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

Ye Shu slept on the sofa for an unknown amount of time. In his hazy state, he seemed to hear a very faint "click" sound coming from the other end of the corridor, the sound of a door lock being gently turned.

Immediately afterwards, the sound of barefoot footsteps approached from afar.

Ye Shu was still asleep, her mind a little sluggish. She assumed it was someone getting up in the middle of the night to go to the bathroom or get a drink of water, and didn't pay any attention. She turned over, buried her face in the pillow, and planned to continue sleeping.

However, the footsteps did not go to the bathroom or the kitchen, but went straight to the sofa and stopped.

Ye Shu was aware of this, and before he could fully wake up, a corner of the thin blanket covering him was gently lifted.

The cool autumn night air had just drifted in when, a second later, a soft, warm body, carrying the faint scent of someone who had just showered, snuggled into his arms.

!!!

Ye Shu was instantly wide awake. Her heart skipped a beat, and she sat up almost reflexively, nearly pushing the person in her arms to the ground.

Ye Shu's eyes widened, because he had a "previous record," and he couldn't repeat that mistake.

"Who?!"

He lowered his voice and asked, using the dim light of the floor lamp in the corner to see Renren curled up beside him, looking at him.

It's Xiao Nuan.

She was wearing a light-colored nightgown, her long hair draped over the pillow, her face expressionless, except for her eyes, which shone brightly in the dim light, staring at him intently.

Ye Shu's heart, which had been in her throat, slowly calmed down a bit, but it was still pounding fiercely.

He took a breath and asked in a low voice:

"Xiao Nuan? Why...why aren't you sleeping? What are you doing here?"

He glanced instinctively toward his room door, afraid that making too much noise would get him caught by his sister.

Although the two are now considered to be in a boyfriend-girlfriend relationship, if they were discovered to be alone together late at night, hugging and cuddling on the sofa, what kind of behavior would that be? His image as a tall, strong, and good brother would be ruined!

Xiao Nuan didn't answer immediately. Instead, she reached out a hand, grabbed Ye Shu's arm which was still frozen in mid-air, and pulled him back down onto the sofa.

Then she adjusted her posture, turned to the side, stretched out her arms to wrap around Ye Shu's waist, and pressed her face against his chest.

Ye Shu was at a loss for what to do. He remained in that position, not daring to move, his arm propped up in mid-air like a tree branch.

He held a soft, fragrant body in his arms, the clean scent of a young girl lingering around his nose, and he could feel the gentle rise and fall of her breath on his chest, along with her body heat emanating through her thin nightgown...

This is a real test for cadres. Ye Shu is, after all, a young man in his early twenties, full of vigor and vitality...

No, no, calm down, calm down, Ye Shu!

Ice and cold for millennia, all things remain still, the heart should be calm, and I gaze upon my solitary spirit...

Ye Shu silently recited a calming mantra in his mind, calming himself down a little. He looked at Xiao Nuan, who was motionless in his arms, and he knew that there must be a reason for Xiao Nuan's actions.

A: She felt a bit cold at night, so she came here and used me as a hand warmer.

B: She came to bask in the moonlight; she heard it's good for the skin.

C: She wasn't actually Xiao Nuan, but a female ghost who impersonated Xiao Nuan to lock me up and then swallowed me whole.

I can't figure it out... I really can't figure it out.

Just as Ye Shu felt like he was about to be roasted alive by the slightly ambiguous atmosphere, Xiao Nuan in his arms finally stirred.

She didn't look up; her voice came muffled from his chest, seemingly carrying a slight nasal tone that was almost absent from her usual demeanor.

"Ye Shu".

"Um?"

Ye Shu swallowed hard, responded, and waited for her to say something earth-shattering.

It seemed like you had something left unsaid this afternoon. But I left.

Ye Shu paused for a moment, remembering her unfinished sentence, "I actually also..." She hadn't expected her to notice, and... come all this way in the middle of the night just for this?

"Um."

Ye Shu responded, relaxing slightly. After hesitating for a moment, she reached out and gently patted Xiao Nuan's back.

"Yes, I... I wanted to say something at the time. Xiao Nuan, may I ask why you just left then?"

He felt the person in his arms move closer to him, and the arms around his waist tightened slightly.

Several seconds later, Xiao Nuan's voice rang out again, still muffled in his arms, but clearer and softer than before:

"Because I feel very scared."

Scared?

The word carried immense weight coming from Xiao Nuan's lips. In his mind, and even in the minds of the other personalities, Xiao Nuan was practically synonymous with emotional stability and absolute rationality. She could also... be afraid?

Xiao Nuan continued speaking, dissecting her inner thoughts little by little:

"After talking to my mom on the phone, I tried to simulate your possible reactions based on the emotion of 'liking' me. Among the several main outcomes generated, there was a greater than 52% probability that you would either reject me directly or indirectly, or give me a vague response that I couldn't understand."

She paused for a moment. Ye Shu could almost imagine how she had made the deductions, but the result she arrived at was frightening.

"Of these outcomes, rejection was the most common. According to existing data analysis, there is a greater than 70% chance that a relationship will revert to its original state or even deteriorate after being explicitly rejected. This anticipated outcome gave me a strong tendency to avoid it, as well as a negative feeling that I couldn't effectively manage the situation under the current circumstances."

"To avoid more serious logical conflicts or functional disorders due to insufficient handling when such an adverse situation occurs, I chose to immediately remove the source of the stimulus, which is... you."

