Seeing how timid the little rascal looked, Yun Shifei couldn’t help but gently kick it. "Weren’t you fearless around people? Why are you so scared now?"
The little rascal let out a howl, as if responding to her.
Admittedly, as the little rascal grew older, its intelligence seemed to be increasingly impressive.
Often, Yun Shifei felt like it could understand her words.
For example, whenever she praised it, it would wag its tail; but when she teased it, it would show its discontent.
This dog—has it become a spirit? It must’ve become a spirit, right?
Since Yun Tiancheng was absent, Yun Shifei’s meals were much simpler. She just boiled some noodles and added a few cabbage dumplings she had made a few days ago—it was enough for a meal.
The little rascal quietly ate its dog food.
After dinner, Yun Shifei washed the dishes and was about to watch TV. Who would’ve thought—snap!—the world plunged into darkness.
Amid the pitch-black surroundings, the girl’s wide eyes remained still and unwavering.
Inside, her heart whimpered with regret. She wished she had insisted on letting her father stay home. If she called Yun Tiancheng back now, would it be too late?
The neighborhood had lost power due to the typhoon.
They had just finished eating when the house suddenly went dark.
"What’s going on here?" Zhao Haishuang erupted in anger but refrained from throwing things as she used to, since Cheng Guomin was present.
Given the typhoon’s arrival, Cheng Guomin had unexpectedly stayed home today instead of going to the company.
Zhao Haishuang had also prepared a table full of dishes, hoping to cheer him up.
Nowadays, she still wore makeup, but it was far from exquisite.
Her skin looked lifeless, and no amount of foundation could conceal the scars and wrinkles on her face.
She could only keep her hair loose in an attempt to cover her face.
She had noticed that even when Cheng Guomin spoke to her, his eyes rarely landed on her face anymore.
A growing sense of sorrow filled Zhao Haishuang’s heart.
And then—power outage!
In the darkness, Zhao Haishuang fetched a flashlight and lit several candles.
She then took out her phone and called the neighborhood management to ask about the situation, learning that the typhoon had broken their local power lines and repair efforts were underway.
"Who knows when it’ll be fixed," Zhao Haishuang said with a smile to Cheng Guomin.
Cheng Guomin glanced at Zhao Haishuang. Under the dim lighting, the imperfections of her face seemed less pronounced.
For a fleeting moment, it felt like going back in time.
"Let’s wait a while. At least the strong winds outside keep it from being unbearably hot."
Otherwise, in weather this warm, life without air conditioning would be unbearable.
While they chatted, Cheng Lie stood up and walked toward the door.
"Xiao Lie, where are you going?" Cheng Guomin asked.
Cheng Lie extended his hand, revealing some candy, and said to Cheng Guomin, "I’m going to take some candy to Shi Fei."
Cheng Lie’s close relationship with Yun Shifei was something Cheng Guomin was well aware of.
Initially, he had hoped they could just be friends—perhaps that was Cheng Lie’s only value to their family.
But he hadn’t expected their bond to grow so deep—even in these circumstances, Cheng Lie was heading out to bring candy.
Amused, Cheng Guomin laughed. "Xiao Lie, the power is out and there’s a typhoon outside. It’s too dangerous to go out now."
But Cheng Lie paid no heed to his words and continued straight toward the door.
Cheng Guomin wanted to stop Cheng Lie but heard Zhao Haishuang say, "Guomin, if the kid wants to go, let him go. Anyway, with the power out, there’s nothing much to do. A walk outside won’t hurt."
"Ah... well, that’s true..."
By this point, Cheng Lie had already opened the door, his frail figure quickly disappearing into the stormy night.
On this dark and windy night, the streets were unlikely to be populated. If this little bastard could silently vanish, then good riddance, Zhao Haishuang thought.
Just like he had disappeared into the doorway.
At that moment, Zhao Haishuang regretted deeply—not acting earlier while the opportunity was ripe. This was a golden chance!
If it were the past, perhaps she could’ve held back, but recently, she felt she could no longer endure.
She was unattractive, and whenever Cheng Guomin looked at this little bastard, he probably thought of his mother’s appearance, which only made him favor Cheng Lie even more.
The hatred in Zhao Haishuang’s eyes intensified.
Meanwhile, Cheng Lie had reached the Yun Family.
He hadn’t used an umbrella—it couldn’t have been used in weather anyway.
The rain felt like knives slashing against his face, cold and slightly painful.
By the time he reached the Yun Family’s house, he was soaked to the bone.
He raised his hand and knocked on the door.
Usually, he would use the doorbell, but with the power out, knocking was his only option.
He wasn’t sure if his knocking was too soft, but it took a while before the door finally opened.
Cheng Lie looked at the girl standing before him, who was staring at him with a terrified expression.
"Cheng... Cheng... Lie..." Her voice trembled.
"Are you home alone?"
At this moment, Cheng Lie knew his guess was correct.
Earlier today, he’d seen Yun Tiancheng’s car leave the Yun Family residence, and even when he left his room to eat, the car hadn’t returned. That was proof Yun Shifei was home alone.
Now, Yun Shifei wasn’t as scared. She had adjusted to the darkness and invited Cheng Lie inside.
In the living room, she found some candles and lit them.
Though it was still quite dark, even a bit of light was better than nothing.
She decided she’d go to bed early tonight.
When she turned back, she noticed the boy drenched by the rain—his dark hair plastered to his forehead, and his pale-blue clothes darkened to navy.
She couldn’t help but frown. "Why don’t you take better care of yourself? You could’ve used an umbrella."
"Not possible in this weather," the boy said indifferently, his gaze fixed on Yun Shifei.
After a moment, he extended his hand and offered her the candy. "This candy is really good."
Yun Shifei was stunned, staring at Cheng Lie in disbelief. In this weather, with no lights, and the roads surely pitch dark, Cheng Lie had come all this way just to deliver candy?
For a moment, Yun Shifei didn’t know how to describe her feelings.
She felt deeply moved and sensed an indescribable emotion bubbling within.
Why was Cheng Lie so kind to her? What kind of fool was he!
Still, Yun Shifei was so touched that she felt a lump in her throat.
In this world, apart from her father, there was now another boy who cared for her so much.
Even though this boy might grow up to be cold and aloof, right now, he felt so warm and genuine.
Thinking about this, Yun Shifei couldn’t help but clutch at her heart.
Should she even let herself continue having such thoughts?
Yun Shifei grabbed a dry towel and helped Cheng Lie dry his face and hair. As she did, she softly chided him, "Don’t go out in weather again, okay?"
Cheng Lie quietly let her wipe him down, like a well-behaved child.
But who would’ve thought, in the next moment, Cheng Lie would say something even more startling—
"But I was afraid you’d be scared."