Then she too took her to leave after giving her regards to the village head who looked really relieved to see them go.

The two of them walked out of the house silently and then crossed the threshold of the Gu house. It was already past eight at night and the entire village was shrouded with the inky veil of darkness, it was a good thing that the moon didn’t rise tonight because Xiao Hua really wished that Yu Dong won’t see his face.

It wasn’t wrong to say that he was beyond pissed, so pissed that he didn’t even pay attention to where he was going and ended up stumbling. He might have fallen with his face kissing the ground when Yu Dong stretched her arm and wrapped it around his waist. ” Are you okay?”

Xiao Hua stayed where he was and then shook his head while looking down. ” I am not… I am not okay, I was taken advantage of like that and yet I am the one who is being asked to stay silent, is it even right? It isn’t so why is it that I have to swallow down this humiliation and anger just because someone said I have to?”

He was really upset with how nonchalant the village head was, it was as if she believed that him being peeped at was something really common and not an issue to be discussed about. Why?

” If I was a normal mer and not a mer with a dirty past would she have said the same thing?” asked Xiao Hua with a mocking smile curling on his lips. ” I bet if I was a mer of this village without a shameful past then I wouldn’t have been treated like this, she would have taken me seriously …maybe she thinks that after being a courtesan I should be used to all of this.”

Yu Dong heard the utter disregard for his existence in Xiao Hua’s voice and she sighed before helping him to stand up straight. “It’s not like that, she isn’t looking down on you … she is just looking out for herself.”

” Looking out for herself?”Xiao Hua’s head snapped up as he looked at Yu Dong in surprise and confusion. “What do you mean by that?”

With a smile, Yu Dong patiently explained. “It’s like this, she just took up the responsibility of being the village head, if something like a peeping cat running amok in the village is known to other people they will question her abilities, that’s why she wants to keep it under the wraps.”

” But that’s stupid,” said Xiao Hua as he looked at Yu Dong and angrily pouted. ” Once the peeping cat starts targeting other mers what is she going to do then?”

” Xiao Hua, you seem to have forgotten your first reaction upon finding that you were peeped at, don’t you remember what you said back then?”

” I … I said that I was dirty and can no longer leave the house,” answered Xiao Hua with a hesitation-filled expression.

”That’s right if other mers were also peeped at, I am sure they will try to keep it under the wraps as well and that will be how no one will be able to find out what exactly is going on in the village,” Yu Dong calmly explained as she patted Xiao Hua’s head. ” The mers will stay silent or maybe there is a chance they are already being peeped at but they chose to stay silent because they don’t want to be judged by the villagers or ruin their reputation in the wake of getting themselves justice. That’s the only reason Gu Nuwa is not willing to deal with this matter, she is banking on you and the others to stay silent lest you want to suffer.”

Xiao Hua who finally understood what was going on in the head of the village felt like his head was going to explode, this… how can someone be this greedy for power that they will also ignore the troubles of others?

Yu Dong seemed to have understood what was going on in his head and she grinned with a sly hint. ” Don’t worry though, the village head can ignore this matter for as long as she wants but she will have to face it eventually and when that happens she will be in a lot more trouble than she would have been now, in case she dealt with the matter in a timely manner but never mind.”

Xiao Hua understood what she was saying but he still felt really upset with the idea of staying silent till then…who knows how long they have to stay put and wait for the Village head to finally take action.

Seeing his dejected expression Yu Dong was very amused, so she dipped her head and looked at Xiao Hua who had his head lowered. ” Are you still upset with what happened?”

” I am not,” replied Xiao Hua but he did have a sullen pout on his lips. ” I am not mad at all, I just wish that the village head falls in a ditch and breaks her legs.”

Oh, that meant he was still mad.

”Let’s pray that your wish come true then,” said Yu Dong as she joined her hand as if she was really praying. ” Dear God, please listen to Xiao Hua’s wishes and make them come true, make sure that Gu Nuwa falls in a ditch and breaks her legs!”

At first, Xiao Hua was stunned by Yu Dong’s actions but then he started chuckling as he looked away. With his hand lightly pressed against his lips, he shook his head. ” That was just … you are really something Yu Dong.”

