Case File Compendium: Bing An Ben (Novel) Vol. 6

Case File Compendium: Bing An Ben (Novel) #6

by Rou Bao Bu Chi Rou

NOT ALL TIES BIND

After a night in the throes of passion, He Yu finally feels secure in his relationship with Xie Qingcheng. Yet just as Xie Qingcheng begins to grasp the depths of his own feelings for He Yu, he makes a devastating His health failing, and only a few years left to live, he must sever their ties now--before his inevitable death shatters He Yu's already frail psyche.
Yet danger looms closer than heartbreak. Huang Zhilong is gone, yet the cabal that once backed him remains. Although He Yu has begrudgingly accepted Xie Qingcheng's decision, his resolve is soon put to the test when Xie Qingcheng is dosed with a potent aphrodisiac at his sister's wedding. He Yu may be forced to do something both of them will regret--that is, unless his rival Chen Man gets there first.

Genres: Fiction, Queer, Science Fiction, Novels, Contemporary

428 pages, Paperback

Published September 30, 2025

About the author

Associated Names:
* Rou Bao Bu Chi Rou
* 肉包不吃肉 (Chinese Profile)
* โร่วเปาปู้ชือโร่ว (Thai Profile)
* Meatbun Doesn't Eat Meat (English Profile)

Reviews

[lyss · Rating 5 out of 5]

this cover is CRAZYYYYYY omg but the way i can tell exactly what scene it is... ohhhh both the artist and meatbun have outdone themselves

[Stacie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hated the first 44% of this volume. I went from might be time to DNF this entire series to maybe I'll MTL the rest of the chapters. I still don't know if I love or hate this story.

I do know that I have a new pet peeve unlocked.... Zero problem with age gap romance (unless it involves a minor eww) but i do hate constant reminders of one being a "child" and one being an "uncle/senior" when they are both adults just in different stages of their lives. The amount of times He Yu was referred to as a boy in this volume? I stopped counting at 50. Words I wish I could unread (yet here I am typing them out in my review): soon came onto the boy's palm with a tremulous shudder.

Some disorganized thoughts about this volume:
❗️It's still the the "I'm straight, you're a child" nonsense
❗️XQC constant cycle of shame, disgust, humiliation, and calling everything lewd- I'm getting so tired of seeing him like this. I don't see how he's ever going to have a healthy attitude towards sex
❗️I'm still waiting to have feelings for He Yu (sorry, HY lovers). I understand his character is complex and that's the heart of the story, it's not black and white but I just still can't get there when it comes to their "relationship".
❗️I'm mad at XQC for indulging HY and I'm mad at HY for forcing XQC and being so immature and not understanding where XQC is feeling. XQC is broken too!
❗️My heart continues to ache for XQC and his body dysphmorphia similar to Chu Wanning

Maybe spoilers
🔴sex scene that is 44 pages long!!
🔴Role playing HS student x personal doctor against XQC will when he already has awful feelings about this situation.
🔴Dad knew HY was having sex with someone and listened for a bit? WTH
🔴Aphrodisiac at the wedding almost made me DNF

Okay, I wrote all that and I will still keep reading this novel and give it 5*. I am not to be trusted with BAB.

[hope]

edit 3 (sept 29/25) MY COPY IS OUT FOR DELIVERY TODAY YAAYAYAYAYAYAYYA 1 DAY EARLY 🥳🥳🥳🥳🥳🥳🥳🥳 I’m going to be eagerly watching the front of my house all day today 😭😭😭😭

edit 2 (sept 23/25) 7 MORE DAYS AHHHHSJSDJDJFJFJFJJJFJDJJDHSHKSTTK i've never been so committed to a series and its release dates like this series. i need hexie like i need air 😭😭😭😭😭❤️❤️❤️❤️

edit 1 (aug 10/25) everyone knows at this point i am a case file compendium enthusiast. the synopsis has me scared af tho 😭 september is so far away what am i going to do!!! 😭 the artist has changed which i'm sad about BUT I LOVE THE NEW ARTIST TOO. THIS COVER??????????

my ratings & reviews for the series so far:
vol 1. - 3 stars
vol 2. - 5 stars
vol 3. - 4 stars
vol 4. - 4 stars
vol 5. - 5 stars

[naya · Rating 5 out of 5]

IN THIS HOUSE WE LOVE HEXIE

“Did you know, Xie Qingcheng, that you’ll never find someone else in this world that will love you as much as I do?”

