By the time Ye Qiu returned to his Wooden Hut, Xiao Wu had already finished bathing and was sitting at the table in the main room.
With her delicate brows, big eyes, and long, damp hair hanging loose, she looked like a doll. Resting her chin in her hands, she stared at the doorway, waiting for Ye Qiu to come back.
Hearing movement outside, Xiao Wu immediately stood up. She paused mid-step, looked toward the door, and pouted. "Ye Qiu, what took you so long? I'm starving."
Ye Qiu rolled his eyes. The little rabbit had gone back to her usual self after a bath. He said crossly, "I went to the village entrance to take Tang San some food."
Clunk!
Ye Qiu set two lunch boxes on the table and pushed one toward Xiao Wu.
"Here. Dig in."
"Thank you, Ye Qiu!"
Xiao Wu thanked him sweetly and eagerly opened the lunch box.
In an instant, her face changed. She couldn't help letting out a shriek.
"Ah—! Ye Qiu! H-how could this happen?!"
"Ow!"
"You're so noisy! Do you have to warm up your mouth before eating?" Ye Qiu frowned and tapped Xiao Wu on the head, then looked into the lunch box.
Inside lay a meaty rabbit leg.
"Ye Qiu... Why is there a bunny...?"
Xiao Wu covered her head with both hands, looking hurt and heartbroken.
"It's just a rabbit leg. You've seen plenty of those on the streets. Do you really have to make such a fuss?" Ye Qiu shot her an exasperated look, then pushed his own meal toward her. "Eat mine, then."
As he spoke, Ye Qiu opened his lunch box.
Xiao Wu took one glance inside. Her expression grew even more aggrieved, and her eyes welled with tears. She couldn't help wailing, "Ah! Sister Xiao Wu can't eat this!"
"Hm?"
Ye Qiu frowned and looked into the box, then understood. Besides the rabbit leg, there was also a spicy rabbit head.
He shook his head helplessly. "Forget it. You'd better not eat this. Just have a couple of carrots instead."
Xiao Wu leaned over the table and brought her little face close to Ye Qiu's, looking at him pitifully as she pleaded, "Ye Qiu, why don't we just throw this food away?"
"Throw it away? Wouldn't that be wasteful? Then the rabbit would have died for nothing." Ye Qiu, who prided himself on thrift, immediately frowned.
"But, but..."
Xiao Wu stammered, then hurried over to Ye Qiu and grabbed his arm. In a soft voice, she said, "I... I'll make it up to you."
Ye Qiu glanced sideways at her. He wasn't falling for that. "Make it up to me? You still owe me plenty of money. What are you going to use to repay me?"
"I... I can..."
Xiao Wu bit her pink lip and looked at Ye Qiu's boyish face, hesitating.
"Alright, alright."
Ye Qiu didn't want to say any more. Filling his stomach came first. Without looking up, he separated the rabbit meat from the rest with his chopsticks. "We can't throw the food away. I just won't eat the rabbit meat."
"Ah!"
Xiao Wu stared at him with wide, rosy eyes, delight flashing across her face.
Ye Qiu turned to look at her.
"Is that okay now?"
"Yes, yes!"
Xiao Wu nodded happily. Pressing her lips together, she looked coy and bashful. "I'll make it up to you right now."
"Make it up to me? How?"
Ye Qiu raised his head and looked at the rabbit acting strangely.
"Huh?!"
As soon as he lifted his head, Ye Qiu's dark, pearl-like eyes widened. Something warm and soft pressed against his lips, carrying a hint of sweetness.
The little rabbit before him had turned scarlet. Her clear, rosy eyes shimmered, her long lashes fluttered lightly, and her pale pink rabbit ears bobbed. Her lips moved ever so slightly, while her earlobes and neck flushed a lovely red.
Smack!
Ye Qiu came to his senses, raised his hand, and slapped Xiao Wu across the face before standing up and pushing her away.
