In the hot spring pool, Gong Mochen was lying in the steaming water. He placed his arms at the entrance of the hot spring, where the water temperature was at its highest. The fight with Li Ang had injured the old wound on his arm, and the hot spring was one way to treat it.
Qin Sheng's light footsteps sounded outside the hot spring room, and her small head peaked inside.
The man closed his eyes and frowned slightly, thinking about something.
Qin Sheng walked in. "Uncle..."
She deliberately pitched her voice, but the man ignored her.
"Nie Feng told me everything. You asked him to follow me when I left this house."
Gong Mochen opened his eagle-like eyes, emitting a cold aura. Nie Feng was courting death revealing his plans to Qin Sheng.
"Don't be cross with Nie Feng. I scared him with flowers. He was tending a wound in the medical room just now, and I put the flowers in front of his nose," Qin Sheng said.
Everyone knew that Nie Feng was the best fighter of Gong Mochen's men, his martial arts unparalleled, but not many knew that he was severely allergic to pollen, the kind of allergic reaction that could potentially kill him. Qin Sheng didn't need to use martial arts to deal with him, and simply waved a flower in front of his face to achieve her goal, to get the answers she so desired.
"You are so devious at times, Qin Sheng..." Gong Mochen said coldly. "I despair at your behaviour!"
This devious girl had been raised by him for so many years, learnt most of her skills from him, so he was unsurprised by her words, her actions.
"I've decided to forgive you. I don't care why you chased me away." Qin Sheng sat by the hot spring and stuck her foot into the water. She raised her little face proudly. This was her magnanimous forgiveness.
Gong Mochen got up and climbed out of the pool. His voice was so low and there was no warmth to it. "I haven't forgiven you for your recent actions."
He strode towards the door. The devious girl had not admitted to her mistakes. How dare she try to brush her actions under the carpet as if she had done nothing wrong!
Qin Sheng pulled her foot from the water and was about to chase after Gong Mochen when she slipped and fell into the hot spring.
"Ahhhhhh!" Qin Sheng screeched. She stood up and spat out a mouthful of water. The water was really hot on her skin.
Gong Mochen darted back like an arrow and lifted Qin Sheng out of the hot spring. He looked at her nervously.
"Did you hurt yourself? Where are you hurt?"
Qin Sheng shook the water out of her hair. She hadn't hurt herself from falling in the hot spring. She'd only fallen into water, not concrete.
However, Qin Sheng turned around and leaned into the man's arms, faking a few sobs. "IT HURTS! Waaaah!"
"Let me take a look!" Gong Mochen said anxiously.
Suddenly, something caught Qin Sheng's eye in the hot spring. "Uncle, what's that?"
She stared at the bottom of the hot spring. She was sure she'd seen a black shadow swimming through the bottom of it, almost like a ghost, a shadow.
Gong Mochen pulled the girl up. "There's nothing there. You're seeing things. You probably hurt your head on the bottom. Come, we'll go back to my room to check you over."
Gong Mochen's face was tense. Fortunately, Qin Sheng hadn't smacked her head on the bottom, but she was sure she'd seen something in the hot spring.
Seeing things? Really?
Qin Sheng was puzzled. She clearly saw something. Ah well, maybe it was a figment of her imagination? She was brought back to Gong Mochen's room by him, and he insisted that she take a bath again.
But she'd only soaked in the hot spring for a while. Why did she need a bath?
However, looking at the man's angry face, Qin Sheng wisely chose to listen to him.
When Qin Sheng came out of the bathroom, she saw Gong Mochen taking out herbs and rubbing them on his arms and legs. He had gone abroad for a year just over half a year ago. When he came back, he was covered in injuries. Although the scars had been removed with surgery, the injuries were still there. He still had to apply ointment from time to time. As for where he'd gone and what he'd done, no one knew.
"Let me help you apply ointment." Qin Sheng reached out to get the ointment.
The man blocked her hand. "Don't touch! I'm going to take you back to the old mansion tomorrow."
Qin Sheng was instantly enraged. "Gong Mochen, f*ck! I said I'd forgiven you, and you're saying you're going to take me back to the old mansion! I won't go!"
