Fortunately, her clothes hadn’t been dirtied. Otherwise, Lu Qiancha really wouldn’t have known what to do.
She quickly put on the same little dress as before, then pulled on her undergarments. The cool night breeze slipped in through the window crack, brushing gently over her legs and bringing a faint chill.
“Ugh…” The little wolf cub wriggled her tail uncomfortably. She kept feeling as if… there was something missing, a sense of being wrapped up that she couldn’t shake, making her feel odd.
Woo… She felt like a total pervert.
An indescribable shame crept quietly into her heart, and Lu Qiancha shyly lowered her little head.
She took tiny, careful steps, clamping her tail tightly between her legs, sneaking along like a little cat burglar, inching slowly back to the entrance of Shuiqian Palace’s bedchamber.
She gingerly pushed open a crack in the door, poking half her head in to peek inside—
Sure enough, Xun Xue had already returned and was sitting at the table savoring tea.
What she hadn’t expected was that Ling Wanbai was also awake. The little shrine maiden was moving toward Xun Xue with the same slightly awkward little steps, inch by inch.
Under Xun Xue’s puzzled gaze, Ling Wanbai expressionlessly grabbed both sides of her skirt, and then…
Whoosh—a sudden lift. With a voice as flat as ever, she clearly stated, “Please give me a pair of underpants. Thank you.”
Xun Xue: “?”
A question mark slowly appeared above Xun Xue’s head.
Upon seeing this, Lu Qiancha couldn’t sit still any longer.
With a “bang,” she pushed the door open and slipped inside, deftly closing it behind her. Then she hurried to Xun Xue’s other side.
Mimicking Ling Wanbai, she grabbed the hem of her own little dress and yanked it upward.
“Mother!” Lu Qiancha’s cheeks flushed pink, a hint of spring-green sprouting there. Her voice was tinged with grievance as she said, “I want underpants too… and leggings!”
“…What about the ones you were wearing before?” Xun Xue looked at the two little ones in front of her, the veins at her temples faintly throbbing, her tone filled with helplessness.
“She got them dirty!”
Lu Qiancha and Ling Wanbai spoke in near-perfect unison, simultaneously stretching out their little paws and pointing straight at each other.
Xun Xue: “…”
She massaged her brow and, resigned, drew two brand new silk underpants from her storage ring, then pulled out a pair of thick, warm white leggings, handing them to each girl.
Then, she straightened her face. “All right, you have your pants now. So, who’s going to tell me what happened while I was gone?”
Thus, with both of them chiming in, their account of the “battle” was pieced together bit by bit.
At the end, Lu Qiancha proudly lifted her little chin and declared, “I won! The small-fry shrine maiden lost.”
Xun Xue couldn’t help the twitch at the corner of her mouth.
She turned her gaze to the ever-calm Ling Wanbai and began to mediate: “Little Wanbai, Qiancha is younger than you—she’s your little sister. In the future, you need to be more accommodating and not ‘mess around’ like today, understand?”
“All right.” Ling Wanbai nodded obediently, then naturally reached out and ruffled Lu Qiancha’s head like she was petting a small animal, her voice calm and unperturbed.
“I’ll let little sister have her way from now on.”
“Who’s your little sister!” Lu Qiancha immediately bristled like a kitten whose tail had been stepped on, jumping back to dodge that “demonic claw,” and retorted angrily, “I’m way older than you, you small-fry shrine maiden!”
Ling Wanbai stepped forward in silence, standing before Lu Qiancha.
Her tranquil gray eyes naturally, almost imperceptibly, drifted downward, quickly and subtly glancing over Lu Qiancha’s flat little chest.
Then, she squared her own chest—which, though not large, had begun to take shape—and spoke as blandly as ever, yet her words struck like a silent blow: “I’m bigger than you.”
“Wah–!!!”
Lu Qiancha’s little face turned crimson in anger as she stomped her foot. “So mad! Small-fry shrine maiden! I used to be way taller than you!”
“Oh, I see.” Ling Wanbai nodded blandly, fanning the flames. “Qiancha, little sister.”
“Call me Sister Qiancha! Not little sister!” Lu Qiancha anxiously rose onto her tiptoes, ears perked up, trying her best to meet Ling Wanbai’s gaze on equal footing.
“Mm, got it—” Ling Wanbai deliberately stretched and emphasized a word, “—little sister~”
“Uwahh–!!”
Lu Qiancha was completely defeated, turning away with a round, pouting head and flailing big tail. “I’m ignoring you! Rotten small-fry shrine maiden!”
The little wolf cub, huffing and puffing, quickly put on the leggings and underpants Xun Xue had given her, finally feeling safe.
Immediately, she turned to Xun Xue, like a little beast who had found her protector, and with a whoosh, she dove into her arms, nuzzling her face in and grumbling in a muffled voice, “Mother~ did you see that! She bullied me!”
Xun Xue sighed helplessly and, with practiced ease, scratched Lu Qiancha’s chin with her finger.
That warm, tingling touch made the little wolf cub squint her eyes in comfort, letting out a satisfied “mmm” like a kitten being stroked.
Just then—
A cool little hand gently covered the spot between Lu Qiancha’s perked wolf ears, rubbing softly over the fluffy fur atop her head.
“Mm…?”
That familiar, soothing gesture made Lu Qiancha blink in surprise. She looked up along the hand, meeting Ling Wanbai’s still unruffled gray eyes.
“Don’t cry, don’t cry. From now on, big sister will let you have your way.” Ling Wanbai’s voice remained as calm as ever, but Lu Qiancha keenly caught a faint trace of teasing beneath her tone.
“Who’s crying?! I’m not crying!”
Lu Qiancha bristled at once, like a balloon about to pop.
Flustered and angry, she reached out with both hands and—smack—pressed them onto Ling Wanbai’s delicate little face, kneading and squeezing mercilessly, squishing that beautiful face until it was all contorted and scrunched up.
Yet, Ling Wanbai displayed astonishing composure. She let Lu Qiancha knead her face like dough without a change in expression.
Only when Lu Qiancha was almost done did she lazily fish out a small, wax-paper-wrapped package from her storage pouch, releasing an enticing sweet fragrance.
Inside were several pieces of golden, multi-layered osmanthus pastry.
“Want one?” Ling Wanbai held the paper package out in front of Lu Qiancha, calmly dangling the bait.
Sniff sniff~
The rich, sweet scent of osmanthus instantly filled Lu Qiancha’s nose. Her blue eyes lit up, the previous anger vanishing into the clouds, and her head bobbed like a chick pecking rice. “I want some!”
A glimmer flickered through Ling Wanbai’s eyes as she proposed a trade: “Call me ‘Big Sister,’ and I’ll give you some.”
She thought Lu Qiancha would blow up again or at least struggle for a while like before.
But—
“Big Sister!” Lu Qiancha’s voice rang out bright and clear, without the slightest hesitation. It was so crisp and straightforward that it was as if the stubborn little cub from before was a completely different person.
The overly prompt response surprised even Ling Wanbai, a rare flicker of astonishment crossing her usually indifferent eyes.
Since the other party was so straightforward, Ling Wanbai didn’t hesitate either.
She opened the package, carefully split the golden osmanthus pastries in two, and handed one half to Lu Qiancha’s eagerly waiting little paws.
Lu Qiancha took her share, instantly picking up a piece and popping it in her mouth with a contented squint, her little face glowing with happiness.
As the sweet flavor melted in her mouth, she finally remembered to share. Picking up another piece, she rose on tiptoe and offered it to Xun Xue’s lips. “Mother, have some too! It’s so delicious!”