“Go wait outside my cave,” Jintong said, his voice cold and nonchalant.
“Okay,” Shu Ning replied, following behind Jintong.
Seeing Shu Ning’s obedient, docile, and ugly appearance—so completely unlike the arrogant and domineering figure of rumor—a flicker of surprise appeared in Jintong’s eyes.
“What do you want this for?” Jintong asked curiously as he handed the Big Bone Knife to Shu Ning.
“Thanks.
I’m planning to make some furniture.” Shu Ning saw no reason to hide it.
“What kind of furniture?
By yourself?”
“Yeah.
You know, tables, chairs, a door…
that sort of thing.”
Jintong was shocked.
‘Aren’t the rumors true?
That she’s incredibly lazy, hates bathing, and refuses to do any work?’
He looked at Shu Ning again and noticed she was much cleaner than yesterday.
The unpleasant stench was gone, too.
Still, Jintong didn’t believe she would actually do the work herself.
‘It’s more likely a lie, something she’s saying just to get on my good side.’
Rumor had it she’d resorted to all sorts of despicable tricks to win the favor of her Beast Husbands.
Jintong couldn’t care less about what she was planning.
After lending her the Beast Bone Blade, he simply went back to sleep.
Shu Ning happily accepted the Beast Bone Blade, but she was surprised by how heavy it was.
Jintong’s cave was a fair distance from hers.
Lugging this thing all the way back was going to be exhausting.
‘Should I use Instant Teleportation again?’
‘No, no, no.
A little challenge like this won’t be the end of me, Shu Ning.’
‘A little exercise is good.
It’ll help me lose weight, too.’
After returning to her dwelling, Shu Ning stared at the large trees near the entrance of her cave and began to scheme.
‘I’ll chop down the trunks and split them into planks to make a door.’
‘The branches can be used for firewood.’
…
Before long, Shu Ning was so exhausted she could barely breathe.
Her hands were covered in blisters.
Staring at her near-zero progress, Shu Ning felt her motivation deflate.
“007, do you have a rechargeable chainsaw?”
…
“Yes,” the system replied.
“Lend it to me.”
“If you want the chainsaw, you must first complete a side quest.”
“What side quest?” Shu Ning had been about to offer energy in exchange; she hadn’t expected a side quest.
“Accompany Mo Li or Jintong on a formal visit to their family.”
“Okay.”
“I’ll go find them right now.”
‘Jintong wants to sleep in, so I’ll go find Mo Li!’
Shu Ning figured that for a family visit, she ought to bring a gift.
She opened her encyclopedia and began researching the lifestyle and preferences of the Jiao Clan.
The Jiao Clan loves jewels and precious stones…
Then, she looked up the locations of gems in this world.
‘There it is.
Right here.
It’s the closest location.’
Shu Ning glanced at the map in the encyclopedia and set off at once.
Thankfully, it wasn’t far, and the area was full of caves.
Her Wolf Clan Tribe generally only used them for shelter.
Having already lost nearly forty pounds, Shu Ning walked with a much lighter step than the day before.
But climbing the mountain was still a strain.
After all, with her high starting weight, a forty-pound difference wasn’t as significant as it sounded.
When she reached her destination, Shu Ning, already drenched in sweat, took a deep breath and cautiously entered the cave.
As a Wolf Clan Beastman, her eyes immediately switched to night-vision mode the moment she stepped into the pitch-black cave.
They glowed like two golden marbles, scanning the darkness.
It didn’t take long for her to spot numerous natural gemstones inside the cave.
Shu Ning was ecstatic.
‘But how do I get them all back?’
‘Right, Instant Teleportation!’
Shu Ning focused on the gems embedded in the rock before her, concentrating her energy—
—and the gems vanished.
‘It worked!’
Just as Shu Ning was about to head back, she turned around.
Suddenly, she saw a pair of glowing eyes at the cave entrance, staring right at her.
Shu Ning tensed up instantly.
“You…
Who are you?” Shu Ning stammered.
“Female, don’t you remember me?” Xiao Chong said, a wicked smirk on his face as he watched Shu Ning and closed the distance step by step.
