The powerful leader was tough on the outside but soft on the inside; the aloof major general fell fo

"Lady Renzo... let me call you, dinner is ready."

Suppressing his inner turmoil, Xi Ya slowly said.

Cen Li's gaze swept over.

When I entered the room, the insect had disappeared. Now that I've seen it again, who knows where it went in between?

Cen Li's eyes turned cold: "I'm not eating this meal."

Xiya was startled and looked up to see the powerful ruler reaching out to pull Ashir, who was kneeling on the ground, up.

The tone was very unpleasant.

"How much longer are you going to kneel?"

"Does that mean you can be bossed around even if it's just an insect?"

The male insect's voice was cold, each word it uttered sounding like ice shards squeezed from between its teeth.

Ashel straightened up following the force of Cen Li's wrist, quietly lowered her eyelashes, and had a slightly bitter taste on her lips.

He didn't want to either.

But he had no choice.

The female insect's thick hair fell down, obscuring most of the expression on his face.

Cen Li was annoyed by what he saw, and he found the arrogant Miha Wu even more irritating.

He used a bit of force and dragged the silent Ashel away.

"what!"

I hadn't gone far when a scream came from behind me.

Then came the sound of Mihajlovic gritting his teeth.

"Cen Li!"

As Ashleigh turned the corner, he couldn't help but glance back.

Mihajlov stared intently at them, his eyes fierce. A bright red, unmistakable mark appeared on his fair face, and the delicate skin around it swelled up instantly.

Those are traces left by spiritual power!

After Ashel came to this conclusion, he stole a glance at the lord, whose lips were still tightly pursed.

The answer to who did it is obvious.

Ashel was momentarily stunned.

Those left behind in West Asia were completely terrified by this turn of events.

He gritted his teeth, watching the enraged Mikhail, who was sweating profusely, and seized an opportunity to slip away.

"What? I didn't see that coming before, but now you've gotten bolder?"

Cen Li glanced sideways with a half-smile and released his grip.

Rather than saying he was dragging Ashl along, it would be more accurate to say that Ashl was moving in sync with the speed of his wheelchair.

The male insect's voice suddenly entered my ears.

Ash came to his senses and realized he had been caught red-handed.

He looked away in slight panic.

Cen Li, however, had no intention of letting him off the hook: "If he wants to hit you, you're just going to stand there and let him hit you? Are you stupid? You won't even dodge?"

"Don't tell me that an Imperial Major General can't even dodge this slap."

The lord's gaze was cold, and Ash's lips trembled slightly: "...You can dodge it."

"But that is your brother, and... a noble male insect."

Ashel finished his sentence in a piecemeal fashion, as if squeezing out toothpaste.

Male insects don't care about females, let alone their house insects; they are very clear about what's best for them.

Especially for an insect like him, who is despised by the powerful ruler, he doesn't dare to hope for the ruler's protection.

Cen Li remained silent, realizing that from Ashel's perspective, choosing to swallow one's anger was indeed reasonable.

He scoffed, dismissing Ashel's words with disdain: "My female father didn't have a second offspring, I don't have a brother, remember that."

"Don't let me see you groveling before him again."

Ashel agreed.

Cen Li squinted at the silent, head-drooping female insect, wondering if she had truly listened to him.

Hopefully, next time he won't find out that Ashel has foolishly chosen to swallow his anger again.

He asked, "Why were you forced to kneel?"

Ash paused, his eyes flashing.

Cen Li didn't receive a reply from the female insect, so he said to himself, "The female father said it was because you angered the male father."

Cen Li tilted his head, carefully observing Ash's expression: "Is that so?"

Ash's eyes darkened slightly.

"...That's how it is."

Although he had never even seen Duke Jolai himself, telling the truth would likely cause him even greater trouble.

"oh."

Cen Li moved his lips slightly and nodded casually.

After a while, Cen Li didn't press the matter further, and Ashel breathed a sigh of relief.

But he was too happy too soon, the male insect's voice said again.

"Doesn't it hurt?"

Ashel was slightly taken aback: "What?"

Cen Li pressed a button to stop the wheelchair.

He raised his chin and quietly gazed at the female insect: "I said, doesn't it hurt?"

"Or do you enjoy getting beaten up?"

His tone was harsh, and his expression was blank as he looked at Ashel.

"I……"

Ash was stung by the male insect's cold gaze, opened his mouth, but didn't know how to answer.

Cen Li didn't know what kind of reply he wanted to hear.

It hurts, of course it hurts...

No matter how many times he was injured, Ashel would still feel pain.

He also doesn't like being hit.

No insect likes to be beaten...

They simply didn't have the right to choose.

Humiliation Value +2

Humiliation Value +2

……

As Cen Li listened to the slowly rising numbers in his ears, he felt no joy whatsoever.

He raised his hand, gesturing for Ashel to bend down.

But then, just as the female insect obediently complied and closed her eyes, the movement paused.

At such close range, Cen Li could even clearly see every single hair on Ash's face.

And his eyelashes trembled with unease.

A vague, indescribable look flashed in Cen Li's eyes.

So Ashel is afraid too.

Cen Li's actions just now misled Ashel into thinking that he was going to slap him.

Just like Mihalyu...

Cen Li's hand slid up Ashir's cheek, feeling the warmth on his skin, without the pain the female insect had imagined.

Ashel tentatively opened his eyes slightly.

He met Cen Li's dark, unreadable eyes.

"If you're afraid, then avoid it next time."

"just me,"

Cen Li paused for a moment: "Only then can I hit you."

As he spoke, Cen Li increased the pressure on his hand, his fingertips brushing against the swollen area on Ash'er's face, and he gently pinched it.

Seeing the female insect's brow furrow slightly in pain, he relaxed his grip a little.

Then, he continued with cold and sarcastic remarks.

"Got it?"

"You got beaten up, and the ones you took out to throw away were my bugs."

After a long while, Ash blinked, trying to understand the true meaning of the lord's words.

Confused.

It seems that the ruler never took him with him when he went out; he usually took his favorite West Asian concubines with him.

But Ashel did not refute Cen Li, so he went along with the lord's words.

"...I'll remember that, my lord."