“Please don’t leave me, Xie Qingcheng… Don’t leave me… I can’t love anyone else anymore,” He Yu sobbed. “I’ve given you my heart… Don’t leave, Xie Qingcheng… Don’t leave…”

“I love you.”
“Loving you hurts, Xie Qingcheng. Loving you hurts so much. I can’t have you…and I know that I have to let go, but still…I still love you with each passing day…”

HE YU your emotionally constipated wifey loves you so much ❤️ just be your usual shameless self and keep chasing 🥲

this volume is so sad i teared up multiple times specially when XQC said .......“But if you really do regret it, if you think you made the wrong choice—don’t be ashamed. Everyone is living their first time on Earth, and many decisions are made for the first time, without knowing all the consequences. Nobody can predict right or wrong. If you really make a mistake, just remember—as long as I’m alive, you still have a home. Whenever and wherever you are. I’ll take care of you. I’ll stand behind you until the day I die.”
THAT'S THE TYPE OF BIG BROTHER EVERY LITTLE SISTER DESERVES (idc how patriarchal he is at the end of the day he'll do everything to keep xie xue happy and safe)

now ranting time 🙄 i fucking hate he yu's mother, what a pig!! what type of mother records her own son having sex and sends it to her boss?? fucking hell..and what type of mother drugs her son's lover?? i really want her gone.

anyway a properly detailed review will come.. rn just wanna say this book is absolute shit but whatever shit meatbun writes works for me, i'm obsessed!! ★:4.5

[Kay · Rating 5 out of 5]

5/5

Oh my God, I just want to give He Yu the biggest hug! He's so utterly misunderstood and broken. All he truly wants is to love and be loved! The depth of his sadness, despair, and his profound loneliness is just shattering—maybe because I know exactly what that kind of pain feels like, and I just want to reach into the book and help him.
And then there's Xie Qingcheng, so totally confused about his feelings for He Yu, desperately trying to figure out why this guy is the one person who is irreplaceable to him.
Happy reading!🤍

🪼Spoiler Warning🪼

"Loving you hurts, Xie Qingcheng. Loving you hurts so much. I can't have you...and I know that I have to let go, but still...I still love you with each passing day..."

That line just kills me.
Watching Xie Xingcheng take the RN-13 drug again, just to regain his 'powers,' is pure torture! The agony he endured while he was alone for those agonizing three hours? The physical pain is secondary to the sheer, crushing loneliness of it all.

Then, there’s that devastating realization dream. Everyone is moving on in life and death, and he's completely frozen—no one recognizes him. Xie Qingcheng, full of secrets, feels utterly alone. But then He Yu appears, the only one who sees him, who knows him, even in that tattered bear costume. In that moment, he felt less alone; he felt loved. He realized how much He Yu meant to him, and he finally had that painful, beautiful realization of his own feelings toward He Yu... only to know he was going to die soon.

These two absolutely ruined me in this volume! I was so desperately hoping that Xie Xingcheng would confess his feelings to He Yu the minute he realized he loved him. He Yu just can't let go of Xie Xingcheng, and the pain it causes Xie Xingcheng to push him away is unbearable to read!

And that scene with Chen Man and Xie Xingcheng? I got serious whiplash. Chen Man almost forcing himself onto him, and He Yu having to save the day... that whole dynamic was a jarring, painful reminder of Chu Wanning, Hua Binan, and Taxian-Jun. The similarities in that agonizing power dynamic are just too much!

[Rose ✧⁎⁺ · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5/5☆

[kiara ✾ ·˚ · Rating 5 out of 5]

“He’d never felt like this before—his heart so uncontrollable because of just one person. It was dangerous, and painful, and made him uneasy. He wanted to frown, pick up a cold scalpel, and cut it out — But by the time he discovered its existence, it had already started worming deeper into his heart. He couldn’t remove his heart after all.”

do NOT read anything written by meatbun that shit will kill you

[sal · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 stars

im very biased for this volume im sorry

im pretending that entire wedding bit didn’t happen im sorry but that felt so out of character and random i cannot.

