The Hikigaya couple's youthful love story is definitely not a problem.

In short, within just a few days of setting her goal, Rumi demonstrated to Hachiman her formidable execution and self-control.

However, regardless of the circumstances, the changes that occurred during his time studying in the United States were positive. It made Hachiman clearly realize that if he also fell into that state of complacency, he would be eliminated sooner or later.

Therefore, after the wedding, Hachiman and Rumi both found themselves in a strange endeavor.

He studies all subjects every day, taking notes and doing practice problems. Every day, he gets up early, takes a bath, and then casually ties up his hair. He stays up all day, except for occasionally getting up to do some exercises to relax. Even his meals are brought to his study by Hachiman. He keeps eating and thinking hard to solve various problems.

Meanwhile, Hachiman began buying books in large quantities, privately expanding his knowledge at a rate of one book per week.

Of course, saying "one book a week" doesn't mean that Hachiman reads very slowly.

Because a cursory reading is not considered reading, but merely glancing at a book.

True reading requires the coordination of hands and eyes; you should read and think at the same time, and jot down your insights in the margins of the book.

Therefore, after reading a book, Hachiman would write a lot of words. It was precisely because of his tireless thinking and recording that what he saw affected not only Rumi and Hachiman, who were on steroids, but also Xiaoding, who was close to them and felt uncomfortable.

Everyone had agreed to love each other and be lazy, eating, drinking, and having fun every day, just taking it one day at a time. But suddenly, my sister-in-law changed her personality, and my brother was also affected and started to become more positive.

This sudden, inexplicable attack made Komachi wonder if the two of them had somehow lost their minds.

However, as time went on, Komachi also noticed something was wrong.

If it were just a passing fancy, one wouldn't work so hard to study in the US.

This dedication to working from 5 a.m. to 10 p.m. reminded Komachi of her high school days.

Although she did not choose to go.

Instead of going to university, she stayed by her brother's side, which did not prevent Komachi from graduating from Sobu High School with excellent grades.

The Hikigaya family seems to share this characteristic: when they're not working hard, they seem very casual, but once they get serious, their relentless drive is enough to make many people envious. Speaking of children, one has to mention Yukino. The day after serving as a bridesmaid at Hachiman and Rumi's wedding, Yukino sent her two children to Hachiman's house, ostensibly to teach them how to be more masculine from their father.

As for Yukino herself, from Hachiman to Haruno, no one knew where she went. It seemed that disappearing from time to time had become Yukino's habit. Hachiman couldn't do anything about it. Yukino simply threw the children to him, and Hachiman couldn't say no, otherwise he would feel sorry for the two children.

Hachiman was so heartbroken that he couldn't sleep well.

As for finding the 7th gang.

Judging from how busy she and her father, who is studying in the US, are with business collaborations lately, she probably doesn't have much time to take care of her children.

After all, Miss Yang is actually a child who can't even take care of herself. Asking her to take care of two energetic and curious children would be more painful than killing her.

Yang is only suitable to appear from time to time to take the children out to play; she is not suitable to stay by the children's side all the time.

Otherwise, given her terrible temper, Yukino and Hachiman's wish to raise their children to be positive and optimistic would be completely thwarted.

With Rumi and Hachiman both busy, Komachi, who had nothing to do and was also affected by the atmosphere, volunteered to take care of the children. Perhaps because her feelings for her older brother were too intense and she had nowhere to vent them, Komachi won the children's approval with her meticulous care on the second day after meeting Yuya and Shinki.

Living under the same roof as Hachiman not only meant sharing meals, but also meant that since the Hikigaya family only had two bedrooms, the children had to squeeze in with Komachi while Rumi and Hachiman shared one. Fortunately, although there were no rooms, there were enough beds.

Raised by Yukino from a young age, Shinki and Yuuya don't have the temperaments of spoiled young ladies and gentlemen, and they can accept the fact that they sleep on the floor.

In order to show that she does not crave comfort, Komachi also gave up the soft bed and slept on the floor with Shintori Yuuya.

The three of them spend their free time eating, drinking, and playing, while when it's time to study, Komachi helps guide them, and their relationship is quite harmonious.

