Chapter 8: Lu Zhao, Can You Carry Me?

He lowered his head and got so close that he could even see the fine hairs on Su Yunqi’s face.

It was completely different from his rough, rugged face.

Su Yunqi opened her mouth, but then deflated, puffing her cheeks in frustration.

It would take forty minutes to go further, and even stepping back would take twenty minutes. Could she just lie down? Her feet were starting to hurt.

She was a delicate person who would not tolerate being wronged, so the two of them silently faced off for several seconds. In the end, it was Su Yunqi who took a step forward and grabbed Lu Zhao’s sleeve.

She looked up at him with her beautiful, glass-like eyes and softly asked, “Lu Zhao, can you carry me? I can’t walk anymore. My feet hurt.”

⋆⁺₊⋆ ━━━━⊱༒︎Flashback༒︎⊰━━━━ ⋆⁺₊⋆

Just like when she was eight years old, Su Yunqi had gone on a mountain trip with the group. The others walked too fast, leaving her behind.

The little spoiled baby couldn’t move, and was about to lie down and cry when she suddenly saw someone behind her!

She didn’t care about face anymore. She rushed to thirteen-year-old Lu Zhao’s side and clung to his sleeve, pitifully saying,

“Lu Zhao, can you carry me home? No one will see. My feet hurt.”

“Oh, why should I carry you?”

Lu Zhao, even at a young age, was good at being aloof. He crossed his arms and coldly looked at the spoiled baby. He furrowed his brows, thinking she was a hassle.

If he had known, he would have studied harder and not been held back in grade, avoiding this troublesome, delicate little thing. He couldn’t escape her every time.

“Because we’re classmates, and the teacher said we should help each other.”

Su Yunqi chirped, but then realized that Lu Zhao, the “true, good, and beautiful” person, wasn’t buying it. She quickly blinked her eyes. “Then what if I beg cutely? Please, please, Lu Zhao, I beg you, carry me home~”

Little Su Yunqi, with two small flowers in her hair, pressed her hands together, her eyes sparkling and her voice soft and sweet, as she pouted.

Lu Zhao gritted his teeth, angrily clenching his fists.

He was already 1.7 meters tall at just thirteen years old. Because he spent so much time outdoors, his skin had turned a beautiful wheat color, and his arms were very muscular, making him much taller and sturdier than his peers, let alone Su Yunqi, the little thing.

“Why do you always use this trick!” He asked in frustration.

Damn it, he was soft-hearted again!

“But this trick works. Lu Zhao~ Please~”

To have a human ride, little Su Yunqi didn’t mind being extra coquettish. She was still young and could afford to act shamelessly.

In the end, little Su Yunqi successfully climbed onto Lu Zhao’s back.

“Lu Zhao, you’re such a good person. I will definitely repay you in the future.”

Su Yunqi wrapped her arms around Lu Zhao’s neck, sweetly whispering her gratitude into his ear.

“Heh, how will you repay me? Will you be my little wife?” Lu Zhao sneered.

Every time she said she would repay him, he’d carry her back home, and he could run faster than a rabbit.

“That won’t work.” Little Su Yunqi was smart. She was determined not to agree to being a child bride.

“Heh, then get off my back, and I won’t carry you anymore!”

“No, I’m still little. My mom says I can’t get married too early; she’ll worry about me. If you want me to be your little wife, then you have to be nice to me. You can’t be mean to me, and you have to listen to me. If you treat me the best, then when I grow up, I will definitely marry you and be your little wife, okay?”

At such a young age, little Su Yunqi was already quite adept at making promises, knowing how to lure someone with sweet words. This promise was big and round, making someone willingly serve her for many years.

⋆⁺₊⋆ ━━━━⊱༒︎End of Flashback༒︎⊰━━━━ ⋆⁺₊⋆

“No.”

“If you beg me, I might consider it.” Lu Zhao crossed his arms, looking at her smugly.

He was no longer the person he once was. She couldn’t just use a little coaxing to get her way anymore—no chance!

Su Yunqi wanted to roll her eyes at him and then leave gracefully, but her feet really hurt, and she didn’t want to take another step.

It felt like her feet were as fragile as a mermaid’s, who had just transformed into a human and struggled with walking. For the sake of her poor little feet, she endured!

“It really hurts, Lu Zhao…”

Su Yunqi clasped her hands together and looked at him with pitiful eyes. The corners of her eyes drooped, resembling a sad puppy, like she was on the verge of collapse.

