Chapter 115: None Are to Be Trifled With

The moment Gu Mian spoke, everyone at the table stiffened.

But Shen Mqing was the first to recover. He leaned in, a gossipy look on his face. "If you and the female are a couple, doesn’t that make the Young Master the...?"

"Are you tired of living?" Yin Zhi spat out the words coldly. He was about to fly into a rage, but Wen Qian had grabbed his tail where no one could see.

’He had only done it out of boredom, just wanting to hook her calf with his tail. Who would have thought...’

Yin Zhi’s threat was highly effective; Shen Mqing immediately shut up and focused on eating his porridge.

’In the Beast World, poaching someone’s mate was a common occurrence. It was just... for it to be Yin Zhi, that was a bit...’

’The Young Master of the Tiger Clan, becoming the other man for love! If word of this got out, it would cause an uproar!’

Shen Mqing shot him a glance, his expression unreadable. ’When the time comes, should I discourage him or support him...?’

"But Qianqian said she’d take care of me," the previously silent Little Fox suddenly spoke up, his big, fluffy tail swaying a few times behind him.

"Take care of you how? As a s—MMH." Before Yin Zhi could finish his sentence, Wen Qian pinched his tail again. He gave her an aggrieved look, but seeing her calm expression, he could only lower his head.

Their little exchange did not go unnoticed. Chi Heng’s tail drooped listlessly, his wolf-like face betraying no emotion.

The man beside him, Chi Ye, shot him an exasperated look. ’How can he just sit there at a time like this?’ he thought, frustrated that his nephew wasn’t living up to his potential.

’See? See? When it matters most, you still have to rely on your old uncle!’

The man stroked his chin, a knowing look on his face. He then turned to Wen Qian with a grin. "You know, our Wolf Clan is the most devoted clan in the entire Beast World. We love only one person our entire lives. To put it in Blue Star terms... there are no divorces, only widowhood..."

"So if you were being abused, you’d just have to obediently wait for... MMH." The Little Fox’s tail also got a pinch from Wen Qian.

He stared at her with wide, dewy fox eyes, a look of utter disbelief on his face.

’This is exhausting,’ she thought. ’No, it’s beyond exhausting.’

Wen Qian had already figured out their weak spots—it was either their ears or their tails. Gu Mian, sitting primly to the side, glanced over at them. His grip on his spoon tightened, but his tone was mild as he said, "Let’s just eat."

Ling Xuan seemed to understand what Gu Mian meant: he just wanted the others to be quiet.

’But he didn’t dare say it aloud,’ he thought. ’Because apart from Li Jiu, there wasn’t a single person at this table you could afford to provoke...’

As he thought this, his gaze fell to the spot beside him. The chair was empty, but on the table, a palm-sized creature was pecking at an apple. PECK, PECK, PECK.

He let out a long sigh of relief. ’The Hundred Bird Clan really is the most good-natured and the easiest to care for.’

After dinner, it was time to assign rooms. Yin Zhi refused to share with the Little Fox and, at the same time, gallantly offered to give his own room to someone else.

Everyone, of course, knew what he was scheming, so they all offered to share rooms with each other.

"That’s not necessary. It’s late, and everyone’s tired. I’ll just stay with..."

"It’s no trouble," Gu Mian cut in, ignoring Yin Zhi’s murderous glare.

Ling Xuan was torn, and finally looked to Yin Zhi for help.

"Forget it. Just let Ling Xuan handle it," Yin Zhi said with a curl of his lip. If he couldn’t be with Wen Qian, it didn’t matter where he stayed.

And so, the final arrangement was one room each for Wen Qian, the Little Fox, Gu Mian, Chi Ye, and Chi Heng, with Ling Xuan and Li Jiu sharing.

Li Jiu always liked being in his little bird form, so it didn’t matter who he roomed with. Besides, among this group, his status was arguably the most humble.

Worried he might bump into Li Jiu in his sleep, Ling Xuan found a soft blanket in the storage closet. He then took the woven basket that had come with a fruit delivery and fashioned it into a simple nest.

Li Jiu much preferred the nest to the bed; it was soft, warm, and the perfect size.

He chirped with joy, flapping his wings and spinning in circles over the nest. He kept spinning until he made himself dizzy... then tumbled crookedly into the nest and fell asleep.

Around two in the morning, everyone went back to their respective rooms.

A moment later, the lights in the main hall went out.

Back in her room, Wen Qian unwound the silk scarf from her neck, revealing the mark the Little Fox had left earlier. She rubbed the bridge of her nose in resignation. ’Why is every single one of them such a handful?’

After a moment, she walked into the bathroom and turned the knob to fill the tub.

After a quick soak, Wen Qian changed into a soft, clean bathrobe. She collapsed wearily onto the bed and fell asleep in moments.

The past few days had been utterly hectic. Leaving early and coming home late had completely destroyed her normal routine.

She’d been drowsy all day long as a result, yet she could never manage to fall into a deep sleep.

Her dreams were a chaotic mess.

There were dreams of the Beastmen, dreams of Blue Star, and dreams of the disaster from twenty years ago.

In her dream, she saw a woman of breathtaking beauty. The inner corners of her eyes curved gently downward, and her long, brown hair was slightly wavy. She wore a strange robe and, amidst the chaos, calmly collected blue crystalline objects from the ground.

After some time, the woman returned to Wen Qian’s side. She leaned down and placed a kiss on her forehead, her eyes filled with tenderness and longing.

The dreaming Wen Qian was in a trance. ’So this is what Mom looks like in my dreams...’

She had conjured an exquisitely beautiful face for her mother, one untouched by the passage of time. She was radiant and lovely, like a flower.

Sunlight streamed through a crack in the curtains, and Wen Qian briefly surfaced into consciousness before quickly drifting off again.

She was simply too exhausted. Her nerves, stretched taut for so long without a moment’s rest, finally gave way.

She slept so soundly that for the next few hours, she didn’t even dream.

The Beastmen all woke up earlier than Wen Qian, but by some unspoken agreement, none of them woke her. They each went about their own business.

When Wen Qian awoke, it was nearly noon. She glanced at the clock, a flicker of confusion in her eyes. ’I really slept in,’ she thought. ’It’s already eleven-thirty.’

The mark on her neck still hadn’t completely faded, so Wen Qian chose a turtleneck sweater as she usually did.

Unlike the day before, today’s was a pale yellow, which she paired with a red wool coat, giving her a vibrant look.

Li Jiu seemed to adore her outfit. He kept circling around her, his little beak chirping nonstop. Amused, Wen Qian asked Yin Zhi what he was doing. Yin Zhi explained that those two colors were Li Jiu’s absolute favorites...

Seeing Wen Qian dressed in his two favorite colors, he was so happy he was practically flying.

Ever since discovering how well Gu Mian could cook, Ling Xuan made a point to vacate the kitchen whenever the other man came near. He, too, was looking forward to seeing what Gu Mian would make for lunch.

’He would never admit that he was just craving the food,’ he told himself. ’He was doing this for the Young Master... Know your enemy and know yourself, and you can win a hundred battles, after all!’

’Once I master Gu Mian’s cooking skills, I can help the Young Master win over the human!’