Chapter 78: Discovery

Ying Huai's tense body suddenly relaxed with that snap of fingers.

The fatigue he'd been suppressing for days swept over him uncontrollably, making him want to pass out without caring about anything.

Ying Huai instinctively stepped back, leaning against the wall behind him. The dull ache in his back brought a sliver of clarity back to his mind, but he still couldn't stop the waves of dizziness hitting him.

"You......"

Ying Huai's fingernails dug hard into his palms as he struggled to hold on: "Yu Wu, wait a moment, I....."

Song Si Lan, who had received Yu Wu's message nearby, hurried over. Watching Yu Wu's actions, he frowned in disapproval.

Before he could finish speaking, he felt Yu Wu gently but firmly pry open his fingers and steadily support his arm. "Hm? What did Teacher Xiao Huai want to say? I'm listening."

Ying Huai's heart unconsciously relaxed.

He opened his mouth to say something, but his muddled thoughts relaxed along with Yu Wu's actions just now.

Ying Huai tried several times to speak between breaths, but couldn't manage a complete sentence.

In his daze, he seemed to hear Yu Wu sigh with a half-smile: "Looks like Teacher Xiao Huai is too tired, doesn't have anything to say."

"Then how about resting a while........before we talk."

After a few seconds, Ying Huai sluggishly raised his head.

The next second, he heard Yu Wu lightly snap his fingers by his ear again.

......

Yu Wu reached out to catch the person who had suddenly gone limp, and clicked his tongue softly.

"Much more resistant than last session. It seems the beauty really is hiding something."

Song Si Lan, who had rushed over after receiving Yu Wu's message, frowned and stepped forward to help Yu Wu steady Ying Huai.

"Was he very resistant this time?"

Yu Wu nodded thoughtfully: "Mm, a bit. I couldn't get him to fully relax on the first try."

As he spoke, he helped the person into the room, settled Ying Huai into a chair, and let out a breath.

"But his body and mind have been too exhausted lately. He couldn't hold out long; the second try worked easily."

Song Si Lan frowned.

He said nothing, crouched beside Ying Huai, pressed his pulse, and slipped a tablet under his tongue.

"His heart rate is a bit fast. Wait for him to settle before you start."

Yu Wu nodded casually: "Alright. The hypnosis just now was a bit hasty anyway; he needs to adjust on his own."

The room fell quiet for a moment. With nothing to do, Yu Wu simply leaned against the side and stared openly at Song Si Lan.

Song Si Lan endured for a few seconds, but there was really no way to keep ignoring Yu Wu's gaze, which felt almost tangible.

He turned his head, unable to bear it any longer: "Can you stop looking at me?"

Yu Wu blinked and grinned: "Si Lan, you misunderstand. I'm observing the beauty's... Teacher Xiao Huai's condition."

As he spoke, he picked up the hourglass from the nearby table with great seriousness and shook it at Song Si Lan.

A faint flush rose uncontrollably to Song Si Lan's face—whether from anger or something else, it was hard to tell.

Yu Wu's urge to tease grew stronger, but he was also afraid of pushing Song Si Lan too far all at once.

He checked the time. Ying Huai's depth of hypnosis should be about right now. He sighed softly and took the initiative to change the subject: "I'm joking—the hypnosis should be about ready now. How's his physical condition?"

Song Si Lan took a deep breath and forced himself to calm down quickly.

He reached out and pressed Ying Huai's pulse again, then nodded after a moment.

He slowly stood up, thought for a moment, then spoke quietly: "Keep an eye on things during the treatment later too."

"His recent test results don't show any problems, but his physical condition isn't quite right. I'll stay outside the door. Contact me immediately if anything comes up."

Yu Wu's expression turned serious too, and he gave a small nod.

Song Si Lan said nothing more. He took one last look at the monitor beside them, then walked out and slowly closed the door.

The room was left with only the steady "beep, beep" of the heart monitor. Yu Wu leaned half against the cabinet nearby and exhaled silently.

He leaned down and said something in Ying Huai's ear. A few seconds later, he snapped his fingers lightly.

The person curled up asleep in the chair's eyelashes trembled, and he slowly opened his eyes.

"Awake now, beauty?" Yu Wu said with a grin.

Ying Huai's eyes were unfocused, half-lidded, and he didn't answer.

Yu Wu knew Ying Huai had now entered the theta-wave trance state, his responses to the outside world extremely sluggish.

Leaning against the cabinet, listening to the soft sounds of the heart monitor, he began to speak unhurriedly.

"Teacher Ying must be feeling very tired right now."

