Chapter 53 Chapter 54 The Simp
A heavy wooden box lay on the table, with signs that nails had been pulled out of it.
Laiwu was emotionally stirred. Previously, he had been anxious and restless, unable to sleep at night, deeply afraid that Xiao Qiao would look down on his work and return the wooden box.
Laiwu feared that he was dreaming. He reached out to touch the wooden box, his fingers brushing across the rough nail holes.
“She… she really opened it.” Laiwu’s voice trembled, “Then she must have seen the pink heart I sent.”
However, he did not know that Ji Ma didn’t even remember his name, only recalling the acne on his face.
Laiwu used a claw hammer to pull out the nails one by one that Ji Ma had hammered in.
Xiao Qiao was so small in strength that hammering in the nails must have been very difficult, but she still managed to hammer them all in. She must have been touched by my sincere feelings, so she personally hammered them back in one by one.
As he thought about this, Laiwu became excited, and with a sudden force from his hand, the nails flew up, and the cover of the wooden box broke apart at the edges.
Opening the wooden box, Laiwu eagerly pulled out an old wooden case from inside—this was the best wooden case in his family.
With an excited heart, he opened it, only to see five shiny gold coins lined up beneath the pink heart, and his eyes widened.
Laiwu raised his hand, reaching for the gold coins, but as his fingertips touched their cold surface, he abruptly pulled his hand back and muttered to himself:
“No, I’m pursuing Xiao Qiao for love, not for a material thing like money.”
Saying this, he grabbed the straw inside the wooden box, forcefully wiping his finger that had a smear of black on it, as if the gold coins had tainted his pure love for Xiao Qiao.
Beneath the gold coins was a piece of pure white paper.
Xiao Qiao replied!
A rush of blood surged to his head, and Laiwu felt a bit dizzy. He carefully pulled out the paper and unfolded it.
On the paper, the handwriting looked like a line of earthworms. Ji Ma knew her handwriting wasn’t pretty; after all, she had written very little in her two lifetimes, so she must have put effort into it.
Thus, although the appearance of the letters resembled unwound earthworms, at least the lines of letters were not tangled together, and were still readable.
Laiwu struggled to read sentence by sentence.
“Just because I already have someone I love…”
His heart felt like it had been doused with cold water.
“He is handsome and charming, strong and lasting…”
Laiwu couldn’t continue reading, jumping straight to the names.
“…George Hammer…”
This name hit his forehead like a war hammer. Laiwu knew George; most of the people in Baicheng knew this genius.
Not long ago, he had heard a bard composing a poem about how George was a rake in private, and he had laughed with joy. In his understanding, George was far above him, aloof and untouchable.
Although he usually mocked George for being a hypocrite, at this moment, Laiwu wished Ji Ma had made a mistake. His rival was George; he had no chance at all.
“Yes, it must be a mistake.” Laiwu muttered, “George is Hammer, a very rustic name.”
At this moment, a memory surfaced unmercifully, slapping him awake.
He remembered hearing that Xiao Qiao’s real name was Ji Ma, and she was a succubus, brought back from the demon realm by George. At that time, he hadn’t believed it.
But thinking back now, only a succubus could have flawless skin, bright eyes, and perfect dance moves, making him reluctant to forget her.
But so what if she was a succubus? My heart is real. What if her beloved is George? He is a paladin; he cannot give Xiao Qiao happiness.
Laiwu, filled with a wishful mindset, continued to read.
“My virginity has been given to him; I go to his bed every night. I don’t want him to misunderstand me, so please don’t bring me any more trouble, thank you.”
Laiwu’s heart felt as if a bucket of crushed ice water had poured over it, leaving him completely frozen.
“By the way, he’s sleeping behind me now. I secretly got up to write this letter, hiding the heart you sent.”
His heart had turned to solid ice, with a crack suddenly appearing, quickly spreading as it shattered into pieces, scattering everywhere.
Laiwu’s fingers trembled, Ji Ma’s handwritten letter slipped from his grasp and floated to the ground. He slumped weakly in the chair.
“Why?”
Why be so cruel? I had been sincere; how could she be so heartless, giving no consideration at all? It’s just so…
Laiwu clenched his teeth, the sounds of them grinding together echoed terrifyingly.
He wanted to curse Ji Ma harshly, using the most vulgar and filthy language, but the image of Ji Ma danced in his mind: her taut calves when she danced, her flowing black hair when she twirled, and the faint smile at the corner of her cherry lips.
He swallowed the venomous words back down.
Covering his greasy hair with both hands, tears gradually fell through his fingers, as if someone had stabbed his chest with a knife.
“No, it’s not like this.”
He murmured, letting his hands drop. At first glance, he noticed the white paper on the ground, as if he had grasped a lifeline, bending down to pick it up.
The paper was smooth, of high quality, with decorative edges. Compared to the rough paper he used for his letters, it was several levels higher.
“If she really hated me, then why use such good paper?”
He became excited, completely ignoring the fact that Ji Ma only had this kind of paper.
Laiwu sniffed the paper, catching a faint scent, and his heart leapt as he declared:
“She must have sprayed perfume on it.”
Gaining some motivation, Laiwu nearly pressed his face to the paper, searching for evidence.
“Your mother has high expectations of you… She must see you in a new light.”
She cares about me a lot and knows my mother is very strict!
