Rubbing the back of his head, Wang Zhong inexplicably felt that he did not understand human hearts at all, nor did he understand what was truly good or bad.
He used to think that people who made him feel sincere were those who were kind to him and would always treat him well.
But Bibi Dong, standing before him, shattered his previous judgment standards today.
Sincerity and true feelings are never eternal. There is no everlasting good, nor everlasting evil. They arrive in turns. Perhaps in one moment she truly loathed him, but in the next, she was genuinely concerned for him.
It was too foolish to define permanent ways of interacting with certain people or things based solely on fleeting feelings in one's heart!
One should not act on momentary emotions. Decisions about how to treat others must be based on facts!
Gently pursing his lips, Wang Zhong quietly stepped forward and placed his hand back into Bibi Dong's. Her hand was slender, soft, and slightly cool, a sensation that made him chuckle.
Bibi Dong's gaze shifted slightly. She felt Wang Zhong's small movement, but she did not withdraw her palm, nor did she shake off his small hand holding hers.
"What's wrong, not scared anymore!"
Her tone remained icy, even carrying a hint of mockery.
Wang Zhong shook his head, affirming, "Scared!"
"But I cannot let the care Your Excellency showed just now be erased because of my fear."
"I felt a killing intent and hatred from Your Holiness the Pope, which is why I was so terrified and frightened. But after what just happened, I feel I was a bit foolish."
"It was merely a momentary feeling, yet I treated it as fact. Before the facts even unfolded, how could I let my feelings change me and affect how I treat those who had genuinely treated me well up to that point."
Bibi Dong's jade hand suddenly tightened. She solemnly faced Wang Zhong and reprimanded him sternly, "Do you know that what you are saying now is truly foolish!"
"When all the facts happen before your eyes, what will you be able to do then!"
"If I had truly attacked and killed you just now, you would only be a corpse now! Where would there be an opportunity for change!"
"By then, it would be too late!"
Mending fences after the sheep have escaped is nowhere as good as acting decisively beforehand.
To this, Wang Zhong instead smiled, responding with determination, "Your Excellency, I will grow up, and I will become stronger!"
"I will seize all opportunities! I will not fail any sincerity or kindness!"
"Similarly, I will not let any falsehood or malice go unnoticed!"
"I will ensure that nothing that happens to me is ever too late!"
Bibi Dong's eyes narrowed, and she looked at Wang Zhong with a hint of ill intent, retorting, "What if these things happened to Hu Liena!"
"Then I would strike first and eliminate the one who harbored malicious intentions!" Wang Zhong placed a clenched fist on his chest, his expression solemn.
You can direct your malice towards me, and I will not act until the last moment. But if you target those around me, then I must strike first!
Bibi Dong was truly amused by this answer.
"Your Excellency, not only Nana and my other friends, but you are the same!"
"Perhaps I am weak now, and my words are but a joke, but I want to clearly tell Your Excellency that I will always protect you all!"
Wang Zhong's small face became extremely resolute, extremely solemn at this moment.
This was a vow, and also a belief!
The smile on Bibi Dong's face froze at this moment. Facing Wang Zhong's entirely serious little face, meeting his determined eyes, she could not bring herself to smile.
"Why?"
For some reason, Bibi Dong asked this question.
"Because you are my teacher! A teacher who treated me very well!" Wang Zhong tilted his head slightly, not quite understanding the question, but still answering earnestly.
"Teacher..."
Bibi Dong lightly chuckled at the word, but said nothing more. Instead, she brought up another matter.
"Little Wang Zhong, I can tell you explicitly that I did indeed harbor a very strong killing intent towards you earlier."
"Do you want to know why?"
Wang Zhong nodded, responding, "Yes!"
His feelings were not wrong, and he indeed wanted to know why!
"Because of the Acacia Broken Heart Red!"
Bibi Dong stared intently at Wang Zhong, her tone serious and earnest.
"The meaning it represented, combined with the story you told, pierced me. And this pain is the source of the killing intent I momentarily felt towards you!"
"Little Wang Zhong, I will not apologize to you for the killing intent in my heart, because in my opinion, you brought it upon yourself."
"My heart harbors a past filled with pain and despair, a past related to love! And the Acacia Broken Heart Red you gave me, like the sharpest knife, tore open the past I did not wish to recall, revealing it bloodily before me once more!"
"You have something you cherish as life itself, and so do I, but that was only in the past!"
Bibi Dong's gaze turned sorrowful and low at this moment. Before this child, Wang Zhong, she brought up a sliver of her past, revealing a small part of her soft and vulnerable side.
She was trying to rectify her previous foolish mistake, or rather, she was trying her best to rationalize that killing intent.
Not to return their relationship to what it was before, but at least to prevent all her efforts so far from going to waste!
"Your Excellency, you..."
"Do not ask, nor pry too deeply. That is a forbidden zone in my heart that cannot be touched!" Bibi Dong's wine-red eyes were extremely serious at this moment, even carrying a warning.
"I'm sorry!"
Wang Zhong lowered his head and apologized sincerely.
He had thought he was giving a very good gift, fitting for her status, but unexpectedly, he had unintentionally hurt her, something Wang Zhong had never anticipated.
When one makes a mistake, one should apologize.
Bibi Dong pursed her red lips, and her gaze softened once more. She reached out and gently ruffled Wang Zhong's short hair, saying softly, "I accept this apology."
"But next time, you cannot make the same mistake! Otherwise, I will truly be angry!"
Wang Zhong nodded repeatedly, indicating that he would not make the same mistake again.
"Alright, the knot between us has been untied now."
"Let's go, Little Wang Zhong, I'll ask you again, have you thought about what kind of spirit beast you want? Shall I choose one for you?"
Bibi Dong's voice was gentle, just like before. And Wang Zhong, holding her hand, no longer felt fear or dread.
He thought carefully and then said, "Yes, I think I've made up my mind."
"And, Your Excellency, you've already caught it for me!"
"What?!"
Bibi Dong's tone suddenly became extremely high, and could be described as a cry of surprise.
"Little Wang Zhong, do you want the spirit ring of that Purple Winged Spider Emperor?!"
"It's a spirit beast of over fifty thousand years!"
"Is that not possible?" Wang Zhong blinked and asked.
This question left Bibi Dong speechless for a moment.
Is it not possible? For others, absolutely not! But this little fellow before her, he...