Little Pink Starfish

Yuan Yuanyuan had been fine before remembering anything. But the moment she recalled who that girl in white might be, her mind exploded with speculation.

And then—it hit her.

That girl’s behavior toward her… it really was the way you treat an elder! It wasn’t just her imagination—it was real!

Thinking about it that way, Yuan Yuanyuan suddenly felt… a strange sense of regret. Though she didn’t even know what exactly she was regretting.

So if that girl really was who she thought… Yuan Yuanyuan began replaying the things she had said, now through the lens of someone who was the daughter of the Li Family patriarch.

She’d mentioned bits of her childhood. Mentioned her father—but only briefly. Yuan Yuanyuan couldn’t tell whether she just didn’t want to talk about him or simply didn’t want to do so in front of her.

Still, thinking it over… that girl had said some very unsettling things. Like how she often heard people talk about Seventeen. Which implied—within the Li Family, Seventeen was a known figure. Very different from the human world, where he had no visible trace at all.

Of course, among powerful families, this wasn’t too surprising. Like Fat Cat—his family probably had ties to the Blood Jade Demon Army, so he knew much more than the average person.

But this was the Li Family.

And Yuan Yuanyuan’s expression twisted.

Her father—the Li Family Patriarch—was the one who had killed Seventeen. If her deduction was correct, then… how could the Li Family casually toss around Seventeen’s name in conversation? Shouldn’t that be something completely covered up? Taboo, even?

There was no way the connection between Seventeen and the Li Family Patriarch was that simple…

Yuan Yuanyuan thought back to some intel she’d gathered. Seventeen and the Li Family head weren’t just in-laws (as in, Seventeen’s sister married the patriarch)—they were also reportedly close friends. The kind of officially confirmed, “canon” friendship you’d find in a character guidebook.

Whoa… so now we might actually be looking at a classic love-hate rivalry plot. Yuan Yuanyuan’s train of thought suddenly took a wild turn.

Back in the day, Seventeen and the Li Family Patriarch’s dynamic was dramatic and bloody. There was one especially painful detail: the patriarch was the one who literally threw Seventeen off the edge… and held him as he did it.

That was already bad enough. But for two people who were once that close?

Yuan Yuanyuan’s brain started generating inappropriate soundtrack suggestions—should this be a tragic friendship anthem, or a heartbroken love song?

In the manga, the Li Family head had only been mentioned in passing—his scenes cut off just as they began. But his face, with that distinctive scar, was enough to trigger everyone’s memories.

Readers immediately brought back that infamous argument between him and Yuan—one that had already been dissected and reposted countless times.

In the comic, one line had stood out boldly: “For loyalty.”

Loyalty had been a theme surrounding Yuan for a long time.

At first, Yuan had been branded as disloyal, and everyone believed it. But now, with hindsight, readers were starting to notice undercurrents they hadn’t seen before.

…Sure, it sounds ridiculous to talk about “undercurrents” in a comic. But the readers really could feel it.

They analyzed the exchange, speculating on what the two men really meant. That scene—both in the past and now—still felt immensely powerful.

There hadn’t been much action between them, but the tension had always been sky-high. Their dynamic had become one of the most iconic storylines in the series.

Some of their dialogue seemed nonsensical. But upon closer inspection, there was so much that could be read between the lines.

Especially that one phrase: “for loyalty.”

Readers used to think it referred to loyalty to the Blood Jade Demon Army. But now? That interpretation no longer fit. It was becoming increasingly clear that the two of them had been talking about different things entirely. Maybe the Li Family head hadn’t been referring to the army at all.

So whose loyalty was he referring to?

That remained an open question. But internet speculation was already spiraling.

Most people believed the Li Family Patriarch was loyal to the Hundred Demon King. That he belonged to that faction.

Yuan Yuanyuan watched the online discussion shift—from lore analysis to playlist debates. Everyone was suggesting old, sad songs for these two “old generation” characters. To her surprise, this new “old man drama” arc was grabbing serious attention.

