Zhou Ziwei was tormented by these unhealthy thoughts and Yu Xiaoru's pitiful yet adorable appearance, making him feel dizzy. After seeing Yu Xiaoru for so long and still not being able to say anything, he waved his hand impatiently and said, "Hey... have you thought it through or not? If you haven't, then go home and think about it properly. Um... I'm going to sleep now."
"Ah... wait a little longer, I... I really have already thought it through, but... but..." Yu Xiaoru initially seemed very determined, but as she spoke, she became hesitant again.
This really made Zhou Ziwei both laugh and cry. He wondered if Yu Xiaoru was wavering between the choice of becoming the richest woman in Zhongdu and staying young forever... Hmm, perhaps both temptations were equally irresistible to her, making it a truly difficult choice... Hmm... Maybe she was also wavering between staying young forever and clearing my name in my past life, in that case...
Thinking of this, Zhou Ziwei's expression immediately softened. He said, "Are you having two requests that you can't decide on, which is why you can't make a decision right now? Hmm... if that's the case, then tell me both of your requests! Let me help you decide, or... maybe... if I'm in a good mood, I might just agree to both of your requests..."
Upon hearing this, Yu Xiaoru blushed immediately and said, "No, no, no... I only have one request, and there's really nothing to give up... I know that one shouldn't be greedy, or one will be punished by heaven."
Zhou Ziwei was quite puzzled and said, "Since you only have one request and there's nothing to compromise on, then... why are you being so hesitant? Just say it directly!"
Yu Xiaoru immediately lowered her head in shame, nervously fidgeting with the hem of her clothes with both hands, and then whispered, "I...I know that what I want to ask is a bit too difficult and absurd, and I'm afraid you'll be angry, so...that's why..."
"Uh...too difficult, too absurd?" Zhou Ziwei's curiosity was piqued even more by Yu Xiaoru's words. He wondered what kind of request she had come up with, and hurriedly asked, "If your request is indeed too difficult, and even I can't do it, then I'll tell you directly and let you choose another one, hehe...don't worry, I won't be angry about that. On the contrary...if you keep wasting my time by stammering like this, then I'll really get angry."
"Ah...really, if you can't do what I ask, we can ask for something else."
Upon hearing this, Yu Xiaoru's face lit up with delight. She gently patted her ample bosom, which made Zhou Ziwei's heart flutter, and said, "You just said that I only have one chance and can't make any unreasonable demands. I thought... if my demands were too unreasonable, I would lose this chance. If I had known that, why would I have hesitated?"
Zhou Ziwei felt a little embarrassed, realizing that Yu Xiaoru was hesitant because she was afraid of losing her only chance by making her demands too high. It seemed that he hadn't made himself clear earlier.
He nodded hurriedly and said, "Do I look like such an unapproachable person? Feel free to make your request. If I can't or don't want to do it, then we'll find another one. Now you shouldn't have any concerns, right? So hurry up and tell me!"
“Okay…” This time, Yu Xiaoru didn’t hesitate anymore, but she still bit her lip again, looked at Zhou Ziwei’s eyes with a nervous expression, and said, “My biggest request is… I hope you can bring my husband Yang Hongtao back to life.”
"Ah...you...you actually want me...to bring back to life someone who's been dead for three years?" Zhou Ziwei was truly shocked by Yu Xiaoru's request. He stared at her blankly for a long time before saying, "Don't you...don't you think this request is a bit impossible? You...you don't really think I'm a god, do you?"
Hearing Zhou Ziwei say this, Yu Xiaoru's expectant expression immediately crumbled. Her eyes reddened, and tears streamed down her face. She choked out, "I... I understand that this request is somewhat absurd. Originally... I just wanted you to help me kill Huang Lianshu to avenge Hong Tao, but... you said you even have a way to keep me young forever, so... I guessed that you might be... a legendary immortal. Since you can keep people young forever, maybe you can also bring people back to life, so... that's why I had this idea... I knew... I knew this idea was too absurd, which is why I didn't dare to say it out loud..."
