Aunt Xiangzi, how did you manage to live?

"Of course, no matter what kind of lyrics Chu Hua wants to write for you, I have absolutely no interest in them."

Oh dear, that's a lie.

"Kazama, are you perhaps quite interested?"

There are zero people here who keep mentioning the lyrics that Chu Hua wrote inspired by Xiao, only Li Xi keeps thinking about it and is extremely curious about it.

"Rather than receiving the lyrics and script now, I'd actually rather hear Chu Hua sing it for me on stage..."

Seeing Li Xi's feigned nonchalance but actually eagerly anticipating her shaking her head in denial, Xiao also felt a little tempted to tease her.

Of course, he was also very curious about what kind of lyrics Chu Hua would write for him after learning the truth.

However, if Xiangzi finds out about this, he'll probably have a very interesting expression on his face.

ding ding-

The idea had barely taken shape in his mind when a pleasant phone rang from the cell phone that Kazama had placed on the table.

The moment Kazama picked up his phone and turned on the screen, his expression changed slightly.

"Could it be... Xiao Xiang?"

Chu Hua noticed the subtle change in his eyes and guessed who the caller was.

"Shhh."

Kazama made a shushing gesture, then picked up the phone and went outside.

Watching him push open the door and stand by the roadside to answer the phone, Li Xi looked at Chu Hua with a slightly complicated expression.

"...It seems that even after forming a group, your internal conflicts haven't lessened at all."

She certainly didn't know the cause and effect, but even just observing the expressions of the two when Toyokawa Shoko called was enough for her to guess some clues.

"Lixi, are you still keeping up with Xiaoxiang's situation?"

Chu Hua did not directly respond to Li Xi's sentiment, which was not tinged with malice. Her mind was already focused on the phone call, just like Kazama's, and she had no intention of dealing with anyone else.

"Perhaps we don't know each other well enough. I'm not the kind of person who would stop moving forward just because the past was so wonderful, or get stuck in memories and unable to break free—that guy Su Shi is more like that."

Lixi shrugged. Putting aside their past relationship as CRYCHIC's former teammates, she didn't actually have that deep an attachment or concern for Xiangzi.

"Just because we've traveled together for a while, I hope Xiangzi's journey ahead will be easier. But some of her unhappiness is self-inflicted."

Lixi also followed Chuhua and focused her gaze on the boy's back as he made the call.

"...If I had to choose sides, Kazama would be my current ally."

Before turning his gaze away, Li Xi lingered on Chu Hua for a fleeting moment.

"You'd better think carefully about which side you should choose, Chu Hua. It's impossible to waver or have the best of both worlds."

"...Of course I know about this."

Chu Hua listened quietly to Li Xi's advice—or rather, warning.

Only when Kazama is not around can they speak so frankly and openly as they do now.

"Please rest assured, Lixi. I will never have any intention of using or deceiving Xiaojun. My feelings for him are completely different from my feelings for Xiaoxiang."

"Oh? Is that so? Speaking of which, I've always been curious, since Kazama and Shoko are having such a big fight, why do you, Hatsuka-kun, consider him so important..."

She's fallen for her most important childhood friend and nemesis—can something like this really happen to Mitsumi Hatsuka?

"If I told you this was the guidance of fate, would Lixi believe me?"

The blonde girl did not answer her question directly.

"The bond between us still exists even after decades of time and space. Perhaps our meeting was destined from the very beginning... Li Xi, can you understand?"

However, this explanation was enough to make Li Xi frown.

"...What are you talking about?"

"That's true. Li Xi won't understand now. Perhaps one day in the future... you will also receive the favor of fate. But by then... it might be too late."

Li Xi looked at Chu Hua's faintly smiling expression with puzzlement, and even felt a little intimidated by the hint of fanaticism in her eyes.

First, they said there were many things she didn't know, and now they've come up with this mysterious phrase, "the guidance of fate"...

The woman named Mitsukazuki seems to be much more difficult to deal with than she imagined.

Chapter Twenty-Nine: What are you going to do to my Chu Hua?!

In stark contrast to the tense atmosphere among the girls, the conversation between Xiao and Xiangzi, who were standing at the door answering a phone call after leaving RiNG, was somewhat comical.

The reason for this...

"It may be a bit presumptuous of me to ask this right away, but Kazama-kun!! Please tell me where you are right now—you're not at Hatsuka's house right now, are you?"

Xiangzi? When did he arrive?

Although Toyokawa Shoko on the other end of the phone was trying her best to maintain a calm and rational attitude, her tone, which was almost pleading, and her voice, which was already on the verge of breaking down... no matter how you looked at it, she seemed very flustered.

Oh ho, after finally forming a group, he discovered that his childhood sweetheart, who was very important to him, was getting closer and closer to his nemesis. He was afraid that Chu Hua would be stolen away by him. That's the feeling Xiangzi gave him right now.

Kazama, who was immediately bombarded with questions as soon as the call connected, thought for a moment and quickly noticed that something was wrong.

"Wait, why do you have my number, Xiangzi?"

He completely ignored Xiangzi's question—when it comes to answering questions with questions, Kazama is actually quite good at it.

"Uh, well..."

Xiangzi, whose tone had been quite dramatic, suddenly deflated like a punctured balloon, his voice becoming hesitant and stammering as if he had done something wrong.

"...Did Miaomeng and the others give it to you?"

Kazama narrowed his eyes and immediately guessed who the person stirring things up behind the scenes might be.

After much thought, if there had to be one person among this group of aunties who would repeatedly jump around and use any means necessary to stir up trouble just to watch the show, then that person would definitely be Yutenji Wakame.

