Lin Huahua’s ears drooped.
Bai Ruyue looked worried too. "Your father is right. Even if this tastes good, you must not be careless."
Lin Huahua quickly nodded. "I understand."
Feng Yiren, who was still carrying leftover victory in his face because his dream beast god comnt had made her glare, suddenly said, "Yes. She must stop being careless with strange things. Strange leaves, strange fish, jumping fish near deep river water, all of it."
The entire cooking space went quiet.
Lin Xiaojiu froze with at still in his hand.
Xiong Baobao stopped chewing.
Even Ying Chengyu’s wings stiffened behind him.
Lin Huahua’s heart dropped.
She slowly turned her head toward Feng Yiren with a face that said if looks could kill, he would already be a red fox rug on the floor.
Feng Yiren lifted his chin slightly.
He did not regret it.
In fact, he was happy to finally bring this up in front of people who could scold her properly. He had been carrying the fear and anger from the river incident all day, and even though he had already scolded her, he felt that she still needed soone older, stronger, and more terrifying than him to make her understand how dangerous it had been.
Lin Weishan’s gaze sharpened imdiately. "What jumping fish near deep river water?"
Lin Huahua panicked.
Oh no.
Here it ca.
The scolding.
She was about to be scolded by her beast-world father, and even though this was not her sci-fi father, the feeling was still too similar. In her real world, whenever her father looked at her like this, she always felt as if she had beco six years old again and had been caught breaking a palace drone.
"Pa," she started weakly.
But Feng Yiren was faster.
"She followed strange jumping fish into the deeper part of the river today," he said, and because he wanted soone to finally talk sense into her, he did not soften the words at all. "A rman had been using them to lure her. He dragged her underwater. Hu Baiyu had to fight him and bring her back."
Bai Ruyue gasped.
Lin Xiaojiu’s ears shot up.
Xiong Baobao imdiately grabbed Lin Huahua’s sleeve as if the rman might still appear from under the cooking stone.
Ying Chengyu’s young hawk eyes turned sharp with fear and anger.
Xiong Han stood up so fast the stone beneath him scraped loudly.
Ying Zhe’s wings opened slightly, sharp and tense.
Bao Xun’s panther tail lashed once.
Shui Lang’s playful face vanished completely.
Lin Huahua lowered her head, already waiting for the scolding to land.
Lin Weishan’s expression was terrifying.
His eyes moved to Lin Huahua first.
Then to Feng Yiren.
Then back to Lin Huahua.
And then, in a turn so sudden that even Lin Huahua’s ears lifted in shock, he turned fully toward Feng Yiren.
"You let my daughter wander that far?"
Feng Yiren froze.
Lin Huahua blinked.
Mu Qingyi’s mouth twitched.
Hu Baiyu looked at Feng Yiren and then looked away, which was sohow worse.
Feng Yiren pointed at himself. "?"
Lin Weishan’s voice dropped. "Yes, you. Before the announcent, I already told everyone no female was to go near dangerous areas without being watched. Even before that, every male in this tribe knows not to let a female wander near deep water when strange tracks have been reported. You were with her. Mu Qingyi was with her. Hu Baiyu was with her. How did she get far enough for a rman to touch her?"
Feng Yiren’s red fox ears slowly pressed backward.
This was not how it was supposed to go.
He had brought this up so Lin Huahua would be scolded.
Not him.
Lin Huahua slowly lifted her head, and despite still being nervous, a tiny spark of satisfaction appeared in her eyes.
Feng Yiren saw it.
His tail stiffened.
Lin Weishan continued, eyes sharp. "And you are standing here proudly telling this as if you are not part of the problem?"
Feng Yiren opened his mouth.
Closed it.
Then looked at Lin Huahua, who was now very obviously trying not to smile.
The fox suddenly understood that his plan had not only failed.
It had turned around and bitten him directly on the tail.
Feng Yiren stood there with his red fox ears slowly pressing lower and lower until they almost disappeared into his ssy red hair.
For the first ti that night, his mouth actually failed him.
This was a very rare thing, because Feng Yiren’s mouth was usually faster than his brain and even faster than danger. He could talk when people wanted silence, argue when people wanted peace, and mock soone even while running away from bees. But right now, under Lin Weishan’s sharp gaze, the fox beastman suddenly realized that he had thrown a stone at Lin Huahua, and sohow the stone had bounced back, hit him on the forehead, rolled down his chest, and landed right on his pride.
His king was glaring at him.
Lin Weishan was not only the Rat King of the tribe, he was also Lin Huahua’s father, and in this world, that ant the worst possible combination for Feng Yiren. If any random male scolded him, Feng Yiren could talk back.
If Mu Qingyi scolded him, he could argue even though Mu Qingyi was three-striped and Feng Yiren was only two-striped. If Hu Baiyu glared at him, he could pretend he was not scared even though the white lion looked like he could crush him against a stone wall. But Lin Weishan was different. He had authority, strength, age, and most importantly, he had the power to make Feng Yiren look like a careless male who had failed to protect his female.
That was worse than being hit.
Feng Yiren’s red tail, which had been swishing proudly earlier, slowly stopped moving.
Lin Huahua saw it.
Of course she saw it.
Her little white rat ears, which had been drooping because she thought she was about to be scolded, lifted slightly.
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