Upon hearing this, Zhou Ziwei's heart trembled slightly again. He walked over, gently pressed Yu Xiaoru's shoulder, and gazed into her teary eyes, saying, "So... this is why you're hesitating? Then... haven't you thought about wanting something for yourself? Whether it's becoming the richest man in Zhongdu or keeping your youthful appearance, don't you want those things?"
Yu Xiaoru looked up at Zhou Ziwei with a slightly bewildered expression and said, "What would I do with all that stuff? Money... I don't need money right now... Well... I'm a foreign language translator, and no matter where I work, my salary won't be low. I don't spend much money myself, and Hong Tao's parents have pensions, so I don't need to subsidize them much... The richest man in Zhongdu? What use would a woman like me have for so much money? As for what you said about staying young forever..."
Yu Xiaoru suddenly gave a bitter smile, slowly shook her head, and continued, "Women do love beauty, and I also admire those who can stay young and beautiful forever. But... haven't you heard the saying 'Women dress up for those they love'? As for me... the person I loved is gone... Without Hong Tao by my side, I... even living is torture. If it weren't for having to take care of his parents, I might have gone with him three years ago. Tell me... what's the point of having such a beautiful, young face without Hong Tao? Am I just showing it to all those lecherous men on the street?"
"Boom—" After hearing Yu Xiaoru's words, Zhou Ziwei felt as if those tender words were a heavy bomb that exploded directly in his already somewhat hardened heart, shattering him into a state of utter despair...
A wave of emotion washed over every corner of his heart, and a profound sense of happiness, like bamboo shoots after a spring rain, began to sprout rapidly in the fields of his soul, soon spreading far and wide...
Zhou Ziwei realized that he was also very vulnerable at this moment, as vulnerable as a porcelain doll that would shatter at the slightest touch...
Ever since being betrayed by his girlfriend Yu Xiaoya, Zhou Ziwei has developed a fear of women, creatures he both loves and fears. He subconsciously believes that true love doesn't exist in the world, and even when Liu Xiaofei showed him how much she loved him, he dismissed it as a lingering effect of his emotional trauma, repeatedly rejecting her allure.
He always felt that a man only needed to be hurt once in a relationship, and he didn't want to hurt his heart again... He couldn't afford to be hurt again.
However, he now realized that he was wrong, terribly wrong. His past life was not truly worthless, nor was it that he had never received true love; it was just that he had been going in the wrong direction.
Although the woman he loved in his past life was just a nightmare to him, there was someone else right beside her who loved him so deeply, to such an astonishing degree.
Three years... It's been more than three years since the execution in my previous life. Three years isn't a long time, but it's definitely not short. Three years is enough for an old married couple who have been together for half their lives to divorce and each find their own partner again. Three years is enough for a couple who have made vows of eternal love to find new love because they are separated by distance.
But even after three years, it remains an unhealable wound in Yu Xiaoru's heart...
Zhou Ziwei's eyes were a little wet, and his hands were trembling... He wanted to hold Yu Xiaoru in his arms and let his chest soothe the invisible wound in Yu Xiaoru's heart.
However... he held back for the time being, suppressing the strong urge in his heart to tell Yu Xiaoru everything.
Now is not the time to tell Yu Xiaoru the truth, because he still has some things to finish. If he tells Yu Xiaoru now, he won't be able to abandon everything to stay by her side. That would only add more trouble and sorrow to Yu Xiaoru. So after thinking about it, Zhou Ziwei finally suppressed his impulse, took a deep breath, and forcibly suppressed his emotions that were about to get out of control. Looking at Yu Xiaoru's mournful face, he said softly, "Okay! I can help you fulfill your request, but... I need you to wait patiently for a while."
"What? You...you mean...you can grant my wish?"
Yu Xiaoru was shocked again. When she made the request, she didn't really have much hope. That's why she hesitated for so long before saying it. After she finished speaking, seeing Zhou Ziwei's reaction and hearing his question, she completely gave up hope.
