Chapter 51: Morning

Shen Siyuan retracted the Ten Thousand Souls Banner and said to Yin Xingyue, “This can be considered the fulfillment of your wish.”

Yin Xingyue smiled and nodded, looking very happy, as if the constant furrow in her brow had finally eased.

“Brother~”

Yin Xingyue suddenly called out again.

“What is it?”

“I want to go see Grandma,” Yin Xingyue said.

“Of course you can, but do you know how to get there?”

Yin Xingyue nodded. She didn’t know the way, but she knew which bus to take to reach Grandma’s house.

“Since that’s the case, then go ahead.”

“Thank you, brother~” Yin Xingyue bowed deeply to Shen Siyuan, then rode off on a gust of dark wind, howling away.

Shen Siyuan turned and returned to his bed, intending to continue sleeping. Yet, for some unknown reason, a faint unease lingered in his heart.

That night, Shen Siyuan dreamed all through the darkness. In his dreams, women appeared and changed in succession, fully unleashing desire.

By the time he awoke the next day, he felt swollen and uncomfortable, and there was a large dampness below.

This was abnormal. After all, he was already twenty-six, not an eighteen or nineteen-year-old youth, yet he still suffered from nocturnal emissions.

Shen Siyuan knew he was affected by Fang Yunlou.

After the Ten Thousand Souls Banner devoured Fang Yunlou’s soul, the desires clinging to Fang Yunlou’s spirit did not vanish but were absorbed by the banner, eventually feeding back into its master.

Fortunately, it was only Fang Yunlou’s influence, so it wouldn’t cause much trouble. At worst, it caused a burning sensation in his lower abdomen and some impulses, but Shen Siyuan could still control it.

He got up, washed up, took the letter he had written to Lu Guanchang the night before, went downstairs, and mounted his electric bike to leave the neighborhood.

Passing by a bus stop, he was immediately called over by Lin Manzhi, who was waiting for the bus.

“Sister Manzhi, you’re not driving again today?”

“The car’s in for maintenance; it won’t be ready this whole week.”

Lin Manzhi stepped up and slumped sideways onto the back seat of his bike.

“You should have told me earlier, or else if I woke up late, I might have been delayed.”

“You can’t always trouble me. If we happen to meet, I’ll hitch a ride with you; if not, I’ll just take the bus.”

“That’s no problem. Sister Manzhi, why be so polite with me?”

The two chatted casually as they walked.

“Where’s Brother Lü? Still not back?”

“Probably about half a month more,” Lin Manzhi sighed.

---

The Brother Lü Shen Siyuan mentioned was Lin Manzhi’s husband. He worked at a design institute and often traveled for projects.

That was why, despite their companies being close, Lin Manzhi always commuted alone.

“By the way, how’s it going with Ting Yu?”

“What do you mean, how’s it going? Just so-so.”

“I’m telling you, you better hurry up. If she doesn’t contact you, shouldn’t you take the initiative to reach out to her?” Lin Manzhi said, then playfully slapped his shoulder.

“She told you about this?”

Shen Siyuan thought for a moment. Actually, the two hadn’t been in contact only since yesterday.

“Of course, she’s my best friend,” Lin Manzhi said.

“How did you two meet? Don’t tell me you’re classmates; there’s quite an age gap between you.”

“We met at a previous company, but we got along very well, so we’ve kept in touch…”

---

“Good morning, President Shen, Sister Manzhi…”

Hearing such a warm greeting without even seeing the speaker, Shen Siyuan immediately recognized Ding Youguang’s voice.

“Morning,” Lin Manzhi nodded toward him.

“Have you eaten breakfast?” Ding Youguang asked casually.

Shen Siyuan glanced at the breakfast in his hand and said, “Not yet. Are you treating me?”

“Don’t flatter yourself. That’s mine. If you really want to eat, I’ve got a bun in my drawer—I’ll get it for you later,” Ding Youguang said, immediately pulling his hand back with a wary expression.

“Tch, who eats buns?”

“Also got a bottle of cola.”

“That’s not so bad…”

Lin Manzhi chuckled beside them.

After they exited the elevator and parted ways for their offices, Lin Manzhi casually asked, “Are you close with Ding Youguang?”

“Fairly close. We often share lunch orders at noon.”

“Ding Youguang is quite capable,” Lin Manzhi remarked suddenly.

“You know that too?” Shen Siyuan was surprised.

“I heard from a friend. He used to have his own company doing traffic promotion and must have made a lot. Later, he sold it and then came to our company.”

“I heard differently. It wasn’t that he sold the company. The company he collaborated with got acquired. He relied on that partnership to get business, but after the acquisition, the business dried up, and his company folded.”

The company Ding Youguang once owned was the one currently used to sign contracts with Shen Siyuan and his team.

Just as Shen Siyuan returned to his seat, he received a message from Ding Youguang.

Since Lin Manzhi was in the elevator earlier, she might have heard what he said.

---

“Zhou Zhengdao said your proposal is very detailed and that there’s no problem implementing it. We’re meeting this Friday to get together.”

“That works for me. Ask Zhou Zhengdao to invite Li Qunfang too, see if she’s willing.”

That girl was quite reclusive and might not want to dine with the three men.

“Don’t worry, she’ll definitely come,” Ding Youguang said confidently.

At that moment, Wang Chao walked in, placing two bags in front of Shen Siyuan.

“Boss, here are your steamed buns and soy milk.”

“Thanks! How much? I’ll transfer you on WeChat later.”

The reason Shen Siyuan hadn’t eaten breakfast was that Wang Chao had brought it for him.

The buns from Youguang Breakfast were delicious. Conveniently located along Wang Chao’s route to work, he bought them every morning and Shen Siyuan asked him to bring a portion.

Of course, Shen Siyuan wasn’t the only one; Wang Chao carried several portions.

Shen Siyuan was watching the news and eating when Dou Dou came over, looking around curiously.

“Where’s Sister Xiaoyue?”

“She went home to see her grandmother.”

“Oh,” Dou Dou’s expression brightened with understanding.

Then she stood on tiptoe, looking at the breakfast on Shen Siyuan’s desk.

“What are you eating?”

Though she asked, she had already taken a deep breath, inhaling a faint wisp of steam into her belly.

“Oh, steamed buns, hehe~”

She said and then ran off to see what others were eating.

Seeing her lively spirit, Shen Siyuan’s thoughts returned to Yin Xingyue.

Having seen her grandmother, her wish was truly fulfilled.

For her, what was there left in this world worth holding on to?

He didn’t know whether she would choose to leave or to stay.

Though they had only been together for a few short days, Shen Siyuan had genuinely grown fond of this sensible and well-behaved little girl.

If she chose to leave of her own accord, he would respect her decision.

But there was no reincarnation in this world. To leave meant to leave completely — dust to dust, earth to earth, vanishing utterly from this world.

With this thought, Shen Siyuan suddenly found the steamed buns in his hand less appetizing.