Chapter 22: Accustomed to Relying on Herself
Su Muyao snapped back to her senses and shook her head. “I’m fine. A little work like this is nothing to me.”
As she spoke, she took a small step back, avoiding Wen Nanxiās touch.
Seeing her subtle retreat, a look of disappointment flickered in Wen Nanxiās eyes, and a strange, sour feeling pricked at his heart.
In truth, Su Muyao didn’t want to let herself sink into their gentleness. She wanted to remain calm and rational at all times.
“I picked some medicinal herbs. I’ll dry them in the yard first, then I can process them and make some sachets.” They could be used to treat her own poison and to suppress Hua Linyeās fire poison.
As for the wheat kernels, it seemed she wouldn’t be able to make any pasta tonight. But she did notice that the sweet potato starch had finished settling.
Wen Nanxi walked over. “Wife Master, is there anything I can do?”
Su Muyao said, “We need to get all the water out, leaving only the sweet potato starch at the bottom.”
Wen Nanxi nodded and used his ability, drawing all the water from the vat and leaving behind a layer of clean sweet potato starch.
Normally, the starch would need to be sun-dried. Su Muyao thought of Hua Linyeās fire ability; he had used it to dry her hair before. She turned her head to look for him.
As it happened, Hua Linyeās gaze was already fixed on her. The moment she turned, her eyes met his bewitching ones.
He quickly walked over, his voice low. “Wife Master, is there anything you need my help with?”
“Can you dry this starch? Gently, so it’s like it’s been sun-dried.”
Hua Linye smiled. “Of course.”
That was simple enough. He controlled his fire ability and quickly dried the sweet potato starch.
“Wife Master, is this alright?”
Su Muyao reached out and felt the dry powder, smiling. “Yes, this is perfect. I’ll make sweet potato noodles for you all tonight.”
She set aside enough to make noodles for dinner and stored the rest of the dry starch away. It was much easier to preserve this way.
Xiao Jihan watched Wen Nanxi and Hua Linye bustling around Su Muyao, a strange feeling stirring within him.
That evening, Su Muyao made a pork rib and fish ball soup, a plate of braised pork, a plate of stir-fried cabbage, and sweet potato noodles. With the noodles as the main course, the three large side dishes were more than enough for the four of them.
As they sat down to eat, Hua Linye and the others found every single dish to be exquisitely delicious, especially the sweet potato noodlesāa food they had never tasted before. They couldn’t believe something could be so smooth and savory. And they had no idea how she made the braised pork so tender and fragrant.
Then there was the soup. They used to dislike pork ribs, feeling they were all bone and no meat. But prepared this way, the meat on the ribs was far more flavorful than pure meat.
Wen Nanxi looked at Su Muyaoās fingers with a pained expression. “Wife Master, the food you make is wonderful. From now on, you only need to tell us what to do, and we can cook.”
“Your hand is red from the heat. It must hurt.” While stir-frying, Su Muyaoās fingers had been spattered by hot oil.
She didn’t think much of it, but Wen Nanxi looked at her with such tenderness and pity, as if she had suffered a grievous injury.
Su Muyao truly didn’t feel it was a big deal. Back in the apocalypse, when her abilities were still weak, getting seriously injured and bleeding during a fight was unavoidable. She was numb to pain; a simple bandage was all it took. There was no need to be so dramatic. It was probably because females were so well-protected in the beastman world that they could afford to be a bit delicate.
“It’s nothing. A small burn like this doesn’t hurt at all. Besides, you all helped out with the cooking.”
She wasn’t used to being waited on hand and foot, nor was she used to relying on others. It was a habit forged in the apocalypse. She was accustomed to relying on herself for everything; only you can truly count on yourself. Blindly depending on others in the apocalypse was a quick way to get yourself killed.
As Wen Nanxi spoke, his gaze was fixed on Su Muyao. He saw her expression go distant for a moment before she put on a mask of indifference. For some reason, he felt a sharp pang in his heart. In that instant, she had looked so lonely and desolate. It was as if she had raised hard thorns all over her body, warding off anyone who tried to get close.
Even Hua Linye and Xiao Jihan could feel the subtle shift in her aura. Her expression shuttered, and a hint of distance crept into her demeanor.
The food had been extraordinarily delicious, but sensing Su Muyao was unhappy, they all fell silent.
After they finished eating, they scrambled to clear the dishes. Su Muyao went into the courtyard to tend to the herbs.
Once everything was tidy, Wen Nanxi was the first to join her. “Wife Master, what do you need? Let me do it!”
“It’s fine, I can handle it myself.”
Wen Nanxi looked at her small figure, his heart filled with a protective feeling. He apologized carefully, “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said what I said during dinner.”
Su Muyao shook her head. “It has nothing to do with you.”
“Are you angry, Wife Master?”
“No, I’m not angry.”
Wen Nanxi continued to ask questions gently, and Su Muyaoās answers were all normal. And yet, he could feel that she had put up a barrier around herself, shutting everyone out. It made him want to get closer, but he didn’t know how. All he could do was stand beside her in silent company, not even knowing what to say.
Xiao Jihan watched for a while before returning to his room. Hua Linye, on the other hand, found chores to do in the yard. When there was nothing left, he took out a cloth and began wiping down the doorframes.
After some time, Su Muyao had finished making four insect-repellent sachets.
“These three are for you. They’re insect-repellent sachets. If you put them by your bed at night, you won’t be bitten by mosquitoes.”
Wen Nanxi looked at the sachet she handed him, his heart filled with a complex mix of emotions. Ever since the incident two days ago, her entire temperament had changed. For the past two days, she had been bustling about, doing things for them. Even at meals, she ate very little herself.
Why is she being so good to us? he wondered. Yet he couldn’t read her mind. It was nothing like before, when her malice, paranoia, and obsession were so obvious that anyone could see right through her.
Wen Nanxi collected himself and said gently, “Thank you, Wife Master.”
“You’re welcome. You all take such good care of me and risk your lives hunting. This is nothing.” Besides, she had to make one for herself anyway. Making a few more was no trouble at all.
“As your beastman husbands, it is our duty to take care of you.”
A small smile touched Su Muyaoās lips. “You are good to me, and as your Wife Master, I want to be good to you, too. Care should be mutual. There’s no ‘should’ or ‘shouldn’t’. I just hope that in the future, you’ll remember the little things I’ve done.”
And not turn around and try to kill me, she added silently.
A dark, quiet light flashed in Wen Nanxiās eyes. He understood now. She was worried they would harm her.
But how could we? He knew that no matter what he said, she wouldn’t believe him. He could only prove it with his actions in the future.
Hua Linye, standing nearby, heard her words and felt as if a heavy stone had been placed on his heart.
That night, as Su Muyao was lying in bed, unable to sleep, she suddenly caught a familiar, dark, fragrant scent.
Her eyes snapped open to see a fiery red fox by her bed.
“Hua Linye, what are you doing here?”
At night, weren’t they all supposed to be avoiding her like the plague? She never imagined one of them would actually show up in her room in the middle of the night.
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