Chapter 21 - He Never Looked Back
Just as Mu Zhe had stealthily appeared, he overheard this sentence: "..."
The little undercover spy also had a childhood friend?
His gaze bypassed the girl and to look at Wang Er Gou, who was crying behind the window like an abandoned kitten. He looked disgusted.
Average appearance, average talent, and no trace of masculinity. What did the little undercover spy see in him?
In the next moment, the girl with two buns on her head crisply said, "You're lying!"
She forcefully threw a snowball at him. "My parents would never abandon me. You're lying! I don't want to play with you anymore!"
"And besides, you look ugly when you cry. I won't marry you anymore!"
After saying that, she ignored the crying from inside the window and ran back home with small, wet steps.
Mu Zhe raised an eyebrow, inexplicably feeling relieved.
She wasn't blind after all.
The scene shifted, and the time came to the next morning.
In the dim light, the woman touched her swollen belly and finally made up her mind. She woke up the sleeping girl beside her.
Wen Ruan rubbed her eyes drowsily, not very pleased, and hugged her mother in a soft manner, showing a bit of morning grumpiness.
"I want to sleep."
The woman had a beautiful appearance but she looked exhausted. "Sweetie, your father will take you to the mountains to catch little rabbits."
She immediately became lively. "Little rabbits?!"
"Creak"—
The wind blew open the slightly ajar door, and the temperature in the room dropped even more.
She sneezed, wiped her runny nose, and looked towards the door.
A man sat on the low doorstep, one sleeve empty, while sparks flickered between his fingers.
Pale blue smoke billowed out of his nostrils, dissipating in the still hazy sky.
This was her father.
She averted her gaze. "Mommy, aren't you coming with us?"
The young woman forced a smile. "Mommy is carrying your little brother, and it's slippery on the snowy road. It's not safe."
Right, Mommy is carrying my little brother.
She foolishly smiled and gently touched her mother's round belly. "Then I'll catch little rabbits for you and catch one for my little brother too!"
The five-year-old girl climbed out of bed and skillfully put on her clothes. She excitedly said, "Daddy, I'm ready!"
"Let's go." The man threw away the cigarette butt and took her small hand with his remaining hand, half of his face remaining hidden in the darkness.
"It will snow heavily if we're late."
"Wait!"
Just as they were about to walk out the door, the woman's eyes went red. She suddenly rushed over to hug little Wen Ruan, her wet face buried in the girl's neck.
Little Wen Ruan patted her shoulder, a hint of unease on her young face. "Mommy, what's wrong?"
"When my Ah Ruan grows up, she will be such a beautiful girl..."
The man became impatient. "Are you done talking?"
She sobbed, pushing Wen Ruan away abruptly, turning her head quickly. Half of her face was hidden behind her dark long hair. She tried her best to prevent Wen Ruan from seeing her current appearance.
She choked slightly. "Go."
The snow was soft, making shuffling sounds as they stepped on it, leaving behind small and delicate footprints.
Little Wen Ruan hopped around like a rabbit, always choosing clean snow to step on.
She knew how to entertain herself and often amused herself with her own laughter.
Mu Zhe lazily walked beside her, leaving no trace in the snow.
The man didn't say a word, only occasionally looking up at the sky.
Once they entered the mountains, he led Wen Ruan in circles. When she got tired and wanted to be coddled, she thought of asking for a hug.
But she glanced at her father's only hand, pouted, and continued walking, grumbling to herself.
When they reached a deep part of the forest, she couldn't walk any longer. She tugged at her father's hand and pointed to a nearby rock.
"Can I sit for a while?"
"Sure." The man patted her small head but his gaze seemed distant. "Don't move from here. Daddy will go catch a rabbit for you."
"Okay."
She obediently sat on the big rock and yawned.
After all, she was just a child. She woke up too early and walked too far. When she ran out of energy, sleepiness took over.
The sound of footsteps disappeared into the woods.
The gray squirrels sat on the tree trunk, watching as the man walked away.
He never looked back.
Mu Zhe glanced at the still-sleeping girl, his lips slowly pursing into a straight line.
As promised, the snowstorm arrived. The sky turned dark, as if someone had spilled ink, layer upon layer of dark clouds pressing down and making it hard to breathe.
Little Wen Ruan was awakened by the cold.
She stood up from the rock, and snowflakes fell in large clusters, narrowly stopping on her long and dense eyelashes. They trembled with every blink.
"Daddy?"
The young girl's tender voice echoed through the dense forest.
The winter forest remained silent, with no response.
She pouted, suppressing the urge to cry, and raised her voice, "Daddy?!"
A few dark crows flapped their wings and let out hoarse "caw" sounds before flying away.
The little girl ran in the snow, her cries blending with the sound of the wind. Her whimpers and sobs were small and delicate, drowned in this raging snowstorm.
The footprints that marked their arrival had long been covered by snow, and she wandered aimlessly in the woods like a lost soul.
Finally, she stumbled and fell face-first into the snow. Unable to hold back any longer, she burst into tears.
Wang Er Gou was right. Daddy really didn't want her anymore.
She had been abandoned.
She cried, “Why... I don't want to be abandoned..."
She curled up on the ground, tears as big as beans continuously rolling down her cheeks. With each gust of wind, they almost froze on her face.
"Tsk, how useless."
Suddenly, a figure in black appeared on the snowy ground, and for a moment, the wind and snow seemed to stop.
The young man lifted the little girl from the ground with one hand, planting her like a radish in the snow, and looked down at her with a hint of mockery in his eyes.
The little spy looks so ugly when she cries.
Wen Ruan stared blankly at him, momentarily forgetting to move.
Amidst the snowfall, he lowered his jet-black pupils slightly. His thick eyelashes cast a thin shadow on the bottom of his eyes. His skin was extremely pale, and his lips were as red as blood.
As the wind blew, his silky long hair fluttered with a beautiful curve.
At the age of five, the child understood the concept of beauty. While hiccuping and caught in a daze, she thought:
This sister is so beautiful, just like the fairies in the paintings.
No, she is a deity herself!
Wen Ruan seemed to have found a lifeline and immediately stumbled towards him, hugging his thigh.
With hiccups and a hoarse voice, her face smeared with snot and tears, she left a mess on Mu Zhe's clothes.
She cried, “Sister Deity, I'm scared!"
Mu Zhe's eyes twitched, almost pushing her back to the ground.
He stretched out the hand that often decapitated people, using a finger as a representative, and fiercely pressed it against Wen Ruan's forehead, exuding a threatening aura as he pushed her away.
"Call me ‘sister’ one more time, and I'll kill you."
The young man's voice carried a touch of menace, his expression filled with hostility, instantly dispelling the feminine charm in his appearance.
Wen Ruan slowly realized, in her dullness, that the beautiful “sister” deity in front of her, just like Wang Er Gou, was actually male.
She sobbed, “I'm sorry, brother..."
She politely apologized and pouted before throwing herself at him again. Wrapping her arms around his leg like an octopus, she continued to cry.
"Brother, Ah Ruan is scared... Can you hug me?"
Mu Zhe lifted her away again, sneering, "Scared? Then..."
Pausing for a moment, his tone fluctuated, "What did you just call yourself?"
The little girl raised her fluffy head, a hint of grievance in her clear eyes. She opened her arms and said in a milky voice:
"Brother, hug."
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