Chapter 289 - Kael's Desire
Lady Bai thought that Qu Xing Xu would consider the years they have spent with each other as family. Although the two of them barely interacted with each other like a real family, Lady Bai always thought that Qu Xing Xu would still act amicable towards her, the woman who was his father's second wife.
"No, wait!" Lady Bai gripped his sleeves and stopped him short from moving forward. It was beyond her to beg for someone to help her, which she had never done before, but she could only thicken her face now that her Bai family disappeared.
"Qu Xing Xu, you didn't even get to hear why I am here. Please, give me a bit of your time." Lady Bai added.
Qu Xing Xu was about to say that he didn't want to waste his time on her rambling, but he heard Lin Xiaofei speak before he could.
"You should take some time for her, Dear Husband." Lin Xiaofei smiled at him. "After all, Lady Bai came here in the middle of the night just to find you. It would be rude not to."
Qu Xing Xu paused and glanced at her, reading her face to see if she was serious. The night was no longer early, and in a few hours, the sun would soon rise. Lin Xiaofei was able to sleep for a few hours earlier before going to the dungeon, but Qu Xing Xu did not get to rest. That was why he was hesitating to agree to what Lin Xiaofei said.
Having no clue about what was in his mind, Lin Xiaofei assumed that he might not want to speak with Lady Bai because of what the Bai family did. Granted, the Bai family did target her and hired some assassins to eliminate her to get Bai Jia Li beside Qu Xing Xu. However, Qu Xing Xu already retaliated, and the Bai family was no more.
Besides, what could Lady Bai do without her family's support, anyway?
"I'll go inside first." Lin Xiaofei squeezed his hand and let go of him. She walked towards the front porch of their courtyard, where Kael stood with her maids and Shen Mo, who was standing the farthest.
"She looks like the crazy woman I've seen in front of Bai Hua Lou." Kael moved towards her and said. His face was frowning in distaste at Lady Bai.
Bai Hua Lou was a reputed brothel in the capital. Lin Xiaofei took a visit there the first time she got out of the Lin residence and looked for her best friend, Chu Chu, who was stranded there because of Yu Fangzhu. That place was certainly unclean and not for anyone whom Lin Xiaofei wanted to nurture like Kael.
"You went there?" Lin Xiaofei narrowed her eyes at the youngster who was growing faster, albeit not reaching past a suitable age for him to go to that kind of place.
Knowing what she was thinking, Kael was quick to deny it. He shook his hand in front of him and said, "No, no! I was passing by the street when two men hauled an old woman out of Bai Hua Lou. It wasn't hard to see them since they basically made a show for everyone else to see."
Kael put his arm around hers and pulled her inside. He was acting like a spoiled child trying to suck up to his mother.
Lin Xiaofei stared at the youngster. She sat on the chair before a table before finally sighing, "Next time, do not stay in that street and gawk. Besides, when did you get the permission to leave the residence?"
For his safety, Lin Xiaofei consistently monitored where the young boy was going and doing during the day. He needed her permission before he could get out of the residence. His existence was too unique, and Kael knew that it was dangerous for him to stay outside for long since enemies might be lurking ahead and behind the shadows to snatch him away.
"I dyed my hair before going out. I doubt anyone would tell the difference." His gold hair was too eye-catching, and thus, Lin Xiaofei ordered a jar of hair dye to turn his hair black. It was surprisingly effective, but it didn't last longer than a day before it washes itself away.
"But you can't change the color of your eyes." Lin Xiaofei reminded him. His eyes were a different shade from the people in the Eastern land. Anyone who could see them would definitely raise some questions.
"I could lie and tell the people who are curious that my eyes have been like this since I was born. A disease that I got when I was inside my mom's womb." Kael took a date from the plate on the table and ate it. "Nobody would ask me again, and people would stay away from me like a disease. It's a win-win situation."
Lin Xiaofei didn't like how he spoke as if everything was alright. Sure, it was indeed a win-win situation for him to escape other people's suspicions, but the scrutiny he'll get from these people was too much for a young boy like him.
"You're not going to eat that, are you?" Kael asked her.
Snapping out of her stupor, Lin Xiaofei shook her head and pushed the plate of candied cookies in the shape of flowers towards him.
Watching Kael stuff the candied cookies in his mouth, Lin Xiaofei's lips curved up into a warm, motherly smile.
"From now on, you can go outside the residence." Lin Xiaofei suddenly said, making the child pause in his action of stuffing more cookies in his mouth and widely stared at her.
Kael choked a little bit before swallowing hard. "Are you serious?"
Lin Xiaofei nodded. "Only if you return before the sun is down."
Kael beamed at this and shook his head in glee. "I can return at any time and earlier than that. I only want to roam around for a little bit." He was curious about the outside world.
Lin Xiaofei smiled at him in approval. It was not for her to decide what's good for him and confine him inside the residence. She could protect him while giving him his freedom.
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Author has something to say: That's today's update! I overestimated myself. Please forgive me if I ever fail the win-win event this month. I can't promise I can continue with the event but I can at least try to update daily.