She wasn't sure whether this person was really a naive flower, or pretending to be one, so she cautiously asked, "Since you've rescued us, why do you keep us locked in the room?"
Since he could see them now anyway, she didn't bother hiding anymore and asked directly.
The white-robed gentleman said confusedly, "I have you locked in the room?"
"After we woke up, we wanted to leave the room and take a look outside, but couldn't open the door."
A look of surprise appeared on the handsome face of the white-robed gentleman, "The door isn't locked, it slides open, like this..."
He extended both hands as if holding the door frame, then slid them from the left to the right.
Wen Ran's eyes widened.
After living in this world for so many years, she had completely forgotten about sliding doors!
The gentleman naively asked again, "If you couldn't open the door, how did you get out?"
Wen Ran: "..."
Don't mention it, she suddenly felt like her clever escape earlier was akin to a circus monkey's act.
This white gentleman was still eagerly awaiting Wen Ran's answer.
Wen Ran wisely changed the topic, "My friend and I accidentally fell off a cliff the other day, thanks to your rescue, may I ask for your esteemed name so we can repay the favor someday?"
"Everyone calls me White Gentleman; you can call me that too."
"White Gentleman," Wen Ran continued with polite words, "we are immensely grateful for the life-saving grace and will certainly send you a gift of thanks when we leave."
"Are you in a hurry to leave?"
Wen Ran observed his expression. His question seemed casual, without deeper intentions, and his look was purely naive, so she replied, "We've suddenly disappeared without a trace; our family and friends must be very worried and are likely urgently searching for us, so we can't stay here longer."
He said, "You're different from those I've met before."
Wen Ran thought of the group of beautiful girls surrounding him not long ago and dryly chuckled twice, "Really?"
He nodded, "They don't want to leave; only you and that sleeping girl have the idea of leaving."
The sleeping girl was Qiu Shui, still lying on the ground.
"Those girls... are all people you rescued?"
The White Gentleman nodded again, then started counting on his fingers, "Miss Li sold herself to bury her father, and I felt sorry for her, so I gave her money and she said she wanted to follow me. Miss Wang was about to fall on the road, I helped her and she said she must repay me, even offering her life. Miss Zhao said her heart disease was cured after I passed by her, claiming I have a great favor on her and she wants to repay me too..."
Wen Ran watched as he counted more than one hand and was speechless for a while, asking, "White Gentleman, haven't you refused these girls?"
"I have refused them," he sighed heavily, "but when I tell them not to follow, they cry heartbrokenly. They cry so sadly that I couldn't utter the words to send them away. Is the outside world that scary? Why don't they want to return?"
White Gentleman was baffled.
Wen Ran suddenly felt that the word "White" was indeed fitting for him, and she guessed that the scholarly men she'd met before had stayed for the same reasons.
White Gentleman emerged from his worry, his alluring gaze captivating, "Miss, you are so beautiful; before you leave, may I ask you a few questions?"
Being called beautiful by a man whose looks surpassed any woman's, Wen Ran felt peculiar, "What would you like to ask?"
"What kind of person do girls like you—so beautiful—prefer?"
Wen Ran replied without thinking, "As long as they're not mentally challenged and look decent, it's fine."
It wasn't about being gentle and patient, nor knowledgeable and ambitious, and White Gentleman felt he'd learned something new upon hearing this standard for the first time.
He habitually attempted to take out a notebook to jot it down, only to realize the notebook holding many insights had been misplaced.
The gentleman could only wistfully remark, "You all are so beautiful; she must have similar thoughts."
"Who is 'she' you mentioned?"
"A kind girl." A faint blush appeared on White Gentleman's painterly features, "She saved me once."
"The girl you mentioned, does she wear red clothes often?"
The gentleman's eyes lit up, "Yes, do you know her?"
Due to his excessive excitement, the end of his sentence sharpened like a woman's voice, not only the voice but he himself changed.
His features became more delicate and beautiful, his figure thinner, and before Wen Ran's eyes, this extraordinarily handsome man transformed into a ravishingly beautiful woman.
This woman was the same one that had the two scholars vying passionately.
Wen Ran's guess was confirmed. Upon seeing large expanses of pear trees earlier, she'd guessed the owner must be the third male lead in the story, who was infatuated with the female lead but couldn't win her love.
A recently formed, naive and innocent Tree Demon, like a child.
Before Qin Susu was taken to Ascension Immortal Mansion by Qin Wanwan, during her early years, she'd seen a pear tree on the verge of withering and occasionally went to water the tree, eventually saving it.
This tree turned out to be the third male lead, ranking behind the youthful Immortal Monarch and the enchanting Demon Lord, a young Tree Demon that evokes maternal instincts.
Pear trees have no gender distinction, so before determining a gender, he kept switching between the two genders.
And now, this gender-fluctuating young lady eagerly asked, "You know her, right? So you must know what kind of person she prefers!"
Facing the female Tree Demon, Wen Ran's pounding heart finally calmed down, so she calmly said, "I think the person she likes must be a man."
He realized, "So, she likes men."
The Tree Demon determines its gender upon taking human form; however, he had been uncertain whether the girl he favored liked men or women, delaying settling on gender.
He alternately learned from men and women, aiming to win the girl's heart upon reunion.
This also explains why young men and women have recently vanished in Fengyue City, and why those who disappeared were all attractive; it's because he believed that beautiful people's thoughts would be similar.