“If only there were silkworms.” Yan Yu’an pressed his lips together. He planned to go ask the oldest granny in the tribe in a few days—the one who knew everything about the forest.
Early the next morning, Xie Ji dragged a still-sleepy Yan Yu’an off to the lakeside.
“Why did you drag me here so early in the morning?” Yan Yu’an rubbed his eyes and yawned. When he looked up, he saw Xie Ji’s half-smiling, half-not gaze.
Yan Yu’an immediately had a bad premonition. He gave an awkward laugh and scratched the back of his head. “Why are you looking at me like that…”
“You lied.” Xie Ji narrowed his eyes and raised his hand to pinch Yan Yu’an’s chin, his blue eyes carrying a trace of amusement and a smile. “You saw that guy.”
As it happened, last night he’d only felt a bout of restless heat and wanted nothing more than to soak in the water, so he’d quietly come to the lakeside.
It was spring now, after all, so Xie Ji hadn’t thought much of it.
But when he reached the lakeside, he caught a disgusting smell.
Though the smell was very faint—very faint indeed—for a lion, that faint trace was enough to tell him who had come.
What made him even angrier was that there was also a very faint trace of Yan Yu’an’s scent here. Combined with Yan Yu’an’s hesitant behavior a while back, he understood at once.
Yan Yu’an closed his eyes, not looking at Xie Ji.
Xie Ji was amused by this look of his. He stuck out his tongue and licked Yan Yu’an’s face. “Feeling guilty?”
Xie Ji didn’t know why he wasn’t angry. He just let go of the hand pinching Yan Yu’an’s chin and shrugged. “Fine. I was originally going to forgive you, but now I won’t.”
He turned around, not looking at Yan Yu’an, his tail constantly lashing the ground with smacking sounds.
“Ah!” Yan Yu’an quickly reached out—he’d meant to grab Xie Ji’s arm, but unexpectedly he grabbed Xie Ji’s wildly swinging tail instead.
“What are you doing!” Xie Ji jumped up at once. He whirled around and pulled his tail out of Yan Yu’an’s hand, his blue eyes fixed dead on Yan Yu’an, the tail behind him puffed up into a ball.
Yan Yu’an quickly raised both hands to show he meant no harm. “I—I didn’t mean to…” he said, a little tongue-tied. Looking at Xie Ji’s bright red face, he thought: Xie Ji must be furious.
Xie Ji glared at Yan Yu’an, as if trying to read something in his face. After a long while, he finally said in a fit of pique: “From now on, if you ever see that stinking bird again, you have to tell me right away. I’ll go bite him to death.”
Yan Yu’an: “…” Wouldn’t that be even more reason not to tell him?
Yan Yu’an knew that when mutants in the forest fought, it would only end in mutual injury. Xie Ji couldn’t get hurt again.
After saying this, Xie Ji grabbed his own tail and left the lakeside in a huff, not sparing Yan Yu’an a single glance.
Yan Yu’an sighed and quickly jogged after Xie Ji.
He followed Xie Ji back into the house and watched as Xie Ji, back in lion form, irritably lashed his tail on the bed.
Yan Yu’an took a small step forward, bit his lip, and asked quietly: “Did I hurt you just now?” The response was Xie Ji baring his teeth and roaring at him.
“…” Yan Yu’an immediately took a step back and looked helplessly at the irritable lion king.
Seeing Xie Ji like this, Yan Yu’an was a little afraid.
Yan Yu’an stood by the bed for a long while. He couldn’t leave, and he couldn’t stay either. He could only press his lips together and lower his head, not looking at Xie Ji.
“Come here.” Xie Ji lashed his tail again, his blue eyes a little impatient. He stared at the head-hanging Yan Yu’an and roared at him.
Yan Yu’an immediately moved closer, and gathering his courage, patted Xie Ji’s head.
“Hmph.” Xie Ji gave a soft huff, looking very angry, but his tail was no longer lashing wildly.
Yan Yu’an let out a breath of relief. He heard Xie Ji say: “That guy Ning Bingque is no good.” He paused, as if waiting for something.
“Why?” Yan Yu’an promptly said, catching on.
Xie Ji was very satisfied with Yan Yu’an’s question. He licked his paw and said unhappily: “That bird only knows how to use underhanded tricks.” He seemed to think of something unpleasant and couldn’t help baring his teeth again, letting out a couple of low growls.
Yan Yu’an immediately patted the big head soothingly, and only then did the lion close his eyes in satisfaction. His tail wrapped around Yan Yu’an’s waist. “If next time I smell that thing on you again…” He paused, leaned close to Yan Yu’an, and licked his neck. “I’ll eat you.”
Yan Yu’an nodded. “I understand.” Actually, he’d known long ago that Ning Bingque was off.
But when he went to look for Ning Bingque the next day, there was no sign of him anymore, so Yan Yu’an hadn’t taken it to heart. At the time he’d just thought he was overthinking it—he never expected Ning Bingque to be one of those three mutants.
He lowered his head and looked deeply at Xie Ji. He didn’t know why Xie Ji had such a deep conflict with them, but this wasn’t something he could interfere in.
That night, Yan Yu’an had the nightmare again. In the dream, he was entangled by that pitch-black giant python.
He woke up panting, raised his hand to wipe the sweat from his forehead, and couldn’t help letting out a heavy sigh.
“You had the nightmare again?”
Yan Yu’an turned his head. The blue lion pupils glinted with an eerie light in the pitch-black night.
He heard Xie Ji say: “I’ll go bite the nightmare to death.”
Though Yan Yu’an had explained to Xie Ji what a nightmare was, the effect didn’t seem very obvious.
Yan Yu’an sighed. He gave Xie Ji a deep look, then shook his head. “No need.”
Xie Ji: “…” He irritably lashed his tail and said nothing.
Time flew by, and in the blink of an eye the weather gradually grew hot. Xie Ji had been a little gloomy lately—he always stayed alone in the stone house, and apart from when he went hunting, he generally didn’t go out much.
Yan Yu’an didn’t know what was wrong with Xie Ji either. He just assumed Xie Ji was too irritable because the weather had gotten hot, so he didn’t pay him much mind.
What was most important right now was still asking Granny about the silkworms.
Yan Yu’an jogged to the eastern side of the tribe and let out a breath of relief when he saw Granny sitting at her door sunning herself.
He’d long heard the tribespeople say that this granny was very odd. Apart from when she came out to sun herself and chat with others, at all other times, even if Xie Ji came to see her, he’d be chased out without mercy.
Yan Yu’an had come several times over the past few days, and today he finally saw this old granny.
“Granny.” Yan Yu’an jogged over to the old lady’s side.
“Oh, what are you doing here?” The old lady kept her eyes closed. “What business needs this old woman to do?”
Yan Yu’an smiled and crouched down beside the old lady. “Granny, I came today to ask you—do you know of an animal called a silkworm?”
“Silkworm?”
The old lady opened her eyes, turned her head, and looked Yan Yu’an over carefully, then closed her eyes again. “Never seen it, never seen it. Don’t come asking me.”
Yan Yu’an frowned slightly. This old lady clearly knew about this thing.
“Granny, I want to use silkworms to weave clothes, so that the lion tribe won’t be cold in winter.” Yan Yu’an rubbed his hands, a little anxious.
The old lady waved her hand. “Hurry and go. I’m not telling you for your own good. Silkworms—there are none of those here.”
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