Yi Luowa returned to the Duke’s mansion and unexpectedly saw Joyina.
"Don’t you have work today?" Yi Luowa asked suspiciously.
Joyina sniffled but didn’t say a word.
"Did sothing happen?" Yi Luowa felt the atmosphere was a little off.
Tong Airui frowned and said, "Last night Joyina was robbed. Luckily, our third brother ca across it; otherwise, the consequences could’ve been unimaginable."
"What?! Was anyone hurt?" Yi Luowa was startled, squatting down to examine Joyina up and down.
"I wasn’t hurt, but Mi Chenshuo was." Joyina hugged Yi Luowa and started crying. "He grabbed the knife with his hand—it’s all covered in blood now. Waaaah... Luowa, I’m so useless!"
"Don’t cry, don’t cry..." Yi Luowa gently patted her back to console her and turned to look at Tong Airui. "Where’s Third Brother? Was he badly injured?"
"He went to the hospital to get his wound treated and just got back. He had to get ten stitches."
"I’ll go check on him later." Yi Luowa sat down on the couch and held the still-sniffling Joyina in her arms.
Joyina quickly grabbed her arm. "He was in so much pain last night he didn’t sleep at all. He only just fell asleep this morning. Wait until he’s rested before you go."
Yi Luowa gave her a aningful look. "What exactly happened? How did you end up being targeted?"
"Last night I was singing, and one of the regulars who always cos to support suddenly tipped two thousand bucks. I was so happy that I bought myself a box of desserts as a reward and ate them as I walked ho. I hadn’t even reached my neighborhood when a man appeared holding a knife and forced into the woods just outside the residential area. He demanded money, and I was so scared I froze. Then Third Brother showed up, and he fought with the guy. Waaaah..."
Yi Luowa took a tissue to wipe away her tears. "Why didn’t you call for a cab? Coming ho so late, you should’ve had the driver drop you off inside your neighborhood; it’d be much safer."
Joyina pouted. "The bar isn’t far from my neighborhood. Walking ho saves enough money for breakfast."
"She’s really sothing else, isn’t she? Just to save on breakfast money, she walks ho for fifteen minutes every day," Tong Airui said indignantly. "The ones who robbed her weren’t just one guy but three. The people Dad sent got tangled up with the other two, otherwise, Third Brother wouldn’t have been injured."
Yi Luowa pursed her lips. "How did Third Brother just happen to show up there?"
"Who knows? We asked him, but he refuses to say anything." Tong Airui raised an eyebrow mischievously at Yi Luowa.
Yi Luowa’s mouth twitched slightly. Not speaking—it must an there’s sothing going on, sothing only Mi Chenshuo knows.
Yi Luowa comforted Joyina with a few more words, and seeing Joyina’s emotions had stabilized, she turned her head toward Tong Airui. "Airui, why aren’t you traveling with You Jia?"
Tong Airui puckered her lips. "I’m getting married in a little over two months. I wanted to stay ho and spend more ti with Mom."
Tong Yao ca downstairs, looked at Tong Airui with an exaggerated smirk, and said, "You sure talk a good ga, but your heart is elsewhere. Every ti you talk to , you don’t seem fully present."
Yi Luowa stood up, laughing. "Mom, give Airui so slack. Don’t make her upset one day and then have her run off, okay?"
"I already have two daughters-in-law; what’s there for to worry about if she runs off?" Tong Yao chuckled. "Your Third Brother wants to make handmade noodles for him. Do any of you want so?"
"Auntie, is Mi Chenshuo awake?" Joyina asked, wiping her tears.
"He just woke up and is talking to his mom now."
Initially planning to go upstairs to check on Mi Chenshuo, Joyina sat back down, dispirited, upon hearing that he was occupied talking to his mother.
Yi Luowa laughed and asked, "Mom, do you need help?"
"No need. None of you want noodles?"
"I’m so tired; just make a bowl for Third Brother," Tong Airui chid in.
Tong Yao smiled and headed into the kitchen.
After the noodles were done, Joyina went upstairs to deliver them. As soon as she left, Tong Airui pulled Yi Luowa aside excitedly and said, "Sis-in-law, do you think Third Brother has feelings for Joyina?"
Yi Luowa shot her a look. "There you go again, gossiping. Joyina’s still a kid."
"She’s almost eighteen." Tong Airui pouted. "You didn’t see how awkward Third Brother was acting. If you had, you’d think sothing’s up too."
