TMWTGD CH19

The moment Butler Sun caught sight of Lu Li, he rushed forward and began twisting the truth with frantic haste, laying all the blame on Xie Jianwei for throwing an unreasonable tantrum.

“Doctor Lu, please talk some sense into the young master! This old servant is advanced in years and clumsy, accidentally knocking the vase over. Yet the young master refuses to let it go, insisting on piecing the fragments back together. Look, he even injured his own hand in the process!”

Under normal circumstances, onlookers would naturally favor Butler Sun. For one, he was an elder; for another, he appeared to belong to a vulnerable class. A servant mistreated by a spoiled young master from a wealthy family was the typical narrative people expected.

This time, however, Butler Sun had gravely miscalculated.

Before he could even utter a second sentence upon nearing the doctor, Lu Li raised his leg without the slightest mercy and kicked him straight to the floor.

A sweet, metallic taste rose in Butler Sun’s chest, nearly spitting blood. Stunned, he looked up at Lu Li in sheer disbelief.

Shedding every trace of his earlier refined gentleness, Lu Li wore a dark, ominous scowl. His eyes seemed dusted with sharp slivers of ice, and his voice turned freezing as frost. “Unable to safeguard even your master’s cherished possession, do you still have the audacity to linger in this position?”

Butler Sun truly had not cared about the vase. Vessels like that were a dime a dozen in his own quarters, so what did breaking one matter? Replacing it with a new one would suffice.

Refusing to accept blame, Butler Sun continued slandering Xie Jianwei, “This old servant was in the wrong, yet it was only out of worry that the young master would injure himself. The porcelain shards are so sharp, yet the young master stubbornly insisted on putting them back together, I…” Toward the end, the deferential “old servant” vanished, reduced simply to “I.”

Lu Li sneered, “If that is the case, you do it.”

“Ah?” Butler Sun had not expected the conversation to circle right back. He finally realized Lu Li was siding with Xie Jianwei. He had seen plenty of opportunists like this before, assuming that currying favor with the young master would yield benefits, completely ignorant of the fact that this Xie young master was an unwanted, pitiful wretch.

Fawning over him was a futile waste of effort.

Standing up, Butler Sun dropped all pretense. With a stiff face, he stated, “This old servant was tasked by the Master and Madam to care for the young master. Yet care entails not only daily necessities, but also moral guidance and conduct. This old servant…”

Lu Li had already walked to Xie Jianwei’s side, tending to the wound to stem the bleeding. Hearing this, he snapped his head up, his hawk-like eyes piercing like lightning, his voice hard as iron. “Sun Changde, do you think Xie Xing will believe you or believe me?”

Sun Changde froze in terror, trembling like a pendulum. Staring at Lu Li, it took him a long while to gather his wits.

He had truly lost his mind.

He had actually forgotten Lu Li’s true standing.

Doctor Lu was indeed an exceptional physician, but he was also the Third Young Master of the Lu family.

Though an illegitimate son brought back from the outside, the Lu family held the political core of Country Z in their grasp, standing as genuine aristocrats in a completely different tier from the Xie family.

Xie Xing was Xie Jianwei’s father, yet Lu Li dared address him by his full name, proving he had zero fear of him.

Stripped of the protection of the Master and Madam’s authority, what did Sun Changde count for?

Furthermore, Xie Jianwei remained Xie Xing’s flesh and blood. In the past, Xie Xing had been resentful of his failure to thrive, compounded by deliberate instigation from Sun Changde and the others, leaving him thoroughly disappointed in his son.

Yet if Lu Li put in a few words, Xie Xing would surely view Xie Jianwei in a much more favorable light out of deference to the Lu family. When that happened, why would he ever shield an expendable, insignificant butler?

Sun Changde had reigned supreme in this villa for so long that he had tried to dupe Lu Li just as he duped Xie Jianwei.

Snapping into cold reality, perspiration drenched his forehead. Trembling, he dropped to his knees on the carpet, ignoring the sharp shards piercing his hands as he frantically gathered the broken pieces, “This old servant will piece the vase together immediately, right away…”

“Take it outside,” Lu Li commanded in a frigid tone. “In one hour, I want to see this vase restored.”

He uttered nothing overtly harsh, yet the realization that Lu Li could dismiss him with a mere sentence left Sun Changde ashen. “Certainly, I will piece it together without fail!”

Having finally driven away this bothersome pest, Lu Li furrowed his brows at Xie Jianwei’s wounded palm, saying with deep heartache, “Why were you so careless?”

Xie Jianwei made no sound. With a soft splash, a tear landed upon the back of Lu Li’s hand.

As if scalded, that feather-light teardrop seemed to burn straight into the center of Lu Li’s heart, piercing him with sharp aches like needles. Looking up, he saw Xie Jianwei biting his lower lip with stubborn defiance, eyes swollen and red, tears streaming silently down without uttering a single peep.

Heart aching beyond measure, Lu Li cupped Xie Jianwei’s face in his hands, pressing tender kisses against his cheeks, his voice raspy. “Don’t cry, Xiao Wei… please don’t cry.”

Xie Jianwei wept pitifully, though his mind remained crystal clear. A yandere possessed fierce possessiveness. Whatever belonged to him, good or bad, had to remain by his side. Having someone smash a vase might seem trivial to outsiders, but to this young master, it was trampling upon his sacred boundary, utterly intolerable.

