Guo Fengnian arrived at the camp entrance. The boy took one look at who it was, turned around, and started to leave.
Guo Fengnian grabbed him by the arm. The boy, probably in considerable pain, struggled a couple of times before going still, though his expression grew even worse.
Guo Fengnian tossed the car keys to a camp staff member, who hurried off to fetch the vehicle.
The boy seemed to say something that made Guo Fengnian laugh in exasperation. When the car arrived, Guo Fengnian shoved him into the backseat.
Only when the car disappeared over the horizon did Zhang Xiyue finally look away. "Yes, CEO Cheng, I lied."
Cheng Mingjiao: "…"
Deceiving your boss, and still having the nerve to be so brazen about it?
Cheng Mingjiao couldn't believe it. Just as he was about to speak, he heard her let out a sigh.
"But have you ever thought about this—those were Youyou's favorite candies. Why would she be willing to give them to me?"
"Why?" Cheng Mingjiao asked instinctively.
Zhang Xiyue reasoned with him: "Because I knew you wanted that candy, so I went through a lot of trouble to convince her. The point is, I put in the effort, and you got what you wanted. So why does it matter whether she gave it to me or I stole it?"
Cheng Mingjiao: "?"
Guo Fengnian had already returned.
Zhang Xiyue seamlessly shifted her conversational target from His Majesty to the blond-haired guy: "Mr. Guo, what happened just now?"
As Cheng Mingjiao's friend, Guo Fengnian was all too familiar with this kind of desperate subject change. He readily picked up the thread: "Those little bastards from the Chen family tricked the Counterfeit into coming here and then took off. The Counterfeit hurt his arm coming down the mountain alone and came to the camp for help. The camp manager had seen him before and knew he was acquainted with me, so he called me right away."
"Ninety percent of this area is undeveloped land. We're lucky nothing worse happened," Liang Xiao said, emerging from the tent.
Guo Fengnian: "Exactly. Thank goodness the Counterfeit had enough sense to stick to the main road. If he'd wandered into the deep mountains and gotten lost, he'd really be done for."
Liang Xiao: "Did you tell Old Master Chen about this?"
Guo Fengnian snorted coldly: "No. That old man is biased beyond reason—telling him would just be sweeping it under the rug. But I did call those little shits and informed them they're banned from any activities hosted by our three families for a year."
The Cheng, Liang, and Guo families held significant sway in Phoenix City. Being ostracized by all three meant no social life for the next year—a punishment worse than death for them.
Since they'd done wrong first, they didn't dare make a fuss. They could only swallow this bitter pill, and they probably wouldn't dare cause trouble for the Counterfeit anytime soon.
Liang Xiao nodded in approval of Guo Fengnian's approach. He glanced at Cheng Mingjiao, who wore a serious expression, still staring at Zhang Xiyue.
…What's wrong?
Liang Xiao was puzzled for a second, then continued asking Guo Fengnian: "Where's the Counterfeit now?"
"I had someone take him to the hospital," Guo Fengnian said with a light snort, referring to the boy from earlier. "He refused my help at first, but I overpowered him."
Liang Xiao thought of the scene and laughed.
Zhang Xiyue had been listening on the sidelines the whole time. Finally, she couldn't help asking: "Does he have a grudge against you?"
Otherwise, why would he come all the way to the camp seeking help, only to turn and leave the moment he saw you?
"Who?" Guo Fengnian pointed at himself. "Me?"
Zhang Xiyue nodded.
Guo Fengnian: "Strictly speaking, he has a grudge against all three of us."
Zhang Xiyue looked around. When her gaze passed over Cheng Mingjiao, she accidentally made eye contact with him.
She paused, pretended nothing had happened, and shifted her gaze back to Guo Fengnian: "Why?"
Guo Fengnian: "Because we call him the Counterfeit."
Zhang Xiyue: "…Why do you call him that?"
"Because he really is a counterfeit," Guo Fengnian said, stretching lazily before abruptly changing the subject. "I'm hungry. Let's cook."
Liang Xiao: "I'll chop firewood. You cut the meat."
Guo Fengnian: "Deal."
The two of them slung their arms around each other's shoulders and walked off.
