He Zhuo shook off his previous gloom and said with a smile, "No, let's talk about it when we get to the mountain."
Qiu Su felt guilty for making He Zhuo wait so long on an empty stomach, so once she got up the mountain, she planned to have someone catch a few rabbits so she could roast them herself later. He Zhuo usually did these things, so this time he naturally told Qiu Su to go back and rest, and went off to do his own thing. Qiu Su watched He Zhuo leave with the rabbit trap, then went to the kitchen and asked someone to prepare a charcoal stove. Pei Yuan, on the other hand, returned to his small building, looking rather jealous.
As soon as Fang returned to the courtyard, Huang Tao ran over happily. She first hugged the mountain master's head and rubbed it for a while until it felt comfortable. Then she said to him, "Mountain master, be good. I will raise a pair of little white rabbits in the future. They will be named Xiaobai and Xiaoguai. You can't bite them, okay? If you are good, I will cook bones for you to eat later."
The mountain lord wiggled his ears, and Huang Tao happily said, "The mountain lord is the most obedient. How about I raise the rabbits in our yard?"
The mountain lord let out a low moan.
Qiu Su always felt that talking so much to the mountain lord was like casting pearls before swine; it might sense the other's emotions, but it wouldn't understand what was being said. Of course, simple commands were still perfectly executed. Don't let its current friendly demeanor fool you; who knows, Huang Tao might bring in a rabbit, which it would devour in one or two bites.
Rabbit? Qiu Su's lips twitched. "Huang Tao, where did you put your little white rabbit?"
"It's tied to a tree on the back hill."
Qiu Su rubbed her forehead. "Tying it to a tree isn't good. Rabbits will bite through the rope. You should go check on it soon."
Huang Tao agreed and went to get it. Qiu Su went upstairs and saw Pei Yuan lying on the bed with a gentle expression. She smiled and said, "Let's go downstairs for a barbecue later."
Pei Yuan looked at Qiu Su, sighed, and said, "I feel tightness in my chest and can't eat."
Qiu Su thought of He Zhuo who had taken the rabbit sandwich out, and smiled, saying, "I guess he won't be able to eat any."
"How so?"
Qiu Su turned and went to the small couch. After lying down, she said, "It's just an estimate. I hope it's not what I think."
"Susu!" He Zhuo's voice came from downstairs.
Qiu Su turned her head and winked playfully at Pei Yuan, "We really can't eat anymore."
As soon as Qiu Su sat up, He Zhuo went upstairs, beaming, and said, "Let's go, let's kill them."
"So fast?"
He Zhuo leaned forward as if to take credit and sat down next to Qiu Su, saying, "I originally said I was going to the rabbit traps behind the mountain, hoping to catch some by nightfall, but as soon as I got to Qingyuan, I saw two rabbits tied to a tree. They were domestic rabbits."
He Zhuo finished speaking with a smug look, but his expression slowly changed. "Is Huang Tao the idiot? Who would tie something to the same tree twice?"
"I'm stupid!" After a series of footsteps, Huang Tao charged forward, her eyes blazing with anger, and yelled with her hands on her hips, "Where did you take my little Bai and Xiao Guai?"
He Zhuo's lips twitched, and he smiled ingratiatingly, saying, "I released them. I felt sorry for the two rabbits, so I released them."
Pei Yuan scoffed and sighed, "Huang Tao, don't you remember there's a wall in the kitchen behind the mountain? I bet your two rabbits are currently basking in the sunset against that wall. Tsk tsk, the sunset is infinitely beautiful, shining on the rabbit skin."
He Zhuo jumped up and yelled at Pei Yuan, "You're asking for it!"
The scene was quite grand, and it's possible it was a deliberate attempt to divert attention. Unfortunately, He Zhuo was intercepted by Huang Tao before he could even get there.
He Zhuo chuckled twice, "I thought it was a wild rabbit."
Huang Tao pursed her lips tightly, her eyes reddened, and remained silent.
"No, please! I really didn't know it was your rabbit. If I had known it was yours, I wouldn't have killed it even if you asked me to!"
Pei Yuan waved to Qiu Su and took her hand as they went downstairs.
"My wife, I knew it! What's so great about roasted rabbit? Let me take you to eat hot pot. Dog meat is much better! They say dog meat, cooked three times, is so delicious even immortals can't resist it. And if it's from a little yellow dog, wow, that would be even more fragrant!"
Qiu Su's lips twitched, and she glanced back upstairs, "Don't add fuel to the fire..."
"Ah! You dare kick me! You've gone too far!" He Zhuo shouted, interrupting Qiu Su's words.
"You're still hitting me! Have you forgotten who you are? It's just two of your rabbits, is it really that big of a deal?"
"Hey, why are you crying? I didn't even fight back!"
"Tch, you can't reason with a woman!"
He Zhuo angrily went downstairs, glared at Pei Yuan, and grabbed Qiu Su's other hand, saying, "Let's eat something else. Give her the rabbit meat later so she can hold it and play with it."
With red eyes, Huang Tao ran downstairs, stomped her foot hard in front of He Zhuo, and then ran away.
Pei Yuan wrinkled his nose and tilted his head back. He Zhuo winced in pain and tried to kick Pei Yuan, but Pei Yuan nimbly dodged it. Frustrated, He Zhuo glanced at Qiu Su, snorted, and limped out the door.
Since they didn't get to eat roast meat for dinner, Huang Tao went to the kitchen and took the rabbit meat that He Zhuo had killed and cleaned to bury. She also set up a memorial tablet on the back mountain with a big "wronged" character written on it, and hung two rabbit skins on top of the wooden tablet, which was very strange.
Qiu Su had intended to comfort Huang Tao regarding her growing animosity towards He Zhuo, but after only mentioning it once, Huang Tao blushed and glared at her with teary eyes. "Look at her, what has she done to this young girl?" After being stared at like that twice by Huang Tao with such a wronged expression, Qiu Su lost all interest in helping He Zhuo and let them continue to dislike each other.
***********************************************************
He Zhuo: Susu, I was hit hard by love, but unfortunately the force was too great and I broke my kidney.
Pei Yuan: Su Su, I've been struck by love, gently, and it's stirred my heart.
15
15. Waking up early is a common occurrence...
As summer approached, Pei Yuan's injuries were almost fully healed, and Qiu Su's sleeping place had been moved from the small couch to the bed. Now, the small couch was merely Qiu Su's resting place during the day.
Don't get the wrong idea; they're just platonic bed partners. Qiu Su wasn't sure what Pei Yuan meant either, and at one point thought he was impotent. But one night, she woke up to find a burning sensation on her lower back and realized it wasn't a matter of erectile dysfunction, but rather a matter of time. Pei Yuan said he wanted her time to get to know him better; she also wanted to know what kind of person she'd married. Although the eldest son of the Pei family had an excellent reputation, who knew what kind of despicable person he might actually be?
However, I haven't hugged myself even once in a month. It's really a case of brightness and sorrow coexisting, making me feel more lost at the same time as I'm happy, and making me doubt my own charm.
Qiu Su nestled in Pei Yuan's arms, looking down at the tent that had sprung up again, her face contorted with worry. She thought that if she weren't so incredibly ugly in his eyes, she wouldn't feel so safe. But if he didn't like her, things seemed different lately. For example, he still liked holding her hand, but it felt different now—more relaxed, more casual, yet still intimate. He still liked teasing her, but he hadn't kissed her again, which made her feel even more cherished by him.