In the chilly winter, the biting wind was howling through the desolate streets. It was late at night, and there were hardly any people around. It was eerily quiet, with only the bone-chilling wind breaking the silence.

In a shadowy corner, a little girl was shivering.

Her name was Lankai.

Lankai's clothes were tattered and did nothing to ward off the freezing wind. She was shivering violently, her lips turning white. She was indisputably freezing.

Out of the blue, a man walked by in the pitch-dark night, his face void of any expressions.

He was dressed in a long black coat, and his tall figure gave away that he was merely passing by, presumably in a hurry to get somewhere.

In the corner, upon hearing someone passing by, Lankai seemed to be desperate to find a warm shelter from her bitter cold suffering.

Therefore, she spoke softly. Her innocent and pure eyes held no understanding of the improbability of her request.

"Sir, can you take me in?"

The little girl's voice was barely audible, as she didn't have much strength left to talk. However, the stillness of the night carried her words to the man.

He instinctively turned back after hearing her.

Upon noticing the little girl huddled in the corner, his eyebrows furrowed slightly. Nonetheless, he was silent. After taking a glance, he turned around indifferently, appearing to leave.

He appeared truly indifferent, as cold as the winter wind that chilled to the bone.

Realizing that he had ignored her, Lankai understood that he had no intent to take her in. However, perhaps it was a sense of desperation, or maybe because she was overwhelmingly cold, her thoughts were fixed on finding a warm place.

Consequently, she softly spoke once more. This time, her voice echoed a faint trace of hope and pleading.

"Sir, would you take me in?"

What she said was exactly the same as before. It seemed that, apart from this sentence, there wasn't anything else she could say.

However, it was precisely her words – the second repetition, exact in every syllable – that made the man stop in his tracks.

Although the man indeed stopped moving, he didn't turn around.

With his back facing Lan Ke, he stood in silence for a moment before finally turning and walking towards her. Then, he squatted down in front of her, humbling his noble posture.

Opposite him, Lan Ke shivered in the cold. Her eyes were pure and innocent, not tainted by a trace of human vices.

Seeing that the man was willing to acknowledge her, she reached out her trembling hand, grasping his clothing and giving it a little tug. Again, she repeated her question.

"Sir, would you take me in?"

This was the third time. She had asked the same question three times, her words never changing, remaining intact each time.

Upon hearing these words, the man's eyes flashed with an odd brilliance. His hesitant heart finally made a decision inspired by her persistent request.

He took the initiative to hold her small hand, helped her up and lead her away.

He didn’t ask anything, he simply took her in.

When they returned home, after the servant had helped her clean up and change into new clothes, and she stood in front of him, he looked at her. And, she too, was quietly observing him.

In their mutual gaze, the man impassively averted his eyes. He walked to a nearby sofa and sat down, finally speaking in a light and subdued voice.

"Where are your parents?"

His question was simple, much like his character. Over here, upon hearing this, Lan Ke's eyes trembled slightly as she responded.

"I don't know, I'm an orphan from the earthquake. I was sent to the welfare institute when I was too young to remember."

By this time, the man had already walked over to the sofa and sat down. He had a regal posture, as if he were a natural-born nobleman. He watched Lan Ke in silence for a moment before asking,

"What's your name?"

Lan Ke didn't dare to approach and sit, so she remained standing there, innocently staring at him with her reply, as though her previous words didn't betray much of a grief-stricken sentiment to a familial farewell.

"Lan Ke."

Upon hearing this name, the man raised an eyebrow. Then, he extended his hand towards her, beckoning her over, and asked,

"Why are you alone on the street?"

Over here, Lan Ke noticed his gesture, she was momentarily stunned and, thoughtlessly, she approached, while also answering him,

"Some people bullied me, they hit me, so I ran out. But now, I can't find my way home."

While saying this, Lan Ke maintained a calm expression.

As if, being beaten and bullied was a regular occurrence to her, nothing to be surprised about.

When Lan Ke finished speaking, she had just walked up to the man, and his hand grasped hers.

As soon as he grabbed her hand, he tugged it forcefully and swiftly, pulling Lan Ke into his arms.

Then, he looked at Lan Ke up close, a flicker of a peculiar glint appeared in the man's eyes again. He asked, still with an emotionless face.

"Do you know the price you have to pay after I took you in?"

There's no such thing as a free lunch in this world.

