Lu Xunzhi dragged Pu Xin away from the glass greenhouse while she was still trying to stay behind to soak her feet. Ignoring the accusing look she shot at him, he silently crouched down and helped her put her shoes back on.
Lu Bieling had left half an hour earlier. The profound look he had given before leaving made Lu Xunzhi feel more embarrassed than he had in the past twenty-eight years combined.
Pu Xin kicked lightly at his ankle in dissatisfaction, but he remained completely expressionless.
Continuing to soak her feet was absolutely impossible. The foolish mom should give up on that idea. His lifetime reputation had already been ruined!
No sooner had they stepped out of the glass greenhouse than Lu Xunzhi received a message from the Lu residence’s butler. The man informed him that Old Master Lu was keeping him for lunch and wished to meet the person he had brought back. The tone was firm and gave him no chance to refuse.
Lu Xunzhi knew Old Master Lu’s stubborn nature well. The old man was not an extreme racial supremacist, yet he harbored a deep dislike for alien species and firmly believed that those who were not of the same race could never truly share the same heart.
Pu Xin, however, was someone who never hid her alien identity. If the two of them collided, no one could predict what might happen.
“Later, behave yourself. No matter what he says, just nod,” Lu Xunzhi instructed.
His mother knew nothing about human society, and sometimes her innocent and straightforward remarks accidentally provoked people. Stimulating Lu Jinyu was one thing, since she truly lacked sense, but Old Master Lu was elderly. It would be enough to treat his words as background noise.
Pu Xin was still preoccupied with how to persuade her little one to take her back to soak her feet. Hearing this, she nodded absentmindedly.
She might not be good at other things, but nodding was her specialty.
Compared with the imposing and solemn Marshal’s administrative district, the Lu residence was slightly inferior in prestige but far more extravagant. Everything inside and outside revealed a sense of luxury. As they walked in, the flowerbeds were filled entirely with rare blossoms, and household robots could be seen everywhere.
Old Master Lu had many descendants under his roof. Most of them were already married with children, and they all lived in the Lu residence.
News that a demi-human had entered the Marshal’s residence had spread through the Lu residence after Lu Jinyu was sent back reeking horribly. People reacted differently, though most felt lingering fear.
The youngest generation of the Lu family, however, was unimpressed. Before lunch, several of them gathered in a small garden chatting idly.
“Aunt still hasn’t woken up?” Lu Jia played a card.
Lu Yi immediately beat it and replied, “I heard she fainted from being scared by a Devil Flower. Tsk, what a coward.”
Lu Bing had no card to play but still joined the conversation. “What’s a Devil Flower? I heard it was a demi-human.”
“It’s a demi-human fused with Devil Flower genes,” Lu Ding corrected from the side where he was watching the game.
“I also heard she used Devil Flower saliva for beauty treatments. How did she smear something that disgusting on her face? Just thinking about it makes me want to throw up last night’s dinner,” Lu Jia said with distaste.
“Forget that. The little beauty Lu Xunzhi brought back is more interesting,” Lu Bing changed the subject. “Yesterday Aunt said he had a girlfriend and I didn’t believe her. I caught a distant glimpse in the parking lot today. She really is that pure and delicate type. No wonder he fell for her.”
“Oh, so bold, bringing his little girlfriend home. Isn’t he afraid Grandpa will tear him apart?” Lu Jia gloated.
“With Uncle around, who would dare?” Lu Ding said, his tone faintly sour.
That was true. Lu Bieling was strict with Lu Xunzhi but fiercely protective. Old Master Lu had tried many times to discipline him, only to be blocked by Lu Bieling each time. The old man had been holding onto his resentment for years and still disliked Lu Xunzhi.
“Hey, look who that is,” Lu Yi suddenly said.
The others followed his gaze and saw Lu Xunzhi and Pu Xin walking over slowly.
Just as they looked over, Lu Xunzhi happened to glance in their direction. After their eyes met briefly, the group tossed aside their cards and stood up.
“Xunzhi, not bad. Bringing your girlfriend home already. If Grandpa sees this, he might start urging the rest of us to get married,” Lu Jia said while looking Pu Xin up and down. The tone was not openly malicious, but certainly not friendly either.
Lu Bing quickly added, “Since you brought her here, does Uncle approve? Uncle really spoils you. Kids without mothers really do have it different.”
After Lu Xunzhi had been brought back to the Lu family by Lu Bieling, he had never quite fit in. At the time he was the youngest and had eyes unlike anyone else’s. Many regarded him as strange, and he was often bullied in places where Lu Bieling could not see.
He had a stubborn temper and never complained even when bullied. Fortunately he was not foolish. After learning his lesson, he began digging pits for them in return. The feud between them had been established ever since.
As adults they no longer came to blows, but sarcasm and mockery never stopped.
Lu Xunzhi no longer bothered arguing with them. After joining the military, his achievements only increased. At such a young age he had already become a Federal Major. The others were extremely jealous, and whenever they met they always tried to provoke him. Most of the time they brought up the topic he had cared about most as a child, his mother. The excuse might be old, but it worked every time.
Sure enough, Lu Xunzhi’s face darkened.
But before he could speak, the seemingly delicate girl beside him, who looked as though a gust of wind might knock her down, frowned and spoke first.
“You’re the ones without mothers. Children without mothers behave this rudely!”
