Only the best

What was wrong with him?

The question actually stumped Xia Zhi for a full half minute.

"In theory, a man's physical desire for a woman is instinctive. There are only two possible reasons you're unmoved by a woman as young and beautiful as me."

"You're not interested."

"You're not capable."

Lu Heng had clearly grown used to Xia Zhi's startling remarks. "I'm not interested."

Boo-hoo-hoo.

The villain really was gay.

Xia Zhi suddenly felt that her mission had become much easier. She had been thinking she needed to guard against a wolf, only to discover, to her delight, that the big bad wolf was Little Red Riding Hood in disguise.

This was wonderful.

Lu Heng: "..."

Did not liking her necessarily mean he liked men?

This woman really was narcissistic and narrow-minded.

Xia Zhi cheerfully called out to Little Sponge. [Hey, minor, didn't you say last time that if I lay in the same bed as that sick pervert, one thing would lead to another?]

[Look at him. Is anything going to happen?]

Little Sponge had also been shocked by Lu Heng's actions. [Well...]

[Host, could it be that you aren't charming enough?]

Xia Zhi grew agitated. [That's an insult to the original owner's gorgeous figure! Look at this face, these breasts, this waist, these legs. Never mind men-even I, a woman, could get a nosebleed.]

[The villain is definitely gay. Case closed.]

No wonder Lu Heng had remained chaste despite being pursued for five years by a stunner like the original owner. Now it all made sense.

Xia Zhi began reasoning it out step by step. [Maybe the villain failed to steal the female lead away not because he was incapable, but because his true love is men.]

Little Sponge asked what it didn't understand. [Then why didn't he just find a man instead of pursuing the female lead like crazy?]

Xia Zhi said, [This is a straight romance world, not a boys' love world. In this world, men who like men are seen as freaks. At the very least, a conservative family like the Lu Family definitely wouldn't accept it.]

Little Sponge still felt something was off. [Really?]

[But the villain stopped at nothing to get the female lead. He was obsessed.]

Xia Zhi immediately countered, [Then did the villain ever touch the female lead? No, right? He clearly had plenty of opportunities, so why didn't he touch her?]

Little Sponge shook its innocent little head. [I don't know.]

Xia Zhi said, [Are you silly? Because he couldn't bring himself to do it.]

Lu Heng: "..."

Who was the silly one here?

Xia Zhi said, [When a man who likes men sees a woman, it's like a straight woman seeing another woman. There's absolutely no hormonal impulse.]

Little Sponge said, [Why do I feel like the villain never touched the female lead because the author wouldn't let him?]

[After all, the female lead belongs to the male lead. Readers these days demand that both leads be virgins. If they aren't, they won't read it. What can the author do? They have to make a living.]

Uh.

Was that how it was?

That did seem to make some sense.

[The villain must have been relieved that the author wouldn't allow it. He finally didn't have to force himself to sleep with a woman.]

[Ah, the poor villain.]

[If he'd been born into a boys' love novel, with his looks and wealthy family background, he'd definitely have been the lead. How could he have been reduced to a supporting role?]

[He really was born in the wrong time.]

Little Sponge: [...]

Lu Heng: "..."

He couldn't listen anymore. His hands itched to strangle someone.

"I'm going to shower. Put up with it yourself."

Seeing Lu Heng's dark expression, Xia Zhi thought that the sick pervert really was unpredictable. A moment ago, it had been sunny, and now storm clouds had gathered in the blink of an eye.

"No, no, don't go. Stay with me a little longer."

"Please, pretty please."

Until her punishment was over.

Her clear, dark doe eyes gazed at him, glistening, as though she would burst into tears if he dared say no.

Lu Heng's expression was icy. Raging waves churned in his deep eyes, as though the next one would knock Xia Zhi over.

Xia Zhi felt a little intimidated, but she was also enjoying the villain's massage technique.

"Ah Heng, my foot... itches."

It was rather hard to ask. After all, what germaphobe would willingly touch someone else's feet?

She had thought Lu Heng would turn and leave when he heard that. Instead, he grabbed her calf. "Which one?"

Xia Zhi said, "That one."

"Where does it itch?"

"On top, and on the sole too."

It just itched everywhere.

Lu Heng noticed that Xia Zhi's feet were actually quite pretty too, especially her toes, which looked like jade beads. Vain as she was, she had even painted her toenails bright red, making her skin look whiter than snow.

"Your foot's a little fat."

That was Lu Heng's assessment.

Xia Zhi, who had been embarrassed just a moment earlier, nearly jumped up. "How is it fat?"

Lu Heng pointed out incisively, "Given your proportions, your feet should be quite bony, but yours are fleshy."

"Your feet need to lose weight."

Xia Zhi: "..."

This was the first time she had ever heard someone say feet needed to lose weight.

"Do you have any taste? The women in world-famous paintings all have feet like these."

Weren't plump feet cute?

Lu Heng said, "You mean those fat women?"

Xia Zhi: "..."

He really had a vicious tongue.

Besides, what was wrong with her figure?

She wasn't flat and scrawny. Though she looked slim, she hadn't missed out on a single ounce of flesh where it belonged.

Xia Zhi curled her toes, trying to escape Lu Heng's grasp, but he held her firmly.

"Y-you, let go of me."

"It doesn't itch anymore. I don't want your massage."

Although Lu Heng's massage felt wonderful, Xia Zhi still affected a little fit of temper. She hadn't expected him to refuse to indulge her. He simply let go, turned around, and went into the bathroom.

Lu Heng quickly lathered up with soap and scrubbed all ten fingers clean before he began undressing to shower.

By the time Lu Heng came out of the bathroom, Xia Zhi was asleep.

By his reckoning, her punishment had ended too.

Lu Heng untied Xia Zhi's hands and feet and discovered that the skin around her wrists and ankles had been rubbed raw. The bright red wounds were hard to look at.

Lu Heng stared at them for a moment, then turned and left the room.

Lu Kuo was still studying late into the night. He had been preparing an important paper lately. When he suddenly heard a knock, he froze, almost thinking he had imagined it.

The knock came again.

Lu Kuo checked the time. It was past eleven. Who could it be at this hour?

He opened the door and was astonished to see Lu Heng outside. "You know, seeing you at this hour is scarier than seeing a little spirit from Strange Tales in the middle of the night."

Lu Heng had never come looking for him this late at night.

Lu Heng never seemed to understand Lu Kuo's jokes. His expression remained as unmoved as ever. "I came to get some medicine from you."

An entire room in Lu Kuo's courtyard had been set aside for medicine. It was practically a treasure house, stocked with every kind of medicine.

"What kind?"

Lu Kuo opened the medicine room door.

"I'll help you find it."

Lu Heng followed behind Lu Kuo, his gaze sweeping over the rows of medicine. "For external injuries. Scratches and scrapes."

"Only the best."

Lu Kuo turned and looked Lu Heng up and down. "I can tell it's not for you."

"So it's for your wife?"

Rather than answer the obvious question, Lu Heng urged him, "It's late. Hurry up."

Lu Kuo smiled. "All right, all right. I know you're anxious."

As he spoke, he searched carefully for the medicine.

"I heard from Grandma that you two only just started sharing a room?"