At dusk, a light breeze blew beneath a cloudless azure sky.
Mo Bei deftly finished treating Yelü Qianxiao’s whip wounds, then pulled Hua Rong along for a stroll in the courtyard.
“Eunuch Mo, this one saw you take so many lashes for His Highness just now. Didn’t it hurt?” Hua Rong tugged at the slingshot, his clumsy movements enough to leave anyone speechless.
Mo Bei stared at the sparrow perched on the branch and smiled mysteriously. “I have divine arts protecting my body.” By “divine arts,” she meant a bulletproof vest. She never did anything as stupid as obediently standing there to be beaten.
Snap!
The pebble flew, the bird fell, drawing all manner of envy, jealousy, and resentment from Hua Rong.
“Eunuch Mo, may I ask where you took your master?” His big round eyes widened as he stood there like an ornament, seeking instruction.
Mo Bei rolled her eyes and handed the sparrow to him. “Watch it carefully.”
“For any task Eunuch Mo commands, this one will risk his life to the very end!” Hua Rong thrust out his chest with heroic vigor and began staring fixedly at the sparrow without blinking, big eyes against little eyes.
By now, Mo Bei could no longer be bothered with him. This fellow had either been kicked in the head by a donkey when he was young, or had burned his brains out with a fever.
Her beautiful eyes swept around once. She stood straight and drew back the sling; every movement was pleasing to the eye, her swift, ruthless, and precise technique filling Yelü Qianxiao, not far away, with amusement.
This eunuch was not simple.
Could he have been sent by that person to probe him again?
Slowly curving his lips into a cold smile, Yelü Qianxiao flicked his sleeve and leaned sideways against the doorway. No joy or anger could be read in his deep-blue pupils.
After shooting down no fewer than twenty sparrows, Mo Bei was in an excellent mood. She sent Hua Rong to light the firewood while she searched the courtyard for other things to eat.
For instance, wild renxing greens, grasshopper greens, and inconspicuous little sweet dates—all were picked by Mo Bei, and the delight on her pretty face was plain to see.
“Your Highness, everything’s ready. Hurry over!” She waved at Yelü Qianxiao, washed the wild greens and fruits clean with water from the courtyard well, and hummed a little tune, entirely relaxed and at ease.
Yelü Qianxiao very, very obediently came over, his body automatically sticking to Mo Bei’s side, a foolish smile on his face. “The fire, the fire’s lit!” What exactly was this little eunuch doing? Picking grass to feed him?
“Just wait nicely and drool!” Mo Bei pinched his face, tenderness gathering in her smiling eyes. She had great confidence in her cooking skills. After all, she had once raised a Pumpkin before. Thinking of that little glutton, her pretty face dimmed somewhat. Just where had she gone?
Hua Rong had always lacked the slightest sense of timing. Holding the sparrows, he walked over. “Eunuch Mo, words may be spoken carelessly, but food cannot be eaten carelessly! If these grasses aren’t eaten properly, they’ll poison you!”
“You can choose not to eat.” Coldly tossing out those few words, Mo Bei crushed the little sweet dates and smeared the juice over the sparrow meat, her face full of disdain as she looked at Hua Rong. These were all pure natural green vegetables; in a supermarket they would sell for twenty yuan a catty. Ancient people simply didn’t know their value!
Hua Rong had originally wanted to reply with great backbone, “Then I won’t eat.” But the fragrance wafting into his nose made him swallow very spinelessly. He felt that matters of backbone could wait until after his stomach was full.
“Your Highness, here!” Mo Bei handed over a sparrow roasted until it dripped oil and said with a beaming smile, “When we have the conditions in the future, I’ll make you your favorite boiled fish.” As she spoke, she was completely unaware that she had started raising Yelü Qianxiao as if he were Pumpkin. She only felt that those puppy-like, trusting eyes were enough to give anyone a sense of accomplishment.
Yelü Qianxiao stared foolishly at the sparrow in his palm. To eat, or not to eat?
He did not believe there could be a servant who would treat him this well for no reason at all.