You're my wife, don't doubt it!

Sorry, thank you, please rest assured, I did not run away.

PS: For those who don't like reading dungeons, there's at least some good news: another slice-of-life romance is about to begin.

Chapter 259 Absence Makes the Heart Feel Hotter?

2023-07-09

The group gathered in the western suburbs that evening. After leaving the hall, Shen Jie invited everyone to dinner at "Little South Country." Since the mission was finally accomplished, the atmosphere was lively and cheerful. Amidst the clinking of glasses, even Teacher Yao leisurely raised her glass, chuckling. Seeing that Teacher Yao had regained some of her thinking and speaking abilities in such a short time, Xiao Yao felt a surge of joy and relief. Thinking that Shen Jie had ultimately rescued her, his spirits lifted.

There is always hope in the future.

During the banquet, when Xiao Yao stood up to toast everyone, he delivered such a passionate and impassioned speech.

By the time the show ended, it was already quite late at night.

As the music ended and the crowd dispersed, some people said goodbye on the spot, while a few others went back to their hotel rooms to retrieve their luggage.

After thinking for a moment, Xiao Yao decided to hitch a ride with Yu Bo to go back to his grandmother's house first.

"Don't leave."

After Xiao Yao explained the situation to Shen Jie, the latter actually tugged at Xiao Yao's sleeve weakly and whispered those two words.

Xiao Yao was slightly taken aback.

The way Shen Jie said "Don't go" was just like... well, the little girl who, when her parents took her to kindergarten, would hold onto her mother's hand and not let her go.

In Xiao Yao's memory, this was nothing like "Shen Jie".

It's not that Shen Jie necessarily fits the stereotypes of being "independent," "strong," "mature," "confident," and "composed," but...

"Listen to me, no way." Xiao Yao lowered his voice and looked around.

The spacious and bright interior of this suite features soft beige walls, complemented by luxurious wallpaper and exquisite accessories. A thick carpet with interwoven blue and gold patterns adds a touch of refinement and elegance. A large floor-to-ceiling window covers an entire wall, offering breathtaking views of the western suburbs at night.

This window reminded Xiao Yao of Shen Jie and his Huang Jiang "wedding room," which was also Yu Luying's "dream room."

At this moment, Shen Jie was sitting on a huge bed, her legs dangling down, the top half of her socks touching the floor. Although described as huge, Xiao Yao felt it was actually a little smaller than Shen Jie's own bed.

The bed was covered with soft white sheets and an ornate embroidered quilt, suggesting that the room was targeted at a slightly older demographic. A delicate lamp on the bedside table emitted a soft glow, while a landscape painting hung on the opposite wall, creating a sense of tranquility and relaxation.

In one corner of the room, there is a large full-length mirror, decorated with an ornate gold frame that reflects the sophistication and brilliance of the entire suite. It is large enough to allow guests to see their entire body and carefully dress themselves before leaving the room.

This large mirror is precisely the core reason why Xiao Yao chose this suite.

The room was truly spacious, with a large bedroom, a large living room, and of course, a bathroom. Previously, a whole group of people had been waiting and passing through the suite without feeling crowded, but now that only he and Shen Jie remained, it naturally felt empty and lonely.

Of course, it's not accurate to say that "only he and Shen Jie were left," because Yu Luying was currently stuck at the door between the main reception room and the hotel corridor, with the door slightly ajar, unable to move forward or backward, while her uncle was standing in the corridor.

If they aren't allowed to be alone together, it would seem like the younger sister is in the wrong. But if they are, it seems to the uncle that he sees her as his girlfriend...

So, unable to go in or out, the clam remained there for a time.

Fortunately, Xiao Yao was sensible enough not to keep her waiting too long.

He explained to Shen Jie that he needed to hurry home, as Shen Hongsheng might not be able to react so quickly.

When I get home, I need to explain the current situation to my daughter, and I also have a lot of things to take.

“Besides, Brother Bo and the others are still outside. If I stay here, what will people think of me?” Xiao Yao said.

Upon hearing the word "daughter," Shen Jie's attitude softened immediately: "Now that you mention it, I just remembered, whose ID did you use to book this room?"

“I already thought of the ribbonfish,” Xiao Yao said to Shen Jie.

“Okay,” Shen Jie nodded gently, “Go quickly… no, come back as soon as you’re done.”

"Alright, you don't need to tell me that." Xiao Yao reached out his right hand, pinched Shen Jie's nose, glanced at the door like a thief, and gently hugged Shen Jie.

"Go ahead." The girl rolled onto the bed, hiding her small body under the white blanket.

On the way back, Xiao Yao had something he wanted to say to Yu Luying in private, but she got into the passenger seat of Yu Bo's car without hesitation, leaving Xiao Yao to sit alone in the spacious back seat.

We barely had a chance to exchange more than a few words along the way.

“Congratulations,” Xiao Yao said. “You’ve finally awakened your fortress. Hard work pays off, and our team will be even stronger from now on.”

"Hmm," Yu Luying said calmly.

She seems a little unhappy? Xiao Yao wondered.

What exactly is making them unhappy?

"Uh, by the way, when did you awaken the fortress? Did you encounter any opportunity?" Xiao Yao asked again.