【Jiuqiu is amazing—this part is beautifully drawn. The old generation is unexpectedly compelling. I kind of want to see more of it.】

【But wait… are those two actually… a couple? Isn’t one of them Yuan’s sister? I’m really not into this whole “trash man” trope.】

【Yeah… whatever happened to Yuan’s sister? Didn’t she… have a kid?】

At that moment, Yuan Yuanyuan froze.

Wait… wait wait wait.

Yuan’s sister and the Li Family Patriarch used to be a married couple. They might’ve even had a child!

That… that white-dressed girl… could she be…

Yuan Yuanyuan mentally spiraled for a while—then slowly calmed herself down.

No… it couldn’t be. The ages didn’t match. That girl was just a young demon. Yuan’s sister had probably passed away long ago—Yuan’s best guess was between the First and Second War.

Seventeen’s death was connected to the Li Family Patriarch. Whether he married Yuan’s sister for love or to get close to Seventeen… no one knew.

After the war, Seventeen’s sister had presumably gone through something terrible. It was unlikely she’d lived to see the Second War. So if that girl really was her daughter, there were… complications.

Yuan Yuanyuan flipped through her old notes. Sure enough—she had jotted down a detail about the Li Family Patriarch’s second wife: someone from the Yuan family.

That name—Yuan—was indeed the same Yuan as in Yuan Yingli. They were from the same ancestral line. Though Yingli had apparently severed ties with her family by now.

She had never told anyone else about this detail. For now, she’d watch and wait. If Jiuqiu truly planned to reveal what happened in the past, the Li Family Patriarch would be unavoidable. He was a critical connection.

Readers currently saw him as just another old guard character—perhaps fated to carry out some dramatic plot twists. But if you dug deeper, he was sitting atop a landmine of secrets. You could probably pull a whole chain of storylines out of him.

Yuan Yuanyuan quietly suppressed her thoughts. She wanted to know what had happened back then too—of course she did. She wasn’t immune to gossip. But the stories of the past were foggy—distant memories passed down in fragments.

They called them the “old generation” for a reason.

If Yuan weren’t still appearing so much, he’d probably be lumped in with them too. Yuan Yuanyuan herself was calm about it—probably because she hadn’t been involved much back then. To her, it felt like reading a story about someone else. No emotional attachment. Just curiosity.

She considered her attitude to be very chill—very healthy. She didn’t care too much about the past. In her mind, it was simple: if you had a grudge, settle it. That was it.

So she carried on, shuttling between home and the tavern.

But even if Yuan Yuanyuan remained calm, not everyone around her could do the same.

Lately, she’d been drinking a little more. Not a lot—just finishing what was left in the bottle. That night, there was still a bit at the bottom of the jar. She figured no one else would drink it, so she might as well.

As she poured, the landlady suddenly appeared out of nowhere, took the wine jug away, and refused to give it back.

Yuan Yuanyuan blinked in confusion.

She didn’t understand what was happening. The landlady had never cared about people sneaking drinks before. But today? She was suddenly acting like a health nut.

Well… if she wouldn’t let her drink, then fine.

Yuan Yuanyuan hadn’t really wanted it anyway. It was just for show. Honestly, it was nice to not drink for once. Otherwise, with her stingy habits, she’d feel bad wasting even a drop.

This continued for one day, two days…

By the third day, when she was half-asleep, Yuan Yuanyuan suddenly jolted awake.

Wait a minute… why was the landlady acting like that?

Then it hit her—Oh no. The landlady had probably misunderstood. She thought Yuan Yuanyuan was drinking away her sorrows.

Just like how she’d only realized a manga plot twist hours after reading it, this time, it had taken her three full days to put it together.

So that evening, when the landlady tried to take the wine again, Yuan Yuanyuan couldn’t help but speak up:

“Don’t take it away. Just… leave it.”