"It's alright. This place is safe. Everything is already over. You don't need to worry about anything anymore. You can fully relax."

Ying Huai's breathing seemed to quicken slightly. Yu Wu straightened up and slowly walked over to stand before Ying Huai.

Hypnotherapy is similar to the body's natural sleep—it descends through four states layer by layer, and waking up also emerges through those four states in sequence.

Psychological hypnotherapy uses certain methods: through the hypnotist's guidance, the subject is kept at alpha and theta waves, delving into the subconscious to carry out the corresponding psychological treatment.

But under natural circumstances, a person only briefly experiences the theta-wave state at the moment of falling asleep and waking up.

This state is brief, and most people's consciousness at that moment isn't clear enough—it's hard to use, and hard to communicate through.

Therefore, Yu Wu had previously always used one-way hypnosis with Ying Huai—letting Ying Huai recall things in his subconscious on his own, reducing his subconscious psychological trauma through external intervention, and only engaging in necessary communication with him.

That treatment method is better suited to cases where the subject's subconscious cooperates. But this time, Yu Wu felt Ying Huai's clear resistance from the very beginning.

So this time he chose a different approach—two-way communication with Ying Huai, using voice, physical sensation, emotional feeling, and other means to bring out and express the information in Ying Huai's subconscious.

In other words, it shifted from Ying Huai's one-way self-treatment to a two-way communication loop.

Ying Huai still kept his eyes half-closed without speaking. Yu Wu wasn't in a hurry, keeping his voice very low.

"Can Teacher Ying tell me what you're worried about right now?"

Ying Huai's eyes seemed to move slightly, but he still said nothing.

Yu Wu curved his lips soundlessly.

The room fell quiet for a moment. After a few seconds, Yu Wu finally heard a faint voice.

".......No."

Yu Wu raised an eyebrow.

He wasn't in a hurry either, continuing at a leisurely pace: "Today is the day of the Concert. You're standing on stage right now. Can you tell me what you see?"

Ying Huai's eyelashes seemed to tremble slightly.

"There are.......so many people."

Ying Huai's eyes lost focus as he murmured: "Are they all here... to see me?"

Yu Wu glanced at the monitor nearby, which showed his heart rate had quickened.

He sighed soundlessly, and for once softened his voice: "Yes, they're all here for you. So you don't need to be nervous about this. Relax."

Ying Huai didn't speak, but the fingers resting on his leg seemed to tremble slightly.

After a few seconds, he suddenly said softly: ".......I'm worried about this Concert."

Yu Wu raised an eyebrow.

He had heard from Song Si Lan that Ying Huai had some throat issues recently, and thought that was what Ying Huai was worried about. He was mulling over what to say when, the next second, he heard Ying Huai speak in a trembling voice.

"I'm worried about them........if something happens to them, what should I do."

Yu Wu was taken aback.

He blurted out: "Who are they?"

"My brother, Liang Shining, everyone..."

Ying Huai spoke softly, his body tensing up once again.

"If something happens to them, if I'm the only one left again......"

Listening to Ying Huai's words, Yu Wu slowly realized something.

—This must be the deepest fear hidden in Ying Huai's subconscious.

He was afraid that everything around him was an illusion, afraid that everyone would eventually leave him.

Yu Wu frowned, thinking over what Ying Huai had just said.

He said quietly: "Why would you think that?"

"You said 'again' just now—did something like this happen before?"

Ying Huai's body seemed to tremble violently.

Under the hypnosis, he instinctively opened his mouth to say something, but the next second, he bit down hard on his lip.

His lower lip, because of this, showed faint traces of blood, and a look of pain crossed his features. Yu Wu frowned and had no choice but to drop the topic.

He waited for Ying Huai's state to steady again, continuing to try to guide him through sorting out his emotions bit by bit.

"Liang Shining and Ying Qi will both protect themselves. Even if something happened before, time keeps moving forward. What happened before doesn't mean it will happen again—as long as there's a slight change in between, the outcome could be worlds apart."

Yu Wu said quietly: "If you're really worried.......you could go talk to Liang Shining and the others again."

Ying Huai's pupils were unfocused. He sat quietly with his eyes downcast, giving no response.

Yu Wu sighed soundlessly.

He had originally wanted to try today to unlock that deep-seated hypnotic memory of Ying Huai's, but now it seemed unlikely.

He straightened up, preparing to end this session, when he suddenly heard Ying Huai speak somewhat abruptly.

"But I think I.......can't hold on anymore."

Yu Wu was taken aback.

