45: Chapter 45 Taming the Cold and Aloof Young Lady

The next three days were calm and peaceful.

Under Li Taiping's control, the "Many Children, Many Blessings" sailed continuously across the vast Treasure Chest Sea.

This sea area was truly worthy of being a beginner's welfare zone; the respawn rate of supply chests was extremely high.

Xia Zhi and Yun Jinxin, who had completely adapted to life on the ship, spent their days as heartless fishing machines on the deck, holding the fishing rods that Li Taiping had replicated using the treasure basin.

They passed the boring time, hoping to see if there would be any unexpected surprises.

As for Su Mei... her daily routine consisted of applying face masks, doing beauty treatments, researching what delicious food could be found in the newly appeared kitchen, or dragging the Twin Sisters, who were also uninterested in combat, to play cards and chat in the spacious cabin.

In her words, the captain was responsible for earning money to support the family, while she was responsible for being beautiful; the division of labor was clear and perfectly reasonable.

Li Taiping couldn't be bothered to manage her.

Anyway, the ship's logistics and resources were infinitely supplied by Su Mei's treasure basin; as the greatest contributor, she could slack off if she wanted to.

For his part, in these three days, apart from occasionally spending intimate time with the girls to improve their relationships, he spent most of his time on the third-floor balcony, absorbing energy stones and consolidating his strength.

With the accumulation of infinite energy stones, he could clearly feel that the energy within his body was becoming increasingly full.

He was only a thin layer of window paper away from the peak of the good grade, which could be pierced at any moment.

The entire "Many Children, Many Blessings" was filled with a quiet and peaceful atmosphere, except for one person: Chu Mengyao.

This noble-born young lady had had a terrible time over these three days because she had been hungry for three whole days.

Su Mei provided plenty of water, but not a single grain of rice or crumb of bread had been given to her.

Of course, this was not instructed by Li Taiping.

Although he felt this young lady was a bit antisocial, he wouldn't stoop to using such low-level tactics to coerce her.

All of this was Su Mei's own decision.

In Su Mei's words: "Li Taiping, don't interfere! This woman clearly grew up being pampered, with her eyes fixed on the top of her head. If we don't teach her a lesson, she will never know how cruel this world is! We are a survival team here, not a five-star hotel. We don't support idlers, and certainly not self-righteous young ladies!"

"If she realizes her mistake and comes to you on her own initiative to fulfill her 'obligations' as a crew member, then we are good sisters. If she still holds onto her young lady airs, then let her starve! I want to see how tough her bones really are!"

To Su Mei's theory, Xia Zhi, Yun Jinxin, and the others actually all agreed.

Xia Zhi's reason was simple: a crew member without value is a burden to the team and must be made to recognize her own position.

And Yun Jinxin and the Twin Sisters simply felt that this Chu Mengyao was too cold and aloof, always looking like someone owed her money, which made people very uncomfortable.

It was time to let her suffer a bit and become more sociable.

Thus, with all the female members on the ship in agreement, a "training" plan targeting the cold and aloof young lady was quietly launched.

Although Li Taiping felt it was a bit inappropriate, after thinking about it, he didn't stop them.

Su Mei had a point; the thing a team fears most is a lack of unity.

This Chu Mengyao really needed to have her edges smoothed out.

Otherwise, if they encountered any danger in the future, if she still threw a young lady tantrum, it might kill everyone.

Thus, during these three days, while Su Mei and the others enjoyed the unlimited supply of steak, barbecue, and fresh fruit in the dining room, Chu Mengyao could only silently drink mineral water in her room, enduring the burning hunger in her stomach.

It wasn't that she hadn't thought about resisting.

But how could she resist?

On this ship, the only master was the man she looked down upon.

And the women under that man were all full of hostility towards her.

As a weak woman with no strength to truss a chicken, she had absolutely no say here.

Her proud family background, beauty, and intelligence became worthless on this cruel sea that only valued strength and survival.

On the first day, she could still rely on her pride to hold on.

On the second day, hunger had already made her dizzy and weak in her limbs.

By the third night, she felt she was about to die.

Her stomach was churning, and she felt like vomiting even when drinking water.

Lying on the cold bed, feeling her vitality slipping away bit by bit, an unprecedented fear and despair completely engulfed her.

She didn't want to die.

She was still young, and she still had a bright future ahead of her.

Her arrogant self-esteem, in the face of the threat of death, finally began to waver and then, bit by bit, collapsed.

That night, Li Taiping had just exited his cultivation state and was preparing to go to the kitchen to find a midnight snack.

Just as he walked into the second-floor hallway, he saw Su Mei, Xia Zhi, Yun Jinxin, and the Twin Sisters sneaking around and blocking a room door, not knowing what they were doing.

"What are you all doing?" Li Taiping asked curiously.

"Shh—" Su Mei immediately made a hushing gesture, then beckoned him over, lowered her voice, and said mysteriously, "Come quickly, the good show is about to begin."

Li Taiping leaned in to look and realized that the room they were blocking was Chu Mengyao's.

"What good show?"

"The training is about done."

Su Mei smiled brightly.

"This afternoon, the young lady finally couldn't hold on anymore and took the initiative to beg us for mercy."

"We sisters gave her a 'lesson' to teach her the rules of survival on this ship."

"Now, we're just waiting for our great captain to go and inspect the 'learning results'."

As she said this, Su Mei pushed Li Taiping to the front of Chu Mengyao's door without question.

"Go on, my great captain, your new crew member has already washed up and is waiting inside for your patronage."

Li Taiping hadn't reacted yet.

The women behind him had already giggled and pushed him into the room, then with a "bang," closed the door.

"Click."

From the outside, there even came the sound of the door being locked.

Li Taiping: "..."

Damn it, what are these women trying to do?

He turned around and looked into the room.

He saw that the room lights were not on; only the moonlight from outside the window spilled in hazily.

A tall and slender figure was kneeling on the floor with her back to him, her body still trembling slightly.

It was Chu Mengyao.

Hearing the door close, her weak shoulders suddenly trembled.

Then, she slowly turned around.

When he saw her appearance at this moment, even Li Taiping, who was well-experienced, couldn't help but gasp.

He saw that Chu Mengyao's face was still streaked with undried tears, and those eyes that were originally cold and arrogant were now filled with fear, humiliation, and a hint of... resigned pleading.

She looked at Li Taiping, her lips trembling for a long time, before she used a voice filled with a crying tone, as soft as a mosquito's buzz, to call out: "Mas... Master..."