Early the next morning, Li Yantang arrived at the first-floor dining room, ready to have breakfast.
A man of strict self-discipline, his internal clock was firmly set to 7 a.m.
As he passed through the lobby, he saw Butler Zhao methodically directing the servants in their cleaning duties.
As if a thought had suddenly struck him, he called out in a measured tone,
“Uncle Zhao, if the person Yan Mo brought back last night is awake, let me know.”
With that, he strode off toward the dining room.
“Yes, Mr. Li.”
The butler replied with due deference.
“Also, send a breakfast up to her room.”
Li Yantang added the instruction without turning around, his voice carrying from a distance.
“Certainly.” The butler understood at once.
Nie Zhenzhen was roused by a few harsh rays of morning light filtering through the gap in the curtains.
She stretched lazily with a big yawn, pouted her little lips, rolled over, and drifted back to sleep.
“Knock, knock, knock!”
Before long, a crisp, brisk knocking came from outside the door.
The girl was instantly startled awake by the sudden sound. Her lashes fluttered slightly as the stubborn drowsiness kept washing over her.
Reluctant to open her eyes, she buried her fuzzy little head into the pillow and fussed around for a good while.
“Knock, knock, knock.”
The familiar knocking came again.
“Miss, are you awake? I’ve brought your breakfast.”
A young woman’s voice came from outside—neither too loud nor too soft, carrying a hint of professional courtesy.
With no other choice, the girl rubbed her bleary eyes, not bothering with the disheveled strands of hair scattered across her shoulders.
Her footsteps were sluggish and dragging, carrying the languor and irritation of someone not yet fully awake, as she slowly shuffled to the door and pulled it open.
“Thank you, I’ll take it myself.”
Nie Zhenzhen reached out to take the white tray from the maid, thanked her, and turned back into the room.
She had originally wanted to crawl back under the covers for a bit more sleep, but her traitorous stomach defeated her drowsiness.
A series of gurgling protests rose from her stomach.
Indeed, it had been a long time since she’d had a proper meal.
So the girl laid out all the breakfast items from the tray on the small round table.
The breakfast wasn’t particularly lavish—a glass of warm milk, a sandwich, an egg, a bowl of millet porridge, and a few refreshing side dishes—yet it carried a certain delicacy and warmth.
The breakfast was delicious and suited the girl’s taste. She quickly polished off every last bite, feeling a warm, satisfying fullness in her stomach.
Nie Zhenzhen looked at the empty dishes left on the table, mulling things over in her mind.
Should she take them out herself, or wash them clean first and then take them out, or simply wait for the maid to come collect them?
Just as she was hesitating, the door was pushed open directly without ceremony.
The sound of a man’s military boots hitting the floor reached her ears, and Nie Zhenzhen instinctively looked up in fright.
In that instant, she met Li Yantang’s deep, cold gaze.
“Ah! What are you doing here?!”
The girl let out an unconscious cry of surprise, her hands flailing helplessly in the air, with nowhere to rest in her utter panic.
Li Yantang was also startled for a moment by the familiar face before him.
But he quickly regained control through his formidable self-discipline, returning to calm in an instant, as if not a single ripple had ever crossed his surface.
“Heh, so you’ve turned my home into a thatched cottage… playing Liu Bei, are we?”
Li Yantang let out a light chuckle, a hint of sarcasm lacing his tone.
He strolled into the room at a leisurely pace, walked over to the sofa, and sat down steadily.
His body lounged back against the sofa, legs slightly apart.
His hands rested casually on the armrests on either side, fingertips tapping away at an idle rhythm.
He lifted his gaze and slowly swept his eyes around the room, glancing at the dishes on the table, before his gaze finally settled back on the girl.
“Those clothes… hideous.”
Li Yantang delivered the cold judgment.
Nie Zhenzhen nervously twisted the hem of her clothes with her hands, hastily explaining,
“The wardrobe… only had… Mr. Yan’s clothes, so I just… made do with them…”
“Sleeping alright?” the man asked offhandedly.
“Yes, I’m sleeping very well. Thank you, Mr. Yan… and you too, Mr. Li… for taking me in.”
The girl’s voice grew softer and softer as she spoke, until it nearly carried a sob by the end.
She felt herself groveling in the dust at this moment, especially… in front of this man.
Surely he didn’t think she was deliberately trying to get close to him, throwing herself at him, did he?
Li Yantang saw through the embarrassment in the girl’s eyes at a glance, as well as the little thoughts running through her mind.
“Since you’re here, you might as well stay.”
The man’s tone was idle and relaxed, his eyes perfectly calm.
The moment the words left his mouth, the room fell into silence.
A few seconds passed.
“Since you can’t even tell a wolf from a dog, how about I give you a name—Little Dog, what do you think?”
The man clearly had no intention of letting her off so easily, a playful, teasing look on his face.
Nie Zhenzhen couldn’t help but look up at him in alarm, her face a picture of disbelief.
“What? Don’t like it?”
A dangerous glint of scrutiny flickered in the man’s eyes.
“It seems you haven’t yet come to terms with your new identity.”
The man’s voice deepened, carrying a hint of unyielding authority.
The girl could sense that this man’s patience was wearing thin at any moment.
The oppressive aura radiating from him made her so frightened she could barely breathe.
“Yes, Mr. Li, I’ll do as you say.”
The girl suppressed the humiliation inside her and agreed against her will.
“Heh, an obedient little dog.”
“Here, you follow my rules.”
“The first rule I’m setting for you is: without my command, you are not to set foot outside this room.”
“Meals will be delivered on time.”
After Li Yantang finished speaking, he rose from the sofa.
His towering frame completely enveloped the girl’s frail figure, and she instinctively lowered her head, not daring to meet his gaze.
“I have matters to attend to. I’m leaving now.”
“Remember, here, only by obediently following my orders will you have a way to survive.”
The man’s voice was not loud, yet it carried an unrefusable sense of control and a heavy warning. The chill radiating from him made the girl feel frozen to the bone.
“Hm?”
When the man saw that the girl had not responded for a long while, his tone clearly grew more impatient.
“I… I understand… Mr. Li.”
The girl answered timidly.
“I don’t like having to say the same thing twice.”
The man warned in a low voice.
“I understand, Mr. Li.”
This time, the girl immediately learned her lesson and dared not slack off again.
Only then did Li Yantang curl the corners of his mouth in satisfaction.
Just before leaving, he added casually, “Someone will come to collect the tray.”
Heh, foolish little dog. All those little thoughts in her head were written all over her face.
The man chuckled inwardly.
Nie Zhenzhen was clearly taken aback by that remark.
How… how did he know what she was thinking?
Could it be that he could read minds?
The girl was quickly startled by her own absurd, childish thought.
Standing still, she gently shook her little head, trying to shake all those unrealistic, messy thoughts out of her small brain, absolutely refusing to let them take up what little space it had.