“The opportunity is good, you can go and cause trouble for Yeli, but you can’t touch Saina.” Shaking her head, she still disapproved of Garlo’s petty nature. “Between you and him, to be honest, there hasn’t been any actual harm done. Why hold such a grudge?”
“Him capturing Tuge doesn’t count? You know how important Tuge is to us.” Glaring at her resentfully, Garlo said unhappily, “If Tuge hadn’t known how to use the sleeping plants to save himself and escape, he would’ve been killed by Saina long ago.”
“Actually, Tuge wasn’t harmed.” Sha Yi emphasized again. “He only took Tuge away at first, which proves he had no intention of killing him. Otherwise, he could’ve just done it in the cave where you were staying. Why go through the trouble of moving Tuge elsewhere? That would’ve been pointless.”
Seeing her defend Saina, Garlo immediately expressed his displeasure: “Saina has always been ruthless. If it weren’t for him, none of this mess would’ve happened, and we might not even have encountered Yeli!”
“That may be true, and Saina isn’t entirely innocent, but during the chaos, how were you any different? Besides, if you hadn’t been the first to cause trouble, we wouldn’t even be here. So, in the end, it’s your fault—you’re the instigator!” Garlo left no room for tact, so she saw no need to hold back either. Often, he was different from others—while some needed encouragement, he frequently needed to be put in his place. His arrogance was just too much!
“So it’s my fault? I didn’t even know you back then!” Glaring at her, Garlo’s anger flared again. “If it weren’t for him meddling, I wouldn’t have stabbed Xiyi, and I wouldn’t have been tricked by you. You should speak with your conscience!”
“If you hadn’t robbed, kidnapped, and schemed, would Saina have had the chance to use your actions against us?” Sha Yi shot back, equally annoyed. “Don’t call yourself the instigator—you’re the real culprit.”
Garlo seemed to hate her saying that. In just a moment, his glare turned almost desperate: “That’s not fair. How am I the culprit? Am I really that bad?”
“Think about it—if you’d never shown up, would Saina have had this opportunity?” Sha Yi frowned. “You always blame others. Why don’t you ever look at your own faults?”
“Well, I don’t care. If it weren’t for him, my perfect plan wouldn’t have fallen apart!” Every time this topic came up, Garlo couldn’t help but rage. “And you—how can you side with him after all he’s done? I’m so much better, yet you treat me like this!”
With those words, Garlo once again took on the demeanor of a resentful spouse. Sha Yi was stunned but had to retort: “Honestly, you’re not much better than Saina. But for now, the three of us—you, me, and Saina—have put aside our grudges. I won’t say it’s perfect, but you’d better not cause trouble. Otherwise, you and Tuge can go back where you came from. We don’t have time for your nonsense!”
“You clearly favor those two more!” Garlo huffed arrogantly, his anger boiling over. He looked like a caged beast on the verge of exploding. “I just don’t get it—how can you trust someone who even schemes against his own people? Where’s the reliability in that?”
“Whether he’s reliable or not, we’ll see in time. Stop making baseless accusations.” Exasperated by Garlo’s rambling, Sha Yi lost her patience. “In short, do what you want, but tread carefully with Saina. Push him too far, and you’ll regret it!”
“I don’t believe that. And don’t expect me to side with Saina.” Garlo spoke hatefully, clearly determined to oppose Saina at all costs. “I’ll do what I have to do!”
“Then go set the fire. If I can’t stop you, I won’t waste my breath. Maybe it’s best if all three of you perish together—then there’d be peace!” Pointing at the door, Sha Yi waved dismissively, signaling for Garlo to leave.
Her words jolted him, and his expression shifted to sudden realization: “So that’s why you were so desperate to stop me from clashing with Saina again—you were just playing around! You actually want me and them to die over there so Xiyi can benefit, don’t you? I knew it… I knew it…”
Garlo grew angrier as he spoke, nearly jumping in frustration.
Sha Yi, however, felt much more amused.
