Sunlight streamed through the window, casting a warm glow inside the simple medical room. The only sound outside was the singing of birds. During their childhood, both Ye Anping and Pei Lengxue had developed the habit of being alert to the slightest movement. Any rustling or breeze would instantly wake them. However, last night, not only did they light calming incense, but the medicine also contained some tranquilizing herbs. As a result, he had a very peaceful night’s sleep, and he even had an unusual dream.

… …

In his dream, he was wearing a red robe and led Xi Yue into the great hall, where he paid his respects to his parents and became husband and wife. Xi Yue caressed his face, and they made plans for their wedding night. However, when he looked back, he saw his grown-up Junior Sister beneath the ceremonial platform, crying tears of joy, blessing her Senior Brother and his bride. After paying his respects to the guests, he entered the bridal chamber. But when he lifted the red veil with excitement, he found the face of Feng Yudie beneath it. He quickly covered the veil again and left the bridal chamber with a sense of bitterness.

At this point, the dream ended.

… …

“Phew…”

Ye Anping let out a soft sigh. He was left with mixed emotions, unsure whether the dream was beautiful or nightmarish.

At that moment, the door was pushed open, and two young apprentice herbalists entered, pushing a wooden cart.

“Mr. Ye, it’s time to change the bandages.”

Ye Anping hesitated for a moment, suddenly recalling a small plot from a game. He politely responded, “Thank you for coming so early. I hope we’re not causing you any trouble.”

“Mr. Ye is quite polite. We are merely doing our duty,” one of the young herbalists smiled, half-squinting his eyes, and then he instructed the other, “You help Mr. Ye get up, and I’ll assist in changing the bandages.”

Seeing the expressions on their faces, Ye Anping felt that he had probably passed the test and let out a sigh of relief.

The two young herbalists efficiently removed the old bandages from Ye Anping and gently wiped away the remaining ointment with hot water and a cloth.

Just at that moment, there were two light knocks on the door. Ye Anping assumed it was Bai Yuelin coming to deliver breakfast and said, “Please come in!”

“Ah… Senior Brother, I came to see you…”

Pei Lengxue entered with a smile, and when she saw that Ye Anping was shirtless, being gently wiped down by the two young herbalists, she took a sharp breath.

As Xiao Yunluo was about to come in and greet, Pei Lengxue turned and pushed her away, then used her foot to close the door.

Xiao Yunluo looked puzzled and asked, “Lengxue, what’s going on?”

“Senior Brother is changing his bandages. Let’s wait outside for a while.”

Hearing this, Xiao Yunluo couldn’t help but stifle a laugh, thinking to herself, “Lengxue really guards her territory.” She then waited outside with Pei Lengxue.

Inside the room, the two young herbalists seemed to have noticed Xiao Yunluo as well. They looked quite surprised and examined Ye Anping, asking, “Mr. Ye, are you very close to that girl who just came in?”

Ye Anping replied, “Uh… yes, she’s my Junior Sister. She’s here as a companion to participate in the sect’s selection.”

The young herbalist wrapped the bandages around him again and said, “It’s still quite rare to see Miss Xiao getting close to anyone. We’ve heard that she’s always been a loner. She used to have many maids assigned to her, but she drove them all away.”

“I see…”

Without the young herbalist saying more, Ye Anping knew. However, hearing it from the young herbalist, he couldn’t help but feel a sense of melancholy.

In the game, after the relationship between Feng Yudie and Xiao Yunluo improved, Sima Xuanji, Xiao Yunluo’s mother, actively contacted Feng Yudie. Her main goal was to understand Feng Yudie’s temperament and character and see if she could entrust her daughter to her.

Sima Xuanji’s request was to entrust Feng Yudie with taking care of Xiao Yunluo’s growth, to act as an elder sister-like figure who would protect and guide Xiao Yunluo while allowing her to face challenges and become a strong, independent young lady.

However, Feng Yudie’s personality led her to misunderstand Sima Xuanji’s intention, and she took the trust as a literal “entrustment,” which led to a different set of issues.

In the main storyline, Feng Yudie and Xiao Yunluo mutually supported each other. As mentioned earlier, Ye Anping didn’t have grand plans prepared after taking care of Wu You. He saw his role quite clearly as a cannon fodder character. His primary goal was to bring his junior sister to a safe position within the world of cultivation, marry Xi Yue in the Frigid Heaven Kingdom, and lead a peaceful life back in the Hundred Lotus Sect.

But if his junior sister’s relationship with Xiao Yunluo escalated and Sima Xuanji came to entrust Xiao Yunluo to her, it might make her the “false protagonist.” The challenges ahead would be perilous, like crossing mountains and rivers and facing fierce dangers.

This situation was an oversight on Ye Anping’s part. Before his junior sister joined the Profound Star Sect, he hadn’t anticipated her friendship with Xiao Yunluo.

Xiao Yunluo’s early character was extremely arrogant and her style was wild, akin to a wild “tigress.” On the other hand, his junior sister was like a “rabbit.” Could a tiger and a rabbit really become friends?

But based on the recent situation, it seemed that Xiao Yunluo had been tamed by his junior sister and turned from a “tiger” to a “kitten.”

Cats and rabbits get along quite well…

Ye Anping pinched the bridge of his nose and thought for a moment. Suddenly, he had a revelation.

Should he forcefully separate the two of them?

From a rational perspective, forcibly breaking them apart would undoubtedly lead to fewer troubles in the future, which would be the right decision.

But… if he considered their emotions, forcibly breaking them apart would certainly hurt his junior sister deeply.

He was quite strict with his junior sister when they were younger, but he had never hurt her feelings. Furthermore, now that his junior sister had a genuine friend, he was genuinely happy for her. Moreover, Xiao Yunluo was indeed the perfect friend for his junior sister.

Apart from the idea of forcibly separating them, another approach he considered was to make Xiao Yunluo’s favorability towards Feng Yudie surpass her favorability towards his junior sister. In this way, he could redirect Sima Xuanji’s attention towards Feng Yudie and bring the storyline back on track.

However, Feng Yudie’s personality…

Ye Anping felt that even if he acted as her strategist, putting in a lot of effort, he could at most prevent Xiao Yunluo’s favorability towards her from decreasing further.

Favorability, in the end, was a matter of distribution. There’s only so much favorability to go around. If one person gets more, another person gets less, just like the saying, “Children usually fear their mothers because fathers tend to be the more lenient parent.”

Late-game Feng Yudie might still have a chance, but the current Feng Yudie was willing to risk her life for his junior sister, a relationship cultivated over more than a decade.

Ye Anping thought: This is all your fault, Ye Anping. Who made you raise your junior sister so well? It’s your own doing.