A group of handsome youths surrounded Gao Yue, heading to the back mountain to see the rabbits.
Gao Yue felt a little shy.
These youths were all just over one meter seventy, their builds youthful and slightly thin, though they had some muscle definition. They wore all sorts of Beast Skin Skirts, and since their bone structure hadn't fully developed, they had a beauty that blurred the line between male and female.
As it turned out, when Gao Yue asked their ages—
some were nine, ten, some eleven.
The oldest was no more than twelve.
Her shy expression vanished without a trace in an instant. Looking at them now was like looking at a bunch of nephews, and she straightened her face, trying hard to establish some authority.
"Big sister's going to test you all. There are a hundred stones here, and a hundred and fifty stones there. How many altogether?"
"Two hundred fifty, of course!"
"Two hundred fifty."
"Very smart. Then how about all the tall trees near your tribe, plus all the short trees—how many are there in total?"
"Three hundred thirteen, maybe?"
"No, it's three hundred twenty."
"I think it's three hundred twenty-five."
Gao Yue: "Seems like the answer's still not settled. Let me test you one more time—how many people are in your tribe, females plus males combined?"
"Over three thousand."
"Right, I know it's over three thousand."
At this point, the oldest of them, a black-haired youth, crossed his arms disdainfully and spoke up. "If you want to pry information out of us, just say so. No need to dress it up as testing us."
He lifted his chin and said, "My mother had us come along with you so we'd bond, but I don't like fat girls. And don't you go fantasizing about me becoming your Protector."
Gao Yue's fists clenched.
But she couldn't be bothered arguing with a child, so she said darkly, "A kid like you better watch out—no female's going to like you when you grow up."
Jun said contemptuously, "Who wants a female? Not nearly as fun as hunting."
Displeased with this brat's attitude, Gao Yue followed along with them toward the back mountain, bickering with the little brat the whole way.
The others clustered around her.
Soon they reached the back garden.
Sure enough, there was a very pretty, very cute little rabbit—a pink-furred one, no less. If not for the fact that it leaped two meters into the air and nearly pounced on her face like some kind of alien creature...
Gao Yue was so startled she nearly fell over.
She was caught by a bunch of the children.
Even the rudest one, the youth named Jun, caught her and kept her from falling. He scoffed lightly, "Such a coward—scared like that by one rabbit? What kind of Beastman are you?"
Gao Yue: "Why would I tell you? I don't tell rude children things."
Jun: "The way you talk, anyone would think you're not a kid yourself. You're even shorter than me."
Gao Yue: I'm damn well twenty-three years old!
The rabbit was a little frightening, and she didn't dare look at it anymore. Looking closely, its mouth was full of sharp fangs—the longer she looked, the less cute it seemed.
She turned and started walking back.
The children and youths all looked a little disappointed, but females were always doted on, and the males wouldn't go against their wishes too much. Privately, they were just annoyed the rabbit hadn't lived up to expectations.
Only Jun, this mutant male brat, wasn't willing to spare Gao Yue's feelings.
He lowered his voice and said to Gao Yue, "Wanting to head back so quickly—are you going to see Older Brother Moya? Let me tell you, Older Brother Moya belongs to my sister. You're so fat, my sister is way prettier than you."
Fine, praise your sister all you want, but why drag me down in the process!
Infuriating.
Gao Yue angrily stomped on Jun's foot.
Jun's face flushed red, and he said angrily, "You female, you think I'll like you now just because of that? No way!"
Gao Yue couldn't follow his thought process at all.
It was as if her stomping on his foot made it seem like she was flirting with him—maybe a python's brain just worked in strange ways.
She decided to ignore that last comment. "You said you have a sister—then why wasn't she at the meal today?"
Jun looked away. "She's already an adult, so of course she lives with her Beast Husband now."
She already has a Beast Husband!
Gao Yue: "How many Beast Husbands does your sister have?"
Jun: "My sister only has three. That's quite few."
Gao Yue: "Then does your sister have a First Beast Husband yet?"
Jun: "How do you not even know something this basic! If a female doesn't take her First Beast Husband first, how could there be any after him?"
Gao Yue was dumbstruck.
"Then you're saying your sister wants Moya too?"
Jun said, unbothered, "What does it matter? Her First Beast Husband is only a Tier 3 anyway."
"If Moya's willing to be with my sister, would he really just sit back and let that guy stay First Beast Husband? Just beat him up until he hands over the First Beast Husband spot—problem solved. Would he even dare refuse?"
"And if he refuses, then just kill him, that's all. If Moya's unhappy with the other two as well, they can be killed too. They're all useless anyway—not worth as much as a single Tier 5."
