Chapter 233: Chapter 233: Apology

Faced with the old chief’s words, Qing and Luan had no choice but to step out from the crowd and come before Lu Xiao.

The two of them had lost their previous arrogance. Now, before Lu Xiao, they had both become cautious and timid.

Luan even knelt down. “Lu Xiao, I only said those things to you because I listened to Qing’s vicious lies. I know I was wrong now, and I’ll never do it again. I hope you can forgive me. As long as you forgive me, I’ll do anything you ask.”

Qing stood frozen. Under the gazes of the crowd, she clenched her fists and knelt. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have spread lies about you. I know I was wrong, and it won’t happen again. Please, forgive me.”

Compared to Luan, Qing was clearly still resentful.

Lu Xiao’s gaze swept over her coolly. ’She knew perfectly well that Qing was only apologizing because the old chief must have said something, forcing her to bow her head.’

But the truth was, she didn’t care in the slightest whether Qing and Luan truly knew they were wrong.

And these tribespeople were, in fact, watching to see her reaction.

She smiled. “Alright, I forgive you.”

Just as expected, the surrounding crowd breathed a sigh of relief. Qing and Luan had lived with them for a long time, after all. In their eyes, since both had apologized, it would have seemed petty if Lu Xiao refused to let it go.

“But I have one condition,” Lu Xiao said, looking at the old chief.

The old chief nodded. “Whatever it is, just name it.”

Her words made the crowd tense up all over again.

“I hope the two of you stay out of my sight from now on.” After she spoke, the old chief nodded. “I will have them watched. I absolutely will not let them appear and be an eyesore to you again.”

To the onlookers, Lu Xiao’s request was perfectly reasonable. She chose to forgive them and only made one condition. Most people felt it wasn’t excessive at all.

It’s perfectly reasonable to forgive someone but never want to see them again. Who said forgiveness means you have to become friends?

Even they themselves would have a hard time being friends with someone they had argued with.

Only Qing felt that she had been humiliated.

’I’ll get you back for today’s humiliation!’ she silently vowed.

With that, the incident was basically over. Before leaving, the old chief instructed Shield and Mao to take good care of Lu Xiao, telling them to ask for anything she needed. As long as the tribe could provide it, they would.

Then he led the crowd away.

Once they were gone, Lu Xiao tilted her head and looked to the side. Platinum and C Luo were standing there; she had no idea how long they’d been watching. When he saw Lu Xiao look over, Platinum didn’t shy away, but instead smiled at her.

Lu Xiao looked away, pretending she hadn’t seen him. She turned to meet Fred’s worried gaze and said, “Don’t overthink it. It doesn’t matter what the people here think of me. We’ll be leaving this place sooner or later anyway.”

So there was no need to suck up to the people here, nor was there a need to strain relations. It was best to just let things take their natural course.

Fred naturally understood what Lu Xiao meant, but that didn’t stop his heart from aching for her.

As Lu Xiao was speaking with Fred, she noticed Ares standing in the doorway, leaning against the frame. Her brow furrowed. “Ares, you just promised me you would get some rest. Why are you standing up?”

Faced with the young female’s scolding, Ares said, “I got a little tired of lying down. I’m not putting any weight on this leg.”

Hearing Ares’s explanation, Lu Xiao walked over and glanced at his leg. “You’d better listen to me!”

“I know.” Ares took Lu Xiao’s hand. “We’ll leave this place as soon as we can, Xiao Xiao. I won’t let you be treated unfairly for long.”

Lu Xiao, who hadn’t thought it was a big deal, felt her nose tingle at his words. She leaned in and wrapped her arms around Ares’s waist. “I wasn’t really bothered, because I don’t care about them at all. I just feel like it’s been a difficult journey for us. But now that you’re getting better, Ares, it doesn’t seem so bad anymore.”

Her biggest worry had been that Ares’s injury wouldn’t heal. Now that he could return to his human form and even stand up, a great weight was suddenly lifted from her shoulders.

Only with Ares could she stop being strong all the time.

Ares held her, listening to her words. He knew very well that Lu Xiao wasn’t saying these things to be comforted, but was simply expressing her innermost feelings.

“Mm, me too. As long as I’m with you, Xiao Xiao, it doesn’t matter where we are.”

Hearing this, Lu Xiao laughed. “Speaking of which, the two of us are really something. Every time I say I’ll wait for you, an accident happens. This time, I said I’d wait for your triumphant return and come to greet you personally. I was even planning on bringing flowers to give to you first, but in the end, you came looking for me instead.”

“There’ll be other opportunities. You can save the flowers.”

“But I still wish there were fewer wars.” She didn’t want Ares to always be involved in dangerous situations.

The two of them didn’t lower their voices, making no effort to hide their conversation from Fred, Platinum, or C Luo.

The three men took in the sight of Lu Xiao’s reliance on Ares, and it would be a lie to say they weren’t jealous or envious.

But they also truly realized that the deep connection and sincere affection between Lu Xiao and Ares was not something they could just enter into as they pleased.

They also came to a deeper understanding of what Lu Xiao had meant when she once spoke of “one couple, for one lifetime.”

It was to give all of one’s love selflessly and completely to a single person.

With not the slightest bit left over for anyone else.

They had never experienced it, so they had no way of knowing what it felt like.

But they were all certain that no one else could be like Lu Xiao.

Still worried about Ares’s condition, Lu Xiao helped him back to the bed. “Don’t move again, you hear!”

“Alright, I won’t move.” Ares didn’t want Lu Xiao to worry, so he was naturally obedient. He had only stood up a moment ago because he was worried she was being bullied.

Seeing him agree, Lu Xiao said with satisfaction, “I’ll ask Admiral Fred to make you a pair of crutches later. But you’ll have to be the one to repay that favor.”

Ares nodded. “Okay, I’ll repay it myself.”

Knowing Lu Xiao was saying this because she didn’t want to get too entangled with Fred, Ares’s heart melted.

The old chief of the Canghe Tribe was very tactful. After the incident, not only did he personally bring Qing and Luan to apologize, but he also had Shield deliver fresh meat, salt, and some foraged vegetables and fruits.

He was clearly doing his best to make amends.

Lu Xiao didn’t stand on ceremony and accepted it all.

That evening, Lu Xiao used the rendered fat to make a hot pot. Although the soup base was simple, there was a certain warmth to the scene as the three of them sat around the table.

It seemed that no matter where they were, as long as Lu Xiao was around, life always became more vibrant.

The young female always had a way of making the days worth looking forward to.

While Lu Xiao and the other two were enjoying their dinner, Platinum went to find Qing, who had returned to her room and was flying into a rage.

Seeing him, Qing first froze, then asked warily, “Who are you?”

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep