Chapter 148: This Winter Is Not Cold

With a burning youth and a boiling hot blood, fueled by purpose and direction, everyone possessed an abundance of spirit. The car's speed continuously increased, resembling a silver-gray lightning bolt surging down the boulevard toward the development zone.

Returning to the villa, Chu Dong noticed the lights were still on and paused momentarily, only then remembering that Li Youlan was still there.

This time, instead of recklessly rushing in, Chu Dong first honked the horn, parked the car, and then went to knock on the door, but after a long while, there was no response.

"She doesn't even turn off the lights to sleep—such shameful waste," Chu Dong muttered, pulling out his key to unlock the door. A wave of indoor heat rushed toward his face.

"What's wrong with you?" Chu Dong asked hastily upon seeing Li Youlan sitting on the floor not far from the door, wearing a ocean-blue two-piece cotton pajama set. She was holding her lower leg and gazing at him with a resentful expression. He walked over without even taking off his shoes.

"Are you out of your mind? You have a key, so why are you knocking?" Li Youlan was extremely depressed, and it was evident that her thin lips were upturned in pain. Earlier, when she heard Chu Dong's horn, she ignored it. Hearing the knock, she assumed he didn't have his key, so she had hurried out to open the door, only to sprain her ankle while rushing down the stairs.

"I wasn't sure if you were admiring your own beauty in the mirror again. Who knew you'd be dressed so strictly today? Let me take a look." Chu Dong tossed the key aside and squatted down to inspect her foot.

"Go away, I don't need it." Li Youlan, who had been covering her ankle with her small hand, was about to pull it away, but upon hearing Chu Dong's words, she pushed him back. He always managed to touch a raw nerve; this guy was truly annoying.

"Look at you, isn't it enough that I admit I was wrong? What you were doing wasn't narcissism; it was merely another form of performance art. It's just that my standards are too low to appreciate it. Could you please forgive me this once, as a magnanimous person ignoring a petty one?"

"I feel like if you would just shut up, I'd be a little less angry." Li Youlan had sprained her ankle quite badly and was in no mood for a verbal sparring match. Leaning against the wall, she stood up with one foot supporting her weight. When Chu Dong tried to help her, she glared him back with her large eyes.

"You can't go on like this. You really ought to see a doctor. What if the bone is injured? Let me take you to the hospital, or Xiao Xue will blame me tomorrow for not taking good care of you." Chu Dong watched her frown and hop toward the stairs, calling out behind her.

"I don't need your help." Li Youlan turned around, glared at him again, and continued hopping upward. Perhaps she had expended too much energy, as she misjudged her footing on one of the steps, let out a sharp cry, and fell backward.

Seeing that she refused to listen to him, Chu Dong had no choice but to open his arms behind her to catch her. He grabbed her so solidly that Li Youlan's petite body landed entirely in his embrace, and with a slight lift, Chu Dong had her suspended in the air.

"Should this be considered throwing herself into my arms or me acting as a hero saving a beauty?" Chu Dong grinned, picked her up, and headed down the stairs. "Let's go get it checked out; it won't take long, and we'll be right back. I promise it won't delay your beauty sleep."

"No, I won't go! Put me down..." Li Youlan refused stubbornly, kicking with one leg and vigorously pinching Chu Dong with both hands.

"Stop moving! Ouch, stop pinching, that tickles... haha." Ticklish, Chu Dong lost his strength, almost dropping Li Youlan. As he lost his balance, Li Youlan's reflexes weren't slow either; she quickly wrapped her arms around Chu Dong's neck, her little face turning pale with fright.

Seeing that she was finally cooperative, Chu Dong carried her down to the ground floor. The moment he opened the door, Li Youlan let out a shrill scream, "Assault! Help, attempted assault..."

The sound was wretched, sharp, and high-pitched, carrying a long distance into the middle of the night.