"Ah!"
Xiao Wu cried out and staggered backward, nearly falling onto the floor.
"Silly rabbit, w-what are you doing?!"
Ye Qiu's tender, boyish face felt hot. Being the one to act and being acted upon were completely different things. He'd never expected Xiao Wu to repay him by trading one rabbit for another!
"I-I thought you liked it..."
Xiao Wu tilted her head back, her eyes full of confusion and, even more so, embarrassment. Pressing her lips together, she lowered her gaze and pinched the hem of her clothes.
"Who said that? I think you're the one who likes it! Why else would you do that out of nowhere?"
Ye Qiu wiped the corner of his mouth and looked at Xiao Wu with a strange expression. Even if he did like that sort of thing, now was hardly the time. It was far too childish—and much too creepy!
"You... You're talking nonsense! I don't..." At Ye Qiu's words, Xiao Wu immediately started to fluster. As if he'd hit the nail on the head, she blushed and couldn't get the words out. Gritting her teeth, she said in embarrassment, "You used to bully me, too. Hmph! Stupid Ye Qiu! Fine, if you don't like it, then forget it. I've already made it up to you anyway!"
With that,
Xiao Wu huffed off into the bedroom, separated from the main room by a single partition.
The room looked rather bare. Ye Qiu had taken the bed boards she'd soaked out to dry, so she had no choice but to find a stool and sit down.
Holding her burning cheeks, she felt terribly aggrieved. She pouted, furrowed her brows, and quietly cursed Ye Qiu again and again. She'd had to work up a lot of courage.
Thinking of Ye Qiu, Xiao Wu's rosy eyes dimmed. Her lips moved faintly, and she seemed lost in thought, with a trace of worry in her eyes.
Did he dislike her?
Ye Qiu wiped his lips and watched Xiao Wu go into the bedroom. Then he sat back down, a faint, self-satisfied smile appearing on his face for some reason.
After quite a while,
Ye Qiu was nearly finished with lunch.
Only then did Xiao Wu, sitting in the bedroom, touch her stomach. She was getting uncomfortably hungry.
She looked around, stood up, and walked to the doorway.
Embarrassed, she asked, "Ye Qiu, where did you put the carrots you brought back? I'm hungry."
Ye Qiu raised a hand and pointed to the partition between the main room and the bedroom. "They're hanging there. Help yourself."
Xiao Wu looked at the cloth bag hanging on the wall and quickly took it down. She pulled out a carrot and rinsed it with water from the jar. Then she went back inside. As she passed Ye Qiu, she glanced his way and saw that he was nearly done eating. She returned to the table and sat down again.
As soon as Xiao Wu sat down, Ye Qiu stood up and headed out, carrying the two lunch boxes. He needed to wash them so he could return them.
Xiao Wu furrowed her little brows and pursed her lips, looking at Ye Qiu in confusion.
Once Ye Qiu had left, she turned away, held the carrot in both hands, and parted her lips. Starting from the tip, she slowly fed it into her mouth. Each bite was crisp.
As she chewed, her gaze drifted toward the doorway despite herself.
When Ye Qiu came back after washing the lunch boxes, he had barely stepped inside when he noticed Xiao Wu looking evasive, her face a little red.
"?" Ye Qiu looked at her oddly and sat back down at the table. "Why do you keep looking at me? Is there something you want to tell me?"
"When have I been looking at you? Don't flatter yourself." Xiao Wu nibbled her carrot, head lowered, and gave a little snort.
Ye Qiu raised an eyebrow.
"So there is something you want to tell me?!"
He waited for a while, but the only sound was Xiao Wu crunching her carrot. Ye Qiu rolled his eyes and impatiently tapped the table.
Tap, tap!
Impatiently, he asked, "Do you have something to say or not? If you don't, I'm leaving."
"Ye Qiu... Are you going to leave me?" Xiao Wu lowered her head and nibbled her carrot, her voice barely audible.
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