Why didn't you tell me earlier that my little sister is still waiting for me?

"Lin Bufan?" Xu Hongdou called softly, her voice still hoarse from just waking up.

Lin Bufan stirred at the right moment, as if startled awake by the sound. He raised his head, rubbed his eyes, and looked at Xu Hongdou with concern: "Hongdou? You're awake? How are you feeling?"

how do you feel?

Why do you ask?

What happened?

Xu Hongdou frowned even more as she tried to recall her previous memories.

It seems like—someone tried to force a kiss on me?

That's right, it's Lin Bufan!

And it seems that this bastard even put his hand inside my pajamas and touched me!

Thinking of this, Xu Hongdou quickly looked down to check her clothes and found that several buttons on her pajamas had been undone.

"Lin Bufan!" Xu Hongdou suddenly raised her head, her face quickly turning into a thin layer of anger, her eyes filled with disappointment and indignation: "You have disappointed me so much! I never thought you were this kind of person!"

Lin Bufan was stunned; his feigned concern froze on his face. "What do you mean? What kind of person am I?"

"Are you still pretending?" Xu Hongdou was furious, her voice rising slightly. "I remember now! Last night...you don't know what you did?"

"I did a good deed last night, that's right!" Lin Bufan spread his hands, his expression increasingly bewildered: "But shouldn't that be praised? What's with that angry look on your face?"

"Praise you?" Xu Hongdou was amused and annoyed by Lin Bufan's shameless attitude. "Should I give you a big red flower?"

"Xu Hongdou!" Lin Bufan frowned, his tone becoming serious. "Can you explain yourself clearly? What do you mean by constantly mocking me?"

"Fine!" Xu Hongdou took a deep breath, as if she had made up her mind: "Then I'll make things clear! Last night, didn't you force a kiss on me? You even put your hands inside my clothes and groped me! And, in the end... you did *that* to me!"

As soon as she finished speaking, Chen Nanxing, who had been "sound asleep" beside her, could no longer pretend. She sat up abruptly, her eyes wide open, her voice filled with shock and disbelief: "What?! Hongdou, you mean... Lin Bufan did that to you too?"

Lin Bufan was completely dumbfounded; his head was practically overflowing with question marks. He could understand the first two—the forced kiss and the penetration—probably hallucinations caused by mushroom poisoning, mistakenly attributing Chen Nanxing's "harassment" to him. But this last one…it was pure framing! He clearly stopped the "crime" in time last night, and even resolved the issue with his recovery card afterwards. Where did this "that thing" come from?

Seeing that Chen Nanxing's gaze was becoming increasingly dangerous, filled with scrutiny and suspicion, Lin Bufan quickly stretched out his hands, making a stop gesture: "Stop! Hold on! Ladies, don't rush to condemn me! I have a completely different version of the story about last night's events. Would you like to hear it first?"

Without waiting for the two women's consent, Lin Bufan cleared his throat and began to narrate in the tone of a storyteller: "Speaking of last night, it was dark and windy, and you couldn't see your hand in front of your face!"

I was in town talking with a friend and had no intention of returning home early. However, I suddenly felt a sudden urge and a premonition arose in my mind, as if a great calamity was about to befall someone close to me. I was immediately uneasy, so I said goodbye to my friend and drove back home at high speed.

As soon as I parked the car, before even entering the courtyard, I heard strange noises coming from room number six. It sounded like playful banter, mixed with rustling sounds of pushing and shoving. Startled, I hurried upstairs, and without even announcing my arrival, I pushed open the door to look—”

Xu Hongdou and Chen Nanxing unconsciously held their breath.

"But then—Miss Nanxing forcefully pressed Miss Hongdou onto the bed, one hand gripping her jade-like neck, the other already reaching inside her silk robes! She cried out: 'Stop acting like this,' 'Haven't we been intimate before?' Her words were so blunt and shocking! Miss Hongdou struggled against her, her head turning frequently, her lips repeatedly murmuring: 'No,' 'How can our lips touch?'..."

As Lin Bufan described the events of the previous night, those blurry, chaotic, and emotionally charged fragments began to piece together and become clearer in the two women's minds. Chen Nanxing's cheeks flushed instantly, her eyes darting around, unable to look at Xu Hongdou. Xu Hongdou also frowned slightly, seemingly trying to distinguish between the reality and illusion of her memories.

