"What are you thinking about?" Xu Liang’s voice suddenly rang out, just as Tan You was conversing with Ji Li.

Tan You snapped back to reality and glanced at the villagers. "I was just thinking... how nice things are right now."

With Ji Li back, Tan You could finally relax. At the end of the day, those were *her* family members; Ji Li had to be the one to face them. At that thought, Tan You decisively swapped control of the body back to Ji Li.

Once she was back in control of her own body, the first thing Ji Li did wasn’t to speak with Xu Liang, but to pull out her phone, open the camera, and examine her reflection from every angle. She had already seen her face a moment ago, but she still wanted to see it again for herself.

"You’re already very pretty. I’ve never seen you stare at your camera like this before," Xu Liang said after watching for two minutes, unable to take it anymore.

Ji Li’s hand paused, and a faint smile touched her lips. "Mm, I just suddenly realized how pretty I am now."

Xu Liang stated matter-of-factly, "You’ve always been pretty. From the moment I met you until now, you’ve always been pretty."

Ji Li’s smile faded a little. "I... wasn’t this pretty before."

Xu Liang replied, "Are you talking about those old photos of you? Really, your skin was just a bit tanner and rougher, and your complexion wasn’t great, but you were still quite delicate-looking when you dressed up."

"No wonder they say girls blossom as they grow up. You’ve really changed a lot. It’s like you blossomed overnight."

Ji Li hadn’t expected Xu Liang to come up with such a perfect excuse for her, and a light smile immediately touched her eyes. Unlike Tan You, Ji Li wasn’t someone who smiled often.

Tan You didn’t smile much either, but Ji Li seemed even more reserved than her. When Tan You smiled, it always started in her eyes, but Ji Li’s smiles were different. Perhaps because her past had been so bitter and her moments of happiness so few, it was hard for Ji Li to show much emotion.

Of course, the one person who *could* stir her emotions in the past was Wen Zhe. At the thought of him, Ji Li put her phone away, suppressing the bitter feelings.

’Are you still thinking of rekindling things with Wen Zhe?’ Tan You asked curiously.

’No,’ Ji Li denied. ’Since a choice has been made and we’ve made a clean break, we shouldn’t have anything to do with each other anymore. You were right. What I need is someone who will stand firmly by my side, not someone like Wen Zhe.’

’Pining for him for so many years has been hard enough. I don’t want to keep suffering.’ She stretched lazily and then looked at Xu Liang. "I’ve looked long enough. Shall we head back?"

Xu Liang said, "Yeah, let’s go. There’s not much for us to do here anyway. What are you planning to do when you get back?"

Ji Li thought for a moment. "A big clean-up, I think. I’ve been so busy lately that I haven’t been able to take care of the house. I’m planning to give the place a thorough deep clean."

Xu Liang nodded. "That’s a good idea. Your old house could really use some fixing up."

Ji Li mulled over her savings and was a bit surprised. "That’s what I was thinking too. You know how people talk about ’decluttering’? I’m about to do a major round of that myself."

Back at the old house, only Grandma Shen was home. Ji Li greeted her grandmother and went to her room. Soon after, she came out holding a small box.

Xu Liang was sitting in the hallway, slowly sipping a cup of light tea. He couldn’t help but smile when he saw the small box. "What’s that? It looks pretty old."

"Just some unimportant things." Ji Li pursed her lips and squatted down next to the charcoal brazier.

Xu Liang stopped drinking his tea. "Do you mind if I watch?"

"Of course not. It’s all stuff I’ve already decided to get rid of." Ji Li’s lips twitched into a small smile as she opened the little box.

Xu Liang glanced inside. There was just a bouquet of dried flowers, a notebook, and a few other odds and ends—a worn-out wristband, some buttons. They looked like they belonged to a boy.

Ji Li looked at the items for a moment, then picked up the bouquet of dried flowers first.

"Roses? Who sent them?" Even though they were dried, Xu Liang recognized them at a glance.

"Wen Zhe did," Ji Li said, placing the bouquet on the charcoal brazier. The dried flowers quickly began to burn, losing their former shape. "His third girlfriend broke up with him right on Valentine’s Day. He had already bought the flowers, and since he couldn’t give them to her, he gave them to me instead."

Watching the dried flowers slowly turn to ash, Ji Li looked away and picked up the notebook from the box. Without minding Xu Liang’s presence, she opened it and began looking through it, page by page.

She would read a page, then tear it out and toss it onto the brazier, until only the cover was left.

Xu Liang caught a few sentences. "I guessed back then that you had a crush on him. I never saw you deal with this stuff before, so why today...?"

"Maybe it’s to say a final goodbye." Ji Li poked at the burning paper. "By getting rid of all this, I can finally kick him out of my life for good."

She said this with a small laugh. "I thought I would be heartbroken, but now I realize I’m not. He wasn’t that important to me after all. I’ve finally escaped that prison."

Ji Li disposed of the notebook, the dried flowers, and anything else that could burn. All that remained were a few scattered items. She picked up the box and casually dumped its contents into the trash can. She felt as if she had broken free from her shackles; it seemed like nothing could hold her back anymore.

"I’m very happy to be able to deal with all this myself and make a clean break from the past."

Xu Liang asked probingly, "But you’ve had a crush on him for so many years. Are you really just giving up like that? I thought he broke up with his girlfriend."

Ji Li replied, "We’re not the same kind of people. I crave stability, while he craves novelty. All I want is a small, warm home, but that’s not him. He’ll always stop and linger for the next new thing. Our needs are fundamentally different."

"Even if he’s single, and even if he liked me, I still wouldn’t get together with him, because we’d break up sooner or later anyway." She glanced at Xu Liang. "So, let’s not talk about him anymore. There’s really no point."

Xu Liang shrugged. "Alright, we won’t. You know, I’ve never seen someone handle things quite like you. Unrequited love... only the person going through it knows how painful it is."

"That’s why I’ll never have an unrequited crush on anyone again as long as I live," Ji Li said with a shrug of her own. "It’s better to just love myself more. As for love, whatever happens, happens."

Seeing Xu Liang go back to his tea, Ji Li also picked up a cup. ’I’m really grateful that you left the task of dealing with these things to me. Only by getting rid of them myself do I feel like I’ve truly said goodbye to my past.’

’It wasn’t a task to be left to you. They were your things to begin with,’ Tan You said coolly. ’I’m very aware of boundaries. I wouldn’t overstep my bounds and handle someone else’s private matters. I actually thought you’d resent me for distancing you from Wen Zhe.’

’How could I?’ Ji Li’s smile softened. ’I’m just grateful that you helped me make this decision. Honestly, toward the end, I kept wondering... did I really like Wen Zhe? Or was it just because I’d been pining for him for so many years that I couldn’t let go of the sunk cost?’