After The Soft And Cute Beauty Marries The Wolf King - Chapter 42

Lang Sa frowned deeply, took a deep breath, and said softly, “He’s hiding something from you.”

 

Such a light sentence, but it weighed heavily on Lang Xiaoxiao’s heart. Her previous anger and confusion seemed to transform into invisible knives stabbing at her heart, making it hard for her to breathe.

 

“…Th-this…” She struggled to argue, “There must be… there must be a reason…”

 

Lang Sa said, “Poor health, miscarriage, accident—those are the reasons he gave me.”

 

He looked at Lang Xiaoxiao and asked, “Do you believe him?”

 

Lang Xiaoxiao moved her lips—she really wanted to say “I believe.”

 

Lang Sa continued, “Why didn’t he tell you? Did he think it was unlucky, or unnecessary, or… did he hide it from you until he couldn’t anymore?”

 

Lang Xiaoxiao shook her head vigorously, whispering, “Please don’t say anymore.”

 

But Lang Sa didn’t listen to her.

 

“I’m not saying he’s definitely making up excuses to deceive me, he has no reason to lie to me,” he continued, “What concerns me is why he hid it from you. Have you thought about it? Besides these reasons, could there be other things he’s hiding from you—”

 

“Don’t say any more, brother!” Lang Xiaoxiao screamed, “Don’t say any more!!”

 

Tears as big as beans rolled down her eyes and were rudely wiped away.

 

Lang Xiaoxiao’s cheeks were almost submerged in tears, and she looked at the wolf king in front of her, feeling like her heart was being torn in half.

 

Why did it turn out like this? She couldn’t understand.

 

Why didn’t Qi Ge tell her? Why… did her brother have to tell her about this?

 

Does Qi Ge really have other things hidden from her?

 

Why didn’t he say it, why did he have to hide it from her, why…

 

They talked about his courtyard, they talked about their future, why, why did he hide this?

 

She had too many questions in her mind. But who could come to answer them for her?

 

Big brother wouldn’t lie to her, so does Qi Ge really have a problem?

 

Lang Xiaoxiao’s vision blurred.

 

Could Qi Ge have a problem? He’s so good, so gentle. He taught her how to write, did her hair, and told her so many interesting things about the Central Plains.

 

Could he be a bad person?

 

Lang Xiaoxiao’s heart felt like it was being twisted.

 

She stood foolishly in place for who knows how long before murmuring, “I… I’ll go ask him.”

 

Her voice was so small that Lang Sa could barely hear her.

 

…His hearing was so good.

 

“Wait—” Lang Sa closed his eyes, stopped the person who was about to leave, and said, “You bring him over here, and ask him right here. Let’s get everything clear today.”

 

Lang Xiaoxiao stopped in her tracks, and when she turned back, her expression was somewhat pleading.

 

“Brother, I will ask him, I will ask everything clearly!” Lang Xiaoxiao looked mournful and said softly, “Let me ask him myself, please let me ask myself!”

 

Lang Sa sternly said, “You bring him over here, and ask him right here!”

 

Lang Xiaoxiao didn’t understand anything, but she already believed what her elder brother had said. She knew in her heart that this marriage was probably impossible to realize, but she couldn’t let go of the person in her heart—he was the first man she truly liked.

 

She just wanted to marry the man she liked, why was this such a difficult thing to do…

 

She was still making her last stand, tears streaming down her cheeks endlessly. She pleaded, “I will go ask him, I said I will ask… Brother, please don’t force me.”

 

Lang Sa looked at her intently, and after a long time, he said, “I’ve also said, ask him right here.”

 

His voice was not loud, but it brooked no resistance. His gaze felt heavy, weighing down on Lang Xiaoxiao, making it hard for her to breathe.

 

“Brother…” She completely gave up, crying as she asked, “Is this really important… Can’t we just let these things go? Do we have to make everything clear?”

 

Lang Sa said, “Yes, it’s important, we have to make everything clear.”

 

“Why? Does everything he said have to be false?”

 

Lang Sa sighed, “It’s not about true or false!”

