"I'm not particularly curious, but if there is something you want to tell me, just say it directly."
Lin Xiu glanced at the battered cassette player beside him. It looked like Sonate's collector's edition, a piece that would undoubtedly fetch a high price anywhere in the world. Using an antique so casually was certainly extravagant.
"Because I feel your eyes are very special. Neither your words nor your actions resemble those of a traditional person from Eastern Huadi, and most peculiarly, your composure gives me a sense of comfort."
"What is so different about that? The education I received growing up came almost entirely from Eastern Huadi, especially the culture of the Phoenix lineage (Benevolence, Fruit, Resolution). As for my composure, it's simply that my heartbeat doesn't race."
A long silence followed. Having reached this point, there seemed to be no more casual small talk left. By now, it was nearly midnight.
"I don't believe your heart is that heavy," Li Wei countered thoughtfully.
After all, the heaviest part of any heart should lie in one's past rather than the present.
"...By the way... Madame President, is there any way you can help me get back those nine thousand yuan?" Lin Xiu murmured.
"Do you have any useful information right now? Let me see if I can deduce anything."
Li Wei turned on the television—a modern set that clashed completely with the classical furniture—and tuned it to her favorite movie channel. A suspense-horror film was currently playing. Although it wasn't a zombie flick, the urban-legend theme of this suspense-horror movie fit the current atmosphere rather well.
"I only know it was done by people from an organization called Yuyu Yiyi; it should have something to do with them."
Hearing this, Li Wei smiled faintly.
Yuyu Yiyi was the most rampant underground private magical armed organization in Heixia City, and its leader, Yuyu Kami, even had intricate ties with the upper echelons of Anmi.
His magic formula was entirely modernized, differing from Li Wei's half-ancient, half-modern system.
As a modern Magician, Yuyu Kami did not pursue greater magical power. Their goals and the significance of their existence seemed tied to something far more mysterious than themselves.
"How do you know about the organization Yuyu Yiyi in Heixia City?"
"I asked around."
"In that case... as far as I know, the name Yuyu Yiyi originally originated from a certain kind of magic stone owner in Anmi's ancient legends, and the surname Yuyu has also been passed down. It probably has an inseparable connection to their leader."
"A magic stone... So you're saying, could it be... magic actually exists?"
Lin Xiu's voice trailed off in the latter half of his sentence, as if he deliberately wanted to convey the most ambiguous and hazy language to the young girl before him.
Of course, Lin Xiu already knew of magic's existence. Yet, at least in front of outsiders, he couldn't just blurt out things that would be considered "chuunibyou."
"We cannot rely on our own strength to judge whether something exists that no one has ever truly witnessed. Even science is merely another form of publicly practiced magic. Of course, it's also possible that magic stones don't exist at all."
Li Wei's meaning was already obvious—at least in Anmi, the existence of magic was an indisputable fact.
"So, have there been quite a few supernatural incidents and urban legends related to Yuyu Yiyi?"
"You could say that. The evidence for quite a few murder and robbery cases points directly to this group. And their abilities are not to be underestimated; ordinary people naturally can't do anything against them, and the police in the second and third rings of Heixia City are good-for-nothing cowards with even less deterrence."
With that, Li Wei lay down on her side on the opposite sofa and narrowed her eyes, as if she had no intention of taking any action regarding the matter.
Of course... This was actually a probe and a spot of fishing.
As long as Lin Xiu made a request, she could naturally and smoothly make him owe her a favor.
"I still want to resolve this matter on my own."
"Hmm?" This reply caught Li Wei completely off guard.
Yet, based on her assessment over the past two days, it was also within expectations. After all, Lin Xiu wasn't the completely useless type; at least among Pupil Masters, he was definitely in the upper-middle tier of anyone she had ever seen.
"I think you need to pay more attention to your safety. If push comes to shove, you really don't have to chase after that nine thousand yuan."
"Why?"
"From now on, just the two of us will be living in this Ancient Mansion. You won't have to worry about renting a place, and we can just go Dutch on living expenses like food."