——–

” I have heard that a lot of times,” said Yu Dong finally relieved upon seeing Xiao Hua smile. She was worried that he will overthink the matter throughout the night and would feel even more distressed but now that he was smiling she can finally rest at ease. ” Now that’s a nice smile you have got there.”

As soon as Yu Dong said that Xiao Hua stopped smiling and turned serious, ” I am not smiling.”

” Oh, are you saying that I am seeing things?” teased Yu Dong as she poked Xiao Hua in his cheek. ” I swear I saw you smile just now and that too quite brightly.”

Xiao Hua rolled his eyes and then opened his mouth to say something but just as he was going to say something he heard loud jeers coming in their direction and from the loud ruckus they were causing he was quite certain that the group was really big. The sudden arrival of this group shocked both him and Yu Dong, if they were seen together on the streets then what will people say? It wasn’t that Xiao Hua was worried about people talking behind his back, he was used to it but Yu Dong was different.

And most importantly Fang Chi was pregnant, if he heard some nasty rumours about the two of them floating around in the village then who knows what might happen to him, they have to hide quickly! With that thought in mind, Xiao Hua clasped Yu Dong’s wrist and pulled her along.

” Hey, what are you doing?” as Xiao Hua dragged her through the wild bushes and ferns, Yu Dong was a bit startled and tried to stop him but Xiao Hua was in flee motion, so he didn’t budge or stop instead he dragged Yu Dong deep into the forest that was on the side of the road and quickly hid her along with him behind a big tree. “Xiao Hua——”

” Shh!” He said urgently as he pressed his hand against Yu Dong’s mouth and shook his head. ” Don’t say anything if they heard us then you will wake up to another set of rumours tomorrow morning, do you want that to happen? You don’t right, then stay put for me.”

Yu Dong though slightly uncomfortable, did what he asked her to do but as he leaned closer, Yu Dong could feel his body press against her and she nearly bit her own tongue because of the softness that was wrapping around her body. No wonder the previous Yu Dong was hooked on having Xiao Hua, he was just built differently from other mers even young mers like Xiao Zimo wasn’t as cuddly as him.

His charm was really fitting to attract women, though she never paid any attention to his charm before because they never really got a chance to stay close but now that she was seeing more of him, Yu Dong has to agree that Xiao Hua was visibly cute….like a cuddly rabbit.

” Oh they are here,” spoke Xiao Hua suddenly and he pressed himself even more against Yu Dong so that he was kind of moulding right against her body. Yu Dong’s eyes shivered as the familiar sweet scent floated towards her nostrils as Xiao Hua got even more close to her, what was happening to her body? Why was it reacting to Xiao Hua like this?

Her gaze started to rake down the length of his neck down to the sharp collarbone that was peeking out of his flamboyant shirt and robe and closed her eyes when she realised where she was actually looking, shaking her head lightly she stared over Xiao Hua’s head determined not to look down.

Whatever this was, she needs to stop it because she already had four husbands and in honesty, after suffering so much Xiao Hua deserved a woman much better than her. So, these reactions she has to stop feeling them!

The ruckus and jeers behind them grew louder and louder as Xiao Hua peeked out of the tree trunk and looked at the group that was walking past them. Good thing that they hid on time the group of women were still very much sober if by any chance they saw him and Yu Dong—— Xiao Hua shivered, he could already think of the worst possible outcome that would have resulted.

” They are gone, now we can leave,” he turned to look at Yu Dong only to see that her face was visibly red. His heart skipped a beat as he looked at the super adorable face of the woman he liked before stammering, ” What’s…What’s wrong? Why are you blushing like that?”

Yu Dong pointed down without saying anything and he followed her direction only to see that he was literally plastered to Yu Dong like a koala. Stunned, he retreated as he said, ” No,… this …I…I am sorry, I didn’t want to take advantage of you——”

Because he backed off in a hurry, his feet got caught into something and he slipped almost falling on his back when Yu Dong rushed to his aid but this time the momentum was too fast and she fell down with him.

And she did not just fall—— she actually fell on top of him. With her hand cupping the back of his head, Xiao Hua could feel her face pressed against his, their lips just a few inches away from each other.