Lu Li genuinely could not bear to see him like this. When Xie Jianwei wept, Lu Li suffered tenfold. As long as he stopped crying, Lu Li would do anything.

Xie Jianwei mused whether he should embellish the drama a bit, perhaps claiming the vase was something Lu Li had left behind by chance. That felt a bit unconvincing, as what doctor carried a porcelain vase around casually?

Unexpectedly, Lu Li understood the situation far better than he did. “I know that vase was left behind by your mother. Don’t cry. When she returns next time, she will bring you more gifts.”

Xie Jianwei was speechless. It turned out to be a keepsake from his mother; had he known, he wouldn’t have bothered crying so hard.

Lu Li gently comforted him, “If you truly like it that much, I will make a beautiful vase for you later on.”

Hearing this, Xie Jianwei thought the idea was splendid. He looked at him, tear tracks still wet on his face, though his eyes sparkled brightly, “Really?”

Only then did Lu Li realize his actions had overstepped professional boundaries. Withdrawing his hands, he murmured softly, “Really.”

Xie Jianwei didn’t mind in the least. What did a few kisses on the cheek count for? They had done vastly more intimate things. His mind focused entirely on what came next, “You will make it with your own hands?”

Lu Li replied, “Indeed.”

Tugging at his sleeve, Xie Jianwei asked, “Can I make it together with you?”

Lu Li paused.

Xie Jianwei looked at him with longing eyes, tears still clinging to his curled eyelashes, his reddened eyelids framing eyes that looked clean and breathtaking, as if washed by clear water.

He was so lovely, gorgeous enough to lead one into temptation.

Lu Li smiled gently, “Alright. Once I finish examining your health, I will prepare the supplies.”

Flushing with excitement, Xie Jianwei said, “That is wonderful.”

Xie Jianwei’s condition posed no serious concern; in fact, after cutting his hand, he felt far healthier than before.

Big Li had likely felt immense heartache at the sight of blood, his subconscious yearning for Xie Jianwei to be robust and healthy, blessed with longevity, free from illness, living in comfort.

Consequently, Xie Jianwei’s frail frame miraculously improved quite a bit.

As for how skilled Doctor Lu truly was, Medical Doctor Xie Jianwei preferred not to critique, but this miraculous healing ability was undeniably impressive.

Declaring recovery made recovery happen instantly, a display of pure divine will.

Regrettably, because of this illogical will of God, Doctor Lu found no trace of Xie Jianwei being bedridden from dehydration and diarrhea last night.

Naturally, he remained entirely unaware of the feast Xie Jianwei had devoured.

Had Sun Changde escaped a disaster? No, this was merely the beginning.

Xie Jianwei had no intention of continuing to endure mistreatment. Although scripted as a frail, innocent young master ripe for bullying, that hardly meant he could not turn the tables and triumph.

There were countless ways to discipline these wretched scoundrels. Even without Lu Li, Xie Jianwei barely needed to lift a finger, to say nothing of having his husband right beside him.

Xie Jianwei remained somewhat frail, so Lu Li administered an IV drip. He drifted into a hazy slumber, and by the time he woke in the afternoon, Lu Li had returned with tools for pottery.

Climbing out of bed, Xie Jianwei asked in delight, “What is this?”

Lu Li explained, “A pottery wheel. We will use this shortly to shape the vase.”

Xie Jianwei was genuinely curious. The galactic era had long discarded such primitive devices, yet simple as it was, it was far from crude, standing as a lovely crystallization of ancient human ingenuity.

Xie Jianwei examined it with keen interest, but Lu Li frowned, “Put on your shoes.”

Xie Jianwei wore pajamas and had stepped onto the floor barefoot. At this moment, his pale calves and lovely feet were as delicate as blossoms beneath the morning sun, dazzling the eyes.

Lu Li’s gaze was helplessly drawn to them.

Noticing this, Xie Jianwei laughed inwardly while maintaining an innocent front, “It doesn’t matter, the room is warm.”

It was indeed warm; Lu Li felt blazing heat from the outside in.

“We need to work on the vase in the courtyard shortly.”

Blinking, Xie Jianwei asked, “Can we not do it inside?”

Tearing his eyes away from his ankles for the third time, Lu Li said, “It will make a mess everywhere.”

Beaming, Xie Jianwei agreed, “I see, then I’ll get dressed.”

Even in the courtyard, mud still ended up everywhere. Xie Jianwei had grasped the technique at a glance and could easily have shaped a flawless vase in one try, but he had to play his part. Slipping into character sparked a mischievous streak, smearing mud all over Lu Li.

The two spent a messy, tactile afternoon crafting two vases.

Lu Li’s piece was slender and elegant, while Xie Jianwei’s was plump, stout, and slightly crooked, yet exceedingly charming.

Xie Jianwei claimed, “I want yours!”

Lu Li indulged him, “Both are yours.”

Xie Jianwei added, “That won’t do, I must give mine to you.”

Looking at the lopsided little vase Xie Jianwei had crafted, Lu Li’s lips curved faintly, “Alright.” He looked as if he had received an invaluable treasure, his eyes brimming with warmth.

Seeing him like this made Xie Jianwei’s heart itch with fondness. Spotting the mud spattered across him, a plan sprang to mind.

“Doctor Lu, let us go take a bath.”

Lu Li did not process the words right away.

Tugging at his collar, Xie Jianwei murmured, “Mud got onto my skin.”

A smudge of brown clay clung to his fair collarbone, the stark contrast of colors unexpectedly lending a touch of sensual allure.