As Yu Bo drove, he glanced at Yu Luying—Xiao Yao saw her in the rearview mirror.

“It’s nothing,” Yu Luying replied calmly. “Right after I teleported downstairs, when I saw Shen Jie’s…fly dad, I felt very…angry? I wondered why there were so many…bad dads in the world? Then, I heard her voice.”

"Her?" Xiao Yao said subconsciously.

“Cinderella,” Yu Luying said.

"Oh," Xiao Yao said, "I understand."

“She told me that she is me and I am her, that she is the hidden side of me,” Yu Luying said. “To be honest, I was a little disappointed.”

"Disappointed?" Before Xiao Yao could speak, Yu Bo asked first.

"Um... I hope she won't hear me say that," Yu Luying said somewhat shyly, "I think... Cinderella is a bit too ordinary."

“Normal? No way, why would you think that?” Xiao Yao quickly said.

“You are Don Quixote, she is Bloody Mary, one of you is a renowned knight, the other a majestic queen,” Yu Luying said. “Actually, I’ve always wondered, when I awaken the fortress, who will it be? And it turns out to be her…”

"Please," Xiao Yao laughed, "Don Quixote was just a down-on-his-luck, withered old nobleman. In the eyes of his contemporaries, he was a laughable madman and clown. Mary, on the other hand, suffered oppression and bullying from her father from a young age and was banished to the cold palace. She only had five short years to rise to the throne. God didn't give her more time, and her career was destroyed after her death by her own sister... Just because of her womanly kindness and soft heart, which of us do you think is stronger than Cinderella?"

Yu Luying pulled out a small, round badge from somewhere: "Of course you two recognize this."

Yu Bo turned on a small light inside the car. The badge couldn't leave Yu Luying's palm, so Xiao Yao had to hold her small hand to look at it.

The front of the badge featured a picture of Cinderella, with "Cendrillon" written in French below. Only after Xiao Yao had seen it clearly did Yu Luying flip the coin over.

Hmm... It's a short, inverted triangular cone with a simple, oval head on top.

Xiao Yao knew that this was the "pawn" in chess.

No wonder Yu Luying was unhappy, Xiao Yao thought. They were all good partners and friends who had gone through adventures together—even more than just good friends. In the end, he was the "knight," Shen Jie was the "queen," and Yu Luying was just a "pawn." Who wouldn't feel hurt?

"Did Cinderella eventually become queen?" Yu Bo quickly smoothed things over, saying, "Before God, kings and peasants are equal; they just have different roles."

"It's just a difference in roles," Xiao Yao repeated.

"Hmph." Yu Luying let out a sound that was hard to tell whether it was a cold laugh or something else, and put the chess piece, or rather, the Spirit Fortress badge, back into her arms.

Yu Bo dropped Xiao Yao and Yu Luying off downstairs at Yu Lihua's house, then sped away.

"Then... I'll go up first?" Yu Luying said, "Be careful on your way home."

"Mmm." Xiao Yao said, reaching out to pull the girl into his arms.

The girl didn't resist, didn't dodge, and didn't respond to him. Xiao Yao felt like he was hugging a cold, stiff stone—no, at least her shoulders were trembling slightly, proclaiming that she was alive.

"What's wrong? Are you cold?" Xiao Yao asked gently.

"Well, a little bit," Yu Luying said.

Xiao Yao hugged her even tighter and lowered his head, but Yu Luying clenched her teeth.

"What's wrong?" Xiao Yao finally couldn't help but ask softly.

“Nothing much,” Yu Luying said. “You should go back and pack up. Even though Shen Jie seemed quite energetic while eating, I think my sister isn’t doing very well right now. You shouldn’t leave her alone for too long.”

"Yeah, I know, I know," Xiao Yao said somewhat sullenly. "I just feel like you don't seem to be in good shape either."

"I'm fine, go ahead."

"Is it really okay?"

Yu Luying leaned in and gave him a symbolic lick, then playfully punched the boy's waist with her small fist.

"Well, I'll be going now?" Xiao Yao said. "Do you want me to give you your socks?"

"Stop being silly, just spend some quality time with Shen Jie tonight," Yu Luying said.

“That’s not a good idea,” Xiao Yao said. “Don’t you sleep with your mother at night? It’s not really appropriate for me to call you in the middle of the night.”

"Ouch." Yu Luying pressed her hands to her face. "That's not what I meant by 'accompanying'! Don't do anything reckless tonight, you're not even married yet."

"Okay, okay," Xiao Yao said. "Hey, Ping."

"what?"

“I think you should be ‘Car’, which is ‘Rook Castle’,” Xiao Yao said. “I think there’s something wrong with this system.”

“The pumpkin carriage is hardly a war chariot,” Yu Luying said with a smile. “Why are you still worrying about this? I’ve already stopped thinking about it.”

As Xiao Yao walked into the alleyway of his grandmother's house, he looked around but found nothing unusual.

As Xiao Yao entered the photo room, he picked up the kitchen knife again and checked the room thoroughly, but there was no one under the bed.

After confirming that there were no intruders, Xiao Yao entered Shen Tianyun's room and woke her up.

The sleepy girl looked Xiao Yao up and down: "Dad, whatever I did wrong, you can teach me a lesson."

"Huh?" Xiao Yao said.