But to her surprise… after hesitating for a moment, Zhou Ziwei actually answered that he could help her fulfill this wish… This huge change made Yu Xiaoru feel very uncomfortable. She even wondered if she was hallucinating, if she was deceiving herself. So much so that she grabbed Zhou Ziwei's hand and asked repeatedly, “Are you serious? You can… really bring Yang Hongtao back to life? But… but Hongtao… his body has been cremated for a long time. You really… really can bring him back to life?”
Zhou Ziwei nodded and said, "You heard me right. I can indeed bring Yang Hongtao back to life. It's not as difficult as you think."
Although Zhou Ziwei didn't want to tell Yu Xiaoru the whole truth right away, seeing this girl who had been heartbroken and waiting for him for three years, Zhou Ziwei really couldn't bear to let her continue living in endless pain and trouble. Even if he couldn't tell her his identity for the time being, he could at least give her some comfort and let her have a beautiful hope to hold on to.
"Actually... there is a soul after death..." Zhou Ziwei explained as gently as possible, "And if I find the soul that once belonged to someone, then I have a way to make him reborn in another person's body. As for his original body... more than three years have passed. Do you think a body from three years ago can still be used even if it hasn't been cremated?"
"Ah...doesn't that mean...even if Hong Tao is resurrected, he'll look like a completely different person?" Yu Xiaoru was slightly stunned upon hearing this, and said, "Then...how can I know which one is the real Hong Tao? Will Hong Tao still be the same Hong Tao?"
Zhou Ziwei knew that Yu Xiaoru was probably worried that he was a fraudster and might find someone to impersonate Yang Hongtao to deceive her, thereby taking advantage of her feelings or even her body.
Zhou Ziwei was not displeased at all by Yu Xiaoru's suspicion; on the contrary, he was quite pleased. Women should learn to protect themselves. If any charlatan could easily fool her with his nonsense, then Zhou Ziwei would really be in trouble.
Zhou Ziwei said, “As for whether Yang Hongtao has been reborn, you can verify it yourself. I imagine there must be some little secrets between you two, things you've only said and done… The more insignificant the little things, the easier it is to discern a person's true nature. You're so smart… I don't think I need to teach you anything more, right? As for whether Yang Hongtao is still Yang Hongtao after being reborn in someone else's body… that's really just a change in his appearance and body. If you only love Yang Hongtao's appearance in life, then there's nothing I can do. But if you love Yang Hongtao's essence and soul, then… no matter what he becomes or what name he changes to, he's still the person you love, isn't he?”
Yu Xiaoru finally understood. She nodded vigorously and said excitedly, "Thank you, no... thank you for your kindness, Immortal Master. Please accept my bow."
Hearing Zhou Ziwei's affirmation that Yang Hongtao could be resurrected, Yu Xiaoru was overjoyed. This further confirmed that Zhou Ziwei was indeed a living god. Thinking that she might soon see Yang Hongtao standing alive in front of her again, Yu Xiaoru was so excited that she knelt down and bowed to Zhou Ziwei.
"No...you mustn't do this..." Zhou Ziwei had no right to let Yu Xiaoru kneel before him. In his previous life, after he was executed, it was Yu Xiaoru who took care of his elderly parents for three years without fail. This was a debt of gratitude as heavy as a mountain to him. If anyone should kneel, it should be him kneeling before Yu Xiaoru.
Zhou Ziwei immediately helped Yu Xiaoru up and said, "Didn't I say... my relationship with Yang Hongtao is extraordinary, so... my resurrection of him isn't entirely because of you. Maybe... maybe even if you hadn't made this request, I would have found an opportunity to resurrect him after a while. So... you might have wasted an opportunity to make a request to me, hahaha... How about it, are you regretting it now?"
