Chapter Twenty-Nine: Gaining Trust—A Secret Duel of Identities Between Two People
“What happened to me? Why am I lying in bed?” As the effects of the medicine wore off, Wenxin gradually regained clarity.
“You just fell asleep listening to Taylor’s long-winded speech. You’re not the first; everyone else dozed off too. Apparently, it’s happened before.”
“Really? But how long did you watch me while I was asleep?” Wenxin, noticing Mingchuan’s admiring gaze, felt a bit displeased—though in truth, she was just a bit embarrassed.
“We started listening to Taylor at one o’clock. By one-thirty, you all fell asleep. Now it’s four in the afternoon—you really can sleep!”
“So you sat there watching me from one-thirty until now? You must have been really bored.”
“Actually, I was just reading beside you. I borrowed a book from the library a few days ago and hadn’t had much chance to read it yet.” Although Mingchuan said this, in reality, he had already calculated how long the medicine would last. Until then, he and Tyron had been discussing the next improvements for the mechas, and so on…
“Ouch, what’s going on? Why does my arm feel numb?” Wenxin asked.
“Oh, that’s because Taylor wanted to draw a little of our blood for testing. It’s to avoid not knowing your blood type in case you get injured and lose blood in battle. See, I’ve got a needle mark too.” Mingchuan wasn’t lying—though he omitted the fact that Wenxin’s blood had been taken not only for blood typing but also for DNA matching.
“Is that so? Well, I suppose that’s fine. But wouldn’t it be easier if we just told them our blood types?”
“Just to avoid mistakes. Anyway, the blood’s already drawn—what else can you do?”
“All right, then. So, do we have any tasks right now?”
“Why are you always thinking about missions? Let’s wait until the logistics troops have pushed the front line to the border between Turkey and the Arabian Empire. When we reach the desert, it’ll be our turn to act.”
“So what do you want to do?” Wenxin got out of bed, asking with a straight face.
“Don’t be so serious. Let’s take a proper tour around the base. Since we have nothing else to do, let’s treat it as a date.”
“A date!” Wenxin’s heart fluttered with excitement. “You’re the first person bold enough to ask me out on a date!”
“What’s wrong? Did everyone else only care about liking you, but never actually took you out?”
“No, it’s nothing. If you want to go on a date with me, then let’s go.”
As they sat in the café, sipping their drinks, Mingchuan suddenly asked Wenxin a question. “I’ve known you for so long, but I still don’t know much about you. Can you tell me about your family?”
Clearly, Mingchuan hoped to glean some key information from her.
“My family?” Wenxin replied. “Actually, my background isn’t great. My father passed away when I was born. My mother raised me alone, and when I was six, she remarried. But…”
“But?” Mingchuan interjected. “Let me guess, the story’s like Snow White—your stepfather treated you badly?”
“My stepfather was actually good to both me and my mother. It was his two sons who didn’t like me. My elder stepbrother was afraid I’d compete with him for inheritance. The younger one simply didn’t like my mother—his stepmother—so he treated me the same.”
“So, more like Cinderella. Two sisters who don’t like their stepsister—except in your case, two stepbrothers who don’t like you.”
“Are you doubting me?” Wenxin’s face clouded over. “Ever since you saw me coming out of the Earl’s room, you haven’t trusted me.”
Mingchuan quickly tried to smooth things over. “Don’t be like that. Of course I trust you! And besides, wasn’t that misunderstanding cleared up? Here, as a trade, I’ll tell you about my family too…”
—End Note—
The Knight finally managed to finish a chapter at a normal hour today, no more racing to meet deadlines at midnight. And now, a question for all the readers: Which do you think is the best mecha? Of course, apart from the upcoming Angel.