Chapter 8: Weren't You Dead?

"Miss? You—you were supposed to be dead!"
Who was dead? Whoever wished to die could go ahead, but she certainly wasn't among them.
Turning around, she saw a silver-haired man in a butler’s uniform standing at the doorway, staring at her.
He blinked his somewhat cloudy eyes, and after confirming that the figure before him was not a figment conjured by longing, the butler was moved to tears. He rushed forward, eager to embrace her.
As he ran, he wailed, "I knew it, Miss! Heaven watches over the good—you couldn't possibly meet any harm! Come, let me see if you’re hurt—"
Before he could finish, just as he was about to embrace her, a slender, well-defined hand blocked his way.
Startled by the interruption, the butler looked up and saw a boy, so exquisitely beautiful he seemed almost unreal, standing protectively in front of her. The boy’s face was full of hostility as he glared at him. Meeting the butler’s gaze, the boy enunciated each word coldly, "Get lost. Don’t touch her!"
Though the boy was young, his presence was formidable. Having served the Chao family for many years and witnessed countless titans of industry, the butler instinctively felt his legs go weak for a moment.
Two seconds later, the butler realized something was amiss.
Wait, wasn’t the young lady right there? Who was this brat blocking his way?
Could it be... was this the culprit responsible for the young lady’s disappearance?
At that thought, the butler bristled with rage. Fueled by anger, he stood tall and blocked the boy, shouting, "Come on then! Don’t think I’m afraid of you!"
Ci Mo’s sword-like brows knitted together, and a storm brewed in his azure eyes, as if he were plotting something.
Meanwhile, as the two men squared off, Chao Xu finally recognized the one who had addressed her as "Miss"—wasn’t this the Chao family’s butler?
"Wait, don’t start fighting!"
After glancing at Ci Mo and the butler, who both seemed baffled by her intervention, Chao Xu braced herself and pulled Ci Mo aside.
"He’s not a bad person," she explained, "I just found him on the way home. He doesn’t seem very bright and keeps clinging to me. Please, don’t take it to heart."
When Ci Mo heard her call him not very bright, he didn’t quite understand the meaning but sensed it wasn’t a compliment.
He tugged at her sleeve, his misty blue eyes fixed on her with such grievance that Chao Xu felt a headache coming on.
The butler, having heard her explanation, looked Ci Mo over and realized the boy was indeed a bit off. Relieved, he believed most of what Chao Xu said.
He sighed, saying, "Let’s not worry about the rest for now. The important thing is that you’re back, Miss."
The butler, with his kindly old face, could easily inspire affection and trust.
Chao Xu’s eyes flickered as she was about to speak, but then the butler’s gentle demeanor vanished—he had caught sight of Gu Zhongming behind her.