Talulah, I'm still a child.

"The suffering you have endured is not a reason for you to harm others."

Not everyone in the village participated in this inhumane persecution, but everyone was a beneficiary. Talulah looked at her hands, which were indeed stained with the blood of many people, some who knew and some who didn't. However, she didn't think these people were innocent, nor did she care whether they were innocent or not.

“You yourselves chose to abandon your human nature, and I will not judge you for that. I have blood on my hands, but so what?”

Talulah smiled, finally letting go of all her psychological burdens.

"I won't deny what I did, but if it was to protect the people I love, then it was all worth it!"

Flames surged outwards, burning all the snow and houses. The firelight illuminated the surroundings, dispelling all the shadows. Talulah ignored the shadows' curses and wails; she simply turned to look at the sealed warehouse.

She had dreamt of this day countless times, making the same choice again. The only difference was that in the end, she didn't have the courage to push open that door.

Every time, after finishing what I was doing, I would stand quietly at the warehouse door, guarding the inside, because I was afraid... What if I opened the door and Mei Xue wasn't inside, or what if another shadow was waiting for me inside?

She thought about it a lot, but more than anything, she felt a strong aversion to the scene: the strong smell of blood, the bloodstains on the ground, and the boy who was so weak that he couldn't even speak clearly. Talulah couldn't bear to see Mei Xue like that; she would feel that it was her dereliction of duty.

She reached out, wanting to touch the door, but as before, she hesitated. However, after seeing the ring on her hand, Talulah seemed to understand something.

"...Really, I always say you're stupid, but it turns out I'm not that smart either."

Feeling somewhat ashamed of her own brain, Talulah sighed and gently pushed open the door in front of her.

There was no unpleasant smell of blood as I had imagined, nor were there any dark red and bright red bloodstains. The bloodstained knives were nowhere to be found. There was only one table in the entire warehouse, and a person was sitting on the table.

That was a constant concern in Talulah's heart, a symbol of her happiness, her joy, her love, and all her good moods.

"You're too late! I've almost finished eating the apple!"

The little fox, dressed in his everyday clothes, couldn't help but furrow his delicate brows. He sat on the table, his little feet clasped together and gently swaying. This was probably the first time he had spoken to Talulah in such a tone.

"I'm sorry, darling, it only just dawned on me..."

Talulah, who was being scolded, just scratched her head, feeling a little embarrassed. Although dreams are said to be reflections of memories and only appear under the influence of psychological factors, Talulah's dream was a psychological shadow caused by her self-blame and inner conflict.

However, just as she had sworn to protect Mei Xue, Mei Xue would naturally protect her in return. So he had been in this warehouse all along, waiting for Talulah to push open that door and for her to personally end this knot in her heart.

"Sister, you still call me stupid?"

"Hey, it seems I'm not so smart after all. Let's just be a pair of silly couples."

Talulah brazenly walked up and was about to reach out to hug Mei Xue when she thought about it again and withdrew her hand because of the bloodstains on her hands.

"...Hold me, now, immediately, right now."

Perhaps sensing Talulah's thoughts, Mei Xue pointed to herself. The little fox in the dream was more assertive than the one in reality. Of course, the Mei Xue in the dream was actually the real Mei Xue who had projected a part of her consciousness into Talulah's dream. However, influenced by Talulah, she appeared to be more assertive.

Perhaps in Talulah's heart, Mei Xue, who is a little willful, throws a little tantrums, and is somewhat assertive, is a rare sight, so she subconsciously constructed her in her dreams.

"You really don't mind what I have?"

"That's why it got dirty, right? Why are you complaining? Honestly, do you expect me to do it willingly?"

Mei Xue frowned slightly in displeasure, then relaxed, and with an apple in her mouth, she opened her arms and pounced on Talulah.

Even though she knew it was a dream, Talulah still didn't dare to let Mei Xue fall to the ground. She couldn't bear it, so she decisively opened her arms and instinctively hugged Mei Xue into her arms. After all, it was a dream, and the bloodstains stained Mei Xue's snow-white hair and tail, but the little fox didn't care. He used both his hands and feet to cling to Talulah.

"I'll come earlier next time."

Talulah said this while affectionately nuzzling Meixue's cheek. Even in her dreams, she could feel Meixue's softness. She truly loved this little fox deeply.

"Don't let it happen again, promise me."

Mei Xue reached out and gently stroked Talulah's head. The little fox had appeared here for Talulah's sake. From the moment he realized that Talulah had this knot in her heart, he separated a part of his consciousness and buried it in Talulah's heart.

Talulah will always protect him, and he will always cherish her, protecting the last glimmer of light in her heart. This is the best vow between them.

