aught her attention more was that white-clothed man who seemed to have some difficulty moving around and had apparently lost his sight, yet he didn't lose any charisma."Miss Peony, you're too modest....Chapter 38: A Lost Cat, Exclusive on 17K

After a long separation, I thought there would be much to say, but now we are left speechless.

Zi Lin sat next to Yu Mu, with Xiao Bai lying nearby and enjoying Zi Lin's "service." When scratched in just the right way, Xiao Bai would purr softly and wag its tail. Occasionally, it would bite Zi Lin’s hand into its mouth and then nonchalantly let go.

This scene continued until nightfall; Zi Lin finally couldn't bear the silence anymore. She asked Xiao Bai to go to sleep elsewhere and poured herself a cup of tea on her own initiative.

"Ah~" After setting down the teacup, she licked her lips contentedly, looked at Yu Mu, opened her mouth as if to speak but couldn't find the words, then poured herself another cup and drank it.

After drinking five cups of tea, the teapot was finally empty. Zi Lin pursed her lips and rested her head on the table.

"Do you want me to pat your head or scratch your neck" Yu Mu said as he placed his hand accurately on Zi Lin’s head and rubbed it a couple of times. Then he asked, "Is that comfortable"

Uh A bead of sweat rolled down her forehead; Zi Lin glared at Yu Mu and replied, “Do you know what you're doing”

"Hehe Do you know what you want to say" Yu Mu retracted his hand and fanned himself with a fan. "Your hesitation can't be stopped by tea."

Zi Lin opened her mouth but closed it guiltily, playing with the teacup.

"I met two people," Zi Lin said slowly after a while, "but I don't know how to face them."

“This is the first time you’re so troubled by someone else. It looks like one of those two must be your beloved.” Yu Mu teased, but Zi Lin didn’t refute it; he guessed correctly. He then continued, “What’s next”

Zi Lin sighed and looked at Yu Mu before continuing, "From my perspective, they are both right with their own standpoints, yet... I have to help one of them hurt the other. And the person whom I must hurt has given me all the gentleness I need. What should I do"

She chose to confide in Yu Mu because she believed him; she had always trusted Yu Mu.

"Would you do anything for someone you like"

Zi Lin was taken aback, recalling what she once said to Bai Qianye: "Because I like you, I would do anything for you. That's my voluntary choice because of my affection."

“But when I hurt that person, the guilt becomes stronger and stronger; can one really inflict harm on someone just because they like them” Zi Lin covered her heart where it was aching, took a deep breath and continued: "I cannot bring myself to do it—no matter what—I hate this version of myself."

Zi Lin buried her head in her arms, continuously expressing her hatred towards herself. Yu Mu listened quietly without interrupting.

"Before, I also thought about reclaiming what I had lost."

After she calmed down a bit, Qi Lin raised her head and recalled past events. She said, "I once ruthlessly defeated my opponents and sat in the coveted position everyone envied. But after acquiring it, nothing changed; what was lost could never be regained, no matter how hard one tried."

But other than that, she didn’t know what use she had or what else she could do. Perhaps perhaps, I shouldn't have all this in the first place.

Might as well disappear from here on out and leave these struggles to them; let them fight until they destroy each other.

Qi Lin's tone became increasingly dejected, until she seemed like a girl about to take her own life, placing all hope in Death itself.

"Look over there."

Following the direction of Elmwood’s finger, Qi Lin could barely make out silhouettes towering against the darkness. She had heard that this was the forbidden area of the Drunken Flower Building; it wasn't so much a forbidden place as one people avoided talking about and staying away from.

If a woman in the Drunken Flower Building harbored thoughts of self-destruction, she would go there, looking at the prosperity of Fenghuang Kingdom before jumping to an end. Want to go

To go Saying it as if she had no attachment whatsoever.

This is Elmwood.

He doesn’t care about anything; nothing matters to him.

What he said was true; once dead, one wouldn't think of anything anymore. But

"I would die in anguish." Qi Lin smiled slightly and continued, "Do you think a person's kindness can be doubted"

“Then, what do you think I repeatedly helped you for” Elmwood didn’t answer her but asked back; he didn't wait for her response and said, “I merely want to witness something interesting. Especially from someone like you who comes from another world, I wonder how much fun you could bring me.”

“That’s really a sick sense of humor,” Qi Lin said carelessly. "So that’s it... Ah."

Qi Lin suddenly jumped up; Xiao Bai immediately looked at her and thought she was calling for him, so he dropped the rabbit he had caught and rushed toward Qi Lin. Just as he got close to her, he leaped into the air.

"Woof~"

Huh Little White ~! No! Not possible, right

“Thump.”

“Ow~ So painful.” Qi Lin was knocked down by Xiao Bai; her elbow hit the ground heavily. But now, Xiao Bai kept licking her with his tongue and pressing his paws onto her shoulders—it hurt so much. "Xiao Bai, get off me right now! You're so heavy—you've gotten fat."

Unfortunately, Xiao Bai didn't listen to her at all. He thought Qi Lin was playing with him and became even more unrestrained in rubbing against her.

