Minglu actually found the guitar two days ago.

The luthier's craftsmanship is very good. There is almost no waste of the surfboard wood, and it is all cleverly embedded into the body of the guitar according to the curve. After being thrown in the corner of the storage room for ten years, the guitar case has fallen apart, the strings are covered with rust, and the tone has become soft and dull.

Fortunately, the seaside is never too dry, so the deformation and cracking of the panel are not serious. Minglu had the guitar sent to a professional technician to be repaired and had new strings replaced. The repaired guitar is now placed in Luo Chi's room.

The reason why I didn’t tell Luo Chi immediately... was because I didn’t know how to explain this to him.

Now Luo Chi doesn’t remember that Aunt Ren has passed away.

"Sir," Ming Lu said in a low voice, "I asked Xun Zhen, and he also felt that... it's better not to say anything for now."

Ming Weiting slowed down his strength, carefully lifted up Luo Chi's head and neck, and took a soft pillow to place underneath.

Luo Chi's breathing was still steady, but he seemed to be worried even when he was asleep. He curled up on the sofa, frowning slightly unconsciously.

Ming Lu hesitated for a while, and tried to ask: "Just say that Madam Ren is on a business trip? There is an important business that she must discuss in person, and she can't come back for the time being..."

"He's feeling so miserable." Ming Weiting whispered, "Why wouldn't Madam Ren come?"

Minglu was stunned for a moment, then he realized that this statement obviously did not stand up to scrutiny.

Luo Chengxiu would actually throw his son, who had just been found and was covered in injuries, to the hospital while he went abroad to negotiate business for three months... But if it were Ren Shuangmei, there was no way she would do that.

Luo Chi’s illness is definitely not as simple as a broken leg. He himself could not have been unaware, nor could he have been completely without a premonition of his physical condition.

Xun Zhen came to see him and said that Luo Chi's recuperation these days was better than expected. After another week or two of conditioning, he could start preparing for the surgery. At that time, I will have to go back to the hospital and do a lot of tests, and the medicines used will be more irritating to the body.

If Ren Shuangmei were still alive, she would put aside even the most important business and rush back to accompany Luo Chi.

There is no reasonable logic to explain this.

Even though he doesn't remember too many things, Luo Chi is still very smart and perceptive, and he doesn't just blindly accept all information without questioning... Luo Chi might have discovered a long time ago that Mr. Shadow and Uncle Lu were hiding something from him, and they didn't know how to tell him.

Perhaps it was because he realized this that Luo Chi suddenly remembered the game of Truth or Dare and asked them to play together.

But to be honest...

Minglu stood there, finally in a dilemma: "Sir, Huo Miao has only been happy for a few days."

The childish and carefree Luo Chi is certainly not complete now, but Luo Chi is recuperating, so it is particularly important for him to maintain a relaxed and happy mood.

Besides, Minglu couldn't help but think that Luo Chi's past life was really hard. It's the right thing to do, just not worry about anything and have fun for a while.

Ming Weiting didn't say anything, but just pushed aside Luo Chi's hair and touched his forehead with the back of his hand.

His original intention was to see if Luo Chi had a fever or night sweats, but he suddenly realized something and leaned over his shoulder and whispered, "Flame?"

Minglu was stunned and looked over in surprise.

The medicine Luo Chi uses at night contains a strong sleeping pill, so it is difficult to wake him up after he falls into a deep sleep. He had already taken medicine tonight and should have been very sleepy, so Ming Weiting carried him to rest.

Ming Lu was about to walk over quickly, but when he saw Ming Weiting, he shook his head slightly and stopped.

Ming Weiting raised his hand and covered Luo Chi's eyes.

Luo Chi closed his eyes and curled up quietly on the sofa, not moving or making a sound, his eyelashes trembling silently in his palm.

Ming Weiting waited until the faint trembling stopped before he moved his hand away, picked Luo Chi up from the sofa and stood up.

He shook his head silently at Minglu, then carried Luo Chi out of the living room.

Walking up the stairs to the second floor, Ming Weiting raised his hands to put his arms around Luo Chi's shoulders, letting him lean against him, and slowly patted his thin back in his arms.

Luo Chi would not be unaware of this. The changes in this villa, Luo Chi’s own physical condition, Aunt Ren hasn’t come back after waiting for so long... The answers are not difficult to find, but after finding the answers, how do you try to believe and accept them.

Luo Chi still has many regrets about this matter.

He was unable to see Aunt Ren for the last time, was unable to fulfill Aunt Ren's last wish to scatter her ashes into the sea and travel around the world, and was unable to tell Aunt Ren in time that he dreamed of becoming a family with her.

Because of these, Luo Chi always felt guilty and tied himself to Aunt Ren's grave. This is the real reason why he has not left here.

Luo Chi was worried that Aunt Ren would feel bored sleeping alone in that cold and luxurious cemetery with no one to talk to.

Aunt Ren loves excitement and stimulation so much, how could she stand boredom?

