I’ve Fallen…

After a particularly awkward dinner, the Wen family members all silently went off to attend to their own matters.

After the meal, Yan Heqing slung his backpack over his shoulder, grabbed Cuihong, and together with Wen Chu, they went to the backyard.

In front of Wen Chu, Yan Heqing this time was even more meticulous than yesterday, carefully inspecting the entire yard, even going over the knee-high grass, holding a wooden hammer as he walked, tapping the air while mumbling to himself.

Cuihong followed behind him, careful not to step on any plants, occasionally glancing at Wen Chu standing to the side.

Wen Chu’s expression remained unreadable.

However, Cuihong noticed that even though Wen Chu’s face looked more unpleasant than if he’d eaten a fly, his gaze never left Yan Heqing as he walked.

Cuihong thought for a moment and concluded that Mr. Wen was likely worried that Yan Heqing wasn’t being thorough, so he came to supervise.

With this reasoning in mind, Cuihong also followed suit, thoroughly checking the yard for any suspicious areas.

After three hours of careful inspection, both of their faces looked worse than Wen Chu’s.

Yan Heqing, no longer motivated by the desire for money, looked increasingly frustrated, his tone slightly rude as he spoke: “Mr. Wen, Cuihong and I have thoroughly checked. We are absolutely certain, without a doubt, that there is no problem in this backyard.”

“Is that so?” Wen Chu, standing to the side, wore an expression as calm as ever, as though everything was under his control. One hand was casually resting behind him, and in a place where neither of them noticed, the fingers of the hand were pointing slightly behind his back.

In the next moment, the largest ancient tree in the Wen family’s backyard began to sway with the wind.

The ancient tree, with its sprawling roots resembling a dragon, occupied a small portion of the yard. It was the height of summer, and the green leaves were rustling in the evening breeze.

Even those who had been so sure there was no problem now started to notice something odd about the tree as the sound of their conversation was gradually drowned out by the rustling of the leaves.

Yan Heqing’s gaze followed the tree, and after a few seconds of staring at it, his face showed signs of confusion.

“Mr. Wen, I think I’ve found the problem now.” As he spoke, Yan Heqing never took his eyes off the tree.

Without waiting for Wen Chu’s response, he walked straight toward the tree.

Cuihong stood behind, looking left and right but couldn’t see anything wrong. It hurried to catch up with Yan Heqing, whispering, “Yan Xian, what’s wrong with the tree? I don’t see it.”

Standing at a distance with the final payment in hand, Wen Chu was close to the peculiar tree.

Hearing Cuihong’s question, Yan Heqing, as its guardian, felt the need to answer, so he solemnly stopped walking and, with an exaggerated tone, called out: “Idiot.”

Cuihong: “…”

After calling the bird an idiot, Yan Heqing decided to explain. Using the rustling of the leaves as cover, he said, “Look at the leaves on that tree, fluttering wildly like your thought process when you’re trying to figure something out. How could that be normal?”

After explaining, the two of them arrived beside the ancient tree.

Yan Heqing pointed to the large tree, which was so wide it required three people to hug it, and asked Wen Chu, “Is this tree valuable?”

Wen Chu looked at him, and after a few seconds, replied, “Depends.”

“Depends on what?” Yan Heqing asked.

“Making beads, furniture—it’s valuable. In your junkyard, it’s not worth anything.”

Yan Heqing: “Even trees have a social hierarchy?”

Wen Chu looked at the increasingly twisted expression on Yan Heqing’s face and couldn’t help but laugh. “Hainan Yellow Rosewood. You can look it up online.”

Upon hearing the answer, Yan Heqing immediately pulled out his phone, ignoring the ancient tree that was swaying wildly nearby.

Half a minute later, Yan Heqing resignedly put his phone back in his pocket.

Still confused, Cuihong asked, “So? Is it expensive?”

Yan Heqing turned to Cuihong, his expression serious as he replied, “You could sell your whole Phoenix bird and still not be able to afford it.”

“Ah!” The bird, startled and pale with fright, instinctively backed away, only to have its heels hit something alive.

The next moment, its ankle was entangled by the earthy tree roots. Cuihong stiffened, looking down at its leg in shock.

“Save me—!”

In an instant, the bird that had been peacefully standing beside Yan Heqing was suddenly lifted off the ground by the tree roots, dangling in midair.

Blood rushed to its head, and the suffocating feeling from the lack of oxygen started to overwhelm it. The normally timid Cuihong’s eyes filled with tears, but being upside down, it couldn’t cry.

Struggling, it finally managed to yell, “Yan Xian, save me!”

The sudden turn of events was over in just a few seconds, but Yan Heqing reacted quickly. Before the Yellow Rosewood’s roots could reach him, he stretched his arm forward to block it, then used his feet to gain momentum, sliding several meters away and right next to Wen Chu.

Not caring about the frightened cries of Cuihong in midair, Yan Heqing immediately grabbed Wen Chu’s arm.

Wen Chu, without saying a word, followed Yan Heqing.

