Clumsy Beast, Keep Your Paws Off

Su Qinglan did not raise her voice again. Instead, to Rong Ye’s complete surprise, she suddenly stepped closer and sat down right in front of him.

Before he could react, her hands reached out and gently cupped his cheeks.

"Huh.."

Rong Ye froze. His ears stood straight up, and his entire body went stiff as she turned his face toward her, forcing him to meet her eyes.

There was nowhere left to hide. Her touch was warm and, most importantly, comforting.

Completely different from the cold pressure he had imagined just moments ago.

"Look at me," she said softly.

Rong Ye’s breath hitched. He looked into her eyes, wide and uncertain, like a fox caught in the open.

Su Qinglan’s expression had softened. There was no anger in it now. Only quiet seriousness... and something gentler beneath.

"Tell me," she said, her voice low and calm, "what happened?"

She paused slightly, her thumbs brushing lightly against his cheeks.

"Did you forget what I told you last time?"

Rong Ye’s pupils trembled. Of course he remembered. She had told him... no matter what happened, he could tell her.

He didn’t need to hide anything. His throat tightened. Before he could speak, Su Qinglan continued, her gaze never leaving his.

"Is it because you saw someone from your past tribe?"

The question immediately stirred countless ripples in his eyes.

Rong Ye’s eyes widened instantly. His mouth opened slightly, but no words came out.

For a moment, he could only stare at her in shock.

Then, slowly... stiffly...

He nodded.

Su Qinglan watched his reaction without surprise. Her voice remained steady.

"Is it your brother?"

This time, Rong Ye’s entire body froze. His eyes widened even more, disbelief filling them completely.

"...How?"

He didn’t even realize when he nodded again. The movement was almost automatic. His mind had already gone blank.

How did she know?

He hadn’t said anything.

Not a single word.

And yet... she guessed everything.

Rong Ye looked at her as if he was seeing her for the first time.

His Lan Lan...

Was she really human?

Or was she some kind of goddess?

"How can someone know everything like this..." he thought, completely stunned.

A strange feeling rose in his chest. A mix of awe... relief... and a bit of embarrassment. Suddenly, he felt incredibly foolish. He had been so nervous and so afraid.

Trying so hard to hide it, and yet... she had seen through everything at a glance.

"...I shouldn’t have hidden it from her," he thought bitterly.

"If she already knows everything..."

Then what was the point of all that panic?

Rong Ye lowered his gaze slightly, his ears drooping again, but this time not from fear.

More like... quiet defeat.

In front of her... he really couldn’t hide anything at all.

Taking a slow breath, he finally spoke, his voice low but steady. "I’ll tell you everything."

Su Qinglan did not interrupt him. Her hands were still gently cupping his face, her eyes calm yet unwavering, giving him no room to retreat but also no pressure to rush. Hu Yan stood nearby, his expression serious, silently listening.

Rong Ye lowered his gaze for a moment before continuing, as if gathering the scattered pieces of a past he had long tried to bury.

"I... am from the Fox Beast City," he began quietly. "Not just an ordinary fox beast... but one of the princes."

Even though the words were spoken plainly, they carried a weight that made the room feel heavier.

"I am the ninth son," he continued, a faint, almost self mocking smile appearing on his lips. "The youngest... and once, the most favored."

A distant look flickered in his eyes, as if he had been pulled back into memories he rarely allowed himself to revisit.

"When I was born, the priest of the Fox Beast City said that I had the highest talent among all my brothers. He even claimed that I might be the one destined to lead the Fox Beast City to a new future."

His fingers curled slightly as he spoke, the faint smile on his lips fading.

"At that time, everything was peaceful. There were no conflicts between us brothers. We lived together like a real family. I believed... it would always stay that way."

He paused briefly, his expression turning colder.

"But then, my father suddenly fell ill."

"At first, no one suspected anything. We thought it was just a temporary sickness. But his condition worsened day by day, and before we could even understand what was happening... he died."

Rong Ye’s voice dropped slightly, and a trace of suppressed emotion surfaced in his eyes.

"I was only ten years old."

The room grew quiet, the weight of his words settling heavily.

"That was when everything changed," he continued, his tone hardening. "My eldest brother revealed his true face. At first, we didn’t understand what was going on... but later, the truth came out."

He clenched his fists.

"He was the one who poisoned our father."

The air in the room seemed to freeze for a moment.

"And after our father’s death, he wanted the throne," Rong Ye said, his voice steady but cold. "So he decided to eliminate all of us."

Su Qinglan’s gaze darkened slightly, but she remained silent, allowing him to continue.

"From the second brother to the seventh... they were all killed," he said, each word heavy. "Only a few of us managed to escape."

His voice softened slightly.

"My eighth brother... and me."

A faint tremor passed through his expression, though he quickly suppressed it.

"We fled with the help of our uncle. But my eldest brother did not let us go. He sent people to chase us. For days... for nights... we kept running. We had no time to rest, no time to eat properly. We were just trying to survive."

His breathing slowed, as if reliving the exhaustion and fear of that time.

"But eventually... they caught up to us."

He fell silent for a moment before continuing.

"My eighth brother stayed behind to hold them off. He fought so that I could escape."

A shadow passed over his eyes.

"He died."

The words were simple, but they carried deep weight.

"And my uncle... he didn’t survive either."

Rong Ye lowered his head slightly, his voice growing quieter.

"In the end, I was the only one left. I was already badly injured, but I kept running. I ran for almost a month without proper food or water, barely holding on."

His lips curved into a faint, bitter smile.

"And then... I fell from a cliff."

Su Qinglan’s fingers tightened slightly against his cheeks.

"Everyone thought I died," Rong Ye continued. "My brother’s men didn’t stop searching. They still wanted to find my body to confirm. But after a restless search of countless days, they finally gave up, assuming I was eaten by some wild beast. That was the only reason I survived."

He exhaled slowly, as if releasing years of suppressed burden.

"I don’t even know how long I was unconscious. But when I woke up... your father had already found me."

His gaze finally lifted to meet Su Qinglan’s.

"He saved me. That’s how I ended up here."

The room fell into silence once again. It was heavy, filled with the weight of everything Rong Ye had carried alone for so many years.

And now, at last, it had all been laid bare.