart skipped violently.
Instinctively, she turned toward Lin Yu.
The moment the door began opening, Lin Yu strode forward and pressed a hand against Lu Yi’s lower back, silently pushing her into the darkness.
“I’m painting.”
Lin Che’s voice lingered just beyond the door.
He seemed to be staring suspiciously through the gap into the studio.
“I heard someone talking.”
“There’s nobody here.”
Lin Yu blocked the doorway and calmly replied,
“She probably already escaped home.”
Then his tone deepened slightly with warning.
“Lin Che, you should be preparing for tonight’s banquet.”
“……”
Lin Che’s breathing grew heavy.
“I won’t get engaged.”
Hidden within the darkness, Lu Yi’s eyes widened.
“When you finally dare say that in front of the elders, then we can discuss it.”
Nearly a full minute of silence passed.
Then footsteps resumed and gradually faded away from the studio.
“Did you hear that, charming Miss Lu Yi?”
Lin Yu never looked at her.
Instead, he returned to the canvas and lifted his brush once more.
Layer after layer of black paint spread across the unfinished portrait.
Within his eyes lingered a faint obsession…
“I will.”
Lu Yi pushed open the door and left.
Inside the studio, Lin Yu slowly lifted his gaze toward the now-empty doorway, brows subtly furrowing.
It had been a long time since he last entered a dream.
The images within his paintings were becoming increasingly blurred.
If he didn’t dream again soon, he would gradually forget every detail from those dreams.
That black-haired girl hidden somewhere beyond the stars…
Where exactly was she?
Following the map navigation signs, Lu Yi descended from the third floor and headed straight into the exhibition hall.
Compared to the elegant suits and luxurious dresses filling the banquet, Lu Yi’s shirt and trousers made her look painfully plain.
She walked quietly along the edge of the hall, avoiding crowded places and lowering her presence as much as possible.
Unfortunately—
The young master she had just escaped from was currently surrounded by nobles.
Yet merely relying on instinct, he looked directly toward the distant corner.
“Lu Yi?!”
The tall boy stood out clearly among the crowd.
At a glance, he spotted the exhausted-looking Lu Yi.
However, nobles crowded around him with teasing smiles and idle chatter.
Nearby, an antique gramophone blasted noisy opera music.
Lin Che couldn’t break free immediately and could only watch helplessly as Lu Yi slipped out through the main doors.
“Looks like Young Master Lin Che is finally settling down. Giving up his playful habits and carrying the family’s honor truly isn’t easy.”
“Exactly. I heard that noble fox lady from Hera Star personally lowered herself to come to Wei Mang Star. Young Master Lin Che probably won’t handle her easily.”
“He already has it pretty good. At least she belongs to the conservative faction. You have no idea how absurd those fashionable liberal nobles are nowadays!”
“Oh? Has the open-marriage trend finally spread into noble society too?”
“Of course. Those liberal noble ladies can simultaneously marry three or four noble males.”
“And not only that—they even keep elite-class lovers around to pass the time…”
“My heavens… open marriage was originally a filthy trick created by low-class commoners trying to scam birth subsidies. Those so-called liberals supporting it are betraying the entire noble class!”
“Exactly!”
Lin Che swept his gaze through the crowd, rejecting who-knew-how-many glasses of wine before finally reaching the entrance.
“Lu Yi! Lu Yi!!”
He ran wildly after her and grabbed her slender wrist.
Lu Yi turned around in panic, struggling desperately to pull free.
“Don’t go…”
Lin Che’s voice suddenly choked.
“Teacher Lu Yi… don’t leave. Stay and listen to me a little longer, okay?”
“In this place… you’re the only one willing to listen to me anymore.”
Within the cold and merciless noble family, Lin Che had almost no possibility of escape.
What he felt for Lu Yi might have been attachment, or perhaps dependence…
But right now, he simply couldn’t let her leave like this.
Once Lu Yi stepped out of the estate gates—
She would never come back again.
“I actually…”
…never truly listened to you either.
She had never sympathized with Lin Che’s rebellion, his frustrations, or his resentment toward his family.
Everything he said had always gone in one ear and out the other.
Infinite sorrow surged through the boy’s eyes.
Lu Yi turned her face away and swallowed those cruel words back down.
“Hey.”
A calm voice interrupted the moment.
Lu Yi turned around.
Beyond the marble railings outside the estate stood a golden-haired boy in a hoodie, staring brightly at her.
No—
More precisely, he was staring at the hand gripping her wrist.
He grabbed the railings with both hands and lightly vaulted into the estate grounds like a cat.
Then a large hand forcefully knocked Lin Che’s grip away before pulling Lu Yi directly into his arms.
As if provoking him, the boy said,
“She hates you. Can’t you tell?”