Was That Why You Were Interested in Me?

"So you're interested in me?"

Miao Xiyue hugged her jade-green toad and shrank back. Her wary, earnest gaze made it seem as though she were reciting an unbreakable clan rule. "Sorry, but women from the Miao Frontier don't marry outsiders. Give up on that idea."

There was no shyness in her voice, only matter-of-fact bluntness.

Li Xiang rubbed his brow. "I'm not interested in you or your toad."

He stressed his words. "I just want to learn about beast taming. How to communicate with beasts, for instance, and how to build a bond."

"Oh. You should've said so sooner."

The wariness vanished from Miao Xiyue's face. She changed expressions so fast it was startling. "Sure, I'll teach you."

Li Xiang nearly teared up. She had finally understood him.

"I won't learn for free. Take this Demon Grain Pill as tuition."

Li Xiang slipped a hand into his robe and pretended to rummage around. In truth, he took a dark-red pill from the Paper Effigy Storage Box.

The moment it appeared, a faint, sweetly fishy scent filled the carriage.

"Croak!"

The Great Treasure Toad in Miao Xiyue's arms kicked out with its hind legs, ready to leap for the pill, but a slender hand caught it by the scruff of its neck.

"Dabao, I taught you not to eat things strangers give you."

Miao Xiyue pressed the toad back onto her lap. She fixed her wide, dark eyes on Li Xiang and added, "And you can't eat strangers, either. They'll upset your stomach."

Li Xiang's hand froze in midair, the pill pinched between his fingers.

So strangers counted as food on your menu, and the only reason you didn't eat them was hygiene?

"Demon Grain Pill..." A warm, mellow voice came from across from Li Xiang.

The speaker was the middle-aged