Zhang Xiyue: "…"
Just like that?
With two people gone, the air suddenly became very quiet.
Wei Chengfang, who had been sipping tea and enjoying the show the whole time: "Pfft."
Her laugh was too obvious and successfully drew Cheng Mingjiao's gaze.
Wei Chengfang instantly straightened up, stood, and invited Zhang Xiyue: "Let's go pick the vegetables."
Zhang Xiyue really wanted to go, but she had to resolve the lingering issue first.
Catching her subtle look, Wei Chengfang understood and led Youyou away ahead of her.
Under the sunshade, only Zhang Xiyue and Cheng Mingjiao remained.
Cheng Mingjiao narrowed his eyes, waiting to see how she would try to talk her way out of it this time.
Zhang Xiyue had no intention of making excuses. She tugged at her clothes and fished through her pockets for a long while, finally pulling out a handful of something and offering it to him: "CEO Cheng, here you go."
Cheng Mingjiao looked.
Round. Lemon-flavored.
The same candy from that day.
A whole handful of them.
"I figured you liked them, so I bought some extra to bring along," Zhang Xiyue said, holding out the candies, emphasizing, "I really did buy these myself. I'm not lying this time."
Cheng Mingjiao listened to her voice and looked at the candies in her palm. The symptoms of formaldehyde poisoning were appearing again.
Once this camping trip was over, he absolutely needed to get a full, detailed physical examination.
"CEO Cheng?" Seeing him lost in thought, Zhang Xiyue called out to him.
Cheng Mingjiao stopped looking at the candy and turned his gaze to Zhang Xiyue instead.
His eyesight was excellent—sharp and precise at both near and far distances, with superb dark adaptation and sensitivity. Even though he wasn't standing particularly close to Zhang Xiyue, he could see her clearly, down to every micro-expression.
For instance, the moment he looked at her, she stood straighter, her eyes grew more innocent, her smile more ingratiating, and the candy in her hand was raised even higher.
Every detail signaled that she already knew she was wrong.
Barring any unforeseen circumstances, she would never lie to him again for the rest of her life.
Cheng Mingjiao was not a harsh boss. He always forgave employees who showed genuine remorse.
"Don't let it happen again."
The emperor welcomed back the traitor and took one piece of candy.
Zhang Xiyue was overwhelmed with gratitude.
Cheng Mingjiao took her candy and her gratitude and found an outdoor sofa to rest on, hoping to alleviate the discomfort from formaldehyde poisoning.
Zhang Xiyue stuffed the remaining candy into her pocket and went off to find Wei Chengfang and Youyou.
The greatest joy of camping was enjoying the pleasure of labor amidst natural scenery.
The overcast day was cool—perfect for barbecue.
Liang Xiao had already split the firewood and was standing by the stove starting the fire. Guo Fengnian pulled up a small stool and sat beside him, skewering meat. Zhang Xiyue and Wei Chengfang were inside the RV washing vegetables and prepping ingredients.
Everyone had something to do—even Youyou was helping. Only the emperor did nothing at all, occasionally offering his grand commentary on everything.
When Youyou walked past hugging her teddy bear, Cheng Mingjiao stretched out his long legs to block her. "Hey, go get me a bottle of water."
Youyou: "…"
"You're not working, and you're still ordering Youyou around!" Guo Fengnian protested on her behalf.
Cheng Mingjiao said matter-of-factly, "You, come over and shoo the mosquitoes away for me."
Guo Fengnian: "…"
When Zhang Xiyue came out carrying skewered vegetables, she saw Guo Fengnian standing in front of the sofa holding a fan, swatting it at Cheng Mingjiao with a face full of resentment.
Was it that hot?
Zhang Xiyue didn't understand, so she carried the food over to Liang Xiao.
Cheng Mingjiao took a sip of mineral water, and his expression shifted slightly. "Liang Youyou! What did you put in my water?!"
"Didn't you say you like things a little salty? I added some salt for you." Liang Youyou made a face at him.
Cheng Mingjiao sneered. "Vicious little brat!"
"Annoying grown-up!" Liang Youyou shot back.
Cheng Mingjiao: "I hate you too."
