“Heh… hehe…”
Lin Ao forced out a stiff laugh.
“Little one, can you tell me why you were alone?”
This time, he didn’t dare mention parents again. He tried to approach the matter indirectly, wanting to understand how she had walked alone from Lotus Mountain to the amusement park.
The little girl opened her mouth and gestured with her hands, but no sound came out.
Lin Ao was startled. Was she mute?
“Wait here a moment. I’ll step out for a bit.”
He went out and called the best pediatric doctor in the hospital, asking her to examine the little girl again.
Such a cute child being unable to speak was heartbreaking.
During the examination, the girl’s gaze never once left Lin Ao.
“Uncle Lin Ao… the man I assassinated more than 20 times. Every time he realized I was still just a child, he would spare me.”
Memories flooded back to her as she regained her awareness.
Her name was Liu Nian. She was the niece of the Liu Family patriarch. As a child, she had witnessed her parents being brutally murdered by enemies. Ever since then, she had suffered from a speech disorder.
Today should have been her birthday. When her parents were alive, they would bring her to the amusement park every year on her birthday. Today, she had come out with her aunt, only to encounter enemies chasing them. She became separated from her aunt, panicked, and ran up Lotus Mountain, eventually stumbling into the amusement park in a daze.
She remembered that the person she was supposed to meet today should not have been Uncle Lin Ao.
It should have been that damned Ye Chen, the one who trained her into a killer.
How many times had this happened?
In her memories, the same sequence had repeated many times. At 5 years old, she would get lost and be taken in by Ye Chen. After 10 years of brutal training, she would become the infamous assassin “Night Heron,” known for her eerie methods of killing. Anyone targeted by Night Heron never survived past the next day. Her assassination success rate was 100%.
The stronger her abilities, the more it proved how cruel her training had been.
After 10 years, Ye Chen told her she was the niece of the Liu Family patriarch and returned her to the Liu Family. In truth, he used her to get close to her aunt and manipulate the Liu Family against Lin Ao.
By then, she had been thoroughly brainwashed. She hid many truths from her aunt and acted as Ye Chen’s pawn within the Liu Family.
On the surface, Ye Chen had raised her for 10 years and reunited the Liu Family with their lost child. In reality, she later realized it had all been his orchestrated scheme.
When he first took her in, he already knew she was the Liu Family’s lost child. Yet he still ruthlessly threw her into that hell known as the “Hall of Yama.” Under the pretense of granting her the power to take revenge, he told her she must train with her life at stake. Work hard, child.
What a lie.
She didn’t even understand how she had blindly obeyed him, risked her life for him, and even betrayed the Liu Family. The Liu Family had joined the decisive battle against the Lin Family and suffered a crushing defeat, never to recover.
That despicable Ye Chen even coveted her aunt.
And now, looking back, their hatred toward Uncle Lin Ao seemed petty and shameless.
When she thought of Lin Ao, he was the only stain on her assassin career, yet also the only warmth she had ever felt during those years.
The first time, he had said, “You’re just a child? At your age, you should be studying. Why are you trying to be a killer? Uncle Zhang, let her go. I can’t bring myself to hurt a child.”
The second time, he had said, “You again? Were you sent by someone with the surname Xiao, Lin, Ye, or Chu?” Then he added, “If you can’t beat me, then go eat properly. After eating, get lost.”
The third time, he had said, “Still you? Uncle Zhang, tie her up. I’ll have a chat with the little one.”
He once told her, “In this world, there’s no one I can truly confide in. It’s rare that I can think freely. Just treat this as me venting a little.”
He had also said quietly, “I… just want to live.”
The last time, he smiled as if relieved. “Congratulations, little one. You’ve finally completed your mission.”
Every time, although he seemed indifferent, his actions were warm.
Back then, she couldn’t express her feelings. She couldn’t even control her own actions. But in the moment she killed Lin Ao, there had been a brief instant when she broke free from her restraints.
After each of Lin Ao’s deaths, she would regain clarity. At those times, she would immediately fight Xiao, Lin, Ye, and Chu with all her strength.
Every time, it ended in her death.
This time, she had broken free from that restraint at the age of 5. And the first person she met was Lin Ao.
Uncle Lin Ao wanted to live. Then in this lifetime, she would protect him to the death.
As she thought about it, tears began to stream down her face again.
“What’s wrong? Doctor, did you hurt her?”
Seeing Liu Nian crying again during the examination, Lin Ao immediately questioned the doctor. His cold tone startled her, though he meant nothing by it. He always spoke that way.
“N-No, Young Master Lin.”
The doctor was flustered. She was only conducting a routine check and had no idea why the little girl was crying.
“Uncle Zhang, did you buy the things I asked for? Bring them in quickly. This is urgent!”
Lin Ao rubbed his forehead and called Uncle Zhang, asking him to buy some things girls might like.
Uncle Zhang soon entered, arms full of items.
Lin Ao immediately took them and dumped everything onto Liu Nian’s bed.
“They’re all for you! Don’t cry!”
He forced an awkward and rather terrifying smile, trying to appear kind.
The doctor was startled by his expression. It almost looked as if Young Master Lin was about to kill someone.
“Young Master Lin, I’ve examined her. She likely suffered a severe fright in the past, which caused her speech disorder. With proper emotional care and gradual recovery from her trauma, she should regain her ability to speak.”
After saying that, the doctor fled the room as if escaping. She felt that the Young Master Lin before her was dangerous.
[Current Status/Thoughts: Panicked. Help! How do you comfort a girl? Isn’t my smile handsome enough? Don’t little girls like handsome guys?]
“Pfft!”
Seeing the scene and the panel information, Liu Nian burst into laughter again.
Lin Ao let out a sigh of relief.
“As long as you’re smiling, that’s good. What’s your name? Can you write it on paper?”
Scratch, scratch, scratch.
“Liu Nian? That’s a nice name. Do you remember where your home is?”
Scratch, scratch, scratch.
“You don’t remember? Did you lose your memory?”
Scratch, scratch, scratch.
“You just don’t remember? And you’re even acting smug about it?”
Lin Ao rubbed his forehead again. Were all female creatures this difficult to deal with?
Liu Nian covered her mouth as she giggled. It wasn’t time for her to return to the Liu Family yet. Ye Chen would appear in Jianghai City over the next few days before returning to the Hall of Yama. To ensure she wouldn’t be taken away by him again, she decided to stay by Uncle Lin Ao’s side for now.
It would also give her a better chance to understand the Lin Ao who had once given her warmth.
“Alright, I’ll head back first. Rest well here. I’ll come see you tomorrow.”
Lin Ao hadn’t even eaten yet. He had been busy all this time. He planned to go home, shower, rest properly, and think about what to do with this little girl tomorrow. Since he had encountered her, he would take responsibility.
Just as he was about to leave, Liu Nian grabbed his hand.
Scratch, scratch, scratch.
“You don’t want me to leave? No. I need to go home, eat, shower, sleep, and plan how to stay away from those people. I don’t have time to stay here. Whatever it is, we’ll talk tomorrow.”
Lin Ao tried to pull his hand free, but Liu Nian immediately began crying loudly again.
Veins slowly bulged on Lin Ao’s forehead.
Are girls really made of water?
Why do they cry at the slightest thing?