Translator’s Note: Sorry for the delay of this chapter, I failed to upload it at first that’s why the other chap was already uploaded. Hope you understand. Thank you and enjoy your reading (:

“Aichina, you’re a very beautiful child.”

The Zenyuan family in the snow was beautiful, draped in silver, with evergreen trees standing tall. Mother squatted down, her voice as gentle as her hand that used to stroke my forehead.

The day she died of illness was also snowy.

Snowflakes fell all over the sky, but her body couldn’t get warm. With a smile that resembled her old self, she told me that she was liberated, and there was nothing to be sad about, but Naoko, you must strive to live on. No matter what methods you use, as long as you can survive, no one will blame you.

Mother’s voice grew softer and softer, almost inaudible like snowflakes falling to the ground.

Later, I was taken away by Aunt Xijiang.

Aunt Xijiang had no relation to my mother; she simply pitied me, a lonely and helpless child. I still remember it was April, the time when cherry blossoms were in full bloom, and Aunt Xijiang gave me a pink rubber ball.

“It’s a birthday present.”

The impoverished mother and daughter worried about their livelihood and had never celebrated a birthday. So, it was the first time in my life that I received a birthday present, and so far, the only time.

I liked it so much.

But later on, the rubber ball was gone, rolling away with a rumble and exploding.

The apricot blossoms were gone, chasing after the rolling rubber ball, turning into rotting mud.

Aunt Xijiang was gone, disappearing after she sent me into Master Naoya’s courtyard.

I had nothing left.

But I wanted to live, no matter what. I had to live.

To live.

The glaring bright light.

It took me great effort to finally open my eyes a crack and see the swaying white light above me. It was so bright, burning my eyes.

It took me a long, long time to move my arm even a little.

Unexpectedly, I found that the shoulder almost broken by Master Naoya’s kick didn’t hurt much anymore, nor did the stomach that hit the stone. But I was still very hungry, so hungry that my stomach convulsed.

I struggled to get up, propping my upper body and looking around to determine where I was. Then, I saw the familiar layout of the room:

A narrow dorm room with a single bed, but it had a thick, soft mattress on top;

Shelves stacked with manga;

A TV stand filled with many game discs.

Yes.

I lowered my head.

I found myself lying on the floor beside Master Naoya’s bed, with her clean clothes spread beneath me.

“Creak.”

The door to the dorm room was pushed open.

Master Naoya walked in, noticing that I was awake, he lifted his chin arrogantly and spoke in a tone that made me uncomfortable as always, “I thought you were dead. You’re really lucky.”

I didn’t dare to reply, not even lifting my eyes, which quickly dropped as I stared at my curled-up toes. I hugged my knees, slowly inching backward to the corner.

Master Naoya snorted coldly and sat on the sofa.

Seemingly engrossed in gaming.

He had picked up a new hobby recently.

After playing for a while, amid the booming background music of the game, his voice suddenly sounded cold and abrupt, “Come over.”

I cautiously lifted my head.

Seeing that he was indeed talking to me, I crawled slowly in his direction, my stomach empty. Although my injuries had improved slightly, I had almost no strength. I crawled slowly, and finally stopped two meters away from him.

“Come closer.” His tone was impatient.

I crawled another half meter slowly.

“Are you a snail?” He reached out and grabbed me.

I thought I was going to be killed, so I screamed in fear, trying to escape, but he grabbed my face tightly. Master Naoya’s face was close, his eyes meeting mine, filled with annoyance and warning. “Be quiet.”

By now, tears were streaming down my face.

Seeing me nodding while crying, he finally relaxed a bit and released my face.

He leaned back on the sofa, the game controller in his lap, casually lifting his chin, gesturing toward the plate of rice cakes on the coffee table, and said condescendingly, “Eat.”

Seeing the fragrant, seemingly still steaming rice cakes, I couldn’t help but swallow my saliva, my stomach growling loudly.

I timidly reached out a hand, turning to see Master Naoya’s reaction.

He restarted the game.

With more courage, I extended my hand a bit further.

Seeing that Master Naoya still didn’t react, I couldn’t resist any longer. I grabbed a piece of rice cake from the plate and stuffed it into my mouth. After finishing one, I went for a second and a third.

Perhaps startled by the noise I made while eating, I heard a “ga” from the game and Master Naoya’s raised voice, “Have you not eaten in 800 years?”

As I was eating the fourth piece, I choked.

