As soon as Gu Wuyou and Li Qinyuan entered, everyone in the room turned to look at them. Especially Fu Xian and Gu Yu—one was staring at Gu Wuyou, the other at Li Qinyuan—sizing them up from head to toe, as if worried that they had suffered some loss outside.
But the two involved didn’t feel anything at all.
Li Qinyuan was carrying a golden-threaded cage. He had already cleared things up with Gu Wuyou outside just now, so he was no longer jealous over the little creature. Walking beside the young girl, the corners of his lips were slightly raised, and it was clear that he was in a very good mood.
“Sit there,” Gu Wuyou tilted her head and said to Li Qinyuan without any hesitation.
Naturally, whatever she said was fine with Li Qinyuan.
The two of them walked over to sit on the soft couch under the eastern window. Bai Lu served them tea, and Gu Wuyou instructed, “Have Hongshuang and the others find a skilled craftsman to make a nest for it, and clear out the eastern warm chamber for me. From now on, let it live there.”
Bai Lu was clearly taken aback when she saw such a squirrel.
She opened her mouth, wanting to say something, but upon seeing the joy in Gu Wuyou’s eyes, she only pursed her lips and responded softly before going out to give the instructions.
Li Qinyuan placed the cage between them. The little creature was still somewhat wary of strangers. Just a moment ago, it had been fierce and arrogant outside, but now, seeing a room full of unfamiliar people, it curled up inside the cage without moving.
Its round, bright eyes were wide open, with its tiny hands and feet pressed together as it shrank into a ball, looking at everyone with a guarded expression.
Gu Wuyou felt distressed seeing this, but she also knew that if she let it out now, it would probably be even more frightened. She could only take a pine nut from the plate and a piece of cloth, placing them inside the cage before slowly reaching out her hand.
Just as she extended her hand, Gu Yu, who was sitting beside her, frowned and grabbed her arm, whispering a reminder, “Be careful not to get scratched.”
She wasn’t particularly fond of these creatures. She had once had a cousin she didn’t get along with who kept a cat. One time, that cat had scratched her entire arm, and ever since then, she had a deep-seated fear of fluffy creatures with sharp claws.
Gu Wuyou smiled and reassured her, “It’s fine, it won’t scratch me.”
Besides—
She glanced at the person beside her. The young man was staring intently at the cage, his expression both serious and focused. Even if the little creature really wanted to scratch her, the boy beside her would never let her get hurt.
Li Qinyuan seemed to sense her gaze. He still wasn’t entirely at ease.
A young man’s love was like this—he wanted to declare to the whole world that she was his, yet in those soft, lingering moments, he would still blush in embarrassment. But he didn’t shy away. Under the girl’s smiling gaze, he simply suppressed his voice and told her, “I’m watching. It’s fine.”
He would indulge her in all the things she wanted to do.
He would never stop her. He would do everything in his power to protect her.
Gu Wuyou heard him and understood him. The smile on her face became even brighter—her clear, shining eyes and delicate features made her look absolutely charming. She didn’t say anything, only extended her hand a little further into the cage.
The little creature inside the cage was startled by the approaching hand and immediately backed away, shrinking even further into the corner of the cage while baring its tiny teeth and squeaking at Gu Wuyou.
Even though a wild squirrel’s ability to cause harm was minimal, it still carried a certain level of danger.
Not just Gu Yu, even Fu Xian and the others straightened their backs. Li Qinyuan’s posture stiffened even more, his gaze fixed on the little creature, and his handsome face darkened.
Just like the wary little squirrel, he was also on high alert, as if afraid that it might hurt Gu Wuyou. He didn’t even blink.
But Gu Wuyou wasn’t afraid. She kept her hand suspended in the cage, looking at the little creature with gentle eyes. She neither moved closer nor withdrew, just quietly gazing at it.
Waiting for it to come to her.
The little squirrel seemed to finally realize that the person in front of it was the one who had been holding it earlier. It stared at Gu Wuyou, hesitated for a moment, and then slowly inched toward her along the edge of the cage. After a while, it finally rested its tiny head in the palm of her hand.
