Chapter 9: Who Is the Villain?

At last, the bedroom settled into silence.

Just as Shen Hanzhi thought she would leave, a delicate sobbing suddenly sounded behind him.

"Uncle... I want to find my uncle..." The girl's voice, full of sorrow, echoed softly.

Her crying was unlike any he had heard before. It was so faint, as if she was desperately trying to suppress it but utterly unable to. From her tears, he could feel a boundless sense of grievance.

So much so that, despite his usual iron heart—unmoved by women's tears and always indifferent—he found himself troubled by her weeping. His chest tightened, and even his breath became erratic.

Yet even so, he would not soften, for he was notorious for his ruthlessness.

As Shen Hanzhi frowned, preparing to simply get up and throw her out, her aggrieved voice, muffled by tears, sounded once more.

"I'm so miserable... my uncle doesn't want me anymore... the bad guy won't even let me sleep. I'm too pitiful..." Her cries were heart-wrenching and plaintive—any ordinary person would be moved by such sorrow.

But as her words faded, Shen Hanzhi's expression changed. He abruptly turned over, looking at her with impatience and questioning her coldly.

"When did I not let you sleep..." His face froze, then turned stern as he demanded, "And who is the bad guy?"

His sudden turn startled Lin Nanxun, who hurriedly covered her mouth, blinking in panic, her small face filled with anxiety.

She suddenly recalled that her grandmother had said she must never call someone a bad guy, or they would dislike her.

Seeing the girl's frightened look, Shen Hanzhi fell silent.

He had been about to throw her out, but seeing her standing there, clutching her pillow, her face filled with grievance and fear, he found himself at a loss for words.

Usually, when a woman annoyed him, no matter how much she pleaded or pretended to be pitiful, his heart would remain unmoved.

But this moment was different.

When the girl gazed at him with those impossibly clear, sincere eyes, he felt a strange sense of compassion stirring within him.

The unfamiliar emotion made his gaze pause, his mood suddenly unsettled.

After several minutes of silence, the man, brow furrowed, stared at her for a long while before finally speaking.

His cold voice rang out abruptly.

"Get up here."

With those words, he turned over, no longer looking at her.

Clutching her pillow, Lin Nanxun instantly broke into a bright, happy smile at his words. She quickly wiped her tear-streaked cheeks and climbed onto the bed, settling herself beside him. After arranging her pillow, she reached out to lift the covers—

But just as she stretched out her hand, the man suddenly seized it.

Startled, she looked down and met a pair of piercing, formidable eyes.

"Go get your own blanket," Shen Hanzhi said sternly, his expression severe.

Letting her onto the bed was already a great concession—she wanted to share the same quilt with him?

At his words, Lin Nanxun’s face froze, then she shook her head fearfully and confessed honestly.

"I'm scared..."

There was no one in the corridor, not a sound to be heard. Fear filled her heart—she dared not go back.