TMWTGD CH99

Although Mili’s words were a buzzkill, they served as a conscientious reminder.

Xie Jianwei finally gave up the idea of shrinking it down to the size of a sesame seed.

Mili continued its “earnest advice”: “You are someone who loves freedom. You yearn to be unconstrained and hate being tied down the most! If not for that, why would you have left him back then?”

The Lord Military Advisor was actually rendered speechless by Mili.

It was entirely correct, not a single bit off.

Back then… the reason he ran away was like this.

He and Lu Li went on a trip. Since it was a spontaneous idea, they hadn’t made any prior preparations. Lu Li said he would arrange it, and Xie Jianwei agreed, so the entire itinerary was planned by Lu Li.

Actually, at that time, Xie Jianwei was deeply infatuated with their romance and unable to extricate himself. He felt that anywhere would be fine, so he naturally listened to him on everything.

Lu Li didn’t arrange a particularly exhausting itinerary. They went to a very beautiful island nation and booked the most comfortable hotel.

And then…

By the time Xie Jianwei realized it, a full twenty days had already passed!

During those twenty days, he did nothing, and needed to do nothing.

Lu Li arranged everything perfectly. All he needed to do was look at him, think of him, and yearn for him—and that was enough.

In fact, Xie Jianwei couldn’t do much of anything else. They kissed, embraced, made love, and after it was over, he mostly passed out in an exhausted sleep.

Lu Li helped him clean his body, Lu Li cooked his meals when he woke up, and Lu Li even dressed him.

It was as if he had reverted to an infant overnight, with Lu Li doing absolutely everything for him.

The island was fully equipped, but completely devoid of other people. They made love on the balcony, on the beach, under the starry sky…

Lu Li treated him exceedingly well, better than anyone could possibly imagine.

Xie Jianwei even forgot the passage of time. His body became extremely attuned to Lu Li, wanting to make love with him every single day they saw each other.

Until Lu Li said to him: “A-Wei, I really want to be with you like this forever.”

As if a light had been switched on in the dark, Xie Jianwei snapped awake instantly.

What… what is this?

Twenty whole days… I seem to have forgotten the entire world!

This isn’t me! The feeling of losing oneself upon suddenly awakening made Xie Jianwei extremely uneasy.

The scariest part was that he actually wanted to continue living like this forever.

A gentle cage, a different form of imprisonment.

Perhaps Lu Li hadn’t realized what he was doing, but he had indeed used a terrifyingly deep love to construct a beautiful cage, placed the bait and feed, and employed the most brilliant means to lock Xie Jianwei inside.

Realizing this, Xie Jianwei attempted to salvage the situation.

He suggested, “A-Li, let’s take a boat out to play.”

Lu Li complied with his every wish: “Okay.”

They drove a speedboat away from the small island, but they didn’t go far. For some unknown reason, it seemed to start with a kiss, and by the time Xie Jianwei reacted, they were actually letting the speedboat drift on the vast, empty sea, making love inside the rather cramped boat.

It was too dangerous, but it was also too thrilling.

Xie Jianwei kept reminding himself that this was wrong, that they shouldn’t do this, that they should stop, but his legs remained hooked around Lu Li’s waist, craving for him to continue.

Like being intoxicated by a forbidden hallucination, he knew very well he was lingering on the edge of death, yet he couldn’t stop at all.

It wasn’t until it was over, until the fireworks before his eyes faded, that a powerful sense of remorse sprouted from the bottom of Xie Jianwei’s heart.

For the first time, he lost his temper with Lu Li: “This is too dangerous!”

In truth, this wasn’t entirely Lu Li’s fault. If he wanted to stop, why didn’t he do it earlier, instead of waiting until everything was over? He was truly being unreasonable.

But Lu Li wasn’t angry at all. He took all the blame on himself and apologized, “I’m sorry.”

He was afraid he would be angry, afraid he would be unhappy. This overly cautious demeanor didn’t reassure Xie Jianwei; instead, it made him panic even more.

Xie Jianwei was too tired to move. He lay in the boat, his young body covered in marks of being deeply loved.

Lu Li looked at him, his dark eyes filled with undisguised infatuation.

Xie Jianwei saw it, and a terrible thought popped into his mind: If this continues, both Lu Li and I are doomed.

Upon returning to the small island, Xie Jianwei said, “We can’t do this anymore. What if something happens?” He wasn’t really saying it to Lu Li, but more to himself.

