Chapter 161 "Wanwan, don't be unhappy..."
"Wanwan, don't be unhappy. Also, you don't need to worry about them."
Some people muttered, "It's all for personal revenge."
Then came a cold laugh from who-knows-who, but that was the end of it, and no one made a fuss with Ning Wanwan anymore.
After a while, when there was no more noise outside the door, Ning Wanwan opened the door again and saw a plate of snacks, a glass of milk, and some exquisitely packaged small gifts placed outside.
Ning Wanwan really wanted to ignore it, but after hesitating for a moment, she still brought everything in.
After all, to be honest, they hadn't made any major mistakes... Ning Wanwan considered herself to have a very good temper.
The gifts were all jewelry and clothes that were very suitable for girls. Just by looking at the exquisite packaging, you could tell that they were given by Zhou Yanyao and Qi Lin. There were no such exquisite items in this small village.
However, after looking at them for a while, Ning Wanwan put them all back in the closet and didn't take them out again, nor did she plan to try them on.
The desserts Xiaozhou prepared were delicious, and Ning Wanwan ate them one after another.
Ansel's candy was a packet of sweets; even through the paper wrapper, you could smell its faint sweet aroma. Ning Wanwan opened it and found it looked familiar—it was candy she had eaten before.
The candy sold at the most popular candy shop that Ansel mentioned.
It was also the best thing Ning Wanwan thought was in the village.
"It's snowing so heavily outside, how did he manage to buy it?" Ning Wanwan muttered to herself in confusion, wondering if he had given her all his stock.
Everything was sweet, and eating it all would be too cloying. Ning Wanwan carefully stored away the candies that could be kept longer, planning to eat them slowly later.
Noticing that her inner irritability and impatience had unknowingly disappeared, replaced by a faint smile on her lips, Ning Wanwan felt somewhat helpless.
"Although these guys can be really inexplicable and annoying at times, most of the time... they're pretty good."
Of course that's true.
Otherwise, given Ning Wanwan's aversion to trouble and her social anxiety, she would have already kept her distance from them.
Perhaps because she had just lost her temper, Ning Wanwan's life went smoothly and peacefully for the next two days.
Nothing else happened that night that would have made her heart explode – no one climbed into her bed.
The only thing that made Ning Wanwan uneasy was the heavy snow that never stopped falling outside.
Although Ning Wanwan didn't say it, and Qi Lin and Zhou Yanyao probably didn't want to put pressure on her and didn't mention it to her, Ning Wanwan knew that they went out every day to deal with the crisis brought by the blizzard.
Occasionally, she would hear loud noises outside, as if some kind of struggle had taken place, but it would soon fall silent.
Ning Wanwan knew that she was not physically strong and her fighting ability was too low, so she did not go out without permission and mostly stayed at home, trying her best not to cause them any trouble.
"Xiao Zhou, how is it outside?" Ning Wanwan finally couldn't help but ask another child who, like her, often stayed at home.
Xiao Zhou pondered for a moment, as if selecting and filtering certain words, and finally said to Ning Wanwan, "The situation outside is not good. This heavy snow has made food even scarcer, and many buildings have been crushed."
Xiao Zhou's tone was calm and undisturbed, as if he didn't care about what was happening outside.
Ning Wanwan pursed her lips, seemingly able to imagine how terrifying the situation outside must be.
The atmosphere in the village was definitely not one of harmony and mutual help; it was more like a dog-eat-dog world. Under such circumstances…
Another burst of intense noise came, and Ning Wanwan couldn't help but look out the window, as if that would allow her to see what was happening outside.
Xiao Zhou was probably worried that Ning Wanwan might run out out of curiosity, so he paused for a moment and added, "It's dangerous outside, try not to go out."
Ning Wanwan curled her lips into a smile: "I know, Xiao Zhou..."
Ning Wanwan didn't continue speaking; she wasn't the type to show off.
Especially in such a gifted world, one's own power is too weak.
Moreover, Ning Wanwan knew very well that she had already been well protected, and there was no reason for her to be pretentious anymore.
However, the changes outside cast a shadow of unease over our peaceful lives.
The next day, Ning Wanwan discovered that something serious seemed to have happened outside. Not only were Qi Lin and Zhou Yanyao absent, but even Xiao Zhou had been called away by the village chief.
Although Ning Wanwan didn't know why the village chief would specifically call Xiaozhou away at this time.
"I'll be back soon." Noticing Ning Wanwan's gaze, Xiaozhou suddenly turned her head and said to her earnestly.
Ning Wanwan nodded earnestly, "Yes, come back soon."
The village chief, who had been in a hurry, turned around after hearing their conversation. He observed Xiao Zhou's expression with some surprise, then carefully examined Ning Wanwan for a while, his brows furrowing slightly as if he were scrutinizing something.
When Ning Wanwan looked at him, the village chief put on a kind, smiling face again.
"Ning Wanwan, you and Xiao Zhou seem to get along very well. This is the first time I've seen Xiao Zhou so reluctant to part with anyone."
