Martial arts have become extinct worldwide, yet I am forced to have a large family.

"fraud!"

"You big liar!!"

Liu Ruyu cried out.

After many years, a familiar feeling of being abandoned surged into my heart once again.

That woman was always like that when I was a child.

I promised to take her to the amusement park on the weekend, but when the day came, she was stuck in the lab and couldn't get out.

I promised to have cake with her on her birthday, but after all the candles on the cake burned out, all I got was a cold text message.

"Mom had an emergency, I'll make it up to you next time."

next time.

It's always next time.

None of those promises were ever kept.

Once, twice, three times...

She has waited a long time, and she will wait no longer!

If you stop waiting, you won't be disappointed.

If you stop expecting, you won't get hurt.

She wrapped herself in thorns, keeping no one close and trusting no one.

I thought I was invulnerable to bullets and swords now.

But today—

Yang Xian's words, "Who told you to be my girlfriend?" still echoed in my ears.

The warmth of his hand still lingered on her fingertips.

The girl actually believed it again!

"You don't want me to tell others, right?"

"Then I'll say it anyway!"

"Tell the teacher, tell the whole college! Let them all know you skipped class."

Liu Ruyu muttered to herself, her voice trembling with stubbornness.

My eyes started to sting uncontrollably.

Large tears rolled down her cheeks.

She turned and walked toward the gap in the wall.

step……

Two steps...

She stopped at the third step.

The scene that flashed through my mind...

It was her forceful kiss on Yang Xian in front of everyone, it was Yang Xian's hand wiping her mouth, and it was Yang Xian's sweet words just now...

"..."

Liu Ruyu clenched her fists tightly.

He stood there silently, unsure whether to move forward or backward.

A long time passed.

So long that the shadows of the trees by the roadside shifted by half an inch, and the school bell rang and then stopped in the distance.

In the end... she still didn't flip back.

She slowly squatted down along the base of the wall and then sat on the ground.

She wrapped her arms around her knees and buried her face in them.

Her dark blue hair concealed all her expressions.

Why did you leave...?

"Why didn't you take me with you...?"

"Why is it that you can't do what you promise..."

Why...?

No one answered her.

The wind rustled through the bushes.

The girl huddled in the corner, hugging her knees, silently shedding tears.

------

Inside the anti-gravity track vehicle, the magnetic levitation track glides silently.

The carriage wasn't crowded. Yang Xian leaned back in his seat, holding his phone in his hand, the screen lit up.

The chat interface remains on the dialogue box with Liu Ruyu.

Three hours have passed since he sent those three messages...

There was no reply.

Yang Xian, are you still thinking about Liu Ruyu?

Lin Ai's voice suddenly rang in my mind.

"It's hard not to think about it."

Yang Xian flipped his phone over and placed it face down on his lap, shifting his gaze to the rapidly receding buildings outside the car window.

"After all, it was their first date, and then he stood her up on the spot..."

That can't exactly be considered a date, can it? Didn't you guys skip class to come out?

"Does skipping class mean it doesn't count as a date?"

Yang Xian asked a question in return, then laughed self-deprecatingly.

"In her opinion, it definitely counts."

He recalled Liu Ruyu's expression when she heard the words, "Who told you to be my girlfriend?"

Her fair face flushed red, and she said, "You insisted on coming out here," but her feet seemed to want to take off right there.

Her clumsy and awkward reaction was completely different from her usual arrogant demeanor.

This shows that she really cares about this matter.

As for myself, I ran away as soon as I climbed over the wall...

"To be honest, I'm quite worried about her right now." Yang Xian rubbed his temples.

【What are you worried about? Liu Ruyu is such a carefree girl, she's probably already off at an internet cafe having a blast!】

Lin Ai comforted her in a lighthearted tone.

"That's what I thought at first too..."

"But upon closer inspection now, her carefree attitude was a deliberate act."

"A girl who lacked companionship from childhood and whose promises were repeatedly broken by her mother wrapped herself in thorns."

"They seem to care about no one, but in reality, they're more afraid of being left behind than anyone else..."

Yang Xian flipped his phone back over and glanced at the silent chat interface again: "She still hasn't replied."

[Maybe she's angry. Girls are like that; it's normal for them to ignore you for a while.]

"No..." Yang Xian shook his head.

"If she were really furious, given her personality, she should have sent me a message and yelled at me."

"Now I'm not replying to a single word."

"This means she's not angry, she's sad..."

The air remained still for a few seconds.

Lin Ai seemed surprised that Yang Xian would analyze things in such detail, and remained silent for a while before speaking again.

So... are you going back now?

[Next time you want to escape, it won't be so easy!]

"..." Yang Xian leaned back in his chair and slowly closed his eyes.

------

Research Institute, Chief Office.

Liu Qin tidied her hair in front of the small round mirror on the table, tucking a stray strand behind her ear.

The lenses of her gold-rimmed glasses reflected the afterglow of the sunset outside the window, and the corners of her mouth turned up slightly.

"Finally, I can get off work."

"It's time to pick up Yang Xian."

She picked up the car keys on the table and muttered to herself.

No sooner had he finished speaking than there was a knock on the office door.

"chief!"

The assistant jogged in, looking somewhat nervous.

"Teacher Zhong is here to see you again, saying it's urgent!"

Liu Qin's hand froze in mid-air.

It's Teacher Zhong again?

The reason he rushed over last time was because Yang Xian made some startling remarks about mechanical life in class.

The entire academic community was in an uproar.

What groundbreaking theory has Yang Xian put forward this time?

Liu Qin put down the key and sat back down in her chair.

"Quickly, invite him in."

The door opened, and a middle-aged man strode in.

Teacher Zhong looked very unwell, and there was a fine layer of sweat on his forehead.

"Chief...something terrible has happened!"

Liu Qin's smile vanished instantly.

"What exactly happened?"

"Yang Xian... Yang Xian has disappeared!"

"What?!" Liu Qin suddenly stood up.

Teacher Zhong wiped away his sweat and reported at a rapid pace:

"It was discovered during training. The instructor knew Yang Xian didn't have a mecha in class, so he didn't think much of it since Yang Xian wasn't there."

"When the training session ended and the headcount was taken, it turned out that he wasn't even there."

"When did you leave?"

"I'm not sure." Teacher Zhong shook his head. "The surveillance footage shows that he was last seen in the school's public areas during recess."

He paused for a moment, as if considering his words.

"Moreover...your daughter Liu Ruyu also disappeared along with Yang Xian."

"Ruyu?" Liu Qin's expression froze for half a second.

"Based on our initial assessment, they may have skipped class together and gone out."

Liu Qin held onto the edge of the table and sat down again.

It's one thing for Ruyu to sneak out by herself; it's not the first time anyway.

Why bring Yang Xian along?

Could it be that she's planning to elope with Yang Xian?