Qi Lin had already been pressed until she couldn't breathe properly. Her hands were useless; would she die under this pressure Just as she was thinking about it, Xiao Bai's body suddenly went still, then he fell weakly to the other side, his eyes half-closed and his tail wagging, looking very intoxicated.

Xiao Bai Qi Lin looked at him in confusion. She had never seen him like this before. Reaching out to poke his nose a couple of times, Xiao Bai just closed his eyes contentedly. Seizing the moment, Qi Lin poked him more and even stuck her fingers into his moist nostrils, but Xiao Bai merely extended his paw to cover his nose and looked at her gently.

So cute This made Qi Lin's heart melt.

"If you continue like this, you'll be eaten."

The hand of Qi Lin paused momentarily before retracting. Looking over at Yu Mu, she noticed that he had already brewed a pot of tea by then, and the air was filled with its fragrance.

"What did you do" Qi Lin rubbed her shoulders as she sat back down, sniffed the teapot, and added, "What kind of tea is this The taste is a bit... odd."

Yu Mu waved the bottle in his hand. "This is specially made powder from fish腥草 (fishy-smelling grass), along with this incense stick for calming the mind, both together have a hypnotic effect, so it naturally makes him drunk."

So that's how it was Qi Lin felt her head spinning slightly as well. She shook her head vigorously and smiled. "It seems I'm also feeling... tipsy."

Yu Mu paused in surprise, seemingly starting to understand the reason behind Qi Lin's ability to attract animals.

Jun Yin then hurried over and whispered something into Yu Mu’s ear before stepping back. Yu Mu picked up his tea cup, only to put it down again.

"Take Ah Xue away."

Hmm Qi Lin looked at Yu Mu in confusion and asked, "What's wrong"

But Yu Mu didn't answer her. Jun Yin lifted her up from her seat; when Qi Lin tried to resist, she was hit with a point on the acupuncture point that left her unable to speak. Jun Yin’s expression told her clearly: If she didn’t cooperate, he would stop her from moving.

Really, Jun Yin hadn't changed at all, whereas Mai Dong had improved a lot; although he always pitted himself against her... right, she hadn't seen Mai Dong since waking up—did he go shopping

Mai Dong led Qi Lin to jump onto the wall but quickly hopped down again. Damn Jun Yin! He completely failed to notice that she was a girl who couldn't fight back; he wasn’t gentle at all, and her ankle already felt twisted—but Qi Lin’s complaints soon dissipated as many men in civilian clothing surrounded Zhu Xianju, seeming quite hostile.

Because of this, Jun Yin led Qi Lin to hide in a secret room inside the rockery. Qi Lin was surprised for a long time—these people were really fond of building secret rooms.

"I didn't know that Young Master would honor my humble abode with your presence; what brings you here"

The sound of elm wood I didn't expect to hear so clearly inside.

"I raised a precious cat, but it went missing for no reason last night."

Feng Changqing Qi Lin was stunned and instinctively wanted to look around, but her hand was paralyzed by忍冬's acupuncture point manipulation before she could even touch anything.

"This humble one doesn’t keep animals," Elm Wood said casually as he poured a cup of tea and placed it in front of Feng Changqing. He then continued, "However, I am interested in venomous scorpions, snakes, and ferocious beasts, but unfortunately, I have never had the opportunity to raise any."

Feng Changqing didn't bother with manners either as he picked up the cup and drank it all at once. He frowned slightly and asked, "What kind of tea is this"

"This humble one brewed it in my spare time and hasn’t named it yet." Elm Wood poured another cup of tea and continued his earlier topic, asking, “Do you think I have good tea here to attract your cat”

“My cat is also very fond of drinking tea.”

Qi Lin frowned slightly. She was far from resembling a cat—yet why did Feng Changqing know she was here

"That really would be an honor," Elm Wood said casually as he sipped his tea and remarked, "Treating this cat with such care, you are truly extremely gentle."

"Gentle Ha ha ha—ha!" Feng Changqing suddenly burst into laughter, causing the teacup to shatter from the lack of weight. He then said, “Raising a cat is for catching mice and fishing big fish.”

Elm Wood had already replaced the broken cup, and Feng Changqing took it without hesitation. He continued, "However, cats are difficult to tame—you must treat them gently in order to gain their trust. But occasionally you also need to let them experience some hardship so that they know their place. What do you think about this, Elmwold"

"I see—it’s truly admirable. Perhaps I’ll find a cat and try it one day."

So that's what being gentle means.

I was overly sentimental—I took things to heart for no reason. Hahaha—training cats She was just a cat.

"Looks like my cat isn't here." Placing the teacup back, Feng Changqing stood up and looked around before saying, "Could I trouble you for some tea leaves My cat is very fond of drinking tea."

Elm Wood nodded and said, "Winter Wheat, prepare the finest quality tea leaves for the gentleman. Don't let him down."

"Thank you," Feng Changqing then left without further ado.

Qi Lin silently gazed at the stone wall, recalling what Feng Changqing had just said and suddenly felt like a fool.is out loud What is a police dogJust as she tried hard to recall, she felt an intense pain in her head, and bizarre scenes flashed quickly through her mind; there was no way for her to suppress them....