I covered my throat and coughed forcefully, coughing until I was bent over on the ground, my back arching, unable to catch my breath. Eventually, a glass of water was brought to me, and I hurriedly grabbed his hand, drinking water, gulping down several mouthfuls before finally coming back to life.

“Have you ever seen a woman as embarrassing as you?” Master Naoya sneered, squatting down like a nobleman, picking up a piece of rice cake from the plate and teasing me like a pet dog, “Eat.”

I didn’t care at all; I just ate with his hand.

I devoured the food without changing my voracious eating habits. Soon, I bit his finger, drawing blood.

He frowned and pulled back his hand.

There was a small hole on his index finger, bleeding profusely.

“Are you really a dog?” He looked up.

I was so scared that I didn’t even observe his expression. I turned my head to escape, but I had no strength. I couldn’t even stand up. I tried to crawl out, but my ankle was grabbed and pulled back.

Once again, I screamed in fear.

He grabbed me, his tone very harsh, “What are you crawling for? It’s me who got bitten, not you.”

I was afraid, so I put my arms in front of me, fearing he would hit me or even kill me.

“Put your hands down.”

I didn’t listen to him, still using my arms to protect myself.

His voice lowered, carrying an indescribable sense of danger, “Do you want me to repeat myself?”

I dared not provoke his anger further. Slowly, I put down my arms.

The next moment, a new rice cake appeared in my lowered line of sight, brought to my mouth.

I was somewhat surprised, but I didn’t dare to look at Master Naoya’s expression. However, I could discern from his voice that he currently seemed unwilling to kill me.

His tone was similar to when he usually mocked me, with disdain and contempt, “Eat, quickly.”

I cautiously lowered my head and, unlike before, I didn’t gobble it down. Instead, I slowly bit the edge of the rice cake, eating it slowly and cautiously.

Soon, another piece was handed to me.

I repeated the process.

Quickly, the whole plate of rice cakes was finished.

I noticed the crumbs on his fingertips, leaned forward, and licked them.

Suddenly, he stiffened, then began to tremble uncontrollably. He quickly withdrew his finger. “What are you doing, you despicable woman?”

Being scolded, I shrank back in fear, stuttering, “Master’s hand, crumbs, dirty.”

“Not necessary.”

He seemed to understand what I meant, grabbed several tissues, and wiped away my saliva and the crumbs, angrily throwing them into the trash can.

Seemingly uninterested in playing games anymore, he turned off the console. He grabbed a manga from the shelf, lay down on the bed, and started reading with a frown.

I remained on the sofa, too scared to move, hugging my knees and curling up in the corner. I didn’t dare to sleep, didn’t dare to go out, and didn’t even dare to pick up the crumbs on the floor.

Until a long, long time passed, Master Naoya showed no sign of anything.

The room was quiet, with only the sound of pages turning.

I cautiously lifted my head a little to observe.

Master Naoya remained lying on the bed, reading manga. He seemed to have found a satisfying storyline, and his previously unpleasant expression had returned to calm. There was not the slightest hint of intending to kill me. Moreover, he had just given me rice cakes to eat.

In theory, I still needed two more days before I could eat.

But Master Naoya gave it to me in advance.

Is it because

Is it because I pleased him?

The reason he refused me licking his fingers just now was because he didn’t want to give me more food at the moment.

So, is this method really effective? As long as I do this, as long as I make the other person happy, I can eat.

As the clock in the dormitory ticked towards half past eleven, Master Naoya yawned and turned off the light.

It was time to sleep.

I was also very tired. I had to wake up at four-thirty in the morning tomorrow to get the food box at the foot of the mountain.

I slowly stood up, leaning against the coffee table. My legs were still a bit unsteady, but I had eaten a lot just now and rested for a few hours, so I felt much better than when I first woke up.

I took a few steps towards the kitchen.

From behind, came Master Naoya’s lazy voice, “Come back.”

I paused, somewhat puzzled by Master Naoya’s intention.

Master Naoya lay on the single bed in the dormitory, his eyes closed, but he pointed with his left hand towards the place where I had laid out several pieces of clean clothes, “Sleep here.”

Seeing me slowly approaching,

Master Naoya withdrew his hand and turned over, facing away from me to sleep.

I lay on the floor covered with clothes. Because I had slept in the cramped kitchen for a long time, I habitually curled up, which inadvertently strained my shoulder that I thought was better. It suddenly hurt, and I gasped for air, quickly stretching out my body to relieve the pain.

I glanced at Master Naoya on the bed.

Is it because of this consideration that he let me sleep here?

