I raised stunning young ladies, but they all wanted to possess me.

"Those were just things I wrote when I was little and didn't know any better, don't take them seriously."

"A twelve-year-old's words don't count."

Just then, the adoptive mother's loud voice came from outside the door.

"Wanqing, Mr. Gu, come out for breakfast."

Fu Wanqing responded with a "Coming!" and turned to walk out.

Gu Yan followed behind her and noticed that she hadn't put the diary back in the hidden compartment.

Instead, she stuffed it into the outermost drawer of the bedside table, as if she was deliberately letting him see it, or as if she was hinting at something.

He had another layer of doubt in his mind. Was she giving him a chance to continue looking, or was she testing whether he dared to look again?

The table was laden with food: soy milk, fried dough sticks, steamed buns, and several small dishes of pickled vegetables.

The foster mother, wearing a floral apron, was using chopsticks to flip the sizzling fried eggs in the pan.

My adoptive father was already sitting at the table, holding a cup of hot tea, his cane leaning against the chair.

Fu Wanqing sat down next to her adoptive mother, picked up a steamed bun and took a bite, without glancing at Gu Yan the entire time.

Gu Yan sat down opposite her, picked up her soy milk and took a sip, her gaze sweeping across the other side from the rim of the cup.

She ate the steamed bun very seriously, her cheeks puffed out, but she just wouldn't look up.

She's usually very talkative during meals, but today she's unusually quiet.

The foster mother brought over fried eggs, glanced at Fu Wanqing, and then at Gu Yan.

"What's wrong with you two? Did you have a fight? Wanqing, why are you ignoring Mr. Gu?"

Fu Wanqing took a bite of the bun and mumbled "No."

The adoptive father put down his teacup, smiled, and placed a piece of pickled vegetable into Fu Wanqing's bowl.

"It's normal for young couples to quarrel. They make up before they get out of bed. Your mother and I were like that when we were young too."

Fu Wanqing almost choked on the steamed bun and quickly gulped down a mouthful of soy milk.

"Who said he and I are a couple? Dad, don't talk nonsense."

Her voice was muffled, and she still didn't look at Gu Yan.

The foster mother wiped her hands on her apron and smiled kindly.

"Okay, okay, we're not a couple, we're good friends. Let's eat."

Then she changed the subject, her tone becoming more casual.

"By the way, did you hear anything last night?"

"I got up to use the bathroom in the middle of the night and thought I heard a noise coming from the kitchen."

Gu Yan's fingers tightened slightly on the soy milk cup.

The adoptive father nodded and picked up a fried dough stick with his chopsticks.

"I heard that too. There are a lot of rats in my house lately."

"I put a sticky mouse trap in the corner of the kitchen the day before yesterday, and I found several mice stuck there this morning."

"Make sure you close the door when you go to sleep at night so that mice don't get into the room."

He said this in a very casual tone, as if he were talking about the weather.

But Gu Yan noticed that when he said the word "rat," his gaze lingered on her for a moment.

The gaze wasn't heavy, like a feather landing on you, but it made you feel uncomfortable all over.

The foster mother chimed in, peeling an egg as she spoke.

"That's how it is in this old neighborhood; the sewers are old and there are a lot of rats."

"Have your dad tidy up that corner of the kitchen again in a few days."

"By the way, Wanqing, make sure to close your room windows tightly too."

"Mice can climb up the wall; last year's nest got in through a crack in the window."

Fu Wanqing took over the conversation, her tone natural and flawless.

"I got up and checked last night, and there was definitely movement coming from the kitchen."

"I think it was rats rummaging through the trash can; I heard a rustling sound when I got close."

"Then there was no sound; it must have run away on its own."

She said these words while biting into a steamed bun, her tone exactly the same as usual.

The adoptive father picked up his teacup, took a sip, and slowly nodded.

"That's good. Lately, the rats have become very bold and aren't even afraid of people."

"You two shouldn't wander around at night, it would be disgusting if you ran into someone."

Gu Yan lowered his head and drank his soy milk without saying a word, but his back had already begun to feel slightly cold.

Their words, seemingly out of concern, were actually a barrage of criticism directed at him.

If a mouse runs into the room, you should close the door; this is a warning to it not to wander off.

There was noise coming from the kitchen; they were implying that they knew everything that happened last night.

Even the windows were mentioned, which tells him that all the exits are within their sight.

The meal felt like sitting on a chessboard, with the three people opposite him making their moves, while he remained oblivious to whether he was checkmated.

What alarmed Gu Yan the most was that Fu Wanqing's cooperation was too natural.

She was just angry with him about his diary being read, but now she can seamlessly switch to chatting with her adoptive parents.

The transition between these two states was so fast and smooth that it didn't seem like a spur-of-the-moment decision, but rather more like a long-standing habit of this kind of life.

This kind of life requires you to act at any time.

He suddenly felt that Fu Wanqing had also become untrustworthy, at least not now.

She had too many secrets she was keeping from him, from the basement to her diary, from that cold gaze to their now airtight conversations.

She kept saying she trusted him, but since arriving at this house, she hadn't told him a single truth.

He slowly chewed the bun in his mouth, maintaining a polite smile on his face.

My mind has already started planning something else.

I am now alone in this seemingly cozy house, while there are three other people on the other side.

He still didn't know what was hidden in the basement, and he still couldn't see what was in those sacks.

He has less than a year left to live, and he can't afford to capsize here.

Should we call someone to come and meet us, such as contacting Aunt Tian or sending a message directly to Chen Sinian?

But then I thought, if I call someone over now, it would be like completely breaking ties with Fu Wanqing.

She even stood in front of him, and she even covered for him in front of his adoptive parents.

We cannot take this step lightly before we have figured out the truth.

He finished the last sip of soy milk and put down the cup.

"Uncle and Aunt, I've finished eating. I'm going back to pack my things."

Fu Wanqing finally looked up at him, with half a steamed bun still in her mouth.

Are you leaving?

Her voice was soft, and there was a hint of uncertainty in her tone.

Something flickered in his amber eyes.

"I'm not leaving, I'm just going back to charge my phone, I forgot to charge it last night."

Gu Yan stood up, nodded to her adoptive parents, and turned to go back to her room.

As he left, he could feel three pairs of eyes fixed on his back.

The first thing he did after closing the door was to pull the Demon-Suppressing Blade out from under the bed.

The blade was still cold, and holding it in my hand gave me a solid, weighty feeling.

He took out his phone and checked the signal strength; it was full, and the battery was at 60%.

Gu Yan put the diary back in the drawer. As soon as her fingers left the cover, her phone vibrated several times in her pocket.

He took out his phone and glanced at the screen. Several unread messages were piled up in the notification bar, densely packed.

The message at the top was sent by Cecilia, and the time displayed was around 6 a.m. this morning.