…

Minglu followed quietly and pushed open the door of the bedroom on the second floor.

He watched Ming Weiting put Luo Chi on the bed, then skillfully placed the pillows and tidied the quilt, then turned on the ambient light under the bed, quietly left the room and closed the door.

Ming Weiting covered himself with the quilt and sat on the edge of the bed.

The lighting in the bedroom is dim and soft, and the visual effect is very comfortable.

The terrace does have a great view and is quite spacious, with the moonlight turning half of the floor tiles silver. The light coming in from the window fell on the carpet and extended to the edge of the piano stand.

The room was exceptionally quiet. Just by sitting on the edge of the bed, one could hear the sound of the waves not far away.

Ming Weiting sat for a while, then reached out and gently touched Luo Chi's hair: "Flame."

Before Uncle Lu returned to the villa, he chose the big dare because he couldn't answer a question, and promised to find a peach-flavored candy for Luo Chi tomorrow.

In fact, there was nothing special about the question. Luo Chi just wanted him to tell a story that happened in the past.

…

As for the reason why he couldn't answer, it was simply because Ming Weiting had not prepared in advance.

In fact, he was not good at chatting at all, and even worse at talking about himself. He couldn't think of anything suitable to say that could describe what happened without having to choose the words carefully.

Ming Weiting put his hand over Luo Chi's eyes again. This time, the eyelashes in his palm were very still, and there was no detectable movement.

"Five years ago," Ming Weiting said, "my father passed away."

Ming Weiting was silent for a while, then continued: "During that time, I didn't know what I felt."

The Ming family has distant relatives, and Ming Weiting was raised by Ming Lu. He does not remember having any warm memories with his family, but there have also been no conflicts or injuries.

The previous generation of the Ming family died unexpectedly in a shipwreck. The situation was very chaotic at the time. I was basically busy with this matter for the next three years or so, and didn't have much spare time to think about it in detail.

But even so, when he occasionally sat down and suddenly realized this, Ming Weiting would still remember the confusion he felt when he first heard the news.

Sadness and longing only come later, the initial feeling is just confusion.

The person with whom I had a close connection suddenly disappeared and could never be found again. I suddenly felt a strong sense of confusion and didn't know which direction to go.

So even though he was far from being able to empathize with her, he could still understand why Luo Chi didn't cry at Mrs. Ren's funeral.

"I saw you ten years ago." Ming Weiting touched Luo Chi's hair. "I didn't get off the boat to look for you at that time because I was thinking, how could there be such a cool fire? No one should disturb him."

He didn't know that Luo Chi didn't know this, so he wrote down the word "cool" and repeated it to him.

The Ming family has been living on the cruise ship, occasionally getting off the ship to go on vacation to the island. No matter how luxurious a cruise ship is, it always has boundaries; no matter how big an island is, it is surrounded by water. Those boundaries should not be used to trap the fire.

"I regret this."

Ming Weiting said: "I just thought there shouldn't be any borders, but you lost your home that year."

Luo Chi had his eyes covered by him, his chest did not move at the last word, as if this body suddenly forgot to breathe.

Ming Weiting did not move his hand away.

He noticed Luo Chi shaking his head.

Perhaps it was because the fog was too far away from the outside, or perhaps the medicine he had taken had already taken effect, the strength Luo Chi could muster was too weak, and the force of his shake of the head was almost unnoticeable.

But Luo Chi still shook his head stubbornly, refusing to share even a little bit of the responsibility with him.

So Ming Weiting also changed his words: "...but."

He noticed that Luo Chi stopped to listen, so he continued: "But, based on what I would do at that time, if I got off the boat, I would probably knock on the door and invite you to join the Ming family."

The Ming family has always been like this. Blood relationship is actually not important. When they see someone with talent, they will invite him to join. Uncle Lu used to be a doorman at the hotel. He was invited by his grandfather to board the ship when he was a teenager. He has been through ups and downs for nearly sixty years.

He would not choose to get off the boat too early, as Luo Chi would probably be asleep by then. It was very likely that Aunt Ren would come to open the door and meet an uninvited guest who came late at night to change Huo Miao's surname.

"Then," Ming Weiting imitated him, "Auntie would raise a broom and chase me out."

Luo Chi coughed.

Ming Weiting saw Luo Chi's mouth corners suddenly purse, and his heart suddenly felt warm.

He didn't know where the warmth came from. He felt the air flow from his eyelashes gently brushing across his palm, so he moved his hand away.

The light in the room was not enough to irritate his vision. Luo Chi opened his eyes and saw him at a glance.

Ming Weiting met Luo Chi's gaze.

…

It was different from these days. Luo Chi was not without worries, but he also remembered nothing, and yet he was not separated by fog.

Luo Chi's eyes were calm and clear. Because of his previous assumption, his eyes curved slightly and there was no moisture in them.

Ming Weiting called him in a low voice: "Huo Miao."

Luo Chi's eyes became more crooked. He looked at Mr. Shadow and tried to gather his strength to speak, but Ming Weiting gently held his wrist and said, "Listen to me."