Ning Wanwan was a little embarrassed. She felt uncomfortable with the village chief's gaze and opened her mouth, but didn't know what to say.
In the end, all I could manage to say was, "It's alright."
"Let's go," Xiao Zhou said to the village chief, looking up.
The village chief smiled and said, "Okay." He then gave Ning Wanwan a deep look before turning and leaving.
Ning Wanwan watched the direction they left in for a while, and Ansel walked up to her side without her noticing.
"Don't worry, Wanwan, everything will be fine."
Ansel was also looking in the same direction as Ning Wanwan, his dark purple eyes like the pupils of some kind of beast, carrying a cold and indifferent indifference. "The village chief won't do anything to Xiaozhou, at least not now."
"Why do you say that?" Seeing that Ansel seemed to know something, Ning Wanwan couldn't help but ask.
Ansel chuckled lightly: "Because Xiaozhou has great potential, we're too busy recruiting him. Wanwan, haven't you noticed? The village chief has always treated Xiaozhou very well."
Ning Wanwan understood that what Ansel said was indeed the truth. The village chief was quite good to Xiao Zhou, with a strange sense of ingratiation. Even when Xiao Zhou wanted to stay with him, the village chief initially refused, but in the end, Xiao Zhou said something that made him agree.
The ones who were really bad to Xiao Zhou were those older kids who bullied him back then, who were still "immature" but had developed some physical strength.
However, Ning Wanwan always felt that neither the seemingly kind and friendly village chief nor the village chief's son Jeremy truly regarded Xiaozhou as a member of the village.
It's more like looking at a powerful tool that you've always dreamed of.
Forget it, there's no point in thinking about this here. Ning Wanwan thought to herself, and stopped pondering these baseless and unfounded things.
Ansel, however, seemed to be struggling with something, following closely beside her.
Ning Wanwan asked with some confusion, "Ansel, what's wrong?"
“It’s nothing…” Ansel answered instinctively.
He paused for a moment, then changed his mind and said, "No, there's still something I need to do."
Ning Wanwan: ""
Ansel: "That's right, Wanwan, I'm going out for a bit later too."
Ning Wanwan nodded, not surprised. After all, given the state of things outside, it was normal for them to go out and deal with things every day; otherwise, this house wouldn't be able to maintain such tranquility.
What she found even stranger was Ansel's expression. After all, she rarely saw such a conflicted and hesitant look on Ansel's face.
"Wanwan." Ansel continued, as if he had made up his mind, "You must be careful while I'm away."
Ning Wanwan: "Yes, of course I will."
Ansel frowned, hesitated, and after a while, as if he had thought of something, his brows relaxed slightly.
Then, he stuffed something into Ning Wanwan's hand.
“Here you go,” Ansel said.
The object that was forcibly shoved into her hand was cold to the touch, icy and hard. Ning Wanwan was stunned for a moment, then looked down and saw that it was a small dagger.
“This is…” Ning Wanwan exclaimed in surprise.
"It's for self-defense, Wanwan. Remember, if you encounter danger, just stab it. Don't worry about the consequences," Ansel said casually and nonchalantly.
It's as if even if Ning Wanwan really killed someone, he would have a way to resolve it without any serious consequences.
Ning Wanwan ignored Ansel's somewhat excessive words.
This was the first time she had ever handled a real, lethal weapon in this village. Ning Wanwan carefully examined the short dagger in her hand.
The dagger was fitted with a very simple scabbard, and looked quite unremarkable, but when Ning Wanwan drew the scabbard, she was momentarily blinded by the cold light shining from it.
—This dagger is extremely sharp.
Ning Wanwan carefully sheathed the dagger and then carefully put it away on her person.
"Don't worry, I'll carry it with me at all times and use it when necessary," Ning Wanwan said, glancing at Ansel a few more times.
This wasn't the first time Ansel had gone out, but it was certainly the first time he had shown such strange and intense worry.
It was as if he knew—something unexpected would happen.
Ning Wanwan was startled by her sudden guess, and then silently told herself not to overthink it.
Ansel twitched the corner of his mouth, his bright smile seemingly nonchalant.
"That's good, Wanwan. Your first priority is to protect yourself. You don't need to worry about anything else."
Immediately afterward, Ansel's voice suddenly dropped, as if he were talking to himself.
"And don't worry, this is just... a test, nothing will really happen."
Ning Wanwan blinked gently, wanting Ansel to speak louder so she could hear her more clearly.
What kind of test?
Is it like the "test" that will be conducted to assess talent in a while?
They all have so many secrets that they don't even understand themselves.
"Wanwan, I'm leaving now. Remember what I said!" Ansel earnestly gave Ning Wanwan a thousand and one instructions, as if he were treating her as something fragile.
Ning Wanwan said helplessly, "I'll remember. I'm not a child anymore. If you have something to do, then hurry up and go."
Ansel lingered for a while before finally leaving.
At this moment, Ning Wanwan was the only one left in the room.
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Author's Note: I'm so sorry for the long hiatus (bows). I've been incredibly busy and stressed lately... Anyway, sorry, I won't abandon this project.
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