Little Pink Starfish

— Since the establishment of “Eye”, the first major target they encountered wasn’t anyone on the list. Instead, it was someone of unknown identity, unknown appearance — a person known only by their voice.

All members of “Eye” quickly learned of this, and the case was promptly classified as confidential by the Six Gates (the central law enforcement body). Naturally, Jiang Lianhuan also got wind of the news.

Even Jiang Lianhuan knew…

When Hua Rongyue heard this, she almost blacked out.

Well, fair enough — it made sense. Jiang Lianhuan lived nearby and could help keep an eye out. Yan Sheng would definitely have told him.

But Hua Rongyue wasn’t exactly thrilled about it.

“A man… no, rather, a man whose voice sounds very much like a woman’s,” Jiang Lianhuan muttered to himself.

No, more like a girl with a low voice. A girl. A young woman.

“This person sounds quite interesting,” Jiang Lianhuan said with amusement. “Clearly insane, yet constantly restraining themselves… huh? To think such a person exists in the martial world… haha…”

Anyone with red eyes you find interesting, don’t you? Hua Rongyue thought silently.

“Can a madman really restrain themselves?” Jiang Lianhuan pondered. “Or perhaps it’s just an unusually strong obsession?”

Normal people have their fixations. The mad even more so. Like Wu Wangyan’s obsession with Yi Linglong. Others fixate on all sorts of things — sometimes not people, but objects, even just a sentence or two.

Jiang Lianhuan was clearly intrigued by this “mysterious person.”

— To Hua Rongyue, this was possibly the worst news in recent days. Even the Six Gates focusing on the “mysterious person” wasn’t as stressful as Jiang Lianhuan becoming interested.

This whole incident had shaken the Six Gates — it even rattled some fundamental beliefs.

Everyone knew “madmen” were uncontrollable. That’s why they used such extreme measures against them.

And yet, here comes someone who’s insane but restrains themselves? Whatever the reason, it deeply shocked many in the Six Gates. It also piqued widespread curiosity.

Who was this person?

What were they like before going mad?

…And how strong was their will, to hold back from doing wrong?

Even Yan Sheng was conflicted — he didn’t know whether this person had committed a crime or not. By their behavior, maybe not. But the potential connection to a murdered informant hinted at danger. One day, they might lose control.

So the Six Gates gave “Eye” a final directive: capture this person before they completely lose control.

Everyone agreed — this self-restraint was only temporary. Total loss of control was inevitable.

Jiang Lianhuan’s murmuring was getting eerie. He was clearly fascinated by this person’s sheer willpower.

Even now, Hua Rongyue couldn’t figure out what exactly excited him.

If you asked her, Jiang Lianhuan usually found the most hopeless madmen fascinating. So why was this “ascetic” catching his attention now? He’d never been into the self-denying type before.

Besides, if you asked Hua Rongyue — wasn’t she playing the self-denying type right now? So add a little madness to the character and suddenly Jiang Lianhuan was all over it? Without the madness, she was boring to him?

Hua Rongyue had been convinced her deduction was sound — until she realized a fatal flaw in her logic.

Er, in Yi Linglong’s memory, none of those other madmen were ever self-restrained “ascetics.”

So… how could Jiang Lianhuan have ever shown interest in this type before?

Apologies. Never mind.

Hua Rongyue brewed two cups of tea and brought one to Jiang Lianhuan, speaking with a gentle tone, “Young Master Jiang, have some tea.”

She’d cleaned the cups thoroughly and used a fine tea gifted by Dr. Qi’s friend. The floating leaves rose and fell, calming the mood.

When Jiang Lianhuan turned to her, his face was still excited — he clearly wanted someone to debate with.

But Hua Rongyue’s gaze was calm.

Seeing her serious face, Jiang Lianhuan’s excitement slowly faded.

Hua Rongyue felt a bit guilty for some reason — as if she couldn’t fulfill someone’s wish.

“Ahem.” Then he spoke sincerely, “Thank you.”

Jiang Lianhuan was a strange person — a full-blown weirdo. But in front of someone proper, he acted proper.

Just like now.

Hua Rongyue brought him tea, and he thanked her. When she spoke, he listened. He even brought up normal topics in her presence.

It was kind of miraculous.

But that didn’t mean he’d turned over a new leaf. Small details still betrayed his true nature — he simply toned it down in front of Hua Rongyue.

It was a strange feeling. In a past life, Jiang Lianhuan was like a naked streaker in front of Yi Linglong. But now, he was all dressed up in a suit and tie in front of Hua Rongyue.

Having seen both sides of him, Hua Rongyue felt complicated. Just like Yan Sheng sometimes couldn’t take Hua Rongyue seriously, Hua Rongyue couldn’t always take Jiang Lianhuan seriously. But she was a professional — she wouldn’t let that affect her work.

She’d recently begun trying to set aside old memories and work seriously with Jiang Lianhuan as a partner.