[Jenna · Rating 1 out of 5]

i actively hate-read this and i still had no idea it was going to be the worst book i've ever read in my life

i'm just so pissed off!!!! enraged!!!!! disturbed!!! frustrated!!!! and did i mention angry!

on the one hand, i played myself so like i understand these are the consequences of my actions. and i guess in some sick twisted way, yeah, i loved yelling at this book like i was watching a horror movie trying to warn the main character to MAKE A DIFFERENT DECISION, but goddamn. what was that!!!! *lorde starts playing*

i already wrote a long winding rant review in another volume, but i have to expound on this pile of garbage because it reached new lows even i did not think were possible.

first of all, i know we're all sex positive here but jesus christ if i ever have to read a sex scene between these two again, i will be on the news. feels like the entire first half of this is just bad porn. and not just bad porn but RAPEY PORN. i told my friend that i sometimes can excuse sexual assault when it ends in ATONEMENT and lots of apologies and accountability (I GUESS) or if it's magically initiated (*stares in erha*) but my god. we've reached a point in this series where nobody even acknowledges that xqc doesn't want this. he's deluded himself into thinking he was asking for it. it's so infuriating!!!!!

and frankly, xqc is the most infuriating character in here (aside from my beloathed he yu who i am constantly beating with a bat) because not only is he going thru it and suffering immensely, but his characterization barely makes any fucking sense. the man spends most of the book insisting he does not and cannot love he yu and then he magically dreams he's a teddy bear and suddenly he secretly has a change of heart? that is really not shown other than one singular tear?? and he insists that he's pushing he yu away to save him, that he must be cruel in order to set this boundary, and YET!!! it doesn't even matter! bc as we know!!! he yu does not respect boundaries!!!

AND YET! AFTER REPEATEDLY BEING PUSHED ASIDE! THE KID HAS THE NERVE TO SAY THAT HE IS BEING BULLIED!!!!!!!!
LET ME A 'IM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

i just don't understand how xqc continues to forGET that all the sex he's had with he yu is coerced. maybe he's enjoyed it at times (DUE TO THE PSYCHOLOGICAL EBOLA???) and maybe he does feel something for he yu but he has been manipulated!!!!! he feels pity for the kid!!!!! and more than that his baselevel is wanting to be needed!!!!!! he does not LOVE he yu!!! he doesn't even LIKE him!!!!! he insists he's still a straight man and goddammit i really think he is!!!!

this is all just bad writing, which is i think why it all reads so shitty. (to quote that tumblr post, if this was good it'd be soooo good...) but it just doesn't make any goddamn sense. i KNOW meatbun can plot and write good romance and can even find ways to justify sexual assault! but goddamn the layers in this series make it all so bad all the time. and like yeah i knowww that girl has issues or whatever but fucking hell man i can't keep doing this. my poor sweet stubborn xqc.

at least chen man did something after he fucked up!!! he removed himself from the situation so he can GROW UP! he took accountability for his actions!!!!! NOT HE YU THOUGH FUCK THAT GUY *hits him with a bat again*

okay what else...

the other thing that was so weird about this volume is that the last two volumes were hyperfocused on the murder mystery plot. i don't think we got any information about that until we were like 70% into this book. if xqc and he yu's relationship was DOING WHAT IT WAS SUPPOSED TO that would've been amazing for me! but the fuck of it all is that it was just pages and pages of uncomfortable bullshit.

AND WHERE IS THE KID IN THE HIGH HEELS!!!!!! HE'S BEEN IN TWO SCENES!!!! I WANNA SEE THAT DIVA!!! WHAT'S HIS STORY!!!!

kinda insane what he yu's mom did though huh

ngl when it revealed that the only way to "cure" the aphrodisiac was to fuck it out i almost lost it. definitely giving the yuwu sex hut vibes. but also completely insane. which! is also true of THE SCENE WHEN XQC GETS HIS STUPID 3 HOUR, 3000X WORSE THAN CANCER TREATMENT. they did not have any of that in the scientific method what the hell does any of that even mean.

it's so funny (😐) that meatbun implies that any of this is medical / mental health related because she's just playing with sci-fi magic and calling it medicine. can't even be mad about it at this point because what the hell sure i guess.

and obviously the person who died at the end is he yu's dad right? did the mom kill him? what the hell is her deal?? and why is her boss so funny aghlfks deeply obsessed with her running to her boss like MY SON IS HAVING GAY SEX WITH HIS DOCTOR and the boss is like ??? bitch we knew this where have you been just let them have gay sex — and then, she did! kinda!

god this was so bad you guys
on the list of bad books i've read in my lifetime.....this could be my #1 worst....idk idk.......

[mara - hyrulevalkyrie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I didn’t think it could get more painful than what erha is putting us thru right now but BOY WAS I WRONG 😭😭
What the FUCK was ANY of that?? And you just KNOW the cover artist was like “hehe I know exactly what do to 🌈 ✨ “. Honestly it’s like volume 4 of tgcf all over again. Peak “don’t judge a book by its cover” I guess???