"When I first saw you, I almost wanted to shut the door and retreat—this is a private matter for the ladies, how could I allow others to peek in?" Lin Bufan pretended to turn around, but suddenly turned back, and said solemnly, "However, upon closer inspection, I found something strange. Although you two are usually close, why are you so unrestrained? Moreover, your eyes are unfocused and your behavior is out of control. Having traveled the martial world for more than twenty years, I have never seen such a situation before, it is clear that you have been possessed by an evil spirit!"

Having understood this principle, how could they sit idly by? They immediately took action to subdue Nanxing and separate the two.

Then—I used the Taiqing Tranquilizing Spirit Technique, a secret technique passed down through my sect. This technique involves the flow of qi and blood through the meridians, so I cannot elaborate further. It finally helped you two calm your minds and gradually enter a deep sleep.

At this point, Lin Bufan deliberately feigned exhaustion, covering his mouth with his sleeve as he coughed lightly: "However, it was late at night and the dew was heavy, and I was afraid that my symptoms would relapse. So I took a low stool and stood guard by my bedside. When the east was already bright, I was so tired that I could hardly stay awake, so I leaned over the desk for a short rest. But I didn't expect to be awakened by the two of you as soon as I fell asleep."

After the story was finished, a brief silence fell over the room.

Xu Hongdou and Chen Nanxing exchanged a glance, both seeing a mixture of realization and...embarrassment in each other's eyes. As Lin Bufan narrated, the previously absurd and ambiguous fragments in their minds seemed to find a logical order in the puzzle. That feeling of being forcibly suppressed, of confused consciousness yet powerless to resist, seemed...too fitting for the scene of Chen Nanxing lunging at them? And the vague impression of Lin Bufan pushing open the door to stop them and standing guard beside them also began to emerge.

Chen Nanxing couldn't take it anymore. She coughed twice and looked up at the ceiling. "Um... it seems... there is such a thing? I seem to remember... I was the one who pounced on Hongdou first?" Her voice grew softer and softer as she spoke, and her face flushed even more.

Xu Hongdou pursed her lips, the anger on her face long gone, replaced by a complex expression of embarrassment and shyness.

"Hey, Nanxing, didn't we agree on where we were going to go today?"

Xu Hongdou's extremely abrupt change of topic left Lin Bufan stunned!

What do you mean?

Should we pretend nothing happened?

"Xu Hongdou, you've hurt me, and you think you can just laugh it off like this?"

Xu Hongdou's eyes darted away, and she muttered guiltily, "I... I didn't mean to wrong you. I was just hallucinating because I ate mushrooms and got poisoned."

"Hallucination?" Lin Bufan raised an eyebrow, took a step closer, and said with a scrutinizing tone, "Fine, even if it's a hallucination, the first two points—that I forcibly kissed you and that I put my hand inside your clothes—could be Nanxing's crimes that you've mistakenly attributed to me. I understand, he's been poisoned, his memory is confused."

But this third point... Nanxing had just tackled you and reached inside when I stopped him from committing this crime. Afterwards, I even cured both of you.

"And what about the third hallucination? How did you develop it?"

Xu Hongdou's face flushed crimson instantly, even the tips of her ears turned pink. A blurry, yet incredibly embarrassing, memory flashed through her mind. So… it was all a dream! This thought made her so ashamed she wanted to disappear into the ground.

"I...I...the first two were...that's how it was. It's normal for me to think a little more along with the plot, isn't it? After all, no one would choose the latter between being a beast and being worse than a beast, right? Besides, when you're poisoned, your mind isn't clear, so it's normal to have a vivid imagination, isn't it?" Her voice grew softer and softer until it was almost a mumble, her confidence clearly lacking.

"Normal? You dare say it's normal?" Lin Bufan's eyes widened, his face full of anger: "Your imagination is a little too rich. You almost labeled me a rapist instead of a good young man who did a good deed! You still dare say it's normal? Apologize! You must apologize!"

Knowing she was in the wrong, Xu Hongdou immediately sat up straight, adopted a proper attitude, and sincerely said, "I'm sorry."

"Not enough! There's no sincerity at all!"

"I'm sorry!" Xu Hongdou took a deep breath, raised her voice, and bowed slightly. "I made a mistake without understanding the situation and wronged you. I'm really sorry!"

Lin Bufan shook his head and clicked his tongue twice: "Still not sincere enough. How can my wounded, pure heart be soothed by a few flimsy apologies?"

Xu Hongdou was both exasperated and amused by his attitude, and said helplessly, "Then tell me, how can I apologize sincerely? I'll listen to you, is that alright?"

Lin Bufan seemed somewhat satisfied, nodding, "Hmm...that's more like it. I'll tell you when I've thought it through. Okay, get up, wash up, and get ready for dinner." With that, he turned and left the room, closing the door behind him.

