After being reborn, I became the apple of my enemy's eye.

However, now that his daughter looks like this, he feels that no matter how much he likes her, it's never enough. No matter what, she's still Zheng Jihua's daughter.

Zheng Jihua instructed the maids, "Take Miss Lan'er back to rest and change her clothes."

He looked at Lu Lan.

"I'll take my leave now."

Yan Yun was naturally unaware of what happened afterward.

To Yan Yun, Lu Lan was like a disgusting fly that he couldn't get rid of but kept coming closer to him. The only thing Yan Yun could do now was to stop her from getting any closer to him.

I went to the academy, but Yan Zhihe didn't show up today.

Mr. Yuan was also absent, and there were very few people from the academy.

Yan Yun sat there, and only after listening to the whispers around him did he realize that the academy also had a break, but no one had told Yan Yun.

For these three days, the students of the academy are not required to go to the academy.

Most of them would seek out their own master and become someone else's disciple.

Yan Yuncheng could not become a disciple, nor did he need to become a disciple of anyone. There were no teachers in the academy, and Yan Zhihe was not there either. He was just a lone figure in the academy.

Since we can't go to the martial arts arena, it's like the academy has locked people up.

I know there's no gentleman here today.

Yan Yun didn't just drift along aimlessly. Yan Zhihe didn't arrive, but he placed a scroll on Yan Yun's desk. Yan Yun calmed down, copied the scroll, and then left the academy.

Zheng Jihua sent someone to deliver a message.

Yan Yun doesn't need to go to the academy for the next two days.

The attendant remarked, "The timing is perfect."

Because Zheng Jihua will be celebrating her birthday at the mansion tomorrow, Yan Yun can stay at the mansion all day.

The groom was just getting ready to pull the horse along.

Yun Yi appeared in front of Zai Yanyun's carriage.

The coachman hurriedly pulled on the reins. Why was someone standing in front of the carriage? He looked at the person and reported to Yan Yun, "Miss, there is someone."

Yan Yun looked at Yun Yi standing in front of the carriage. She thought it was because of what happened last time. After all, Yun Yi hadn't explained to her why he didn't let her get involved, and he had simply ignored her.

Yan Yun nodded and got off the carriage.

Yun Yi, upon arriving, did not bring up the matter again.

He took out the gift he had brought and gave it to Yan Yun.

Yan Yun looked at the box that was handed to him, puzzled. What was this?

Yun Yi knew she wouldn't speak carelessly.

He took the initiative to explain, "I am also in Yuanjing now. Your father wants to celebrate your birthday, and the news has already spread throughout Yuanjing. Everyone is looking for valuable and rare treasures. Since we are old acquaintances, I should prepare a gift for you."

Yan Yun naturally had no interest in those rare treasures.

Although her daughter's birthday was important to Zheng Jihua, it was also a day she could never forget, because on that same day, she died in her neglected backyard.

The thought of dying in despair, and then of being left with nothing but ashes after death—how ironic this so-called birthday is for my past self.

Yan Yun looked at the box Yun Yi handed him, put his hand to his forehead, and refused directly, "Take it back, I don't need it."

Yun Yi was slightly taken aback when he heard her speak. He looked at the attendants who were standing at a distance, wondering if they had heard him.

That thought was fleeting; what he cared about was, "Don't you want to open it and see what's inside? Although I didn't put as much thought into it as your father, I still prepared for a long time before daring to take it out and give it to you because it's your birthday."

If we're talking about sincerity, his sincerity is no less than anyone else's.

Yan Yun, however, disregarded the people around her and looked at Yun Yi: "Thank you for your kindness, but I don't think it's a day worth celebrating."

Hearing her old-fashioned words, Yun Yi was about to touch Yan Yun's head again.

He said several times, "Why should a girl her age suffer so much? She has such a loving father, and if he can advance further in the future, he will protect her. Why should she be so unhappy?"

When he reached out his hand, Yan Yun had already dodged it and created distance between them.

Yan Yun said coldly, "Don't touch me again."

She's not a child anymore, and it would be unreasonable for her to get too close to him in these places.

