Blind Optimism

Liu Xinyu didn't stay to enjoy Yiyi's dark face. This ghost looked like she lost her soul. That didn't sound right but whatever. This was the impression, Liu Xinyu got from Yiyi who seemed to be struggling with the reality she just faced. Liu Xinyu couldn't blame her either for this reaction. Even she would have never thought that she would be able to deal some damage to a ghost one day. 

It actually felt good. As for Yiyi whose three world views were shifting, she had no energy or time to spare to think about what was on Liu Xinyu's mind. Currently, she was too busy accepting the experience of being flicked. 

No one dared to flick her forehead even when she was alive but... All she could say was that she had fallen from her throne after dying. What else was left to experience now? It seemed her intuition about Liu Xinyu was right from the beginning. This girl was really a bundle of surprises. However, it was hard to tell whether Yiyi liked this surprise of being hit or not.

Liu Xinyu ate breakfast with Yi Qin and started sorting out the things he brought from home. Looking at the jars of pickles she smiled happily. 

"I am leaving now," informed Yi Qin. "Let's meet at night."

Liu Xinyu waved him goodbye and focused back on arranging the kitchen which finally didn't look as bare as it did the day before yesterday. It finally seemed like someone lived here. 

Yiyi finally snapped out of her disbelief and walked to her as she asked, "How did you do it? No, why are you able to do it? It shouldn't be like this. Even if you are a Taoist Priest, you'd need some instruments or talismans to be able to hurt a ghost. Humans can't really touch ghosts."

"I have a serious question though," responded Liu Xinyu calmly. "Am I a human?"

"Aren't you?"

"I can see you here," replied Liu Xinyu. "It means, I have one foot in the land of living and the other in the land of the dead. What does that make me exactly? I don't what it makes me but one thing is certain I am indeed quite special."

Yiyi stared at her and didn't refute her words. Of course, she knew that Liu Xinyu was born with a special constitution. She wasn't able to see how special it was though because something seemed to be concealing it. 

"When did you realize it?" asked Yiyi seriously. "When did you realize that you could touch me?"

Liu Xinyu closed the fridge and leaned against the kitchen counter as she faced Yiyi to ask, "Do you think I'm easily startled?"

Yiyi frowned not understanding why she would ask this inexplicable question but she still answered honestly, "No. If you were so easily startled, you'd have screamed the first time you realized that you could see me. Even when your eyes met mine, you managed to compose yourself instantly and hid your surprise very well. In fact, no one could tell that there was something wrong with you. I understood at that time that your mental fortitude is quite strong. You wouldn't be fazed by things easily even if it involves things beyond your comprehension."

Liu Xinyu smiled in response and not so humbly accepted all the compliments, "I didn't know you had such a high view of me. But I'm flattered."

"Be serious."

Liu Xinyu dropped the smile and got back to the question she asked, "Then why do you think that I was startled enough by you to fall into the water?"

Yiyi recalled that incident. It's true that she was coming on too strong and kept pestering Liu Xinyu too but the latter showed no reaction to anything she did. Even if she kept hopping around her, Liu Xinyu didn't spare her a glance. But just once she came close behind her, she was startled enough to lose her balance to fall into the water?

In fact, she had her doubts about this incident too.

"What about it?" she asked for clarification.

"It's because I felt your body touch mine that I was startled enough to lose my composure along with my balance to fall into the water. You might not have noticed but, I am pretty sensitive to touch. Even if it was merely a light touch, I did feel your arm touching my back which caught me off guard."

Yiyi had a look of understanding as she nodded in response. "That explains your reaction. That also explains why you were willing to acknowledge my presence after that too."

Liu Xinyu shrugged, "I won't deny it. I indeed decided to talk to you because I was curious. Being able to see ghosts didn't feel like a big deal to me but being able to feel the touch of a ghost made everything intriguing."

"It's really difficult to understand your intentions," was Yiyi's answer to her. 

"You only need to understand one thing. Be careful before speaking about my father," said Liu Xinyu with a sharp look in her eyes. "I don't like people saying irresponsible things about my parents. They are my bottom line. No matter how many flaws they have, they will still be the best parents to me. And trust me, their flaws couldn't be more than mine. So, be careful. I am not as nice as my father. Next time, you better watch what you say."

Yiyi knew she would come to this topic. How could she not understand this girl's nature? Liu Xinyu was too protective of her parents. Especially, her father. 

"I'll keep it in mind," replied Yiyi. "But aren't you a little too protective?"

"You should be glad that you met a protective freak like me. If you had met my mother and said the same words in front of her, she'd make you regret even being here as a ghost. She is the real possessive person in our family. In fact, she can be a yandere when it comes to my Pa."

"What's a yandere?" asked Yiyi in confusion.

Liu Xinyu facepalmed herself saying, "This is why I don't vibe with old people. When are you gonna stop asking me meaning of words?"

"Is it my fault that you all changed the whole language and created weird terms? I am also trying to absorb everything like a sponge. But it's too much!"

Liu Xinyu also knew she couldn't blame this ghost for everything so she just nicely explained the meaning of yandere to Yiyi while taking the keys to go out.

"Where are you going now?" asked Yiyi.

"Sadly, money won't fall from the sky. I need to work for it," replied Liu Xinyu. "And for that, I have to step out of this house and see what are my options."

Yiyi agreed with this and followed her out too. 

"Do you have any money making plan?" asked Yiyi.

"I don't," answered Liu Xinyu. "But it's okay. Now that I have decided to earn money, it'll come to me."

"You're too sure about that, eh?"

"Anything is possible if you work for it."

"Did you get your optimism from your father?"

"I did," Liu Xinyu didn't deny those words. "But I am not just blindly optimistic. I also know my strengths and have faith in my skills. Since my luck never gave me a chance to be proud of it, I decided to depend on my skills. So, you'll be surprised to know what I am capable of."

"I'm already surprised enough," muttered Yiyi to herself.