Chapter 131: Because I Trust You (Bonus Chapter for Allie830414)

Seeing my embarrassment, he patted my shoulder. "You need to mentally prepare yourself. Right before you arrived, Luo Ange just had a talk with his grandfather. It didn't go well at all, and the old master was so furious he passed out."

I instinctively asked, "Does Yuan Shengxiao know?"

He shook his head. "Not yet, but she will soon. Don't say I didn't warn you. The Luo family are stubborn traditionalists, and the Yuan family is a prominent, prestigious household. Breaking off an engagement like this won't be easy. Are you scared?"

I shook my head, and he smiled with understanding. "Just say the word if you need anything. Don't carry it all by yourself. We're... well, forever good friends."

I looked up at him, and he chuckled. "Stop right there, okay? Crying girls are my absolute weakness."

I broke into a smile through my tears. Having a friend like this was truly wonderful.

Entering the hospital ward, Luo Ange was lying on the bed while Zhu Bang stood to the side, reading documents.

Seeing me walk in, Zhu Bang closed the files and bowed slightly. "Young Master, I'll take my leave then. Please get some rest."

Luo Ange nodded. As soon as Zhu Bang left, he turned a cold gaze toward me. "Come here."

I walked over with a mischievous grin, poured a bowl of chicken broth from the thermal container, and held it out to him, asking ingratiatingly, "Smell this. Is it fragrant?"

I extended my hand—which had a bandage stuck to it—right in front of him and pouted aggrievedly. "Look, just from simmering the soup for you, I cut my finger. It hurts so much."

He sighed helplessly, caught my hand, and gently blew on it before dropping a line: "Once I'm recovered, I'll punish you until you can't get out of bed."

He was recovering at astonishing speed. His speech was completely fluid now, and he had even started threatening me.

I leaned in and bit him lightly on the chest, flashing a crafty smile. Since he was a patient right now and couldn't possibly do anything to me, I could tease him to my heart's content.

True to form, he shivered slightly, his voice turning husky. "Do you really want to test me?"

I hurriedly changed the subject and picked up the bowl of chicken broth to feed him.

Unable to handle my teasing any longer, he stared intently at me. I pretended nothing had happened and smiled at him with feigned innocence. "Oh dear, if you keep staring at me like that, I'm going to blush."

After swallowing a spoonful of chicken broth, he suddenly cupped my face. The moment his lips pressed down, all the broth in his mouth was transferred into mine.

Considering he was the patient, I temporarily decided not to argue with him. There would be plenty of opportunities later.

I don't know what other patients are like, but Luo Ange on a hospital bed was particularly childish, and his demands reached an outrageously shameless degree.

When the doctor came in for a routine check-up, Luo Ange refused to cooperate in every possible way. The elderly doctor was left in utter awkwardness, eventually casting a pleading look at me.

I pinched Luo Ange's thigh to remind him not to go too far, and he seized the opportunity to make a demand: "Kiss me once, and I'll behave."

My eyes widened. He always had a way out. "Amu, handle the discharge paperwork for me. I'm leaving the hospital."

The doctor looked ready to drop to his knees and beg me. Trapped in the middle, I had no choice but to give Luo Ange a quick kiss.

The price of that kiss was that he finally agreed to the examination. However, when it came time for the injection, he made another demand: that I stay overnight at the hospital to accompany him.

When it was time for his medicine, he made yet another demand: that we register our marriage the moment he was discharged.

By the time everything was settled, I was already exhausted and panting, while Luo Ange remained completely calm and composed, resting his eyes like a lord.

I had originally planned to stay at the hospital with him tonight, but Amu walked in with a hurried expression, glanced at me, and hesitated.

Without even opening his eyes, as if he knew everything already, Luo Ange spoke in a lazy tone, "Speak."

Amu nodded. "Young Master, Miss, Mr. Luo and Miss Yuan have arrived downstairs."

Before I could figure out precisely which Mr. Luo that referred to, I saw Luo Ange open his eyes and ask Amu, "Isn't my dad in South Korea? When did he get back?"

Amu looked anxious. "Young Master, what should we do?"

Luo Ange chuckled. "What is there to panic about? The one coming is my dad, not a tiger."

Still, I felt a lingering sense of dread, thinking that Luo Mingze must have rushed back upon hearing about the old master fainting. Had Yuan Shengxiao found out anything?

Luo Ange reached out a hand to me. I grasped it, and he smiled faintly. "Amu will take you back first. Get a good night's sleep."

I nodded obediently. He seemed to sigh and suddenly cupped my face.

Following a lingering, deeply affectionate kiss, I stood up with lingering reluctance and left the ward with Amu.

Back home, I felt restless and uneasy, sitting alone on the sofa clutching my phone like a criminal awaiting a judge's verdict.

When the phone rang, I jumped up in joy, only for my spirits to instantly deflate the next second.

Professor Zhou asked if my mood had improved. Naturally, I told him I was fine. He cheerfully informed me, "I just received notice that I'm heading to Taiwan next week for an academic exchange. I wasn't planning on taking you along—you're always so absent-minded, you'd just make a fool of me over there. But then I reconsidered: you are my final closed-door disciple, so if I don't take you, who should I take? As it happens, I need a French translator. Get your things ready; someone will come tomorrow morning to take you to sort out all the paperwork. I've emailed some materials to your inbox. You have ten days, so prepare yourself."

Listening with a storm of mixed emotions, I asked quietly, "Can I... not go?"

He raised his voice. "You girl, have you lost your mind? An academic exchange like this is something you might not encounter a second time in your entire life."

