"Deng Tianxin." Di Qiu'er suddenly called his name.
"Mm." Deng Tianxin set down his cup and turned to look at her.
Di Qiu'er looked at Deng Tianxin, her voice lower than usual. "I have a question I've never asked you."
"I was clearly the one who met you first," Di Qiu'er said. "Back in the Star Dou Great Forest, when you first saw me, you grilled meat for me, gave me a name, and even rode on my back through the forest. So why was Xiao Wu the first to climb into your bed? What does she have that I don't? Am I not pretty enough, or do you think Di Qiu'er is only fit to be your mount and thug?"
The more she spoke, the more agitated she became. Her chest rose and fell slightly, and her golden eyes shone as though steeped in emotion, yet she stubbornly refused to look away.
Deng Tianxin had not expected her to bring this up so suddenly, much less ask so bluntly.
Deng Tianxin was silent for several breaths before he spoke. "Qiu'er, I've never treated you like a mount, nor have I ever thought you were inferior to Xiao Wu. It's just that with this sort of thing... someone has to speak first. Xiao Wu is bold. She dared to, but you—"
"I didn't dare?" Di Qiu'er cut him off, as if his words had stabbed her. "If I didn't dare, I wouldn't be sitting here tonight. If I didn't dare, I wouldn't have waited all these years. Deng Tianxin, I'm not the timid, bashful sort. I'm just unwilling—unwilling to let that Rabbit Spirit get ahead of me in everything. If you can accept her, why can't you accept me?"
Deng Tianxin did not answer immediately. He simply walked toward her.