[c1nnaden ♡ · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Some people were like smoke, like fog, like flowing water or morning mist. No matter how you tried to embrace them or clutch them in your hands, you could never keep them. It was as if Xie Qingcheng was always going to leave, keeping his distance from everyone. Slowly, he closed his eyes. “Listen to me. I will never like you back. Even if you can keep me at your side, it will only be my empty shell… Let go. Then, please leave.”
No one else could know that as his empty shell said these words, the place where his heart should have been ached in pain."

oh. my. god. what a rollercoaster of emotions?? i don't know where to start. i think Xie Qingchen has been through a lot and I don't know how he manages to maintain the little sanity he has left 🥲 I CAN'T WAIT FOR VOLUME SEVEN TO COME OUT JUST FOR THE ENDING??? WHAT HAPPENED??? 🫣
He Yu's birthday chapter is worth reading the whole series, meatbun is capable of inserting unique characteristics of the characters even in situations like sex (extreme I'd say lol?), and the growth of the relationship between He Yu and Xie Qingchen is a rollercoaster, sometimes it seems to be going great, only to then fall further and further down.
+ i didn't mind the change in illustrations either, they are very cute and the cover is WOW!! see ya to the next volume <3

4.5/5 ⭐

[Anaxo Cazalet · Rating 1 out of 5]

What started off as such a good and interesting novel has plunged into just cheap, rapey porn. I swear i was so excited for the plot because GYAT DAYUM we're we served last book but this one...holy shit there was like 150 total pages of smut, lemme out of horny jail.
Not only is He Yu and XQC one of the most boring couples i have ever seen, this shit is just a fucking caroussel. It's always the same, He Yu is borderline sexually harrasing him ("oh but he's in love" really?) and Xie Qingcheng doesn't have the balls to lose his fav dildo.
I am so done with this, the plot was NOT plotting, they ruined both Chen Man and Xie Xue's characters, and we got little to no development on the actual plot.
The first book was so good and now we have this shit. In my ultimate move of desperation, i can confidently say this is my least fav book of the series and i shall now go cry and re-read the first two books since it was the only ones i enjoyed.

[khai · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’m convinced they put crack cocaine into this because it was so good but so bad for me. My emotions were all over the place. Xie Qingcheng you are so loved and adored by me. This man went through so much in this book and I loved his development when realising his feelings towards He Yu. And He Yu my baby 😭 he is such a lover boy I felt so bad for him, I wish they could just be together peacefully 💔 the plot twists were so good I did not expect any of them.

On a happier note, their chemistry is insane. The smut scenes in this are hands down the best especially the car scene. Xie Qingcheng challenging He Yu and then them doing it the whole night of He Yu’s 20th birthday AAAAAAAAAAHHHHHH!!!

"𝘈𝘳𝘦 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘵𝘪𝘳𝘦𝘥 𝘰𝘧 𝘭𝘪𝘷𝘪𝘯𝘨?" 𝘟𝘪𝘦 𝘘𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘤𝘩𝘦𝘯𝘨'𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯 𝘭𝘪𝘱𝘴 𝘣𝘢𝘳𝘦𝘭𝘺 𝘮𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘥.
"𝘐 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘢𝘵 𝘧𝘪𝘳𝘴𝘵, 𝘣𝘶𝘵 𝘯𝘰𝘸 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘐 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘺𝘰𝘶, 𝘐 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘬 𝘢 𝘭𝘪𝘧𝘦𝘵𝘪𝘮𝘦 𝘪𝘴𝘯'𝘵 𝘭𝘰𝘯𝘨 𝘦𝘯𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩."

I felt this in my chest.

Imo this volume is the best in the series (as of now). my absolute fav but NOW I HAVE TO WAIT TILL NEXT YEAR FOR VOL 7 JUST FUCKING KILL ME

[jean vicquemare · Rating 5 out of 5]

im going to kill myself

[Stephrewritten · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ohmy gosh…Meatbun is a genius. WOW BAB is always such an amazing read but this volume had me in a chokehold. The story just pulls you in deeper and deeper. I don’t even have words. I’m just. Wow. Holy. Moly.

[kaylina · Rating 5 out of 5]

The ratty bear doll turned clumsily around, its eyes, like chocolate chips, staring at He Yu silently. It reached out its worn-out arms that no one needed to rely on anymore, and slowly…slowly raised them…hugging the young man who stood in front of him wiping away his own tears.

like an utter fool, i decided to read this after the emotional mess that was “all in her head”—a book that made me cry and feel so frustrated over the absurdity of men. like a fool, i then went on to pick up a story about two “straight” men who cause me so much pain because they’re in pain.

as if it wasn’t enough that he yu is the literal personification of a yearning so pitiful, your heart twinges—we have xie qingcheng who’s so stubborn in his belief that he keep the entire world solely on his shoulders, that he shuts away the people who care for him, hurting himself in the process.

men are EXHAUSTING….but these men??? a whole different level! i love them to death and want them to make it all the way to the bittersweet end but like damn!

anyways…..my newest favorite volume of the series (which i say everytime a new volume comes out). but to cement how much i loved this, this vol. made me realize that he yu & xie qingcheng are not just my favorite meatbun couple but also….one of my favorite ships of all time. case closed.