He lowered his head abruptly, listening as Ying Huai spoke in a near-incoherent, bewildered voice: "I'm so tired.....I shouldn't be like this, but I'm really so tired......"

"If I can't hold on.......what would Liang Shining do?"

·

There were two soft knocks on the room's door.

Yu Wu came back to himself. He sat where he was and said quietly, "Come in."

Liang Shining pushed the door open and slowly walked into the room.

He glanced at the person sitting in the chair and deliberately lowered his voice: "Is it over?"

Yu Wu nodded: "Mm. He hasn't woken up yet. His emotions fluctuated quite a bit during this session, so he might need a little more time."

He seemed to be thinking about something. After a few seconds of silence, he added: "Si Lan will come by in a bit to check on him again, so I'm afraid I'll have to ask Teacher Liang to wait a moment before taking Teacher Ying away."

Liang Shining nodded.

He stepped forward and touched Ying Huai's forehead; it was cool to the touch.

Liang Shining took off his jacket and draped it over Ying Huai, about to carry him back to the bed, when Yu Wu suddenly spoke from behind him.

"His depression and anxiety have somatized."

Liang Shining's movements froze.

A flash of disbelief crossed his expression. He turned sharply toward Yu Wu: "What did you say?"

An uncharacteristic gloom surfaced in Yu Wu's expression.

He lowered his head and leaned half against the cabinet. After a few seconds of silence, he spoke quietly: "You should be aware of Ying Huai's recent unexplained drowsiness and fatigue, right?"

Liang Shining's body trembled slightly.

He instinctively said quietly: "But his condition has improved somewhat recently. What if it's just........"

Yu Wu looked up at him calmly: "Don't you know Ying Huai's temperament well enough?"

Liang Shining's words cut off abruptly.

He understood instantly, and his expression suddenly darkened.

—Ying Huai was far too good at hiding his condition.

He might have vaguely sensed that something was off with his emotions, but he would instinctively overlook that anomaly. Even this time....... he probably hadn't realized himself that his condition had worsened.

Liang Shining's hand at his side slowly tightened.

He was always smiling and looking carefree. If not for the overly obvious drowsiness and weakness this time, Liang Shining would have almost been fooled again.

He lowered his eyes, steadied his breathing for a moment, and spoke quietly: "Then now....... is there anything we can do?"

Perhaps because Liang Shining's expression was too heavy, Yu Wu glanced up at him, and his tone lightened again.

"Don't worry so much. There definitely is a way."

Yu Wu straightened up and took a light breath: "The first priority is definitely for him to rest well, not to overthink. I'll adjust the medication in his treatment plan."

He glanced at Liang Shining and returned to his usual lazy tone: "After this Concert ends, you won't have anything else going on, right? You can just find somewhere to let him rest properly—it's not like you haven't been wanting to do that for a while now."

Liang Shining:.........

He couldn't refute it for the moment. After a few seconds of silence, he gave a low assent.

The next second, he heard Yu Wu's tone suddenly sink again.

"But there's one somewhat strange thing. The main source of his anxiety...... comes from you all."

Yu Wu raised his head, speaking thoughtfully: "Or rather....... mainly from you."

Liang Shining was stunned for a moment.

He looked up somewhat blankly: ".......What?"

Yu Wu didn't speak immediately.

He observed Liang Shining's expression. After a long moment, he said quietly: "I can't go into the specifics with you."

"Roughly speaking, he's afraid that one day you all....... will all leave him behind."

The moment his words fell, he saw Liang Shining freeze entirely.

Yu Wu quickly caught the flash of grief that crossed his expression.

Yu Wu frowned.

He suddenly thought again about what Liang Shining had told him last time regarding the Sanatorium.

Yu Wu stared at Liang Shining and let out a light, seemingly casual laugh: "Teacher Liang...... wouldn't have done something to wrong Teacher Ying before, would you?"

Liang Shining's expression was somewhat dazed.

He instinctively tried to say something, but Yu Wu spoke unhurriedly first: "Besides that matter between you two as master and disciple—I know that's not what Teacher Ying is referring to."

Liang Shining paused.

His expression fell silent once more.

Yu Wu wasn't in a hurry either. He watched him for a long moment before slowly speaking: "Speaking of which, I looked into the Sanatorium Ying Huai mentioned a little—after all, I wanted to see which Sanatorium was so lacking in morals."

Yu Wu straightened up and stretched: "But to my surprise, I found that Ying Huai has never been admitted to any Sanatorium."

Liang Shining's entire body tensed to the extreme.

He instinctively tried to refute: "Maybe it wasn't really a 'Sanatorium,' just an ordinary Hospital that was converted......"