During these days of living together day and night, Ming Weiting has been learning and finally gradually understands Luo Chi's thoughts and feelings. He touched Luo Chi's eyelashes, and seeing Luo Chi blink, he felt relaxed and his expression became softer.

He thought of the thirteen-year-old Luo Chi, who alone carried Aunt Ren's spirit, alone returned gifts to guests, and alone was Aunt Ren's child.

Luo Chi would never cry at that time, not only because of the intense confusion of being alone in an instant, but also because Luo Chi absolutely did not want to let Aunt Ren worry.

On the day when he discovered that the conch was lost, Luo Chi learned without any instruction how to hide a part of himself.

Luo Chi lost his home overnight. He was no longer protected by anyone and no one taught him what to do, so this became his only way to avoid making Aunt Ren worry.

Late that night when I was sent out, I was nearly suffocated by the unbelievable bad news. I could only bite my arm hard to endure the bone-gnawing pain. I was stuffed into the safest place and kept airtight for ten years.

"We won't let Auntie worry." Ming Weiting said softly, "Let's hide."

Luo Chi blinked and looked up with some curiosity.

Ming Weiting put his arms around his shoulders and lifted him up from his lying position.

This time Luo Chi tried his best to cooperate with his movements, but the strength he could exert was too weak after all, and he had to rely on him to support his arm before he could lean against the head of the bed.

Ming Weiting helped him sit steadily, then stood up and took his coat from the hanger.

Minglu brought this coat up specially and placed it in the room. Ming Weiting had no habit of using perfume, and after he started taking care of Luo Chi, he stopped smoking, so there was no special smell on his body.

Ming Weiting returned to the bedside and covered Luo Chi with his coat.

The sudden darkness startled Luo Chi.

In fact, he was not used to this kind of darkness where he could not detect the outside world, and the dormant uneasiness spread silently. Luo Chi's breathing became a little rapid, and he almost couldn't help wanting to leave immediately.

But the next moment, someone reached out through the darkness and held him firmly again.

Ming Weiting would hold him mostly because Luo Chi was having trouble moving, or because he was too weak and had no strength.

Because he was taking care of someone, Ming Weiting would carefully control the strength every time and pay special attention to the location of the force to prevent Luo Chi from being left hanging in the air or feeling uncomfortable.

The force this time was different from the previous ones, and Luo Chi was almost completely restrained by that force.

He was almost restrained by that force and could not move at all. Or maybe that was not the purpose. The other party was holding him tightly and exerting such force in order to pull him out of something.

Luo Chi choked and coughed. He was sitting in the newly renovated bedroom of the villa - he was of course well aware that the villa had been renovated, and he was well aware that this was not the sea-view villa he was familiar with - he was sitting in the bedroom, but he felt as if he had been dragged out of a dark, icy sea.

He thought he was dead, and then a powerful force dragged him upstream.

He was dragged down by the sea, but someone forced him to come up.

Luo Chi couldn't help but choke and cough. He was no longer in a hurry to get out of the coat. He groped for the arm that was dragging him up through the coat.

He squeezed all the strength out of his bones and sent it all into that hand.

"Flames," Ming Weiting said, "people can't be trapped in a tomb."

Luo Chi held his arm.

"The Ming family has lived on the sea for generations. Some were sent to land, and some were scattered into the sea. When people die, they are free. They will become wind, clouds, or waves."

Ming Weiting said: "Because anything is possible, there is a hypothesis."

"There is a hypothesis that the aunt turned into a wave and found the lost conch."

"The ocean currents on the seabed can only flow in a certain direction and cannot change direction, so you can't move fast with a conch."

"That fan is terrible, always running around."

“It took a lot of missed opportunities and a lot of years.”

Ming Weiting is not good at telling stories at all, especially content like this that has not been prepared in advance. He would stop after saying a sentence and then continue.

"One day, my aunt finally found the fan. She was so tired and angry that she rolled up the conch and threw it away."

Ming Weiting thought for a moment and said, "It hit this fan on the head."

Luo Chi coughed and laughed in his arms.

Luo Chi laughed so hard that his whole body was shaking. His breathing became more and more rapid, and the hand holding Ming Weiting's arm began to tremble slightly.

He curled up little by little and hid himself in the coat.

"Then." Ming Weiting whispered, "I picked it up."

That day, Luo Chi just remembered the conch shell. At Ming Lu's reminder, Ming Weiting had given this answer - at that time he didn't know what was in the conch shell, and he just wanted to appease Luo Chi, so that answer could not really count.

But after that day, Luo Chi didn't ask him again.

Since Luo Chi didn't ask him, he had to make up his own story and give his own answer.

Ming Weiting hid him with his coat to prevent Aunt Ren from seeing the flames and being sad.

Ming Weiting slowly repeated the answer into Luo Chi's left ear through his coat.

"I found it." Ming Weiting said, "So I came to pick you up."

"Now."

Ming Weiting asked softly: "Do I have the honor to invite you home?"