Li Wei was actually trying to get Lin Xiu to avoid provoking people and matters he shouldn't touch, but in Lin Xiu's eyes, it seemed like contempt for him.
"I don't just care about the money. In fact, what I lost is far more than nine thousand yuan."
Lin Xiu drained the remaining tea in his cup, his determination plainly visible on his face.
That was why her first impression of him was "snow"—seemingly soft, yet resilient.
"What you lost also includes your self-esteem and your self-validation, right?"
Li Wei replied while turning on the living room heater to ensure their sleep quality wouldn't drop too low tonight.
The boy's heart skipped a beat.
Such penetrating analysis was truly rare, and to him, it was entirely accurate. This beautiful girl understood him far better than he had imagined.
"Yes. That's why I don't need anyone else's help. Until I am defeated, I will handle this matter myself."
"If you can't handle it, are you just going to blindly march to your death? The young lady sitting right in front of you has more than a little help to offer, you know~?"
To put it bluntly, knowing the enemy wasn't out of their depth, wasting a favor would be an unwise choice.
Yet he still hadn't considered that Yuyu Kami's tier might not be quite what he imagined.
"Until the very last moment, all assumptions lack persuasiveness. Of course, that doesn't mean I'm reckless. If I really need the President's help, I won't stand on ceremony."
"Oh? So... doesn't that still mean you're compromising, hehe."
"No. 'Compromise' is a sullen retreat after putting up a stubborn front, but a heartfelt recognition and self-reflection is called 'duty and responsibility.'"
Though she didn't quite understand what "duty and responsibility" actually meant, still—
"What a strange person..." Li Wei mused inwardly.
It was now the deep hours of the night.
The silent Ancient Mansion still held many unlit areas, bearing a strong resemblance to the set of a thriller film.
Moonlight wove through the railings inside and out, tearing open the shadows and forming alternating paths of light and dark. The relief carvings of rose murals flickered in and out of sight, sinking into the space of the Ancient Mansion.
"It's one o'clock. You have classes tomorrow, so hurry up and go check out your room on the second floor. I had someone tidy up the bed. Also, John told me he brought your luggage to the front door."
"Huh? Which John?"
Lin Xiu, who was just about to head upstairs, asked curiously.
"He's the elderly butler specifically assigned by my mother. However, I didn't want outsiders inside my house, so I made him find a cool place to stay outside by himself. For routine matters that are easy to resolve, I handle them myself; only when things get slightly troublesome do I let him finish them outside."
Li Wei dropped the comment casually, yet it sank deeply into Lin Xiu's mind. Whether intentional or not, those words were a declaration of her ownership as a co-habitant.
I am not an outsider, and my affairs matter greatly to her.
It wasn't something that could be explained by the three major illusions of life, because to a "Witch" like Li Wei, the more she joked, the truer her words were, and the truer her words, the more they sounded like jokes.
"Then thank him for me."
By the time he quickly retrieved his luggage from outside the door, Li Wei was already preparing to change clothes and take a shower, specifically reminding Lin Xiu to mind what needed to be done before going to bed so as not to run up and down in the middle of the night and disturb her.
Lin Xiu had no objections; for the past decade or so, he had lived by the same habits, so there were no conflicts in routine.
Of course, for a Witch's Ancient Mansion, a well-behaved and aloof boy coming inside was far safer than a hyperactive monkey bouncing around.
Especially the further one got from Li Wei's room (the one on the east side of the second floor near the backyard balcony—p.s., Lin Xiu's room was in the far northwest, which was darker and damp), the higher the probability that strange modern magical artifacts might be lingering there.
Often, they had not yet fully decomposed (certain magical artifacts had a fixed lifespan, and once exceeded, they would disintegrate).
Lin Xiu first recorded the location and furniture of his room (using both his brain and his phone), and then began opening his suitcase to tidy up his belongings.
Only after finishing all this did he have the mind to do anything else.
For instance, appreciating this rather decent bedroom.
"She must have intentionally had me stay here. There's not the slightest doubt about that."