Veil gently pushed the property deed back toward the director, refusing with a soft smile.
"Director, please keep it. It's for the children to live in anyway. Having it with you gives me peace of mind."
The old woman looked at him, gratitude filling her eyes.
"But… Young Master Lancaster, you've gone through so much trouble for this. You even agreed to that outrageous asking price from the building owner, just to be close by."
Her voice trembled.
"Fifty million… that's fifty million! I've lived all these years and never even seen that much money in one place."
Veil shrugged, his smile faint, tinged with fatigue.
"It's just to make it easier for the kids to get to school. After tearing down the old orphanage, I plan to build an elementary school nearby. That way, they'll have a place to study and grow."
The director's heart swelled with warmth. Looking at Veil, she thought—this is what a real businessman should be. The more capable he was, the greater his contributions to society.
Then, turning to Alice, she offered a guilty explanation.
"Young Master Lancaster, this is all my fault. I didn't realize you were planning a surprise for Xiaoxiao. I called her without thinking and then got caught up in negotiating the apartment purchase, completely forgetting to call her back. Please don't blame her—she just cares too deeply about the orphanage that raised her. That's why she lashed out… it was a misunderstanding."
"…"
Alice stood there in a daze, her world slowly crumbling beneath her feet as she listened to the conversation unfold.
The orphanage wasn't forcibly demolished?
The young master had seen that it was in disrepair, decided to rebuild it, and was even planning to construct a school nearby for the children?
He had willingly paid fifty million—even knowing he was being ripped off—just so the children could live closer to their future school?
And the director hanging up mid-call wasn't to shield Alice from a powerful, dangerous man… but because Veil had planned a surprise?
Boom.
Alice's mind went blank. Her ears rang. Her thoughts scattered.
The young master…
He wasn't the cold-hearted businessman she'd thought—willing to demolish a home for profit.
He was the one who, for her sake, spared no time, no effort, no money… just to give the orphanage a new face. Just to make her happy.
How could this be?!
Why… why would he go this far for her? It was like something out of a dream—no, even more touching than a dream.
If someone had told her all this just half a day ago, she would've thrown herself into his arms without hesitation, willing to give him everything.
But now…
No.
She didn't deserve to.
The young master was perfect. Everything he had done for her could have moved any girl's heart—but what had she done?
She hadn't felt gratitude.
She hadn't even been touched.
She'd pointed at him and called him names. Accused him of betrayal and deceit.
She was no better than a thankless wolf—one who bit the hand that fed it. It wasn't even wrong to say she'd repaid kindness with cruelty.
"Hiss…"
A sharp gasp suddenly rang out.
Veil clutched his chest, his face contorted in pain. Then, like a puppet with its strings cut, he collapsed onto the ground in a heap.
"Young Master!"
"Young Master Lancaster!"
Alice and the director rushed to him, workers nearby also hurried over in alarm.
"Young Master, what's wrong?! Don't scare me like this! Are you okay? Where does it hurt?"
Alice hugged Veil from behind, trying to hold him steady. Her tears poured like a broken kite's string, falling onto his shoulder.
Veil clenched his jaw, trying to endure it, then shook his head weakly.
"I'm fine. Just… hurts a little."
"Where? Where does it hurt?!" Alice asked, her voice trembling, panic flooding her heart.
Veil lifted a shaky hand and tapped lightly on the left side of his chest—right over his heart. He let out a long, weary sigh.
"Here… right here. It hurts."
The old director, wise as she was, immediately understood and stepped aside, retreating just far enough to give the two some space.
But Alice didn't notice. All her focus was on Veil—there was no room left in her world for anyone else.
Her delicate hand gently rubbed over his chest, her eyes red, voice soft with guilt and fear.
"Does… does it feel a little better now? Young Master, how did your heart suddenly start to hurt?"
As the words left her lips, Alice froze. Her eyes widened.
She remembered how, just a while ago, she'd squatted on the ground in pain, feeling a suffocating ache in that very spot—her chest.