"Don't swear! Besides, if you don't do as I say, I'll teach you a lesson!" Gong mochen roared angrily. He clearly wanted to educate Qin Sheng, but in the end, he sighed, shaking his head. What he'd taught her and what he was yet to teach her, this girl just wouldn't listen, no matter how hard he tried!
Gong Mochen hesitated for a moment, and then said, "I'll go to the old mansion too."
Qin Sheng's forehead puckered. He was going to the old mansion too? Ever since he bought this villa at the age of 20, he had never gone back to the old house.
She felt that something was off here. What was even more wrong was that Gong Mochen actually gave her his bedroom and went to sleep in the guest room himself.
Qin Sheng was suddenly so angry that she stood on the bed and stomped her feet into the mattress. It was obvious that he was going against her! He was going to make her go back to the old mansion and he would leave her there.
"Gong Mochen, why do we have to live separately! If you had the guts you would let me live with you! Why are you doing this!" she shouted angrily.
Gong Mochen, who had walked out of the door, heard the girl's fierce voice and his forehead narrowed into a scowl. Why was she so obsessed with living with him! It's not like they were married.
However, Gong Mochen knew they had lived together for too long. He sighed helplessly. It seemed that he still had a mountain to climb to make this girl stop thinking about him.
In the silence of the night, Qin Sheng, who was sat proudly on the bed, could no longer hold back her anger. She took out her phone and sent a message to Chu Xia. She needed to know if Chu Xia was OK after the nightclub and wanted to vent her frustrations to her.
"Hi hun, did you get home safely? I'm at Gong Mochen's house now. He saved me from the Duke. I'm so frustrated with him though. He's still not letting me live with him. How can I make him see he's making a mistake?"
"Yes, I got home safely. It was very scary. I got caught at one point, but they let me go when Gong Mochen turned up. Are you sure it's him that's making a mistake and not you? Maybe he has a point..."
"But he was the one who chased me away and caused all this trouble! He was the one who made the mistake, not me."
"Damn, Qin Sheng! The point is that you might want to stay, but he doesn't want you to. Can't you see it? So like I said, maybe it's not him making a mistake."
"YOU'RE BEING A B*TCH! " Qin Sheng added an angry emoji to the end of the message.
Chu Xia sent an angry emoji back with her message. "I think you are being nasty! Don't be nasty to me for trying to talk some sense into you!"
"But why can't he understand that I want to stay with him? Why am I in the wrong! I've lived with him for years, why now do I have to live away from him. I can't give up on this. I have my pride!"
"But it's no use, you can't hold onto your pride for the rest of your life! You have to admit you're making a mistake at some point. But no... you refuse to and continue to be proud."
"Don't be like that! You're my friend, you're supposed to help me think of a way forward. If you don't help me I'm not sure I can get your money back."
"You can be so ruthless at times Qin Sheng! Why can't you be more ruthless with yourself and apologize to him? Realize that you are in the wrong? You've always struggled to admit you're in the wrong since you were young. And you have to return the money to me! It's mine." After sending that message, Chu Xia immediately went offline. She was determined not to give Qin Sheng the chance to have the last word.
Sighing in frustration, Qin Sheng turned off her phone.
She didn't feel better after talking to her friend, as she usually would. She was determined to get her own way though, no matter what Chu Xia had said.
She crawled out of bed, rushed out of the room and headed to the guest room, entering it like a cat on the prowl.
Gong Mochen slept very peacefully, like a quiet baby, his breaths soft and light.
Qin Sheng stood beside the man and moved her mouth for a long time, but she didn't say a single word. What could she say? Apologize to him again? No...
"I know you are there... I'll let you admire me for three minutes and then you must go," the man's words came out from the corner of his lips, and he opened his eagle-like eyes.
Qin Sheng was shocked. That d*mn man was pretending to be asleep!
In the blink of an eye, she became entranced by the man's gaze.
"Well, Uncle... Please forgive me for the trouble I caused you with Li Ang... But I won't apologize for still wanting to stay here." She grabbed the man's arm and stroked it, coiling around him like a puppy.
"Excuse me?" Gong Mochen asked coldly. This little minx had admitted her mistake and pretended to be an innocent puppy. But if he did forgive her, she would turn around and take advantage of the situation... What a dilemma he faced!
"So, I've decided to apologize to you!"