— After all, their teamwork now directly impacted the neighborhood’s safety.

Jiang Lianhuan didn’t stay long at Baicaotang. After chatting — mostly about the mysterious person, which excited him — and briefly about Wu Ci, he left.

Wu Ci still hadn’t shown up. But someone Hua Rongyue least wanted to see had arrived instead.

Wu Wangyan…

That lunatic…

Baicaotang was quiet. Alone in the house, Hua Rongyue was wiping down a table, lost in thought.

Yi Linglong’s memories kept affecting her — Jiang Lianhuan, Wu Ming — but none as strongly as Wu Wangyan.

If she could help it, she never wanted to see Wu Wangyan again. She couldn’t guarantee that if she did, her red-eyed state wouldn’t instantly trigger.

She liked her current life — peaceful, with a flawless identity provided by the authorities. Why live like Yi Linglong, battling in the martial world and dying young?

Now that the Six Gates had their eyes on her, she just had to make sure she never saw Wu Wangyan again… and she’d be safe.

Hua Rongyue didn’t fully understand how the red eyes were triggered yet, but the two instances so far were linked to people most significant to Yi Linglong:

— Lin Qiya, Wu Wangyan.

Yi Linglong’s downfall was due to how much she cared about Wu Wangyan.

But here’s the thing — Hua Rongyue didn’t care about Wu Wangyan.

As she wiped the table, a commotion erupted outside. Normally, she might’ve ignored it. But today, with a cluttered mind, she welcomed the distraction.

She looked up — and saw someone dressed in white, sword on their back.

— That kind of outfit stood out way too much in this alley.

She recognized the white clothing, the bamboo hat, the slightly familiar sword, and the familiar figure.

She paused and wondered if she should buy a lottery ticket.

— Lately, everyone she thought about kept showing up. Some kind of psychic power?

Wait a second — she suddenly recalled something.

Boss Wang had said the Six Gates had recently increased bait efforts to lure out Wu Ci. Had someone leaked that a mysterious figure had appeared nearby?

The Six Gates didn’t really believe this person was Yi Linglong. From every angle, it didn’t make sense for Yi Linglong to show up now — not like this.

But they’d still let the rumors fly, to mislead the uninformed. That’s how the rumor “Yi Linglong is in Jiangnan” started spreading — all courtesy of the Six Gates.

In that brief second, Hua Rongyue’s mind went full circle.

Then she returned her focus to the current moment.

All the neighbors had come out to see the commotion.

The aunt next door was front and center — Hua Rongyue figured she’d drop by early tomorrow to gossip. Even the kids who usually played in hiding were sneakily peeking out.

To regular folk, a sword-carrying hero was rare — practically glowing, like a celebrity.

— Even retired-from-the-martial-world Hua Rongyue was seen as a washed-up former insider.

Wu Ci seemed unsure as he approached, uneasy under the many eyes. Even the toughest would hesitate.

He stopped a short distance from Baicaotang, as if searching for something. Hua Rongyue looked at the spot and thought — called it.

That was exactly where she’d encountered Wu Wangyan that night.

She lowered her head, organizing herbs, and sighed.

— Why is this person so stupid?

Though, based on Yi Linglong’s memories, she’d fallen for Six Gates traps plenty of times herself.

Now that Hua Rongyue was part of the Six Gates, seeing someone else fall into a trap — one she helped design — made her feel oddly… guilty?

Maybe it’s easier to lure people in when you’re standing on the “justice” side?

As she was mulling it over, Wu Ci approached the aunt next door. With her keen hearing, Hua Rongyue clearly heard him ask, “Ma’am, is there anyone nearby who knows martial arts?”

“Sure,” the aunt replied brightly, pointing behind her. “Baicaotang — everyone on this street who knows martial arts is there. One of them even used to roam the martial world!”

“Really? Thanks, ma’am!” Wu Ci lit up. After all, rumors said Yi Linglong had vanished to recover from injuries. And now here was a reclusive former martial artist?

He looked up — Baicaotang was a medical clinic. What a coincidence!

Wu Ci stepped in and immediately saw Hua Rongyue by the door, sorting herbs. She didn’t react.

She calmly sorted lotus seeds.

One by one.

…

Wu Ci glanced briefly at her and walked right past, straight into the backyard.

…

Hua Rongyue stared dumbfounded at his back.

Wait, what?!

You’re not even going to give me a second look?

Wu Ci hadn’t spared her more than a glance. She was caught off guard and had let him waltz into the back.

She froze. This script isn’t right, she thought, and hurried after him.

“Excuse me! The backyard is off limits!”

By the time she caught up, Wu Ci had almost turned the whole place upside down — and, of course, found no one. The other three residents were out on visits.

Wu Ci… hadn’t even considered the neat, refined, disciplined Hua Rongyue as a suspect for Yi Linglong.

He turned to her and asked, “Where are the others?”