“So you did know what happened there. Why didn’t you say anything?”
They were back on their room, ready to retire for the night. Lu Xinyi just finished her shower and found her husband sitting on their bed with his back leaned on the bed head, reading some doc.u.ments on his hand.
She sat on the edge of the bed and patted her hair dry. The conversation earlier filled her thoughts.
“I was waiting for you to tell me about it, but your brother thought otherwise. So why didn’t you tell me?” he questioned back.
“I didn’t think it was important…”
“Not important? That man bullied you and hurt you. Did you know what I felt seeing you like that? How can I just turn a blind eye when my wife was receiving insults from everyone? My name and reputation aren’t as important as you.”
Lu Xinyi was stunned. She watched as Shen Yi revealed a vulnerable gaze on her. His hand reached out to touch her face.
“I am your husband. It’s my duty to protect you to anyone who dares to harm you. You might not be ready to tell the word that you are mine, but I have no intention of keeping you in the dark.”
“I’m sorry, I didn’t tell you because I thought it wasn’t a big deal in the first place.” Her eyes reddened. She had never felt this cared before. In the past years, she’d been alone and had to deal with the loneliness by herself, but with Shen Yi, she knew she could finally be free as her heart now relied on him.
Her heart was filled with warmth. The walls that she built over the years to protect her heart had been easily crushed down by him. Looking at him, she felt like she could be herself; and she didn’t have to act strong.
“Come here.” Shen Yi made a s.p.a.ce beside him which Lu Xinyi accepted the offer and moved to sit beside him. “Anything regards you, no matter how small you think it is, it matters to me. Now, would you tell me what you were thinking back then?”
“I was thinking if you were dissatisfied with me…”
“Dissatisfied with you? What do you mean?”
Lu Xinyi lowered her head, ashamed to tell that she was affected by Chang Yifeng’s words.
“That I am not pretty enough for you… they probably thought that Future Madam Shen could hold a handle to any woman.”
“That she is,” Shen Yi said decisively, placing a hand on her chin to make her look at him, “I’ve never met a woman as fiery as you. Would any woman easily pull a trick over a man to spend more money for a mere hundred yuan doll?
“When something like this happens again, aren’t you going to tell me? I know you are strong and can handle your own problems, but I wish you will rely on me as your husband. As husband and wife, we have to rely on each other and never keep secrets. You might think it’s just a small issue, but a small issue can lead to a bigger one.”
“Alright, I get it. I won’t hide this from you again, but you should also do the same.” She wrapped her arms around him and sighed. “I’m tired, Yi.”
In the end, it was only Shen Yi who was able to understand her the most. Even though she hadn’t voiced out her thoughts, he still knew what worried her.
“Then rest, love. Conquer the world one step at a time. I’ll be waiting for you at the top,” Shen Yi whispered as she slowly drifted to the land of slumber.
—
When Lu Xinyi woke up alone in bed the next day, she wasn’t surprised to see her husband was nowhere to be found. Preparing herself for the day, she put her hair up in a bun and checked herself in the mirror before going downstairs to find Shen Yi and her brother.
Before she could leave the hallway, Kang Wei’s voice took her attention.
“Xiao Xinxin, are you looking for Boss Yi? He is here with us!” He waved a hand as he stood in the doorway of one of the larger rooms in the inn.
“He is? What’s up?” She could hear her brother-in-law cursing again. Sounds of fingers moving over the keyboard filled the room.
“Holy s.h.i.+t. What kind of demon are you? Your APM is pretty good!” Shen Xue exclaimed.
Huang Shenghao’s laughed followed. “How can you say that to your own brother, Second Master Shen! But for what kind of demon he is, isn’t obvious what he is?”
When Lu Xinyi took a peek to see what was happening, she saw her husband’s slender fingers gliding over a keyboard, his face focused on the game he had at the monitor in front of him. Her husband was playing?
She blinked twice at that.
“Ah, Sister Lu, don’t mind the mess in our room,” Huang Shenghao called her out. She also found her brother busy on another computer set within the room. How come the room became a mini-computer cafe overnight?
“We’re just teaching our brother to play Hunt,” Shen Xue explained to her, “It would also help him release his stress on work by playing and waiting for you to come home.” He laughed before groaning in pain as his brother hit his head in such fast reflexes.
“You talk too much., How come you became a supreme commander with such stats on your profile?” The demon king scoffed while executing brilliant moves and execution that surprised even experienced league players like Huang Shenghao and Kang Wei.
This man was too scary. Shen Yi had been up playing the game for almost five hours straight, and he was getting on the play too easily. He was using a newbie ID and sweeping the zone and maps as if he’d known them like the back of his hand. His kill ratio was simply amazing!
He was able to formulate his own cheese to compensate for his disadvantages on the game.
“I have to admit. I haven’t seen a live stream as good as this recently,” Tian Lingyu commented.
“Because you easily get bored by just watching! Why don’t you invite President Shen in our clan?” His friend suggested.
“Hey! Hey! Hey! No stealing here, bro! My brother should join ours since he’s in our server.”
Shen Xue realized that more people were gathering as his older brother play, and those people had some glaring t.i.tles above their names. It was already ten in the morning, but the sudden surge of cyber citizens hadn’t been antic.i.p.ated. His brother was able to catch the attention of the other pro players, huh?
Shen Yi flicked his finger as to release another power attack. The boss was taken down! His maneuvers were really cool and were able to make a complete annihilation.
“Xinxin, you go get some food for breakfast. This may take a while,” Shen Yi said as he regarded his wife. Lu Xinyi moved behind him and wrapped an arm around his shoulders.
“Good morning.” She placed a chaste kiss on his cheek. “Enjoying the game?”
Shen Yi hummed and kept his eyes on the screen.
Several pop-up messages flickered at the top of his screen, sending friend requests and invitations to join their clan. Ah, at this rate, Shen Yi would be able to kick his brother and own the top t.i.tle on their local server soon.
A name suddenly appeared that cause another ruckus within the game. Chang Yifeng showed himself.
He sent a friend request on Shen Yi which the latter refused at once.
On the other side of Jiang City, Chang Yifeng was playing casually with his friends when someone informed him about a newbie raiding the dungeons and clearing the zones in a short span of time.
He decided to watch to see if they were telling the truth and was impressed with this newbie player under the name ‘TheLordofh.e.l.l’. Chang Yifeng sent him a friend request and a private message to invite him to join their company.
He thought that this newbie player had some great potential and would be a nice addition on his team, and because of his inexperience, this newbie would feel overwhelmed to be invited by someone like him.
However, to his surprise, this amateur player had rejected his request!
Chang Yifeng sat still, his eyes widened in disbelief. He was one of the best players of Hunt, and yet he was shot down by a mere newbie? He didn’t want to admit defeat, so he kept sending Shen Yi request over and over again until the demon king snapped and sent him one short message.
“I’ll send you down the h.e.l.l by myself.”
What was that supposed to mean?!