Guang Yu had made such a tremendous sacrifice.
Ye Zhibai certainly couldn’t let her die for nothing!
Guang Yu: Hey, I haven’t died yet!
In any case, Ye Zhibai smoothly—er, politely—rolled up Lin Zihan’s sleeve and urgently whispered a reminder to her while she was still trying to figure out what was going on.
“Use this chance now. Hurry and go—out the back door first. We’ll figure out the rest later.”
“Huh…? Okay!”
Lin Zihan reacted just as swiftly.
She had no idea what was happening downstairs, but this was clearly their one shot to slip away!
The two of them hurried back down the stairs with light, pattering footsteps, retreating all the way outside the back door.
But they didn’t go any farther.
After all, Guang Yu was still holding the front line!
No matter how low Ye Zhibai could sink, she couldn’t just abandon her there.
The pair flanked the doorframe, one on each side, secretly observing the goings-on inside the flower shop on the first floor.
From a distance, Lin Zihan watched the little girl clutching her forehead as she staggered to her feet from beside the massive stone flower vase.
She thought back for a moment, and it quickly came to her!
“Little Bai’er! Isn’t that the little girl you bought a drink for at the beverage shop earlier? How did she…?”
“Yeah, she must’ve come to repay the favor. Good deeds get good rewards—that’s how it works.”
“No way…!”
Lin Zihan was floored.
She used to believe in science.
Inside the flower shop, Elsa was in a total flap.
She couldn’t decide whether to call an ambulance or dig out a Band-Aid!
The little girl looked like she was hurt, but somehow also perfectly fine!
In truth, there was nothing she needed to do.
That full-force crash from Guang Yu had left her head buzzing, but inflicted zero actual damage.
Consider this: even the body of Ye Zhibai—a creation of the Mother God—sustained only superficial wounds when flung by a car.
And Guang Yu? She was a true god!
Such was the resilience of divinity!
Guang Yu wobbled her head from side to side, quelling the buzzing inside her skull.
Her double vision swiftly sharpened back to normal.
A glance toward the back door revealed Ye Zhibai, who was quietly waving to signal her.
Guang Yu got it immediately.
—Mission accomplished!
Now, time for withdrawal!
Guang Yu took a step back.
That impact should’ve been lethal, yet to Elsa’s eyes, the brown-haired little girl merely rubbed the back of her head and flashed a dopey grin.
“Hahaha, sorry, Auntie! I slipped up at the door just now, and talk about bad luck—I went sliding right across the floor! Swoosh! Bang! Crash! Scraaape!—straight into your vase!”
Guang Yu was quite pleased with her sound effects.
Sadly, her vocabulary ran dry there.
Nothing more to add. Time to bail!
“I won’t keep you—I’m outta here!”
“Wait!”
Elsa had only just regained her wits.
She let out an urgent shout.
“？!”
What now? What’s the deal?!
Guang Yu whipped her gaze to the vase her forehead had smacked into.
It wasn’t even cracked—the same vase as before!
No way my head’s harder than stone!
Seeing the little girl’s panicked, baffled expression, Elsa quickly crouched down, her own face softening considerably.
She had no intention of scolding the child.
She simply wanted to make sure the girl wasn’t hurt.
Guang Yu’s forehead was a little red, but there was no blood.
Once Elsa confirmed the crash hadn’t caused serious harm, she let out a long, relieved sigh and rose to her feet.
Towering over the little girl, she spoke with earnest concern.
“Luckily, you’re not hurt… Little one, how can you be so reckless? You’re carrying a schoolbag… Just out of elementary school? Where are your parents? Lost? Do you need Auntie to help you find them?”
“Uh… my parents? I don’t have any.”
“?”
“No—not like that! My parents are at work! No time for me! I head home alone!”
As if!
I was birthed from the convergence of heaven and earth spiritual energy, the primordial god-qi of creation itself.
Parents? What parents!
I got no mom! No dad!
Hearing this, Elsa’s brows—which were already furrowed—knit even tighter.