VOLUME SEVEN PLS COME SOON I NEED IT

[Ky ! · Rating 4 out of 5]

Oh my god Xie Qingcheng pissed me off so bad in this volume 😭

[pelium · Rating 4 out of 5]

meatbun ripped my wig off w/ the drama & scandalous reveals here....

[Jupiter · Rating 4 out of 5]

I mean i like it.

I don’t think its bad people hate on this story too much but i always enjoy reading it. I do think its great story telling and i like the pacing enough to continue to read. I think enemies to lovers should have this pacing.

[isy · Rating 4 out of 5]

estos dos jamás ser completamente felices no?

[iz อิซ · Rating 5 out of 5]

409 pages of heartbreak and "a bit" of rough love-making.

[sydney ☆ · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 what an absolute shitshow! this makes being in love look like a fate worse than death

[Alondra T · Rating 5 out of 5]

fuck it, 5 stars, apreciamos el buen smut

[Kaikai❤️ · Rating 5 out of 5]

Pain. All I feel is pain. 5 stars

[Kosztadinovszki Vanda · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think it's safe to say that this volume pissed me off more than all the others combined. It's one thing that the first half was extremely slow-paced, borderline boring, but the MCs just got on my nerves just as much as on each other's. The only reason I kept reading despite this is that the story was somewhat interesting at least. I'm not saying it's badly written. It's more like those films and TV series that have a ridiculous plot, but you still keep watching them because they're somehow entertaining. But I prefer plot-driven novels with some romance to romance-driven novels with some plot. And this is more like the latter, which is clearly evident since the first half of this volume and the majority of the second half is about He Yu and Xie Qingcheng's feelings and interactions, while the machinations of the bad guys are pushed to the background, just like the bad guys themselves.

The writing style itself is gripping, which makes the reader turn one page after another. However, there are some abrupt scene changes that I felt were too sudden and read more like a book version of a film scene change to the next scene, rather than a continuous text. There was an occasion when the wording felt too unnatural. Xie Qingcheng's reply to He Yu when given a yogurt felt like something written with the intention of making it easy to misinterpret. Because there's no way in hell anyone would talk like that. No matter how angry you are or how much you don't want to eat that, you would say you don't want it or something similar along those lines instead of "I don't want it in my mouth!" Way too unnatural and forced. Otherwise, the story is engaging, and the emotions are effectively depicted. There were a few lines and scenes that were very funny, and there were also some sad moments. The emotions of the characters were portrayed well.

I liked that He Yu seemed to mature a bit and has become more level-headed. His decisions are now more thoughtful and just more mature in general. Though that annoying brat sometimes comes out of him still. And he still crosses the line of hacking into devices to get to know Xie Qingcheng's exact location. But at least he goes out of his way to even learn cooking, massage, and do anything to help Xie Qingcheng, and he clearly feels like someone who is head over heels in love. While Xie Qingcheng... Well, he acts like he is bent on getting on the nerves of everyone, the reader included. His constant blabbering about only a child would complain that he didn't check his phone while busy and forgot an invitation, and even his ex-wife knew this aspect about him was extremely annoying. So basically, he is a douche, he won't even bother to inform the other party that he is busy, but his wife accepted this, so everyone else should be able to accept it as well. No matter how much of a workaholic he is, I have to sympathize with He Yu this time. It was really sad to imagine He Yu sitting in the rain waiting for him, being upset that he didn't come, and even worrying whether he had just hallucinated Xie Qingcheng's acceptance of his invitation. Despite this, Xie Qingcheng does start to show some signs of change in his feelings toward He Yu, which is evident both in his actions and his thoughts. But no matter how much he ponders about his feelings and attitude toward He Yu, he still doesn't give an answer to himself regarding the nature of his feelings, and doesn't even give a reason why he thinks He Yu is irreplaceable to him. He just says it as a fact, both to himself and to Chen Man. He still insists on not liking men, but it's clear that He Yu has a special place in his heart. He even admits to himself that he cares about him the same way He Yu cares for him.