"I contacted Ying Huai's previous psychotherapist and obtained his complete treatment records, which show he has never been admitted for any psychological or psychiatric issues."

Yu Wu shrugged and muttered quietly: "And he didn't even stick with the basic treatment at first. When I went to ask them for the treatment records, I got lectured."

Liang Shining:........

He took a deep breath and said quietly: "What if Ying Huai remembered wrong......."

Yu Wu laughed: "Unfortunately, what the subconscious projects during Hypnosis doesn't lie—which means he did indeed experience these things."

Yu Wu raised his head with a half-smile: "So now I'm curious about one thing."

"How does Teacher Liang know so clearly about this 'Sanatorium' experience of Ying Huai's that can't be found anywhere?"

He said softly: "Even to the point of being able to narrate things from another angle, when Ying Huai himself has lost that memory."

Yu Wu raised his head, his gaze glinting slightly: "Sometimes I suspect....... that Teacher Liang and Teacher Ying experienced something together, just the two of you."

Liang Shining suddenly raised his head.

"I just want to save my patient," Yu Wu raised his head. "If the root cause isn't eliminated, Ying Huai will keep being troubled by this emotion—you're more aware of that than I am."

They didn't notice that the eyelashes of the person who had been asleep in the chair trembled slightly, and the fingers resting on the armrest slowly tightened.

When Song Si Lan entered the room, what he saw was the current scene of confrontation.

He froze for a moment, but before he could say anything, his gaze shifted first to the cardiac monitor beside them.

He frowned, strode quickly to Ying Huai, and said in a vexed tone: "What are you two arguing about?"

"The person's awake and you didn't call me, still arguing here."

Liang Shining and Yu Wu's expressions stiffened instantly.

The two looked down in disbelief, only to see the person leaning in the chair still with lowered eyes, deeply asleep.

Yu Wu froze for a moment and said quietly: "He woke up? That shouldn't be. This treatment took a lot out of him. Given his physical condition, he should still need some time......."

Song Si Lan also looked somewhat puzzled.

The pulse and heart rate data on the cardiac monitor just now should have indicated that Ying Huai was awake, but looking again now, the data seemed to have dropped back to the asleep state.

Song Si Lan, worried, reached out and pinched the area between Ying Huai's thumb and index finger with slight force. After a few seconds, he heard Ying Huai let out a low groan and open his eyes somewhat blankly.

".......Doctor Song?"

Ying Huai pressed his brow, his expression carrying the drowsiness and sleepiness of just waking: "Why are you here? Wasn't it just Doctor Yu........"

Before he could finish speaking, he covered his mouth and began to cough first.

Song Si Lan frowned.

He took medicine and warm water from beside him and gave them to Ying Huai. After a long while, he finally waited for Ying Huai's coughing to settle down somewhat.

Ying Huai pressed his brow and let out a light breath.

He said quietly: "Is the treatment over?"

Song Si Lan gave an "mm" and couldn't help asking: "When did you wake up?"

Ying Huai glanced at him with some puzzlement: "Didn't I just wake up? What's wrong?"

Song Si Lan furrowed his brow: "The heart rate and pulse on the cardiac monitor just now weren't right—they were somewhat faster than when you normally sleep."

Ying Huai's expression remained calm. "Maybe I had a bit of palpitations just now. While I was asleep, I kept feeling a tightness in my chest. It only felt a bit better after I woke up."

Ying Huai often experienced chest tightness when sleeping normally, so the worry in Song Si Lan's expression gradually faded somewhat.

But the next second, he heard Liang Shining speak softly from beside him: "Then did Shifu just now....... hear anything?"

Song Si Lan was stunned for a moment.

He looked up somewhat confused, and his expression froze again.

Liang Shining's face had inexplicably gone somewhat pale, and Yu Wu beside him also looked uncertain and apprehensive.

Song Si Lan furrowed his brow, feeling something was off somewhere.

Ying Huai's expression, on the other hand, didn't change.

He looked up at Liang Shining, and a seemingly inexplicable flash of complexity crossed his eyes.

But the next second, he suddenly laughed: "What could I have heard? Didn't I just wake up?"

He tilted his body to the side, propped his chin on one hand, and said with some amusement: "Little disciple, could it be that you and Doctor Yu were secretly discussing something you didn't want me to know about just now?"

Liang Shining opened his mouth soundlessly.

Yu Wu beside him came back to himself first: "Of course not. We were just discussing your treatment situation."

Ying Huai turned to look at Yu Wu.

