"how are things"

“It’s not good,” Abu said sadly, his whole being immersed in grief.

"Who bullied you? Or were you punished?" Huaiying clenched her fist, mentally calculating how to stand up for her good friend.

“No,” Abu looked up, his eyes red and glistening with tears. “I just feel that life is really meaningless.”

Huaiying reached out and grabbed his wrist, examining him thoroughly.

"With stagnant liver qi and excessive worry, what can't you overcome?"

He's a carefree, optimistic person who's almost eccentric. What happened to him?

“I met a person from the Demon Realm in the lair of the Beast of the Wind… He seemed like a good person… He died saving me.” Abu spoke haltingly, constantly observing Huaiying’s expression. “So I’m wondering… if… there might be… good people among the Demon Realm?”

"Impossible," Huaiying said decisively.

"What if I'm from the Demon Realm?" Abu suppressed the bitterness in his heart and asked urgently what she thought.

“You’re not,” Huaiying thought his words were really nonsensical.

"Don't joke around. If you're going to turn yourself in, don't drag anyone else into it. If you're from the Demon Realm, not only will you be severely punished, but everyone from the person who helped you enter Demon Island to your current teacher and close friends will be thoroughly investigated."

"Oh," Abu forced a smile, revealing a wry grin. "Actually, I was just joking."

After being depressed for so many days, he finally understood that his previous medical reports were all normal. As long as he didn't choose another path, he would remain the same person he is now.

Huaiying raised her hand and patted his shoulder to comfort him, "Don't think too much, just focus on your studies."

"The last mission was just an accident. Let's find another opportunity to get out later."

"...I'm grounded," Abu said awkwardly. "I can't get out."

Although the island of Bamo is devoid of human warmth and has extremely strict rules, lacking much affection, it treats these children very well, providing them with no difference in terms of education or material support.

"I'm not as carefree as before, but once we're adults, we can go wherever we want." Huaiying was in a very good mood.

She can cultivate now, and her father has emerged from seclusion. If only her brother and Xuanming could come back.

...

The two seemed to have returned to their previous way of getting along, not taking the past issues to heart.

However, Huai Yuanchu discovered their affair and caught them red-handed.

"Ah Ying, who is he?"

Huaiying, who was "my friend," remained calm but hesitated to introduce Abu in detail.

“Hmm,” Huai Yuan Chu said silently, looking at the two of them. “You can also bring your friends home to play. Father has to go out, so you should listen to the elder.”

"Okay," Huaiying felt nervous under his gaze, but relaxed when she saw that he wasn't angry.

“Your father seems a bit serious,” Abu said, rubbing his sweaty palms.

“He’s just fierce when he’s not talking, but he’s usually very kind,” Huaiying explained to him.

"Hey, wait a minute, you're not an orphan." Abu's eyes widened in surprise.

"When did I say I was an orphan?" Huaiying tilted her head to look at him.

Abu: ...I've been fooled.