Urban Soldier Young Master

Chapter 849 - 848: Yes or No

Mu Xiaoting stared blankly at Chu Ge, her large single-lidded eyes wide open. It took a full six or seven seconds for the astonishment in her eyes to gradually turn into relief."It's really you."

Chu Ge's lips trembled, "Nonsense... of course it's me, who else could it be?"

Mu Xiaoting blinked, "But, but why does your voice..."

Chu Ge felt a cold sweat in his heart, oh my heavens, has this young lady not realized yet? Being held by her like this, his wound was torn open, and the pain was excruciating; it's no wonder he couldn't speak clearly!

Chu Ge originally wanted to wait for Mu Xiaoting to release her grip herself, but since she was so slow to react and hadn't let go, he really had no other choice. He rolled his eyes exaggeratedly, coughed, glanced downward, and squeezed out three words through gritted teeth.

"Your hand..."

As Chu Ge's words left his mouth, Mu Xiaoting followed his gaze, and immediately screamed, "Ah!" Her right hand released suddenly as if electrified, causing her body to shiver abruptly, almost falling off the bed.

With quick reflexes, Chu Ge reached out to grab Mu Xiaoting, pulling her back to the edge of the bed. Without looking at her, he took the outdoor water bottle hanging on the wall.

The bottle still had some water left in it, and Chu Ge didn't care how long it had been sitting there. He took a gulp despite trying to maintain a nonchalant appearance. However, the pain in his legs and feet from the wounds was sharp and intense, and his hand holding the bottle trembled slightly.

Seeing the scarlet blood on her own hands and Chu Ge's torn-up legs, Mu Xiaoting realized it was caused by her grip. She couldn't imagine the amount of pain Chu Ge must be enduring. Tears started flowing uncontrollably down her face, a lump forming in her throat; she felt deeply sorry for Chu Ge.

"I... your leg, it must... it must hurt a lot, right?"

"Nonsense."

"I'm sorry..."

Chu Ge didn't even glance at Mu Xiaoting as he stood by the bed with the water bottle. Mu Xiaoting hugged her knees, shrinking into a corner of the bed; both remained silent for a while. The small wooden cabin was filled with an indescribable atmosphere; all outside sounds seemed to vanish, leaving only their slightly chaotic breathing echoing in their ears.

Chu Ge was the first to break the silence, turning around with a forced smile, raising the water bottle in his hand, "Um, do you want some water?"

Mu Xiaoting froze for a moment, then looked up, her gaze avoiding his, "I... well, um... I'm not hungry."

After the nonsensical exchange, they fell into silence again.

"It's late, get some sleep." After another ten seconds or so, Chu Ge hung the water bottle back on the nail and lay down on the floor.

"Okay..." Mu Xiaoting instinctively agreed, glancing at Chu Ge's back as he lay on the broken wooden boards, hesitating to speak.

Tap tap tap...

The sound of rain hitting the roof, the leaves, and the ground continuously echoed, making people restless yet helpless.

Chu Ge was exhausted; he couldn't remember the last time he felt this tired, yet he had no desire to sleep. His mind was filled with too many images, endlessly intertwined and separating.

Mu Xiaoting slowly stretched out her curled-up body, turning onto her side with her back to Chu Ge. Her thoughts were also restless; she tried to close her eyes but immediately opened them again, fearing that once she fell asleep, that terrifying dream would reappear.

Although only a few minutes had passed, Mu Xiaoting felt as if centuries had gone by. For the first time since she was a child, she was this distressed, sleeping on such a hard bed, sharing a room with a man, feeling... feeling this helpless.

Mu Xiaoting slowly, very slowly turned around, directing her gaze at Chu Ge, who lay on the ground with his back to her.

Even if her movements were gentle, the creaking of the old wooden boards echoed like thunder in her ears, causing her heart to race.

"Chu Ge?" Mu Xiaoting hesitated for a few seconds, finally couldn't resist calling out Chu Ge's name, her voice so soft that even she couldn't hear it.

"Chu, Chu Ge?"

Mu Xiaoting waited a few seconds, gathered her courage, and called again, although she had no idea what she wanted to say to Chu Ge. She just feared this silence.

Chu Ge didn't move, nor did he respond.

Mu Xiaoting took a deep breath, her voice slightly louder, "Chu Ge, are you asleep?"

"I'm not asleep, is something wrong?" Chu Ge replied without turning around, facing away from Mu Xiaoting. In fact, he had heard her on her first call.

"Can you... talk to me? I'm... scared."