"Well, let’s wait until Third Brother finishes his noodles, and then we’ll go check on him." Yi Luowa laughed.
If soone got caught in the crossfire with these two, there’d be no escape. After Mi Chenshuo finished his al, they headed upstairs hand in hand.
Yan Zi hadn’t slept a wink the night before. After chatting with the two of them for a while, she returned to her room.
Tong Airui playfuly winked at Yi Luowa and closed the door.
Yi Luowa shook her head, signaling her to ask the first question.
Tong Airui crinkled her nose.
Mi Chenshuo looked at the pair and chuckled. "If you have sothing on your mind, just say it!"
Tong Airui grinned and plopped down. "Third Brother, was it really just coincidence that you rescued Joyina last night? There’s no one else here now—co on, spill it. Or else I won’t be able to sleep at night."
"I knew you’d ask this!" Mi Chenshuo chuckled helplessly. "Fine, I’ll tell you both, but you can’t share it with anyone else."
"I promise not to tell anyone—not even Tong Airui!" Yi Luowa declared solemnly.
Tong Airui nodded in agreent. "I won’t promise anything."
Mi Chenshuo smiled. "It wasn’t coincidence. I’ve been following her for days, and even the guy who tipped her daily was arranged by ."
Yi Luowa and Tong Airui exchanged a glance. Could Third Brother really have feelings for Joyina?
Mi Chenshuo spoke in a serious tone: "Don’t overthink it. I don’t an anything else. A conversation I overheard among so colleagues in the break room stuck with .
One of them said that after Joyina joined the company, she only ever wore the sa few outfits and never ordered drinks with her lunch because they weren’t free.
Another ntioned seeing her stand outside a dessert shop for ages without going in. I’ve seen the kind of lifestyle she had at Beidi Palace—it’s far more extravagant than anything our family has. Yet she’s determined to prove herself and chose this way of life instead."
Tong Airui sighed. "I don’t get it either. Why would Joyina leave such a good life behind to co here and suffer?"
"She’s just stubborn. Whatever she sets her mind on, she has to see through." Yi Luowa glanced at Mi Chenshuo. "So you’ve been following her for days to see if she’d treat herself with the extra tip money?"
"Not entirely. Mostly, I wasn’t comfortable leaving her unattended." Mi Chenshuo’s gaze darkened slightly. "I really hate places with woods, and every day she walks ho through that forest..."
Yi Luowa imdiately recalled Su Qing’s incident and hurriedly changed the topic. "Third Brother, just focus on getting better..."
"Waaaah... It’s all my fault! I won’t go to the bar anymore!" As Yi Luowa finished speaking, Joyina walked in crying.
Mi Chenshuo furrowed his brow slightly. He hadn’t wanted her to know, but she overheard everything.
Tong Airui jested, "Is this really such a big deal? Why is everyone crying? You guys are really testing my patience. Third Brother, just give Joyina a raise and have her move into our house after work every day. That way, everyone can rest assured."
Yi Luowa nodded. "Let’s do what Airui suggests. And if Beidi King asks, we’ll exaggerate last night’s incident to scare him. See if he dares to trouble Joyina again!"
Joyina shook her head. "I don’t want to bother you all..."
"You already have!" Mi Chenshuo glared at her. "While I’m recovering, you’ll stay here, and we can talk about the rest later!"
Yi Luowa smiled softly. "Joyina, be good. Later, Airui and I will take you shopping."
Joyina pouted.
Though the matter was settled, they still needed approval from Long Che. At dinner, Tong Airui brought it up to him.
Long Che smirked slightly and glanced at Joyina. "I’ve already told your father about this. He got scared and begged to watch over you. From now on, you’ll stay here. Oh, by the way, your bank card has been unfrozen. He just can’t bring himself to call you yet. When you have ti, give him a call."
Joyina pouted slightly and said, "Thank you, Uncle."
In the end, Joyina’s situation was resolved. On the other side, Tong Airui also received updates about Yi Lingfei.
Turns out Yi Lingfei went to H Nation and joined so kind of idol group. She’s currently undergoing training and is reportedly releasing a new single soon.
"Boss, I told you, you’re just overly stressed!" Yuan Hang laughed. "I said she wasn’t up to anything shady, just trying to reinvent herself and escape from that hellish place. See? She even got surgery done. At first glance, you wouldn’t even recognize her."
Tong Airui shook his head. "I still feel like sothing’s off. How did she manage to evade our surveillance and get to H Nation? This has to be thoroughly investigated."
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