Lu Zhao’s triumphant smile froze, and his tall frame stiffened.

The eight-year-old Su Yunqi and the eighteen-year-old Su Yunqi seemed to overlap.

No way! After all these years, I am still falling for this. Damn it, he couldn’t suppress his soft-heartedness!

“Lu Zhao~” Su Yunqi dragged out his name, her voice full of pleading like she was calling for his soul.

Seeing that he still didn’t move, Su Yunqi’s eyes reddened as though tears were about to spill any second.

“Get on, I didn’t say I wouldn’t carry you.” Lu Zhao was really scared of her now. He quickly crouched down, letting Su Yunqi climb onto his back, then stood up and carried her.

Although she was on his back, this time Su Yunqi was quiet. She didn’t mention repaying him anymore.

“Su Yunqi, you said you’d repay me, remember? Say something nice, let me hear it.” Su Yunqi didn’t say anything, so Lu Zhao decided to ask for it himself.

He held Su Yunqi by the waist, strolling leisurely forward. Su Yunqi only weighed a little over ninety pounds, so carrying her wasn’t a problem for him.

Su Yunqi wasn’t holding a grudge, she was just thinking about how much taller Lu Zhao had grown now, how different he was from before.

“What do you want to hear?” Su Yunqi leaned against his back and rubbed it. She let out a delicate yawn, and before he could answer, she closed her eyes.

“What do I want to hear? You should figure it out yourself. I’m not asking for much. Just call me something like Big Brother, or Husband. That’s how city people say it now. If you don’t want to, just praise me. Say that I’m so good to you, that I’m such a great man to you—any of those works. I’m not picky.” Lu Zhao feigned being accommodating.

However, one minute passed, two minutes passed, and then three minutes passed, yet the person on his back still hadn’t reacted at all.

He turned his head to look. His little spoiled baby had already fallen asleep on his back. She was really exhausted.

“Go ahead and sleep, you won’t get any sleep tonight.”

Lu Zhao raised an eyebrow, looking quite pleased with himself.

He carried her all the way to Town, walking through the crowded areas without even glancing at the curious looks directed at him. He didn’t care at all. With one hand holding his wife, and the other busy taking money and getting things, it wasn’t long before he had everything he needed.

As he was thinking about whether he should wake her up to see if there was anything else she needed to buy or just carry her back, a familiar face approached.

“Brother Zhao! You’re here in Town! I heard you’re married now. What bad luck, I was just in the county the other day visiting my sister. Why didn’t you tell me about your wedding earlier! I even brought you a wedding gift!”

The newcomer was one of Lu Zhao’s underlings. As soon as he saw Brother Zhao, his eyes lit up, just like a puppy spotting its leader. He ran over from a distance, shouting loudly.

Su Yunqi, still on his back, furrowed her beautiful little face, stirring uncomfortably, seemingly annoyed by the loud noise.

Lu Zhao quickly took a couple of steps, shaking slightly to rock her back to sleep, being as patient as could be, treating her like a baby.

“Can you be quieter?” Lu Zhao, who was carrying his wife on his back and holding some things in his hands, shot a disgruntled glance at the other person.

“Ah, so the little wife’s asleep?” Xiao Jianli quickly lowered his voice. He tiptoed to take a peek, confirming that yes, it was indeed Brother Zhao’s little wife, the one he’d guarded for so many years.

“Congratulations, Brother Zhao! This gift I brought you is a good one. You can enjoy it slowly when you get home. If you like it, the next time I go to the county to see my sister, I’ll bring you more. Looks like you’re busy today, so I’ll treat you to dinner next time.” Xiao Jianli grinned mischievously as he slipped a small bottle into Lu Zhao’s pocket.

This guy was always up to something mysterious, and Lu Zhao couldn’t be bothered to deal with him. “Alright, I’m heading back now.”

Su Yunqi was still very tired. Waking her up now would probably make her even more upset, so Lu Zhao decided to wait a couple of days before bringing her back to town to buy more things.

Just as he turned around, though, he heard someone shout.

“Su Yunqi! Stop right there!”

This time, it was Su Yunqi being called. She was immediately woken up, straightening up from the sleepiness.

“Who’s calling me?”

When she saw a familiar, disgusting face drawing closer, Su Yunqi instantly clung to Lu Zhao’s neck, her expression flustered.

She leaned in close to Lu Zhao’s ear, whispering her complaint.