Using its softest part to meet her gentleness.
The moment Gu Wuyou’s palm touched that soft fur, her eyes curved into a smile. She rubbed its little head gently, her voice also soft and soothing, “Alright, don’t be afraid.”
After speaking, she moved the cloth-wrapped pine nuts a little closer.
The little squirrel looked at the bundle of pine nuts in front of it, then at Gu Wuyou. Whether it understood or not was unclear, but the body that had been curled up in a tense ball finally relaxed a little. It even nuzzled its cheek against her palm before lowering its head to eat its favorite pine nuts.
The group watching finally breathed a sigh of relief upon seeing it let down its guard.
Fu Xian, watching from the side, was practically brimming with jealousy. He had fed that little creature so much this morning, yet it never once gave him a pleasant look. Indeed, pets take after their owners!
Thinking this, his sourness deepened.
He grabbed a winter jujube from the plate and bit into it with an audible crunch.
Gu Wuyou saw that the little creature in the cage was no longer as fearful. It even plopped itself down inside, sitting with its legs crossed, its long tail swaying leisurely. Amused, she withdrew her hand, yet her heart was still filled with endless fondness.
Every time she saw this little squirrel, she would think of her past self.
Before marrying the great general, she had endured countless hardships and storms, long since losing her former innocence. Back then, she too had wrapped herself in layers of defense, terrified of suffering even the slightest harm again.
It was the great general—
Bit by bit, he softened her heart, making her willingly retract all her thorns.
Gu Wuyou couldn’t help but turn her head to look at Li Qinyuan beside her. The young man had also relaxed his guard and was now sitting properly. Noticing her gaze, he turned to look at her and raised an eyebrow, asking, “What is it?”
Gu Wuyou shook her head, her eyes still shining with a radiant smile. “Nothing.”
Li Qinyuan didn’t press further and simply handed her a handkerchief.
Gu Wuyou took it with a smile. As she wiped her hands, she turned to ask Gu Yu, “What were you all talking about just now?” When she had entered earlier, she seemed to hear something about “Dongshan” and “horse riding.”
But she hadn’t caught the full conversation.
Gu Yu, seeing that the squirrel was indeed no longer aggressive, withdrew her gaze and explained, “Fu Xian was saying that once the academy goes on break in a few days, we should go horse riding in Dongshan and see the plum blossoms. The scenery there is quite nice.” She peeled an orange slowly and added, “He was asking for your opinion. If you’re interested, we’ll all go together next time.”
“Sounds good.” Gu Wuyou had no objections.
Lately, her days consisted of nothing but the academy and home, with the occasional breakfast in the alley with the great general in the mornings. She was starting to feel a bit stifled. “But Dongshan is quite far. It’ll probably take us the whole day to go and return.”
She made a thoughtful sound and suggested, “How about we bring some food along that day? I remember there’s a pavilion on the mountain—we can have a barbecue there.”
She used to go there with the great general to grill food often.
Thinking of this, Gu Wuyou turned to look at Li Qinyuan. Her eyes curved like crescent moons, bright and sparkling, making her look exceptionally beautiful. Yet her voice was soft and sweet as she asked, “Is that okay?”
Li Qinyuan was in the middle of peeling an orange. Hearing her voice, he lifted his eyes and glanced at her.
Seeing her smiling eyes, his hands paused for a moment. After a beat, he softly responded with an “Mm,” then placed the peeled orange into her palm and said in a low voice, “If you like it, then let’s go.”
Hearing this, Gu Wuyou’s smile became even more radiant.
But the people around them were thoroughly overwhelmed by the sweetness of their interaction. Even the usually composed Jing Yubai couldn’t help but clear his throat lightly. Sitting in his chair, he propped his long fingers against his forehead, his long hair draped over his shoulders, and smiled helplessly, “Qilang, at least be mindful of the fact that we’re all still here.”
But Li Qinyuan didn’t seem embarrassed at all.
Instead, he raised an eyebrow, exuding the carefree and unrestrained air of a young man. He didn’t say anything, but his face practically screamed, “And what can you do about it?”