Yu Wu stretched and, almost urgently, pushed Song Si Lan toward the door: "I've adjusted your treatment plan. I'll bring the medication over in a bit."

"I'll tell you the specifics after tomorrow's Concert ends. For now, rest well......"

Song Si Lan looked at Yu Wu somewhat bewildered, but before he could say anything, he was pushed out by Yu Wu first.

Ying Huai's eyes flickered. He didn't say anything, just slightly curved his lips and said "okay."

The room's door was quickly shut. Ying Huai lowered his eyes and let out a light breath. The next second, he suddenly saw a figure squat down in front of him.

Ying Huai raised his eyes.

Liang Shining squatted in front of him, looking up at him, his expression carrying an inexplicable sense of helplessness and panic.

"Is shifu really... okay?"

Liang Shining spoke in a low voice, seeming to have made some kind of resolution: "Earlier Yu Wu and I....."

His hands gripping the chair slowly tightened, thinking that as long as Ying Huai asked one question, he would tell everything.

But the next second, Ying Huai interrupted him first.

"What would I have?"

His body suddenly leaned forward, reaching out to wrap directly around Liang Shining's neck.

"I'm sleepy, Liang Shining."

Ying Huai buried his head in his neck, yawning slightly: "Take me to sleep."

Ying Huai's voice carried obvious weariness. Liang Shining was stunned for a moment, and could only swallow all the words that had reached his lips.

He responded in a low voice, slowly rising with the person in his arms, not noticing that Ying Huai's fingers on his back were gripping his clothes, silently tightening little by little.

·

For the next day, Ying Huai seemed to have no particular reaction, still methodically preparing for tomorrow's concert.

Regarding Chu Hongsheng that day, Liang Shining ultimately didn't find the person. He pulled up the backstage surveillance and could only vaguely see a figure enter Chu Ming's room, then hurriedly leave.

Liang Shining later told Chu Ming about this. Chu Ming turned pale with shock, but repeatedly promised that he would definitely confirm Chu Hongsheng's whereabouts that day and wouldn't let him near the venue.

The Production Team enabled live streaming for the concert, and it directly climbed to first on the real-time rankings.

The bullet comments in the live stream were scrolling so fast that you could barely see what was being sent.

[Ahhh, so looking forward to Teacher Xiao Huai's performance!]

[Curious about the first song of the opening, it should have Teacher Xiao Huai, right?]

[It's really been so long since I've heard Teacher Xiao Huai perform live—is it about to start!]

The lights in the venue dimmed for a moment.

Then eight beams of light fell onto the stage.

Ying Huai's voice rang out at the same moment.

The original cheers and noise in the venue gradually quieted down.

Ying Huai's voice was too perfect for an opening—leisurely and ethereal, carrying a faint hint of a smile. Even though everything around was dark, the moment his voice emerged, it was as if countless lights had all converged on him.

After the eight-person opening chorus finished, the bullet comments in the live stream instantly boiled over.

[Ahhh, Teacher Xiao Huai's voice is really so nice to listen to!]

[Really, Teacher Xiao Huai's voice is so clear and ethereal, the first line of the opening directly drew everyone's attention. After the bridge, the second verse followed Teacher Liang's voice—that part gave me goosebumps!]

[Swear Brother: My little shidi is the best!]

[Oh, Swear Brother is so busy but still takes time to scroll his phone and praise people, true love indeed.]

[Swear Brother stop slacking, hurry to the backstage to prepare, I saw the Production Team posted a preview and there's still your four-person segment.]

[Swear Brother: I'm not slacking, I'm here to promote—our segment is next!]

[Swear Brother: Everyone must support my little shidi! Go crazy—praise!]

[Dying laughing, came here to promote but ended up not talking about yourself and instead crazily bragging about your Xiao Huai, Teacher Xin don't love too much.]

[Swear Brother: Anyway he's my little shidi, I'll brag however I want.]

[? Xiao Huai belongs to all of us, okay.]

[Hahahaha Teacher Liang's eighty-meter machete ready.]

[Cough cough, feels like if this continues it'll be Teacher Liang and Teacher Xin eighty-meter-machete-dueling each other.]

In the venue backstage, Ying Huai had just been about to walk toward the stage entrance when he suddenly saw Su Xin standing in front of him.

"Shixiong?"

Ying Huai was stunned for a moment, instinctively stepping back: "What's wrong? Is shixiong going over with me?"

"In a moment we'll give you a gift, little shidi." Su Xin's voice carried a barely perceptible tension.

Ying Huai was stunned.

