Yuan Gun Gun sat on the floor and cried on her knees. Hao Yan Che turned around, hunched over and knocked Yuan Gun Gun’s head.

‘Who are you calling?’ Hao Yan Che asked.

‘You won’t pay attention to me,’ Yuan Gun Gun said.

‘Who do you think you are?’ Hao Yan Che asked.

Hao Yan Che kicked Yuan Gun Gun’s bottom.

‘Stand up,’ Hao Yan Che said.

Yuan Gun Gun looked pitifully a Hao Yan Che.

‘Stand up,’ Hao Yan Che said.

‘My legs are numb,’ Yuan Gun Gun said.

Hao Yan Che didn’t want to knock Yan Gun Gun’s head again. He pulled her up, and helped her walk back to the pink bedroom.

‘Go wash up,’ Hao Yan Che said. He held Yuan Gun Gun’s chin. ‘Can’t you hear me?’

Yuan Gun Gun mumbled under her breath.

‘What did you say?’ Hao Yan Che asked.

‘I said if you don’t leave, I’ll go to the bathroom,’ Yuan Gun Gun said.

Yuan Gun Gun saw Hao Yan Che’s raised arm, she protected her head and ran to the bathroom. He took out the first aid kit from a drawer and waited for her on the pink bed.

Yuan Gun Gun brushed, showered and changed clothes. She ran out of the bathroom before drying her hair to see if Hao Yan Che was still in her bedroom. She was relieved to see he didn’t leave.

‘Go dry your hair,’ Hao Yan Che said.

Yuan Gun Gun quickly dried her hair in front of the vanity table, and sat next to Hao Yan Che on the pink bed. He pushed her on the bed, grabbed the first aid kid and gently rubbed cream on her swollen left cheek.

‘Ow…’ Yuan Gun Gun said.

Hao Yan Che packed the first aid kit, put it back in the drawer and stood to leave. Yuan Gun Gun held onto his shirt.

‘Young master, where are you going?’ Yuan Gun Gun asked.

Hao Yan Che turned around and he looked coldly at Yuan Gun Gun.

‘Young master, I’m sorry… I shouldn’t have falsely accused you,’ Yuan Gun Gun said. ‘I misunderstood you, because of what you said…’

‘Let go of my shirt,’ Hao Yan Che said.

Yuan Gun Gun didn’t know what to say or do.

Hao Yan Che pushed Yuan Gun Gun’s hand off his shirt.

‘In the future, you’re only responsible for cooking three meals a day,’ Hao Yan Che said. ‘The rest of the time is your free time.’

‘Are you saying in the future I don’t need to be with you?’ Yuan Gun Gun asked softly.

‘Don’t misunderstand,’ Hao Yan Che said. ‘You’ll always be just a maid. You don’t have the right to be with me.’

Yuan Gun Gun’s hand pressed against her chest, and she watched Hao Yan Che leave. She should be happy she didn’t have to follow Hao Yan Che around all day and endure his mood swings. Her heart wouldn’t listen, it felt like someone stabbed a needle through her heart.

Hao Yan Che walked to the study room, and poured a glass of red wine. He drank the red wine, and it past down his hollow heart. He didn’t want to have a weakness. He couldn’t keep letting Yuan Gun Gun make him worry about her if he didn’t see her, keep treating her like she was someone special and keep wanting to be with her.

Hao Yan Che smashed the glass of wine onto the floor, and covered his eyes. Why did he feel frustrated whenever he didn’t see her?

‘Little Chub, why are you hateful?’ Hao Yan Che asked himself.

Outside, Yuan Gun Gun sat in the garden and absent-mindedly stroked her small friends’ little bodies.

‘Gun Gun,’ Qiang Jia Tao called. She shook Yuan Gun Gun’s shoulders. ‘Gun Gun.’

‘Oh, big sister Jia Tao,’ Yuan Gun Gun said.

***

End of Chapter Fifty