Chapter 859: Ladies’ Secrets
Su Qinglan was caught squarely in the center of the downpour. She was instantly drenched from head to toe... wet hair plastering flat against her face, water dripping off her eyelashes, and her clothes clinging heavily to her frame.
She stood frozen on the mud, completely drenched. "..."
Meanwhile, the little orca joyfully thrashed his giant tail against the water in pure ecstasy. Splash! Splash! The warm surge of energy coursing through his veins made him feel utterly amazing.
Su Qinglan slowly wiped a handful of river water off her face. "You little brat..."
Beside her, An Mo turned his face completely away, his broad shoulders shaking violently as he desperately suppressed a fit of laughter.
Lan Yue quickly clamped both hands over her mouth, muffling a squeak. "Sister..."
"Don’t you dare laugh," Su Qinglan growled, pointing a wet finger at her.
Lan Yue instantly snapped straight, her face stiffening as she tried to look serious. "I wasn’t laughing!"
"You definitely were!"
In the river, the little orca swam around in triumphant circles, his eyes bright and full of vibrant life.
The pure energy of the crystal had thoroughly washed away his sluggishness, making his movements significantly livelier and more fluid.
Su Qinglan leaned over and checked his condition one more time. This time, her stern expression completely relaxed into a genuine, warm smile. She turned back to her anxious sister. "He’s going to be completely fine."
Lan Yue’s eyes instantly sparkled with hope. "Really?!"
"Yes," Su Qinglan nodded confidently.
"His body is fundamentally healthy; he just needed a bit of strong energy to kickstart his stalled development. I’ll give him specialized treatment for three days. After that, if everything goes smoothly..."
She winked playfully. "...he should have a very high chance of successfully transforming into his human form!"
Lan Yue’s eyes instantly turned red, tears of sheer relief spilling over her lashes. "Really?! Oh, thank you, Sister! Thank you so much!"
"Really," Su Qinglan chuckled, patting her sister’s trembling shoulder gently. "So stop blaming yourself. You didn’t do anything wrong."
Lan Yue nodded repeatedly, wiping her eyes with her sleeve. "Thank you, Sister... thank you!"
Suddenly, the giant black-and-white head popped out of the water right in front of Su Qinglan again. The little orca opened his mouth wide, glinting with mischief. "Ahhh!"
Su Qinglan looked at him, raising an eyebrow. "What now?"
SPLASH!
Without warning, the little glutton slapped his heavy tail into the river once more, sending another heavy bucket-worth of water spraying straight onto her face!
Su Qinglan stood dripping wet for the second time in five minutes. She slowly wiped her eyes, narrowing them into dangerous slits as she glared at the innocent-looking sea beast.
"You’re feeling pretty pleased with yourself after eating my crystal, aren’t you?"
The little orca let out a loud, cheerful bark. "Ahhh!"
Su Qinglan let out a long, helpless sigh, reaching out to pat his massive, wet forehead. "Fine, fine... since you’re feeling better, I’ll let it slide this time."
"Qinglan! I’ve been searching for you everywhere! You didn’t run away with my medicine, did you?"
Su Qinglan froze, her eyes snapping open. Oh, right! In all the chaos with the little fry, she had completely forgotten she was supposed to deliver Lin Muyu’s special prescription!
"Of course not!" Su Qinglan turned around with an innocent smile.
She quickly retrieved the basket An Mo was carrying and slipped it into Lin Muyu’s hands.
Leaning in close, Su Qinglan lowered her voice to a barely audible whisper: "Just take it before you two do anything tonight, okay?"
Lin Muyu’s face instantly flushed red. She understood the implication in a fraction of a second and hastily took the basket back.
Standing right behind Lin Muyu was Wang Mo, the tall, serene elk beastman. Observing their hushed exchange, he tilted his head and asked softly, "Muyu? What is that?"
Lin Muyu’s heart skipped a beat, a wave of intense guilt washing over her face. She blinked rapidly, trying to sound completely casual.
"N-Nothing! It’s just... ladies’ talk! Males shouldn’t ask about female things, okay?"
Wang Mo did not press the matter at all. He simply offered a gentle, understanding smile and quietly nodded.
His utter trust and gentleness only made Lin Muyu feel ten times more guilty inside.
She internally tried to console herself...why should she feel guilty anyway?! She had already given him one healthy cub!
If he wanted another one so soon, he was just going to have to wait! Her body needed a break, and she wasn’t ready yet!
Trying to distract herself from her spiraling thoughts, Lin Muyu’s gaze wandered over to Lan Yue. She immediately perked up and waved warmly. "Lan Yue!"
𝒻𝑟𝘦𝘦𝘸ℯ𝒷𝑛𝘰𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝘤𝘰𝘮
Lan Yue waved back with a bright smile. "Sister Muyu!"
Lin Muyu looked around at the rest of the group. But the moment her eyes landed on Manis... who was quietly lurking right behind his older brother, Tang Wu...her friendly expression cracked completely.
Her eyebrows shot up, and her eyes narrowed into sharp daggers. "YOU?! What on earth are you doing here, you creep?!"
Manis was so terrified he nearly jumped out of his own skin! His face went pale, and without a second thought, he scrambled behind Tang Wu, using his elder brother’s large frame as a human shield.
Lan Yue was completely stunned by the sudden outburst. "Sister Muyu, what happened? He is Tang Wu’s younger brother... did he offend you in some way?"
Lin Muyu’s eyes widened slightly. He? Offend me?
She bit her tongue, knowing better than to blurt out whatever weird encounter had happened between them. She glanced at Tang Wu, who stood there looking utterly upright, noble, and righteous.
She couldn’t help but sigh mentally: Tang Wu is such a bright, respectable beastman... how on earth does he have such a creepy little brother?!
Shaking her head in disgust, Lin Muyu shot Manis one final, fierce glare that could curdle milk.
Behind Tang Wu’s back, Manis shuddered violently under the terrifying female glare.
Satisfied that she had sufficiently intimidated the little mermaid, Lin Muyu turned on her heel. "Let’s go, Wang Mo."
Wang Mo nodded obediently, following her as they took their leave.
With Lin Muyu gone, Su Qinglan also patted her damp clothes and turned to An Mo. "Alright, let’s head over to the East Gate now. The crowd is probably already waiting for our salt and vegetables."
As Su Qinglan and An Mo walked off, Manis finally peeked out from behind Tang Wu. He dramatically patted his racing chest, letting out a long, shuddering sigh. "So fierce... so scary!"
Lan Yue turned around, looking at Manis with deep concern. "Manis, did something really happen between you and Sister Muyu?"
Manis shook his head like a rattle, his hands waving frantically in front of his chest. "No! Nothing! Absolutely nothing happened!"
The more desperately he denied it, the more convinced Lan Yue became that something extremely suspicious had definitely gone down between them.
Still, as his elder sister-in-law, Lan Yue felt obligated to offer him some crucial life advice.
She looked at him with utmost seriousness and warned, "Manis... whatever you do, don’t provoke Sister Muyu. She really beats people up!"
Manis instantly clutched his eyes in sheer horror.
Of course he knew that! He knew it far better than anyone else!