“Next, I hope you prepare… to improve your life. Because the challenges ahead are daunting.”
She noticed my hard work; she’s been keeping it in mind!
Laiwu’s fingers trembled with excitement again, murmuring:
“She values me so much; there’s no way she could write such a cold letter.”
Laiwu took a deep breath, increasingly feeling that things weren’t as simple as they appeared on the surface.
Why did Xiao Qiao emphasize that George was behind her? Wouldn’t hammering nails wake George behind her? Besides, she wasn’t that kind of malicious woman.
Laiwu whispered to himself: “She is a succubus…”
So, the church must be monitoring her. The implication was that she was trapped.
What a good girl she is.
Laiwu regained his spirits, believing this was a significant test.
As long as he established a career, he would have the conditions to marry Ji Ma and take her away from the church’s grasp.
As he thought about this, he envisioned an exhilarating escape adventure in his mind, with tears in his eyes once again.
“I will not let you down, Xiao Qiao.”
“Only I can give you happiness; George is just playing with you.”
The noon sunlight streamed through the window, not dulling the shine in his eyes.
…
…
“Ah~~.”
The noon sun fell on Ji Ma’s collarbone, and she yawned wearily, just wanting to grab the key from Saintess Jenna and run to the saintess’s room to lie down on her bed for a good sleep.
Ji Ma sat at the table by the window, her long legs wrapped in black silk crossed together under her shorts.
George stood at the window, frowning as he struggled to read the aftermath and notes that Ji Ma hastily produced.
“How careless.” George said, “It’s clear you didn’t read it carefully, and you’ve only completed half.”
“Kill me, please.” Ji Ma lifted a leg onto the windowsill, her tight calf touching the paper in George’s hand, “Looking at this thing now, I have the courage to be punished.”
George grabbed Ji Ma’s calf with a large hand and pushed it down. Ji Ma pulled her foot back, the smooth black silk brushing against his palm, producing a sound of silk rubbing together.
Ji Ma said: “I just want to rest my leg here.”
“Mind your image.”
“I think my image is great.” Ji Ma replied, “I think what I think, thank you. Besides, you’ve sprayed so much on my body; you’ve seen all of me. What’s the big deal if I casually touch it? Even if I take off all my clothes because I’m hot, it’s no big deal, right?”
George exuded a fragrance of peach blossoms that stirred hunger.
“The rules are as good as nonexistent.” George set the paper down, “If we go by the previous rules, your bottom might bloom.”
Ji Ma was tired now, her belly full, her mind sluggish, and she felt no apprehension about George’s threat, saying:
“I’m not afraid of boiling water hitting a dead pig.”
“Exactly, I thought, as you grow older, copying books and writing reflections would become less effective for you.”
“Then why did you make me copy these big-headed books a few days ago?”
“I don’t know why, but seeing you in trouble makes me very happy.” George said, “Ji Ma really hates copying books.”
“You might consider applying for a demon king position in the demon realm. You really have a talent for being a demon king.”
“I have a new idea for education.” George said, “I have a task to carry out, passing by the home of a reclusive saint. His selfless dedication is moving; I want to take you to see him and hear him recount his deeds; he will surely become your role model.”
“O God of Dawn, can you control your followers?” Ji Ma said, “I’m about to be bullied by you in different ways again.”
“Ji Ma, this isn’t bullying, it’s education.”
“Call it what you want.” Ji Ma yawned lazily, “Unless you use force, don’t think I’ll leave the church.”
At this critical moment, only a fool would accompany George.
Ji Ma still needed to sell her merchandise, crafting lies and spreading them, peddling her wares.
With George around, she found it easy to walk in dreams, selling her merchandise miles away. But if George discovered this, it would be the end. As long as George’s mind wasn’t gnawed by a heart-stealing demon, he would certainly suspect that the reason for her beatings was Ji Ma stirring the pot behind the scenes.
“You’re my attendant; you need to have a professional spirit.”
“Sorry, I have no professional spirit; I’m lazy and lustful, thank you.”
“Just go out for a walk.”
“The adventurous life is terrible; you can’t bathe or change clothes whenever you want, and you have no home, only dried meat to eat.”
“Jenna will be going along too.”
Since they were going on an adventure together, wouldn’t bathing together mean…
Ji Ma changed her mind: “I suddenly realized that going out for a walk is good for physical and mental health.”
Ji Ma was not unable to pass the beauty barrier; George was too stubborn. If she resolutely refused to go, it would actually backfire. Besides, as long as he was determined to carry her away, Ji Ma had no choice.
After George and Ji Ma agreed on the departure time, he turned and left.
Ji Ma took the manuscript and silently gave him the middle finger as he walked away.
Then, she began to feel a headache.
How could she use “dreamwalking” to promote her merchandise a thousand miles away while George was around?
Going was easy, but coming back would require using George and Jenna’s dreams as an exit to walk into the real world.
“So troublesome.” Ji Ma yawned, feeling drowsy. She picked up the key to Jenna’s house and headed toward Jenna’s room.
Unfortunately, Jenna was not home.
Even more unfortunately, Jenna’s room was locked tight, making Ji Ma feel sad as if she were being guarded against.
She was just craving her body.
In the end, Ji Ma yawned and sprinted back to her own yard, lying down on her bed, falling into a deep sleep.