His gaze fell on Su Xin. Su Xin's expression carried an inexplicable nervousness. The next second, he heard Ying Huai open his mouth with an odd expression: "Shixiong Xin didn't drag you all off... to drink again, did he?"

Su Xin: ....?

"Of course not!" Su Xin denied instantly. "Is Xin Wan that kind of image in your eyes?"

Ying Huai neither confirmed nor denied.

His expression remained suspicious: "Then why is shixiong telling me this so solemnly in advance?"

Su Xin took a deep breath: "Because Lu Jing was worried you'd be startled in a moment, but we also wanted to give you a surprise, so we told you right before going on stage."

Ying Huai was stunned.

He instinctively wanted to refuse, but looking at Su Xin's nervous expression carrying an inexplicable hope, the words that had reached his lips couldn't come out for a moment.

Ying Huai was quiet for a few seconds, then sighed silently: "So do I need to do anything in a moment?"

Su Xin looked at him deeply, shaking his head slightly: "No need."

"You don't need to do anything in a moment, just wait for us."

"We'll walk toward you."

·

The stage lights came back on, and cheers rose again in the venue.

Then a familiar intro began to play.

The fans in the venue all froze.

—This was Ying Huai's original Debut Track, and the one that was originally all four of them together... their Debut Track.

Ying Huai had redistributed the parts of this song, adjusted some of the melody in the middle, and finally completed a... version of the Debut Track that belonged exclusively to the four of them.

The stage design had the four people sitting at the four corners of the stage, gradually meeting in the center.

After Ying Huai finished his part, he slowly stood up from beside the chair and gradually took his position at the center of the stage.

While waiting for the interlude, he casually raised his eyes, only to find that the other three hadn't walked over.

Ying Huai turned his head with some surprise.

The next second, Xin Wan's trembling voice came from the direction of one corner.

"This song was originally all four of our Debut Track."

There hadn't been this part of the design in the previous rehearsals. Ying Huai's expression froze slightly.

He watched Xin Wan walk toward him step by step, his voice carrying a barely perceptible tremor: "But through a twist of fate, the three of us missed it. Really... I'm sorry."

Ying Huai seemed to realize something, and abruptly turned his head.

Su Xin's slightly cold voice, as expected, rang out the next moment.

"All three of us gave up singing, but only Ying Huai kept at it, and kept... helping us."

"It was us who didn't believe him. I'm sorry."

Ying Huai stood stunned in place.

He raised his head and watched Lu Jing finally walk toward him step by step.

"All the previous misunderstandings about Ying Huai being suppressed, ostracized, and freezing out his teammates are rumors."

"It was our former management company failing to act, forcing Ying Huai to go to Lu's for their own interests."

"And threatening Ying Huai that if he didn't do this... they would permanently freeze out the remaining three of us."

"We could have debuted together, but in the end it led to this result."

A flash of disbelief crossed Ying Huai's expression. He abruptly raised his head, only to meet Lu Jing's complicated gaze.

He watched Lu Jing silently mouth the word "sorry" to him.

This information was something Lu Jing had finally discovered through various channels after retaking control of Lu's, from some clues in the materials Lu's father had left behind.

But Lu's father had only been paid to do someone's bidding, and Lu Jing couldn't trace exactly who the remitter was.

Still, these materials were enough to clear Ying Huai's name.

Lu Jing seemed to raise his hand wanting to touch Ying Huai's hand, but his arm only lifted slightly before finally dropping dejectedly.

He took a deep breath, barely steadying his emotions.

"This song was originally written and composed by Xiao Huai himself, and this time Xiao Huai rearranged it into a four-person version. Thank you, Xiao Huai, for letting us finally fulfill this dream."

Lu Jing stood before him and spoke in a deep voice: "And we're also very sorry... we misunderstood and missed him, for all these years."

·

In an instant, #ConcertYingHuaiScandalClarification# #SorryYingHuai# and several other topics quickly climbed to the trending searches. The Cross-Genre Singer Program matter was also dug up again by countless netizens, sparking unprecedented discussion.

Some people combined the two matters and began trying to analyze who was behind all of this.

[Both of these things look like traps against Ying Huai, who exactly would do this?]

[Wuwuuu we're really so sorry to our Teacher Xiao Huai, when will those anti-fans just die!]

[Lu's side has sent lawyer's letters to the few anti-fans who spread the most rumors back then, can the Cross-Genre Singer Program also act like a human being! Give us some evidence!]

On the other side, Ying Huai had come off the stage, but ignoring the three of them, he walked hurriedly straight toward the rest room.

