The landlord has multiple personalities and wants everyone to pay him.

The midday sun was dazzling, and the noise of the street filled the air again. Ye Shu dragged Xiao Nuan's small gray suitcase with one hand and held Xiao Nuan's hand with the other, walking quickly as if she had not yet left the danger zone.

He found a bench under the shade of a tree on the street, sat down, and let out a long breath, feeling more tired than if he had run three kilometers.

His mind was a jumbled mess, a jumble of questions crammed together. He rubbed his temples, deciding to start with the most obvious one. Turning his head, he was about to speak when his gaze fell on Xiao Nuan's hand resting on her lap. On the tip of her right index finger was a pink rabbit-patterned band-aid.

What happened to your hand?

Hearing this, Xiao Nuan turned to look at him, her gaze calm. She didn't answer immediately, but instead took out her phone from her pocket and tapped it a few times.

"Buzz—"

Ye Shu's phone vibrated in his pocket. He took it out and saw that it was a message from Xiao Nuan:

[Zhi Qiu burned herself while cooking.]

Ye Shu was a little confused; he seemed to be struggling to keep up with Xiao Nuan's train of thought. They were sitting right next to each other, so why were they typing? He asked, somewhat amused and exasperated:

"No... why did you message me? I'm right next to you, you could have just said it directly."

Xiao Nuan looked up at him, her face still expressionless. She lowered her head again, tapped the screen a few times, and Ye Shu's phone rang again.

You told me not to say a single word.

Ye Shu stared at the words for two seconds, then chuckled. Looking up at the somewhat stubborn girl in front of her, she wondered whether to call her clever or foolish.

Despite being regarded as the strongest system by other personalities, she is sometimes adorably silly.

He put down his phone and said to Xiaonuan:

"I'm sorry, it was my fault. The situation was complicated just now, but it's resolved now. I hereby declare that you can speak normally again, okay?"

Xiao Nuan nodded gently and put her phone back in her pocket.

"Can."

Ye Shu gathered her thoughts and asked the first question:

"Okay, then tell me, how did you find this place? I mean, how did you know I was in this county and how did you find this shopping mall?"

Xiao Nuan organized her thoughts and began to speak, without any unnecessary words:

"I knew the general direction of your hometown, but not the exact address. I went to your room, hoping to find some clues. In your desk drawer, I found your household registration booklet, which had the exact address here. I wrote down the address and bought a train ticket to come here."

"When we got to the vicinity, it was a residential area, and I didn't know exactly which building you lived in. I was also feeling hungry and needed to eat something. I saw a shopping mall over there and thought they might sell food, so I came in to look for something. And then..."

She paused, her gaze sweeping across Ye Shu's face:

"I saw you."

Ye Shu was stunned. Flipping through the household registration book... This operation would have made Ye Shu angry if it were anyone else, but looking at Xiao Nuan in front of him, it seemed perfectly reasonable.

"Oh? What a coincidence?"

Ye Shu scratched his head, feeling that this experience was a bit too surreal, like something out of a novel. But looking at Xiao Nuan's face, which didn't seem to care at all, he couldn't say anything.

He stood up from the bench, picked up Xiao Nuan's suitcase, and said to Xiao Nuan, who was still sitting on the bench staring at him:

"Never mind, let's go."

"Where to?"

Although Xiao Nuan didn't know where Ye Shu was going, she still stood up and followed him into the street.

"Weren't you hungry?"

Ye Shu gestured with her chin toward the other side of the street:

"Let's find a place and get you something to eat. We can't let you go hungry."

His tone carried a sense of entitlement in his concern, as if Xiao Nuan had come to help regardless of what had happened at home, and that she hadn't taken good care of herself.

Xiao Nuan didn't say anything, but quietly walked half a step to his side, her steps steady.

Sunlight filtered through the leaves, casting dappled patterns of light on the two figures. A boy, dragging a suitcase and looking worried and thoughtful, and a girl, dressed simply and with an expressionless yet exceptionally beautiful face, walked side by side on the quiet afternoon street of a small northern county town.

The scene was somewhat strange, yet inexplicably calm.

The two walked for a while on the quiet streets of the county town in the afternoon, the sound of the suitcase wheels sliding on the asphalt road becoming the background noise.

Ye Shu was still organizing her thoughts, trying to figure out how to ask about her family without getting too upset, or perhaps she should start with something lighter...

"Song Yunyun".

Xiao Nuan suddenly spoke, her calm voice breaking the silence:

"Does she have feelings for you?"

"what?"

Ye Shu turned her head, feeling that Xiao Nuan's question was a bit inexplicable:

"How could that be? We haven't been in touch for years. This is just a coincidence."

