After Rebirth, I Married the Great Demon King-Chapter 454: Let’s Chat

The starry sky sparkled, and the moonlight poured onto her like water.

It felt like a pair of gentle hands stroking her.

Wen Lin looked up at the swaying moonlight as she walked, lost in her thoughts.

In these past twenty years, she had never liked someone so much before, never.

But why did she have to fall for someone so cold?

From childhood to adulthood, life had been smooth sailing for her, except in matters of love—here, it felt as though everything went awry.

She thought of Yun Shifei and wondered if she should meet Yun Shifei someday.

If there was no breakthrough with Cheng Lie, perhaps meeting Yun Shifei, talking to her, and understanding the girl Cheng Lie liked—whether she was just superficial or something more—might allow her to give up entirely.

On the weekend, Yun Shifei was planning to hang out with Si Kaiyi when Xu Yuejiao pulled her aside in a hurry.

"Shi Fei, what should I do?" Xu Yuejiao frowned deeply, looking troubled and unhappy.

For the first time, Yun Shifei saw her with such a distressed expression and couldn’t help but frown as well. "What’s wrong?"

"It was last week. I ran into Zhou Li after he’d finished tutoring other students and watched him head home. I decided to follow him, and I found out his home is actually in a rundown house. The environment really broke my heart—I’d never thought his family was in such dire straits."

Yun Shifei: "..."

Hadn’t this been mentioned before?

As she caught Yun Shifei’s gaze, Xu Yuejiao sighed. "It’s not like I didn’t know he was financially struggling, but I hadn’t realized it was to that extent. That place, so run-down it looked like it could be blown apart by a strong wind. Later, I asked his neighbors about it; they said Zhou Li’s father is sick, and his mother is supporting the entire family, which forced him to work and earn money while studying."

"I felt so heartbroken... so I ended up giving them some money."

Yun Shifei: "???"

Well, that was not where she thought this story was heading.

Yun Shifei occasionally felt like her emotional intelligence was low, but compared to Xu Yuejiao right now, she suddenly felt as if her EQ was quite high.

Xu Yuejiao really left her at a loss for words.

What Xu Yuejiao said next was exactly what Yun Shifei had expected.

"When Zhou Li found out, he got very angry. He threw the money at me and said he didn’t care about my dirty money."

As Xu Yuejiao spoke, her voice began to quiver with tears.

"Feifei, what should I do? Will Zhou Li stop liking me because of this?"

Yun Shifei had never met Zhou Li, but from Xu Yuejiao’s description, it wasn’t hard to picture what kind of person he was.

His family background wasn’t great, but he seemed to have a straightforward personality, unwilling to let others see his struggles—especially the person he liked.

And so, back then, he had said those kinds of things to Xu Yuejiao.

Yun Shifei understood this; no matter what, a man would never want to expose his own poverty to the woman he admired.

That would be akin to laying his pride at someone’s feet, waiting for it to be trampled.

She thought of Cheng Lie—how, back when he was framed by Xia Yuezhen, his eyes were injured. Yet he had said nothing, refusing to tell her about his condition.

After some thought, Yun Shifei decided to speak bluntly with Xu Yuejiao and explain everything.

She began to feel that maybe, in the past, she had tried to caution Xu Yuejiao too delicately, which had prevented her from understanding the message.

That’s why things had developed to this point—and in a way, Yun Shifei felt partially responsible.

Thinking this, Yun Shifei sighed.

When Xu Yuejiao heard Yun Shifei’s words, she became even more flustered.

"Sister Jiaojiao, why don’t you both give each other some space for now? Cool down a bit," Yun Shifei offered as the best advice she could think of.

In Yun Shifei’s view, Zhou Li was undoubtedly angry and feeling ashamed right now. If Xu Yuejiao kept appearing before him, it would only serve to remind him of those memories again and again.

It was better to give both parties some breathing room first; future discussions would become easier then.

Xu Yuejiao thought for a moment and agreed that Yun Shifei’s suggestion made sense.

"Alright, let’s do that for now."

Yun Shifei comforted Xu Yuejiao, saying, "Sister Jiaojiao, don’t lose heart. In the future, as we handle things, let’s be a bit more considerate and mindful, okay?"

Xu Yuejiao nodded.

Seeing that Xu Yuejiao’s mood was still dampened, Yun Shifei felt at a loss herself.

She had never been good at comforting others. All she could do was stay by her side—and buy her a cup of hot milk tea.

The sweet flavor might help lift her spirits a little.

Beyond that, it was up to Xu Yuejiao to pull herself out of her emotional slump.

After spending an entire day comforting Xu Yuejiao, Yun Shifei planned to meet Si Kaiyi the next day.

She had heard that the kid had won an award in an international piano competition for the youth category, so she prepared a gift to congratulate him.

She spent half the day with Si Kaiyi and then returned to school.

On her way back, she stopped by a dessert shop near the campus to pack some egg tarts to share with her roommates.

They had been working hard lately, after all.

Their relationship wasn’t only one of roommates but also of partners.

As she finished purchasing, a car stopped nearby—a black vehicle, exuding a sense of luxury and sophistication.

The window rolled down to reveal Wen Lin’s delicate face. "Miss Yun, may I chat with you for a moment?"

This was probably the first time the two had met under such circumstances.

Yun Shifei knew Wen Lin liked Cheng Lie—and she couldn’t say she had any fondness for Wen Lin herself.

Women have an instinct, a territorial awareness when it comes to competitors. There’s no way to genuinely like a rival.

"I just want to chat with Miss Yun," Wen Lin said with a smile, doing her best to come across as warm and friendly.

Otherwise, she feared she might frighten this dainty Miss Yun.

Judging from Yun Shifei’s demeanor, Wen Lin could tell she was the type of delicate flower—beautiful, yet fragile.

No wonder Cheng Lie cherished her so much. Women like this, what man wouldn’t adore them?

Wen Lin had grown up listening to the advice of elders.

Many had told her that girls didn’t need to work too hard—that they just needed to find someone to marry, and life would be set.

But Wen Lin refused to believe any of it.

She had never subscribed to those notions.

What "find someone to marry," what "no need to work hard," what "after marriage, the man will provide"—

To Wen Lin, it was all nonsense.

Women could only have a voice if they held financial power. This was a truth Wen Lin had understood from a young age.

She had witnessed her father’s infidelity and her mother’s tearful helplessness firsthand.

That image was enough to solidify her distrust of such clichés forever.

When Wen Lin looked at Yun Shifei, she imagined what her future fate might be. Was someone like Cheng Lie truly capable of loving a decorative vase for a lifetime?

Wen Lin didn’t believe it.

Yun Shifei sensed the disdain in Wen Lin’s gaze, as though she were a monarch looking down on an ant.