Yet Lu Li said, “You definitely won’t have anything happen to you.”

Xie Jianwei paused. Lu Li continued softly, “Even if I die, I will absolutely not let you suffer even a tiny bit of harm.”

It was meant to be a sweet nothing, but Xie Jianwei heard the absolute truth in that deep voice.

An inexplicable chill rose from the soles of his feet, instantly covering his limbs and bones.

Xie Jianwei believed it without a doubt. If he were to say at this moment, Lu Li, go die, Lu Li really would die for him.

This… this… is too absurd!

So, Xie Jianwei ran away.

Because he found that, apart from leaving Lu Li, from hiding far away from him, he had no other choice.

This mode of interaction was abnormal; it was pathological, yet he was powerless to correct it, and even he himself wanted to indulge in it.

But if they did that… the two of them would be completely ruined.

Xie Jianwei didn’t want to be “imprisoned”; he didn’t want any form of constraint.

He yearned for freedom, yearned to be unconstrained. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have hidden his brilliance for so long.

It just so happened that Xie Jianhuan contacted him at this time, and without a second thought, he chose to go to her.

This departure lasted four years. When he returned, things remained the same, but people had changed.

Actually, the Lord Military Advisor could also understand this reason for running away.

After all, he was only eighteen. No matter how smart he was, he was still a half-grown teenager. Especially since his living environment had been very simple and he grew up pampered, he was emotionally weaker. When encountering something he was powerless against, his instinct was to escape.

He feared Lu Li’s deep love, and even feared his own love for Lu Li. This feeling of only wanting each other and caring about nothing else was, logically speaking, very abnormal.

Xie Jianwei didn’t want to become someone unlike himself, and he didn’t want Lu Li to become someone unlike Lu Li.

So he chose to run away.

However, this didn’t solve the problem; it only made Lu Li suffer in agony.

The more you love, the more you worry about gains and losses.

The transmigrated Xie Jianwei understood Lu Li’s feelings all too well.

Because of love, one becomes humble; because of love, one indulges; and because of love, one unconsciously wants to tie the other person to their side.

There was indeed such a side to Lu Li’s latent personality.

In reality, the Lord Marshal hadn’t done these things. It wasn’t that he didn’t dare or didn’t want to, but that he couldn’t.

Who in this world could bind Xie Jianwei? Only Lu Li’s love.

Of course, Lu Li had spent over a decade believing Xie Jianwei didn’t love him, naturally thinking he couldn’t keep him no matter what, and thus his mind had been constantly tormented…

But in this world, Xie Jianwei and Lu Li met at the beautiful age of eighteen. They were equals, they were the same, and having just fallen in love, it was easy to be captivated by the desires in their hearts.

Lu Li hadn’t realized he was building a cage, but deep down, that was what he truly desired.

He wanted to hide Xie Jianwei in a place no one else could see, wanted to monopolize Xie Jianwei, wanted him to only look at him, only think of him, only love him—because the happiness of gaining him was too great, he lived in terror of losing him.

Xie Jianwei was right to leave for a while, but he shouldn’t have disappeared like that without leaving a single word.

Lu Li already feared loss. Waking up to find his sweet dream turned into an Asura’s hell, how could he bear it?

For four whole years, Xie Jianwei immersed himself in research, and time flew by quickly. But what about Lu Li? What kind of agony was he experiencing?

This wasn’t salvation; it was pushing them both into a true abyss.

Mili was still passionately arguing, “So you must resist fiercely, struggle hard, and vow to fight to the death!”

Xie Jianwei replied, “It seems you really don’t like me breaking character.”

Mili instantly fell silent.

“Logically, me breaking character should only benefit you, right? The logic breaks down, the world shifts, won’t that attract a new Order-Keeper?”

Mili whistled, looking up at the sky.

Xie Jianwei smiled. “It seems you don’t want an Order-Keeper to come over?”

Mili: “W-W-Why wouldn’t I want that?”

Xie Jianwei said, “Perhaps there’s competition among you Order-Keepers too. For instance, if a new Order-Keeper sees you’ve become a grain of rice, would they swallow you in one gulp?”

Mili: “!!!”

Xie Jianwei understood.

Mili stuttered, “I… I… This… No…”

Xie Jianwei comforted it, “A slip of the tongue. You’re at least the size of a goose egg now.”

Mili burst into tears with a wah. “I used to be as big as a small mountain.”

