With a face like she was about to cry, Ning Xi sat down obediently, like a student in class.
Lu Tingxiao rested his head in one hand. "Are you that scared of me?"
A late night Lu Tingxiao was much more unreserved than the daytime Lu Tingxiao, so he was even more dangerous.
Ning Xi shook her head like a rattle, but then nodded her head. "Youāre a king. Who wouldnāt be afraid of you?"
Lu Tingxiao swirled the water in his glass, and said faintly, "So because other people are afraid of me, you are afraid of me? Then, all the other women want to marry me, but why donāt you?"
This question nearly scared Ning Xi into falling off her chair. She thought she had already dodged this bullet during the day, but she was just too naĆÆve.
This question made her feel like a thousand knives were directed at her. How was she supposed to answer it?
Ning Xi raised a shaking hand. "Before I answer this question, can I ask a question first?"
Lu Tingxiao nodded. "Sure."
"Why me? Is it because Little Treasure is reliant on me? I think this is only temporary; wait until his emotions settle down, and itāll be fine. Even if he is always going to be like this, you donāt need toā¦ you donāt need to force yourselfā¦" Ning Xi earnestly advised and persuaded.
Lu Tingxiao lowered the glass in his hand and lifted his eyes to meet hers. "Miss Ning, I believe that I explained very clearly in the beginning: because you saved Little Treasure, I decided that I would repay you with my body."
This kind of explanation is so weird, it blinds me. Thereās no way I could accept this, alright? Ning Xi howled in her heart.
Ning Xi felt that she couldnāt possibly get through to him if they persisted in this vein, so she could only put on an apologetic face and say, "Mister Lu, I really appreciate your intention, but Iām not a person who wants to get married, soā¦"
Lu Tingxiao furrowed his brow. "So you only want to sleep with me? And you donāt want to marry me?"
"Thatās rightā¦ pah! No, no, noā¦ I donāt mean it like that!" Ning Xi was ready to just kneel before him. Can you not say such horrifying things?
"How regretful, I only accept sexual relationships with marriage as a prerequisite."
"Who would believe thatā¦" Ning Xi could not help saying. Didnāt you have a child outside of marriage?
Lu Tingxiao looked out the window with a slightly absent-minded expression. "Little Treasure was an accident. Even I donāt know who the mother is."
"ā¦" Why did this sound so bad?
"Is it because you mind that I have a son?" Lu Tingxiao abruptly asked.
"Impossible!" Like Lu Tingxiao had said, if you cut open the brain of every woman who lived in the city, you would know they all wanted to be Little Treasureās stepmother. How could she mind such a thing!
"Then why?"
Seeing his expression, she knew that Lu Tingxiao would not let her go until she answered the question.
Ning Xi raised her head and let out a deep breath. "Mister Lu, marriage isnāt a game. Whether itās to repay me or for any other reason, we should at least get to know each other. Do you know what kind of person I am? Do you know my past?"
"The one I want to marry is the present you. Your past has nothing to do with me." Of course this would be Lu Tingxiaoās answer. It was as tyrannical and overbearing as it could possibly be.
Ning Xiās expression turned frosty. "Except to me, my past is a part of me. I canāt cut out that part of me to marry you. Mister Lu, there is no point in being together with someone who follows different principles. I sincerely advise that you take back your ridiculous offer."
Her statement was followed by a cold silence.
Right when Ning Xi thought the other party was so furious from shame he was about to fly into a rage, Lu Tingxiao opened his mouth and calmly said, "I understand."
Ning Xi relaxed, and replied, "Iām going to bed then. Good night."
"Good night."
The man stared at her seemingly fragile silhouette, his gaze unfathomable like the ocean; the only thing unchanged was the boiling heat at the bottom of the sea.