Chapter Thirty-Two: Kyushu Is Everything!

“Sorry! I’ll take you to the hospital!” Seeing Wang Lulu injured once again because of him, Chu Xiao could no longer suppress his feelings.

He scooped Wang Lulu into his arms, his broad chest giving her an unusual sense of security.

“No need for the hospital. Just take me back to the dormitory; I have herbal oil!” Wang Lulu insisted, though a hint of guilt lingered in her words—for the truth was, she hadn’t twisted her ankle at all.

Chu Xiao hesitated for a moment after hearing her, but the uncertainty quickly vanished. “We should still go to the hospital and get it checked properly.”

“No! I don’t like hospitals. I want to go back to my dorm!” Wang Lulu shouted, displeased, her body swaying as she spoke. If not for Chu Xiao’s steady hold, she would surely have fallen.

Seeing her resistance, Chu Xiao didn’t force the issue, and instead carried Wang Lulu back to her dormitory.

When they arrived, Chu Xiao gently placed Wang Lulu on the bed.

“Where’s your herbal oil?” Chu Xiao glanced around. The entire dorm was decorated in a kawaii style.

Though the room was barely ten square meters, Wang Lulu kept everything neat and orderly.

She pointed to a cabinet on the right. “Over there!”

Chu Xiao quickly fetched the herbal oil for her.

He handed it to Wang Lulu. “Here you go.”

But Wang Lulu didn’t reach out to take it. Instead, she blinked her large, luminous eyes at him. “You made me get hurt. Can’t you help me apply it?”

Chu Xiao frowned, then put the herbal oil beside her hand. “Men and women shouldn’t touch each other so casually! Besides, a girl’s feet are not to be touched by others!”

With those words, Chu Xiao turned and left, ignoring Wang Lulu’s calls after him.

Helpless, Wang Lulu abandoned her pretense, ran after Chu Xiao, and blocked his path.

“Why are you leaving? Didn’t you hear me calling your name?” Wang Lulu’s brows were knit, anger flickering in her eyes and stubbornness set on her lips.

Chu Xiao glanced at her foot and immediately understood she had been deceiving him, but he felt no anger.

“Don’t joke about your body from now on!” Chu Xiao tossed out the words coldly, sidestepped her, and walked away.

But Wang Lulu wouldn’t let him go so easily. She blocked him again, this time wrapping him in a hug from behind.

“Why are you so heartless to me?”

“I felt it—when I fell just now, you cared about me! When we first met at the airport, your gaze was full of deep feeling and affection!”

“Now, even though you try hard to suppress it, I can still see the love in your eyes! But why do you act so cold?”

“Every time I see you, I feel a strange familiarity, as if I’ve known you for years!”

“From the moment I first saw you, I knew I’d fallen in love with you. I can’t control these feelings! Did you know that?”

With tears streaming down her face, Wang Lulu finally poured out her heart.

For countless days and nights, she had hidden in the shadows just to catch a glimpse of Chu Xiao.

For a long time, Chu Xiao said nothing, nor did he turn around.

Wang Lulu clung to him, as if she would fuse him into her very being.

At last, Chu Xiao turned, reached out, and embraced Wang Lulu.

His chin rested perfectly atop her head.

“Lulu, I’m sorry, but I can’t love you. Forget me!” A single, clear tear fell onto Wang Lulu’s face.

By the time Wang Lulu emerged from her shock, Chu Xiao was already gone. No matter how she chased him, she couldn’t catch up.

Suddenly, darkness enveloped Wang Lulu, and when she awoke, it was already early the next morning.

Chu Xiao was gone.

The bottle of herbal oil by her bedside confirmed that everything from yesterday was real.

“Why!” Wang Lulu cried out in anguish. “Why can’t you love me!”

That night, Chu Xiao returned home, where only Chu Renfang awaited him.

“Dad, right now, Kyushu is everything, isn’t it?” Chu Xiao’s voice trembled.

Chu Renfang looked up at his son, seeing only pain.

Unconcealable pain! Chu Xiao’s eyes brimmed with urgency; he needed his father’s affirmation.

“In some ways, yes! But your family, friends, and loved ones are also a part of Kyushu. So your everything should include them!” As soon as Chu Renfang finished speaking, Chu Xiao could no longer hold back and broke into loud, wrenching sobs.

His cries echoed through the entire villa, and anyone who heard them would be moved to tears.

Chu Renfang held Chu Xiao, quietly comforting him. “It’s all right! It’ll pass!”

“I feel terrible! Truly terrible! I can’t control myself!” Chu Xiao had lost his sweetness—perhaps never to find it again.

The next day, Chu Xiao awoke with a hint of chill in his gaze. Yesterday’s events were already like clouds drifting by.

Today, Kyushu alone filled his heart.

At breakfast, Chu Renfang sensed something different in Chu Xiao, though he couldn’t quite name it. It was as if nothing had changed, and yet everything had.

“I’ve finished eating! I’m heading out!” Chu Xiao’s words after the meal were just as before, his face still devoid of a smile.

Chu Renfang’s gaze grew more tender, feeling heartache for his son, who, at such a young age, bore burdens and sorrows he shouldn’t have to.

Chu Xiao stepped outside, inhaled deeply, then strode purposefully to the jeep waiting at the door.

“To the armory,” Chu Xiao commanded, his tone resolute and cold.

“Yes, sir!” The driver quickly started the engine, heading toward the armory.

Armory.

Chu Xiao inspected everyone’s work, his brow tightly furrowed, not a hint of expression on his face.

“Wang Zhi, give me a research lab. I want to study weapons,” Chu Xiao said coldly as he approached Wang Zhi.

Wang Zhi was startled. “Do you need an assistant?”

“No need. Thank you for your trouble!” Chu Xiao’s tone was stiff, like a robot devoid of emotion.

“All right! Please wait a moment!” Wang Zhi dared not refuse and hurried to prepare a research lab, fully equipped.

Chu Xiao surveyed the office and was satisfied.

“Not bad. Thank you,” he said softly, then instructed, “From now on, except for meals, no one is to disturb me! Unless it’s a major event or news about the Underworld King, then come find me.”

“This…” Wang Zhi hesitated. After all, he wasn’t the one to make such decisions, and Chu Xiao was the chief coordinator of the ‘National Production Movement’. If he abandoned his post, the team would lose its backbone.

Even the First Leader wouldn’t agree if he were here.

“Why the hesitation? Are my words meaningless now?”