Liang Youyou: "I hate you even more."
Cheng Mingjiao narrowed his eyes, sharp words on the tip of his tongue, but then he switched to something else: "Liang Xiao, stop adding paper to the stove. Sudden excess oxygen will make the flames flare up, and you'll go bald."
Startled by the unexpected warning, Liang Xiao said, "My camping experience is no less than—"
Before he could finish, flames suddenly shot half a meter high from the stove.
Zhang Xiyue's pupils contracted sharply, and she took several steps back. She only moved closer after the flames had disappeared for a good while.
Liang Xiao, who had nearly gotten his hair singed, was still shaken. His first instinct was to look at Cheng Mingjiao.
Cheng Mingjiao was in a better mood now and stopped bickering with the kid, wearing that insufferable expression that said, "I warned you."
Liang Xiao: "…"
For the next half hour, Dr. Liang followed Mr. Cheng's instructions to the letter.
Despite the chaotic process, everyone still managed to sit down for lunch before noon.
Except Cheng Mingjiao refused to join the table.
"With so many suitable places to eat, why must we eat on the grass?" He stood on the hard ground outside the lawn, his face full of displeasure.
Liang Xiao: "Because it's fun."
Cheng Mingjiao: "Are ticks and mosquitoes fun? Or bacteria and fungi?"
Liang Xiao asked patiently, "You do know the lawn has been professionally treated and doesn't have any of those things you mentioned, right?"
Cheng Mingjiao: "I know."
Guo Fengnian couldn't help but interject: "Then why did you ask?"
Cheng Mingjiao: "Because I don't want to eat on the grass, so I'm deliberately picking a fight."
Guo Fengnian: "…"
Cheng Mingjiao: "The dew on the grass will dirty my shoes."
How could dew dirty one's shoes?
Everyone had the same question, but no one voiced it. They simply began moving things with unspoken mutual understanding.
Five minutes later, Cheng Mingjiao got his wish and ate lunch on the hard ground beside the lawn. His shoes remained clean throughout the meal, untouched by dew.
The sky grew increasingly overcast, and a faint dampness hung in the air, heralding an approaching rain.
After lunch, everyone had free time.
Cheng Mingjiao crawled into the tent and refused to come out, no one knowing what he was doing inside.
Zhang Xiyue was happy to have the freedom and spent the afternoon with Youyou at the corner of the campsite feeding cats.
The campsite had many cats. They would charge up the mountain in a frenzy to run wild, then swarm around them in a flurry to eat from the cans.
Zhang Xiyue and Youyou played all afternoon, and both of them ended up dirty—the teddy bear too.
As evening fell, a light drizzle began to fall from the sky.
Zhang Xiyue went to the campsite's shower room to wash up. Just as she stepped out the door, she heard Youyou's piercing cries.
She hurried toward the sound. Around the next corner, she saw Liang Xiao holding Youyou, with Wei Chengfang anxiously but patiently trying to soothe her. Beside them, the campsite manager looked embarrassed and kept apologizing profusely.
Youyou didn't seem injured, which put half of Zhang Xiyue's worries to rest. She lowered her voice and asked Guo Fengnian, "Why is she crying so hard?"
Guo Fengnian frowned deeply. "Youyou's teddy bear was snatched by a cat."
Zhang Xiyue was taken aback. "Snatched… by a cat?"
Wei Chengfang said, "After you left, she played with the cats a little longer. Who knew a tabby would suddenly grab the bear and run straight up the mountain?"
Youyou was lying on Liang Xiao, sobbing so hard she could barely breathe. "Bear…"
Wei Chengfang kept comforting her, tears nearly falling herself.
The camp manager was still apologizing. "I'm so sorry, so sorry. This was our negligence. We'll go look for it right now…"
Even though they ached for their daughter and understood how important the bear was to her, Wei Chengfang and Liang Xiao also knew this wasn't the camp's fault—it was their own failure as guardians.
And even if the camp bore full responsibility, there was no way they could ask anyone to go into that completely undeveloped wilderness in this rainstorm to find a stuffed bear.
After a brief exchange, Wei Chengfang carried Youyou back to the tent.
