Shen Chengfeng had initially wanted to push the little person with no sense of propriety away from him. Still, looking at the crocodile in the distance, who could snatch away Xiao Jing at any time, he relented and allowed her to lean against his chest.
The forest was peaceful once again, and the song of the nightingales could be heard.
"Gurgle, gurgle," The crocodile slunk back into the stream and waited for a chance to act.
The morning sun scattered through the tree canopy, and Xiao Jing reflexively snuggled closer to whatever was next to her.
The jungle was far away from the city, so there was plenty of morning dew, and the air was chilly. For some reason, Xiao Jing felt like she was hugging a stove, which kept her feeling pretty warm and cozy.
But…
Xiao Jing opened her eyes. Her vision was initially a little blurry from the moisture in the air. After blinking a few times, she slowly looked up.
Her Commander was staring unblinkingly at her beautiful countenance. It was hard to tell what he was thinking.
He seemed to have something to say to her.
Shen Chengfeng looked down at his waist, which had been circled by a pair of small hands.
Xiao Jing immediately removed her hands, and looked elsewhere as she said somewhat awkwardly, "Wow, it's already daybreak? That was fast."
"Have you had your fill of hugs?"
The corners of Xiao Jing's mouth twitched in response to the question, and Xiao Jing almost bit her tongue.
Shen Chengfeng sat up, his gaze darkening. "I now suspect that you were just putting on an act," he said in a casual tone.
"What do you mean, Commander?" Xiao Jing did not understand what he was getting at.
"You were just pretending to be scared. Your real motive was to get close to me."
Xiao Jing raised her finger to point at her awe-inspiring Commander, then at herself, before wryly asking, "Why should I get close to you?"
Shen Chengfeng did not answer her question, instead choosing to stare doubtfully at Xiao Jing, who was right within his reach. From the start, Xiao Jing had expressed her admiration for him and had been trying to get close to him. She even went so far as to molest him in public.
What was the real intention of the Xiao family?
Did they plan to make use of the delicate Master Xiao to seduce him, the devil incarnate?
Shen Chengfeng could not help but have suspicions. Why had the Xiao family dropped by Steel Eagle so many times? And why did he always coincidentally find out that they were there? Perhaps that too was part of their plan.
That had to be it! They planned to make him notice the unremarkable Xiao Jing!
They were indeed a military family. Everything was done step by step, methodically.
Xiao Jing was sure that he must have had a misunderstanding, so she quickly assured him. "Commander, I am completely loyal to you, and to you only."
Throwing the backpack to Xiao Jing, Shen Chengfeng walked into the woods with a dagger in his hand.
Xiao Jing trailed closely behind him and spoke up again. "Are you doubting my loyalty to you, Commander?"
This time, Shen Chengfeng stopped in his tracks and stared Xiao Jing in the eyes.
Xiao Jing was taken aback by the look in his eyes, convinced that something dramatic was about to happen. She was expecting that he would re-enact one of the cliche scenes from a drama. The man in front of her would grab her arms with tears in his eyes and spew a string of heartfelt words:
"Tell me. Tell me whether you have been lying to me. Tell me whether you are lying to me. Tell me why you are lying to me. Why did you lie to me? Does lying to me make you happy? You silly girl, I'm willing to be deceived by you. I have no complaints or regrets about being lied to because I love you. Do you know that? I love you!"
Xiao Jing frantically shook her head to dispel the thoughts in her head. What on earth was she thinking?
Shen Chengfeng narrowed his eyes, and said coldly to her, "Looks like I ought to re-consider whether or not you should be allowed to remain in Steel Eagle."
Xiao Jing reeled at his words, and quickly blurted out, "Did I not do well yesterday, Commander?"
"How would you evaluate yourself?"
After giving it some thought, Xiao Jing replied decisively, "I'm very pleased with my performance."
"You're not very humble, are you?"
"I'm just telling it like it is. My performance may not be satisfactory in your eyes, but I did my best. If a person has failed, you shouldn't negate all his efforts and claim that he has not tried hard enough. On the contrary, it's likely that he already tried his best, but just wasn't able to get things to go his way. You can't deny all the hard work that he has done. Just like me, for example. My performance may be lackluster, but you can't deny that I have made progress."
"What a fallacious statement," said Shen Chengfeng as he raised his arm and held a green snake, which had been dangling above them, in a death grip.
Xiao Jing instinctively retracted her neck.