Chu Dong kicked the door shut, glared at Li Youlan, and breathed heavily with anger. "Don't think that just because I'm giving you face, you can mess around with me. Be careful or I really will assault you, and then you won't even have the chance to scream."

"You? In your dreams!" Li Youlan tightened her grip around Chu Dong's neck, afraid he might actually toss her out, but upon hearing his threat, she curled her lips in a look of utter disdain.

"What's wrong with me?" Even though Li Youlan was slender and petite, carrying her for a long time was no easy task. Chu Dong leaned against the doorway to catch his breath. "No normal man is free of lust. Don't assume I'm always a gentle-mannered gentleman; when I unleash my wild side, you'll learn what a real man is. As for you—though you have a few minor flaws, they are practically negligible. Don't push me too far, or I'll gobble you up."

"What nonsense are you blabbering about? It's not that I look down on you, but even if I gave you the chance, you'd have to be capable of it." Li Youlan insulted Chu Dong with veiled words, feeling quite pleased with herself inside.

"I'm not capable? Do you dare say I'm not capable?" Chu Dong wasn't an idiot; of course, he understood what Li Youlan was implying. "I'll show you what a real man is..." Chu Dong raised his head and looked around, searching for something handy to give her a couple of smacks.

"Oh-ho, come on then, come on! Do you think I'm afraid of you?" Li Youlan challenged defiantly.

Holding her with both hands, Chu Dong gave her a forceful upward jolt and delivered a sharp smack to her rounded rear end. Li Youlan never expected Chu Dong to actually dare strike her. With an "Ouch," her body stiffened, and she froze in place.

Just as Chu Dong struck, in an attempt to scare her, he closed his eyes and leaned in to kiss her little lips. Having been caught off guard by the slap, Li Youlan had already closed her big eyes, and when her body tensed and arched upward, she inadvertently dodged Chu Dong's mouth, presenting her chest instead.

A deeply refreshing fragrance wafted over, soft as a sponge. Though her breasts were small, the cleavage between them was more than enough to accommodate Chu Dong's mouth...

"I—I meant to, no, I didn't, just now..." Chu Dong raised his head to look into Li Youlan's wide-open eyes, momentarily at a loss for words.

"Put me down." Li Youlan felt Chu Dong's hot breath spraying directly onto her chest, sending a fiery sensation coursing through her entire body—an inexplicable warmth. Seeing his flustered appearance, she even forgot to scold him.

If he didn't let go now, it would no longer look like helping out, but rather taking advantage. Chu Dong gently lowered Li Youlan so that one foot touched the floor, waiting patiently for her to steady herself before releasing his hold. He lowered his head and stood to the side.

Li Youlan glared at him angrily for a long moment. Her small hand rose, but she couldn't bring herself to strike him. She let out a huff, lowered her hand, and suddenly spoke to the still motionless Chu Dong.

"Squat down."

"Huh?" Having done wrong, Chu Dong was bracing himself for punishment. He never expected that after all this time, Li Youlan wouldn't hit him, but instead demand that he squat down. He blinked his eyes, looking at her in confusion.

"Squat down, quickly!" Li Youlan pointed her small hand downward and commanded once more.

Though utterly reluctant, wondering how she intended to torture him, Chu Dong slowly squatted down while protecting his head.

"Ow..."

Li Youlan used her injured foot to kick him right in the rear. Before Chu Dong could even yell, she cried out first.

"You can't do that. You're the one hitting someone, so why are you the first to holler? A classic case of the villain crying victim." Chu Dong mumbled quietly enough for only himself to hear.

"Behave yourself, and don't move." As soon as she recovered from the pain, Li Youlan shouted at Chu Dong, who was bracing himself to dodge any further attacks.

"I'm not moving." Chu Dong tightly closed his eyes. Screw it, after every storm comes a rainbow; he gritted his teeth and remained utterly still.

A small hand rested on Chu Dong's shoulder. She could clearly sense his tension. Wrapping her arms around him, she leaped onto his back. "Piggyback me upstairs, hurry up."