Xie Jianwei smiled like a loving father. “Size doesn’t matter, as long as you’re alive.”

Mili trembled. A threat, he’s threatening me, right!

Xie Jianwei stopped bullying it. After all, Mili had been a huge help this time. Setting aside the fact that shifting the world would attract an Order-Keeper, just simply giving in would be enough for Great Lu Li to torture himself to the core.

He knew this was Lu Li, but Lu Li still thought he didn’t know.

Imagine it: if he were kidnapped by a stranger, kissed a few times, teased a bit, and then consented to this and that, Lu Li would probably be so jealous he’d turn into a jar of aged sour cabbage…

Considering his husband’s feelings, Xie Jianwei began to resist fiercely.

He asked with “grief and indignation,” “Who exactly are you!”

Lu Li didn’t say a word, merely tightening his grip on his wrists to stop his struggling.

Xie Jianwei fought with all his might. “Get away! Touch me again, and I’ll smash my head and kill myself!” Sorry, I’ve never played a chaste and fiercely loyal husband before, I don’t know if this is convincing enough…

It was clearly effective; Lu Li finally stopped “violating” him.

Xie Jianwei felt regretful internally, but outwardly had to pretend to heave a sigh of relief.

Xie Jianwei began a roundabout strategy. “If you want money, just say the word. However much it is, I can give it to you.” It’s a kidnapping, isn’t it all about money, money, money?

Lu Li remained silent, just staring at him unblinkingly.

Xie Jianwei had no choice but to put on a one-man show. He pointedly hinted at his high status and powerful backing: “You actually dare to kidnap me, just wait and see what happens…” The subtext was: Is this cage of yours sturdy enough? Be careful someone doesn’t break in from the outside.

Lu Li stood up and tied him up.

Xie Jianwei struggled violently and was about to start cursing when Lu Li sealed his lips with a kiss.

Xie Jianwei’s heart trembled. He felt he probably ought to bite him, but how could he bear it… he just wanted to kiss him back.

No, I must take a bite! After a moment’s hesitation, the Military Advisor decided to go easy on him. For example, he could bite a little slower.

Sure enough, Lu Li noticed. He quickly withdrew the tip of his tongue, not letting him bite it.

Xie Jianwei hurriedly clamped his teeth shut, as if he had successfully bitten the “lecher”!

Although the acting was quite convincing and he hadn’t actually bitten Lu Li, seeing him like this was enough to pierce Lu Li’s heart and make him suffer.

Four years ago, how sweet was their first passionate kiss? And now… he only wanted to bite his tongue off.

Lu Li closed his eyes, trying hard to steady his emotions.

After putting up a fuss for a while, Xie Jianwei was truly tired and felt it was about time for a halftime break.

His current situation was this: his wrists were bound by a very soft rope, there was a cool restraint clasped around his ankles, he was sitting on a soft bed, and his clothes were disheveled.

Coupled with the acting just now, a thin layer of sweat covered his forehead, dampening a few strands of hair, making him look exceptionally alluring.

Lu Li sat directly opposite him, staring at him unblinkingly.

After finishing the “action scenes,” Xie Jianwei moved on to the “drama scenes.” He stopped yelling, crying, and struggling, merely sitting on the bed, eyes closed to rest his mind.

He couldn’t not close his eyes; he was still blindfolded anyway.

After an indeterminate amount of time, the very soft click of a door opening could be heard.

Xie Jianwei asked Mili, “Did he leave?”

Mili said huffily, “Yes.”

Xie Jianwei let out a breath and lay back on the bed.

Mili couldn’t help but remind him, “There are definitely surveillance cameras!”

Xie Jianwei said, “You’re actually pretty smart.”

Mili: “You have a good eye.” After saying it, it realized what it meant and said with grief and indignation, “You’re not really praising me, you’re mocking me!”

Xie Jianwei: Why am I suddenly feeling the urge to bully the weak?

Of course there were surveillance cameras, Xie Jianwei knew that too, but it didn’t matter. He hadn’t done anything out of line, merely lying on the bed. Under normal circumstances, being inexplicably kidnapped like this, harassed, and then engaging in a “battle of wits,” anyone would feel exhausted.

Discovering the bad guy had left and lying down to rest was perfectly logical.

It’s just that as Xie Jianwei lay there, he almost fell asleep…

This was likely Lu Li’s bedroom. The bed was very soft and comfortable, and it carried Lu Li’s scent, making him feel incredibly secure and very sleepy.

