By the Emerald Lake.
After finishing lunch, a few brothers were relaxing. Xiaoqing was washing dishes in the kitchen when she heard the door open. She turned around and was immediately stunned.
There stood Old Third, dressed in a snug suit, with a red tie—an expensive tie belonging to Chu Yuxuan—tied around his neck like a red scarf. He had his hands clasped behind his back and a nervous, flushed face. He stammered, "Uh, Xiaoqing, I, um, well..."
Xiaoqing snapped out of her shock, looked up at Old Third with a puzzled expression, and asked, "Old Third, what are you trying to do?"
Old Third awkwardly scratched his head and mumbled, "I... I want to invite you to watch a movie."
Xiaoqing was quite surprised. She slightly opened her mouth, then shyly averted her gaze. Her calloused hands fidgeted nervously.
She wasn't stupid and knew about Old Third's feelings for her. However, she had always seen him as nothing more than a big brother and never considered anything else.
In fact, she didn't care about Old Third's physical appearance or his slightly weaker intellect compared to others. She just felt that with her lowly background, how could she ever dare to hope for something like love?
Even if this big guy was plain and simple, he was still the brother of their family's young master, even closer than a real brother.
And what about herself? A wildflower blooming in the abyss, a tool forged through bloodshed.
There was a world of difference between them.
Old Third's anxiety grew as he saw Xiaoqing's lack of response. After biting his lip, he mustered the courage to present the movie tickets he had been hiding behind his back and stammered, "Transformers 2... It's very good. It was hard to get a screening. It's... it's..."
Xiaoqing looked at the two movie tickets tightly held in his big hand, her cheeks turning red. After a while, she looked up at Old Third and whispered, "Old Third, could you... lower yourself a bit?"
Old Third: "Huh?"
Xiaoqing made a downward gesture with her hand. "Bend down."
Old Third quickly complied.
Then, Xiaoqing slowly raised her hand, untied Old Third's tie, retied it neatly, and said gently, "This is how you tie a tie. Got it?"
Old Third nodded vigorously. "Got it!"
Xiaoqing couldn't help but laugh. "You think you can learn it just by watching once?"
Old Third smiled stupidly. "I'll learn slowly... You can teach me in the future!"
"Mm..." Xiaoqing nodded, glanced at the time on the movie ticket, hesitated for a moment, and said shyly, "I... I'll wash the dishes first. Wait for me."
Old Third agreed with a smile, standing like a stone statue at the kitchen door, grinning brightly.
At that moment, Old Fifth's voice came from the living room, "Well done, Yao Laoliu! Come on, come on!... Oh my God, why did you crash?"
Old Third turned to see Old Fifth and Yao Liang playing a VR game. He walked over, picked up both of them like chicks, and carried them to the kitchen. Old Fifth took off his VR glasses and glared at Old Third, "D*mn it! You idiot, what's with you?"
Yao Liang also took off his glasses, too angry to speak.
Old Third threw them into the kitchen and growled, "Do the dishes!"
As soon as he finished speaking, he turned back to Xiaoqing with a goofy smile. "Xiaoqing, let's go!"
Xiaoqing was stunned.
Old Fifth was about to start complaining but noticed the movie tickets in Old Third's hand and rolled his eyes. Then, he reluctantly walked toward the sink, grumbling, "Old Third, I suggest you book the whole theater... Go on, Xiaoqing, unleash your inner wild beast and experience the weight of the mountain. Remember to bring your ID. If possible, don't come back tonight."
Xiaoqing's face turned red with embarrassment as she stomped her feet. "Old Fifth, what are you talking about..."
Old Third: "Hehe... ahem, Old Fifth, do you believe I'll beat you up?"
Yao Liang smiled faintly. Although still awkward, he felt that these people didn't actually dislike him, especially Old Fifth, who treated him quite well.
Old Fourth, sitting in front of the statue of Guan Yu, ignored the commotion in the kitchen. Although it looked like he had stumbled into the wrong place, it did not affect his devotion.
