Chapter 38: Pinching Little Cheeks

"Go away, you demon! You are a demon!" Ling Wei shouted. The Stinky Sack was a demon, a cold-blooded murderer who killed without a blink. She did not like him.

"Say that again! Do you have any idea what you are talking about? I did this for your own good, you ungrateful little thing!" Xuanyuan Hongyu was truly on the verge of being driven mad by this little simpleton.

Ling Wei lifted her small face, her large eyes still squeezed shut tightly. "I am not, I am not ungrateful. They did something wrong, but it wasn't a crime punishable by death. You killed them, and that is wrong." The little one tried to reason with him; she did not want the Stinky Sack to become a murderous maniac.

Xuanyuan Hongyu flipped her over and landed a firm smack on her little bottom. "That’s for being unreasonable and running your mouth. Will you listen now? Are you going to admit you were wrong?"

"No, I wasn't wrong. You were wrong. Killing people is not right," Ling Wei persisted.

Xuanyuan Hongyu’s cold eyes flashed. "Your father is a Great General. Do you know how he earned that title? He gained it by slaughtering tens of thousands of people. You think killing is always wrong; does that mean your father committed a grave sin?"

Ling Wei struggled, opening her large eyes and shouting indignantly, "Father did it so that more and more people in the Southern Fortress Kingdom could live! He is a hero of justice!" Don't try to trick her; her father had specifically explained this to her.

She would not allow him to use this to judge her father; her father was not wrong. Protecting one's home and country required sacrifice, or else she would never have been so obedient in promising her father and mother that she would wait for them at home.

Watching the indignant, childish little thing before him, half of Xuanyuan Hongyu's frustration dissipated. He had been too hasty and nearly ruined things.

Xuanyuan Hongyu released his hold and picked her up, pinching her tiny, delicate nose. "Fine, fine, Ling Wei is right. Your father taught you well."

Ling Wei tilted her small head up, her face glowing with pride. "Of course, he is my father, after all." Her haughty, adorable expression made Xuanyuan Hongyu’s eyes darken; he leaned down and bit her pink lips.

"You—you hooligan! Why do you like biting me so much?" Once freed, Ling Wei’s chubby hands struck out at the youth’s mask. "Ouch, that hurts! Why do you wear such an ugly, hard mask? It hurts!" The pain caused her small face to wince and tears to slide down.

"Heh, that’s for being naughty. Do you know you were wrong yet? A young girl shouldn't just go around hitting people," Xuanyuan Hongyu admonished her, in high spirits.

"You're mean! You're as long-winded as Nanny Wang!" the little one muttered. She didn't notice the youth's darkened expression; she really had grown bold to call him long-winded.

Xuanyuan Hongyu held her tightly with one arm to keep her from squirming, while using his thumb and forefinger to pinch the soft flesh of her cheeks, shaping them into all sorts of funny forms. Watching her large, teary eyes, he laughed childishly and heartily.

With her face being pinched and Xuanyuan Hongyu failing to control his strength, her fair cheeks quickly turned bright red. The pain made her grimace, but she couldn't even speak, only letting large droplets of tears roll down.

"Hey, hey, why are you crying? Don't cry. I... I..." Seeing the tears covering the little one's face, Xuanyuan Hongyu realized he had gone too far.

Ling Wei didn't hesitate to retaliate, grabbing his ear and pulling hard. Feeling that wasn't enough to vent her frustration, she leaned forward and bit down on his left earlobe.

The tingling, warm sensation sent an unfamiliar rush through Xuanyuan Hongyu, making him tremble slightly with pleasure. The little one was still innocent and had no idea what she was doing; she was simply seeking revenge.