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

"Ye Shu, I like you."

These words were carried into Ye Shu's ears by the waves, and he heard them clearly.

However, when Ye Shu actually heard those words, unlike in the movie where her heart skipped a beat, she remained surprisingly calm.

He slowly turned his head and looked at Xia Qing beside him.

The moment he turned his head, Xia Qing wiped the streaks of water from her cheek with the back of her hand. She then turned her head to the other side, leaving him with only her stiff, feignedly strong back of her head.

Ye Shu remained silent for a few seconds, during which he thought about many things.

From the moment I first arrived at Yunduanyuan with my suitcase and saw "her" for the first time, to the first time I met "her" that night, to the first time "she" took me out to eat, and finally, the first time I cooked for "her".

"If you truly like that girl, treat her well. Don't be like those superficial people, and don't shrink back just because you feel inferior. Take responsibility when you should, and work hard when you should. Understand?"

His father's words echoed in his mind. Ye Shu strained, organized his thoughts, and knew that what he was about to say had to be clear, honest, and absolutely unambiguous.

"Sister Xia Qing."

He spoke, his voice sounding somewhat heavy in the atmosphere of this confession:

"There are some things I need to tell you in advance."

Xia Qing, who was facing away from him, shuddered and suddenly turned around. Her eyes were still a little wet, but her gaze had become fierce, piercing straight into Ye Shu's eyes.

"What is it? If you want to refuse me, just say so. It's best not to beat around the bush."

Her tone was sharp, but it was a facade she used to mask her unease.

Ye Shu looked into her wet yet fiercely defiant eyes without flinching. He took a deep breath of the slightly cool sea breeze, then slowly spoke:

"Actually, I had this idea a long time ago. But I didn't dare to say it then, because I knew the gap between us."

Ye Shu swallowed hard, but her gaze remained fixed on Xia Qing's.

"I consider myself a person who can see reality quite clearly, so I think that in this rather realistic era, people with such a gap between us will not have a future together. Therefore, I don't want to take any risks and am afraid of losing the relationship I have with you all now."

"These are not problems, we..."

"No, Sister Xia Qing, please let me finish."

Xia Qing was interrupted by Ye Shu before she could finish speaking. Ye Shu's breathing became heavier, clearly indicating that what he was about to say was the important thing.

He stood up, walked down the steps, and positioned himself directly in front of Xia Qing, looking her straight in the eye. This angle forced him to focus his gaze on her more intently.

"Sister Xia Qing, what I'm about to say would be a classic 'scumbag' line in any other context, but..."

He responded to Xia Qing's somewhat puzzled and uneasy gaze, as if she had a premonition of something, and continued speaking:

"Because our situation is just that special. Although I personally don't think so, that's the reality, and we have to face it. So even if you get angry after hearing this, think I'm shameless, or kick me out of the house..."

He paused for a moment, as if giving himself one last chance to turn back, but then completely cut off his own escape route.

"I still have to speak out. I have to... lay our situation out in the open and absolutely not leave any hidden dangers."

Xia Qing held her breath slightly. The sea breeze was cool at night, but she felt no chill at all. She had a premonition that what was to come would change things a lot, but the determination in Ye Shu's eyes made it impossible for her to look away.

"Before, I kept hesitating, kept trying to figure out which of you my increasingly clear feelings of attraction, that desire to get closer, to protect, to be with forever, were directed at? Was it Sister Zhi Qiu's gentleness and tolerance, Xiao Nuan's purity, Xiao Xue's dependence, or... your directness?"

"But now I understand. I can't tell the difference anymore, and I don't want to anymore."

He leaned forward slightly, his gaze fixed on Xia Qing's eyes, and said, word by word:

"Xia Qing, I like you. This liking is unique, and it's for the person sitting in front of me right now."

The sea breeze blowing from behind Ye Shu carried every word of his words to Xia Qing's ears. Xia Qing's pupils dilated slightly; she genuinely felt her heart skip a beat.

However, Ye Shu didn't stop talking; instead, she seemed determined to push forward, even to the point of desperation.

"But I also like Sister Zhi Qiu, Xiao Nuan, and Xiao Xue."

"My feelings for each of them may be different from my feelings for you, but they are all real, and they are all part of what I 'like'. I cannot separate any of you from this feeling, because you all make up this family. To put it more practically, if I isolate any of you, things will be more awkward in the future."

He's finished speaking.

Just then, the streetlights on the boardwalk behind Xia Qing turned on, illuminating Ye Shu's face and making it difficult for him to see Xia Qing's expression.

