He wanted to lock himself away?
With a mix of distress and humor, she quirked her lips, knowing he meant well. "I think a cage might be more reliable, putting me inside it. Of course, that’s assuming the cage is sturdy enough, or else if I escape, it will still be the same."
"Absolutely serious!"
Liang Zhichen carried her back to the cabin. He had intended to let her rest first; he could tell she was tired, very exhausted. But Dong Huiying looked back at Liang Yuening, who was a few steps behind, the pain and concern still heavy in his eyes.
The incident had been so sudden that only now did she have a moment to think. "Yuening... he..." Her confusion was clear in her eyes.
Zhi Chen silently looked towards his younger brother Yue Ning, thinking that this question might be better answered by Yue Ning himself.
Liang Yuening choked up a little, "I’ve been looking for you for so very long."
He gently, very cautiously, took her hand. "I won’t be mean to you anymore, I won’t yell at you, and I won’t speak harshly to you anymore. Please don’t dislike me, don’t leave me, okay?"
Dong Huiying was speechless.
"You’re hurt," she noticed a deep bite mark bleeding on the back of his hand. She struggled to get up, startling Yue Ning.
"What’s wrong? What are you doing? If something’s the matter, just tell me, and I’ll do it for you. Are you thirsty, or hungry? Wait here, I’ll get something..."
He was very anxious about her, but Dong Huiying was somewhat taken aback by his behavior.
In the four months of her absence, he had changed, no longer the rebel he once was. Perhaps his character was still straightforward, but the way he treated her had undergone a total transformation.
"Wait!" she called out to Yue Ning, then looked towards the line of bottles and jars on the shelf, "The third one from the right is for stopping bleeding and healing wounds, hand it to me."
He obediently nodded, rushed to the cabinet, grabbed the bottle, and hurried back as if he feared she would disappear again if he took a bit longer.
Dong Huiying took the small bottle and saw that her own little fists were also covered with bloodied wounds. She grimaced slightly, then grabbed Liang Yuening’s hand and applied some white ointment to the bite mark on the back of it.
She applied it with great care and attention to detail.
Being treated so tenderly by her, this man who had always used a fierce look to cover his thoughts was suddenly at a loss.
His nose tingled, his eyes reddened, and he knew it was an embarrassing reaction, yet he felt an inexplicable mix of bitterness and a touch of sweetness in his heart.
He pressed his lips down, then up, and finally, he let out a laugh.
Like a big dog, he buried his face in her shoulder.
He wasn’t good with sweet nothings, but his every action proclaimed his dependence on her.
Dong Huiying lowered her eyes, in this moment... she scarcely dared to move.
However, she wasn’t whole; her heart was flawed. She knew many things had changed, and she understood that her previous rejection of the brothers because of Yixuan was the wrong approach. She grasped their feelings for her—she felt it.
But her emotions were flawed.
Having lived in such an environment where so-called family members offered only endless harsh treatment, she was more like a tool meant to carry on a legacy; no one truly loved her, and she did not know how to love others.
She coveted this kindness, their tenderness towards her, but she couldn’t return the same affection.