Chapter 16: A New Treasure (Part 1)

Zhang Yongfeng immediately moved to hand Dai Ning over.

This made Dai Ning furious.

She gripped Zhang Yongfeng’s collar tightly, refusing to go to Zhao Yu. “I don’t want him!”

Zhang Yongfeng, taking her words to heart, turned apologetically to Zhao Yu. “I’ll take the young miss to see a doctor instead.”

Zhao Yu looked at Dai Ning.

Her long, curly hair was a mess as she fiddled with the buttons on Zhang Yongfeng’s shirt.

Calmly, Zhao Yu stepped aside, and Zhang Yongfeng hurriedly carried the young miss away.

Watching them leave, Zhao Yu once again understood what kind of person Ji Dai Ning was. She never cared who held her, as long as they could please her and keep her happy.

One moment, she could be sweetly saying he was the best; the next, she could turn on him without a second thought.

With the vivid colors of sunset painting his path, Zhao Yu walked back, expressionless.

Seeing him return alone, Zhao An’an asked, “Big brother, where’s Miss Ji?”

Zhao Yu patted his younger sister’s head without a word.

Dai Ning refused to see Dr. Sun, who seemed sleazy to her. The thought of that grumpy old man touching her foot was unbearable, so she insisted on waiting at the village head’s house until Uncle Qian returned.

When Uncle Qian arrived, he found the entire village head’s family anxiously peeking toward the new house like nervous children.

Zhang Yongfeng, distressed and pulling at his hair, saw Uncle Qian as his lifeline.

After hearing the whole story, Uncle Qian could only laugh and shake his head. What terrible luck.

He walked over to the bundle under the blanket. “Young miss, I’m back. Let me check your injury.”

Dai Ning poked out her tear-streaked face, both angry and aggrieved. “Uncle Qian, it’s all Chen Xiaoli’s fault, and Zhang Yongfeng’s, and Zhao Yu’s too.”

At least she’d remembered to leave Uncle Qian out of the blame.

Suppressing his laughter, Uncle Qian cleaned her wound and applied a cute bandage.

“Uncle Qian, you’re amazing. It doesn’t hurt at all anymore.”

Though she was spoiled and demanding, her sweet words could melt anyone’s heart.

So Uncle Qian didn’t scold her for sneaking out. Instead, he mentioned her grandfather. “Your grandfather asked when you’ll be coming home. Summer vacation is almost over, and school starts soon. Young miss, we should be heading back.”

Dai Ning nearly forgot. In her past life, she’d graduated college, but now she was just about to start her final year of high school.

She pulled the blanket over her head. “I don’t want to go back to school. It’s so boring. I’ll get into college anyway, so there’s no need to waste time.”

Uncle Qian gently patted her through the blanket.

“Young miss, think it over. Young Master Ji has already gone back to school. I’ll go prepare, and in a few days, we’ll head back.”

In her mind, the green orb fretted like a concerned mother.

“Dai Ning, we can’t go back yet. Du Tian is still here, and you haven’t completed your task. If Zhao Yu falls in love with Du Tian, her luck will rise, and she’ll be even harder to deal with. You’ve already become enemies. Even if she doesn’t act against you, any man who falls for her will try everything to eliminate you.”

Dai Ning understood the logic but felt helpless. What could she do?

Couldn’t Zhao Yu, being a grown man with good fortune, see the problem and stay away from Du Tian himself?

“I can’t just eliminate them, and I can’t keep an eye on Zhao Yu forever, can I?” she huffed. Besides, her grandfather wouldn’t wait much longer; he’d come fetch her if he grew too worried.

The green orb cleared his throat and offered a suggestion.

“Dai Ning, since you don’t have the patience to sabotage their relationship, why don’t you make Zhao Yu fall for you?”

Dai Ning sat up, skeptical. “Would that really work? What if he changes his mind later?”

The green orb sighed. “He’s a man of good fortune, not a heartbreaker.”

If his feelings weren’t sincere, he wouldn’t be so devoted to Du Tian in the future.

