Lin Yan shifted his position and sat up, saying, "You little brat, I took you in, but you haven't given me any money. I asked you to buy me a pastry, and you asked for travel expenses? You're asking for a beating." As he spoke, he reached out and struck Xiao Zeng's head hard a couple of times.
Xiao Zeng looked at Lin Yan, who was injured yet still hitting him, with disgust. "I'm not buying it for you," he said. Then, he leaped up from the chair and ran off.
Lin Yan curled his lips. "Stubborn kid, quite the temper."
"That child is still quite polite to you. If it were me," Chen paused by the bedside, holding a cup of water, "I certainly wouldn't be so polite."
During this time, Xiao Zeng had stayed by Lin Yan's side, doing whatever Lin Yan asked. Chen had observed all of this.
Of course, Chen had also tried to persuade Xiao Zeng to stop, but Xiao Zeng insisted on taking care of him and refused to listen to Chen.
Helpless, Chen stopped interfering.
Unexpectedly, Lin Yan turned out to be someone who would take advantage of kindness. It would have been fine if he had made requests twice, but he continued to order Xiao Zeng around, and not only that, he even hit him. Chen could no longer stand to watch.
Lin Yan said, "I asked him to buy me pastries, and he asked for travel expenses. Tell me, how could I tolerate that?"
"He's taking care of you, and he hasn't asked you for money."
"Shouldn't he?" Lin Yan retorted.
Chen had seen shameless people, but never one so utterly shameless. Looking at Lin Yan's arrogant expression, she said, "Of course, he shouldn't." With that, she splashed water directly onto Lin Yan's face.
Lin Yan was stunned on the spot.
Chen glared at him, put down the cup, and turned to leave.
Exiting the dilapidated temple, Chen glanced at Xiao Zeng, who was sitting on the ground. She cleared her throat, walked over, and asked, "Why are you treating him so well?" She squatted beside Xiao Zeng.
Xiao Zeng turned his head to look at Chen and said, "This place belongs to him. Although Brother Feng is good to me, Brother is a man who does great things. He will leave one day, and he definitely won't take me with him, so," he picked up a wooden stick and poked the ground, "I have to curry favor with him."
Chen asked, "You're afraid he'll kick you out?"
Xiao Zeng nodded slightly twice.
Before, Chen hadn't paid much attention to Xiao Zeng, but seeing him like this now, she suddenly felt that the child was truly pitiful.
"Are you very fond of money?"
"Yes. Mother said that without money, one has to live a hard life. As long as I have money," Xiao Zeng dropped the wooden stick in his hand and turned to look at Chen, "I can live a good life."
As a demon, Chen had never considered this question. Hearing Xiao Zeng say this now, she suddenly felt a strange sensation.
"What kind of life is a 'good life'?" she asked.
Xiao Zeng smiled. "You seem older than me!"
"That's for sure," Chen turned and met Xiao Zeng's eyes. "You're older than me, so why are you asking me this question? It shows," Xiao Zeng pointed towards the dilapidated temple, "that you're like him inside, a pampered young lady."
Chen's mind reacted a beat slower. "He's a man, right?"
Xiao Zeng's mouth twitched. "He's the young master, and you're the young lady. A perfect match."
Chen felt disgusted by Xiao Zeng's words. "Forget it. I can't stand that guy at all, and besides, I have nothing to do with you humans!"
"You're not human?"
Hearing Xiao Zeng's question, Chen's expression stiffened for a moment, and then she said in a very stiff tone, "Of course, I'm human."