"Sister, everything you've done is for me, so if there's any shadow that you can't overcome, it should be me who suffers, not you."

"...I said I would always protect you. I did kill them and get my hands dirty, but I will never regret it again."

Holding Mei Xue tightly around the waist, Talulah took a deep breath; she had indeed faithfully kept her promise.

"So, if I don't push the door open this time either, Mei Xue, what will you do?"

"Hmm... well, I'll come find you after I finish this apple."

Mei Xue hugged Talulah tightly as well, and then Talulah lowered her head and kissed her.

In reality, the two embraced tightly once again, just like always.

New World 18. Talulah, you son of a bitch!

"Ah...it feels so good. It's been so long since I've had a good night's sleep."

Chen Huijie stretched, then slowly sat up in bed, yawned, and recalled the sweet dream she had last night.

She seemed to have dreamt about something last night... Oh right, Talulah got married. Tsk tsk, it's hard to believe that her adopted older sister actually got married.

"Then, who was Talulah's husband in my dream? He didn't seem very tall."

Chen Huijie got up, touching her chin, took off the shirt that she was wearing as pajamas, and changed into a set of casual clothes for everyday wear. She touched her chin and thought about how dreams are. You remember them more clearly when you first wake up, but they become blurry after a while. It's rare for a dream to be clearly remembered.

"Never mind, I still need to take Mei Xue to complete the formalities today, and then take her to Rhodes Island for a check-up while I'm at it."

Chen Huijie had a good impression of the little fox. Although she couldn't explain why, just like Talulah, she cared about him a lot.

But never mind, she still needed to figure out breakfast first. She remembered that Talulah was also on vacation today, so they could go together. She figured Lin Yuxia had probably already taken care of things.

"Talulah, are you still not up? Tsk, Talulah, where are you...?"

As she buttoned her clothes, Chen Huijie pushed open Talulah's door, intending to say as usual that she had slept in again, only to find the entire bedroom empty, the blankets neatly folded and placed on the bed, with no sign of Talulah.

"Huh? That's not right, she's not at work today, where did she go?"

Looking back, Chen Huijie was certain that Talulah wasn't home. The bathroom door was also open. As for the kitchen? Ha, if Talulah didn't want this house to fall apart, then staying away from the kitchen was the best option. That girl couldn't handle cooking at all.

"Could it be that she went out to buy breakfast? Oh well, it's not like she lost it. I'd better go wake Meixue up."

Glancing at the time, it was almost eight o'clock. Chen Huijie figured it was indeed time to wake Mei Xue up, so she went straight to the little fox's door. However, compared to when she woke Talulah up earlier, Chen Huijie made a much quieter noise this time.

Reaching out to gently knock on the door and softly wake Mei Xue, Chen Huijie discovered that the little fox's bedroom door was not closed at all, and opened with a gentle push.

"Really... I have absolutely no sense of caution when I'm in someone else's house."

Chen Huijie didn't think much of it and just pushed open the door to wake Mei Xue up. Before she could even see the situation on the bed, her attention was drawn to something she stepped on.

"What are these... a hammer and a wooden plank, and why are there chains too? How did these things get here?"

Scratching her head in bewilderment, Chen Huijie looked up at the bed. When she saw the situation on the bed, her breathing became heavy, her eyes widened, and her tail stood straight up, showing how shocked she was.

At this moment, Chen Huijie finally remembered who was walking down the aisle with Talulah in her dream, and because of this, her good dream turned into a nightmare.

Hmm...why does it feel a bit noisy?

Perhaps she had slept long enough, or perhaps Chen Huijie's voice was a little too loud, but Talulah woke up groggily. She put her left arm around Mei Xue and rubbed her eyes with her right hand, finally seeing clearly who was standing at the door.

"Ah, Huijie, it's so late... I'll get up right away. Hmm, Huijie, why aren't you saying anything? And what's with that face of yours? It looks like you've seen a criminal in front of you, all arrogant and domineering."

Talulah stretched out her tail to close the window, making Meixue feel less cold. Just as Talulah was about to get up after yawning, she found that her hands were handcuffed to Meixue's.

"Oh... I forgot to untie it after I handcuffed it last night, and as for the key, ah, I forgot to take it."

Seeing Talulah's bewildered expression, and then looking at the two of them pressed tightly together and the silver handcuffs, Chen Huijie couldn't help but imagine a dramatic scene unfolding in her mind.

The key point is that everyone knows Mei Xue's sleeping habits. She usually wears a shirt to sleep, while Talulah only wears a nightgown to sleep. So when the two of them are close together, it's basically like there are two layers of fabric between them.