The sex scenes were unnecessarily long, and I still hate how He Yu just decides to threaten Xie Qingcheng in the middle of it just to get what he wants, and gets lovey-dovey the next minute. And saying that he won't force him, then later doing it even though he said no. It's just as infuriating as Xie Qingcheng's constant chauvinistic remarks to others and during his inner monologues. He is most often chauvinistic and patronizing not only toward He Yu but even toward his own sister. And I understand that he became kind of a father figure for her after the death of their parents, but I still believe that Xie Xue relies on him too much. Reading their interactions after he learns that Xie Xue and Wei Dongheng are in a relationship was extremely infuriating. Xie Qingcheng has no right to decide this matter at all, and Xie Xue would have been an utter fool if she were to do as she was told. Thank god, in the end, Xie Qingcheng changed his mind. At least it was heartwarming to see how much he cares for his sister when he told her that as long as he is alive, she still has a home to return to.

The idea of He Yu being lonely and needing someone to love him and Xie Qingcheng feeling not needed and needing someone for whom he is indispensable, is again reaffirmed in this volume as well. I personally don't like this because somehow it feels like Xie Qingcheng only begins to return He Yu's feelings because he feels needed and sees how much He Yu is doing for him.

Xie Qingcheng's dream when he was a bear was fitting, as it represented his inner turmoil very well. The most memorable scene for me was Xie Xue trying on the wedding dress and showing it to her brother while He Yu is watching them with his mother. I could almost imagine the beautiful dress, the way she looked in it, and the tension and the emotions filling the room. The other was the scene when He Yu and Xie Qingcheng are caught in the act in the Daylily Pavilion before the wedding. That was a hilarious but, at the same time, embarrassing situation. This scene was well-written and well-executed.

I didn't like Chen Man since the beginning, so I'm glad that he is finally out of the picture, and I hope that it stays that way. Even though I've never really liked him, I'm just as disappointed in him now as Xie Qingcheng.
It was good to see how much Auntie Li and Xie Xue care about Xie Qingcheng, but it was weirdly funny how both of them thought it was He Yu dumping Xie Qingcheng and not returning his feelings, while it's actually the other way around. And it was good to see someone other than Xie Qingcheng telling He Yu off for a change. It was also good to see He Yu finally tell his mother how he feels. Not just about Xie Qingcheng but about his family when he told her:
"I don't want to carry on resenting you, and I've been trying my best to be closer with all of you... but I can't pretend that I didn't spend the past twenty years of my life without once experiencing familial warmth. To me, the family you speak of is just a big, empty house, with no one to keep me company."
He Yu finally learned to express his feelings not just through actions but through words as well. It's a big change compared to his previous attitude, when he did not voice his viewpoint to his mother. I'm glad that Wei Dongheng seems to be a good person, and his family really seems to like Xie Xue.

Overall, the story was interesting, written engagingly, and full of emotional moments. When Xie Qingcheng said that "There's not a single person who could replace him." I felt sadness knowing how overjoyed He Yu would've been if he heard him say that. The ending left many unanswered questions, and was gripping enough to make me want to find out how the story continues.

[Gargi · Rating 2 out of 5]

This has to be the first time I have been so heavily disappointed by Meatbun's writing. I myself might not have the best taste or have the best understanding of the book but this was NOT IT. There are several things wrong and questionable about this book that I need to address
1. He Yu and Xie Qingcheng's relationship: I have been wondering this from the very first or second book about how exactly Meatbun was going to make it work...I think I have found my answer- she did not make it work at all.
First off I Xie Qingcheng keeps on insisting that he is STRAIGHT, that he does not like men and I really, really, really, really think that he is absolutely right. We never saw He Yu falling in love properly but more than that Xie Qingcheng's feeling development got on my nerves. It is clear as day that he does not love He Yu, YOU DON'T and I can assure you that. He Yu SA'ed him and he keeps forcing himself on him, not only that his behavior is obsessive and creepy and he fails to respect boundaries and communicate and he harasses him and so much more and even then Xie Qingcheng's inner voice goes "I am in love with him" Sweetie what you are feeling has a name and it is NOT LOVE, it is called Stockholm syndrome or maybe you are just feeling pity which is also explainable. This part of Xie Qingcheng obviously hating He Yu to suddenly all in love was very out of the blue and does not make any sense whatsoever.

