"She is my subordinate," Ouyang Ye's attitude became exceptionally serious.
"I see," Mu Anxiao said, deliberately trying to probe Ouyang Ye's thoughts, "And more than that, isn't it?"
"What do you mean by that?" Ouyang Ye retorted, his eyes filled with surprise at Mu Anxiao's question.
Seeing Ouyang Ye's obvious surprise, Mu Anxiao's lips curved upwards slightly. "I think you like her. I've never seen you so concerned about any of your subordinates before."
"Have you ever made a promise to anyone?" Ouyang Ye suddenly asked.
Mu Anxiao was immediately speechless upon hearing this.
Then, Ouyang Ye glanced at Hun Ling and Jia, and asked, "If I kill them right now, what will you do?"
"I'll settle the score with you, if the conditions allow," Mu Anxiao replied, glancing over Ouyang Ye's face, and continued, "I will kill you without mercy, because I promised myself that I must keep them alive." She was completely swayed by Ouyang Ye's emotions.
Similarly, Jia and Hun Ling were instantly moved by Mu Anxiao's words.
Ouyang Ye's lips curled. "I have the same thought as you, which is why I want to find the real culprit behind Gu Yuan's murder."
"You promised her... not to kill her?"
Ouyang Ye shook his head.
Mu Anxiao looked puzzled. "Then what did you promise her?"
"To live," Ouyang Ye said, his voice deepening. "To always live, to never die."
"From the moment she left her soul, she was already dead. You this..." Mu Anxiao said, seeing Ouyang Ye's self-congratulatory expression, and laughed. "You really know how to comfort yourself."
"Their second life, I gave it to them," Ouyang Ye said in a low voice.
Mu Anxiao had never seen Ouyang Ye so subdued. Looking at him like this, she couldn't help but show a look of confusion. "Are you sad for yourself, or for her?"
"What do you think?" Ouyang Ye countered.
To this, Mu Anxiao's mouth twitched, truly embarrassed by Ouyang Ye's question. "How would I know." She raised her hand to scratch the back of her head.
Ouyang Ye smiled down. "You say you understand me, but in reality, you don't understand me at all."
"You..." Mu Anxiao uttered a single word, then pondered Ouyang Ye's words, immediately giving up the idea of arguing. She let out a cold laugh. "Indeed, I don't understand you very well."
"Similarly, I don't understand you either," Ouyang Ye said, meeting Mu Anxiao's eyes. "To this day, I still can't tell... whether you actually like Feng Qi Shi or not. Isn't that ridiculous?"
"..." Mu Anxiao didn't want to continue this topic with Ouyang Ye, and lowered her head as if to avoid it.
Seeing this, Ouyang Ye laughed.
Hearing this, Mu Anxiao pouted, tilted her head up, and glared at Ouyang Ye. "..." She remained silent.
Then, Ouyang Ye withdrew the smile from his face and said in a low voice, "I believe you can help me find the real culprit."
"Didn't you say it was among them? If so, you can just ask them..."
"They are my subordinates, and there are some things I cannot bring myself to ask," Ouyang Ye interrupted.
Cannot bring himself to ask?
However, after Mu Anxiao learned about the events of a year ago from Hei Qi, she had always thought of Ouyang Ye as a 'great demon' who killed without blinking. Naturally, he wouldn't show mercy to any of his subordinates. But... now he said he couldn't bear to do it.
Hearing his words, Mu Anxiao truly... didn't know what to say.
So, she gave Ouyang Ye a dry laugh.
Seeing this, Ouyang Ye's face fell. "What do you mean by that?"
"I'm surprised that there are things you can't bring yourself to do," Mu Anxiao said frankly, no longer bothering to hide it.
"In your eyes, I am indeed such a wicked demon," Ouyang Ye said, understanding Mu Anxiao's meaning, and felt a sense of loss.
Mu Anxiao shrugged her shoulders.
"What do you mean by that?" Ouyang Ye asked again.
Mu Anxiao smiled, pointed at Ouyang Ye, and said, "I know now."
"Know what?" Ouyang Ye was completely confused.
"You married me because you wanted to use me. All this talk of 'liking' is just a set of words for me. In fact," Mu Anxiao said, meeting Ouyang Ye's eyes intently, "you just want to use my hand to do bad things. That way, your subordinates won't think badly of you. Ha, what a perfect case of killing with a borrowed knife."
"Mu Anxiao..."
"So, don't worry, I will absolutely not get involved in this matter," Mu Anxiao interrupted sternly, extending her hand to show her resolve.
Seeing Mu Anxiao like this, Ouyang Ye suddenly smiled.
Mu Anxiao looked at him and slowly lowered her hand. "What are you laughing at?" She was puzzled by Ouyang Ye's sudden action.
"Alright, if you don't want to help me, then so be it."
"I don't believe you'll give up so easily," Mu Anxiao said directly, staring at Ouyang Ye's face.
Ouyang Ye smiled down. "Gu Yan and Gu Yan are my capable assistants. If I, in front of you, use my methods to find the real culprit, you..." He leaned in slightly, "Aren't you truly afraid?"
"What do you mean?" Ouyang Ye's sudden reversal confused Mu Anxiao.
"Alright, use your bag to collect the vengeful spirits," Ouyang Ye said, pointing at the vengeful spirits frozen in place, and turned his back.
Seeing this, Mu Anxiao was completely bewildered. "Ouyang Ye, what exactly do you mean?"
"I really didn't expect that one of my words could make you think so much. Since that's the case," Ouyang Ye said, turning back to look at Mu Anxiao, "I won't have you help me anymore. Gu Yuan's death, I will handle it myself, I won't trouble you."
"You just... did that on purpose," Mu Anxiao suddenly realized.
"I gave you a chance to handle this matter, but you disagreed, so I will resolve it myself."
Ouyang Ye's sudden change of tack was a show of force for Mu Anxiao. Looking at him, she truly felt his methods and thoughts. She slightly lowered her eyes, and suddenly felt like she had been a fool just now. Thinking of this, she couldn't help but smile.
Ouyang Ye looked at the smile that suddenly appeared on Mu Anxiao's face, paused for a few seconds, and said faintly, "I made a promise to these vengeful spirits. Please collect them."
"A promise to live?" Mu Anxiao blurted out.
Ouyang Ye nodded. "Yes, only by entering the bag can the resentment in their soul bodies be sealed. So, please..." he said, glancing again at Hun Ling and Jia, "I trouble you."
"You were waiting for us all along? So you deliberately stood there and didn't move," Mu Anxiao guessed.
Ouyang Ye smiled down. "That's right. As soon as I arrived, I felt Gu Yuan's soul presence. From that moment on, I knew something had happened to Gu Yuan. And from that moment on, I discovered... they were acting strangely." As he spoke, he glanced towards the shops.
"As expected of a demon," Mu Anxiao pouted, turning to look at Hun Ling who had walked beside her, and said, "Teach me, and I'll do it with you." She handed the bag to Hun Ling.
Hun Ling nodded.
At this time, Jia was still hiding behind Hun Ling.