Moreover, because of Mei Xue's tail, it's fine if the little fox's shirt covers the front, but as for the back... Chen Huijie didn't dare to look, her nose felt a little itchy.

"Huijie, where's your handcuff key?"

"Would you believe me if I said it was in the Guard Bureau?"

With a kind smile on her face, Chen Huijie reached out and caught the Crimson Sky Sword that flew from the living room wall into her hand.

Seeing this, Talulah instantly snapped back to reality. She suddenly realized that although some of her memories had returned, Chen Huijie didn't remember anything at all. She just had a strong liking for Mei Xue, and now Talulah and Mei Xue were in this position, and the clothes they were wearing... Good heavens! They weren't wearing this outfit when they went to sleep last night.

"Mei Xue! Mei Xue, wake up! Mei Xue, say something!"

"Waaah..."

Despite being nudged several times by Talulah, Mei Xue still showed no sign of waking up. Last night, in order to help Talulah regain her memories, the little fox had to guard her mind while also busy patching up the new world. She must have been working really hard.

"Stop it, darling, let me sleep a little longer."

Half-asleep, Mei Xue got up and kissed Talulah, then turned back to sleep. The little fox hadn't quite caught up yet and needed some time to adjust her mind and body.

But it would have been better if he hadn't done anything; the kiss caused trouble. Talulah could clearly feel that Chen Huijie's killing intent had intensified, and he was already preparing to unleash Crimson Sky: Draw Sword.

"Meixue, no..."

Seeing her husband irresponsibly fall back asleep, Talulah panicked; she didn't want to die.

However, running away was useless. The key point was that Talulah couldn't escape anywhere at this moment. Her hands were handcuffed to Mei Xue's, so she could only look at Chen Huijie with a fawning smile.

"Ahem, well... Huijie, you saw it too, it was Meixue who made the first move."

"Do you think we Lungmen police officers would believe your nonsense?!"

Unsurprisingly, she was severely reprimanded, but it had no effect on Mei Xue. Chen Huijie even took special care not to disturb the little fox's sweet dream, so she unlocked the handcuffs from her hands and then grabbed Talulah's ear, dragging her sister, who was dancing on the edge of crime, into the next bedroom.

When the little fox woke up, Talulah and Chen Huijie were gone. He rubbed his eyes, only remembering that something had just happened, but he couldn't quite recall it. It seemed that Chen Huijie had come to wake Talulah up.

"Handcuffs... um, never mind, I'll just make a flower wreath later."

Thinking this, Mei Xue got up and got out of bed, changed her clothes and washed up. Then she came to the door of Talulah's room and heard Chen Huijie's voice inside. But she wouldn't talk to herself so loudly, so Talulah must be inside too.

(Go make breakfast. I remember that Sister Chen and Sister Talulah like to eat pretty much the same dishes.)

The little fox casually waved to the Crimson Cloud hanging on the wall, and saw it fly over happily. The fox gently caught it and then pulled it out.

"Hmm, this one is still the most convenient to use."

Holding the Chixiao knife like a kitchen knife, Mei Xue went to the kitchen to get busy as usual, just like when she and Chen Huijie lived together.

Meanwhile, in Talulah's bedroom, she was being scolded by her younger sister with her head down. The scolding consisted of things like, "Mei Xue is too young for this," "Can't you wait until he's a little older?" "I never thought you were like this, Talulah," and "Do you want your sister to send you to the Royal Guard?"

Bowing her head is one thing, listening to advice is another, but expecting Talulah to change her ways is probably not going to be an option.

Mei Xue's age is inappropriate? Never mind, she thinks the little fox is sixteen years old anyway, and no one really knows how old the little fox is.

Can't we wait until he grows up? Nonsense, of course we can't wait. Nobody can wait, after all, this little fox probably will never grow up. And judging from Talulah's recovered memories, Alina and Frostnova are both involved with him. Not to mention what Mei Xue said last night, that he has relationships with Agor and several of his people, and even has an ambiguous relationship with Cecilia and her daughter. What will happen if we wait until he grows up?

And what does "this kind of Talulah" mean? So what if Talulah likes Mei Xue? The little fox is the best! She likes Mei Xue just the way she is. If she really grew up or became a little younger, she wouldn't be interested at all.

As for being personally sent to the Guard Bureau by Chen Huijie? What's there to be afraid of? It's not like she's never been locked up before. And to be honest, Chen Huijie herself isn't much better off. If Talulah hadn't wanted Chen Huijie to disturb her and Meixue's happy daily life, she would have reminded Chen Huijie of the scene when she first walked into prison. Chen Huijie had mentioned this when the sisters first worked together in bed. Talulah's recovered memories were exactly from when she met Meixue to that night.