Wen Bai looked back. That extremely familiar figure stood quietly in the center. He couldn't see Su Ying's expression clearly.
"Why are you keeping these people locked up?" Wen Bai asked.
It was a question born of genuine curiosity. Wen Bai's voice was exceptionally clear in the vast, silent space.
Su Ying looked directly into Wen Bai's eyes, his gaze tracing Wen Bai's features one by one. His voice was devoid of emotion, "A small personal hobby."
This was a hobby?
System 001 was stunned. "Holy shit! So, so perverted!"
Wen Bai pondered for a moment. "Then can you lock Yu Yang up too?"
Wen Bai emphasized, "The person we both know, your friend Yu Yang."
Su Ying's eyes flickered slightly, then he curved his lips. "If you like."
System 001: "This also works?"
Su Ying, wearing an apron, was cooking in the kitchen. Wen Bai lounged on the sofa, holding a pillow, watching his endlessly captivating cooking shows. When a local segment appeared, he would even take out his phone to record it.
Their way of getting along was just like before.
Wen Bai didn't press him on why he'd captured that man, why the blond-haired guy was there, or what Su Ying's hobby specifically entailed.
They both tacitly agreed not to mention the basement again.
System 001, observing the two of them as if nothing had happened, fell into a long silence.
However, unlike its silence.
System 001 clearly felt that its host was in an unprecedentedly good mood.
Jiang Yiyi lay in the hospital bed and asked her brother, "Has he come to see me?"
Jiang Dalei was initially very happy, but seeing that his sister immediately asked about that man the moment she woke up, his temper flared.
But of course, he didn't dare to say that he had dealt with that kid.
He could only lie to Jiang Yiyi. "The doctor said you need complete rest now. I can only visit for an hour today, let alone him. Of course, he wanted to see you. I only let him look at you from the doorway before I chased him away."
Jiang Yiyi finally cheered up a bit. "Really? But, Brother, you can't do that next time. If he comes again, let him in to see me. I want to see him."
Jiang Dalei felt that the kid had bewitched Yiyi.
He endured, veins throbbing on his forehead, and took a deep breath. "Okay, next time Brother definitely won't stop him!"
Yu Yang had been in a state of low spirits recently. He had a feeling that his world was turning upside down and that things were deviating from their intended course.
Yet, if asked to describe what that intended course was, he couldn't articulate it.
He had only met Miss Lin a few times, but for some reason, upon learning she had a boyfriend, he felt a profound unease, an unease that even surpassed the pain of her having attacked him with a knife.
Even though his ex-girlfriend was still in the hospital, he couldn't help but think of another woman.
Yu Yang pressed his forehead.
Reason told him that, as a man, whether out of respect for their past relationship or as a matter of responsibility, he should go see Jiang Yiyi.
He heard she was very serious, almost not making it. If Jiang Dalei hadn't gone to find her that night, she might have died.
But he didn't want to go.
He didn't know how Jiang Yiyi found out about Lin Shuangshuang, brought out an identical necklace, and said ambiguous things.
The thought that all of this was just to salvage their already extinguished relationship made him feel a suppressed anger, a sense of being deceived.
Yu Yang, leaning on his cane, stood up from the flower bed.
His phone beeped softly.
He suddenly received a message from an unknown number. He opened it and froze, then zoomed in on the picture.
He then exited the phone, his finger hovering over the delete button, then stopped. He turned off his phone.
Someone nearby was talking, "Have they found the missing girl from before?"
"No, but recently they say the scope of missing people has widened, even children. A child from the hospital next door has also gone missing. Who knows what kind of devil is doing this, utterly heartless..."
Yu Yang took out his phone again, thought for a moment, and dialed a number. "The number you have dialed is temporarily unable to be connected. Please try again later..."
He sighed and left, leaning on his cane.
"Dinner is ready," Su Ying said.
Wen Bai slipped on his slippers and padded over.
Su Ying brought the dishes to the table and arranged them. "There's no one to rush you, take your time."
Wen Bai sat down at the table and felt a slight disappointment at the meal, which was slightly plainer than usual.
Su Ying noticed instantly. "We ran out of groceries at home. I had to rush back..."
He had seen from the surveillance that the man had woken up earlier than expected and had immediately taken leave to drive back, naturally leaving no time for grocery shopping.
Su Ying said calmly, "Tomorrow, you can list whatever you want to eat."
He added, "There's no limit."
With that said, Wen Bai's slight disappointment vanished.
Wen Bai immediately seized the opportunity and rattled off a string of dishes.
Su Ying watched him eat, adding dish after dish, and his eyes softened.
That night, when they went to sleep, Su Ying brought the milk again.
"Host, are we really going to stay here?"
Wen Bai, as if unable to understand System 001's persistence, affirmed, "Yes."
System 001 warned, "He added something to it this time. It seems he's afraid you'll run away."
Wen Bai took it, ignoring the warning, and drank it down with gulps, without a hint of hesitation.
He had milk all over his mouth.
Then he felt his eyes getting heavy. The image of Su Ying going to the bathroom lingered in his vision. He leaned against the headboard, still holding the cup, and fell asleep.
Su Ying, having showered and wrapped in a towel, glanced at the bed.
He walked closer, took the cup from Wen Bai's hand, and his fingers moved. As if unable to help himself, he used his thumb to wipe away the milk on Wen Bai's lips.
Unconsciously, he traced Wen Bai's lips over and over again.
"You won't leave, will you?"
There was no response.
As if still not reassured, he went to the drawer and took out the "foot accessory" that Wen Bai usually wore.
He lifted Wen Bai's leg, placed it on his fair ankle, then took out a matching, extremely thick iron chain and locked it with a click.
System 001, despite having prepared itself mentally, was still indescribably shocked to witness this. "So this is how it's used..."
Thinking that its host voluntarily put on the "foot accessory" every night, and with its own instigation, System 001 didn't want to speak.
The other end of the chain was connected to a floor lamp, and then to an iron ring embedded in the wall.
Having done all this, Su Ying lay on his side, drawing Wen Bai into his embrace, as if only then could he be sure the person in his arms wouldn't fly away.
He lay on his side, letting Wen Bai rest on his right arm, his left hand resting on Wen Bai's waist and hips, holding Wen Bai close, and fell asleep peacefully.