Chapter 74: Does this female want to get eaten by fishes?
The moment those words left her mouth, Feng Yiren did not even let her finish whatever complaint she was about to add, because he immediately cut in with a flat and heartless, "No."
Lin Huahua slowly turned her head to look at him.
That was all?
Just no?
This fox did not even let her explain herself before crushing her hopes with one word.
At that moment, the little white rat princess felt that Feng Yiren was truly her natural enemy in this world. His fox ears were lifted, his red eyes were serious, and there was not even one trace of teasing in his face this time, which only made the whole thing more hateful. He was not joking. He really meant it. There would be no discussion, no sweet talk, no space left for argument. The answer on his handsome annoying face was simply no.
Lin Huahua’s cheeks puffed up at once.
Mu Qingyi, who had already expected this kind of reaction from Feng Yiren, could only let out a soft helpless breath and shake his head with a small smile. Then the calm deer beastman crouched down beside Lin Huahua so that he would not look too towering over her and asked gently, "Why do you want to hunt yourself, Huahua?"
That was the difference between him and Feng Yiren.
If Feng Yiren saw a wall, he became the wall.
If Mu Qingyi saw a wall, he at least asked who put it there first.
But Feng Yiren clearly hated this softer approach too, because before Lin Huahua could open her mouth, he had already started again.
"Why are you even asking her that?" Feng Yiren said, his fox tail lashing once behind him. "She cannot hunt. She should not hunt. The river is dangerous, the stones are sharp, the current is slippery, and she is so small that one careless step and she will probably float away looking like a waterlogged rabbit. Why would any sane male let a female go into the water to stab at fish?"
Lin Huahua’s eyes widened in offense.
A waterlogged rabbit?
This bastard!
Before she could even hiss at him, Hu Baiyu, who had clearly grown tired of the fox’s mouth running like a river with no dam, stepped over and simply covered Feng Yiren’s mouth with one huge hand.
The effect was immediate.
Feng Yiren’s voice died on the spot.
His eyes widened in outrage.
His fox ears twitched furiously.
He tried to pull the hand away, but Hu Baiyu was a three-striped lion beastman, and Feng Yiren was only two-striped, so although the fox was strong and shameless and very proud, this was still not a fight he could win through mouth or force in that moment.
Mu Qingyi turned his head and gave Feng Yiren one look that clearly meant shut up.
Feng Yiren looked like he wanted to bite someone.
Lin Huahua, however, felt a tiny bit comforted.
Good.
Very good.
He deserved it.
The little white rat princess then turned back to Mu Qingyi and immediately started begging.
Not a normal kind of begging either.
The dramatic kind.
The kind only Lin Huahua could do with full sincerity and zero shame.
"Please," she said, and when Mu Qingyi did not answer immediately, she grabbed his arm with both hands and shook it lightly. "Please, please, please, please, please. Let me try just once. Just once. I only want to try one time. If I cannot do it, then I will stop. I swear. I promise. I can even swear on..." She paused because there were too many things she did not want to risk. "Anyway, I swear properly."
Her big brown eyes were wide and pleading, her pale little face looked pitiful and full of determination, and even her white rat ears had tilted in a begging angle while her fluffy tail curled around her own leg like it too was trying to help her plead.
Mu Qingyi’s heart softened immediately.
How could it not?
When this little female looked at someone like that, even a stone might begin thinking about becoming more merciful.
Still, Mu Qingyi remained careful because his instinct to protect her was stronger than anything else. "I allowed you to come so that you could look around, get fresh air, and tell us which fish you like best," he explained gently. "That was the plan. You sit safely, we catch the fish, and if you do not like one, then we throw it back and catch another until you find something you want. We did not know you meant that you wanted to fish yourself."
Lin Huahua looked at him in betrayal.
That had been their plan?
That she should sit there looking pretty while they did all the work and she only pointed at fish like some noble little tyrant with no useful skills?
"Yes," she said stubbornly, "because I do want to fish myself."
Mu Qingyi sighed softly.
Feng Yiren, whose mouth was still trapped under Hu Baiyu’s palm, made a very loud offended sound through his nose and tried to talk again anyway.
Hu Baiyu finally released him.
That was a mistake.
The moment his mouth was free, Feng Yiren started right where he had been forced to stop.
"Absolutely not," he said. "Females do not fish. Females do not stand in river water for long. Females do not stab fish with spears. And especially you do not do any of those things. What if something bites you? What if the current drags you? What if the cold water makes you sick? What if one of those bigger river beasts mistakes you for food? Do you think I will stand there and clap while you let yourself get eaten?"
Lin Huahua’s brows rose.
The more he spoke, the more she felt he was not only being protective but also indirectly bullying her.
Because the tone.
The tone this fox was using.
As if she would be blown away by one fish tail.