"Xiao Huai—"

Lu Jing sensed something was off with Ying Huai's emotions and reached out wanting to grab him.

But the next second he was abruptly shaken off by Ying Huai.

"Is there anything else, shixiong?"

Ying Huai turned his head and smiled at Lu Jing: "Hasn't shixiong already achieved his goal? What else do you need me to do?"

Lu Jing's expression froze. Su Xin and Xin Wan following behind also stopped uneasily.

He saw that Ying Huai's eye sockets seemed faintly reddened under the lighting.

Lu Jing's heart instantly panicked.

He had expected Ying Huai to be angry because of this sudden apology, but hadn't expected it to be this serious.

'I don't have any ulterior motive, Xiao Huai. We just want to apologize to you again.....'

'Is this the only thing shixiong wants to apologize for?'

Ying Huai suddenly cut off Lu Jing's words with a bright smile.

He raised his head, the narrow corners of his eyes reddening bit by bit: 'Shixiong lied to me for so long....... I had already wanted to let all that go...... How could shixiong......'

Lu Jing was slightly stunned.

For a moment he didn't understand what Ying Huai was saying, but an ominous premonition inexplicably rose in his heart.

'Xiao Huai, wait, what's wrong, don't be angry.....'

Before he could finish, the next second, he saw Ying Huai take a deep breath and forcibly calm himself down.

'I still have to prepare for the next performance, I'll go first.'

Ying Huai raised his head and curved his eyes at Lu Jing: 'My fans are still waiting for me, I can't let them down.'

Lu Jing opened his mouth to say something more, but Ying Huai had already turned around first and left without looking back.

·

The fans in the venue didn't notice anything unusual about Ying Huai. The Charity Song that was the title track of his album had its premiere on this stage today, and immediately shot to the top of every major music chart.

Some fans noticed a faint cough from the stage during the interlude, but when they looked closely, they only saw Ying Huai's usual bright, smiling expression.

When the song ended, all the fans were thrilled, but Ying Huai came off stage and rushed straight into the restroom.

When he opened the door again, he came face to face with Song Si Lan's slightly darkened expression.

Ying Huai, who had been about to go find him, was startled. He instinctively took a step back, and a flash of guilt crossed his eyes.

After a few seconds, Ying Huai tentatively curved his eyes: 'Why isn't Doctor Song in the audience?'

He tried to change the subject: 'Why isn't Doctor Song smiling? I saw everyone else seemed to really enjoy it just now. Doesn't Doctor Song like it?'

Song Si Lan gave a cold laugh: 'Nothing, I'm just naturally unsmiling.'

Ying Huai choked on his words.

He knew he couldn't dodge anymore, and silently sighed: 'So can Doctor Song give me the nerve block injection now?'

Song Si Lan stared at him without speaking.

During the last song, he'd noticed from below that something was off about Ying Huai's voice. When he returned backstage, sure enough, he saw Ying Huai head straight for the restroom the moment he came off stage, followed by the sound of suppressed, muffled coughing.

He took a deep breath and said through gritted teeth: 'Did you tell Liang Shining?'

Ying Huai's expression went still for a moment, then he raised his head and curved his eyes: 'I did.'

Song Si Lan was stunned.

He inexplicably felt something was off: 'Then let me ask him now.....'

He had just taken out his phone when he felt a slight coolness on his hand.

Ying Huai reached out and pressed down on his wrist.

'I told him yesterday, Doctor Song. If you don't believe me, go ask him in a bit.'

'I'm about to go on stage right now, time is tight. Doctor Song isn't in such a hurry to verify, is he?'

Ying Huai's tone was leisurely, as if he truly didn't fear Song Si Lan going to verify in a moment.

A staff member nearby had indeed come over to urge Ying Huai to get ready for his cue. Song Si Lan hesitated, then ultimately relented.

He sighed and slowly took out a needle from the medical kit beside him.

'Come here.'

Ying Huai silently curved his lips.

The cold, sharp needle tip was aimed at his throat and slowly pushed in. Then, pain and an aching, swelling sensation gradually spread from his throat.

Ying Huai furrowed his brow but didn't say a word.

He waited a few seconds until that strange sensation gradually faded, then quietly let out a breath.

'Thank you, Doctor Song.'

Song Si Lan gave a 'hmph' and said irritably: 'Fine, if you just paid more attention to your own body from now on I'd be grateful. Don't talk, hurry up and rest while you have the time.....'

Before he finished speaking, he suddenly saw the person in front of him step forward and lightly hug him.

Song Si Lan was stunned.