Ye Shu listened quietly, the heat rising in his chest from Xiao Nuan's approach gradually replaced by a bittersweet heartache.

Now I understand. Xiao Nuan wasn't ignorant or indifferent. It was precisely because she understood too much and wanted to control the situation in her usual way that she achieved an unbearable result. That's why she chose to avoid it before she could get hurt.

"So, you chose to leave first because you were afraid I would reject you, right?"

Ye Shu's voice softened considerably, and her hand gently soothed her back.

"That's right."

Xiao Nuan's answer was direct and without hesitation. But then she added:

"However, there is a fundamental logical flaw in this matter. The rehearsal is based on assumptions, while your actual reaction is the only valid data. If you don't speak up, then I myself cannot accurately judge the final result. This uncertainty itself will continue to drain me. Therefore, I am coming to you now hoping to obtain the final answer to stop the continuous drain caused by uncertainty."

She raised her head slightly, resting her chin on Ye Shu's chest, gazing up at him in the dim light. Her eyes now seemed less calm than usual, and more... something Ye Shu couldn't quite put his finger on, something akin to "expectation" or "awaiting judgment."

"I want to know what your answer is, Ye Shu."

Ye Shu looked down at Xiao Nuan, who was curled up in his arms, expressing her most emotional unease in the most rational language, and a part of his heart was touched.

This was the first time he had seen so clearly that Xiao Nuan, whom the other sisters regarded as their last resort, who always seemed to be in control and had a strong "human-machine" sense, also had such a soft and easily hurt side deep down.

She fears rejection, worries about the uncertain future, and tries to escape in her own way, yet she bravely returns to seek a clear answer.

Ye Shu sighed softly, a sigh filled with tenderness and heartache. His arms, which had been a little stiff, finally tightened and carefully returned her embrace.

"My answer is, Xiao Nuan, I like you too."

Ye Shu looked into her eyes and spoke each word clearly and earnestly.

The body in his arms tensed slightly, but Xiao Nuan didn't speak or show any expression.

But Ye Shu could feel that the arms around her waist suddenly tightened, making her ribs feel a little painful.

The hand gripping his back clenched tightly, its nails digging slightly into his flesh. Ye Shu endured the pain without crying out.

Her face was pressed tightly against Ye Shu's chest, and her breathing seemed to quicken.

Xiao Nuan is processing this answer in her own way, feeling the impact of this "mutual affection".

Ye Shu let her hug him, feeling her body tremble slightly and the excruciating pain in his lower back.

After a while, when the pressure on her waist had eased slightly, Ye Shu spoke again, her attitude very frank:

"But, Xiaonuan, there are some things I need to make clear to you."

He felt that Xiao Nuan's body seemed to tense up slightly again, but she didn't move, she just listened.

"It's not just you, Xia Qing, Zhi Qiu, and Xiao Xue... I like all four of you. I like you all, I like every single one of you. I know this sounds a bit fickle and complicated. But this is my truest feeling, and I don't want to hide anything from you. Xiao Nuan, can you accept this answer?"

After the words were spoken, the living room fell silent. Only the sound of their breathing and each other's heartbeats could be heard.

Xiao Nuan stirred; she lifted her head from Ye Shu's embrace.

In the glow of the floor lamp, Ye Shu saw that her entire face was flushed, like a ripe apple, although her expression remained largely unchanged.

She looked at Ye Shu, blinked, and then spoke as usual, only this time her voice trembled slightly, sounding unsteady:

"Logically and existentially, your idea is not wrong."

Ye Shu: "???"

"To be precise, we are the same person. We are different conscious individuals that have emerged from the same personality, An Suxue, under different circumstances and needs. Your liking for me, in an ideal state, should encompass your complete understanding and acceptance of me. Therefore, it is logically consistent for you to have feelings of liking for all the derived personalities, and it is the optimal solution that is closer to liking 'me'."

She paused, then added:

"Moreover, the reality is that even if you only like one personality, or... dislike one personality, we cannot truly separate ourselves from the whole. Therefore, liking all of them is the most practical and emotionally stable strategy at this stage."

He'd recovered again. Ye Shu chuckled softly.

"well......"

He was really used to it, but Xiao Nuan's words did resolve the slight unease and guilt that had always been deep in his heart.

He lowered his head, looking at Xiao Nuan's rosy but expressionless face, and said softly:

"So, you don't need to be afraid now. Because I like you too, and what you said to me... it might sound lazy, but it's what I really wanted to say to you, to each and every one of you."

Xiao Nuan nodded, and then said:

"Based on a comprehensive assessment of the current environment, I believe it is the ideal time to conduct a replicated experiment on the effects of hugging behavior on emotions and physiological indicators, as the data would be more valuable for reference."

Ye Shu looked at her increasingly red and serious face and remained silent.

How could he not understand?

What kind of "opportunity for experimentation" is this?

This was clearly her carefully crafted, scientifically sound experimental request, in order to prolong the embrace that made her feel at ease, and perhaps even a little fond of it.

She was using her logic, both rigorous and full of loopholes, to buy herself more "legitimate" time to stay in warmth.

"it is good."

Ye Shu didn't expose her, but simply pulled her arms closer and held Xiao Nuan more firmly in his embrace.

Xiao Nuan nestled in Ye Shu's arms, closing her eyes. The blush on her face hadn't faded yet, and a tiny smile played at the corners of her lips.