Chu Dong let out a sigh of relief. *Damn it, why didn't you just say so earlier? I was so tense I almost pissed my pants.* Reaching back to support Li Youlan's rounded bottom, Chu Dong prepared to stand up, but the girl jumped down as if her seat were on fire. Hopping on one leg for a long while, she pointed at Chu Dong, completely speechless.

"What, what now? You were the one who asked me to carry you on my back!" Chu Dong felt deeply wronged.

"Who told you to put your hands on my—on that kind of place?" If her foot hadn't been injured, Li Youlan would have already started throwing punches and kicks.

"Then how do you expect me to carry you? Upside down?" Chu Dong spread his hands in helplessness.

"Hold my knees, you idiot!" Li Youlan's flushed face was filled with supreme grievance and indignation.

"Fine, I'll do as you say, alright?" Chu Dong squatted down once more, silently complaining that this girl had far too many demands. What was the big deal about a little touch?

Climbing onto his back once more, Li Youlan tucked both legs up. "Let's go, hurry up."

Carrying her on his back, Chu Dong climbed the stairs step by step. He kicked open the door to the bedroom shared by Li Youlan and Tan Xue, intending to place her on the bed, but Li Youlan refused to get down no matter what.

"Oh, you think you can just get away with upsetting me like that? In your dreams! Keep carrying me." Li Youlan tightened her arms around Chu Dong's neck and refused to let go.

"Little Miss Ancestor, please spare me. We live under the same roof; aren't we going to be seeing each other every day from now on? Besides, leaving Xueer aside, just considering the brotherly—wait, sisterly relationship between the two of us, it shouldn't come to the point where I have to kowtow and beg for forgiveness..." Chu Dong chattered away, negotiating with Li Youlan as he carried her in circles around the room.

At first, Li Youlan responded with vague murmurs, but gradually fatigue set in. Tilting her small head, she pressed it against Chu Dong's back, listening to his rambling and the steady beat of his heart, and unexpectedly drifted off to sleep.

"China's five thousand years of history have proven that Chinese people are the nation that values forgiveness the most. Therefore, you should also uphold this fine tradition and carry it forward by pardoning my momentary, unintentional mistake. Even if there is still a barrier between us and you refuse to return evil with good, there's no need to push me step by step and refuse to let up when you're in the right. Hey, are you listening to me? Hey..." Chu Dong turned his head back to look, and Li Youlan was practically snoring away, sleeping so soundly it defied description.

Having finally weathered the storm to see the dawn, Chu Dong carefully bent over, laid Li Youlan flat, nudged her toward the edge of the bed, and gently let her slide onto the mattress sideways. Holding his breath, he pried open her hands, which were still tightly locked around his chin...

He was finally liberated. Chu Dong now possessed a particularly profound understanding of the nationwide celebrations of 1949.

Removing her little slippers, he pushed her slightly further onto the bed to prevent her from falling off, pulled up the blanket, and tucked her in. Chu Dong had worked up a sweat from all the tossing and turning.

Returning to his own room, Chu Dong took off his down jacket and hung it behind the door, only then realizing he hadn't changed his shoes. Sighing, he went back downstairs to change his shoes, washed his face in the bathroom, and prepared for bed. Just as he entered his room, he noticed that the light in Li Youlan's room was still on, so he pushed the door open to turn it off.

Within just that brief moment, Li Youlan had kicked off the blanket, and her pajamas had twisted askew, exposing a strip of tender white skin at her waist...

Tucking the blanket back over her, turning off the lamp, and quietly closing the bedroom door, Chu Dong finally returned to his own bed and lay down. Everything had finally quieted down. Gazing at the twinkling stars in the night sky and contemplating the future, Chu Dong felt all his exhaustion vanish. Tomorrow, the Chu Corporation would be reborn; even starting over from scratch was enough to make one's blood boil with excitement.