"That kind of question is not important at all! What's important is the question I just asked, Kazama-kun!"

After Kazama took over the conversation, Xiangzi, who seemed particularly flustered, knew he was in the wrong, so he stammered and raised his voice slightly to bluff.

However, this still didn't work.

Xiangzi actually asked if he was at Chuhua's house... It seems that the conversation after the performance was completely overheard.

Xiao calmly sorted out the cause and effect, and hearing Xiangzi's panicked voice on the other end of the phone, she was also filled with a playful mood.

"I'm not here now, but I was here last night."

"Varied--"

If it weren't for the phone call, Ms. Toyokawa Shoko's facial expressions would probably have been quite something.

"What do you mean?! Last night? Kazama-kun, you really went to Hatsuka's house? And you even stayed overnight?!"

Oh my, what a wonderfully broken voice! It would be even more delightful to witness Xiangzi's completely devastated expression because of this.

"Yes, I stayed overnight at Chu Hua's house. What's wrong, Miss Xiangzi? Are you jealous of me or jealous of Chu Hua?"

"...What a stupid question! Why would I be jealous of Hatsuka because of you? You overestimate yourself, Kazama-kun!"

"Oh dear, it's not that I think highly of myself. Given our estranged relationship, if Miss Xiangzi didn't think highly of me, why would she suddenly call me out of the blue to interrogate me?"

"you--"

Kazama couldn't control the corners of his mouth from curving upwards uncontrollably; for some reason, only Ms. Toyokawa Shoko could make him so happy.

If there is one villain in Shoko Toyokawa's life, then that person would undoubtedly be him.

"Damn it... Why did Hatsuka do that... Kazama-kun, you didn't do anything inappropriate to her, did you?"

"Who knows? If you're really that curious, Xiangzi, why don't you just call Chuhua and ask her directly?"

On the other hand, Xiangzi's tone makes it sound like he's the criminal who lured the naive girl into taking him home... Who exactly is using the secret as leverage to force him to obediently go home with her?

"Even though you clearly hate me and don't want to communicate with me, Xiangzi, you'd rather call me than take the initiative to go to Chuhua..."

"Hmm...this is because—"

"Because you're afraid that the pigeon's breath will cause the water to overflow and the three dams to overflow, right?"

"Ugh...!"

With a gentle smile, Kazama revealed in the most tender tone the secret that Shoko least wanted to be known.

"You were afraid that I would take Chuhua away from you, and you were also afraid that you would hear this fact from Chuhua herself—so you chose to run away, didn't you, Xiangzi! Just like you ran away from Mu before!"

"Ugh... Ugh! It's all because of you, Kazama-kun... You've been too nice to both Mutsu and Hatsuka! This kindness that goes beyond what you'd show to a comrade... Can't you just target one person at a time?"

"………What."

At this point, Kazama finally understood the real purpose behind Shoko's phone call.

"Whether it's Hatsuka or Mutsu... although I'm reluctant to admit it, I can see that they both care about you. In that case... then focus on one of them!"

"...Why can only one of them be treated kindly?"

Kazama frowned, somewhat puzzled.

Xiao Mu is a mother figure, and Chu Hua is the aunt he is closest to.

Why can you only be good to one person?

"You—you want to enjoy the blessings of having two wives!"

Seeing that Kazama had refuted his point of view, Shoko could no longer bear it and raised her voice, unleashing her aggression.

What kind of blessing is this? Does it mean that for Xiangzi, his mother and aunt are mutually exclusive?

"Actually, Xiangzi, you're just jealous, aren't you? Because before, Mu and Chuhua only revolved around your ideals, but now they have their own lives and their own choices, so you're feeling resentful, right?"

"I... I didn't do it for such a vulgar reason... I'm just worried that what you're doing will affect the stability of the Mujica team!"

When will Toyokawa Shoko realize that even without this incident, Mujica wouldn't be that stable?

"Hmph... Since you're unwilling to accept this, then use your strength to take them back! Of course, if it's not too late to take action now!"

After issuing the challenge in a menacing tone, Kazama's sinister smile gradually faded after he hung up the phone.

He had to admit that sometimes he quite enjoyed playing the villain in front of Toyokawa Shoko. The feeling of not having to hold back and saying whatever he wanted was simply wonderful.

"……oh?"

Just as he put his phone away and was about to return to the RiNG store, he noticed a girl who looked like a wildcat walking towards him.

"Are you planning to leave, Lena?"

The white-haired girl put her hands behind her back, staring intently at Xiao who had just hung up the phone, and nodded.

"Yeah, because Chu Hua and Li Xi are bored."

"what……"

"Come play with me, Xiao."

Only when the two of them are alone will Rakuna utter this title that makes Kazama a little dazed.

What truly stunned him was the sentence Lena uttered without batting an eye.

"Just like before."

Chapter Thirty: Li Xi's Feelings

Inside RiNG's store, the confrontation between Chu Hua and Li Xi was still brewing beneath the surface.

"I don't believe in your long-winded theories of fate at all."

If Hatsuka were just an ordinary friend of Kazama, Riki certainly wouldn't have used such a sarcastic tone to subtly probe and maneuver with her.

However, anyone who isn't a fool can notice that the seemingly gentle, kind, and aloof blonde girl's gaze instantly turns fiery the moment she turns her eyes to the black curly-haired boy.

That was a temperature that sent chills down Lixi's spine.

"I didn't mean anything by it. Who Kazama dates, who he teams up with, who he befriends—that's his own business, and I have no right to interfere. It's just that..."