Yun Yi awkwardly withdrew his hand. The once adorable little girl was now becoming increasingly hostile.

He was not discouraged when his prepared gift box was rejected.

Thinking back to what happened at the restaurant that day, she asked Yan Yun again, unwilling to give up, "Are you still blaming me for what happened at the restaurant that day?"

Hearing him talk about the restaurant, Yan Yun, who hadn't wanted to recall it, now remembered it again.

Yan Yun stared at him. "You know what happened to that woman, right?"

Yun Yi naturally knew this.

He heard a change in Yan Yun's voice and guessed that Yan Yun was still unhappy about this matter and was taking it out on him.

She is too simple.

Thinking this through, Yun Yi could only tell Yan Yun, "You don't need to worry about that woman anymore. She has already buried her father and is fine."

But to Yan Yun, his words were: a frail woman who had almost died in front of him, and he was saying that she was alright?

Yan Yun looked at Yun Yi in front of him, looked up to meet his face, and said with some confusion, "Why do I find that you have changed a bit?"

In Changgu City, Yun Yi, who wanted to wipe out the bandits who killed the people of the academy, has disappeared.

The current Yunyi is like a completely different person from the one she once was.

"You are not the Yun Yi I know."

After Yan Yun finished speaking, he returned to the carriage.

Yun Yi froze on the spot because of Yan Yun's words. Had he changed? His feelings for Yan Yun should never have changed.

While he was still in a daze, Zheng Yuan's coachman had already driven the carriage away.

The carriage took Yan Yun back to Zheng Yuan.

Compared to when I left in the morning, the courtyard was decorated with lanterns and colorful streamers, as if someone was getting married.

The maids came from outside and handed the letter to Yan Yun.

"Miss, a letter has been sent to you from Changgu City."

Yan Yun looked at the letter, which read "Lu Yan".

This letter was delivered by Lu Yan.

Yan Yun gripped the letter tightly, eager to know Ru Qing's whereabouts, and then opened it.

In the letter, Lu Yan was still polite. He wrote the letter because Yan Yun's birthday was approaching. At the beginning of the letter, he wrote about something that Yan Yun did not want to know: the condition of the old lady.

The old lady had been ill before, but fortunately she received timely treatment and is now gradually recovering.

Yan Yun recalled how an illness had taken away his parents. They were still so healthy at such a young age, yet they couldn't compare to his elderly mother.

Good people don't live long, but bad people live for thousands of years. Looking back now, what was once a joke seems to be coming true.

Yan Yun skipped over the old lady's situation and went to a passage in the middle. Based on the handwriting, it was clear that it was not written by Lu Yan, because the handwriting was quite elegant. Although it imitated Lu Yan's handwriting to some extent, it was still possible to tell that it was written by two different people.

Yan Yun looked at the handwriting.

It looked somewhat like something Ru Qing had written. Yan Yun looked at it carefully and was certain that it was indeed written by Ru Qing for him.

Ru Qing said that she has learned a lot from Lu Yan now, and her letter is full of words of gratitude to Lu Yan. When she thanks Lu Yan, she knows that it is because of Miss that he kept her.

She also thanked Yan Yun for giving her such freedom.

Although it's a bit much to make demands now, she still hopes that Yan Yun can help her find her sister who was taken away.

The letter described her sister in more detail, noting that she was easily identifiable by the mole under both her left and right eyes.

In return, she would follow Lu Yan and prepare whatever the young lady needed.

Ru Qing's handwriting ended.

Yan Yun picked up his pen and wrote a brief reply.

She would help Ru Qing find her sister. As for Lu Yan and the old lady, Yan Yun had nothing to reply to. She thought that if she handed over this letter, Zheng Jihua would check it anyway, so as not to cause trouble for Ru Qing and Lu Yan.

Yan Yun picked up the letter he had written and placed it over the candle flame, letting the flame burn the letter to ashes.

Because smoke was coming from inside, the maid outside hurriedly knocked on the door and called out, "Miss, Miss..."

Before Yan Yun could react, the people outside had already broken down the door and barged in.

Startled by the still-burning paper in Yan Yun's hand, he hurriedly came over and snatched the letter from Yan Yun's hand.