Xiao Bing hanged up and sneered as he said to himself, “Yes. It’s just the beginning. But it will be over soon.”
At the Ye family’s villa.
Lying in Xiao Bing’s arms, Ye Xiaoxi said sadly, “I never thought Master Hou would die so suddenly by the hand of a woman.”
“Neither did I.” Xiao Bing sighed, “But his death is proof that all man is but flesh and blood. No one on earth is bereft of emotions unless he’s a machine. Anyway, Master Hou was serene when he died. He had no regrets.”
Ye Xiaoxi asked, “What’s your plan now since you are going to inherit his power.”
Xiao Bing pondered for a moment and then he said, “I don’t have any interest in the underground world. I chose to take over from his man just to hold them together so that there won’t be any internal division and because they can help us fight against Lord Long. If they fell apart, the Long family will conquer the underground world of Hei Province without much effort. That would be disastrous for everyone, including us.”
Ye Xiaoxi nodded, “Do you plan to hand over this power after we’ve dealt with our enemies?”
“Of course. But the person must be suited for it. He must be a capable and a convincing person. Or he might rise up against me after I hand everything over to him. The most important thing is that I can manipulate or influence him so that the stronger gets, the more responsible he becomes. I need to see him being able to effectively keep his men under control and not do evil. I was a soldier before but I’ve left the army. This is the only thing I can do for my country now.”
Ye Xiaoxi stared at Xiao Bing with fascination. “Why are you looking at me like that?” Xiao Bing asked.
Giggling, Ye Xiaoxi answered, “Because I like you. I find that I like watching you when you’re like this.”
“Like this? Like what?”
“Remember our first encounter? When you were beating those rascals, I felt a strong sense of righteousness in you. I knew you were a decent man from the very beginning.”
Xiao Bing rubbed his nose, wondering if she was saying this to put him in the friendzone.
Ye Xiaoxi chuckled, “Anyway, aren’t you holding a beautiful girl in your arms right now?”
Grinning, Xiao Bing held the girl tighter, and then he turned the lamp off.
The next morning, hoping to get the Su family to move earlier, Xiao Bing went to their mansion. Normally Su Xiaoxiao would have gone to school and her mother was either at home or the noodle house. Since he lived near them, he did not call them ahead of time.
Xiao Bing knocked on the door, but for quite a while no one answered. “Could there be no one home?”
While Xiao Bing was about to leave, he heard footsteps inside the door. Someone unlocked the door. To his surprise, it was Su Xiaoxiao. Her cheeks were red and she seemed to have difficulty opening her eyes. But she managed to and said, “Brother Bing, what brought you here?”
“I… You’re not feeling well?”
“It’s nothing.”
Xiao Bing touched her forehead and frowned. “How come you’re having such a high fever? Why didn’t you go to the hospital? Where’s Auntie? Doesn’t she know you’re sick?” Xiao Bing asked sternly.
“She was already gone when I got up. She probably went to the noodle house. I felt feverish after midnight. I drank some water. I’ll be all right.”
“Nonsense. You might damage your brain if you just let it burn. Come. I’ll take you to the hospital.”
Su Xiaoxiao said stubbornly, “It’s not necessary. It’s just a cold.”
But Xiao Bing grabbed her, put her on his back and walked downstairs. Su Xiaoxiao struggled for a moment, but she was no match for him. What’s more, she was weakened by the fever, so she had to let Xiao Bing carry her downstairs.
Su Xiaoxiao’s eyes reddened as she watched Xiao Bing walked downstairs prudently. She suddenly recalled her childhood. Besides Xiao Bing, her father was the only man who carried her to the hospital.
“You’re almost a grown-up. Why can’t you take care of yourself? If you can’t take care of yourself, how are you supposed to take care of your mom.” Xiao Bing could not help scolding her, “I don’t mean to scold you but you must learn how to take care of yourself now because your sister’s already gone. That’s the only way you can hold this family together. Your father and your sister are gone. You’re the only one left for Auntie.”
“I know.” Su Xiaoxiao had always been a contentious girl. But at this moment she could think of no reason to object.
Xiao Bing continued, “Take care of yourself and Auntie. That’s your priority from now on. And Xiaoxiao, there’s one thing I need to discuss with you.”
Su Xiaoxiao asked, “What is it?”
“Move house.”
