"So that's how it is," Li Xiaoxiao chuckled when she heard his voice. "It's still Qing Tian baby who cares about me. Although I don't think it will work well, I'm still grateful for her kind intention."
Seeing that Li Xiaoxiao didn't suspect anything, Li Xiaozhong breathed a sigh of relief in secret.
"But then..." Li Xiaoxiao lowered her eyes slightly, a wry smile appearing. "I really can't remember... If, I mean if, if I can never remember..."
"Then you're still my sister," Li Xiaozhong interrupted, his gaze firm. "My best sister."
"Heh heh." Li Xiaoxiao finally managed a bright smile upon hearing Li Xiaozhong's words. "I'm hungry, I want a late-night snack."
"Didn't you say you wanted to lose weight yesterday?" Li Xiaozhong asked, speechless.
"I say I'm dieting every day, but... but I'm just hungry!" Li Xiaoxiao pouted and acted cute. "I want luosifen, I want grilled cold noodles, and I also want..."
"Tomato and egg noodle soup, are you eating it or not?" Li Xiaozhong stood up, his eyes narrowed as he looked at Li Xiaoxiao.
"Yes!" Li Xiaoxiao immediately raised her hand. "And I request an extra fried egg!"
"Greedy..." Li Xiaozhong muttered, yet he still let out a soft laugh and headed towards the kitchen.
"Don't add any vegetables, add a sausage instead~" Li Xiaoxiao immediately chased after him, acting coy.
"Do you even want to eat or not!" Li Xiaozhong shot Li Xiaoxiao a glare.
"Eat, eat, eat! Then..." Li Xiaoxiao followed behind Li Xiaozhong, timidly saying, "Add another sausage..."
"..." Li Xiaozhong shook his head speechlessly, only leaving a parting remark: "You have to finish all your vegetables."
Li Xiaoxiao pouted, not daring to protest further.
Li Xiaozhong merely curved the corners of his lips and skillfully prepared a late-night snack with ingredients from the refrigerator.
Only after seeing Li Xiaoxiao eating with gusto did Li Xiaozhong return to his bedroom, take out his phone, take a deep breath, and meticulously compile everything he remembered about his elder sister.
When Xia Qingtian received Li Xiaozhong's message, she had just put Xia Qingyu to bed. After confirming that Xia Qingyu did not have a fever, Xia Qingtian glanced at the message while falling into thought.
Is Gaia... really not the eldest daughter of the Li family?
At the same time, Gaia, with her cheeks bruised, stood in the shadows with a grim expression.
Under the lamplight, Xiang Xueyuan's face was gloomy and unpredictable, while Nie Qingkong, standing before him, appeared utterly dejected.
"You've disappointed me," Xiang Xueyuan finally spoke, looking at Nie Qingkong and saying coldly, "I told you to kill the Tang family's hidden master, and not only did you fail to kill him, but you also injured Gaia, who was helping you clean up the mess, nearly exposing her. Do you know how much effort I put into training her!"
"Father, I'm sorry." Nie Qingkong lowered her head and apologized in a muffled voice.
"You..." Xiang Xueyuan seemed about to say something more, but he vaguely sensed that Nie Qingkong's reaction was not quite right.
After a moment of silence, Xiang Xueyuan seemed to have figured something out and said, "The person you saved from Gaia wasn't the Tang family's hidden master, it was Qingyu."
"!" Nie Qingkong was startled, and she abruptly raised her head, only to quickly conceal the panic in her eyes and feign composure. "Father, I don't want to make excuses for my failure. I made a mistake, please punish me."
Now, he couldn't let Xiang Xueyuan know that Xia Qingyu was on the ship.
Qingyu was already injured, and he had to protect her.
Protect her with all his might.
How could Xiang Xueyuan not guess Nie Qingkong's intentions? He gazed at Nie Qingkong, remaining silent for a long time, until fireworks soared into the sky outside the window with a "whoosh—bang."
The brilliant fireworks illuminated the night as if it were day.
Xiang Xueyuan saw all of Nie Qingkong's subtle expressions and the suppressed emotions in her eyes with perfect clarity.
At this moment, Xi Fu entered from the door.
Still unaware of what had happened, she said with a smile, "Father, they've already started setting off fireworks. Aren't you going to watch? Although this ship is shabby, the fireworks are quite grand."
Upon approaching, Xi Fu finally sensed the subtle atmosphere and hesitantly called out again, "Father?"
Xi Fu shifted her gaze from Xiang Xueyuan to Nie Qingkong, only then noticing that Nie Qingkong's clothes seemed a bit off.
"Qingkong, why don't you go watch the fireworks with Xi Fu," Xiang Xueyuan said, as if nothing had happened, with a faint smile. "Go and join the fun. This kind of scenery might be the last time we see it."
Whoosh—bang!
Another brilliant firework soared into the sky. The light outside the window was brighter than the lamps indoors, casting Nie Qingkong's face in a deathly pallor.
Father, is this announcing his impending doom?
Xi Fu was also taken aback. She immediately looked at Nie Qingkong anxiously, guessing if Nie Qingkong had done something to offend her father. Her mind became a mess. Suppressing her panic, she stepped forward and linked her arm with Nie Qingkong's. "Qingkong, come with me to watch!"
Saying that, Xi Fu pulled Nie Qingkong out of the room. As they walked towards the deck, Xi Fu quietly asked, "What exactly happened?"
Nie Qingkong lowered her head, remaining silent, and walked step by step.
"You didn't go to kill that Tang family hidden master? I already warned you!" Xi Fu was almost furious seeing Nie Qingkong like this. "What is going on with you! After all these years, don't you understand Father's personality? He... he might actually kill you!"
"Xi Fu," Nie Qingkong felt a sudden calm within her upon hearing Xi Fu's words. "You go watch the fireworks by yourself. I have other things to do."
After saying this, Nie Qingkong turned and ran towards the other end of the corridor.
She had lost so much blood earlier, it must have hurt terribly.
"Tarik!" Xi Fu watched Nie Qingkong's retreating figure and stamped her foot in anger.
Meanwhile, in the room, as soon as Xi Fu and Nie Qingkong left, Xiang Xueyuan called out to Gaia, who was hidden in the shadows.
Gaia walked behind Xiang Xueyuan and called out, "Master," as usual.
The next moment, a resounding slap landed on her face.
"You almost killed my daughter!" Xiang Xueyuan glared at Gaia. "My only daughter!"
Gaia lowered her head and remained silent. She wanted to say that it was Xiang Xueyuan who had told her that the female attendant was the Tang family's hidden master, which was why she...
But, none of that mattered. She was an orphan who had survived a kidnapping incident. Her parents and younger siblings were all dead. There was only one person left in this world.
Her master was willing to adopt her and give her food to eat. She had sworn to be loyal to her master.
Whether to kill or to torture was entirely up to her master.
Seeing Gaia's demeanor, Xiang Xueyuan suppressed the anger in his heart and said coldly, "Get out. Don't let me see you before dawn."
"Yes." Gaia withdrew from the room, feeling nothing but gratitude in her heart towards her master for not killing her. She didn't know what else she could do.