Chapter 19

“So much nonsense.” He helped her stand upright, like she was being positioned for military inspection.

Xiao Zhou stood right beside her, looking at her coldly. But the faint red tint on his ears and the way his fingertips curled slightly betrayed his true feelings.

When he saw her about to fall, his first thought was actually: Don’t cry again.
Because once she started crying, she was so hard to deal with.
By the time he realized it, he’d already caught her in his arms.

That brief moment of softness—he didn’t want to let go.
Somewhere in his memory, someone had said: You’re not alone anymore.

But then again… she was the one who had abandoned him first.

That night, it was she who drugged him.
It was those glassy, alluring eyes that had seduced him.
And just when he had decided to take her seriously, to build a life with her…
The moment it was over and he turned to bring her to the bath, the person beside him had changed—she was gone.
And the woman in her place was the one he despised most: Bai Jiaojiao.

“Mmm, it smells so good!”

Not far off, her soft and content exclamation rang out.

The noodles had gone a little soggy, but the broth—now that was something else.

“Can you teach me how to make this broth?” Bai Jiaojiao looked at him with sincere eagerness.

Xiao Zhou had already recovered his composure. His voice turned even colder:
“Stop acting in front of me. I’m not falling for it.”

Bai Jiaojiao blinked and repeated her question, unfazed.

Expressionless, Xiao Zhou recited the broth recipe.
To him, this bowl of noodles was plain, functional—just food to fill the stomach.
If it weren’t for the fact that she needed to stay alive to atone for her sins, he’d have just given her plain broth.

But Bai Jiaojiao slurped it up like it was a feast.
Just noodles and soup, and yet she made it look like gourmet cuisine.
She didn’t leave a single drop behind—then even paused to savor it.

“What a performance,” Xiao Zhou’s eyes grew colder still.
It’s just a bowl of noodles with nothing in it—not even scallions, eggs, or greens. How good could it possibly taste?

Bai Jiaojiao pouted, too lazy to argue.
“I’ll go wash the dishes.”

In the kitchen, she was startled to find a mountain of used bowls and plates—easily twenty or thirty of them.
All from that morning’s guests.
This was going to take a while.

Xiao Zhou appeared behind her at some point and said flatly: “Go on, wash them.”

“Fine, I will.”

Gritting her teeth, Bai Jiaojiao rolled up her sleeves. It wasn’t the end of the world—at most, her and the original owner’s carefully maintained hands might get a bit rough.

She filled the basin, carefully scrubbed the first bowl and placed it aside.
Just as she reached for the second, her elbow knocked into the clean bowl and it teetered, about to fall—

—but a large hand caught it midair.

A tall shadow loomed behind her.

“I didn’t mean to…” Her voice trembled, tears instantly welling up again.

Xiao Zhou, annoyed: “Move aside.”

But she only cried harder, flustered and afraid.
“I can do it! I swear I won’t drop the second bowl.”

He clenched his fists. His voice turned glacial: “I won’t say it again.”

Bai Jiaojiao shrank back and whispered,
“Don’t worry. I won’t run. I won’t tell anyone about your bad side.”

Of course Xiao Zhou knew: this was Xiao Family Village.
With his reputation here, no one would believe anything she said.
Even if she tried to leave, the moment someone spotted her, he’d have her back within two hours.

Escape? Impossible.

Eventually, she managed to stop crying, but exhaustion caught up with her.
Leaning against the wall, she fell asleep on her knees.

When she woke up, she was still kneeling, though at least comfortably propped against the wall. Her legs had gone numb.
In front of her: the same three spirit tablets and three black-and-white photographs.

Beside her, Xiao Zhou also knelt—still, firm, like a beautifully carved wooden statue: strong on the outside, rotted within.

“If you’re awake, get back to the altar.” His voice was cold. “Slack off again, and don’t expect dinner.”

Bai Jiaojiao immediately sat up straight.
The aura he gave off was overwhelming.
She tried to distract herself and continued chatting with the three memorial tablets.

When she ran out of things to say, she started telling fairy tales—from Snow White to Frozen.

“Dad, Mom, don’t mind me. I’m just keeping Xiao Yueyue company. She loves these stories.”

Xiao Zhou glanced at her.
“How do you know Yueyue likes them? She’s never heard them before—and you’ve never told them to her.”

Bai Jiaojiao replied,
“Maybe in another world, I told her.
I just feel like she enjoys them.”

After all, every time she finished one, the little girl would fall asleep right on time.

“Nonsense,” Xiao Zhou said.

Bai Jiaojiao shrugged.

Then Xiao Zhou suddenly asked,
“Elsa… was it only her sister who accepted her?”

He lowered his eyes. On the surface, calm and composed—
—but his averted gaze betrayed a desire to know the answer.

Before Bai Jiaojiao could respond, he gave a bitter laugh.

“Besides family, who would ever accept someone like that?”

The Xiao family’s circumstances were complicated—two daughters with no ability to care for themselves meant the father had to give them everything.
From a young age, Xiao Zhou had to take on responsibilities most adults would shun—planning for the family’s future, thinking about how to support everyone when his father could no longer manage.

He had few friends.
All his energy went into preparing for the future.
Polite to all, yet emotionally distant.

Even those who admired his talent and wanted to befriend him quickly pulled away when they learned of his home life.
They kept up appearances, but stayed far from his reality.

Bai Jiaojiao said softly:
“No, I like her too. A lot of people do.
If I ever met Elsa, I’d give her the biggest hug.”

Xiao Zhou looked at her.
“What about you?”
Will you abandon me again?