Mili was furious at his lack of ambition. “Wake up!”

Xie Jianwei had no choice but to wake up, because the door opened, and Big Li had returned.

Along with Lu Li came an appetizing aroma of food.

Xie Jianwei had a sharp nose and instantly identified what it was.

As revenge, Mili read out the menu for him: “Appetizer is Hungarian cheese, main course is baked potatoes with fresh cod and pan-fried lamb chops, dessert is… oh my, this strawberry tart looks amazing! Just looking at it makes my mouth water!”

Xie Jianwei: “…”

Mili added regretfully, “It’s a shame you can’t eat it…”

Xie Jianwei: “…”

Mili then quickly warned, “I’m doing this out of the goodness of my heart, don’t you get angry out of embarrassment and bully me.”

Xie Jianwei replied, “It’s fine. After all, I’ve eaten these things thousands of times, while you haven’t eaten them even once.”

Mili: “…” That hurts, bro…

Lu Li didn’t untie him or take off his blindfold, so if Xie Jianwei wanted to eat, he had to rely on him to feed him.

Lu Li first poured him an aperitif. The peach-scented champagne was very enticing.

However, Military Advisor Xie resisted the temptation, turning his head away. “I’m not drinking!”

Lu Li paused, then offered the glass again.

Xie Jianwei said “angrily”: “Stop being a hypocrite! I won’t eat or drink, let me go!”

Lu Li began to feed him food.

Xie Jianwei was truly suffering. This was definitely made by Lu Li’s own hands; he knew his cooking far too well. The baked potatoes and cod were especially delicious. The potatoes were those small ones, crispy on the outside and soft on the inside, and paired with the spices, eating them was simply a beautiful baptism for the mouth. The cod must be fresh, the flavor savory and the meat tender, without a single bone. The satisfaction of swallowing a large piece of fish was indescribable!

And the pan-fried lamb chops were also one of Xie Jianwei’s favorite dishes. The small lamb chops had no gamey smell; pan-fried to be fragrant and crispy, they were so good you couldn’t stop eating.

Not to mention the strawberry tart… fresh strawberries paired with flaky pastry and animal cream that was sweet but not cloying…

Xie Jianwei’s stomach was growling with hunger, but he still had to stick to his chaste and fiercely loyal character, resisting to the bitter end.

But Lu Li was persistent, offering him food for a full half hour before finally stopping.

Xie Jianwei felt that if he persisted for even one more minute, he wouldn’t be able to hold back, and would definitely gorge himself!

Lu Li sat for a while, then after a long moment, he stood up to leave. Outrageously, he actually pushed the dining cart away too!

Xie Jianwei: “…” I think it’s about time we filed for divorce!

Mili gloated, “Quack quack quack!”

Xie Jianwei: “…”

Does this Mili really think it’s a goose egg? The problem is, this goose egg can’t hatch a goose, so there’s really no need to mimic a goose.

Xie Jianwei was starving, feeling very wronged by his desire to eat.

Fortunately, Great Lu Li had never been able to bear seeing his wife suffer even a little grievance. Soon, the door opened again, and the dining cart was pushed back in.

Xie Jianwei understood. He was afraid it wouldn’t taste good if it got cold, so he went to heat it up.

His heart instantly warmed, and it took all his strength to stop the corners of his mouth from curling up. Thank goodness he was blindfolded, otherwise he would have to go to the trouble of hiding the emotion in his eyes.

Lu Li approached him, and Xie Jianwei was just about to resist fiercely when Lu Li simply walked behind him and untied his ropes.

Before Xie Jianwei could do anything, a cool object was clasped around his wrists.

Xie Jianwei couldn’t see, so he didn’t know what was happening.

After doing this, Lu Li stood up and left. After the door shut tight, with a click, Xie Jianwei’s hands were free.

He was just about to take off his blindfold when he found that the blindfold also automatically parted to the sides, freeing his eyes.

Xie Jianwei squinted, adjusting to the light.

He could finally see his surroundings clearly. On the table, as expected, was all his favorite food—hold on, don’t show any signs of liking it!

Looking around, this was clearly a bedroom. The decor was a minimalist black and white style, clean and tidy, with signs of someone living there, yet lacking much warmth. It was as if the person living here had locked themselves in darkness—alive, yet as lonely as being in a tomb.

Xie Jianwei couldn’t help feeling a pang of heartache again.

