Ten Years of Yearning. My Love, Let Me Protect You.

Sheng Ruming immediately accelerated the car. He couldn't let another person with unknown origin know her original name. And he knew as per her personality, she would have told her real name to that boy. The black car sped away and went beyond Penzi's eyesight.

He was under the vast sky, soaking in the rain, alone. A young girl came up to him and turned the umbrella in her hands atop his head.

"Zi ge, who are they?" She asked as she blinked at him. She didn't care about herself while a part of her was drenching in the cold rain. Her two braids rested on her chest while she was wearing a square neck white dress with a grey dress pant.

"I don't know. Just someone who wanted to buy some lotus seed pods from me." 

Penzi said as his weary face had a sad expression. 'There are a lot of people named 'Xi' in this city. How could I find her in the future?... Forget it. Let's see in the future.' He felt remorseful as he turned around and walked towards the boat.

After taking the things from the boat, he handed the girl some while he started to walk towards his house with the rest.

The girl followed behind him closely. They were silent as she decided to say something. "They seemed to be sister and brother. At first, I thought they could be a couple. But they didn't have any impression like they are a couple. Also, it's very rare to see a couple of the same age as those men preferred to marry young women. "

Penzi stopped for a brief moment so she bumped at his back. He turned towards her while she was rubbing her nose, as it crushed against his back earlier. The pitiful nose turned red in a moment.

"Are you okay?"

"Yes. Let's go." She replied in a timid voice as she hurriedly walked past him in embarrassment.

Penzi touched at the little bag where he had put the money and sighed inwardly. He began to walk and went to his home in a heavy heart. Only he knew what was in his mind.

... ...

It was already six pm by then.

The car slowly entered the villa compound. Sheng Ruming stopped the car before the villa's main door. The bodyguards immediately went up to them with spare umbrellas. 

Luo Lixi was sleeping soundly in her seat. The eventful day had left her body in exhaustion. Sheng Ruming didn't want to wake her up but when he shifted to unbuckle her safety belt, she became awake.

"Have we returned to the villa?" She said as she yawned while one of her hands was rubbing her left eyes. Due to her catching a cold, she was feeling itchy in her eyes.

"Don't do this. You'll hurt your eyes." He caught her hand as he placed them down. 

He opened his door and stepped down. A bodyguard was waiting with an opened umbrella for him. He took it from his hand and went towards Luo Lixi's side.

But when he opened the door she wasn't in her seat. The car was a little dark as he didn't turn on the internal light because she was sleeping.

"Lixi?! Why did you go there?! It is dark in the back." He spoke out when he saw she was in the back. As she faced her back towards him, he didn't know what she was doing.

"I'm picking the lotus flowers and seed pods. These are scattered on the seat while some are laying on the ground. I should take them now." She answered him as she showed him a red lotus flower.

"Ouch!" She forgot that she was in the car. So when she straightened her back, her head bumped against the solid rooftop.

Sheng Ruming became angry when he heard her shriek. 

"You are running a fever yet you are thinking about this flowers. Can't I have someone else to pick them out for you? Come out."

"Ah! Wait a second. I'm done already." But he didn't listen to her as he went to the back and opened the door abruptly.

"Come out. RIGHT NOW!" He tugged at her hand to bring her towards him but due to his sudden move, she painstakingly collected flowers loosened from her hand and fell on the ground.

Her mind became irked in an instant. She turned her head towards him and fumed in anger. But it was dark in the back so Sheng Ruming failed to notice it.

"YOU DON'T HAVE TO SCREAM! I'M NOT A DEAF!" She told him in a loud voice as she slapped away his hand from her. She came out from the car and ran inside the villa without him. 

When she dashed to go inside, her red scarf fell on the ground and became wet in the muddy water. Then she stopped to look at it as she felt sad but when she noticed his gaze on her, she sprinted in the villa without it.

"You…" He didn't know what to say. For the whole day, they had spent time in a good mood but now that they had reached their home, they had already shouted at each other. 

Sheng Ruming followed her. On the way, he picked the red scarf. When he entered the big hall, he saw the nurse was wiping Luo Lixi's wet body with a towel. 

When she saw him, she gave a vague snort while she ignored him.

A maid went up to him with a dry towel in a tray. He placed the red scarf on it and took the towel.

"Clean this and send after it turns thoroughly spotless." 

"Yes, young master." The maid said as she walked away while Sheng Ruming went behind Luo Lixi quietly. He snaked his arms around her body as he embraced her. She was in the middle of wiping her head so she didn't see him approaching.

When she felt the warm body against her back she became stiff.

"Why are you throwing a tantrum? Haven't  I fulfilled your wish? Why are you angry?" He spoke in a very gentle tone as he asked her, as if coaxing a child. If it was someone else they would have to see a piece of his mind.  But it was his woman so it's okay.

Luo Lixi's two hands were on her head when she was rubbing it with the towel. As he asked her, she didn't know what to say either. 

"I'm... hungry." He removed the towel from her head as he heard her speaking, "Ruming, I'm very hungry. You know in my hunger I don't even know what I say." She said as she turned her head sideways to face him. She was regretting yelling at him earlier. But those words came out from her mouth subconsciously.

Now that she was saying, he remembered that they didn't have a proper lunch at noon. He looked down on the little frame of her, she also caught a cold in there. Even if that medicine helped her to relieve, it was not a proper medication. He touched her head and felt she was running a slight fever.