Days passed quickly, so quickly that He Rou could no longer remember how full she had been that night, or how sick she had felt from vomiting.
Two months later, the cast was removed.
Although He Rou’s broken leg could finally touch the ground, she always felt weak when walking, limping.
Every step sent a sharp pain through her.
During those two months, no one ever came to the villa.
He Rou’s daily work was to clean, take care of Luo Yun’s life, and… satisfy her “xx” and perverse tastes.
She dragged her crippled leg, climbing from the first floor to the second, polishing those expensive wooden floors until they shone.
Luo Yun didn’t like noise in the house, so He Rou didn’t even dare breathe loudly while working.
Ever since she personally killed that cat, she had become very obedient.
Like a robot programmed with a set routine.
But even so, Luo Yun’s torment never ceased.
Luo Yun’s mood was like the weather as winter set in—unpredictable, like a broken air conditioner, alternating between cold and hot.
Sometimes He Rou’s hand would tremble just while pouring water, and Luo Yun would make her kneel in that white house for an entire night.
He Rou often knelt there, staring at the glaring white light, her mind empty, her stomach empty, her thoughts empty—everything was empty.
She no longer wanted to think about the future.
In this place, He Rou felt she shouldn’t be a person, but an object, an object for entertainment.
When Luo Yun wanted to use it, she took it forcefully; when she got bored, she tossed it somewhere to gather dust.
During these two months, Luo Yun was away for a full four days.
Those four days were definitely the best days He Rou had ever had.
Luo Yun didn’t give her any specific tasks when she left.
So she just lived as usual.
Every time she finished her work, she could eat breakfast, watch TV, and freely arrange her own time.
But when Luo Yun returned, she reeked of alcohol, even though she was just a student.
After four days away from home, her whole body smelled of unpleasant liquor.
And most importantly, as soon as she came back, she hit He Rou.
Even though He Rou hadn’t done anything.
After hitting enough, Luo Yun would hold He Rou and sleep.
Sleeping until the end of time.
Because of this, the place where He Rou slept every night became Luo Yun’s room.
Every night, she would forcibly hold He Rou in her arms like a pillow.
Luo Yun was very strong; her arms wrapped around He Rou’s body like Sun Wukong’s headband, making it hard for He Rou to breathe.
During those days as a pillow, He Rou’s life became bearable.
She could eat enough, sleep enough, and Luo Yun no longer hit her for no reason.
However… one night, He Rou, unable to fall asleep no matter what, actually heard Luo Yun talking in her sleep.
“Mom… Mom, don’t go…”
“I’m so scared… save me… so hot… Mom…”
‘Elder Aunt…’
He Rou called out softly in her heart.
The “Mom” Luo Yun spoke of was the person who had saved her.
Luo Yun’s crying voice in the dream grew softer and softer, finally turning into intermittent sobs.
Her hands scratched wildly at He Rou’s back, as if searching for something to hold onto.
It was at this moment.
He Rou didn’t know if she had lost her mind or if she truly felt guilty.
Anyway, she said something she would regret for the rest of her life.
“I’m here…”
After saying those words, He Rou’s entire body heated up rapidly, and her face flushed red.
She really had been conditioned to a state of mindlessness.
She didn’t know if Luo Yun heard those words.
Anyway, her wildly scratching hands once again changed into a hugging posture.
Very tightly.
—
Today.
Weather: sunny, temperature: 2°C, air pollution index: severe.
Even though there were many trees around the villa, they couldn’t stop the fog army from spreading everywhere.
He Rou, dressed in everything she needed, didn’t expect to encounter such bad weather on her first day back at school.
She wore the same school uniform as Luo Yun, but the difference was that on her collar, embroidered finely, was Luo Yun’s name.
The nanny car was parked on the road outside the gate.
This time, He Rou was allowed to ride to school in the same car as Luo Yun.
After all, Luo Yun never imagined that just by not watching her for once, this person would manage to find an outsider.
And at this moment, He Rou had the same thought.
This time at school, she absolutely must not talk to Cheng Ruo.
If circumstances permitted, she didn’t even want to have any conversation with the teacher.
“Heh…”
He Rou exhaled the outside air and suddenly felt like coughing.
The villa was located on the outskirts of the city, but it wasn’t very far from the school.
It seemed to be caused by a lot of smoke from factories.
At first, it hadn’t affected this area.
But in just a few days, those harmful gases had already traveled here.
Luo Yun stood at the door, looking at the air in front of her with some disgust.
These were all her father’s handiwork.
After putting on masks for herself and He Rou, Luo Yun got into the car.
Sitting in the car, He Rou, despite the nausea from the bumps, was more concerned about how she would navigate her school life.
After all, she couldn’t talk to anyone except Luo Yun.
Just this one point eliminated many of the things she had wanted to enjoy from watching anime and reading novels in the past.
Rather than thinking about that, it was better to think about something more practical.
For example, eating, studying, and how to stand more usefully by Luo Yun’s side in the future.
Anyway, during the two months in the villa, He Rou had come to terms with it: her life was already destined to live for Luo Yun.
But rather than being an optional vase, she wanted to be a useful person.
A person who, at least, could make Luo Yun look upon her with a little more respect.
He Rou looked out the car window.
The outside was still gray and hazy.
The originally somewhat gloomy sky, she didn’t know when it had cleared, but even the rising sun didn’t have much effect on the thick smog.
He Rou could only occasionally see the rolling neon advertisements above the shops on the street.
Having been out of the house for so long, looking at this perpetually foggy world, she was already tired of it.
And Luo Yun, sitting beside her, looked at He Rou’s expression and couldn’t help thinking something.
“Xiao Rou, do you… want to go on a trip?”
“Huh?”
He Rou could hardly believe it.
After all, she had been locked up for three years and three months, and this person had never let her out.
As for a trip, wasn’t this just digging another big pit for her to fall into?
“Xiao Rou has never left this city since she came here, right? So why not take this opportunity to go out and have a good look? What if… this is your last chance?”
Luo Yun said to He Rou with a smile.
But in that smile, there was a kind of cunning, teasing, and indifferent expression.
He Rou lowered her head, not knowing how to answer her.