Si Mobai held his breath as his heart began thumping wildly in his chest. He looked expectantly at Feng Tianlan, waiting to hear whatever she was about to say.
Feng Tianlan pursed her lips determinedly, then raised her eyes. Their gazes met directly. She said, “Stop liking me and wasting your time and energy on me. I do not wish to owe you any more favors.”
She was indebted enough to Si Mobai. Only counting the three times that he had pulled her out of a major crisis, this was already more than she could ever possibly repay.
Si Mobai’s breath hitched, and he balled his hands into a tight fist. With great restraint, he forced down his overwhelming anger, which was about to explode. The last thing he wanted was to scare her again.
Feng Tianlan watched him take one step toward her, then another. She instinctively fell back but caught herself almost immediately. Unfearingly, she looked up straight into his eyes. Even if he were to fly into a rage right then and there, she would still refuse him.
“You owe me so much that you can’t ever repay me. You might as well owe me more.” Si Mobai stopped directly in front of her. The thought of making her repay him had never crossed his mind. She belonged to him, so it was only natural that he would help her.
“But I don’t like you. No matter how much you do for me, it will never be worth it.” Once bitten, twice shy. All Feng Tianlan felt in regards to love was fear. Also, their situation at present did not give her permission to talk about relationships.
Si Mobai lowered his head slightly, closing in on Feng Tianlan, and observed a slight blush gradually spreading across her cheeks. He answered, “You once said that nothing is a waste if the other party is loyal. We can use that very same logic to describe us. I love you, and that makes everything worth it.”
His warm, heated breath wafted across her face, and Feng Tianlan’s breathing quickened. Her small face soon turned red, as if she could physically feel her heartbeat speeding up. This was a feeling she’d never experienced before, even when she was with Jiang Ying.
“Furthermore, not liking me now doesn’t mean that you won’t like me forever.” Si Mobai couldn’t resist pinching her cheeks when he saw her pink flush. “If I gave up simply because you turned me down once, I would be unworthy of your affection.”
Feng Tianlan leaned back, putting some distance between them. “But it’ll take a long, long time. I may honestly never fall for you. That’s why it is really not worth it.”
“You’re such a blockhead. I didn’t fall for you just so that you would return my feelings.” Si Mobai chuckled to see that Feng Tianlan had leaned back so far so that she was almost curled up a prawn. He pulled her back to him by her slender waist and made her rest against his chest. “All you need to do is to accept everything I give you without any reservations or guilt. Learn to enjoy how well I am treating you, for this is what you deserve.”
Feng Tianlan’s eyes widened in surprise. Si Mobai said this with such earnestness that she began to waver. Could his words be true? Was he doing all of this without needing her to reciprocate his feelings?
“My love for you is the greatest reason. Enjoy it until the day that you open your heart. When you are finally ready to acknowledge how you truly feel deep down.” Si Mobai placed a fluttering, light kiss on her cheek and tucked a few rogue strands of hair behind her ear. “The harder something is to obtain, the more precious it is, and the more one cherishes it.”
Feng Tianlan blinked, seemingly convinced. It was as if the fierce, scary Si Mobai who’d threatened her that day had been an entirely different man.
“Of course, the requirement is that you can only be mine. Either you fall in love with me and me alone, or that you fall in love with no one.” One look was it took for Si Mobai to see through her thoughts. He hugged her tightly and planted a chaste kiss on her red lips. Then, he swallowed the rest of his sentence before it could roll out of his lips so that he would not scare her again.
If she dared to flirt with other men, he would kill those men, no matter what it took.
Feng Tianlan pushed him away and glared at him with wide eyes. As expected, this man had flipped in a second. When forcing her to accept his goodwill, he was overbearing and adamant—he would never take no for an answer. She had not forgotten how scary he was just a few days ago. Terrifying as a demon.
Si Mobai loosened his grip. With great longing, he caressed her lips and murmured, “Rest well.” He needed to return for a quick shower. A kiss from her was all it took to arouse him.
