She said this to get Xiao Xian’s permission, after all, it was his wardrobe.
Xiao Xian picked up the clothes hanger from the bed and examined it in his hand. When he heard that she wanted to modify the wardrobe, he suddenly became interested.
He wanted to see what she could turn a broken wardrobe into, so he agreed.
“Put it on the bed.”
Just those four simple words, yet Li Miaomiao understood the teasing hidden in his tone. It wasn’t surprising that she had improved so quickly.
Anyone who stayed around Xiao Xian long enough would learn to think faster than they acted.
After all, he was solitary and unpredictable.
There weren’t many clothes in the wardrobe—one glance was enough to see everything.
Li Miaomiao placed the box on the low table, stood on tiptoe to hug his clothes, but when she turned, something slipped out.
She bent down to pick it up and found a jade pendant broken in the middle.
She didn’t know much about jade, but she could tell it felt warm and delicate, with a fine texture and gentle luster.
There had been no sound of it breaking. Where was the other half?
While she was puzzled, a sharp, cold gaze shot toward her. Without thinking, Li Miaomiao knew Xiao Xian was angry.
With his leg injury not flaring up, she was no match for him.
She quickly placed the clothes on the bed and handed the half pendant to him.
With an awkward smile, she admitted defeat.“I’ll find the other half and glue it back for you. Don’t be angry.”
Xiao Xian looked at the half white jade pendant in his hand. His finger traced the exquisite patterns, his face extremely cold.
Li Miaomiao felt as if the room had suddenly dropped several degrees. She secretly glanced at him—his expression was dark as ink. The pendant must be very important to him.
Thinking this, she hurriedly searched everywhere.
Watching her dart around the room like a rabbit, Xiao Xian’s eyes turned sharp. His fingers suddenly tightened, crushing the jade in his palm, his hatred growing stronger.
Until a cry of pain sounded.
Li Miaomiao sat on the floor, rubbing her forehead, muttering pitifully, “That hurts.”
Seeing her puff out her cheeks and exhale like a pufferfish, he suppressed the hostility in his eyes and instead looked at the table just half an inch from her.
Clumsy. She even managed to hit her head.
Li Miaomiao looked up and saw him staring at her. She pressed her lips and planned to keep searching.
But the man’s cold voice slowly said, “No need to look. It was already only half.”
“If it was already half, you should’ve said so earlier.”
She tried to stop herself from rolling her eyes, but her mouth spoke before she could.
Seeing her standing there with her arms crossed and lips pouting in anger, Xiao Xian felt his mood improve slightly. He glanced at his clenched fist, then tossed the pendant into her arms.
“Even if it’s only half, it’s still worth some money. Consider it compensation for your medical expenses.”
Li Miaomiao picked it up and looked carefully. A bird was carved on it. From the break, the missing half should have been the wings.
“You’re willing to part with it?”
She clearly remembered the icy look in his eyes when she picked it up.
Xiao Xian lowered his gaze, a mocking smile curling his lips.
“Broken things are useless to keep.”
There was sarcasm in his voice. Li Miaomiao could tell he was comparing the broken jade to his legs.
When jade is broken, its value drops greatly.
When a person loses their legs, if they cannot move past it, their whole life turns gray.
Looking at the pendant, Li Miaomiao suddenly remembered a line from a drama she had once watched and couldn’t help laughing.
A soft chuckle rang in the room, crisp yet piercing.
Xiao Xian shot her a cold sideways glance.
Knowing he misunderstood again, Li Miaomiao tucked the pendant into her clothes and blinked, her clear eyes carrying a trace of amusement.
“I’m not laughing at you. I just remembered a line from a story: You only lost a leg, but she lost love. It sounded ironic and funny.”
Li Miaomiao had always believed that without empathy, comfort was just empty words. Besides, Xiao Xian didn’t want anyone’s pity.
After saying that, she carried the wardrobe out.
Soon, knocking sounds echoed outside, striking again and again as if hitting the man’s bones.
He picked up the hanger again. Her words unconsciously replayed in his mind. A faint, teasing smile appeared.
“That joke wasn’t bad.”
Li Miaomiao dismantled the wardrobe, planed down the old surface, rebuilt it, removed the right panel, raised the shelf, and added a rod underneath.
She worked all afternoon before finishing.
When she carried it back and opened it, it looked completely different.
She walked to the bed, unfolded his neatly folded clothes, hung them on the hangers, and placed them one by one inside. Everything was orderly and easy to find.
Compared to folding, this made choosing clothes much easier.
She had even made a drawer, just the right size for the box—perfect for hiding money.
“You have quite a few tricks.”
Hearing the rare hint of praise in his cold voice, Li Miaomiao lifted her chin slightly, a bit proud.
“Of course.”
After all, this was her specialty. If she couldn’t even do this well, how could she protect her household?
She glanced at his legs and carefully asked, “Xiao Xian, do you want to go out for a walk?”
Staying inside all day would make even a cheerful person gloomy.
He noticed her gaze. Unexpectedly, he didn’t get angry.
“Even with a cane, I can’t walk a mile.”
Hearing his self-defeating tone, Li Miaomiao bit her lip and made a decision.
From that day on, whenever she had time, she went up the mountain to cut wood. Each time she returned, she worked all day.
On market day, she packed her goods into a basket, made breakfast, and left it on the table.
At his door, she softly said, “I’m going to the market. There’s porridge on the table—remember to eat.”
At dawn, she left.
Hearing the door close, Xiao Xian got up, put on his shoes, and slowly walked to the door. Opening a crack, he looked down the dew-covered path.
He stood in the mist, his gentle peach-blossom eyes unreadable.
Suddenly, I don’t want to kill you anymore.
If Li Miaomiao had known he once wanted to kill her, she would probably have run away.
At the village entrance, many villagers had already left. She followed them, now familiar with the road.
“Li Miaomiao.”
A woman called from behind.
She turned and saw Li Sanniang, greeting her politely.
“Good morning, Auntie.”
Li Sanniang’s husband worked in the city. Unlike others, she carried only a small bundle.
Seeing Li Miaomiao’s heavy basket, she exclaimed, “You’re so thin. How can you carry so much? Let me help.”
Li Miaomiao smiled. “Thank you, Auntie, but I can manage.”
Just then, a sour old woman’s voice came from her left.
“She could slap my son’s face swollen. A basket like that won’t trouble her.”