2. Xie Qingcheng and He Yu's characters in this book: From the previous few books I felt like we are getting somewhere but NO. I have no idea if Xie Qingcheng was already insane or if He Yu dragged him down alongside him but they became more and more unreasonable. I get what Xie Qingcheng is feeling, why he can't tell anyone that he is going to die in a couple of years and how he keeps on insisting that when he dies He Yu is going to suffer and even bigger heartbreak that the break up but damn is it frustrating? You told him to go away once and you saw how that negatively affected him, you told him a second time and saw the same results and then you told him a third time and got the same results again, so enlighten me HOW EXACTLY IS IT BETTER FOR HIM? wouldn't it be better to just tell him and spend the time of you lives in peace? I understand Xie Xue but I don't think those same reasons apply to He Yu.
About He Yu don't even get me started on how he acted like a total mad man. I get the heartbreak, the dependence, the 'you are my only lifeline' but why would you track his phone and find out what eh was doing when he clearly said he was busy and has work to attend? why would you try to force yourself onto him when he was unwell? why would you turn up drunk in front of his house after he told you to not do anything like that? why would you reveal everything you both did to someone else when you know that Xie Qingcheng wouldn't want that? Some are going to say that he really was partly mad but can it really excuse everything he did through the book? and somehow, I felt like all this hadn't occurred in the last 2 books, are we compensating for that by filling this volume with these borderline stalker-like and obsessive actions? and then he still wants Xie Qingcheng to like him back????

3. the writing:
This volume was nothing but endless uncomfortable smut. I normally skipped those smut scenes and never read them in the previous books and that hardly made any impact on the plot or reading but this book? The entire first half of the book seems to be nothing but overly detailed, non-con, smut and smut. It just did not seem to end! the plot started showing only in the last few chapters again. I would have appreciated relationship development if their relationship was actually a proper relationship, it is just an endless loop of miscommunication and Xie Qingcheng shunting away He Yu without any proper explanation! I almost dropped the book a few times, but I am too invested in the plot already I can't just leave it like that.

4. He Yu's mother: I am sorry I forgot her name, but she is a very badly written character. What was the plan with that incense even supposed to do???? I am sorry but there are a million ways those plans could have gone wrong and they did go wrong and then she calls this executive whatever and complains about her son being into Men and I have no idea, but it just sounds very half-baked like it wasn't even thought out and just added to increase the page count.

I am not a hater of Meatbun, all of her works yet have been some of my favorites and this is why I was so angry with this book. Her books normally make me cry and I feel that she did try to make the book sad around two third portion in but the repetitive dialogues, the unnecessary conflicts and the progress just made it frustrating not sad, frustrating. I really hope that the next volume can make up for this one

[peachy pie ❀ · Rating 5 out of 5]

man,, this was the heaviest volume ever. i can't count the number of times i had to pause and stop because tears were rolling down my face WITHOUT ME KNOWING. that's how heavy it is ;;

MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS (don't read down if you haven't read yet!)

- in this volume, xie qingcheng's brotherly role and his "paternalistic" attitutde were tested to the core. even i had to pause and pity the man because if i were being tested IN ALL SIDES by my family, my friends and say, my patient, an acquintance— i would have lost it for well. it was so frustrating and suffocating that i had to give meatbun a praise for portraying xqc's helplessness in his situation. he was someone who needed and wanted control but suddenly things were spiraling out of control. and HE SURVIVED THAT. ALONE. man, xqc i love you and your strength. i could see how he was someone who could have been depressed in his early years because he chooses to keep to himself. for a while, i really resonated with him and wish i could have his strength in his way of handling things. XQC REALLY NEEDED A HUG 😭

- xie xue's matter was so beautiful. i love how their relationship as siblings was portrayed. when xqc asked xx what she would do if he refuses to agree to the marriage and xie xue said, she would choose to stick with him. because she knew how much xqc loved her by choosing to suffer and raise her for all those years. xie xue could have phrased it as "debt of gratitude" but no. she made it sound like it's only natural for her to love her brother so deeply –enough to choose him over the love of her life– because of how much xqc poured his sounin raising and loving her. to the point that xqc was literally emptied himself. 😭

- he yu's matter was so difficult for me. :;; it was too angsty and I WISH IT DIDN'T HAVE TO BE THAT WAY. but incould not fault the both of them because BOTH WERE ACTING SO THEMSELVES. i can't even be mad that xqc chose to do *that* or the fact that he yu just can't let go because they were both born to be that way. he yu limiting xqc's rejection to his gender was 😭😭 like no babie, no. there's more to it than that. i hope he hangs on to get to know xqc's reasons....


this is getting long but i just have to rant about how people who learned about xqc and he yu's relationship was to always reduce all of xqc's achievements to his "homosexuality". "no wonder he became he yu's doctor," "no wonder he became a professor," "no wonder etc etc" CALM THE FCK DOWN.