He was a bit dazed, his face instantly flushing hot: 'What are you doing, it's just a needle, no need for this.....'

'It's nothing, just thanking Doctor Song for taking care of me for so long.'

In just an instant, Ying Huai's expression quickly returned to normal.

He curved his eyes at Song Si Lan and slowly turned around.

Song Si Lan was stunned for a moment.

The bad feeling in his heart rose again. He took out his phone and sent Liang Shining a message.

After a few seconds, he saw the '?' Liang Shining sent back, and his expression instantly darkened.

——He knew he absolutely couldn't trust Ying Huai's words.

·

The Concert proceeded in an orderly fashion. Su Yun, Su Xin, and Song Xingzhou each performed a solo.

Song Si Lan tried to catch Ying Huai backstage again, but for some reason he was never able to find him.

Before they knew it, it was time for the last performance.

The moment Ying Huai and Liang Shining appeared on stage together, the entire venue instantly erupted.

[Ahhh, the duet version of 'Return' is absolutely amazing.]

[It feels like this song was tailor-made for the two of them. When I heard Teacher Xiao Huai's solo version before, I just felt an inexplicable sense of incompleteness. The duet version with Teacher Liang's low vocal track seems to soften that feeling of incompleteness quite a bit.]

[Right, right, it's like it was always meant to be a duet. Teacher Liang's voice carefully blends Teacher Ying in, like it directly fills that gap.]

When the song ended, Liang Shining bowed slightly. He looked toward Ying Huai, but saw Ying Huai standing in place without moving, instead gently removing his earpiece.

'Weren't a lot of people curious about the creative background behind 'Return' before?'

Ying Huai held up the microphone, his voice still carrying a slight breathlessness.

He exhaled and said with a smile: 'We still have a bit of time anyway, how about I answer this for everyone?'

Liang Shining was stunned, but Ying Huai didn't look at him, continuing to speak on his own.

'The song was originally created during the most painful period of my life.....'

He lowered his eyes and said jokingly: 'Because I was misunderstood and hurt by someone I cared about deeply.'

Countless gasps instantly rang out from the venue. Liang Shining suddenly turned his head and met Ying Huai's gaze.

Ying Huai glanced at him, then unhurriedly turned his head back: 'But you should be able to tell that the style is very light, the whole melody is lively and playful.'

'Because when you're numbed by pain to the extreme, your brain will protectively make you remember....... the happiest moments of the past.'

Liang Shining couldn't help taking a step forward, but saw Ying Huai turn his head again.

Liang Shining's steps instinctively paused.

Ying Huai's expression was calm. A flash of gentleness seemed to pass through his peach blossom eyes, but he quickly concealed it.

He unhurriedly turned his head back again.

'I thought, so what if it hurts now? The happiness of the past still exists, it won't disappear because of present misunderstandings or sadness.'

Ying Huai said casually: 'The moment I figured that out, I suddenly wasn't in so much pain anymore — of course there's still regret.'

Ying Huai raised his head, his peach blossom eyes seeming to glisten slightly: 'But now, I don't feel that regret anymore either.'

'Because I don't want to care about these things anymore.'

Liang Shining instantly realized something. He lifted his foot wanting to walk toward Ying Huai, but the stage lights began to dim bit by bit, and the two separate lifting platforms beneath their feet began to slowly descend.

Liang Shining watched Ying Huai standing on the lifting platform, bowing deeply to everyone below.

Then, through countless dazzling lights, he watched Ying Huai gaze deeply at him.

'Thank you, goodbye.'

·

The instant the lifting platform stopped, Liang Shining immediately rushed to the side.

But Ying Huai was long gone from the lifting platform.

Liang Shining's fingers trembled uncontrollably. He searched the backstage unwillingly, and as expected found nothing.

'What's wrong?' Lu Jing and the others, having received the message, hurried over and asked anxiously, 'Why would Xiao Huai leave on his own without a word.....'

'He knows.'

Liang Shining said in a hoarse voice.

Lu Jing's steps suddenly halted.

His face instantly went white.

——Ying Huai knew about their rebirth.

·

Meanwhile, Ying Qi received Liang Shining's message about Ying Huai's disappearance and instantly realized something.

He hurried home and saw a figure curled up with knees hugged to chest at the doorway.

Ying Qi's heart ached almost to the point of madness.

'Xiao Huai.....'

The person at the door raised his head.

His eyes were unfocused. After hesitating for several seconds he finally realized who was in front of him, and barely managed a smile.

'Ge.'

Ying Huai's body kept trembling. He said softly: 'I have nowhere to go back to, gege.'