Chapter 10: Once We Watched the Stars Together

After returning home, You Xue first put away the newly bought clothes.

The painkillers had worn off.

The ache in her chest resurfaced, but it no longer felt as piercing as before.

‘It should be getting better slowly,’ You Xue judged.

Still, it would take some time to fully recover.

She took another painkiller.

She walked to the window and looked up at the night sky.

Tonight, Moonview City was unexpectedly without its usual bright, clear moon.

Instead, the stars blazed with extraordinary brilliance.

They shimmered and shifted, casting a dazzling radiance.

Because this was the slums, with no lights from the ground competing for glory, the stars appeared especially bright, she supposed.

In You Xue’s memory, there was an even more beautiful starry sky, one with flowing constellations—the sky she had seen back in her village.

In that memory, she and Su Li sat shoulder to shoulder on a hillside where the grass rose above their shoes, gazing at the stars scattered across the night.

One after another, too many to count.

So they gave up counting and simply watched the stars, feeling each other’s presence.

What had You Xue been thinking back then?

She actually knew.

She had thought: ‘If only we could stay together forever without parting.’

It wasn’t out of romantic love.

It was just the simple, sincere wish of an ordinary child, a childhood friend.

But for the original her, that wish could never come true.

‘I’m sorry.’

She stared blankly at the sky, then heard a knock at the door.

You Xue frowned.

She didn’t open the door right away.

Instead, she gripped her throwing knife tightly, approached the door, and asked softly,

“Who is it?”

A clear and firm answer came from outside.

“It’s me, You Xue.”

For a moment, You Xue was stunned.

Why would Su Li come looking for her?

The Academy wasn’t on break yet, and with the start of the semester, he should be busy.

He had no reason to be here.

This scene wasn’t in the original story either.

Her mind was still confused, but her body instinctively opened the door.

Su Li stood outside.

The scattered moonlight faintly illuminated his face.

He must have come in a hurry, as the night wind had tousled his hair.

“What are you doing here?”

You Xue asked as she carefully slipped the throwing knife into her pocket.

“I want to talk to you.”

Su Li’s tone was sincere.

You Xue was silent for a moment.

“What is there to talk about?”

Internally, she was flustered because she still didn’t know how to face Su Li.

As his childhood friend from the past? As a reader who pitied him? Or as a would-be savior?

She couldn’t decide, so she tried to speak as little as possible.

“What happened recently? Why were you at the Academy? And why are you injured?”

Su Li asked bluntly.

“Can you tell me? I’m really worried about you.”

You Xue looked at him.

The night wind rushed into the room through the open door.

She answered, “I was just trying to find someone, but I fell on the way and ended up looking like a mess. Still, because of that, he gave me all those good things.”

You Xue deliberately put on a frivolous smile.

“Look at those engraved weapons and that money. Can you give me things like that now?”

Su Li believed her.

Engraved weapons were extremely expensive, and knowing You Xue, she definitely couldn’t afford them on her own.

“Who is that person?”

Bitterness welled up in Su Li’s heart as he asked.

“Why should I tell you?”

You Xue forced a mocking smile.

“So nothing happened, and there’s no misunderstanding. I’m doing fine. See, my clothes are new too. And now I have money. Soon I won’t have to live in the slums anymore, won’t have to stay in this broken house.”

Her smile was a little fake, but in the hazy night light, Su Li couldn’t quite make it out.

Besides, Su Li had climbed over the wall to get out.

There were no buses at this hour, and he had walked a long way to reach You Xue’s door.

He was tired.

He couldn’t see clearly.

“So you should leave. I’m no longer—”

You Xue didn’t finish her sentence.

She didn’t want to continue either.

Seeing Su Li like this, so sad, made her uncomfortable too.

Su Li stared at the gray-haired girl as bitterness gathered in his heart.

Hearing such harsh words, Su Li felt no anger at all.

He just felt exhausted.

Earlier it was physical fatigue, now it was mental.

As if everything he had been striving for had been denied by someone else, making his efforts feel meaningless.

The person he had lived with for so long was leaving him like this.

In the end, the only existence in this world worth his effort was—

Just himself.

Su Li understood that truth.

You Xue turned and walked back inside.

From her bag on the table, she pulled out some money—the wages she had just received.

She held the money out to Su Li.

“I’ll pay you back for the money I used before. If this isn’t enough, I’ll give you the rest later.”

Su Li looked at her and suddenly found it a little amusing.

When had things between them come to this?

They needed money to draw boundaries.

When they were kids, they would split everything in half—one piece each, whether it was something he gave to You Xue or something she gave to him.

“I don’t want it.”

Su Li’s tone was frighteningly calm.

You Xue was a little scared when she saw that.

In her memory, that boy was always smiling, always looking at her gently.

He had never worn such a cold expression.

You Xue would rather he cursed at her; she would have accepted that.

“Take it. I owe you so much, and it doesn’t feel good for me either.”

“There’s no point in doing this.”

Su Li only felt disappointment.

“You don’t need to pay me back. I came today just to confirm one thing, and now I know the answer.”

You Xue lowered her eyes.

Of course, she didn’t want him to be sad.

She wanted him to stay cheerful, a sunny boy.

But for the yet-unreached good ending, this was the only way she could think of.

In the original book, the male lead did obtain a lot of resources, but a considerable portion of them was spent on his gravely ill childhood sweetheart.

It wasn’t until the middle of the story, after she died so cheaply, that Su Li began to focus solely on improving himself.

But by then, it was too late.

Su Li hadn’t managed to raise his supernatural ability to the final rank before hastily fighting the King of Beasts that attacked Moonview City.

In the end, he survived, but he couldn’t protect those he should have protected.

Those who loved him, his friends, and the people who supported him—all were trampled by the beast horde, leaving nothing behind.

Losing just one person, a person of no consequence, compared to losing everyone he cared about—

Which was worse?

You Xue had calculated it very clearly.

She believed that even if Su Li knew the truth, he would definitely make the same choice.

But to be safe, she wouldn’t confess.

All the truth would die with her passing.

In the end, she would leave behind a perfect, memorable ending.

So You Xue said,

“That’s right. We can’t go back.”

“No regrets?”

You Xue could tell that Su Li wasn’t questioning her tone; he was simply asking.

He might have wanted to find a crack in her expression, a trace of lying.

But he definitely wouldn’t find any, because she wasn’t the real You Xue, and she didn’t actually have deep feelings for Su Li.

“No regrets.”

You Xue replied softly.

“Okay.”

Su Li said.

“Okay.”

He said again.

“Then, let’s end it here.”

Su Li made his conclusion, under the night sky.

You Xue didn’t answer, but her silence already showed her thoughts.

From beginning to end, she never invited Su Li inside.

She looked at the starry sky outside the door and thought of another starry sky.

That one shone over a village, where a girl and a boy leaned against each other.

As if they would never part.

Finally, You Xue said,

“Goodbye.”

Su Li turned around and walked step by step into the night.

You Xue watched his back as it grew farther and farther away.