I quickly calculated the timeline. While the temptation of the academic exchange was immense—so immense that deep down I still desperately wanted to go—Luo Ange needed me right now. If I left, he would practically be driven mad with frustration.

We had finally made up after so much difficulty; I couldn't let anything else go wrong.

Luo Ange had told me to get a good sleep, but I was so tangled in inner conflict that I couldn't sleep at all. I got up and tossed a coin, and after tossing it for a long time, every single result pointed toward going to the academic exchange.

If Luo Ange ever found out, he would surely murder that coin.

Early the next morning, someone indeed arrived to take me to process various documents. Although the procedure was rather complicated, the person in charge was one of Professor Zhou's students, so I obtained all the paperwork in less than half an hour.

With a trembling heart, I went to the hospital. Luo Ange was listening to Amu read the morning financial reports. I crept in, placed the thermal container on the cabinet, and went to the bathroom to arrange fresh wildflowers in the vase.

While crouching by the coffee table, I caught sight of an invitation card.

The new product launch and charity banquet of Ningxiang Jewelry was scheduled for next week. It invited Luo Ange to attend, and under his companion's name, it clearly wrote Yuan Shengxiao.

A slight ache pinched my heart. Looking closer at the hosts, they were Mr. and Mrs. Yuan Ao and Wu Ningxiang.

I quickly whipped out my phone, typed in Yuan Ao and Wu Ningxiang, and hundreds of thousands of search results flashed across the screen.

Oh, so Yuan Shengxiao was the youngest daughter of Yuan Ao and Wu Ningxiang, as well as the apple of the Yuan family's eye.

Reading further, I learned that at sixteen, Yuan Shengxiao had won a major beauty pageant crown, had been acting as her family's brand ambassador for jewelry over the years, and even ran her own studio with several famous models under her wing.

A top Hollywood director had already taken notice of her and invited her to star in an upcoming blockbuster film.

Thinking back, what was I doing when I was sixteen?

Ah, that year I was in my third year of high school, hanging around every day with Xia Qi and Li Wanqiu, sneaking around on secret dates with Du Fanchuan. The single most earth-shattering thing I had ever done was run off to Beijing to watch the flag-raising ceremony and burn incense at the Lama Temple.

Luo Ange's voice drifted from behind me. "What are you looking at?"

I turned my head and waved my phone in the air. "Turns out my rival is such an exceptional person. How fascinating."

He glanced at the IV drip and asked me, "Aren't you going to ask about what happened last night?"

I walked over cheerfully. "Luo Ange, the reason I'm not asking is because I trust you. I believe you wouldn't have anything going on with another woman."

He smiled with satisfaction. "You fool."

I sat down beside his bed and looked straight into his eyes. "Now, this fool has something serious to tell you. Let's talk properly, and you are not allowed to get mad."

He caught my hand. "Mm, okay, I won't get mad."

As it turned out, he really didn't get mad. After hearing me out, he simply asked, "Do you really want to go?"

I nodded. "Of course I want to go! That's an international-level academic exchange. If I miss this, I might never encounter a second chance in my life. But... I can't bear to leave you, so I suppose I won't go. What's an exchange compared to you?"

He narrowed his eyes and pinched my cheek. "Insincere."

"So, can I go then?"

"Go."

"Really? You can bear to let me leave for a whole week?"

Luo Ange squeezed my palm. "Listen to me. This is an opportunity for you, and it's an opportunity for me too. Right now, I've angered my grandfather. To prevent him from coming after you, we need to take the initiative. Let me make arrangements; before he comes looking for you, we will go find him."

I hadn't expected him to say that, and for a moment, a strange taste lingered in my mouth. "Luo Ange, you aren't trying to send me away so you can take Yuan Shengxiao to the charity banquet and kill two birds with one stone by getting engaged, are you?"

He laughed. "You guessed it right away. You really are smart."

Anger flaring up, I raised my fist and hit him, only to be pulled straight into his embrace. "Don't worry. Be a good girl. Only when you are safe can I have peace of mind to handle things. Rest assured, someone will protect you over there, and no one will be able to hurt you."

Perhaps because a separation—though not terribly long, yet heartbreakingly sharp—was looming, Luo Ange was exceptionally clingy over the next few days, and his recovery continued at a blistering pace.

While I was at the hospital, none of the Luo family members visited, nor did Yuan Shengxiao show up.

There were countless matters at the company, most of which Luo Ange delegated to his subordinates, though Zhu Bang would come to the hospital to consult him on more important ones.

During those times, I would sit quietly on the sofa reading a book or texting Xia Qi.

She seemed to have taken root over at Junxi's place, having the time of her life and strongly hinting that she might not even return for final exams. She even asked me if I wanted to spend the New Year over there.

I asked her if she had fallen in love with Junxi. This time, she didn't deny it, only telling me cryptically, "I'm trying to open my heart. I can't guarantee anything yet."

I was already thrilled enough; at least she was willing to take that step. "Junxi is a good man. You better hold onto him tightly."

Suddenly, Xia Qi said, "Wuyou, I'm a sinner. I'm a sinner."

A slight chill ran through my heart. "Xia Qi, have you joined some kind of cult?"

She laughed. "Go away. You're the one who joined Luo Ange's cult."

During those days, Luo Ange recovered so rapidly that the doctor permitted him to go out during the day and return at night.

One day while watching the news, Commander Luo and Commander Guan of a certain military region were shown at the airport greeting the repatriated ashes of overseas veterans from the War of Resistance, a grand and solemn spectacle.

After watching the report, Luo Ange inexplicably uttered, "It's time," and brought me straight back to the traditional courtyard residence.