The Puppet’s Dilemma

The Luo family found themselves entirely under Mu Yaochen’s control. Regarding Luo’s Father and Luo’s Mother’s careers, a mere word from her lips could elevate their entire family to soaring heights of prosperity; just as easily, a single command could cast them out onto the streets, utterly destitute.

Luo Tingting felt as though her family had plunged into the mire of a bottomless swamp, sinking deeper and deeper with each passing moment.

“Tingting, make sure to make many friends at school. Remember, we are no less than anyone else.” Observing Luo Tingting’s distant gaze, Luo’s Mother, though unaware of her daughter’s specific suspicions, felt a faint premonition stir within her.

“Mhm.” Luo Tingting nodded, a practiced, professional smile appearing on her face—the one she had painstakingly cultivated to project an image of academic excellence.

“That’s my daughter. When you get to school, study hard. Don’t… never mind, just go quickly now.” Luo’s Mother hesitated, words catching in her throat. After weighing her thoughts carefully, she shook her head, as if dismissing an unspoken concern, and prepared to take Luo Tingting to school.

****

“Alright, what should I do next?” At that moment, Mu Yaochen sat in her car on the street, anxiously awaiting the traffic light. She had just finished speaking with the relevant hospital personnel.

Luo Yao’s discharge procedures were already underway. She estimated that by the time she arrived at the hospital, his paperwork would be complete.

She could simply pack his belongings and take him away, but what then? What was the next step?

How does one make a young man willingly fall in love with them?

This question, an art form in itself, was nothing short of a catastrophic undertaking for Mu Yaochen, who often lacked emotional depth.

What did Luo Yao truly desire?

What Luo Yao desired was precisely what Mu Yaochen wished to avoid. Mu Yaochen knew that Luo Yao yearned to break free from her grasp. Yet, all she wanted was for him to remain by her side. Their goals were fundamentally at odds.

Mu Yaochen’s primary task now was to grapple with this contradictory relationship, and in the process, she must, under no circumstances, inflict further pain upon Luo Yao.

She harbored no desire to wound him again; she could not bear to witness Luo Yao’s pale, fragile form confined to a hospital bed. Such a sight would only cause her to sink deeper into a quagmire of self-reproach.

No, Mu Yaochen needed to grant Luo Yao more space, more time.

Didn’t he want to open a shop?

Though a boy his age should undoubtedly be in school, he was *her* Luo Yao.

Whatever he wished to do, she would let him do it.

A wave of contentment washed over Mu Yaochen as this thought settled, for she felt she had finally formulated a systematic plan for cultivating Luo Yao.

Nurturing must be a gradual process. Like courting a man, it required a significant investment of time and energy.

Mu Yaochen had once mistakenly believed Luo Yao to be the type of man whose principles would falter at the sight of money. She had been wrong. On the contrary, Mu Yaochen sensed that Luo Yao was a man who placed immense value on his ‘firsts’.

This realization brought Mu Yaochen a measure of comfort. After all, when it came to such matters, every woman hoped her life partner would be pristine and untouched; in this, no one was an exception.

However, men nowadays were often far too careless with themselves.

To resort to coercion and force would, naturally, only lead to counterproductive results.

Luo Yao could not possibly earn the eight million needed to buy back his freedom anytime soon. Indeed, he would never earn that much money, nor would he ever achieve that goal.

****

“Is there anything else you’d like to eat?” In the hospital room, Frost immediately asked Luo Yao, looking at the now-bare stick of a finished cotton candy.

‘Is she trying to fatten me up like a pig?’

‘Will this never end?’

Perhaps, this was simply Frost’s way of expressing her goodwill.

“I can’t eat anything else.” Luo Yao tossed the bamboo stick into a nearby trash can, offering Frost a gentle smile.

He did this to prevent Frost from overthinking.

He had noticed that Frost, too, was the type of woman prone to imagining things. ‘Are all women in this world so fond of conjuring scenarios in their minds?’

“That’s good. It’s almost noon. Indeed… you should save some room for lunch.” Frost gazed calmly at Luo Yao, though there was a slight stutter in her voice.

“Mhm.”

“What would you like for lunch? I’ll have someone prepare it.” Before Luo Yao could even glance at his phone, Frost asked again.

‘Why is she so fixated on food?’

“Oh, anything is fine. I’m not very hungry right now.” Luo Yao could only sigh with a helpless smile. He had eaten quite a bit that morning, and having barely exerted himself, his digestion wasn’t particularly fast.

“Mhm, I’ll go have the kitchen staff prepare it.” Frost suddenly recalled the schedule Mu Yaochen had given her. According to the allotted time, it was indeed time to arrange lunch.

‘I wonder if Miss will return for lunch today.’

‘She didn’t say anything, so she probably won’t, right?’

With a faint trace of doubt, Frost exited the hospital room without uttering another sound.

At Mu Yaochen’s behest, a kitchen had been added to this VIP suite floor. Most of the chefs were original staff from the villa, as Mu Yaochen believed Luo Yao had grown accustomed to their cuisine.

‘Has she left?’

Luo Yao gazed at the empty hospital room, his hand instinctively lowering his phone as he lazily reclined on the bed.

While the midday breeze was subtle, it was, after all, springtime. A gentle spring wind drifted slowly through the window, feeling wonderfully refreshing.

Yet, Luo Yao’s mood remained profoundly restless.

In the past few days, Mu Yaochen’s approach had not unfolded as Luo Yao had anticipated.

Though she now harbored a degree of remorse, everything was far too tranquil. Moreover, Luo Yao understood Mu Yaochen; she was the type to stop at nothing to achieve her objectives. While she might feel remorse towards him, if he were to truly push her too far, he couldn’t predict what outrageous actions she might take.

Furthermore, she had remained utterly still these past few days. During their time alone, she had either been attending to his every comfort and concern or simply watching him in a daze. Frankly, Luo Yao’s life had become eerily calm.

The greater the calm, the more turbulent the future that lay ahead.

But what could he do? He was perpetually in a state of constant passivity.

“Alright, it will just be a moment longer.” Soon after, Frost pushed open the door and entered the room.

“Mhm.” Luo Yao nodded, looking at Frost before him. ‘Given her personality, she might well prove to be another complication for him in the future.’

People like Frost were usually unassuming and discreet, their temperaments even more inscrutable, perhaps even more unpredictable than Mu Yaochen herself.

Thinking of Mu Yaochen’s smiling countenance, Luo Yao felt a chilling sensation prickle his spine, as if her smile were a physical touch.

He was, in essence, a mere puppet on Mu Yaochen’s strings. Her reason for treating him this way was that she still cherished her ‘puppet,’ fearing any damage to her ‘toy.’

Therefore, Mu Yaochen still possessed a certain threshold of patience with Luo Yao.

However, Luo Yao’s current question was:

Just how much patience did Mu Yaochen truly have left for him?