“Third Master, why do you want me to change the way I address you?”
Li Juechen crossed one leg over the other and countered, “What do you think? Hurry up and figure it out. If you can’t, you’re not allowed to go anywhere!”
Tang Lichu puffed out her cheeks in frustration. Seeing the little woman trying her best to hide her emotions, an indescribable sense of delight rose in Li Juechen’s heart.
“Have you thought of something? If you can’t come up with one, how about I choose one for you?”
Tang Lichu quickly nodded. “All right. I’ll call you whatever Third Master wants me to!”
The corners of Li Juechen’s lips lifted as he said softly, “Call me by my name.”
Tang Lichu’s next answer was like a bucket of cold water poured directly over his head, instantly extinguishing all the joy in his heart and nearly making him faint from frustration.
She timidly asked, “Your name? I… I don’t know your name…”
Very well. He had been trying to have a romantic moment with her, and she didn’t even know his name. Just wonderful!
Seeing that the man was about to lose his temper, Tang Lichu quickly stood up and hurried over to him. She tightly grasped his sleeve and coaxed him sweetly.
“Third Master, it’s true! No one ever told me your name. My adoptive parents only said they were sending me to serve Third Master Li as a maid. I’ve been here for so long, and everyone in this house calls you Third Master, so I really didn’t know!”
Li Juechen could only let out a helpless sigh.
This troublesome little woman was truly something else. In the blink of an eye, she could make him burn with rage, only to soothe him completely the very next moment.
She had actually been acting spoiled with him!
The usually composed Third Master Li, who never allowed his emotions to show on his face, was now completely helpless against this woman. She had stirred him up so thoroughly that he could no longer bring himself to be angry.
“Remember this. Your man’s full name is Li Juechen. Got it?”
The moment she heard the words your man, Tang Lichu’s delicate body trembled violently. Her throat suddenly became unbearably itchy, and she involuntarily stood there coughing softly.
Li Juechen stretched out his long, powerful arm and caught Tang Lichu just as she was about to turn and escape. With a tug, he pulled her down onto his thigh. Then he lowered his head and firmly captured her soft, rosy lips.
In an instant, the breath she had been hurriedly exhaling from coughing was sealed inside her mouth.
The faint scent of tobacco mingled with the distinctive masculine fragrance clinging to him, and Tang Lichu couldn’t help but become intoxicated by it.
As he kissed her earlobe, Li Juechen lowered his voice and murmured beside her ear, “Coughing so coquettishly. Were you hoping I’d kiss you?”
Faced with his teasing question, Tang Lichu’s face flushed crimson. She hurriedly denied it.
“N-No, of course not!”
“All right, then call me by my name. Let me hear it and make me happy.”
Her lips, reddened and slightly swollen from his kisses, parted gently. She trembled as she tried to speak, but all that came from her throat were a few indistinct syllables.
“Li… Li…”
Li Juechen’s deep, pool-like eyes gleamed with amusement as he quietly gazed at her, patiently waiting for her to say his full name. He gently prompted her, “Juechen.”
Tang Lichu’s delicate little face immediately fell, looking like a wronged little rabbit. She pouted pitifully.
“Third Master, I really can’t say it. Could you please stop forcing me?”
As she spoke, she blinked her watery eyes, her gaze filled with pleading.
Seeing the smile gradually disappear from the man’s face, Tang Lichu’s heart tightened. Afraid she had angered him, she quickly changed tactics and began praising him instead.
“But your name is so beautiful! Qingqing Zijin, chaofan Juechen—it sounds so heroic, fearless, powerful, and imposing!”
Li Juechen had never lacked people who flattered him. Every day, there were people racking their brains to shower him with praise, yet none of it had ever stirred the slightest emotion in him.
But now, listening to the sweet, ingratiating voice of the little woman in his arms, he found himself absolutely delighted.
His heart was surging with emotion, but his face remained expressionless. He merely raised an eyebrow and asked, “Then what do you want to call me?”
Tang Lichu sighed inwardly.
Why is this man so difficult? I’ve already gone to such lengths to coax him, yet he’s still hung up on how I address him!
What should I change it to? Maybe I should call him ‘Bad Man Li.’
Of course, she only dared to think that in her head. She would never dare say it aloud.
“You’re the third son in your family. How about I call you Third Brother from now on?”
Juechen shook his head.
“Third Brother? Absolutely not. Li Yuanzhou already calls me Third Brother!”
“Then… Brother Juechen? Brother Chen? Master Chen? Or Big Brother Li? You choose. I’ll call you whichever one you like!”
Li Juechen was finally satisfied. He suddenly lowered his head and planted a hard kiss on her playful, adorable cheek.
“Just call me Brother Chen. Remember that. If you get it wrong, I’ll punish you!”
Tang Lichu finally breathed a sigh of relief.
Who would understand what I’ve been through? We’ve spent nearly an hour arguing over one form of address! If he still wasn’t satisfied, I might have seriously considered ending my life just to prove my point!
Li Juechen watched her carefully, taking in every trace of nervousness, shyness, and relief on her face.
At last, the little woman was showing the normal emotions of an ordinary person. She was no longer the submissive girl from before, meekly allowing others to manipulate her however they pleased.
That was good.
He still remembered the first time he had met her.
Back then, she had been only seven or eight years old. When the little girl saw him covered in injuries, she immediately burst into tears. Her mother thought she had simply been frightened, but the little girl cried so hard she could barely catch her breath—not because she was scared, but because she was afraid he was in pain.
“Waaah… Mama, hurry and find a doctor for Big Brother! He’s lost so much blood. It must hurt terribly!”
Li Juechen had already been a teenager then. His heart warmed, and he couldn’t help smiling. Enduring the waves of pain from his wounds, he comforted her.
“It’s all right. Big Brother isn’t in pain.”
At the time, her family had a sweet-potato cellar. After her mother hid him inside, little Lichu insisted on going in with him.
Li Juechen had assumed she simply thought it was fun. But after the two of them crawled into the cellar together, the little girl stretched out her tender arms and firmly shielded him with her tiny body.
“Big Brother, don’t be afraid. I’ll protect you.”
Back then, the little girl still had chubby cheeks. Her fluffy hair was tied into two round buns, and her little face had turned bright red from nervousness and anger. Her determined gaze was impossibly adorable.
I’ll make this little woman become her true self again—the girl she was meant to be, the girl I remember.
Coming back to his senses, Li Juechen swept her up into his arms without giving her a chance to object and strode toward the stairs.
“It’s getting late. Time to rest.”
Tang Lichu let out a startled “Ah!”
Her fair little face instantly flushed a delicate pink, making her look especially alluring. She lowered her head slightly and asked in a soft, obedient voice,
“Th-Third… Brother Chen, are you staying here tonight?”
Li Juechen wore a roguish smile. Lowering his voice, he leaned close to her ear.
“‘Third Brother Chen’? What kind of ridiculous name is that? Get it wrong and you’ll be punished. This is my house, and you’re my woman. What’s wrong with me sleeping with my own woman in my own house?”
“Nothing. I’ll do as you say.”