I didn’t have much energy to think about it. I was so tired and sleepy. Soon, I fell asleep again.

When I woke up again, it was already bright outside.

I was stunned for a moment before I realized that I had to go down to the foot of the mountain to get the food box at four-thirty. I sat up suddenly, but it strained my shoulder again, making me gasp for air.

I found that Master Naoya had already woken up and was sitting on the sofa eating.

The food box that was supposed to be picked up by me from the foot of the mountain was quietly placed in front of him on the coffee table, with more than ten kinds of breakfast arranged on it, emitting a tempting fragrance.

Master Naoya turned to look at me, sneering, “Having a pitifully slow brain is one thing, but being as lazy as a pig is another. A woman like you, if you were to leave me, would probably end up starving and hitting walls everywhere no matter where you go.”

I murmured softly, “Yes.”

He squinted his eyes and commanded, “Come here.”

I crawled over slowly.

He grabbed my face, lifted it up, shook it from side to side, and then flicked my bangs, scoffing, “What’s this? Your hairstyle looks ridiculous.”

I didn’t know how to respond, so I remained silent.

Then, he poked at the small hole in the neckline of my clothes and tugged at the sleeve of my kimono. “How long have you been wearing these clothes? They’re all torn and patched up so many times. Not just this one, but all you’re other clothes too. You really are poor and shabby.”

My lowered eyelashes prevented him from seeing much of my emotions as I replied, “Yes.”

He became a bit annoyed. “Look up.”

I slowly raised my eyes but still didn’t dare to look at him.

“Look at me.”

I cautiously glanced at him.

I rarely had such direct eye contact with him. He leaned in closer, raised a finger, and tapped my cheek. It was the same finger I licked last night with rice cake crumbs on it. He repeated his words from earlier with a slow tone, emphasizing each syllable, “You… are… really… poor… and… shabby.”

My eyelashes trembled, but I dared not lower them due to Master Naoya’s command, so I looked at him and answered, “Yes.”

“If it weren’t for the fact that there are no other maids available right now, and it would be troublesome to transfer someone from the Zen Garden family, you would have been dead by now.” His mood seemed to worsen, and with a contemptuous expression, he spat out each word with even more venom.

He straightened up again, not bothering to talk to me anymore, and focused on eating breakfast.

After a while, Master Naoya finished eating.

He didn’t eat much, only taking a few bites of the diverse breakfast spread. To me, these were foods I might never get to eat in my lifetime, but to him, they were just mundane items he had grown tired of since childhood.

He stood up to leave for class.

Reluctantly, I glanced at the food one last time, forcing myself to look away before following him.

In the classroom, Master Naoya didn’t ask me to come in and help him with note-taking this time. Instead, he had me wait outside.

The two classmates he had injured were almost healed and ready to attend class again. However, their wounds were still bandaged, and their faces were severely swollen from the beating, making them look like pig heads wrapped tightly in bandages, with only their noses and mouths visible, their eyes too swollen to see.

Master Naoya lounged lazily in the middle of the room, listening to the lecture.

I stood outside the classroom, peering through the window at the teacher at the podium. Clutching textbooks, the teacher occasionally flipped through pages and recited what seemed like impressive knowledge. The words on the blackboard, written in different colored chalk, were incomprehensible to me.

I couldn’t help but think back to when I left the Zen Garden family and saw students bustling about on the streets, many of them girls dressed in various school uniforms, looking beautiful with their backpacks.

They must all recognize the words on the blackboard.

They must have mastered many things that sounded incredibly impressive to me but seemed insignificant to them.

I envied them so much.

Tonight, I was supposed to go down to the foot of the mountain to pick up the food box, but after waiting for a long time, I didn’t see anyone delivering it. So, I returned.

But it took that Master Naoya already dining in the dormitory.

Whether someone else brought it up, I wasn’t sure.

As in the morning, Master Naoya lost his appetite after a few bites and left the food aside, turning to play video games instead.

I rubbed my rumbling stomach.

But I didn’t dare to speak.

Actually, I had been very hungry in the morning. Perhaps from hunger, even though I had eaten a plate of rice cakes last night, when I woke up the next day, my stomach still felt empty, painfully so.

But at that time, Master Naoya was in a bad mood, his tone was unpleasant.

I quietly observed Master Naoyoshi now. He was playing a single-player game and seemed to have just cleared a level, his features relaxing as if he were in a good mood.

I glanced at the lavish spread of food on the coffee table and lightly bit my finger.