 

“Then what is it? What is it!” Lang Xiaoxiao screamed, “Can’t people make mistakes? Can’t he make mistakes? Can’t he change in the future, can’t we let it go?!”

 

“…Lang Sa clenched his fists tightly, murmuring, ‘You don’t understand him. You’ve known each other for too short a time, you don’t really know what kind of person he is. You don’t even know if he’s a good person or a bad person!’

 

But Lang Xiaoxiao smiled.

 

She let out a sigh, her face a mix of tears and smiles, her expression complex.

 

She stood with her hands behind her back, gazing up at the sky, before redirecting her gaze back to Lang Sa.

 

Her eyes were red, filled with sorrow.

 

“Brother, don’t you think you’re being strange?” Lang Xiaoxiao asked softly. “I don’t understand him, I don’t know if he’s good or bad—so what? Does that mean I can’t love him, and he can’t love me?”

 

“…Lang Sa didn’t understand what she was trying to say, furrowing his brow he asked, ‘What are you trying to say?’

 

‘I’m trying to say what?’ Lang Xiaoxiao laughed again, tilting her head to look at her brother, her expression carrying a hint of mockery. ‘I want to say that not understanding someone doesn’t necessarily mean they’re a bad person—let me ask you, when Xiao Qing married you, did she really understand you?’

 

Lang Sa was completely taken aback by what she said, shocked and angered. He stared at Lang Xiaoxiao, his brows furrowing tightly, his tone suddenly becoming colder.

 

“Lang Xiaoxiao, this has nothing to do with you,’ Lang Sa warned. ‘You better not talk nonsense.”

 

But Lang Xiaoxiao seemed to finally calm down. She wasn’t crying anymore, nor was she hysterically screaming. She just quietly looked at Lang Sa and softly asked, “Am I talking nonsense? Isn’t what I said correct? Xiao Qing didn’t understand you, I don’t understand Qi Ge—aren’t we the same?”

 

“Lang Xiaoxiao—!” Lang Sa’s expression completely turned cold, a frost enveloping his entire being. He looked at Lang Xiaoxiao with a gaze devoid of warmth. ‘I warn you again, stop talking.’

 

Lang Xiaoxiao continued to smile, though tears still lingered in the corners of her eyes.

 

“You won’t let me speak because what I say is true. You can force someone who doesn’t understand you at all to marry here, but you won’t allow your sister to marry someone else who doesn’t understand her—haven’t we spent time together, isn’t this the same as you and Xiao Qing—”

 

Smack—

 

All the unfinished words were abruptly cut off by a crisp slap.

 

Lang Sa used considerable force, putting all his strength into that slap. Lang Xiaoxiao fell to the ground, the force of the slap making her dizzy, blood appearing at the corner of her mouth.

 

She licked the corner of her split lip and sat on the ground, looking up at Lang Sa.

 

She started crying again. The crystal tears diluted the blood at the corner of her mouth, making her look even more disheveled.

 

“Have I hit the spot? Are you upset?” Lang Xiaoxiao choked out, “Of course you are—you and Xiao Qi are really any different? You and him are no different at all, aren’t you doing the same thing?”

 

She shook her head again. “No, you’re worse than him—at least we’re in love.”

 

Lang Sa trembled all over, his chest heaving. He squinted his eyes and said, “Lang Xiaoxiao, I warn you for the last time—shut up.”

 

Lang Sa rarely showed this side of himself—as the Wolf King, he had enough authority that no one dared provoke him. Over time, Lang Xiaoxiao had almost forgotten how terrifying Lang Sa’s angry appearance could be.

 

However, at this moment, seeing her first love relationship about to come to an end, Lang Xiaoxiao felt heartache and indignation, and she no longer cared about what should or should not be said.

 

She finally got up from the ground, wiped her face with the back of her hand.

 

She turned and walked towards the door, speaking with her back to Lang Sa, “I will ask what I need to ask, but I will marry him.”

 

As if she had finally adjusted her mood, her tone of voice became calm again. Apart from the obvious swelling on her cheeks, it was hard to see that not long ago she had such a serious quarrel with Lang Sa.

