The white rose I picked up cried and said she liked me.

A heavy iron gate, a dimly lit attic, and a girl sitting hunched over in the corner, her eyes lifeless.

Everything has returned to square one.

"Little Flame, I cooked some glutinous rice balls for you, with sesame filling. Have some."

Xu Nian carried a steaming bowl of glutinous rice balls into the attic.

He sat down next to the girl and gently took her small, cool hand in his.

Xu Xi was leaning against the wall, staring blankly at the sliver of light shining through the crack in the door.

"I'm not hungry, I don't want to eat."

"Have something to eat. You've been working hard all morning, you need to replenish your energy."

Xu Nian softly comforted her.

After the lie was exposed, Xu Xi's already fragile and depressed mind was dealt an even greater blow.

She has been sitting here for a long time without eating or drinking.

Xu Xi gave a bitter smile.

"I won't die from skipping a meal."

"How can you say that... You'll starve. Sweetie, have a couple of bites, and I'll give you candy later."

Xu Nian took out two toffee candies from her pocket.

That was the packaging he always used when feeding Xu Xi his medicine.

Soothing Xu Xi like a child had become a habit ingrained in his bones.

"Just take your medicine, no need to use these tricks to cover it up."

Xu Xi turned his head away, facing the damp, dark wall, and said in a hoarse voice.

"I know I'm crazy, mentally ill."

"I was born to endure all of this."

"You don't need to pity or sympathize with me. Just think of me as a wisp of smoke that will dissipate with the wind and won't disturb your life."

Xu Nian gazed at her quietly, remaining silent.

He reached out and pulled the girl into his arms.

He inhaled the delicate fragrance of her hair and gently patted her back to comfort her.

"I'm a complete failure... I mess up everything I try to do."

As Xu Xi spoke, she began to sob softly.

"My subordinates are all cursing me, saying I'm a spendthrift who only works out of the company now that it's doing well..."

"But they all did things that betrayed the company, and I gave them chances before, but I only punished them severely because they repeatedly failed to correct their mistakes..."

"I offered them the highest salaries in the industry, and many people tried to collude with competitors and journalists... to find incriminating evidence against me and oust me..."

"Even something as simple as cooking a meal... I can't do it well..."

Xu Nian remained silent, using her warm palms to convey warmth to the crying girl.

"Actually... you've already done very well."

"You know what? Xiaoxi often praises you in front of me, saying that you do a great job and have handled many things that she can't do. When it comes to managing a company, you are even better than her."

"As for cooking, everyone has their own strengths, right?"

"Look at me, all I know is how to cook. If I were to go into business, I'd be completely blind."

"If everyone could cook, and cook well, then most chefs would lose their jobs."

He scratched his head and gave a simple, honest smile.

Xu Xi buried her head in the man's arms and gently wiped away her tears.

Whether it was Xu Nian's words that touched her or not, her sobbing gradually subsided, and she slowly wiped away her tears.

"You don't need to comfort me, this is just how I am. When I'm feeling down, I say a lot of discouraging things."

She forced a smile.

"Next time I do this, you don't need to worry about me. Just let me have some peace and quiet."

"I won't take her with me to die, don't worry."

"I'm like a cockroach, very resilient, I can't die no matter how many times you step on me."

"Don't say that. How can you compare yourself to a cockroach?..."

"Isn't that right? So many people want me dead, even I want to die, but I just can't seem to die."

Xu Xi smiled contemptuously, his smile filled with self-mockery and self-denial.

"That's not a cockroach, it's more like an ever-burning flame that won't go out no matter how the wind blows or how the rain beats."

"It's a cockroach."

"It's not a cockroach."

"It's a cockroach."

"It's not a cockroach."

"that is!"

"no..."

"that is!!!"

Xu Xi pouted, her eyes brimming with tears as she stared at the man arguing with her.

It was as if if Xu Nian uttered another disrespectful word, she would immediately drop her little pearls.

Xu Nian quickly covered her mouth with her hand.

His mind raced, recalling all the knowledge he had acquired in his life, yet he still struggled to conceive of words of comfort.

In fact, Xu Xi understood everything and knew everything.

However, her heart was already filled with grief and depression, and she couldn't hear any words of comfort.

At this point, Xu Nian's eyes darted around twice, and she suddenly remembered something.

He picked up the still-warm glutinous rice balls behind him and held them to the girl's lips.

"I won't eat it!"

Xu Xi bit her pink lips tightly and shook her little head like a rattle drum.

You can't not eat.

Why?

"Because you said you're a little cockroach, and cockroaches eat anything, they're not picky eaters, right?"

Xu Nian chuckled, stretched one hand above her head, raised her finger and shook it, mimicking a cockroach's antennae.

Xu Xi was stunned.

Her mind went blank, and she didn't react for a moment.

She couldn't believe that this man, who had always been so obedient to her, would dare to trick her!

She is a strong-willed woman who values ​​her reputation and cannot tolerate any dissent; she herself must abide by and carry out her words.

Now, Xu Nian has given her a dilemma.

Either eat this bowl of glutinous rice balls and become what she considers a little cockroach.

Either insist on not eating glutinous rice balls and admit that you lied and weren't a cockroach.

Her little face was no longer deathly pale, but turned bluish-red in waves, like boiling water.

"You...you!...!"

Xu Xi puffed out her cheeks, pointed at the man's nose, and tears streamed down her face.

However, it wasn't because I was angry, but because I found it funny.

It's ridiculous that they fell into a trap they dug for themselves.

Then, she burst out laughing, even blowing a snot bubble from her nose.

"So, are you going to eat it or not?"

Xu Nian grinned mischievously, scooped up a spoonful of glutinous rice balls, put them in her mouth, and savored them.

"So sweet! The glutinous rice balls I bought this time are so sweet, even sweeter than honey! They're delicious."

"If we don't eat now, the ants will eat us all!"

"I'll eat it!!!"

Xu Xi snatched the bowl and spoon and wolfed down the food.

Just as the man had said, the black sesame filling in the glutinous rice balls was as sweet as honey, which suited her taste perfectly.

Seeing that the girl had eaten every last glutinous rice ball, not even a drop of soup, Xu Nian smiled and breathed a sigh of relief.

"Still laughing?!"

Xu Xi put down her chopsticks and glared at him, feigning anger.

"Laugh again, and I'll stuff a sock in your mouth!"

"Hahahaha...Why are you rewarding me?"

"Aaaaaah! You've gone too far!!"

"Ugh... ugh..."