My head was spinning, and my whole body was in pain…
*Click!*
I heard the short sound of a shutter.
Was that the police taking photos for evidence?
I forced my eyes open and saw Xiao Ji fiddling with his phone in frustration.
“Damn it, I forgot to turn off the sound,” he muttered.
“Shh — this is a Police Station,” Xiao Qingling’s voice followed in admonishment.
‘Just how badly was I injured?’
It was difficult even to move my fingers slightly, but my hand felt surprisingly warm.
“Xiao… Xiao Ji,” I struggled to make a sound.
“Brother Mingshan, you’re awake! How did you get beaten into such a sorry state? You didn’t even ask me for help. Who the hell did this? I’ll go hit them back for you!”
Xiao Ji hid his phone, his hair standing up like a broom.
“Xiao Ji, no fighting.”
Xiao Qingling glared at him.
“Mingshan, An Zhi insisted on coming. We couldn’t stop her. I’m sorry.”
An Zhi!?
I couldn’t see her.
I concentrated and sniffed the air, catching An Zhi’s scent through the smell of blood, along with the sensation of her hand wrapped around my palm.
“An Zhi, I’m fine. Why did you…”
“You… you still say you’re fine! You’re already like this… *sob* — “
I felt pressure on my palm.
I could feel her hard fingernails pressing against my skin.
I had never heard her use such an angry tone before.
“I’m sorry. A group of men was following me, and I wanted to use them to get some leverage against Wings Star World. I didn’t expect it to turn out like this.”
“I won’t allow… you aren’t allowed to do this anymore! I won’t let you… get hurt this badly,” An Zhi spoke through her sobs.
I felt the softness of her cheek against my palm.
“I know. I’ll find another way. Can you go back first? There’s no telling what Wings Star World will do next.”
I was too naive.
A company that would restrict the personal freedom of its Streamers would naturally do other things without a bottom line.
My beating might have even been considered light.
At the very least, I couldn’t let An Zhi be in danger.
“I… I won’t! I’m staying by your side! From now on, always!”
An Zhi shouted hysterically, burying her face in my arm.
“An Zhi…”
‘I really shouldn’t have made her worry like this.’
I wanted to tell her not to be so impulsive, but the words wouldn’t come out.
“The police watched the surveillance footage and have already gone to arrest those men. Mingshan, just let her stay,” Xiao Qingling advised.
In the silence, I chose to squeeze An Zhi’s small hand in return, even though the pain dulled the sensation of her touch.
“I’m sorry for making you worry.”
“Mm…”
An Zhi responded softly.
My body gradually warmed up, and the pain began to lessen over time.
I felt a sense of pressure on the skin in several places across my body.
I figured my injuries were mostly external.
While An Zhi calmed down, I turned to look at the Xiao siblings to thank them.
Afterward, I stared straight at Xiao Ji as he paced back and forth.
“Xiao Ji,” I called out, stopping him.
“Brother, what’s wrong?”
He walked over.
“Were you taking photos of me just now? You don’t seem like the type of person sensitive enough to take pictures. What’s going on?”
“Ah, oh! It’s… just so I can laugh at you later.”
“Cut it out.”
Seeing his nonchalant laughter as he tried to brush it off, I knew he wasn’t telling the truth.
He scratched his head with a silly grin, then sighed.
“I really didn’t want to say anything. It’s about that woman, Su Xixia. Do you really want to hear it?”
“Tell me.”
I hadn’t originally intended to involve myself in Su Xixia’s affairs.
But Wings Star World knew my old address, so they must have gone to harass Su Xixia.
If even I was beaten like this, I didn’t know how things were on Su Xixia’s end.
“To be honest, she said someone’s been looking for her lately. Her windows were even smashed with stones. She asked me how you were doing… so I, uh, took a photo of what you look like right now and sent it to her! Hehe.”
“What?”
For a moment, I didn’t know how to react.
I hadn’t expected Su Xixia to suffer so much because of our situation, but I also didn’t want to get too involved with her.
“Because of the matter with Xu Yinyin, I promised I’d keep her updated on your status. You know I’m a man of my word! But don’t worry, I didn’t say anything I shouldn’t have!”
“Yeah, I’m not blaming you.”
Su Xixia was likely the one who revealed Xu Yinyin’s whistleblowing.
Since Xiao Ji had an agreement with her, I had no right to intervene.
Still…
Was she okay herself?
A strong person like her surely had a way to handle it.
That was all I could tell myself.
I stayed in bed with them by my side.