Liang Xiao told the manager to go back and searched the area near the woods with Guo Fengnian using flashlights.
Seeing this, Zhang Xiyue grabbed a flashlight too. Just as she was about to join them, she caught sight of Cheng Mingjiao.
He stood under the rain tarp in front of his tent, arms crossed, watching them from a distance.
Zhang Xiyue's eyes brightened slightly. She was about to call out to him when he frowned and went back inside his tent.
…She must be crazy too, actually thinking of asking him for help.
Zhang Xiyue touched her nose and started looking for the bear.
The night grew deeper, the rain heavier. Mud from the mountain washed onto the path, making even walking difficult.
The three of them searched in the rain for a long time but ultimately returned empty-handed.
Distant thunder rumbled from the horizon, punctuating the crackling rain like firecrackers during New Year's.
As Wei Chengfang had said, the tent's soundproofing was indeed excellent. As long as Zhang Xiyue closed the window, everything went quiet.
But she couldn't stop thinking about Youyou's heartbroken cries.
She tossed and turned on the air mattress for a while, then sat up, threw on a jacket, and went to the family's tent.
Wei Chengfang happened to be coming out to close the door. Seeing her, she lowered her voice and asked, "Xiyue, what's wrong?"
"How's Youyou?" Zhang Xiyue whispered back.
Wei Chengfang said, "Already asleep."
Zhang Xiyue breathed a sigh of relief.
Wei Chengfang smiled. "Don't worry. Once we're back in the city tomorrow, her dad will buy her a new one and have someone distress it. That should fool her."
Her tone was full of uncertainty.
Zhang Xiyue pressed her lips together. "Once the rain stops tomorrow, I'll go look again… Just in case."
Wei Chengfang shook her head. "I asked around earlier. The cats here are very playful—a cotton stuffed toy like that would be torn to shreds in minutes. Even if you found it, it probably wouldn't be usable anymore."
Zhang Xiyue felt a pang of melancholy.
After saying goodbye to Wei Chengfang, she walked slowly through the camp under her umbrella.
As she neared her own tent, she suddenly caught sight of a familiar figure.
It was Cheng Mingjiao.
Wearing a raincoat and rain boots, carrying a bag of something, he walked into the woods to the west with a grim expression.
That area had many simple cat shelters, and the camp cats usually hung out there. She'd searched it thoroughly several times when looking for the bear, but hadn't found anything.
…What was he doing over there?
Zhang Xiyue recalled his expression earlier. Her first instinct was that he was going to hurt the cats, but then she thought that seemed unlikely.
He'd never gotten along with Youyou. When she, Liang Xiao, and Guo Fengnian were looking for the bear, he wouldn't even help. Why would he take revenge on the cats for Youyou's sake?
Then again… he was a yandere.
A dark, twisted yandere.
Did a yandere need a reason to do things?
The original text didn't describe him in much detail, so Zhang Xiyue wasn't sure how dark he could get. But back then, just because Grandma Zhao Yuzhen was in the way, he'd had Zhou Ce drive the car at her…
The more Zhang Xiyue thought about it, the more unsettled she felt. She hurried after him.
Away from the camp, the rainy night was dark and the path slippery. She walked carefully, but her heart rate kept climbing.
The rain fell harder, her small umbrella swaying in the wind.
Zhang Xiyue stumbled into the woods, only to find that Cheng Mingjiao had disappeared.
Rain poured down, the path ahead was muddy, and the gnarled trees loomed like an army of monsters born from the night, silently crushing her breath.
Zhang Xiyue held her umbrella with one hand and quietly slipped the other into her pocket for courage.
"Hey!"
An icy voice came from behind. She spun around.
Just then, lightning split the sky, a massive white flash illuminating Cheng Mingjiao's drenched silhouette like a rain-soaked butcher from a horror film.
"You're following—"
Cheng Mingjiao's words cut off mid-sentence as he looked down in confusion.
A small stun baton was pressed against his raincoat.
Crackling with electricity.
He paused for a second, looked up at Zhang Xiyue, and the next moment collapsed straight to the ground.
The rain kept falling. Zhang Xiyue stood there, heart pounding, only two words left in her mind—
I'm screwed.