"Damn it, I was so stupid. How could this little girl be afraid of hell?"
Xia Che rubbed his forehead and sighed.
He originally wanted to tease Wen Chenlu and scare her a little.
But he overlooked an important fact.
—Wen Chenlu is not afraid of this.
Or rather, she didn't know what fear was.
Why are you insulting me?
Wen Chenlu pulled the blanket up, leaving only her eyes visible, clearly unable to understand why Xia Che was angry.
"Do you know you almost died today? If I hadn't delivered you to my master in time, and she hadn't saved your life, you probably would have really died in the lake."
Xia Che's eyes were full of disappointment and frustration.
Because Wen Chenlu had been soaking in the icy lake water for a long time, her fever soared to 42 degrees Celsius. If Su Miaorou hadn't intervened in time, the prolonged high fever would have likely caused her to burn herself to perforate.
At this moment, I am filled with lingering fear, so how could I not be anxious?
"oh."
Unexpectedly, Xia Che's lingering fear did not cause any emotional fluctuation in Wen Chenlu. She simply gave a faint "oh," then blinked her big eyes, her face expressionless.
"...What do you mean by 'oh'?"
Xia Che was momentarily speechless, his anger subsiding slightly.
"I know."
Wen Chenlu answered truthfully.
That's it?
"It's gone."
"You fucking..."
Xia Che almost broke down. She had always heard people say how troublesome it was to get along with emotionally detached people. At the time, Xia Che didn't take it seriously and thought it was no big deal. As long as someone was mentally sound, they could communicate with them.
Now that he sees her again, Xia Che realizes just how wrong he was before.
There's absolutely no way to communicate here!
"You're insulting me again."
Wen Chenlu shrank her head further under the covers: "Cao Ying said that if anyone insults me, it should be considered a provocation and I should be killed."
"Fine, then try killing me."
Xia Che laughed in anger. If the other party couldn't understand reasoning, then a fight wasn't out of the question.
Wen Chenlu didn't speak, but looked at Xia Che with unblinking eyes.
Seeing this, Xia Che thought that this completely uncommunicative block of wood was really going to attack him. His eyes narrowed, and he assumed a fighting stance.
Although the Four-Colored Roses had been receiving training, Xia Che was no pushover.
Even though I've been getting beaten by my master all along, I'm still very strong!
Neither of them spoke again, and an eerie silence filled the air, making it feel solemn.
"...We can't kill him."
Just as Xia Che thought the other party was about to make a move, Wen Chenlu suddenly spoke, breaking the eerie silence: "You are the young master, you cannot be killed."
"……ah?"
Xia Che was stunned.
Damn it.
Now you know I'm the young master?
Why didn't you do this sooner?
Immediately, Wen Chenlu sat up, her body aching, and looked at Xia Che seriously, saying, "I don't know what I did to offend you, but if you feel angry, feel free to vent it on me. I won't fight back."
"My life belongs to you."
Wen Chenlu's expression showed no sign of reluctance, as if these words were all her most sincere thoughts.
"...That's why I hate Dad's decisions. He keeps putting up these master-servant relationships. It's the new century, but he still plays the old-fashioned game. You guys... you've all been brainwashed."
Xia Che sighed in relief, waved his hand, and his anger from before vanished completely after Wen Chenlu's interruption.
Getting angry with Wen Chenlu is like asking if you've lived too long.
This girl has no idea why she's angry. If she keeps dwelling on it, she'll only end up getting furious while the other person has no idea what happened.
"There was no brainwashing, this is my honest opinion."
Wen Chenlu sat cross-legged on the bed, her long, smooth blue hair cascading down her shoulders, her big eyes unblinking, looking exactly like a delicately carved little girl.
"I'll give it to you if you want it."
Wen Chenlu repeated it again, her eyes revealing no emotion, as calm as a deep pool.
Seeing that Xia Che ignored her, Wen Chenlu was not in a hurry. She opened her mouth to continue, "You don't need to pity me. This is my duty... Hmm?"
A long string of candied hawthorns stretched out in front of her, the hawthorns on it plump and wrapped in glistening sugar wrappers that shimmered faintly under the light.
"Candied hawthorn?"
Wen Chenlu's mouth opened slightly in surprise. Xia Che wondered if it was just his imagination, but he seemed to see surprise on Wen Chenlu's face for the first time.
"It's not just candied hawthorns, there's more."
Immediately afterwards, as if by magic, Xia Che used his other free hand to reach behind his back and pulled out a lump bigger than a stool, which he handed over with both hands: "Eat something sweet to shut your annoying mouth up."
Why is he/she disliked?
Wen Chenlu obediently accepted it, her eyes lighting up as she looked at the heavy candied hawthorn in her hand.
But she still didn't understand why Xia Che was angry, so she tilted her head slightly, trying to get an answer from him.
"Okay, since you don't find it annoying, I'll try a different approach..."
Xia Che paused, smiled faintly, and said, "Since you're willing to give me your life, does that mean you'll accept any of my orders?"
"Um."
Wen Chenlu took a bite of hawthorn, and the sweet and sour taste instantly filled her mouth. Even the soreness in her body was suppressed by this sweet and sour taste. Her cheeks were stuffed full, and she nodded repeatedly.
"If that's the case, then things will be easier."
“From now on, I don’t want to hear you say ‘your life is mine’ again. Your life is your own, it doesn’t belong to anyone else, it belongs only to yourself.”
"Furthermore, one can imagine how cold-hearted a person must be if they don't even care about their own life. I certainly wouldn't dare to associate with such a person. If you continue to hold onto this mindset and don't change, then I'll have to tell my father to let you leave the thatched hut."
Xia Che's smile was smug.
He has already figured out a way to deal with this brat.
"...Then what should I do?"
Wen Chenlu couldn't understand and instinctively wanted to refute, but then she thought that if she didn't change her mind, she would have to leave the thatched hut. Her thoughts of resistance vanished instantly, and she obediently followed Xia Che's words and asked.
"I want you to live well."
Xia Che said earnestly, his tone soft, but even a blind person could see the seriousness in his voice.
"I don't really understand."
Wen Chenlu spoke the truth.
"Then let me try another way... Is candied hawthorn delicious?"
"It's delicious."
"Woolen cloth?"
"It's also delicious."
"If you can change your misanthropic thoughts and cherish your life from now on, I promise you, I'll give you enough of both."
"……real?"
"real."
"Then I'll listen to you."
Wen Chenlu nodded repeatedly, her tone earnest, showing no trace of reluctance.
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