‘If only one day you could be harsh with me… that would be nice.’
In his sleep, Su Ling’s brow furrowed slightly. Liu Ruyan watched, her expectations slowly crumbling. She touched her own face, still feeling the sting of Su Ling’s slap from that day!
All these days, she had been tormenting and humiliating him, deliberately showing her twisted, disgusting side. What she wanted wasn’t to bully him, much less to make him obedient. She wanted to turn him into the person she desired him to be! Yet this little cripple seemed incapable of getting angry. No matter how she bullied or humiliated him, he would only get mad for a moment, and within a few days, it was as if he had forgotten everything!
If she hadn’t been a little harsher on him, this little fellow would have almost shown her a docile attitude! She felt somewhat helpless, completely at a loss about what to do to make the little cripple truly rage against her!
When Su Ling woke up, she was already gone. He had been changed into a new set of clothes, still the same revealing style. He didn’t like these clothes—at least not now. He recalled his childhood, when he had actually liked this kind of attire. But ever since all of this happened, he no longer did. Because Liu Ruyan always changed him into all sorts of outfits, and every single one without exception was revealing.
He wrapped himself in the blanket, covering the exposed parts, and stared blankly at everything around him. He didn’t know what to do next. Just like the past few days, he didn’t know what to do either. He only knew that when he was hungry, he would eat, and then she would order him to exercise.
There was nothing to do every day, nothing worth doing. So he just sat there, quietly waiting for his stomach to growl before crawling out of bed to eat. But this time, something seemed different.
crack!
The cage door opened with a sound. He didn’t look, thinking it was Liu Ruyan coming to torment him again. But when the person who had become somewhat unfamiliar in his memory appeared before him, his eyes instantly reddened.
Master… is that Master?
“I’m here!”
Those three light words seemed to bring a ray of light into Su Ling’s dark life! His eyes reddened instantly, and without thinking, he hugged her!
Gu Qingyuan was slightly startled, then raised her hand and gently stroked Su Ling’s head. The little thing had become obedient. Even though she had hoped he would be obedient when she came, so she could take him back, she knew he wouldn’t give in so easily! But now, his behavior surprised her.
Watching through the surveillance cameras, Liu Ruyan clenched her fists secretly. She had miscalculated! Gu Qingyuan’s arrival was sudden, and she hadn’t had time to warn the little cripple. She thought he would still obey like last time, but this time she had clearly misjudged. The little cripple wasn’t obedient; instead, he acted tame! That meant the little cripple would very likely be taken away!
She wanted to do something—like bringing those two people over to continue threatening Su Ling—but would it work? Not to mention that those two were already… even if she did bring them, so what? Could she threaten Su Ling in front of Gu Qingyuan with those two? She was furious, but there was nothing she could do! She could only take it step by step, looking for an opportunity to say something to Gu Qingyuan, hoping she would leave Su Ling behind.
But she knew very well that if Gu Qingyuan had really made up her mind to take Su Ling away, nothing she said would help. On the contrary, it might arouse suspicion. Use that? But that required a voice command to activate. If she spoke, wouldn’t that expose her directly? Thinking it over, she realized she had no way to keep the little cripple here!
“Have you learned to behave?”
Su Ling nodded incessantly, tears glistening in his eyes. Gu Qingyuan’s heart ached as she crouched down and wiped away his tears. “Since you’ve become good, I’ll take you back.”
Su Ling hugged her tighter, not daring to blink, afraid she was joking to tease him. The moment he closed his eyes, she would disappear. Gu Qingyuan chuckled softly. It had only been about half a month, yet this little fellow missed her this much. It seemed the disciplining had worked quite well!
“Let’s go. I’m taking you back. But remember, if you misbehave again, I’ll send you back here!”
Su Ling nodded, wrapped his arms around her neck, and greedily buried his head in her chest, inhaling her unique scent. That reassuring fragrance finally gave his exhausted heart a moment’s relief. He was so tired, so very tired. Days of torment, bullying, and humiliation had worn him down. He had been angry, he had struggled, but none of it mattered. Everything was futile.
