Little Yue'er looked up at his grandfather, hesitated for a moment, and finally bit his lip before walking carefully, his face full of fear, to a spot a little over a meter away from Su Qiao.
That terrified look and trembling little body made Su Qiao's heart ache again.
She didn't dare reach out and touch him casually, either.
She placed the two palm-sized white rabbits, their legs tied with rope, into his arms. "Here, you can raise these two little rabbits for fun."
Then, with a gentle look in her eyes, she reminded him, "Hold them tight. Don't let them run away. In a little while, Mama will make a bamboo cage for them to use as a nest."
"R-Really... you're really giving them to me?"
Qi Yue clumsily held the two little white rabbits squirming in his arms. Fearful yet carrying a trace of anticipation, he spoke in a tiny voice.
Su Qiao lifted the two large rabbits still in her hand and smiled gently.
"These two little ones are for you. As for the two big ones, your papa can stew them for you tonight. How does that sound?"
"...Okay."
Carefully observing her, Qi Yue quietly let out a sigh of relief only after a long while and answered in a low voice.
Old Man Liu also sighed in relief. So did Qi Jinghe, who had kept his fists clenched and his face taut the entire time.
"Ahem. Jinghe, why aren't you hurrying to clean the rabbits? Didn't you hear your Husband Master?"
"Hmph. A weasel paying respects to a chicken—she can't possibly mean well."
It took Qi Jinghe quite some time to react. That woman actually hadn't hit his son.
He found it extremely strange.
"Jinghe..."
Old Man Liu frowned, clearly disapproving.
Su Qiao merely shrugged