Jing Yubai naturally couldn’t do anything about him. He only suddenly felt a little regretful—he should have let Qilang struggle for a bit longer. That way, he could have enjoyed the spectacle for a while longer.
Truly, what a loss…
But clearly, it was too late for regrets.
Shaking his head with a smile, he decided not to look any longer. Instead, he stood up and turned to Gu Yu, saying, “Seventh Miss Gu, if you’re free, why don’t you take us out for a walk? The flowers and plants in the courtyard seem rather unique.”
Before Gu Yu could reply, Gu Wuyou had already smiled and responded, “My father collected those from various places for me. There’s even someone assigned to take care of them regularly. The orchids inside are the most precious.”
She remembered that Jing Yubai quite liked orchids, so she added, “If you like them, you can take some home. I only keep them for admiration anyway.”
Jing Yubai was just about to decline when, out of the corner of his eye, he caught sight of Li Qinyuan’s face darkening instantly. Suddenly, he couldn’t help but chuckle. Amused, he decided to play along and replied, “Alright.”
Then, he turned to Gu Yu and said, “Seventh Miss Gu, shall we go?”
Gu Yu didn’t really want to go. Leaving these two alone inside made her uneasy. But seeing Gu Wuyou happier than usual, she also couldn’t bear to dampen her mood.
After some consideration, she finally stood up, though her face was full of reluctance. As she passed by Fu Xian, she reached out and pulled him along. “You’re coming too.”
Fu Xian protested, “I don’t want to look at flowers.”
Besides, it was freezing outside.
Gu Yu stared at him speechlessly. Was this guy an idiot? Did he really think Jing Yubai wanted to see flowers? Obviously, he was just trying to give those two some space! And yet, this fool was still sitting here stuffing his face—he was about to finish an entire plate of winter jujubes!
Without another word, she grabbed him and dragged him outside.
Fu Xian, caught off guard, was really pulled away just like that. Meanwhile, Jing Yubai and Qi Xu were left behind.
Gu Wuyou watched them leave, her bright smile completely uncontainable. Talking and laughing with a group of peers around the same age—this was an experience she had never had before.
And… it was quite fun.
By now, she had finished eating the orange. Just as she turned to speak to Li Qinyuan, she noticed the young man beside her pressing his lips together, looking distinctly unhappy.
“What’s wrong?” Gu Wuyou asked, puzzled.
“You’ve never given me anything,” Li Qinyuan looked at her, his gaze filled with grievance. Even his tone carried a thick air of a neglected, resentful husband.
“Huh?”
Gu Wuyou was momentarily stunned. It took her a while to process what he meant.
And then—she couldn’t help but burst into laughter.
Li Qinyuan knew he was being childish, but he just couldn’t help it. He didn’t want to see her being kind to anyone else. Feeling sulky, Young Master Li simply reached into the cage, pulled the little squirrel out, and held it in his hand, lowering his head as he ruffled its fur aggressively—almost as if venting his frustration.
“Hmm?”
The little squirrel, happily eating its food just moments ago, was suddenly scooped up. It looked at Li Qinyuan with an innocent face, its tiny mouth still stuffed full of pine nuts, making its little cheeks puff up even more.
It had no idea what had just happened.
It glanced at Li Qinyuan, then at Gu Wuyou, before finally deciding to endure this discomforting hand. After all, it had eaten so many delicious things—surely, this was the price to pay?
And so, it resignedly continued munching on its pine nuts.
Gu Wuyou, watching from the side, found it utterly amusing. She had truly never seen the great general act like this before. Her heart softened as she reached out two slender fingers and gently tugged at Li Qinyuan’s sleeve.
Still sulking, Young Master Li glanced down at her fair, delicate hand but said nothing.
“Ai—”
Gu Wuyou deliberately dragged out the syllable as she called him. Seeing him unwillingly turn his head with a reluctant “What?”—
She suddenly leaned in and placed a light kiss at the corner of his lips.
Then, watching as his eyes widened in shock, she tugged at his sleeve again and smiled softly, “Now, is this better?”