Chapter 38: Chapter 38: Go Hungry

Lu Xiao said she was done with Lu Huan and simply ignored her, heading straight upstairs to change before coming down to heat up some food.

Seeing her leave, Lu Huan flopped onto the sofa in a huff. One side of her face was still swollen, but she was already trying to tattle on Lu Xiao to Lu Ge Wei.

She gave her an embellished account of how Lu Xiao had hit her.

But for whatever reason, Lu Ge Wei didn’t reply.

When Lu Xiao came back downstairs, she saw Ares in the kitchen cooking noodles. A warmth spread through her chest, and she walked over with a smile. “Didn’t I tell you to go upstairs and rest?”

“But you’re still hungry.” She had mentioned wanting cold noodles back in the car, but they’d been delayed and she still hadn’t eaten. Ares didn’t say it outright, but it was clear he felt bad for her.

Lu Xiao understood the meaning behind his words and smiled. “Thank you. You should have some with me. We can call it a late-night snack.”

She knew that because of the incident with Lu Huan, Ares hadn’t really eaten properly either.

Ares nodded. “Okay.” Then he started to ask, “Should we…”

“No. Don’t worry about her. Skipping a couple of meals won’t kill her.” Lu Xiao knew what he was going to say before he could even finish.

’Giving that brat Lu Huan any food? Not a chance.’

Meanwhile, Lu Huan, still waiting for a reply from Lu Ge Wei, found her gaze drifting toward the kitchen. Through the glass door, she could clearly see Lu Xiao and Ares inside, talking and laughing together. They looked perfectly harmonious.

Lu Huan pouted. ’My sister is really regressing. Going into a place like the kitchen… she has no sense of propriety anymore.’

But even as she had this thought, the aroma wafting out from the kitchen tempted her taste buds.

Back at the bar, she’d only had a few drinks and hadn’t gotten a chance to eat anything before being dragged here.

Lured by the scent of food, her stomach began to rumble loudly.

Soon, the dish was ready: cold noodles topped with shredded chicken breast.

Ares brought the two bowls of noodles to the table, and Lu Xiao opened a bottle of sparkling water to go with them.

Just as they sat down, Lu Huan, who had been sulking on the sofa, marched over. She plopped down in a chair and stared at Lu Xiao. “Why don’t I get any?”

“And why would you think you would?” Lu Xiao asked as she ate, her expression devoid of any guilt, as if she genuinely had no idea why Lu Huan would even ask.

The question stunned Lu Huan. In her mind, no one had ever refused her anything. She took it for granted that she should get whatever she wanted.

“I’m hungry! I want to eat!” Unable to answer Lu Xiao’s question, Lu Huan could only resort to her usual spoiled brat act.

“Have you forgotten what I just told you? If you want something, you get it yourself. No one is here to wait on you. If you want to eat, go to the kitchen and cook. If you don’t know how, then you can starve. Don’t you dare put on your little princess airs with me.” With that, Lu Xiao ignored her and went back to heartily eating her noodles.

’The sauce I mixed for these noodles is amazing,’ she thought. ’One bite is just so satisfying.’

Watching Lu Xiao eat with such relish, Lu Huan couldn’t help but swallow hard. Still, she refused to back down. She turned, ran back to the sofa, and sat down. A moment later, she started to cry, her wails growing louder and louder.

Ares glanced at Lu Xiao, but seeing that she was acting as if she hadn’t heard a thing, he didn’t say anything either.

After they finished clearing the table, they went upstairs.

A short while later, Lu Xiao came over to perform his Spiritual Soothing.

As for Lu Huan, it was as if Lu Xiao had forgotten she even existed.

At some point, Lu Huan cried herself to sleep, only to be jolted awake by hunger in the middle of the night.

It was then that she truly understood. When Lu Xiao said she wouldn’t bother with her, she really meant it. She wasn’t just saying it, and she wasn’t just trying to scare her.

’She’s really going to starve me. T_T’

Having learned her lesson about Lu Xiao’s ruthlessness, Lu Huan, though famished, didn’t dare make a sound. She tiptoed to the kitchen.

In her hunger, she completely forgot the rule that females were not to enter the kitchen.

But she had never been in a kitchen before, let alone known how to use any of the appliances. Cooking for herself was impossible. Her only option was to sneak open the refrigerator. Luckily, Lu Xiao usually liked to keep snacks on hand.

So the refrigerator was always well-stocked.

There was a wide variety, too. Seeing all the food inside, Lu Huan’s spirits lifted. But just as she was about to reach for something, she remembered that she had no idea when she would be allowed to leave. It was probably best not to provoke Lu Xiao.

So she just took a container of yogurt and two slices of bread, not even daring to touch the sausages next to them.

The next morning, when Lu Xiao came downstairs, she noticed a small garbage bag on the floor but wasn’t surprised. After all, Lu Huan wasn’t an idiot. It was only natural that she’d find something to eat when she got hungry.

When Lu Huan saw her come downstairs, she felt a pang of guilt but refused to show it. She jutted out her chin defiantly. “When are you going to let me leave? I have to go to school. And when are you going to help me with that other thing?”

“Write down what you ate last night. We’ll add it to your bill later, or you can work off the debt. I’ve already called you out of school, so you won’t be going for a while. It’s not like you do anything but slack off there with your grades anyway. As for what you mentioned… Lu Huan, if you want to ask for a favor, you need to have the right attitude. Once you understand that principle, I’ll help you with your problem. Now, do you want breakfast? If you do, come over here and help.”

“This is tyranny! You can’t do this!” Lu Huan clearly hadn’t expected Lu Xiao to make such a decision for her. She was furious!

Lu Xiao glanced at her. “Feeling upset already? You’re too thin-skinned. You’ll have to work on that. I guess you don’t want to eat, then. Go on and keep starving.”

Having had a taste of true hunger the night before, Lu Huan’s defiance evaporated in an instant. “Fine, I’ll help! Just tell me what to do!”

“Go ask Ares. You’ll do whatever he tells you to.”

“You want me to take orders from a…” Lu Huan’s eyes widened, but a sharp glare from Lu Xiao cut her off. She turned reluctantly to Ares. “Brother-in-law, is there anything you need help with?”

Hearing this, Ares instinctively glanced at Lu Xiao. He was surprised that Lu Huan had actually backed down.

That “brother-in-law,” though dripping with reluctance, was an acknowledgment of his status.

This was something Lu Xiao had won for him.

He didn’t let it show on his face, but inwardly, he was overjoyed.

“Not right now. After breakfast, you can clear the table and clean the kitchen.”

Lu Huan’s eyes widened in disbelief. She stared at Ares, shocked that he would actually order her to do chores. ’How dare he!’

’Does he really think he’s my brother-in-law just because I called him that once?’

’He’s just a side husband. Even Lu Xiao’s main husband would be nothing in my eyes!’

Lu Xiao shot her a look. “Don’t want to? Then you don’t have to eat.”

Lu Huan flinched at her words. She walked over to the dining table and sat down. “Fine, I’ll clean!”

“And don’t think you can just do a half-assed job. If it’s not clean enough, or if you break anything on purpose, you’ll be skipping lunch and dinner. And you won’t be allowed to touch anything in the refrigerator, either.”

“Mother won’t let you get away with treating me like this!”

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep