[He holds Jin Guangyao steady, and something about the tightness of his sworn-brother's grip around his own wrists is reassuring. This is real, he thinks. This is real, and things can change. We do not need to be doomed to repeat the same mistakes.

But that meant he had to be the first to take that step. He is the one who is furthest in time from Nie Mingjue's death, the furthest from that initial grief and the pain that followed.

(And he's seen what happens because of it).]

I did not listen before. I did not want to hear the truth, however many times you told me, however many times I saw it before my own eyes. I will not make that mistake again.

[If this place was truly a second chance, then he could not afford to be complacent anymore. He could not let himself be manipulated again.]

I promise I will not turn a blind eye and I will not make other's excuses for them.