Though she found Garlo’s erratic temper and occasional idiocy exasperating, the current situation was actually favorable. At least his misunderstanding worked in her favor—an unintended advantage.
Of course, she’d forgotten that Garlo was exactly this kind of person. If she’d steered the conversation back earlier, he might’ve happily taken the bait without her needing to exhaust herself.
Now, Sha Yi simply played along: “I’m surprised you figured that out.”
True to form, Garlo erupted into a furious tirade, his eyes blazing with rage. He felt toyed with—though, given how often she outmaneuvered him, he probably didn’t care much. What truly infuriated him was her defense of Saina. His anger was so intense he nearly flipped the crude wooden table in the brick house.
Luckily, she reacted quickly and held it down, forcing him to back off with a sulk.
Watching Garlo’s tantrum, Sha Yi struggled not to laugh, letting the furious man pace in circles.
Finally, unable to contain himself, Garlo pointed at her and declared: “I can tolerate Xiyi, but not Saina! He’s no better than me—he’s vile, always scheming and stealing from me. Fine, I’ll leave Yeli for later, but Saina? I’m roasting him first!”
Seeing the focus shift again, Sha Yi sighed helplessly: “Between Yeli and Saina, can’t you tell which is the bigger problem?”
“They’re both terrible!”
“All I’ll say is this—if you insist on settling scores with Saina, wait until after we deal with Yeli. But targeting Saina first is absolutely not an option!” Her tone turned serious. “Otherwise, we might just take you out first.”
Garlo was stunned: “Why?”
“Before Yeli arrived, Saina coexisted peacefully with us. He can continue that way.”
“But he captured me!”
“That was because you falsely accused someone. The eavesdropper that time was Yelai—Saina was just following Yeli and Manlun’s orders. You misunderstood him. Given your impulsiveness and his poor impression of you, what else could he do?”
“So you’re saying I should prioritize everything and deal with Yeli first?” Garlo frowned, confused. “Did Saina give you some guarantee? Is it trustworthy?”
“He promised not to be our enemy again. And the fact that I’m still alive is partly thanks to him. You saw his injuries—even now, he’s not fully healed. I believe him.”
“You only trust him!” Garlo sulked, his expression shifting from confusion to resentment. “He’s got so few people—what help can he be? And Yeli’s already ambushing him. You’re not even planning to help him. Either he won’t last long, or he’ll join Yeli. Then you’ll see the consequences!”
“We don’t need to help each other. Just remember one thing—stay on the same side. Whether he escapes Yeli or deals him a blow is up to him. If he dies, that’s on him.” Sha Yi shook her head. “As for betraying us for Yeli, I don’t think Saina would do that. And Yeli wouldn’t allow it anyway.”
“Talking like this makes me think you know everything.” Muttering, Garlo abruptly changed the subject. “Fine, I’ll listen to you. But give me a lighter. Otherwise, with Yeli’s numbers, we’ll miss our chance. This opportunity won’t come again—his next target is us.”
“Remember your promise.” Walking to the bathtub, Sha Yi took one of the few remaining lighters from the box and handed it to him. “Don’t lose it. If Yeli gets his hands on this, not just Saina, but all of us—and many others—will be doomed.”
Unable to bear her threats, Garlo snatched the lighter and stormed off, grumbling all the way.
Outside, night had fallen. Due to Garlo’s sudden appearance, aside from Tuge—whom Masa had sent away—others had also been dismissed by Xiyi, both to conceal Garlo’s presence and because they hadn’t eaten yet.
After nearly two days of work, food and rest had taken priority, and everyone was busy enjoying themselves.
No one noticed Garlo.
But the unpredictable man, just before leaving, spotted two pieces of roasted meat Masa had left nearby.
In an instant, he darted toward the fire like an arrow, grabbing the charred meat before she could react.
Then, with a triumphant grin, he took a huge bite—only to yelp in pain as the scalding meat burned his mouth.
Sha Yi burst out laughing.
Glaring at her in misery, he waved the meat in her face.
A moment later, the rich, greasy aroma of roasted meat hit her, and her stomach churned uncomfortably.
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