Days passed by, and everything seemed so harmonious and peaceful except for the lack of news about Yukino. It seemed that life had completely settled down and would not happen again during this period. Rumei had already reviewed the knowledge she had forgotten before, leaving a rough impression in her mind. She was just waiting for high school to start again in a while so she could go back to her senior year.

Hachiman, on the other hand, revised and revised the novel he had written over the previous year, passed the editor's review, and began printing and publication.

As for Komachi and Yuya Shinkichi.

Having already learned about their parents' past, the two children let go of their estrangement and began to confide in Xiaoding, who was genuinely kind to them. Their relationship became so close that it was as if Shinji Yumi were her own child.

Life became increasingly fulfilling, everyone around me had something to do, and their faces were filled with positive smiles.

Logically speaking, Hachiman should be very happy in this dreamlike scene.

However, in reality... he was indeed quite happy.

However, even amidst his joy, Hachiman would occasionally feel worried.

What worried him was none other than Yukino, who had disappeared without a trace.

Counting the days, it's been a month since Hachiman took the drunk Yukino home after the wedding day, and he hasn't seen or heard anything about her.

She is now.

What are you doing now? Frowning, Hachiman stared blankly at the sky outside the window.

"Honey, would you like some coffee?" As Hachiman was pondering, Rumi peeked in from outside and asked him as usual. However, when she saw that Hachiman didn't react and seemed not to notice her presence, only looking out the window, the girl immediately understood what he was thinking.

It's not that newlyweds have the ability to understand each other perfectly, but the worry on Hachiman's face was so obvious that Rumi could draw a conclusion without even having to think about it.

He silently stepped forward and waved in front of Hachiman, drawing his attention.

"Are you thinking about Yukino again?" Rumi asked teasingly, her hair casually tied back in a ponytail for convenience while studying. She was dressed in loose loungewear.

There was no response. Hachiman just looked around awkwardly, hoping that something could help him.

To be honest, Rumi might not care too much about Hachiman's longing for Yukino anymore, but he himself is very concerned about Hei.

You know, secretly worrying about another woman behind your newlywed wife's back is by no means something a married man should do—even if he has a close relationship with that woman.

It seems I wasn't wrong; you were thinking about her again.

Pouting unhappily, Rumi wasn't actually angry; she just wanted to tease Hachiman during her free time from studying.

Occasionally, he would seize the opportunity to tease Hachiman and watch the embarrassed look on his face. This was a good way for him to relieve the pressure of studying in the United States.

Unbeknownst to them, Rumi had begun to dominate the relationship between Hachiman and Rumi, so even though Hachiman knew she was joking, he still couldn't laugh like her.

Tilting his head, Rumi scrutinized Hachiman from head to toe while also pondering.

Others may not know where Yukino is, but she certainly does, because Yukino has been in contact with her ever since she left.

In reality, Yukino didn't run away from home. She simply returned to England, intending to bring back all her belongings left there at once. However, halfway through, Yukino suddenly felt like playing around, so she began to wander aimlessly throughout England.

According to the messages sent a few days ago, Yukino should be having a great time in the J-Fort area right now.

What Rumi was pondering was whether or not to tell Hachiman about Yukino's whereabouts.

After much thought, Liu Mei decided it was better not to say anything.

Hachiman should have been punished long ago, but because Rumi is kind-hearted, she let everything from the past slide.

If she continues like this, softening her heart and revealing everything just because she sees Hachiman acting a little off, wouldn't that be letting herself down? Anyway, Yukino will be back in a while, before the start of her studies in America.

If we help her find a reliable class to spend the year studying, then it's okay not to tell Hachiman now. At most, it will only make him feel bad for a while.

Rumi believed that Hachiman could endure the minor mental anguish, after all, he was a scholar, and it was almost a given that great thoughts would emerge after suffering.

In order to achieve her future success, she decided to help her husband while staying in the United States.

At worst, Liu Mei can just offer Hachiman some physical benefits.