Lanke in his arms was stunned. She was no longer a little girl, already all grown up, so vaguely, she started to understand the implicit meaning of his words.

She took a tremble in her gaze, silently lowered her head, and responded,

"I know."

Hearing this, a strange light flickered in the man's eyes again. He was not a philanthropist, there were so many orphans at the welfare institute, it was impossible for him to help each one.

In this world, there's indeed no such thing as free lunch.

Therefore, for him to provide material support, he must obtain something equivalent in return.

Looking at the girl in his arms, the man began to reach for her neck, deepening his touch, stopping in the region of her collarbone, and asked without any emotion on his face,

"Even if it comes to this, would you still be willing?"

The meaning behind his words was clear, although he didn't extend his hand further, it was only inches away. In his arms, Lanke was surprisingly calm, she wrapped her arms around him, a hint of fear disclosed on her face, but very subtle. She muttered,

"I don't want to starve anymore, it's cold on the streets in winter. Sir, please give me shelter."

Saying this, she fully plastered herself onto him, making their bodies as one.

By her side, the strange light in the man's eyes flickered again. He drew out his hand, only gently held her tight. Instead of looking at her, he simply glanced forward, emotionlessly responding with a quiet affirmation.

"Okay."

Then, carrying her in his arms, he walked towards the second floor. In a soft voice, he said,

"From now on, you can call me Mr. Shen."

He only gave her his surname, not even willing to give her his own name. In his arms, Lan Ke stayed quietly, knowing what was coming next, but she didn't resist.

She was so hungry that she couldn't eat at all. Back in the orphanage, even in the bitter cold of winter, the only food they had was solid, cold cornbread.

There were too many orphans, and the orphanage didn't have enough funds to care for all these pitiful children.

When they reached the second floor and entered the bedroom, when he gently put her on the bed, Lan Ke's face still remained calm.

Maybe she didn't care about her body anymore.

Or perhaps, when she couldn't even afford to eat, she was forced not to care about her body.

She needed food, she wanted to wear nice clothes, she wished to not feel cold in the winter, to not spend nights in the corners of the streets, wishes that were so simple.

On one side, the man watched her with a blank expression. He propped himself up on both arms either side of her head, just watching silently, not touching her immediately.

Meanwhile, underneath him, the eyes of this little girl looked so innocent.

At least, in his world, this was the first time he had seen eyes so innocent, devoid of any cunning or darkness.

Because of those eyes, for the first time, he bought a toy back but didn't immediately start playing with it.

With a blank expression, he moved her body to the middle of the bed, then he lay down himself, pulled the blanket over them, hugged her in his arms, and closed his eyes to sleep.

At one side, Lan noticed he hadn't touched her. She seemed to pause for a moment, hesitating slightly before asking, "Mr. Shen, you...?"

Upon hearing this, he did not open his eyes. He only tightened his arms that were holding her, giving a faint impression of wanting to pull her closer into his embrace. As he did this, he softly replied, "The night is too deep. Let's save it for next time."

Heh, what he said was to leave it for next time, not that he wouldn't touch her; after all, he was not a philanthropist. Since he had purchased a toy, how could he possibly resist playing with it?

Hearing his words, Lan seemed to feel more at ease. She never owed anyone anything. Therefore, since he provided her with material support, she knew her obligation, and she definitely wouldn't try to evade that.

Cocooned in this man's arms, Lan fell into a deep sleep. Finally, she was not left in the cold street to sleep. The howling cold wind, which lifted the garbage into the air, was heart-crushingly cold.

This man, whose breath was as cold as the wind, his embrace was warm. At least for tonight, both her body and heart were warm.

As the long night went on, time slipped away second by second. There were still plenty of orphans like her in the world, the natural disasters caused by heavens or human greed had left countless children suffering.

Now, she could sleep peacefully, because a wealthy capitalist was willing to shelter her. Yet, out there on the streets, many more orphans shivered in the frigid wind, waiting for someone kind-hearted to take them in.

One can only say, she is rather the lucky one.

On the next day, as the first thread of winter sun shone in, Lan Ke woke up. Once she opened her eyes, the first thing she saw was his handsome face.

At this moment, looking at him from such a close distance, Lan Ke realised, this man, is truly handsome.

While looking, she couldn't help but reach out to touch his face.

However, before Lan Ke's hand could reach, he woke up. His eyes, instantly opened.

Moreover, compared to the indifference from last night, these eyes are even colder now.

Those eyes, could even emit a cold light.