Xu Hongdou and Chen Nanxing were left in the room, looking at each other in bewilderment.

Xu Hongdou grabbed a pillow and threw it at Chen Nanxing: "It's all your fault! It's all your fault! If you hadn't gone crazy, none of this would have happened!"

Chen Nanxing caught the pillow and chuckled, "How can you blame me entirely? I didn't actually...do anything to you."

"You still dare to talk! You still dare to talk! Are you trying to piss me off?" Xu Hongdou lunged at her, ready to pinch her.

"Okay, okay, I was wrong, alright?" Chen Nanxing laughed as she dodged, "It's all alright now, isn't it? Don't be angry, Sister Hongdou~"

Xu Hongdou snorted and turned her head away, ignoring her.

Chen Nanxing leaned over and nudged Xu Hongdou with his elbow, lowering his voice with a sly curiosity: "By the way, Hongdou, to be honest... when I touched you yesterday, what did you feel? I was so dazed, I don't remember anything specific, it's such a pity."

"Chen Nanxing! Go to hell!" Xu Hongdou instantly bristled, her face flushed as she pounced on him, and the two of them immediately started laughing and wrestling on the bed.

……

When Lin Bufan returned, he found that Da Mai and Sang Biao were already there. Da Mai was sipping his porridge, and there was also a small bowl in front of Sang Biao, but he wasn't drinking porridge; he was eating instant noodles, and it was his favorite flavor: pickled cabbage with phlegm.

"Barley, how are you feeling? Still uncomfortable?"

When Da Mai heard Lin Bufan's voice, her body trembled slightly, and she realized that Lin Bufan had arrived. She quickly put down her spoon and stood up, her hands nervously clutching the hem of her clothes, her cheeks slightly flushed, but her eyes were looking at Lin Bufan very seriously.

"Mr. Lin..." Da Mai's voice was much louder than usual, and every word was spoken with great effort: "I'm fine. Sister Nana told me everything. Last night... thank you for taking care of me. Really... thank you so much."

Oh, and thank you so much for your treatment!

As he spoke, Da Mai bowed solemnly to Lin Bufan, his movements slightly stiff but full of sincerity. The way that a socially awkward person mustered all their courage to express gratitude made it clear at a glance that it came from the heart.

"It's alright, don't be shy." Lin Bufan waved his hand, gesturing for her to sit down and continue eating.

After Da Mai finished expressing her gratitude, Nana asked, "What about Hong Dou and Nan Xing? How are they?"

"It's nothing serious, I've woken up, I should be down soon." Lin Bufan said as he served himself a bowl of porridge.

Just then, footsteps sounded on the stairs. Xu Hongdou and Chen Nanxing came down one after the other. Xu Hongdou still looked a little awkward, while Chen Nanxing seemed to be in good spirits. However, when their eyes met, they both looked away uncomfortably. It was unclear what they had been doing in that short time!

"Come over here quickly, there's still some porridge left. Sit down and have some." Lin Bufan said as he served the two women porridge.

After Xu Hongdou and Chen Nanxing sat down, Nana, although she had already asked Lin Bufan, still inquired, "How are you two feeling? Are you still dizzy? Is anything bothering you?"

Xu Hongdou shook her head: "I'm fine now. I was just a little groggy when I woke up, but I'm all better now." As she spoke, she looked at Nana and Damai: "What about you? Did you get it?"

“Yes,” Nana nodded, “we were poisoned too. We were confused last night and only found out when we woke up this morning.”

Da Mai nodded in agreement, indicating that Nana was right!

Upon hearing this, Chen Nanxing immediately looked guilty. She put down her spoon and apologized earnestly, "I'm so sorry, I bought those mushrooms yesterday and I cooked them... They might not have been cooked thoroughly, which is why everyone got poisoned. I'm really sorry!"

Seeing this, Nana gently comforted him, "Nanxing, don't say that, you didn't mean it."

Xu Hongdou chimed in, "Yes, who could have imagined this? And now that you're alright, we're all alright too, so this is the best outcome."

Barley nodded vigorously in agreement: "No, it's okay!"

Chen Nanxing still felt guilty, so she thought she should find someone... no, find the dog, to share this guilt: "Actually, this is also the dog's fault! If it hadn't insisted on eating mushrooms, none of this would have happened!"

Following Chen Nanxing's finger, everyone's gaze immediately focused on Sang Biao. It was holding a noodle in its mouth, and its movements froze when it was stared at, then it slowly raised its head, its eyes innocent.