Upon hearing this, Yu Xiaoru smiled faintly and shook her head, saying, "No... one should learn to be content. If Hong Tao can be resurrected, I will have no regrets in this life and death. Besides that, I have nothing else to ask of the immortal. Then... I wonder when Hong Tao... will be able to be resurrected? Can the immortal tell me?"
Zhou Ziwei was somewhat amused and exasperated by Yu Xiaoru's use of terms like "immortal" and "little lady," but he was too lazy to argue with her about such trivial matters. He simply nodded and said, "Soon... that day shouldn't be too far away..."
Zhou Ziwei has made up his mind that once he has completely eliminated the threat from the black market assassin network, he will quickly settle the score with Huang Lianshu. At that time, not only will Huang Lianshu die, but he will also find a way to eradicate the forces behind Huang Lianshu.
Then... he can confidently appear before Yu Xiaoru and his parents as Yang Hongtao... that day is really not far away.
Volume 1, Rebirth of a Prodigy, Chapter 250: Black Market Assassin Network
Because of Xiao Mei's involvement, Zhou Ziwei did not escort Yu Xiaoru home. He knew that Huang Lianshu wouldn't dare to do anything to Yu Xiaoru, but for safety's sake, Zhou Ziwei still sent Ladybug out to secretly protect Yu Xiaoru all the way home.
Then the ladybug was left there to take on the important task of protecting Yang's parents and Yu Xiaoru.
After growing up for this period of time, the ladybug's intelligence is no less than that of any adult, and it may even be smarter than most adults.
Today, in order to scare Huang Lianshu, the ladybug volunteered to come up with the idea of smashing a street lamp for Zhou Ziwei. The ladybug then personally smashed the street lamp, which actually scared Huang Lianshu so much that he almost wet his pants.
Therefore, given the ladybug's current intelligence, it should be able to handle most things well, so Zhou Ziwei has nothing to worry about.
All he needs to do is replenish the little ladybug's soul power when he goes to the Yang family every day.
After Yu Xiaoru left, Zhou Ziwei also felt a bit tired, so he took a quick shower and then went to bed.
Zhou Ziwei booked a double room here, and he was worried that Xiaomei was not capable of taking care of herself, so he was not comfortable letting Xiaomei sleep alone. Therefore, the room was basically a couple's room.
There was only one large bed in the entire room, a double bed.
Now that Xiao Mei has taken up half of the big bed, Zhou Ziwei can only sleep next to her.
In Zhou Ziwei's mind, Xiao Mei was just a pitiful little girl after losing her mind. Because of his guilt, he only thought about how to help the little girl recover as soon as possible.
As for Xiao Mei, although she is very pretty and cute, Zhou Ziwei has no improper thoughts about her whatsoever.
But when the two of them were actually lying in the same bed, sharing a pillow, Zhou Ziwei couldn't help but feel a little ripple in his heart.
When Xiaomei rolled over in her sleep, pressing one of her sexy and plump thighs directly onto Zhou Ziwei's lower abdomen, and unfortunately, pressing down on Zhou Ziwei's penis, Zhou Ziwei inevitably had a primal male reaction.
"You brat, you can't even sleep peacefully." Zhou Ziwei muttered under his breath, then carefully lifted Xiaomei's thigh and moved her to the side.
Despite his instinctive male urges, he was not so beastly as to abuse a mentally challenged girl who had lost her mind because of him at this time.
To avoid being disturbed by Xiao Mei again, Zhou Ziwei could only move as far away from Xiao Mei as possible to the other side of the bed, and turn to face outside, trying to avoid seeing her and getting annoyed.
But not long after, Zhou Ziwei suddenly heard a rustling sound behind him.
He was slightly taken aback, wondering if the little girl had woken up again?
Not hearing Xiaomei sit up, Zhou Ziwei forcibly suppressed the urge to turn around and take a look, and forced himself to fall asleep with his eyes closed.
However, the rustling sounds continued without stopping, which Zhou Ziwei found unbelievable. Then, he even heard Xiao Mei let out a low moan.
Uh... could it be that he's sick?