After thinking it over, Dai Ning decided it was a pretty good idea. She ruffled her hair in frustration. “Ugh, I should’ve just let Zhao Yu carry me back earlier.”

She raised her voice to call out, “Uncle Qian, I want to go back to sleep!”

Uncle Qian, accustomed to her whims, arranged for someone to escort her back to Zhao Yu’s house.

As they walked away, Dai Ning suddenly remembered something and called out, “Uncle Qian! Come closer.”

The young miss whispered her mischievous plan with a grin.

Uncle Qian looked conflicted. “Isn’t that a bit much?”

“She had it coming!”

—

That evening, Chen Xiaoli nearly broke down; she was forced into the village pigpen and spent an hour among the stinking pigs!

Outside, Zhang Yongfeng supervised her with an unwavering expression.

The man was as stubborn as they came. If Chen Xiaoli tried to escape, he’d just throw her back in. She screamed, “I already said it wasn’t on purpose! Ji Dai Ning got hurt on her own. Why am I being blamed?”

But no one paid her any attention, except for the pigs, who squealed shrilly in fright.

Zhang Yongfeng kindly advised her, “If you stop yelling, the piglets won’t run around as much.”

This would at least achieve peace between humans and animals.

Chen Xiaoli was so furious her eyes nearly rolled back as she fainted.

On the other side, the sun was setting.

In a rare moment of quiet, Zhao Yu heated water to wash his father.

As he carried the water out, the young miss arrived back.

Dai Ning hesitated, unsure if she should still be angry. She shot Zhao Yu a quick glance, then looked away just as fast. She muttered to the green orb, “I think he likes Du Tian more than me. Look, he doesn’t even have a friendly face for me.”

Zhao Yu poured the water out without a word.

Autumn was approaching, and he was eager to put his plans to leave the mountains into action. There was so much to prepare in the coming days.

Dai Ning flopped onto her bed, deciding to leave today’s troubles for tomorrow.

Before going to bed, Zhao Yu noticed a lone pomegranate on the table. He stared at it for a long time, then picked it up and knocked on the young miss’s door. Dai Ning, who had been reading a melodramatic novel, hopped over on one foot to answer.

In the moonlight, the boy’s eyes were calm and cool as he held out his hand. “This is for you.”

Dai Ning blinked and took the pomegranate.

Zhao Yu turned to leave.

Watching his retreating figure, Dai Ning found it intriguing and called after him, “Zhao Yu, can you help me peel it?”

Zhao Yu paused. “Do it yourself.”

“I don’t have a knife, so I can’t peel it.” She hopped out, pushed the pomegranate into his hands, and added generously, “Open it up, and I’ll share half with you.”

Zhao Yu looked at her.

Her thick skin showed no sign of embarrassment whatsoever.

It was rare to see the young miss willingly share things with others.

Zhao Yu went to the kitchen, cut the pomegranate in half, and brought it back to her. He kept none for himself, his face tired as he turned to go rest.

Dai Ning spoke up pitifully, “Zhao Yu, Uncle Qian said today that we’ll need to go back soon. School is starting, and I can’t stay here much longer. Don’t be so cold toward me, alright?”

Under the moonlight, he turned back to look at her.

Dai Ning assumed he was still upset about the kick she’d given him that morning. She wasn’t planning to bring it up, nor did she feel like apologizing. Instead, she said, “If you’re nice to me, maybe I could help think of a way to find a cure for your parents.”

Zhao Yu’s expression was hard to read. He looked at her for a while, then asked, “When are you leaving?”

“I’m not sure yet. School starts in September.”

It was already late August, so no more than ten days remained.

He didn’t respond, just turned and went back inside.

Dai Ning stared at his cold figure in stunned silence.

The green orb barely held in a laugh, finding it amusing to see the young miss get snubbed. She was usually so willful that the fact Zhao Yu seemed unaffected by her departure was unexpected.

Dai Ning sulked briefly but quickly shrugged it off, going back to her novel. She hadn’t truly planned anything with Zhao Yu. Her only goal was to sabotage his relationship with Du Tian, so it didn’t bother her much if he didn’t like her.