That kind of pain, the kind that felt like your heart was tearing apart…
Was that what he felt too?
Did this mean that, in the young master's heart, she wasn't just some replaceable girl—but someone who could actually make his heart ache?
The surprise lasted but a moment before it was drowned out by waves of guilt and panic.
Alice fell to her knees on the dusty ground, gently patting Veil's back with one hand, while the other continued to softly soothe his chest.
"Young Master, I shouldn't have doubted you. I misunderstood everything. I'm sorry. I'm the real villain here…"
Veil grasped her slender hand, his voice low and full of emotion.
"Alice, I shouldn't have kept it from you… shouldn't have let you get the wrong idea. I'm the bad guy here."
The director took the hint and quietly walked off, signaling the workers to leave with her.
Soon, the once-crowded area was empty, leaving only the two of them behind—completely isolated from the world.
Like a universe made for just two people.
"Young Master, don't say that. It's all my fault. I was thinking too much. I made things up. I slandered you…"
Alice shook her head frantically, her tears sparkling under the light like shattered crystals. She sobbed uncontrollably, consumed with regret.
"Yell at me, hit me—I deserve it. If I hadn't been so rash, you wouldn't have ended up like this…"
She was just a fragile girl.
And now, torn apart by guilt, knowing she had wrongly condemned the person who had done so much for her—it was a pain beyond words.
She would've taken ten times the physical pain, just to erase the look on his face.
Just so he could be okay again, she'd do anything.
"Don't cry anymore. I don't blame you," Veil whispered, wiping her tears away. But the more he wiped, the more they came, like a flood that had broken through its dam.
"Please, Alice… don't cry, okay? All I ever wanted was for you to be happy. To smile. To live each day full of joy.The more you hurt… the more useless I feel."
"I won't cry. I won't…"
Alice bit down on her rosy lips, stubbornly forcing her tears back. She wiped fiercely at the corners of her eyes, trying her best to hold it all in.
She didn't want to make him sad again. She didn't want to cause him any more pain.
So she pushed the tears back with all her strength.
Time passed quietly.
Alice sniffled, her delicate nose twitching as she hesitantly bit her lip.
"Young Master…"
Veil tilted his head, confused.
"What is it?"
Her voice trembled.
"Why are you so good to me? That apartment for the kids… You paid such a ridiculous price. Didn't you lose money on it?"
Veil chuckled.
"Lose money? Me? Come on, I'm a heartless boss, remember? A big villain! You think I'd do something that doesn't make a profit?"
Heartless? A villain?
If even someone like Veil could be called heartless or a villain, then there really wouldn't be a single good person left in this world.
Alice couldn't help thinking that as she looked at him with suspicion.
"So… the Young Master has some other plan?"
Veil's expression turned serious as he gently took hold of Alice's soft, delicate hand.
"Of course I do. Think about it—spending that much money, all for you… Don't you think I deserve some compensation?"
He grinned devilishly.
"And while we're at it, let's add in the vase you broke. With interest, you probably owe me, what… four or five hundred years of labor?"
"Young Master~!"
Alice's cheeks turned bright red. His playful, affectionate words made her heart flutter so much she couldn't even lift her head.
Tonight had been like an emotional roller coaster for her—soaring to the clouds one moment, plummeting to the ground the next.
The ups and downs left her drenched in sweat beneath her clothes.
Her heart was still heavy with guilt… but more than anything, she was wrapped in a thick, warm feeling of safety and happiness.
Looking into Alice's eyes, full of guilt and shy affection, Veil figured it was about time for his "weakness" to pass. He slowly pushed himself up from the ground and stood.
"Let's go home. It's dusty here—dirty and uncomfortable."
Alice nodded softly.
"Your body… should I call Kai to pick us up?"
Veil waved her off.
"No need. As long as you're not upset, I'm strong as ever. Just the two of us—let's walk back together, take a little stroll."
Alice glanced down at their clasped hands. This time, she didn't pull away.
In fact… she held on tighter, her fingers curling gently around the warmth of his palm.