XQC DOESN'T OWE YOU GUYS ANYTHING!

i can't wait for volume 7, i'm gonna need me some htl completed ones lol

[Chloe ⋆·˚ ༘ * · Rating 5 out of 5]

He felt troubled; he really did want to reach out and give the lonely dragon a hug. Just like the way He Yu had hugged him, trapped in the tattered old bear, in his dream.

5 stars! Genuinely one of my favourite volumes so far. He Yu and Xie Qingcheng’s dynamic was great throughout, especially as Xie Qingcheng’s feelings for He Yu became clear to him. The angst was still so heartbreaking - I can’t believe Xie Qingcheng started taking RN-13 again TvT He is right that He Yu would be absolutely devastated tho so I get why he hid it. .

“When you love someone, there’s a light in your eyes you can’t hide.”

It’s great that Xie Qingcheng finally found out about Chen Man’s feelings towards him though. Mostly because he then made it clear where He Yu actually stands (even though it wasn’t within earshot of him😭)

Xie Qingcheng had never admitted his feelings to He Yu, but he was finally saying them out loud to Chen Man. “Yes, He Yu isn’t the same. There’s not a single person who could replace him.”

One thing I’m iffy on is Xie Qingcheng using what happened at the club to push He Yu away from him. While I’m glad it’s being addressed, it feels a bit off that he’s only using it to hurt He Yu. Maybe it’s just the only way Meatbun thought of to be able to address it😭 but it led into one of the saddest parts of the volume where He Yu begs him to not cry and promises to not hurt him :(

Anyway… very excited for the next volume!! The wait is actually going to kill me though, I’ve been trying to look for a good translation but have failed so far 😔

[sunaina · Rating 3 out of 5]

very disappointing honestly because what the hell is going ON.
oh my god.
i'm so frustrated with each and every character but even then i believe xie qingcheng really just deserves to leave this series and go on a vacation to bali or something. like LEAVE HIM ALONE WHAT IS WRONG WITH ALL THESE HORNY ASS MEN??????? why the fuck is everyone obsessed with him??????? why the fuck is everyone always bothering him??????? like goddamn it i just need him to get his sleeping beauty rest and have holidays forever this man is so overworked and underpaid ;-;
chen man fuck you??? also LU ZHISHU YOU BITCH i'm so icked out by her like how dare she call herself a mother ;-; i only like my xie siblings (xie xue my beloved !!! i'm so happy for her but i can't help but be worried) and he yu... which brings me back to my main point. xqc needs to understand that he will not be ruining he yu's life by dying a few years later and just breaking his heart then instead of right now???? like PLEASE. why does no character have any eq i swear to god i am this close to teleporting myself into this book.
this book started off really cute and then it got all messed up coz of the repetitive break up arcs (and also the smut... like i really am just here for the plot guys ;-;) and he yu's disgusting mother and chen man. like what even happened in here except for drama drama drama scandal gossip tea drama and just more nonsense. my boy he yu suffered and my boy xie qingcheng also suffered and duan wen is just sitting in an australian beach and sipping cocktails. like wow.
i struggled to give this a three, i really hope the next volume will be super interesting.

[Stephanie Chenard · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have no words to say how much I love them. ;-;

Bought the Chinese chapters because I couldn’t wait, and now I’m on my third read with the English books. I get that this might not be everyone’s thing, but I really wish people gave this story a chance. It is so heartwrenchingly beautiful and human, and something about Hexie just makes it so real and relatable. I am rooting so hard for them.😭

Know that the end will make all the pain worthwhile.

Be patient, my children, you will have your happy ending 🥹

Anyway, as far as I am concerned, this ship is still sailing HARD, and my heart will go on ❤️❤️❤️

*

“He had no idea when He Yu had managed to erode his way so deeply into his life. Looking back, the young man had become someone irreplaceable.”

He said irreplaceable. 🥺🥺🥺

“Are you tired of living?” Xie Qingcheng’s thin lips barely moved.
“I was at first, but now that I have you, I think a lifetime isn’t long enough.”

Fuck if He Yu isn’t the smoothest little shit ever

“I don’t care about them. I don’t care about what they see and what they say, Xie Qingcheng. I don’t care about anyone in this world except you.”

Be still, my heart 😭😭😭😭😭

“Please don’t leave me, Xie Qingcheng… Don’t leave me… I can’t love anyone else anymore,” He Yu sobbed. “I’ve given you my heart…”

I am destroyed 💔