After getting to a safe spot, Yan Heqing quickly set up a barrier, covering the entire Wen family backyard.

“Mr. Wen, stay inside.” He finished, then turned and ran toward the Yellow Rosewood.

The Yellow Rosewood seemed to have fully awakened, with countless thick, massive roots rising from the ground, all aiming directly for Yan Heqing.

Yan Heqing could only dodge, the ground around him being struck by roots, creating deep holes.

On the surface, it seemed like he was panicking, carelessly running through the yard, but Yan Heqing’s face didn’t show the anxiety one would expect.

While inspecting the yard earlier, he had noticed a large door on the right wall of the Wen family’s house, big enough to allow a crowd to pass through. He realized that if he could lure the tree to that spot, he could break through in one go.

With this thought, Yan Heqing’s steps grew faster, nearly leaving an afterimage behind.

Moments later, he reached the door and swung his palm toward it.

However, contrary to his expectation, the door didn’t open. It remained firmly closed, and his slap was like hitting the air.

For a moment, Yan Heqing’s face changed, his eyes widening in disbelief, and his brows furrowing in confusion.

“Did I just hit an insurance bumper?!”

Yan Heqing slapped the door a few more times, but it remained the same.

In desperation, he spun around, took out a long whip from his bag, held it in his left hand, and ran his right index and middle fingers along its length. Immediately, the whip glowed with a golden light.

He swung it forward with great force, and the effect was immediate.

Several of the tree roots charging ahead were snapped in half by the whip, the broken ends falling to the ground with a loud crash.

Perhaps the whip had such power that even the Yellow Rosewood seemed stunned for a moment. The remaining tree roots hovered in midair, motionless.

This was the moment Yan Heqing had been waiting for.

Seizing the opportunity, he relentlessly swung the whip, breaking every root that tried to stop him. With the golden glow of the whip, he struck the trunk of the Yellow Rosewood.

Instantly, the tree’s branches trembled violently, and its leaves shook erratically, the entire tree letting out a mournful sound.

The root that had been holding Cuihong in the air began to shake, causing Cuihong to swing helplessly in midair. It almost crashed into the wall, and by now, the poor bird had passed out from the lack of oxygen.

Seeing the tree’s branches shaking, Yan Heqing seized the moment, leaping into the air, using the roots as leverage to propel himself toward the top of the Yellow Rosewood.

When the whip struck the tree’s core, all the tree trunks began to contract violently.

Without hesitation, Yan Heqing whipped the tree several more times, making sure the tree regretted its transformation.

After enough strikes, Yan Heqing turned, ready to rescue Cuihong, but to his shock, there was no sign of the bird in the air anymore.

Within a few steps, he had returned to the ground and began searching. After a moment, he found the unconscious Cuihong in the corner of the yard, just as the entire Yellow Rosewood collapsed, sending a huge crash through the yard and covering everyone in dust.

---

When Cuihong woke up, it was amazed to find that it was no longer in the tree’s grasp but lying peacefully in the bed of the guest room prepared for them by the Wen family.

“You’re awake?” Yan Heqing, looking exhausted, weakly offered some comfort.

Lying in the bed, Cuihong realized it was actually in humanoid form, which meant that Yan Heqing’s cleanliness obsession had led him to avoid sharing a bed with it.

Which meant… Yan Heqing must have stayed by its side all night.

Once this idea clicked, Cuihong looked at Yan Heqing with eyes full of gratitude, as if it would serve him for lifetimes to come to repay him.

Feeling a bit uncomfortable under that intense gaze, Yan Heqing quickly raised his hand in front of Cuihong’s face.

“Stop looking at me like that, it’s creepy. I didn’t do anything. I slept in a different room last night. I just happened to return early today and caught you waking up.”

The bitter truth hit like a bullet to Cuihong’s head, and before it could react, its lips sank.

“I see…”

“Then, what, you want me to watch over you all night?”

“Is that impossible?” Cuihong asked, showing some spine for the first time.

But Yan Heqing quickly denied it. “No, no, I’m not just sitting here looking after you for fun. You’re a Phoenix bird, your body functions are much better than mine. In the same situation, if I had fallen, you wouldn’t have suffered anything.”

At those words, Cuihong’s face immediately turned serious, and it frantically grabbed Yan Heqing’s wrist. “Yan Xian, quickly say ‘fu fu fu’ three times and stomp your foot three times!”

The sentence, which Yan Heqing had made up to comfort Cuihong, unexpectedly triggered such a strong reaction.

“What’s wrong with you? It’s just a joke, don’t take it seriously.” Yan Heqing, rarely being patient, tried to calm the bird.

Cuihong frowned, the corners of its mouth turned down, and it kept its gaze fixed on Yan Heqing’s face, sounding extremely aggrieved. “Yan Xian, promise me you won’t say things like this in the future, okay?”

Seeing the bird’s miserable expression, Yan Heqing nodded in agreement. “Alright, alright, I won’t say that again.”