Lea looked at Gu Mengmeng and moved his face closer. “Kiss me and I will tell you.”


  Gu Mengmeng didn’t pretend to be coy and gave Lea a big smack on the lips. “Mmm, tell me.”


  Lea cupped Gu Mengmeng’s little face and kissed her on each cheek before he was finally satisfied. Only then did he reply, “Make use of her mouth to transmit the message to someone.”


  “Someone?” Gu Mengmeng didn’t understand.

  Lea looked up at the skies with a cool smile. He stroked Gu Mengmeng’s palm with his fingers and said casually, “If you wish to witness a person’s pain, the easiest way is to give him hope, before crushing it viciously. Those years in the past, when I was a floundering mess, he was more than happy to offer me a point of support, before snatching it away just as I finally managed to climb up. Just so he could see me once again fall back into the the abyss……”


  Going by his words, Gu Mengmeng immediately knew who that “someone” was.

  Frowning, Gu Mengmeng asked in a soft voice, “Are you saying that Maya is under Cole?”


  Lea gave Gu Mengmeng a sideway glance as he chuckled at her wide, clear eyes. “I really love this wide-eyed, guileless expression of yours.”


  Gu Mengmeng snorted dismissively but Lea caressed her little head and said, “I am serious. This world is too ugly and there is no need for you to know of or think about such filthy matters. Just leave them to me and Elvis to handle. You just maintain your innocence and let us help you cleanse this world.”


  With that, Lea cupped the back of Gu Mengmeng’s head and kissed her brow. “Being so trusted and relied upon by you gives me a great sense of achievement.”


  Gu Mengmeng kept quiet but her eyes dimmed. She turned to look at Elvis behind her. “Did you also know that Maya is under Cole?”


  Elvis nodded. “Her appearance was too much of a coincidence. Lea and I had just thought of building a tribe, and this female kidnapped by stray beasts appeared before us……”


  Was this the notion of always be suspicious when a pillow suddenly appeared the moment thoughts of sleep entered your head?

  Gu Mengmeng recalled that during the first year after they became partners, Elvis had shared with her some stories of how he and Lea had build up the tribe, as part of efforts to persuade her to accept Lea.

  Elvis told her that Maya was Saint Nazaire’s first female.

  She had not thought much of it then, but she now realized the significance after hearing it again……

  Ha, another one of Cole’s evil schemes?

  You want to build a tribe? Fine, I will give you a female. Go ahead and do so. After you finish building it and believe that you have the power to go against me—I will personally destroy your tribe and watch as the hope in your eyes get incinerated until only the ashes of despondency remain……

  Ha, it really did felt like Cole’s style of doing things.

  “You already knew but you still rescued her?” Gu Mengmeng furrowed her brows.

  Lea gazed at Gu Mengmeng as if she was little kid and chuckled. His expression was full of affection and doting.

  “I am a fox after all.” Lea waved his tail. “Aren’t foxes the best at eating up the bait set in traps before vanishing to a hideout to watch the hunter jumping around in rage?”


  Gu Mengmeng paused before smiling.

  A normal person would naturally steer clear of danger. On knowing that something was a trap, the first instinct of anyone would be to avoid and run away.

  Stealing chestnuts straight out of a fire……

  It was not her style, but it must be said that Lea was right.

  Using Cole’s bait to build a Saint Nazaire that Cole could not destroy. This meant that Lea had not been always under Cole’s thumb. All the wretchedness he had endured was for a greater purpose…… something like luring the enemy into deep waters? Ha, her fox was so cunning, but she liked it.