A Night of Lingering Questions

For some reason, as Mo Bai gazed at the petite, delicate girl nestled tightly in his embrace, he couldn’t shake the feeling that she shared a similar plight with his deskmate.

Her warm breath brushed against his neck, and her slender fingers still unconsciously clutched at his lapel. Even in her unconscious state, the girl’s vulnerability was profoundly endearing, causing his heartbeat to quicken imperceptibly.

Truth be told, this was likely his first time being this intimately close to a girl. He wondered what expression she would wear upon waking to discover that the boy who had held her all night was none other than the young master of the Mo family from the imperial capital.

What he couldn’t fathom, he decided to set aside for now.

Dismissing those wild speculations for the moment, Mo Bai, feeling a touch of boredom as they drove, found himself envisioning the girl’s reaction upon waking.

Of course, his imaginings hinged on the premise that the girl was unaware of his true identity; if she recognized him, it wouldn’t be nearly as amusing.

Nevertheless, her endearingly cute appearance certainly appealed to him.

Mo Bai wasn’t entirely sure why he found himself drawn to such adorable girls. At the very least, compared to the sultry, long-legged beauties, the vulnerable-looking girl in his arms was clearly more to his taste.

Perhaps ‘cute’ often symbolized innocence, a quality almost extinct in their social stratum, which was rife with deceit and manipulation. This made it all the more rare and precious.

But who could truly say?

All Mo Bai knew at that moment was that the girl curled in his arms ceaselessly stirred his protective instincts.

With a sigh of resignation, he tucked the money back into her skirt pocket, then picked up her old smartphone, wondering if he could manage to turn it on. Surely, her parents would have called, given that she wasn’t home in the dead of night?

He pressed the power button on the side of the phone, but after seeing the adorable anime-style wallpaper, the words [Please Enter Password] predictably popped up, dashing his hopes of glimpsing into her private life.

“Tsk… No missed calls either?”

Mo Bai looked speechlessly at the empty notification bar on the lock screen.

At this hour, with no missed calls or messages whatsoever, her family were surely too irresponsible.

Never mind. He would wait until she woke up tomorrow.

He slowly tucked the girl’s phone back into her pocket, then switched off the interior light, leaning back in his seat to watch the rapidly passing neon lights outside the window.

The streets were long devoid of pedestrians, populated only by a few beggars and vagrants sleeping by the roadside, a stark contrast to the still-flashing signs of the shops.

As he watched, Mo Bai’s eyes, previously filled with pity, gradually grew cold.

Old Chen, driving the car, was observing the road conditions while simultaneously checking the backseat through the rearview mirror, but ultimately said nothing.

He was at least certain that the young master had no illicit relationship with the girl, and that he hadn’t made a careless mistake in a fit of youthful recklessness.

At this thought, Old Chen’s worried heart finally settled. If it had been the former, he wouldn’t have known how he would explain it to the master upon their return.

Yet, he was still curious how such a young girl came to be on the streets late at night, in such a state, and carrying so much money.

Seeing that his young master remained silent, Old Chen, being discreet, refrained from asking further questions.

A few minutes later, the sedan finally slowed, entering a residential complex where villas and high-end apartments coexisted. It eventually stopped in front of a tall building—Mo Bai’s usual residence after school.

Given that his family home wasn’t nearby, and it was impractical to make the long journey home every day after school, Mo Bai’s parents had simply purchased a small apartment for him here, providing him a convenient place to stay.

The imperial capital, after all, was quite vast; even driving home would take Mo Bai three or four hours. Commuting back and forth daily under such circumstances would simply not be worth the trouble.

“We’ve arrived, Young Master. Shall I accompany you inside?”

Old Chen’s voice pulled Mo Bai from his thoughts. He looked down at the girl, who was still clutching his lapel, sighed softly, and shook his head.

“No, I’ll manage myself.”

“Very well. If you need anything, Young Master, just call Old Chen, and I’ll be right there.”

Old Chen stepped out to open the car door for his young master. Mo Bai, meanwhile, gently put the girl’s cute little leather shoes back on her, then carefully adjusted his hold to ensure her fair, slender legs and small feet wouldn’t brush against the door frame before he finally stepped out of the car with her in his arms.

The night breeze swept across his face, stirring her snow-white hair that cascaded over his arm. A few strands brushed lightly against Mo Bai’s cheek, carrying a faint, sweet scent. The tranquil surroundings, so quiet that even the chirping of cicadas could be heard in the deserted late night, allowed Mo Bai’s previously taut nerves to finally relax.

“Then, Young Master, I shall take my leave.”

Old Chen bowed respectfully, his gaze unconsciously flickering towards the sleeping girl in Mo Bai’s arms. After a brief moment of thought, he added,

“Do you require me to prepare anything for you tomorrow morning?”

“No need, Old Chen. Go home and rest. You’ve worked hard tonight.”

Mo Bai shook his head, his voice, uncharacteristically, carried a hint of fatigue. Even with all his strength, holding a girl for so long was starting to take its toll. Though her petite frame was light, maintaining the same posture had left his arms slightly aching, especially since he had spent the entire journey pondering the girl’s identity, her predicament, and various logical deductions.

He was indeed a little tired… after all, he had been out all day.

After bidding Old Chen farewell, Mo Bai carried the girl into the building’s main entrance and took the elevator all the way to the door of an apartment on the 28th floor.

As the fingerprint lock emitted a soft ‘beep’ as it unlocked, a spacious living room was revealed. Moonlight streamed in through the floor-to-ceiling windows, casting a silvery sheen over the furniture.

“Ugh… What a hassle.”

Mo Bai sighed. Carrying the girl inside, he struggled to switch on the wall lamp with his elbow, and the living room was instantly bathed in warm yellow light. However, the adorable cheeks of the girl in his arms still bore an unnatural flush; her condition hadn’t improved much, leaving him momentarily at a loss for what to do.

“The main issue was… he’d never really taken care of anyone before.”

“And it was so late; wouldn’t her family be calling?”

Mo Bai couldn’t quite grasp the situation. It seemed the girl’s phone hadn’t rung once since she first collided with him—not a single call or message.

He carefully tried to place the girl on the sofa, only to find her clutching his lapel stubbornly, refusing to let go.

“Tell me… who exactly are you?”

At that moment, Mo Bai felt as if fate had specially sent the girl to torment him today. He could only resign himself to sitting on the sofa with her, then pulled a tissue from the nearby coffee table and gently wiped away the remnants of blood from the corner of her mouth.

“She really bit down hard, he had to admit.”

Gazing at the wound on her lip, clearly from a canine tooth, Mo Bai’s brow furrowed slightly. It was clear the girl had been desperately resisting something, until…

Suddenly, as if struck by a realization, he abruptly looked at his fingertip—there was a tiny wound there, where the girl had unconsciously bitten him earlier.

If the girl had been enduring something all along, then how had that balance been broken?

The answer was blood!

Yes! His blood!