I've been studying too much lately, and I need a really relaxing break while I'm in the US. I want Hachiman to reach his peak with Yukino while he's still agonizing over his longing for her...

Studying in the US sounds really interesting.

Then you can stay here and think about Yukino all you want. I was planning to make you a cup of coffee, but you're emotionally cheating on me again, which is really awful.

With a small, pale hand touching Hachiman's forehead, Rumi, feigning anger, turned and left, intending to go back and make herself a cup of coffee before continuing her studies.

Chapter 28

Once outside, Rumi casually took out her phone and sent a text message to Yukino.

She didn't send anything, just a perfunctory greeting about whether she was there or not. Rumi directly asked Yukino when she would reply, wondering if Yukino was about to go to bed. She replied quickly.

It's worth noting that Yukino rarely uses her phone normally; most of the time she just listens to music with her earphones in while doing whatever she wants.

I'll be going back in about two weeks. There are still many places I want to visit that I haven't been to yet.

It would be a shame not to have all that time to myself since I finally have it all.

Seeing this unusual long paragraph, Rumi could feel Yukino's happiness even through the phone screen.

A smile appeared on her face. Just as Rumi was experiencing what she considered to be the happiest time of her life, Yukino had also broken free from the shadows of the past and started to please herself.

After learning about Yukino's situation, Rumi wanted to put her phone away, but as soon as she turned off the screen, she felt her phone ringing incessantly.

Somewhat puzzled, I reopened my phone and found dozens of photos.

I randomly clicked on a few photos and saw that most of them were Yukino taking selfies in various poses, while the other half were pictures of various landscapes and food.

Looking at the well-composed photo, Liu Mei couldn't help but chuckle to herself.

Yukino may seem like an ethereal being, but she's actually just an ordinary girl who, like most people, enjoys taking selfies, loves food, and likes to travel.

Without the burden of children and without the need to struggle for a living, Yukino is now very happy.

This wasn't just Rumi's subjective imagination; it was simply because Yukino's smile in the photo was so sweet that Rumi felt as if she were seeing her younger self in a daze.

He returned to his seat, told Yukino that he needed to continue studying, and then turned off his phone.

Although I envy Yukino for being able to travel around, it has nothing to do with her after all.

Negative emotions can have either a positive or negative impact on future life, and appropriate actions need to be taken.

It's not about being envious of other people's lives and then thinking to yourself that you could do the same things.

It's not that I'm so jealous that I'm going crazy, so I can just use my imagination to bring the other person down from their pedestal.

There's no point in just daydreaming; I want to achieve my goals in the US through my own hard work, step by step.

Yukino's family background is good, but that's not due to her own efforts. Rather, it's because her elders helped her get a good education in the US. Yukino isn't jealous of Yukino because she's having a great time in England; on the contrary, she's happy for Yukino.

The girl finally stepped out of Hachiman's shadow and began to pursue the life she wanted.

Although it was getting late, and Yukino couldn't play for very long, the fact that they could help each other change their mindset was undoubtedly a wonderful outcome. Yukino had to compress three years' worth of knowledge into one year and ensure her grades were ideal; the effort required was unimaginable. If you really wanted to chat with Yukino, you could wait until she came back, give yourself two days off, and then go out together to eat, drink, and have fun, relaxing. Although it would be tiring, it would also be fulfilling. Rumi believed that her future self would thank her present self for her hard work.

Calming down, I took a sip of coffee and patted my cheeks to relax my tense mind. Instantly, I got back into the zone and resumed the monotonous studying that I had been doing for over a month.

Far across the ocean, Yukino, who was about to fall asleep, suddenly lost her sleepiness.

She got out of bed, stretched her body, and then sat on the edge of the bed looking a little lost. Lately, she had been very happy during the day because she had never been able to go wherever she wanted or eat whatever she wanted.

But once night falls, Yukino is enveloped by longing for her hometown and loved ones.

How is my sister's business going? Is her father, who is studying in the US, doing well with her?

How are the children doing at Hachiman's house? Are they eating well? Are they throwing tantrums because they can't see their mother?

Will the student studying in the US be able to handle the pressure of studying, and will they be afraid of starting school life again?