Among the alien species of Devil’s Eye, parents were very strict with their little ones. Even mischievous youngsters would never deliberately provoke trouble.
None of them expected Pu Xin to speak.
Lu Jia gave a cold laugh. “We haven’t thrown you out yet only out of respect for Lu Xunzhi. You’d better recognize your place. Is it your turn to speak here?”
Smack!
“Ah!” A vine suddenly lashed across Lu Jia’s face from nowhere. He cried out in pain.
Pu Xin was still standing beside Lu Xunzhi. Meanwhile, every plant in the flowerbed had pulled its roots out of the soil, bunching them together like octopus tentacles as they surrounded the group. The one that had lashed out was a Lanqing Vine.
Lu Yi, Lu Bing, and Lu Ding were stunned into silence. Lu Jia, who had been struck so hard he was dizzy, had not yet grasped the situation. Clutching his face, he roared furiously, though his words came out garbled.
The blow had knocked out several of his teeth, and his speech now leaked air so badly that no one could understand him.
Lu Xunzhi looked at Pu Xin in astonishment. The little dandelion who usually smiled and blinked at him now wore a cold expression. The green in her pupils had deepened, and a faint silver totem flickered between her brows.
As if sensing his gaze, she suddenly turned and hugged him.
The soft, gentle sensation felt like a piece of marshmallow pressed against him.
He had never been this close to a woman before, and his body stiffened instinctively. Noticing this, Pu Xin hugged him even tighter.
Even without lowering his head, Lu Xunzhi could smell the faint fragrance coming from her. Gradually, his rigid body relaxed.
He was rarely protected so directly by anyone. Lu Bieling was his father and usually taught him to overcome his own difficulties.
After stepping onto the battlefield, he had long realized that placing hope in others and relying on them was foolish.
Yet at this moment something struck his heart with quiet force, leaving a soft hollow there.
He allowed the foolish mom to hug him and reached out to gently stroke her soft hair. She seemed deeply upset, clinging to him without lifting her head or saying anything.
Meanwhile, Lu Yi, Lu Bing, and Lu Ding, surrounded by suddenly mobile plants, were so terrified they nearly collapsed. Lu Jia finally recovered from the pain and realized what was happening.
Before he could even feel afraid, his arms and legs were abruptly bound tight. Vines wrapped him thoroughly and slammed him onto the ground.
The other three did not escape either. When they tried to cry for help, vines sealed their mouths.
Once the four of them were securely tied, the vines hoisted them into the air with their torsos upright and limbs dangling. Other plants extended their roots and struck them sharply with loud smacks.
Lu Jia, Lu Yi, Lu Bing, and Lu Ding flushed red with humiliation. Their mouths were blocked, and they could only produce muffled whimpering sounds.
Lu Xunzhi had no time to watch them. He awkwardly patted Pu Xin’s shoulder, wanting to ask what was wrong.
She hugged him tighter and said in a muffled voice, “Zhizhi, I’m sorry. Mom didn’t mean to lose you.”
Sometimes the little alien species in Devil’s Eye said hurtful things without understanding their weight. Those who were hurt would run to the side of Emerald Lake and cry. Pu Xin would rub against them with her fluffy white form, and most of them would soon laugh again.
But once she encountered a Mimosa plant. The more she tried to cheer it up, the sadder it became, until it clung to her leaves and sobbed while calling for its mom.
She later learned that the Mimosa’s mother had withered away not long after it sprouted.
Thinking that her little one had been bullied while she was gone made Pu Xin’s tears fall uncontrollably.
Lu Xunzhi had not expected her to say such words. He stood frozen for a long moment until he felt warm tears soaking the fabric near his neck.
Only then did he realize that the foolish mom was crying.
He wrapped his arms around Pu Xin, looking slightly uncomfortable. Lowering his head a little, he rested his chin lightly on her shoulder and murmured quietly,
“Mom…”
Pu Xin, who had been crying, blinked.
She immediately released him. The tear at the corner of her eye still trembled, yet she asked eagerly, “Zhizhi! Did you call me Mom? Say it again, please! That was the first time you called me Mom!”
The little dandelion stared at him with shining eyes. A moment ago she had been crying, and if circumstances allowed she would probably have turned into a fluffy ball and rolled around in the wind from happiness.
Lu Xunzhi turned his head away awkwardly.
“I’m hungry. Let’s go eat…”
Halfway through his sentence, he suddenly choked on the words.
Not far away, Lu Jia, Lu Yi, Lu Bing, and Lu Ding were hanging in a row in midair.
The rare flowers planted in the small garden now resembled elegant ladies attending a banquet. Their blossoms bloomed beautifully while their roots moved gracefully across the ground.
They formed four long lines. The four young men seemed to have become their entrance passes to the banquet.
Each flower, upon passing by, would elegantly straighten its bloom, extend a branch with composed dignity, and smack one of them hard on the backside before lifting its head proudly and returning to its spot.
Lu Xunzhi fell silent.
He lowered his head and looked at the little dandelion before him. Her eyes were slightly red from crying, yet she gazed up at him expectantly.
His expression became complicated.
After a brief second, he obediently called out, “Mom!”
The word rang loud and clear.
At that exact moment, Lu Bieling walked in from outside and heard it perfectly.
Lu Bieling: “?”
He had never heard his bargain son call Dad that loudly before.