When Qu Xing Xu entered the room, the first thing he saw was the two people seated at the table in the center of the room. The atmosphere was quite warm and welcoming that one would think that these two people were just normally having snacks and tea. No one would probably suspect them to be a pair of scheming people who maliciously rob another person's life.
"She left already?" Lin Xiaofei said before sipping tea from her cup. She thought that Lady Bai would take a lot of his time, begging him for help and try to persuade him to let her stay in her position as the mistress of the previous Duke. But it seems that Qu Xing Xu didn't even try to prolong their conversation, and it turned into a one-sided conversation with only Lady Bai speaking on behalf of him.
"Yes."
Qu Xing Xu glanced at the young boy sitting on the opposite chair and snacking on the candied cookies without even looking at him. "And what about you? Aren't you going back to your room?"
Kael raised his face and questioningly stared at him while filling his mouth with the cookies.
"Shouldn't you be sleeping in your room instead of barging in our room?" Qu Xing Xu pulled a chair and sat in the middle.
Kael's appearance with Lady Bai shouldn't be a coincidence.
The young boy swallowed the mouthful of cookies in his mouth and nodded childishly. His eyes brightened up as he said, "I couldn't sleep and heard someone crying, so I looked outside my window. I didn't think it was that old woman staying in your father's room."
Lady Bai, afraid that Qu Xing Xu would take the helm when he got the position as the next Duke, hogged the previous Duke's room and transferred there to keep the treasury owned by Qu Xing Xu's father.
"So you followed her?" Lin Xiaofei asked. Her lips twitched when Kael nodded again.
"I thought that if I followed her, I would see a show. Thank goodness, and she didn't disappoint." Kael commented proudly. If these words were to be heard by Lady Bai, she'd probably beat up the young boy.
When Kael was still inside the slave auction waiting to be sold to a client to do whatever they desired to do to him, he was hopeless, and any sign of wanting something to happen no longer existed in his heart. It was all because of his hope diminishing as his stay in that auction took longer. He no longer hoped to be saved, no longer wished that the slave master would not whip his back, he didn't even look forward to the meals that were even smaller than one would give to a dog every day.
He, a young boy, made sure that his desire for anything ceased to exist.
However, the moment he met Lin Xiaofei, Kael's desire to become something, do something and be free returned. It ignited deep within his heart and started to burn his whole body.
And now, the boy who almost lost everything in this lifetime got something more precious than what he had in his earlier years.
"Ah, by the way. I was thinking, what are you planning now?" Kael suddenly asked them.
Lin Xiaofei raised an eyebrow and looked at Qu Xing Xu. Her gaze was telling him, 'See, this is your fault because you let him berserk the last time.
Qu Xing Xu's lips curved upward at her accusing eyes and shrugged in answer.
Lin Xiaofei rolled her eyes at him and refocused her attention on the kid. She said, "What do you mean?" Kael was about to open his mouth to speak, but Lin Xiaofei talked faster than he did, "You're staying in your and read the new batch of books I'll be sure to send in your room. You can go out as you like, but he'll be assigning a guard to look after you."
"A guard?" Kael was in disbelief, as if the thought of having a guard following him was an insult to him. If he was with a guard, how was he going to do move freely?
"Why? You don't want to?" She glanced at him at the rim of her cup. "Then, you can forget about going out this year. The empire has become complicated now, and no one knows what's to come. I don't want you to be in danger when something unknown happens."
Lin Xiaofei thought of that time when she found out that this young boy, along with her friend, Chu Chu, chose to help her frame-up Yu Fangzhu with the bandits and came back with all the bruises on their face and body. Of course, it wasn't that much when she saw them since Gu Yan made sure that they healed most of their injuries, but a tiny mark and wound in their bodies was still a big matter to Lin Xiaofei.
"But… I'm no longer a child." Kael grumbled.
"Who says you're not?" Lin Xiaofei said and looked over his small body that didn't even have the sign of maturity. "I only see a young boy complaining before an adult in front of my eyes. When you're older and stronger than you can beat Qu Xing Xu, you can say that to me again."
Kael started to pout. He looked at Qu Xing Xu, who was watching this pair talk to each other like a mother-son duo with an interested gleam in his eyes.
Who could even beat this man? Kael wondered. He suffered greatly even during their training. What's more, if it was an actual duel? Kael was sure that Qu Xing Xu would beat him up with just his fist without even moving from his position.
But instead of his determination dampening after being compared with Qu Xing Xu, Kael felt the need to be stronger like him. If he were stronger than Qu Xing Xu, Kael would surely be able to protect Lin Xiaofei and everything important to him.
And if ever the Duke break her heart… the young boy vowed to take revenge and beat him up till she's satisfied.
As if reading what was going through the young boy's mind, Qu Xing Xu chuckled as he ruffled the child's hair, "You wish…."
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Author has something to say: Haha! I'm loving Kael and Lin Xiaofei's interaction. They're like Mommy Bear and Baby Bear!
On the other hand, we got Daddy Bear on the side watching them. XD
I overestimated myself. The fatigue and stress is too much. Please forgive me if I ever fail the win-win event this month. I can't promise I can continue with the event but I can at least try to update daily.
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