Xiao Nuan kept her eyes fixed ahead, calmly stating the basis of her observations:

"Based on my observations, she approached you proactively, made more physical contact than is typical in social situations, lingered her gaze on you for an unusually long time, and her expression seemed off when you explained our relationship. All things considered, the probability that she has feelings for you beyond that of a typical old classmate is quite high."

Ye Shu was amused by her analysis report.

To be honest, Song Yunyun was indeed the first girl Ye Shu developed feelings for during his youthful and innocent years, but so many years have passed, and those youthful feelings have long been washed away by time, leaving only a few memories.

He smiled, reached out, and gently flicked Xiao Nuan's forehead, speaking in a tone reminiscent of an older brother:

"Don't overthink it. We're just old classmates who haven't seen each other for years. She's naturally a very warm and outgoing person. It's not as complicated as you think."

Ye Shu himself was unaware that, without realizing it, when facing "them," he had begun to subconsciously want to explain things that might cause misunderstandings.

Xiao Nuan was flicked so hard that her head tilted back slightly. She reached out and rubbed the spot where she had been flicked, her face still expressionless. But her overly calm eyes turned to Ye Shu's profile, looked at him for two seconds, and then asked her second question:

"So, do you like her more, or me more?"

"ah???"

Ye Shu turned her head to look at the girl beside her, who remained completely expressionless. It was as if she hadn't just asked who he liked, but rather, "Do you think apples or pears are sweeter?"

Xiao Nuan's voice wasn't quiet. Two young girls who happened to be passing by immediately slowed down and glanced over, their eyes gleaming with the prospect of some juicy gossip.

In their eyes, Ye Shu is now the spitting image of someone who has cheated on his girlfriend and been caught cheating.

Ye Shu took a deep breath. He knew very well that Xiao Nuan's words were absolutely, one hundred percent, just the literal meaning. The "like" she asked about wasn't mixed with any romantic feelings; it was the pure, innocent liking between kindergarten children.

He looked at Xiao Nuan, who was still blinking and staring at him, waiting for an answer, and said:

"Well... I still like you a little more."

"Scumbag!"

The two girls who were watching the drama exclaimed in unison.

Upon hearing this answer, Xiao Nuan's usually expressionless face showed a very slight upward twitch at the corner of her mouth, the curve of which was almost invisible.

But in her heart, a strange emotion, mixed with a vague feeling of "victory" or "confirmation," quietly spread.

This emotional feeling stimulated a rapid release of dopamine in her brain, and she felt a very clear... happiness? Although she didn't fully understand why this "happiness" was so intense.

Looking at her still calm face, Ye Shu felt that to chat with her, one had to be quick-witted, otherwise one would fall behind.

"Well... shall we keep going? The restaurant is just ahead."

Xiao Nuan nodded without saying anything and started walking again.

She walked beside Ye Shu, her gaze falling on the hem of their clothes swaying slightly with each step, then shifting to Ye Shu's left hand hanging naturally at his side.

That hand was empty, with long, slender fingers and distinct knuckles, but it was missing something in its hand; it should be holding something.

She looked at the hand, seemed to think for two seconds, and then reached out her right hand to take Ye Shu's left hand.

Palms touching, warmth transfers between them.

Ye Shu turned her head and looked at the two hands clasped together.

Xiao Nuan's hands were considerably smaller than his own, her fingers slightly cool, but her grip was loose, just a light touch. Then, he looked up at Xiao Nuan, his eyes filled with surprise and doubt.

Xiao Nuan didn't look at him, keeping her eyes fixed straight ahead. Only when she felt Ye Shu's gaze did she slightly turn her head to meet his eyes and begin to explain:

"I'm hungry, my blood sugar might be a little low, and I feel a bit weak. If you pull me along, it will be more efficient and will also prevent me from having an accident due to exhaustion."

This reason is quite valid and aligns with her consistently straightforward thinking.

"Okay."

Ye Shu nodded, her fingers slightly tightening as she grasped the small hand in return; the hand was indeed a little cold.

Seeing that Ye Shu didn't object, Xiao Nuan turned back and continued to hold his hand as they walked forward. Her steps were steady, and her expression was calm, but her heart seemed a little unsettled.

Only she knew that she had lied.

She didn't feel weak, and her blood sugar wasn't low; she just... wanted to hold his hand.

The thought arose without warning, yet it was exceptionally clear. And to achieve this goal, she quickly devised the most plausible reason in her mind.

This was the first time in her life that she had consciously told a lie that was not entirely true and had a clear purpose.

It was also the first time she learned that the heart could taste.

Otherwise, why would she feel so sweet inside right now?