However, he didn't regret it now. Rather than dragging things out, he decided to be direct. Since Xia Qing had expressed her feelings for him, he had to take responsibility for those feelings and make his stance clear.

Now is the best time to make things clear and lay all the problems between the two of you out in the open. Hiding things now will only leave hidden dangers for your future relationship.

"This is my honest thought, Sister Xia Qing. Can you... accept this kind of me... and these feelings?"

The waves kept crashing towards the two of them, as if they wanted to know Xia Qing's answer.

After a few seconds of silence, Xia Qing gasped as if she had just emerged from underwater, followed by a nasal laugh.

"ha……"

Looking at Ye Shu's trembling hands and the poignant honesty in his eyes, the tension that had been building within her suddenly snapped.

It wasn't anger or disappointment, but a sense of relief, like "I knew it."

Worried that he'd back down because of reality? He skipped over reality altogether and gave a more realistic answer.

Worried that his feelings were just a vague, innocent attraction? Well, he went straight to the point, revealing everything without missing a single detail.

"Pfft... Hahahaha..."

The laughter grew louder and louder, transforming from suppressed to unrestrained; it was laughter that came from the heart.

She laughed as she pointed at Ye Shu, her shoulders shaking violently.

"Ye Shu, Ye Shu... I really am... a scumbag's quote, you really know how to find words for yourself, hahahahaha..."

She sat on the steps, laughing so hard she almost fell over. The sadness, grievance, and nervousness she had felt earlier had been completely blasted away by Ye Shu's explosive confession.

"I didn't realize you were so shrewd, huh? You seem pretty honest usually, but you've got quite the scheme in your head. Trying to wipe us all out? You've got some serious ambition!"

Xia Qing cursed him as a "scumbag" and "ambitious," but the smile on her face was brighter than the sun, without a trace of gloom, only pure, relieved light.

What she liked was perhaps never a conventional, "normal" relationship, but rather Ye Shu's courage to face reality and still choose honesty.

If he had just told her alone, "I only like you," she would have thought it was fake, that he was avoiding the core issue of their symbiotic relationship.

Ye Shu's ears turned red from her laughter, but she still stood there waiting for her answer.

"Alright, alright! Stop looking at me like that!"

After venting her emotions with laughter, Xia Qing suddenly leaped up from the steps and kicked Ye Shu in the buttocks.

"You little pervert, take this kick first!"

Ye Shu instinctively wanted to dodge, but for some reason, she stopped and took the painless blow squarely.

"Hmph, brat, come here and sit down."

Xia Qing raised an eyebrow, watching his bewildered expression as he clutched his butt, and the last bit of unease she felt dissipated. She sat down again and patted the seat next to her.

Ye Shu rubbed his bottom and sat down next to her. The streetlights behind them cast long shadows of the two of them on the beach.

As Xia Qing gazed at the two shadows standing side by side, the smile on her face slowly faded, and she became serious.

"However, Ye Shu."

She spoke, her voice clear in the sea breeze:

"I heard you, and I accept your... explanation. But that doesn't mean anything."

She turned her head to look at him:

"Just because I can accept it doesn't mean others can. After all, in your own words, we are four souls living in the same body, although that sounds fucking ridiculous."

She swore, but her tone remained calm:

"But this is our reality. I can't agree on their behalf, I can't promise anything on their behalf."

She suddenly reached out and vigorously ruffled Ye Shu's hair, feeling like an older sister encouraging her younger brother.

"You brat, your scumbag declaration... well, it passes the test with me. As for the others, well, you'll have to work harder yourself."

Ye Shu's heart, which had been hanging in suspense, finally settled down, and the relationship between the two reached a new level.

Xia Qing stood up, patted the sand off her pants, and prepared to go home.

Ye Shu quickly stood up, patted the sand and shoe prints off her bottom, and bent down to pick up the bag of apples.

Xia Qing stood up and looked at him, then suddenly grinned, took a step forward, and wrapped her arms around Ye Shu's neck.

The distance closed instantly, and she could clearly see herself in Ye Shu's eyes. The sea breeze blew her faint scent and strands of hair to Ye Shu's nose.

She lowered her voice, a roguish grin on her face, and said to Ye Shu:

"But now, in my eyes, are you... my little boyfriend? Hmm?"

Ye Shu felt her ears burning from her somewhat blunt words, but she didn't flinch; she just smiled helplessly.

"Sister Xia Qing..."

Xia Qing reached out with her other hand and lifted Ye Shu's chin, a domineering CEO smile reminiscent of those seen in TV dramas curving her lips:

"Handsome young man, my bed is big and soft, want to come home with me?"

"Okay, let's go home."