Gu Qingyuan carried him out of the cage and out of that dark place. They walked through a long corridor before stopping—not because they had reached the exit, but because someone stood at the end of the hallway—Liu Ruyan!
A stiff smile on her face, Liu Ruyan slowly approached them. “What, are you taking him away?”
“Yes. He’s obedient enough now. I’m taking him back.”
Liu Ruyan let out a soft “mm” and turned her gaze to the little cripple. She had many things she wanted to say, but all of them were meant for him! She wanted to tell him that if he left her, she would tell Gu Qingyuan everything about him and the things they had done! She would also remind him that she had said she would kill his master!
She believed that if she said that, the little cripple would do everything to stay! But unfortunately, there was no chance. Gu Qingyuan’s arrival was too sudden. She had never had an opportunity from the start, and now she had none. All she could do was watch helplessly as Gu Qingyuan carried the little cripple away, slowly disappearing from her sight!
She had no choice but to withdraw her gaze and return to her dark office, watching their receding figures through the monitors! She felt like a rat in the shadows, only able to spy on them, on their happiness and joy! No, none of this should belong to them! She was going to take it all back and make it hers!
Sitting in the car, Su Ling looked out at the long-lost scenery. Tears of frustration streamed down his face. He was out. He had escaped that place! He looked up at his master.
“Come here.”
Su Ling obediently leaned over. Even though she was driving, he rested his head on her warm thigh. Feeling the warmth, he felt as if everything was a dream, a deep sense of comfort filling his heart.
Gu Qingyuan glanced at the little thing. He had become clingy, but she didn’t mind. She placed a hand on her belly. The child was already over a month old. Soon, she would probably be bedridden due to the pregnancy.
Once they returned, she would have to quickly prepare a prosthetic limb for the little thing and also find someone to look at his throat. She really shouldn’t have poisoned his voice on a whim back then. At the time, she had just found him too noisy and annoying, so she had poured medicine down his throat to silence him. Now, she regretted it.
The manor was a bit far. The drive took about an hour or two. When they got out of the car, she picked up Su Ling and headed straight for the manor house. Originally, the manor had come with a butler, but she preferred being alone, so she had dismissed all the staff, only arranging for someone to come and clean the manor every weekend.
Behind the manor was a huge garden, and to the left, an orchard. When the fruit grew, she would take the little thing to eat. She walked while thinking. Su Ling buried himself in her embrace, intoxicated by her scent. It truly put him at ease. All the unease seemed to vanish in that moment! He wished this moment could last forever, with no more surprises, no more returning to that place.
Only when he was thrown onto the bed did Su Ling reluctantly leave her embrace. He looked at her with pitiful eyes.
“What, can’t bear to part with me already?” Gu Qingyuan chuckled. “It’s fine. I’m not going anywhere. I’ll… go fix you dinner. Wait for me a bit.”
Su Ling could only watch her leave with reluctance. He sat on the bed, swinging one leg aimlessly, his eyes involuntarily drifting toward the window.
The sky outside was misty. He stood up, leaning against the wall as he slowly moved closer. When he reached the window, the scenery outside fully unfolded before him! Looking closely, he could see fine dewdrops on the grass, as if it had just rained not long ago. Su Ling thought back. He didn’t recall feeling any rain on the way here. It must have rained while he was still there.
His gaze swept past the grass to the garden not far away. There were many vibrant flowers, some in bloom, some not. Beyond the garden was a huge maze made of lush greenery! He remembered when he was a child, his sister had taken him to an amusement park and they had played in a maze! He had been so happy then…
Su Ling lowered his head, suddenly feeling a pang of sadness. Sister… no, that’s not right…
He shook his head vigorously, trying to shake off those thoughts! He had his master now, he shouldn’t think about her. Besides, his sister had abandoned him first. It was only natural for him to abandon her too! Su Ling tried hard not to think about her, but his eyes gradually reddened. He wanted to cry…
His sister had cut off his legs, poisoned his voice, put an unremovable collar on him, and turned him into a half-beast! Why did he still think about her after all she did? He didn’t want her. He didn’t want her anymore!
Su Ling wiped his tears, slowly crouched down, got on all fours, and prepared to find his master. His heart ached badly. He really wanted someone to comfort him.