In the end, I couldn’t resist the temptation of food. I edged closer to Master Naoya, who seemed to notice but didn’t react, still engrossed in his game.

When I was about half a meter away from him, his game character died.

Seeing this, I was afraid he would be in a bad mood, so I hesitated to approach further.

He started a new round.

And died again, even faster this time, in just ten seconds, his character falling into the lava.

He sighed heavily, continuing with a look of deep resentment as he started another round, which ended just as quickly with his character falling into the magma.

He began to grit his teeth tightly, starting a new game with determination.

Seeing his change in expression, indicating he wasn’t in a good mood, I gradually retreated, moving back slowly. When the game made a ‘ga’ sound again, he turned his head sharply, gritting his teeth, “What gives you the audacity to come so close to me, you fool?”

“Yes.”

I panicked and turned to run.

He reached out and grabbed the back of my shirt collar.

I was pulled back, unable to escape, trembling with fear.

But he didn’t hit me or kill me. Instead, he tossed over another game controller, his tone slightly less harsh but still cold, “Can you play?”

I held the game controller, kneeling on the edge of the sofa, next to his legs, and shook my head quickly.

“I thought as much,” he sneered sarcastically.

He started a two-player game.

I died as soon as I landed.

His unabashed mockery came from beside me.

Another round, and I died quickly again.

He degraded me to the point of worthlessness.

On the seventh round, I managed to survive for four seconds this time.

He said women with long hair are stupid, especially someone like me with hair longer than waist-length, practically brainless.

Tenth round.

I cautiously glanced at Master Naoya.

He was lounging leisurely against the sofa cushion, a slight smirk on his lips, seemingly in a good mood. I covered my stomach, bit my lower lip hesitantly, and whispered, “Master Naoya…”

I rarely spoke to him voluntarily, almost never in fact. But he only briefly raised an eyebrow, his narrow eyes looking down at me disdainfully, arrogantly asking, “What are you doing?”

I inched closer to him.

He sat on the sofa without moving, squinting his eyes at my actions.

I slowly approached his fingertips, cautiously and nervously asked, “Do you… need it?”

The lights in the room were turned off, and the curtains were tightly closed.

Master Naoya lay on the bed, and I knelt beside it. He bit his hand, burying his head in the pillow, only exposing his blood-red ear tips.

As for his other hand, it hung off the bed, gripped tightly in my mouth.

I watched him.

His current state, except for his finger in my mouth, was almost entirely evasive, making it difficult for me to determine whether he was about to vomit milk. So I didn’t dare to stop.

His arm and body tensed and relaxed intermittently. But from my previous experiences, I could still discern some signs. It seemed like there were intense symptoms before he vomited milk, such as intense trembling throughout his body for several seconds.

So I kept raising my eyes, carefully observing, not wanting to miss Master Naoya’s reaction.

So much so that I didn’t notice, I bit his fingertip a little harder.

His other hand, which had been in his mouth, was now taken out from under the pillow, gripping the bedsheet tightly, his fingertips turning white from the pressure. His body tensed up, and I couldn’t see his expression, but I could hear the faint sobbing coming from his throat, very quietly, as he struggled to control it. After making the sound, he seemed ashamed and quickly stuffed the hand gripping the bedsheet back into his mouth, biting down hard.

I recalled my actions just now. Master Naoya didn’t seem uncomfortable. Because if he were uncomfortable, according to his habit of never suffering in silence, he would probably have pushed me away and accused me of hurting him.

So tentatively, I lightly bit his finger again.

His arm stiffened even more, and his toes, encased in white split-toed socks, also straightened out.

“ “

It seemed like he said something, but his voice was muffled by the pillow, and I couldn’t hear.

With his finger in my mouth, I asked hesitantly, “What did you say?”

He turned his head slightly, still biting his hand, which was the first time he lifted his face from the pillow since the beginning. I saw his flushed, moist eyes and a tear that escaped uncontrollably from the corner of his eye. In his usual domineering tone, albeit with a tremble in his voice, he commanded me, “I said, get out of here.”

I hesitated in my breath.

Hastily, I spat out his finger from my mouth, my expression panicked as I stepped back.

But he grabbed my collar.

Grabbing my collar was his hand, sticky and damp from my licking, trembling slightly as it clutched my collar. Seeing me pause, he shook his hand to gesture for me to move away, then poked my lips with his trembling hand.

I complied.

I looked up.

I found Master Naoya had buried his head back into the pillow.