Su Xiaoxiao was surprised, “Move house? Why should I move house?”
“You know what kind of enemy I’ll face in the future. I’ll avenge your sister. But now, what I fear most is that they will know your relationship with your sister. If they find out, you will all be in danger. Do you know what? The moment your sister died in my arms I realized that the most important thing in this world is to protect everyone you care about.”
“This is the house where my sister and father lived…” The sadness in her voice was quite obvious. Yet after a time of silence, she said, “I know. Safety is what matters most. Brother Bing, you can do anything you deem necessary. I want to sleep now.”
Xiao Bing sighed inwardly and smiled, “Get some sleep. I’ll take you to the hospital.”
Su Xiaoxiao fell asleep on Xiao Bing’s back. Xiao Bing took her to a big hospital near them. He made an appointment and then he carried Su Xiaoxiao to the doctor’s office.
The girl woke up and found a female doctor in her fifties smiling at her. “Your boyfriend is so considerate. He has been standing there with you on his back the whole time, in case you awaken. You can get off him now and let me examine you.”
Su Xiaoxiao felt a warm feeling flowing through her, spreading through her body and heart. She put on a warm smile and nodded. Then she got off Xiao Bing’s back. She still felt weak. Xiao Bing helped her sit on a chair. The doctor did a quick examination and said, “I need to do a blood test to find out if it’s a viral infection.”
As she was speaking, she wrote something on a note and passed it to Xiao Bing. “Tell your girlfriend to wait here. Pay for this, come back and take her to do the blood test.”
“Okay. Xiaoxiao, just wait here.”
Then Xiao Bing trotted out of the office. The doctor looked at Su Xiaoxiao and smiled, ” I can tell that your boyfriend is very good to you. You do know how to choose a man.”
Su Xiaoxiao felt as if she had a honey bath. She opened her mouth, but she found it hard to deny it. She nodded but sighed inwardly, “But he’s not. How I wish he was mine… What the hell am I thinking of? He has a girlfriend and she’s none other than Yezi. How can I even think of it.” Su Xiaoxiao suddenly felt upset and somehow guilty.
Xiao Bing paid the bill and went back. He found Su Xiaoxiao sitting there, looking very dismayed. But he did not think too much about it, because he thought it was because of the fever. The girl did the test, but it would take more than three hours to know the result. Xiao Bing had to take Su Xiaoxiao home. Su Xiaoxiao intended to walk with him, instead of being carried. But Xiao Bing was adamant. So the girl pressed herself against his back, savoring the sweetness and tenderness.
“Brother Bing, were you this tender with my sister too?”
“Your sister?” Xiao Bing suddenly got caught in memories. Then he smiled, “She was an independent, strong and quick-tempered woman. But deep inside she was delicate. For instance, she always talked about you. Haha, I should not mention it. Because it will bring nothing but sadness to us.”
Xiao Bing’s voice grew hoarse as he spoke and his eyes were moist. Yet the smile remained on his face. “Anyway, we all considered her a burning flame. Yet contrary to your sister, you are like an ice cube.”
Yet the two sisters of flame and ice both tender when they encountered love.
Su Xiaoxiao pressed her face hard against Xiao Bing’s back while thinking, “Brother Bing, am I still icy in your eyes?”
Su Xiaoxiao didn’t know when she started to like Xiao Bing. She was reluctant about the idea the whole time. She even deemed it ridiculous once. But love was always like this. The more she tried to press it down, the more difficult it was to control it.
Perhaps this moment together was beautiful enough for her. How she wished they could be like this forever.
“We’re almost home, ” said Xiao Bing smiling while looking at the neighborhood ahead of them.
Su Xiaoxiao was inwardly annoyed when she woke up. Pouting, she suddenly bit Xiao Bing’s shoulder. “Ouch!” Xiao Bing, flared “Why did you bite me?”
Su Xiaoxiao said hotly, “I’m craving for meat!”
“Women are indeed the most difficult to deal with, ” Xiao Bing thought inwardly while grimacing. The girl behaved like a savage all because of a small fever. Xiao Bing wondered what was wrong with her.
Su Xiaoxiao pressed her face on Xiao Bing’s back as she thought, “Brother Bing, from now on, you will always carry this mark of mine, no matter who you’re with and how far the distance between us is. I think you will never forget me.
You will never forget that… there was a girl called Su Xiaoxiao in this world.
