Yu Luo was already starting to feel sleepy. Life inside the book was far more difficult to endure than her life in the real world.
Right now, she only wanted to climb onto the bed and sleep for a while.
Perhaps when she opened her eyes again, she would discover that everything here had only been a dream.
After dismissing all the servants, Yu Luo lay face-down on the pillow and fell asleep.
In her hazy sleep, Yu Luo dreamed that many men in black had tied her to a red-hot iron pillar. Terrified, she struggled to break free from their control, but no matter how hard she tried, she could not escape.
Just as she was about to be pressed against it, the sound of knocking rang out.
Knock, knock.
Yu Luo broke out in a cold sweat and slowly opened her eyes.
The final fate of Eldest Miss Yu was indeed a nightmare for Yu Luo.
As the chosen son of destiny in the entire book, the male lead never let anyone who offended him escape from his grasp.
Yu Luo sighed.
Someone as unlucky as her was truly rare.
She had clearly never done anything wrong, yet she still had to suffer punishment for the things Eldest Miss Yu had done.
At that moment, she suddenly realized that the sound which had awakened her from the nightmare had appeared again.
A tapping sound came from the window.
Someone was knocking on her window.
Yu Luo froze for a moment, then cautiously moved toward it.
After opening the window, a tall, cold figure stood outside.
Brother Xiao…
The boss…
The moment she recalled how she had almost been pressed onto a burning pillar by the boss’s subordinates in her dream, Yu Luo shivered.
Seeing his figure, she subconsciously stepped back two steps.
Li Xiao’s gaze was indifferent, yet carried an indescribable meaning.
“Eldest Miss.”
Yu Luo was wearing a crimson inner robe. Her black hair was not neatly arranged as usual, but instead hung loosely down her back.
Under the faint autumn moonlight, her face appeared even more beautiful, and her slightly pointed chin looked especially delicate and lovable.
Compared with the Eldest Miss Yu Li Xiao had seen some days ago, she truly seemed like a completely different person.
Li Xiao had fought in battles since his youth and had indeed encountered many strange and supernatural things, so he was not surprised by this.
He merely found it interesting.
Yu Luo still looked somewhat dazed and had not quite reacted yet.
“Y-you… why are you here?”
Li Xiao held the kite from earlier in the day in his hand.
“Eldest Miss’s kite has already been repaired.”
Yu Luo reached out and took it.
She said to him casually, “Then come in through the window. Be careful not to alarm anyone.”
Although it was night, and they were a lone man and woman, Yu Luo was not worried that Li Xiao would do anything to her.
In the original setting of the story, the male lead Li Xiao never forced women to do anything.
He possessed a noble status and handsome appearance. No matter what situation he was in, others always followed him willingly.
As the protagonist of a male-oriented novel, Li Xiao was ambitious and only pursued power and status. He never cared about beauty.
Women were like fleeting clouds to him.
Besides, Yu Luo had a very clear understanding of herself.
She had always thought of herself as a sickly little girl.
She neither had the hot, curvy figure of a young model nor tall stature with fiery red lips. How could the male lead possibly be interested in her?
Unless the male lead had grown tired of luxurious delicacies and wanted to try plain porridge and simple dishes—but that was completely impossible.
Yu Luo played with the kite for a moment. She had to admit that Li Xiao’s hands were truly skillful. Even the torn part at the tail of the kite had been repaired perfectly, as if it had never been damaged at all.
She placed the kite aside and then looked up at Li Xiao.
“What reward do you want?”
Li Xiao was at least 188 centimeters tall, while Yu Luo was only about 160 centimeters. The difference in their height and build was enormous.
So whenever Yu Luo spoke to him, she always had to tilt her head up and look at his face.
Li Xiao’s tone remained indifferent.
“The medicine Eldest Miss rewarded earlier today—I have already used it. That is already a reward. There is no need for more.”
Yu Luo frowned slightly.
She thought for a moment.
Ever since the male lead had been whipped by Eldest Miss Yu, he had often been ostracized by the other guards in the residence.
To curry favor with Eldest Miss Yu, those guards would also privately make things difficult for him. They would even snatch away his meals.
The servants’ meals in the residence were already scarce, and the taste was not very good.
With Brother Xiao being so tall, she wondered if he could even eat his fill every day with those oil-less and stale dishes.
Yu Luo picked up a plate of osmanthus milk cake from the table.
“I’ll reward this to you.”
Li Xiao fell silent, though a faint smile appeared at the corner of his lips.
“Many thanks, Eldest Miss, but I do not need it.”
He had no interest at all in such soft and sweet foods.
After hearing this, Yu Luo directly picked up a piece of cake and held it up to his lips.
“This young lady is telling you to eat it. You must eat it.”
After saying that, her heart trembled a little—she clearly knew he was the boss, yet she was forcing him to eat. Was she tired of living?
A hint of surprise flashed in Li Xiao’s eyes, but he said nothing further. Instead, he leaned toward Yu Luo’s hand and slowly ate the piece of cake.
Until his lips brushed against her fingertip.
The cake carried the fragrance of milk and osmanthus, while Yu Luo herself smelled faintly of orchid and musk. Since she had been holding the cake, her fingers also carried a slight scent of milk.
Because of the large difference in their heights, Yu Luo even had to stand on tiptoe slightly to keep her arm from getting sore while holding it up.
To her, this action seemed completely normal, but to others, every detail appeared somewhat strange.
His cool lips brushed past her fingertip. Yu Luo suddenly felt something was wrong and quickly withdrew her hand.
Growing up, she had never been this close to a boy before.
—Brother Xiao truly deserved to be the male lead. Even after hiding his handsome appearance, his bearing alone was enough to make a young girl’s heart tremble.
Yu Luo’s ears turned red, but she forced herself to remain calm.
“You should eat the rest of the cakes too. There’s Yunwu tea on the table.”
Li Xiao had never thought these cakes tasted good before, but the ones here with Yu Luo somehow seemed different from those elsewhere.
After finishing the cakes, Li Xiao took his leave.
Yu Luo was indeed sleepy. After getting into bed again, she did not dream at all that night and slept straight until dawn.
After breakfast was delivered, there was a dish of tofu skin mixed with autumn soy sauce today. Ziming said that someone from the kitchen had specially sent it.
Arriving a day late—now that it was here, Yu Luo had no appetite to eat it.
After her mother passed away, she had suffered many grievances like this at the hands of her stepmother.
Yu Luo knew clearly that once grievances were swallowed, there would only be more and more. The more someone endured hardship, the more endless hardship they would face.
The kitchen controlled her daily meals in the future. Yu Luo could only keep them under control; she could not let them control her instead.
Yu Luo said, “Send it back. I don’t want to eat this today.”
Ziming responded, “How could they treat Miss like this? This servant will throw it right back to the kitchen.”