"Y-you two, don't come any closer—"
The little girl jolted back to her senses, trembling as she clutched a gold hairpin that posed little threat and pointed it at the two of them. She must have realized that too, because she turned the pin around and pressed its tip to her own chin. The tip had been filed smooth, so even when it sank into her skin, it left only a faint red mark.
It was no good for threatening anyone, nor for taking her own life.
Shen Tang said, "I won't come closer. Come out."
The little girl shook her pale face. "No!"
Crystal-clear tears suddenly rolled from her eyes, brimming with fear.
She blinked, trying to clear her tear-filled vision, but the tears only fell faster. They rolled down her plump, baby-soft cheeks to her chin, then gathered and dripped one after another. She had to admit, a beauty in tears really did tug at the heartstrings.
Zhai Le stood to the side, laughing at her. "Brother Shen, she doesn't like you."
A young woman who had suffered a terrible ordeal needed gentle comfort.
Speaking so stiffly would only frighten her.
Shen Tang tilted her head and thought for a moment, then moved with lightning speed. She grabbed the little girl by the collar and lifted her out of the chest. The girl was stubborn; though terrified to the limit, she still refused to stop struggling, her trembling fingers clamped around the gold hairpin.
Zhai Le leaned closer, the smile in his peach-blossom eyes rippling outward. "Miss, I'm glad to meet you. Brother Shen and I are both good people."
The little girl clenched her chattering teeth!
She wasn't about to believe that nonsense.
Zhai Le asked again, "Is your surname Lin?"
The little girl shrank back. Her