Soon, Chu Yuxuan sent him a voice message: "I'm sending you a location. Go to this place." Following was a map location with the address of Zhou Xiaoru's clinic.
Old Fourth did not ask further, put away his phone, and put on his coat to head out.
About half an hour later, this killing machine arrived at the bottom of the Wenguer Psychological Clinic, habitually scanning the surroundings before going upstairs.
Half an hour ago, Zhou Xiaoru, who had received a message from Zhao Yanan, was elated and had cleaned the clinic thoroughly. At this moment, she was carrying a large bag of trash, skipping cheerfully down the corridor. As she turned the corner to the elevator, she saw her long-awaited Oppa walking out of the elevator.
Zhou Xiaoru's heart skipped a beat, both thrilled and embarrassed. She quickly shrank back from the corner, pressing her back against the wall, her angelic face making her look like a lovesick girl.
Old Fourth had been looking down at his phone, trying to confirm the address. But due to the keen instincts of a spy, he caught a glimpse of a fleeting figure at the corner of his eye. He discreetly put away his phone and instinctively grasped the curved knife at his waist, moving forward slowly.
The two of them were approaching at a ninety-degree angle.
Zhou Xiaoru, excited and perhaps a bit overzealous, or maybe just having a brain freeze, made a silly face as she heard the footsteps getting closer. She suddenly jumped out from around the corner, letting out a "Wow!" However, halfway through the exclamation, she was swiftly grabbed by Old Fourth, who held her neck against the wall. At the same time, the curved knife was at her face.
Zhou Xiaoru gasped for breath, the knife's tip less than a centimeter from her eye, almost causing her heart to stop.
Scaring someone else was fine, but scaring this killing machine? Did she think she had nine lives like a cat?
Seeing it was Zhou Xiaoru, Old Fourth hesitated for a moment, sheathed his knife in a flash, and set Zhou Xiaoru down.
He then looked up at the sign on the corridor wall that read "Wenguer Private Psychological Clinic" and realized that it wasn't a coincidence he met Zhou Xiaoru but that he had fallen into his brother's trap.
If Chu Yuxuan had told him directly, he would have pretended not to see the message.
"Ahem! Ahem..."
Zhou Xiaoru, who had just been choked, bent over and coughed violently. She looked up at Old Fourth with tear-filled eyes, her face showing clear signs of fear.
Old Fourth remained expressionless and said, "Sorry," before bending down to pick up the scattered trash.
Zhou Xiaoru forced herself to calm down, patted her plain chest, and said plaintively, "I just wanted to joke with you. Did you have to overreact?... By the way, is being Chu Yuxuan's bodyguard so dangerous? Do you even carry a knife with you..."
Old Fourth handed her the trash bag, said "Sorry" again, and turned to leave.
"Hey!" Zhou Xiaoru stamped her foot anxiously, "You bully me and then just leave? Aren't you a man?"
Old Fourth ignored her, standing at the elevator door pressing the down button.
"Pu Cheng, do you really dislike me so much? Fine, just go!" Zhou Xiaoru angrily said, "I'm going to call your boss Chu! I don't even want to treat your illness! Hmph... Doesn't your Chu boss like spanking? Just wait to go back and get spanked! Go on, go! I never want to see you again!"
Mentioning Chu Yuxuan was like hitting a nerve for Old Fourth. He could have ignored the message, but now that he was here and leaving like this, it would seem disrespectful to his brother.
Seeing Old Fourth turn back toward her, Zhou Xiaoru involuntarily took a step back and asked nervously, "W-what are you going to do?"
Old Fourth calmly replied, "Treating illness," and walked towards the clinic first.
Zhou Xiaoru glared at his back, pouted, and followed slowly, muttering, "They say distance makes the heart grow fonder, but why does it feel like an entire mountain range between us? Don't you like me? What kind of taste do you have? Stupid..."
Old Fourth suddenly stopped, turned around, and asked, "What did you just call me?"
Zhou Xiaoru: "..."
"Oppa, heh heh, let's go..."