Zhong Feng had been searching for a little over three years without relenting. He had not rested even when he was asleep. When he closed his eyes, he would come up with new methods of digging deeper into the vast world to find her. He had not forgotten for a moment his vow to himself to find her and bring her home.
Now that he had found her, he intended to ensure that those that had been involved in her capture and torture paid the price. While those in that lab had been captured, he was not foolish enough to think the corporation had been toppled. He would make certain that it was destroyed.
However, for now, he had different priorities.
His eyes looked at the beautiful but fragile Hu Lei who stubbornly stood outside the house, refusing to come in. He could lift her and carry her in, but he was afraid that she would injure herself in the struggle.
Though she had remained docile throughout the long journey, she had remained tense and vigilant. It seemed that a part of her believed in him enough to follow him, but there was a larger part which remained suspicious, cautious and afraid.
Looking at her small and delicate figure standing on the lawn, he felt his heart ache. However, he knew that he could not be too soft-hearted. Otherwise, she would remain outside in the cold, endangering herself. Right now, his priority was to protect her and nurse her back to health.
Hu Lei was not aware of Zhong Feng's dilemma. She was looking at the open world in amazement. She did not feel the cold or pay attention to the cutting wind. She could only focus on the sensations of being outside. She had not had the opportunity to revel in this feeling for years. And the opportunity to enjoy the openness had been absent on the way back because she had kept her eyes closed.
She understood that her unnatural eyes could cause complications to her freedom. Moreover, her eyes were highly sensitive to light due to her prolonged time in the darkness. In fact, since she had been locked up, she had seen light for only three minutes or so per day when her rations were brought in.
Now, in the dark evening, her eyes felt comfortable, and she could see everything clearly. The wide dark sky and the towering evergreen trees looked like heaven. The fresh air filled her lungs and the sound of the roaring wind consumed her.
"Let's go in." A low and soothing voice interrupted her immersion.
She felt her entire being become alert. She had been avoiding Zhong Feng even if they had travelled for numerous hours together. She did not like the way he made her feel confused. She also did not know how to interact with him.
'He would never hurt you.' a thought came unbidden into her mind.
She took a step back from the approaching Zhong Feng. Her thoughts felt muddled and unreal. She knew that she knew him. She remembered him. His name had been a mantra and his cold face had acted as her mental lifeline. However, she did not know how much of her thoughts were real and how many of the memories were her crazy imaginations.
She had been in the darkness for so long under all kinds of torture. She knew that there was something that had been broken in her mind. She felt flawed. How could she trust her own thoughts and memories? What if everything was a dream, a trick of her strained mind?
And if everything she remembered was real and she could trust her thoughts, how could her flawed self be near this wonderful person? He had literally travelled to the end of the world to find her and all he had found was a broken shell of a human.
Zhong Feng looked at the glazed look in those glowing yellow eyes and sighed. It seemed that there was a long road ahead. But he did not feel frustrated. He anticipated every moment that he would spend with this person he had claimed as his.
"If you do not come in voluntarily, I will have to throw you over my shoulder." He threatened with a smile that did not seem like a smile.
Something seemed to shift in Hu Lei's muddled mind when she saw that expression. Her heart rate increased in a strange form of excited fear, though she was not afraid. It was like the terror that a ticklish person felt when you threatened to tickle them.
This feeling confused her even more. She did not know why he stirred up things in her mind and heart. Still, she nodded and followed him into the beautiful mansion set in the middle of lush woods.
Zhong Feng felt a sense of accomplishment. He had been hoping that the threat would work because he would naturally not want to handle his little person crudely. He led her to the house though she still looked reluctant to come in.
He understood this reluctance. If anyone had been locked underground for so long, they would not be willing to return to confinement. For her, any building had to feel like a prison. He felt his heart ache for her, but he knew that it would take time for her to feel comfortable in closed spaces.
Even if she never did, he would always be there to comfort her.
The mansion in the woods was a special place he had designed for her while waiting for her return. Everything was completely automated with smart technology as per his proprietary design. When they stood before the entrance for a moment, the doors opened without any action. This front door combined various access control methods, including facial recognition and retinal scan as well as stature, gait and personal device detection for ideal security.
This level of security was essential because the mansion did not have any guards or other personnel. Zhong Feng did not plan on changing this. The house was also completely isolated at the middle of otherwise untouched woods, so precautions were necessary.
Hu Lei looked around the house in amazement as she walked in. Perhaps it was because she had literally only seen the colour white in the last few years, but the place looked beautiful and perfect. From the turquoise walls and hardwood floors, to the colourful painting and the comfortable furniture, she felt that this is what a home should look like.
However, something in the back of her mind seemed to remind her that this man had always thrived in simplicity. Yet, why was everything like this? Was it for her? She did not want to think of it like this. Her throat felt clogged up, and her eyes stung as she felt the urge to cry.
But she did not want to shed tears because she felt that this illusion would break, and she would find herself manacled in a cold basement. So, she would do what she had done for the whole time that she had been a captive. She would calm down and think.
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