Every now and then, a nurse would come by to check on me, saying my injuries were healing quickly and that I probably wouldn’t need to be hospitalized.
I figured this was thanks to the frequent beatings I received as a child.
My body was long used to being injured, so it naturally recovered fast.
‘How truly tragic…’
Then, a police officer came and pushed my bed to an inner room to take a statement.
Unfortunately, even they couldn’t find out who was behind those men.
The men simply said they saw I was alone and easy to bully, so they approached me to vent their frustrations.
I was starting to doubt whether they really had anything to do with Wings Star World…
Early the next morning, I was escorted home by the police and laid in my own bed to recover.
I was told I’d receive some medical compensation later, but I didn’t know if it would be enough for that 500,000.
After everyone left, An Zhi stayed by my side.
She hadn’t slept all night, but she still forced herself to stay awake to cook porridge for me, never leaving my side.
She had just taken care of me when I was sick a few days ago.
I was really putting her through a lot; the situation should have been the other way around.
Fortunately, after an incident like this, Wings Star World would likely lay low for a while.
—
By the weekend, my injuries barely hurt anymore.
I had recovered enough to get out of bed and walk around.
An Zhi had been taking care of me for the past few days.
Whether it was doing laundry or cooking, she had improved a lot, though the porridge was still a bit salty…
She only had one set of her own clothes, so she often walked around in my tattered shirts and pants.
She looked like a distressed Princess, giving off a strong sense of contrast.
I really shouldn’t have let this kind of contrast happen…
Whatever.
I couldn’t keep thinking about negative things.
We were buried too deep under the Breach of Contract Compensation; we needed to catch our breath.
After breakfast that day, I teased, “An Zhi, are you getting used to wearing my clothes?”
After all, she only had one set of underwear, which was currently drying on the balcony…
Beneath the shirt, she was wearing nothing, and the faint rosy hue of her skin showed through.
“Um… it’s a bit embarrassing. I’d still prefer to wear my own,” she said, dodging my gaze.
Hearing her say that, I lost the heart to admire her body and only thought about taking her out to buy clothes once I fully recovered.
“I want to buy some clothes for you. What colors and styles do you like?”
I tried to pique her anticipation.
“Whatever you like…”
She murmured, still immersed in her shyness.
“A pure white one-piece princess dress?”
“That… that’s too flashy. No… something normal is better.”
“Because you look good in anything, there are too many choices, making it hard to pick.”
I originally wanted to say she looked good in plain styles too, but the words came out differently.
Fortunately, she didn’t mind at all.
She gave a small smile, her hair covering half of one eye.
‘She’s like an angel. So cute!’
“Then I want… something that shows off my figure a bit,” she said, looking behind me.
“Like a dance dress?”
“No! Like… something more mature. Black, purple, or even a skirt… Hmm, it’s hard to imagine.”
Seeing her distressed expression, I burst out laughing and immediately received a cold glare.
“I’ve never bought clothes for myself before. I don’t know how to coordinate them…”
“It’s fine! We’ll go pick them out together. I want to see you in every style, so let’s try them all.”
“Okay!”
She said, finally breaking into a wide smile that was just as brilliant as before.
I sat on the edge of the bed, imagining her in all sorts of outfits, and my heart felt warm.
‘This must be happiness.’
Ever since I got injured, she had been keeping her distance, as if she had returned to her old, cold self.
I didn’t want her to blame herself for this.
She should be pure and flawless, flying high without any restraints.
I moved my aching body and walked over to her, seeing the worry reflected in her calm, dark eyes.
“I’m fine. I’ll be better in a few days. Don’t worry about the money, either. I’m here,” I whispered in her ear.
“But I made you…”
“I’ll take care of it.”
I opened my arms to embrace her, but she took a step back to avoid me, her eyes shimmering.
“If you want a hug… you have to promise me that next time, you’ll take me with you! I have to try and find a way too. This was my mistake.”
“Uh…”
I stood there, stunned.
At that moment, she stood with her back to the sunlight.
The light shone through the window onto her dingy white shirt, yet her entire body still seemed to glow.
‘She’s grown again…’
‘That’s right. My desire to protect her was actually a form of restraint as well. I can’t bind her anymore.’
“Okay, we’ll do it together.”
I walked toward her again.
“Can I hug you?”
“Mm, it’s a promise.”
She nodded vigorously and carefully slipped into my arms, her small hands wrapping around my body.
Her body was so warm.
She was soft, but she was doing her best to give me strength.
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