“Pa!”
With a crisp, sharp smack, a burning sting shot through her body, and Su Yun jolted awake from her grogginess.
Her body tensed reflexively, struggling to climb up from the bed, but the searing pain made even breathing difficult.
She had barely lifted herself a little before her entire body went limp, and all strength left her.
Mo Qingqing still thought this little fox was just putting on an act. Her beautiful brows furrowed slightly as she gave Su Yun’s rear a gentle kick, knocking her off the edge of the soft, large bed.
But seeing Su Yun struggle helplessly, unable to even rise from the floor and collapsing like a puddle of mud—
Mo Qingqing finally believed, if only barely, that this little thing really was exhausted and not simply pretending for her sake.
“What’s going on? Don’t you have the Law of Life’s automatic recovery? How can you still be this weak?” There was a hint of confusion in Mo Qingqing’s tone, but she still bent down and picked up the limp body from the floor, placing her gently back on the bed.
“Sor…ry…” Su Yun forced the words out of her throat with great difficulty, her voice so frail it seemed like it could vanish at any moment.
Mo Qingqing frowned deeply, reaching out to check Su Yun’s body, carefully examining her for a long while.
In the end, she could only draw a reluctant conclusion: Su Yun’s level was simply too low to fully use or control the surging power of the Law of Life.
Even her earlier, astonishing healing was just an instinctive, passive reaction—not something she actively controlled.
“Forget it. Since you’re not one of those ignorant masses, I won’t be too harsh this time.”
Mo Qingqing let out a light sigh, her tone neither angry nor helpless.
She simply hated those stubborn, self-righteous, blind “ignorant masses.”
Su Yun was clearly not one of them—only, last night, when she begged for mercy and broke down, that pitifully cute look stabbed right into Mo Qingqing’s heart.
She… just couldn’t help herself!
“Go to sleep. When you wake up tomorrow, tidy the whole room for me. We’ll be moving soon.”
Mo Qingqing patted Su Yun’s fluffy big tail as she spoke.
“…Yes…”
Su Yun’s taut nerves finally relaxed completely. With that feeble reply, she almost instantly drifted into an even deeper sleep.
And this time, she slept straight through to noon the next day.
“Pa!”
Another crisp smack landed precisely on Su Yun’s soft, springy backside, waking her from her slumber once again.
“Hurry up and cook! Do you want me to starve?”
“S-sorry!” Su Yun jumped in alarm, reflexively springing up from the bed.
She ran to the kitchen at once and started clanging about.
Soon, a tantalizing aroma filled the entire room, and a platter of golden, fragrant potato stew was ready.
Su Yun carefully carried the steaming food to the table, then stood respectfully to the side.
She never expected—
“Sit down and eat with me,” Mo Qingqing said.
“Eh? R-really? I can?” Su Yun’s ears shot up, her eyes flashing with a disbelief so joyous her voice trembled.
This was freshly cooked, steaming food! Was she really allowed to eat it?
“After all, you’re not one of those ignorant masses… You can count as a person,” Mo Qingqing hesitated, but still offered a brief explanation.
Mainly, she’d had fun yesterday, and her mood today was especially good.
“Thank you, Master!!” Su Yun quickly expressed her gratitude, cautiously pulling out a chair, but only perching half her rear on it, afraid to upset Mo Qingqing.
Hot food! She hadn’t eaten anything like this in over ten years…
While sneaking glances at Mo Qingqing’s expression, Su Yun timidly picked up half a piece of bread. Only after making sure Mo Qingqing wasn’t watching did she carefully reach for some food.
At first, she only dared take a bit of potato. Not until Mo Qingqing seemed almost full did she muster the courage to pick up a tiny piece of tender stewed pork.
Only when she was certain Mo Qingqing was ignoring her did she finally let herself eat freely.
When Mo Qingqing finished eating, Su Yun couldn’t help but use her bread to wipe the remaining sauce from her bowl and the bottom of the pot, scrubbing the dishes sparkling clean, not wasting a single morsel.
Heaven knows what her old life was like!
Slop buckets?
You had to fight for those!
Had to risk your life for them!
Hundreds of people could brawl until their heads bled for scraps in a single bucket.
It didn’t matter what was in there—as long as there was something to eat, it was good enough.
How different from now—hot, fresh food, a soft, large bed.
Though…compared to those hellish days, this was nothing short of paradise!
After washing the dishes, Su Yun eagerly ran to Mo Qingqing’s side, nuzzling her fluffy little head against Mo Qingqing’s palm, trying to win her favor.
“Oh?” Mo Qingqing was startled.
She hadn’t expected, after all she put Su Yun through yesterday, that this little thing could still act so obedient?
Interesting.
Was it because she let her eat at the table together?
So easy to satisfy?
It surprised her a bit. Most people in this world were so “greedy,” always insatiable.
The only one she’d seen with a temperament similar to Su Yun’s was Lin Mo.
But Lin Mo’s case was more like: after doing all she wanted to do, she had no other desires.
Mo Qingqing reached out and rubbed Su Yun’s soft little head, enjoying the delicate sensation under her fingertips. She said lightly, “Alright, enough with the nuzzling. Hurry and help me pack up—everything must go.”
“Yes!”
Su Yun immediately stopped nuzzling, her big tail wagging excitedly as she dashed off.
She arranged the books on the shelves in their original order.
Pots and dishes were wiped spotlessly clean and carefully wrapped.
Even the food ingredients were sorted and tightly sealed…
Su Yun worked quickly and efficiently. In just three or four hours, everything was packed away in perfect order.
Then, tail wagging with excitement, she ran to Mo Qingqing, looking up expectantly, awaiting praise.
Her thinking was simple: do things well, act obedient, build up the basics of goodwill first.
Then, she could try bolder moves.
For example, silently burrowing straight into Mo Qingqing’s arms to see if she’d get hit…
Or sneaking into her bed while she slept, to see if she’d get hit…
The advanced version: sticking close and acting spoiled.
If she didn’t get hit, and even got patted on the head—then she’d have succeeded!
At that moment, Mo Qingqing was leisurely scrolling through her communication slate, receiving updates from all directions.
Looking up, she saw a fluffy blue-and-pink ball poking its head around the door.
Those fuzzy little ears drooped listlessly, flopping with gravity and trembling gently with the slightest movement.
That adorable sight made Mo Qingqing’s voice involuntarily soften.
*****
“What is it?”
“Master, I’ve finished packing…” Su Yun’s voice was sweet and soft, tinged with a careful eagerness to please.
“Oh?” Mo Qingqing raised her brows. Getting up, she stepped out of the room—and froze on the spot.
The room, once piled high with all sorts of things, was now completely empty. Everything had been packed and neatly stacked in the center of the spacious living room.
Mo Qingqing was amazed.
She even went down to check the basement, finding it equally spotless, every bit of junk cleaned up.
“Not bad. Go rest. After dinner, come practice Shadow Escape with me.”
“Yes!”