Chapter Fourteen: Farewell

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League of Legends New Server, Piltover Guard.

“Heal, heal! You’re Sona, don’t forget to heal.” Shen Ye directed.

“Oops, I forgot again. I got flustered for a second—this game is really something,” Lin Xiaolei replied, looking adorably clueless.

“Fall back, quick, the enemy jungler is coming.”

“Ah, I was too slow.”

Originally, the bottom lane was a two-on-two. But because Lin Xiaolei, who was controlling Sona, would forget to use her skills at critical moments, and randomly use them when she shouldn’t, and would even rush forward for no reason, feeding the enemy team, Shen Ye was left scrambling, essentially fighting one against three.

Luckily, even though Shen Ye’s gaming skills had declined, he was still at the Gold rank. So even in a one-versus-three, facing these under-level-thirty newbies, he managed easily enough.

Of course, even if they lost, Shen Ye didn’t really mind.

After all, it’s just a game—playing for fun is all that matters, not victory or defeat.

“We won again! This game isn’t nearly as hard as I thought. Looks like I’m destined to be a top girl gamer.” Lin Xiaolei flashed a proud gesture after their win.

Shen Ye couldn’t help but rub his forehead. “Right, right, you’re the queen of games.”

“Hahaha, I am the Invincible East!” Lin Xiaolei’s eyes sparkled. “Brother Shen, do you have The Smiling, Proud Wanderer? I’ve heard it’s a great martial arts novel. But at home, the only extracurricular books I’m allowed are stuff like Jane Eyre.”

“I don’t have it, but the next time I pass by a bookstore, I’ll pick up a copy for you. You can read it tonight,” Shen Ye replied.

“Alright, thanks, Brother Shen! Oh, the next match is about to start. Come on, come on.” Lin Xiaolei nodded eagerly.

“Alright, same as before—I’ll play ADC, you support.” Shen Ye agreed.

They started another match. Thanks to Lin Xiaolei’s “divine” assists, things got dicey for Shen Ye, but they managed to win in the end. Lin Xiaolei’s laughter rang out like silver bells from time to time.

...

Time flew by, and two days passed in a flash.

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Shen Ye contacted Wan Peng on QQ. “Peng, your cousin, Lin Xiaolei, ran away from home, didn’t she?”

Wan Peng apparently hadn’t been online, as there was no reply for a while. After a long time, QQ flashed with a new message. “Yeah, how did you know?”

“Your cousin is at my place. I ran into her today. Tell her family to come pick her up.”

“Damn, no way.” Wan Peng was clearly shocked. “Her family is worried sick. Is she alright with you?”

“She’s fine, nothing happened,” Shen Ye assured him.

“That’s good. Lucky she ran into you—if she’d met someone else, who knows what could’ve happened. Send me your address—use WeChat’s location. I’ll send it to my aunt and uncle. Actually, I’ll come too, easier to talk that way. I’m free anyway.”

“Okay,” Shen Ye nodded.

While Shen Ye chatted with Wan Peng, Lin Xiaolei sat quietly beside him.

When he finished, Lin Xiaolei asked softly, “So I’m going to be taken home soon?”

“Yes. After all, you’re just a young girl. You belong with your parents. And after this runaway incident, they’ll probably change their attitude.”

Shen Ye took a cigarette from his pack, lit it, and spoke.

“I hope so, but I doubt they’ll really change. They’ll probably keep treating me the same way,” Lin Xiaolei said.

“You’re in your last year of middle school now, right? Just three and a half years to go. Once you’re in college, they won’t be able to keep such a tight grip on you—you’ll finally be able to relax.” Shen Ye tried to lighten the mood with a joke. “When I was in secondary school, my parents kept telling me not to get into any relationships. Once I graduated college and started working, my mom kept nagging me—‘Why haven’t you brought a girlfriend home yet?’”

Lin Xiaolei couldn’t help but laugh at that.

“Thanks for cheering me up, Brother Shen. I’ll try to talk things through with my parents.”

“That’s good, just relax and be happy. When I was your age, I failed every subject and still didn’t despair. By the way, about The Smiling, Proud Wanderer—you mentioned it before, and I forgot. But I picked up a copy when I passed the bookstore earlier. Take it home and read it. Just don’t let your parents find it.”

It was a newly edited edition from Huacheng Publishing.

Seeing that Shen Ye remembered her offhand comment from two days ago, Lin Xiaolei’s eyes shone with joy as she took the book and gently stroked its cover. “Thank you, Brother Shen. I’ll treasure this book—it’s your gift to me.”

...

Two hours later.

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Lin Xiaolei’s parents and Wan Peng arrived.

Her father, Lin Weitian, wore a black suit and looked every bit the successful businessman.

Her mother, Wang Yunfang, looked barely over thirty, graceful and beautiful—no wonder Lin Xiaolei was such a lovely girl.

“Thank you, Mr. Shen, for finding my daughter,” Lin Weitian said gratefully, handing over a card. “There’s a small reward in here for you, Mr. Shen. Please accept it.”

“No need. I helped because Wan Peng is my friend. Seeing his cousin, of course I’d help if I could. If you insist on paying me, Wan Peng and I couldn’t be friends anymore.” Shen Ye refused with a shake of his head. “But I would like to say: don’t be too hard on your daughter. She’s only fourteen or fifteen. She deserves some time to rest.”

“Mr. Shen, thank you for finding our daughter. But we have our own way of educating her,” Wang Yunfang replied firmly, clearly a woman of strong presence. She also knew Shen Ye was her nephew’s classmate, meaning he’d only graduated from a mediocre college.

Such a person giving her parenting advice? Ridiculous.

Shen Ye had no choice but to remain silent—it was, after all, their daughter.

“Mind your words. We really owe Mr. Shen our thanks for finding our daughter. If you truly won’t accept money, at least let me treat you to a meal,” Lin Weitian offered.

“No need,” Shen Ye shook his head. “I run a restaurant myself—I’m not that interested in eating out.”

Seeing Shen Ye’s reply, Lin Weitian only smiled. “Well then, here’s my card. You can contact me anytime.”

He handed Shen Ye a gold-embossed business card, then left with his wife and daughter.

Wan Peng shrugged. “Let’s get together for drinks next time.”

“No problem, we’re brothers, no need to be polite,” Shen Ye replied with a smile.

(Tsk, tsk, I actually think I wrote this scene pretty well. Just call me the fresh-and-elegant literary author, haha.)