"What bad intentions could a child possibly have?"

"..."

The two fell silent.

The distant water shimmered with golden light, while the nearby lake was unfathomably deep.

"So, I'm actually quite envious of you."

"What do you envy about me?"

Honglian clicked her tongue and sighed, "Let alone whether life is perfect or not, I lose in terms of 'smooth marriage' alone."

“It’s just a husband, right? Just find another one!” Xiao He suddenly exclaimed.

"Forget it! I'm too old for that!" Honglian shook her head repeatedly.

"Are you kidding me? You're already calling yourself old?" Xiao He looked at her with a skeptical expression, unsure how much of her statement was a joke.

“I’m not kidding. Once you get past that age, you become more realistic and you lose those youthful excitement.”

"Then you could just realistically find someone else!"

“Reality, there are so many real-world concerns.” Honglian counted on her fingers: “Identity, income, family, even the elements cultivated by both parties cannot clash, otherwise it will affect the talent of their offspring…”

"So troublesome?!" Xiao He exclaimed in shock.

"That's why I said I envy you! You and Xuefeng don't have any of these concerns."

Honglian smiled and sighed, "It's about being able to break free from worldly constraints, and having nothing to do with money, fame, or status. It's about deciding to stay together because you both want to be together forever. Isn't that what love is all about in its purest form?"

"Hey! You don't need to be so pessimistic!" Xiao He couldn't bear to see her disappointed expression, so he quickly encouraged her, "There are so many excellent male teachers at Cloud Academy, at least their status and income are not a problem at all!"

However, Honglian shook her head and stretched out her long legs in front of Xiao He without saying a word.

The latter froze, watching her slowly remove the stockings that covered the "tattoo".

"Do you see that? This cursed seal."

"What's this?"

Xiao He never inquired about Honglian's health. Perhaps because Dai Lele also had tattoos everywhere, she had become accustomed to these "decorations."

“My original name was Sophie Dodmund,” Honglian explained. “Dodmund is my family. The year I was born, the entire family was thrown into the sea.”

"What?"

"The former dean of the Fifth Academy risked his life to save me, which is how I escaped disaster."

“The Dodmund family…” Xiao He murmured.

She actually managed to find some fragmented pieces in her own "memory storage".

“You come from another world and may not know this, but if I tell you that the Dodmund family is a family of robbers, you should understand.”

"robber?"

"Yes, a family of ruthless robbers."