The thought of this possibility made Zhou Ziwei finally disregard Xiao Mei's allure and abruptly turned around. He looked in the dim light by the bedside and was immediately stunned.
In just a short while, the little girl had kicked the blanket off her body and was lying there wearing only a white undergarment.
Meanwhile, Xiao Mei's delicate little hands were placed on... her lower abdomen, rubbing against it through her tiny bra, while her two thighs were tightly intertwined, twitching slightly.
Xiao Mei's eyes remained tightly closed, her pearly white teeth biting her red lips, her breathing growing heavier and heavier, and she kept emitting moans that sounded like a mixture of excitement and discomfort...
Faced with such a sensual and alluring scene, Zhou Ziwei felt a sudden "boom" in his mind, almost turning him into a midnight werewolf and swallowing the seductive little girl whole.
Holy crap, no way! Wasn't this girl... wasn't she supposed to have become an idiot? How... how could she still do this on her own?
Zhou Ziwei sat half-reclined and half-sitting beside her, staring blankly for a long time, repeatedly reminding himself not to look... not to look... and not to have any immoral thoughts about this little girl.
However... due to his male instincts, he still couldn't control the surge of heat throughout his body.
God...is this torture? I should have left Yu Xiaoru here to take care of her...I'm just forcing myself to make a mistake!
No... This kind of mistake must never be made!
The demonic thoughts and humanity within his heart were constantly battling, but in the end, Zhou Ziwei's rationality prevailed. He closed his eyes tightly, took a few deep breaths, and then simply gathered all the soul power scattered throughout his nerve cords into the sea of his soul.
In this way, Zhou Ziwei could no longer see or hear anything from the outside world, and his boiling desires quickly subsided, allowing him to regain his senses.
Upon regaining consciousness, Zhou Ziwei was immediately filled with doubt...
That's not right... This little girl doesn't even have the basic instincts of eating and drinking anymore, so how could she possibly be... comforting herself in this situation? Could it be...?
Suddenly, a possibility occurred to Zhou Ziwei, who was immediately startled. He hurriedly released his soul power back into his body, instantly regaining control. He then jumped off the bed, grabbed Xiaomei who was still lying there moaning, and ran quickly to the bathroom...
Before Zhou Ziwei could even reach the bathroom door, he suddenly felt something warm on his hand, which was wrapped around Xiao Mei's thigh...
After Zhou Ziwei washed Xiaomei, who had been stripped naked, and placed her on the soft bed, he looked at the girl sleeping peacefully with her body completely naked, and Zhou Ziwei no longer had any beastly desires.
After gently covering her with the blanket, Zhou Ziwei finally breathed a heavy sigh of relief.
That was close... Luckily I reacted in time, otherwise... I'd be sleeping on a waterbed tonight... This little girl's reaction to holding her pee is really unique... But... at least she did react a little, so it seems she's showing some signs of improvement...
Turning his head, Zhou Ziwei looked again at the childlike face peeking out from under the blanket, and a certain nerve in his heart was gently touched.
At that moment, he felt a kind of fatherly love... In his eyes, Xiaomei was no longer a woman who aroused his desire, but just a cute and pitiful child...
Over the next few days, Zhou Ziwei spent a considerable amount of time with Mr. and Mrs. Yang each day, and through his pseudo-massage techniques, he thoroughly and comprehensively regulated the two elderly people's health.
Zhou Ziwei was concerned about his parents' health, so he naturally put in extra effort in this matter, consuming a huge amount of soul power each time.
However, this is nothing compared to his current soul power reserves of over three thousand remnant soul energies.
As long as his parents are healthy, Zhou Ziwei would certainly not be stingy with this bit of soul power.
Because of the huge uproar that day, Yu Xiaoru was no longer able to attend the middle class at Yunzhong International School.
The reason she went to work at Yunzhong International was to find out the truth about Yang Hongtao's (Zhou Ziwei) case back then and clear Yang Hongtao's (Zhou Ziwei's) name.