"Go ahead."

"About that day, I'm sor—"

"If it's an apology, let's skip it. After all, you've already paid a heavy price. Moreover, the words 'I'm sorry,' you should say them to my friends."

Mu Xiaoting gave a bitter smile. This man was really not giving her any face at all; he was unlike anyone else she knew...

"Alright, let me tell you how I got caught. That day I..."

"That's not necessary. The point is, you got caught. Even though the ones who caught you were after me, all I can say is it was your bad luck and perhaps a bit deserved."

"You..."

Once again interrupted by Chu Ge, Mu Xiaoting's bitter smile deepened as she listened to his unrelenting words. What on earth was going on in his mind?

Even if what he said was true, couldn't he at least consider her feelings right now?

"Fine, it was my bad luck." Mu Xiaoting said, feeling wronged and sulking. After a few seconds and seeing no response from Chu Ge, she finally conceded and spoke again, "Can I ask you a question then?"

At this moment, no matter how sharp Chu Ge's words were, they somehow made her feel more at ease than the dead silence.

Chu Ge's reply was just one word, "Ask."

"Earlier... while we were walking through the woods, why did you not talk to me at all? And when I fell, why didn't you help me up?"

Mu Xiaoting sat up on the bed, hugging her knees, and looked at Chu Ge pitifully.

"Those are two questions. Was your math taught by a gym teacher?"

Mu Xiaoting was momentarily stunned, "I..."

Just when Mu Xiaoting thought their conversation would end there, Chu Ge supported himself on the broken wooden board on the ground and sat up as well.

He actually couldn't sleep either, and chatting with Mu Xiaoting wasn't a bad option. Moreover, he did want to talk about this topic with her.

"Alright, let's consider it a buy one, get one free." Chu Ge turned around and suddenly smiled slightly.

"Before answering your question, I want to ask you first: do you think that because you got captured, I am naturally obliged to rescue you? Because you're scared, I am naturally obliged to talk to you? Because you fell, I should naturally help you up? And just because there's only one bed here, I am naturally supposed to let you sleep on it?"

"I..." Mu Xiaoting hesitated, shook her head, and said in a low voice, "No..."

"No?" Chu Ge sneered, "Ask yourself honestly, when you put yourself in the position of the weak, did you really not think this way?"

Mu Xiaoting fell silent. Chu Ge's words made her feel very uncomfortable, but the truth was, she did think this way. She didn't see anything wrong with it, nor could she understand Chu Ge's sudden sneer.

"If you want our conversation to continue, I hope you can tell the truth. Is it or isn't it?"

Chu Ge's voice resounded, no longer carrying his usual laid-back tone, but rather with a touch of seriousness and condensation.

All along, Mu Xiaoting had only felt this kind of pressure from her father. However, the pressure from Chu Ge right now surpassed even that when her father got stern.

"Yes..." Mu Xiaoting bit her lip and sighed, "I'm sorry, I did think that way."

Though she didn't know exactly what was wrong, she still apologized with a "sorry."

Chu Ge laughed, with that signature grin of his.

"Well, you're definitely better than many. At least, even when you don't know why you should apologize, you still managed to say sorry. The injuries and fatigue I suffered today weren't in vain after all."

Mu Xiaoting was startled, "How did you know..."

Chu Ge raised a finger and waved it slightly, "There's no need to be so surprised. If I couldn't figure that out, then I've really lived in vain all these years."

"In fact, apart from a bit of punishment on my part, the reason I ignored you was to show you that you're not as fragile as you think. If you persist, you're not as weak as you believe yourself to be."

Mu Xiaoting was stunned, and images of her gritting her teeth and struggling to get back up flashed through her mind.

As Chu Ge said, if today's events hadn't happened, she would never have imagined that she could miraculously get up so many times under such terrible conditions.

"Thank you... I understand now."

Chu Ge rolled his eyes, "Alright, don't think of me as so noble and great. Teaching you this lesson was just a side effect. The more important reason was to conserve my energy. Who knows if those bastards will come after us again. The more energy I conserve, the higher the odds we'll see tomorrow's sunrise unscathed."

"Moreover, in this world, no one is obliged to be good to anyone, including your parents. If others help you, it's a favor; if they don't, it's their duty. In this world, the most trustworthy and dependable person is only yourself."

Chu Ge stretched lazily and showed a mocking smile.

"In this world, being weak doesn't mean you're right. When you're down, you hope others will sympathize, console, and take care of you. But when you bullied Ye Li, did you ever consider her feelings?"