As Xiao Chong drew nearer, Shu Ning finally got a clear look at the male before her.
He had long, silver-gray hair, dark-gray almond-shaped eyes, and a handsome, blade-sharp face marked with faint, barely-there scratch marks.
Xiao Chong stood tall in the mouth of the cave, his shadow engulfing Shu Ning.
He was one of the subordinates of Shu Ning’s mother, Mu Xia.
Several years ago, at a young age, he had single-handedly defeated numerous rival males, eventually earning the great trust of the Holy Female.
As the daughter of the Holy Female, Shu Ning had often ordered Xiao Chong to do her bidding.
That included secretly scheming against her Beast Husbands.
Whoever Shu Ning set her sights on, she had to have.
The only exception was Xuan Lin, the strongest in their clan.
That was because of an order from Mu Xia, which he had no choice but to obey.
As for Xuan Mo, it was Xiao Chong who had plotted to have him bound and brought to her.
‘As for why Xuan Mo didn’t escape later, I’m still puzzled about that myself.’
…
“Of course I remember you.
But why are you here?” Shu Ning said, forcing a calm tone.
‘This guy is bad news,’ she thought.
‘I need to get out of here, fast.’
“Just checking to see if you were dead,” Xiao Chong said with that same wicked smile.
He had spotted the overweight female, Shu Ning, wandering around the area earlier.
He just hadn’t expected her to dare enter this cave by herself.
He’d been curious to see how long the timid little mouse of a female would last in there.
When she didn’t come out after a long while, his eyes narrowed slightly.
‘Could this female have actually died in there?’
He was just about to go in and check on her when she emerged.
“Well, thanks for your concern.”
Shu Ning breathed a sigh of relief.
Seeing that he meant no immediate harm, she squeezed past him and out of the cave.
As Shu Ning passed by, so close to him, a flash of surprise crossed Xiao Chong’s eyes.
He wasn’t sure if it was just his imagination.
She seemed…
thinner.
“What’s this?
Are your Beast Husbands treating you that poorly?” Xiao Chong asked as he turned, that wicked smile still playing on his lips.
“Or could it be…
you got two new Beast Husbands and now you want to change yourself to attract them?”
Shu Ning stopped in her tracks and whipped around.
He had hit a nerve.
“What’s it to you!” she snapped.
With that, she stomped off.
She had to get back to sort the gems and prepare the gifts for the family visit.
Xiao Chong watched her retreating figure, his brow furrowed slightly as an emotion he couldn’t quite name stirred within him.
Back in her cave, Shu Ning wiped the gems clean, then went to Mu Xia’s place to borrow a few pieces of beast hide to wrap them.
…
By the time she finished, it was nearly afternoon.
Shu Ning decided to go find Mo Li at his cave.
As it happened, Mo Li was there.
“Mo Li—” Shu Ning called out happily upon seeing him.
Hearing his name, Mo Li looked up, his cold gaze landing on the newcomer.
“What is it.”
“Mo Li, we’re making a family visit today,” Shu Ning said succinctly with a smile.
“A family visit?” Mo Li’s eyes flickered.
“That’s right!
The two of us will go to your home—a visit back to the Jiao Clan,” Shu Ning explained happily.
“I’m not going.” Looking at Shu Ning’s ugly, obese form and imagining how everyone back home would mock him, he refused without a second thought.
As the Third Prince of the Jiao Clan, he couldn’t afford such a humiliation.
But then he thought of his two older brothers and their doting wives, and a part of him wanted to show everyone that he and his own female could be just as loving.
“Please come with me.
I want to see your home, Mo Li.
I want to see what the Jiao Clan is like.
Please, I’m begging you,” Shu Ning pleaded when she saw him refuse.
He had come here for a political marriage in the first place, and given that no one in his clan had high hopes for him, Mo Li actually felt a little moved.
Seeing that he was starting to waver, Shu Ning pressed her advantage.
“I even prepared gifts for the visit!
Come on, I’ll show you.”
Without waiting for his answer, she grabbed his long, elegant hand and started pulling him toward her cave.