Her sighs grew incessant, laced with a fierce edge.
“You’re so young, going home all by yourself… Sigh, parents the world over are cut from the same cloth! They bring kids into the world but shirk their duties. Fathers especially—all heartless brutes! If your mother learned about that crash… how heartbroken she’d be. That thud made my own heart skip. Next time, watch your step—don’t slip again…”
“Gotcha!”
Guang Yu snapped to attention just like a schoolgirl.
She was practically saluting!
How’d I end up getting a lecture outta nowhere?!
Elsa watched her, and a flicker of nostalgia warmed her eyes.
An unaccustomed, kindly smile crept across her face.
Zihan had been this tiny once… just as mischievous.
Back then, Zihan’s eyes had sparkled the same way—bright, impish, innocent, always full of surprises.
Elsa wanted to do what she’d done with Zihan in those days: brush the dust from her clothes, flick her forehead, and say—be more careful next time.
But her hand, outstretched halfway,
froze stiff in midair.
Only then did she remember: the little girl before her… was not Zihan.
Disappointment settling in, she let her hand drop.
With a wry smile and a shake of her head, Elsa said, “Little one, hold on a sec.”
“Hm?”
Supporting her now-dulled golden hair—which had lost its youthful luster—Elsa rummaged through the flower display on the right.
Moments later, her left hand, roughened by years of labor and no longer as supple as it once was, cradled a sunflower wrapped in delicate paper.
The sunflower was in perfect bloom.
Even indoors, its face turned toward the sun.
Elsa returned to Guang Yu with a serene smile and offered her the flower.
“Little one… You slipped into my shop today—we must be fated. Here, take this sunflower. May you grow strong and sturdy, just like the little sun atop it—always cheerful and bright.”
“……”
Guang Yu numbly accepted the sunflower.
It was the biggest flower she’d ever laid eyes on.
And she had no clue whatsoever.
As Elsa watched her take it, what flood of memories stirred in those clouded eyes.
Outdoors, Ye Zhibai happened to glance over.
She noticed something had shifted in Lin Zihan’s demeanor.
Moments ago, Lin Zihan had been peeking through the doorframe.
But now… her hands were clasped behind her back, body leaning against the wall. She no longer watched.
She merely listened—and bowed her head, lost in thought.
Elsa’s voice lingered in the air.
It grew fainter as she escorted Guang Yu out of the flower shop, drawing farther away.
Yet the words remained crystal clear.
“My daughter was just like you when she was little—reckless, naughty, always tumbling down. Ha… But you’re tougher than she ever was, little one! Zihan would’ve wailed and thrown a fit if she fell, blaming some rock for tripping her. As if we couldn’t tell it was her own clumsiness…”
“Er… Sorry, sorry, little one—you’re rushing home for homework, aren’t you? Look at me, yammering on to a kid. Off you go—study hard, ace your college entrance exams, safe trip home. Oh, and protect those eyes! Your generation has such beautiful ones. It’s a shame so many end up in glasses.”
Every syllable pierced Lin Zihan’s ears.
They kindled an enigmatic shimmer in the crimson of her right eye.
Finally, the shop fell utterly silent.
Elsa must have seen Guang Yu off.
Long minutes passed with no sound but the sporadic rustle of bouquet-arranging.
Before long, Guang Yu—who had slipped into invisibility once more, sunflower in arms—circled back around to the rear entrance and rejoined Ye Zhibai.
Only then did Lin Zihan finally let out a choked sob.
But she cut it short, tilting her head back to swallow it down, holding everything inside.
A short distance from the back door, she led Ye Zhibai a step farther on.
The playful smile had returned to Lin Zihan’s face, her right eye’s crimson glow brimming with mischief—no trace of tears.
She pressed her palms together and softly apologized to Ye Zhibai.
“Sorry about that, Little Bai’er… First time I bring you out to have fun, and it turns into some underground guerrilla skirmish… You must think it’s a joke. How about I buy you another drink? Anyway, let’s… find somewhere else to talk, okay?”
“Okay.”
