248 Untitled (1/2)

”It is of the highest honor to pick firewood for the Empress herself, and even more to light the fire to cook the deer that will fill Her Grace's stomach,” responded Zhangsun Wuji solemnly. ”No matter what, picking is better than throwing away.”

'Double meaning! Someone is playing with puns again, who was thrown away? Clearly, he was the one who threw me aside, alright? Why was the one complaining always him first? The pot calling the kettle black? Why did he always have to make me feel guilty of every little thing?'

Angered, Meng Fuyao put her hands on her hips and turned around. ”I!” She announced loudly.

Zhangsun Wuji smiled as he watched her, his eyes slightly moist.

”—will go pick the firewood…”

Meng Fuyao got off her horse and hadn't straightened herself when her vision went dark. In an instant, she had been swept into a warm embrace.

That person still carried the faint fragrance, but it seemed to have become stronger, carrying a faint snow or jade-like coolness, striking and noble, yet his embrace was hot like the spring sun.

Meng Fuyao sighed and held onto his shoulders, then turned to lean against him quietly, not saying a word.

She heard him say, ”When will you learn to behave?”

Meng Fuyao retorted, ”I've always known how to behave.”

Zhangsun Wuji chuckled exasperatedly and reached forward and leaned against her forehead, suddenly feeling that it felt artificial. He then pulled off her mask before leaning his own forehead against hers again contentedly.

With their foreheads pressed against one another, both of them could feel the soft smoothness of each others' skin, silky-smooth and sliding right into their hearts. Their lashes brushed each others' faces slightly, tickling them and making them want to laugh, yet neither of them wanted to ruin this quiet warmth. Both of them closed their eyes, unmoving, hearing the faint noise of breathing, and the trees rustling in the wintry wind. In the distance, Meng Fuyao could hear a search party looking for her, or perhaps even further in the distance, she heard the joyful cries of birds returning to their nests. The evening sun was a brilliant vermillion.

After a long time, Meng Fuyao pinched his shoulder and said bitterly, ”What's with this scrawny body, have you gotten thinner? Did your master starve you?”

”Would he simply starve me?” Zhangsun Wuji laughed lightly and continued, ”He also made me kneel, beat me…”

”Seriously?” Meng Fuyao's eyes widened in shock.

”I'm just kidding, you're really getting dumber as you age.” Zhangsun Wuji brushed a finger over her lips and added, ”Do I look like someone who would be asked to kneel?”

”That's true.” Meng Fuyao let out a breath of relief and smiled. Honestly, this guy was way too good at lying, making her worry for nothing and forget how clever and talented he was. How would a master ever have the heart to lay a finger on their protege?

She glared at Zhangsun Wuji and snapped. ”Liar! I curse you to only download files to 99%!”

Zhangsun Wuji smiled slightly. He did not ask what her strange sentence meant, but instead gently caressed her, tousling her naturally flyaway hair.

Meng Fuyao could only glare, feeling as if his expression felt rather strange, yet she couldn't tell why he seemed rather moody. Suddenly, she felt something in her sleeve struggle, and she remembered the black-rabbit version, Lord Yuan Bao.

'Damn…' She couldn't let Zhangsun Wuji see Lord Yuan Bao in this state!

'It's not virtuous to let the original owner see his pet being abused!'

Meng Fuyao stuffed Lord Yuan Bao in as deep as she could as Lord Yuan Bao screeched incessantly in her sleeve… ”Eep eep! Eep eep! Eep, eep, eep, eep, eep, eep!”

Zhangsun Wuji suddenly said, ”Let's change a location.”

”Ah?”

Meng Fuyao hadn't had the chance to react when Lord Yuan Bao sprung out of her pocket and clambered up to her neck. It turned around and smiled happily at Zhangsun Wuji.

Meng Fuyao broke out in a cold sweat as she touched her inner robe… A certain damned rodent had bitten a huge hole in it…

Lord Yuan Bao squatted on Meng Fuyao's shoulder proudly and waved its paws flamboyantly in the air, its pose strikingly like Tarzan, its expression telling.

Zhangsun Wuji stared at his unrecognizable precious pet. After a moment, he finally said, ”I never knew you were twins with a black pearl.”

Lord Yuan Bao collapsed into tears—this was the harshest criticism it had ever received in its life…