Such a young age, yet the words that came out were shockingly ruthless.
Those people who could be called his 'brothers-in-law'—he talked about killing them as easily as breathing. She could tell he meant it for real, not just tough talk.
A chill ran through Gao Yue.
Then she reconsidered—he might look like a youth on the outside, but underneath he was actually a Giant Python who killed without blinking. Of course his way of thinking was different from hers, an Earthling.
She stopped talking to him.
But the youth felt put out. "What? I wasn't saying I'd kill you. Nobody kills females—what are you so scared of? You're acting like I'd actually kill you."
Gao Yue: "I know. I believe you wouldn't kill me."
That's what she said, but her pace quickened all the same.
Which left the youth thoroughly frustrated.
One of his brothers complained from behind him, "This little female's pretty timid—Second Father even specially came back early to clear out the Giant-types for her. Why are you trying to scare her? I actually kind of like her."
Another child said, "She seems different from other females."
The green-haired youth added, "Yeah, she's so cute. When I caught her earlier, I touched her arm—her flesh was so soft. I want to be her Protector."
Jun stayed silent, his face dark.
Deep down, he wasn't without regret.
Still, he snapped fiercely at his younger brothers, "You're just a Tier-1 Beastman. You think she'd actually consider you as a Protector?"
The other retorted, "I'm still young. I'll get stronger later."
Jun scoffed. "By your age, Moya was already a Tier 3 Beastman."
At that, everyone fell into a sullen silence.
Gao Yue made her way back to the front of the cave.
Moya was still sitting in the same spot, his expression as calm as ever. Beside him now sat a Strange Female, dressed in a Tube Top and a long skirt, with the same great figure as always—long arms, long legs.
Surprisingly, she didn't look as masculine as the others; compared to the females Gao Yue had seen before, this one was a touch softer, and clearly knew more about how to dress herself up.
Her hair was styled into two Low Braids, decorated with colorful Feathers tied on top.
But she didn't know how to fluff the braids out a little, nor how to leave loose strands framing the sides of her face.
Still, overall it looked quite nice—it was only in the eyes of a professional like Gao Yue that there was clearly plenty of room for improvement.
This must be the sister Jun had mentioned earlier.
She looked at Moya, then at this Strange Female.
Suddenly it dawned on her—this meal was a matchmaking arrangement.
Auntie Zhihua was introducing her 'Female Cub' to her own sons, while also introducing Moya to her own daughter...
Did Moya even know about this? If he didn't, would he really have let her go off with Auntie Zhihua's sons like that?
Then again, in his eyes she was just a child, a perfect match for that group of kids.
Gao Yue's expression went flat.
Ever since learning their ages, she'd looked at them the way she'd look at nephews. She had a relative's child who was eleven, and by generational rank, that kid was her nephew.
Being matched up with a group of children like this weighed on her with guilt.
So then, what about Moya and this female?
Things had fallen apart with Lin Xi—maybe he wanted to consider another female too. Would her coming back be an intrusion?
A faint, sour ache stirred in her heart.
But she knew this was a normal reaction.
Anyone who got carried around princess-style all day by a man that handsome would feel a little strange about it—she wasn't actually a cub, after all.
But that feeling didn't linger long; she was more occupied thinking about her old profession.
Once she was no longer under Moya's care, how would she make money? Could she earn a living through makeup and teaching styling? She couldn't just keep eating and drinking off Moya forever.
The females of this world, being supported by so many males, were probably all fairly wealthy—maybe they'd be willing to pay for that kind of service.
Her Suitcase full of cosmetics shouldn't go to waste either.
Right, she needed to plan this out properly.
Lost in thoughts of her money-making plans, she figured she'd better not interrupt Moya's matchmaking, and thought about just finding a seat somewhere to sit down. But then Moya waved her over. "Why aren't you coming over?"
So Gao Yue went over after all.
She politely greeted the female sitting beside Moya.
"Hello, hello, I'm Gao Yue."
The other woman was friendly too. "Hello, I'm Wulan."
At this point, Moya handed Gao Yue a bowl of Pork Rib Soup, which he'd ladled out ahead of time and set aside to cool—it wasn't hot anymore. "Try it and see. If you like the taste, we'll buy some to bring home."
Gao Yue took a look.
Whoa, there was actually pumpkin and potato in it.
She took a sip. The soup had no MSG in it, but thanks to the natural savoriness of the ingredients themselves, it tasted even better than if it had been seasoned with MSG. She praised it without hesitation: "Really delicious!"
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