He looked at the device on his wrists. It should be a remote-controlled automatic handcuff. When separated, it looked like a smooth silver bracelet, which actually looked quite nice against his pale skin.

The blindfold was a similar little gadget, clasped at the center of his brow, like a cinnabar mole.

It probably employed some special technology, making it very hard to take off. Of course, if Xie Jianwei really wanted to take it off, he could, but how could he bear to make things difficult for Lu Li? So he decided to just wear it.

Looking at his feet, there were naturally anklets as well, but they weren’t unlocked. The silver chains weren’t thick, but the material was very special, and ordinary tools probably couldn’t cut them.

After finishing his appraisal, Xie Jianwei looked at the delicious food with a complicated expression.

To eat, or not to eat? That was the question.

Lu Li was clearly afraid he would go hungry, so he left to give him a chance to eat. But Xie Jianwei also knew that behind the surveillance cameras, Lu Li was definitely watching him unblinkingly.

Eating was fine; after all, he needed strength to escape.

But if he ate… it would delay the progress.

Xie Jianwei didn’t want to keep playing guessing games with Lu Li. He wanted Lu Li to expose himself, he wanted to “know” that the person who kidnapped him was Lu Li.

Only by exposing this matter could they act out the scenes that followed.

Otherwise, if he kept treating Lu Li as a stranger, the words he could say and the things he could do would be limited, leaving too little room for improvisation.

If he stubbornly refused to eat, starving himself, Lu Li would definitely compromise…

When that time came, he would either let him go, or reveal himself.

Xie Jianwei believed the former was impossible, and the latter was a hundred percent certain.

So… starvation it is!

Xie Jianwei hardened his heart, resisted the temptation, and resolutely refused to eat!

But I’m so hungry!

The potatoes won’t be crispy when cold, the cod won’t be tender when cold… The strawberry tart, however, will be very good cold, chilling it gives it a different flavor…

Stop, stop, don’t think about it anymore.

Relying on his superhuman willpower, Xie Jianwei forcefully averted his gaze, treating the gourmet food like dirt. It could be said he possessed considerable determination!

Mili was overjoyed, constantly going: “Quack quack quack!”

Xie Jianwei asked chillingly, “Do you want to become a chicken egg?”

Mili instantly silenced itself, becoming a white, round, honest, and obedient good goose egg.

Xie Jianwei held out for an hour, watching helplessly as the delicious food lost its flavor… This time he didn’t need to act; the anger in his eyes was completely genuine. So mad!

Lu Li had been watching him the whole time. The more he watched, the colder his heart grew; the more he watched, the worse he felt.

In the end, Xie Jianwei didn’t eat. Before coming in again, Lu Li pressed a switch. The handcuffs locked, and Xie Jianwei’s eyes were blindfolded again.

He came in without a word and pushed the dining cart away.

What followed was a long silence. Xie Jianwei didn’t speak, and he didn’t speak either. One sat on the bed, and one sat in a chair.

As time ticked away minute by minute, Xie Jianwei said wearily, “Who exactly are you? What did you kidnap me for? You don’t say anything, how am I supposed to know what you want?”

Hearing these words, Lu Li suddenly stood up. Approaching him, he kissed him roughly. This time he was smart, knowing to pinch Xie Jianwei’s mouth so he couldn’t bite.

Xie Jianwei actually found it quite thrilling. Although he couldn’t respond, being kissed felt great.

As they kissed, Lu Li suddenly stopped. Xie Jianwei felt he could have kissed him for a bit longer…

But since he stopped, he had to speak. Xie Jianwei said irritably, “What exactly do you want? Isn’t this disgusting!”

No one answered him. The door opened, and Lu Li left.

Xie Jianwei was stunned for a moment.

Mili said, “Were your words too harsh?”

Xie Jianwei: “…”

Realizing Xie Jianwei was in a bad mood, Mili decided to be a quiet goose egg, to avoid being smacked to death by the big boss.

Fortunately, Lu Li was not the type to be heartbroken over a single sentence like this.

Disgusting or whatever, he must have always found him disgusting, right? Disgusting enough to run away for four whole years.

—This was Great Lu Li’s character setting.

About an hour later, Lu Li returned and, once again, pushed the dining cart in.

He had remade dinner again!

Xie Jianwei’s heart instantly softened. He didn’t want to act anymore; he just wanted to hug him and give him a good kiss.

And this time, Lu Li finally removed Xie Jianwei’s blindfold. He looked at him and said in a low voice, “It’s me.”