 

Lang Sa chuckled, raised his voice, “Then go ahead, I was too crazy to care about you.”

 

“Alright.” Lang Xiaoxiao still faced away from him, her tone plain, “That’s it, Lang Sa.”

 

Lang Sa stared at her back, and just as she was about to step out of the door, he said again, “Lang Xiaoxiao, no matter what you think, I’m telling you—”

 

Lang Xiaoxiao stopped in her tracks.

 

“Don’t regret it.”

 

She heard Lang Sa say this.

 

She stood still for a long time, tears falling once again uncontrollably.

 

She blinked, then softly said, “I won’t regret it.”

 

With that, she left.

 

Lang Sa watched her retreating figure, his fists clenched tightly, the veins on the inside of his wrist protruding, the raised marks extending up and disappearing into his sleeves.

 

He felt completely pierced by Lang Xiaoxiao’s words.

 

…If it weren’t for sibling affection, Lang Sa really wanted to strangle her.

 

The little rabbit plush that Xie Zhiqing had made had rolled off the desk at some point and onto the floor. Lang Sa hadn’t noticed until he kicked something with his boot.

 

The white plush rabbit looked cute and innocent, its round eyes still smiling even after falling to the ground.

 

Lang Sa felt a pang in his heart, bending down to pick it up.

 

The little rabbit had been on the ground for who knows how long, its tail dusted with a ring of gray. Lang Sa patted it with his hand, blowing away the dust, and carefully held the plush rabbit toy in his hands.

 

…These simple actions seemed to exhaust Lang Sa’s last ounce of strength. He staggered backward a few steps and sat down in a chair.

 

*

 

Returning home after dinner, Xie Zhiqing still didn’t see Lang Sa’s figure.

 

The doctor said Xie Zhiqing was young and healthy, so she didn’t need to worry too much about any health impacts from the baby’s arrival. But like ordinary women in the first three months of pregnancy, she needed to take extra care. Men, presumably, were no exception, so the doctor advised him not to overexert himself.

 

Xie Zhiqing scratched his head, thinking, his usual life was just eating, sleeping, and not particularly strenuous.

 

However, Lang Sa took these words to heart.

 

These days, as long as he wasn’t too busy, Lang Sa insisted on accompanying Xie Zhiqing to lunch before going out, and he would try to be back before dinner. It was rare for him to be completely absent for an entire day like the past two days.

 

Xie Zhiqing hadn’t thought much about it, thinking it was just busy with wolf clan matters. However, since the afternoon, Atis had been acting restless.

 

Seeing that Lang Sa still hadn’t returned home after dinner, he put on a thick coat and headed towards Lang Sa’s secret base.

 

These days, there hadn’t been any snow, so the road was easy to walk. It didn’t take long to reach the place.

 

Xie Zhiqing looked down and saw several footprints on the steps. He smiled and shouted into the cave.

 

“Lang Sa!”

 

As soon as he finished speaking, Lang Sa appeared.

 

Xie Zhiqing was hugged tightly.

 

“It’s so late?” Lang Sa was surprised. “It’s not that bright in the cave, so I didn’t notice the time.”

 

He rubbed his face and asked, “Have you had dinner?”

 

Xie Zhiqing nodded and said, “Yes,” then asked, “What are you doing here?”

 

Lang Sa hugged his waist and walked towards the cave, pointing at the wood chips all over the floor, saying, “Making hairpins.”

 

“…,” Xie Zhiqing was helpless, smiling, “I was just joking with you before! I really like the hairpins you made.”

 

Lang Sa also smiled and said, “You know how to coax me. If you like them, why don’t you wear them every day?”

 

Xie Zhiqing said seriously, “Of course I won’t wear them every day because I like them! What if they get lost or damaged?”

 

He said this with such sincerity that it stunned Lang Sa in place.

 

After a long time, Lang Sa came back to his senses. He held Xie Zhiqing’s face in his hands and asked softly, “Is that so?”

 

But Xie Zhiqing didn’t answer.

 

He hesitated and covered the back of Lang Sa’s hand with his own, asking cautiously, “Lang Sa, what’s wrong with you?”