Chapter 17

As a preface, I’m not sure if it’s just a Chinese thing but when adults try to get their kids to pee, they’ll make a noise like “shh shh” so imitate the sound of going to the bathroom. So “shh shh” is like babytalk for peeing.

From the looks of it, she didn’t miss her husband at all.

At this moment, Dou Dou, who had been sleeping on his back, yawned widely. He Guan turned his head and laughingly said to her. “Little bean, are you awake?” His mood was very good, so his tone was kinder when he spoke to her. He didn’t think that the first sentence Dou Dou said when she woke up would be —

“I want to shh shh.”

He Guan was taken aback. The smiling expression in his eyes receded and he seriously asked. “What do you mean?”

Demons did not need to pee so it wasn’t strange that he asked. He didn’t immediately understand what ‘shh shh’ meant. Although he was an all-knowing demon, what he understood was women, and that didn’t include little girls. By the time he understood, it was already too late.

Little Dou Dou was only three years old. She couldn’t hold back and accidentally let it go. He Guan’s handsome face was shocked into becoming as pale as a corpse.

This little thing wet its pants? Is there a mistake? Even if she wanted that ‘shh’ thing, why didn’t she first take off her pants before releasing water?

How would he know that every time little Dou Dou needed to pee, Nanny Ji would always be there to help her. Since Nanny Ji wasn’t here, little Dou Dou could only look for He Guan.

Although she was young, she still had a girl’s sense of shame. Wetting her pants in her view was equivalent to the sky falling down. She couldn’t help but cry loudly.

She cried but He Guan was the one who wanted to cry. He began to jump around, flustered. In the end, he quickly flew her to a mountain spring and proceeded to dump her, with her clothes on, in the water to ‘wash’. He originally wanted to directly hang her on a tree to dry but when little Dou Dou sneezed loudly, he decided to throw just her pants onto a rock to let the sun dry it. The pants quickly dried with the combination of the sun’s heat and the hot rock. He quickly dressed Dou Dou again.

Taking care of a baby was a f-cking torment. Human’s couldn’t do it, but demons also couldn’t do it. Plus, little Dou Dou was the object of his blood oath, he couldn’t not take care of her.

That troublesome matter wasted a lot of time so He Guan had to quickly fly back to find Dou Dou’s mother.

After Mu Huanqing snatched the black colt back, she wrapped its four horseshoes with black cloth so they wouldn't leave behind any hoofprints. After finding Li Yuan and Hao Qi, she had Hao Qi spread the word to the rest of the group before leaving with Li Yuan. They went back via the waterways and had a boat transport the black colt back home.

The sun was already setting when they returned to the farmstead. She had the black colt taken back to the stables as she waited for Hao Qi and the rest of them to hurry back. After they returned, they hurriedly went to the discussion room for a secret meeting.

This expedition completely went against Mu Huanqing’s expectations. She originally planned for the group to investigate the whereabouts of the bandits first, then make further plans after they understood the enemy’s situation. Unexpectedly, she met Fu Yanlin.

After not seeing each other for four years, he had become even more solemn.

When Li Yuan and Hao Qi found the bandit den, the bandits had already been wiped out by the imperial soldiers. The leader of the group was Fu Yanlin! Just great. The other horses had also been confiscated by them.

Mu Huanqing paced in the room, recalling the events that had transpired today. She had snatched the black colt back from Fu Yanlin’s hands. He was not going to give up. He would find the farmstead. Suddenly, she thought of something and immediately ordered.

“Hao Qi, immediately tell Little Dog to head to the city. Have him wait at the gate. As soon as the gate opens tomorrow, he must go report the case to the authorities. Then if they come to investigate, we can say that we have already reported it. We must not let them know that we went to the bandit’s den today, otherwise, we will have an unclear relationship with it. Tomorrow I will bring the black colt back to the manor. If the authorities ask who the owner of the farmstead is, just say that it’s the fourth young lady. Understood?”

“Understood.” The others responded. They already knew that the eldest lady had snatched the black colt from the officer’s hands. To keep new issues from arising, it was best to keep this matter tightly under wraps.

“Fourth lady, if it’s necessary, you will meet the people from the court on my behalf. Just say that this farmstead belongs to you, understood?”

Fourth lady Feng nodded. “Eldest miss, do not worry. This fourth lady understands.” Lady Feng was an eighteen-year-old woman. A widow that Mu Huanqing brought in. She was outspoken and straightforward, capable and experienced, and valued loyalty to the extreme.

Mu Huanqing delegated many tasks for the others to do and after everyone broke apart to do their tasks, she once again paid a visit to Wu Gang. When she saw that he was asleep and Doctor Wu said that his life was no longer in danger, she stepped outside.

After Xin Yu attended upon her meal and helped her freshen up, she also signed to her, saying that she had seen a big butterfly. Mu Huanqing thought Xin Yu wanted to say that the butterfly was big and beautiful but Xin Yu gestured again. She said that the butterfly seemed to have followed her from the manor. These words surprised Mu Huanqing.

She asked how Xin Yu could know it was the same butterfly? Xin Yu said that the markings on its wings were the same and lines on its body were also exactly the same. Even if it was the same species, the lines would not be exactly the same size. The number of lines was identical, and the colours didn’t differ by a single shade.

Mu Huanqing was surprised. She knew about Xin Yu’s photographic memory and her ability to observe small details very carefully. She couldn’t help but think back to the colourful butterfly she saw in the woods earlier today. She had thought it was a coincidence so she didn’t take it seriously, but now she was increasingly cautious.

“If you see that butterfly again tomorrow, catch it and bring it back!” She ordered.

Unexpectedly, that butterfly was gone the next day but a different butterfly had appeared. Not only were the markings different, but the size was different, and the colour was also different. When Mu Huanqing saw it she thought that she had been overly cautious. How could there be a butterfly in this world that would follow people?

To prevent undue delay bringing trouble, Mu Huanqing set out before dawn. Along with Li Yuan and Xin Yu, she rode the black colt back to the manor.

Two hours after she left, Fu Yanlin brought his cavalry to the door.

Lady Feng quickly went to meet him. According to the eldest lady’s order, they truthfully recounted how their horses were taken but did not mention that they had gone out to find the bandits.

Fu Yanlin had found the farmstead by asking around. He heard that the owner was a woman and so came to visit. When he saw Lady Feng, he was a little disappointed.

Although he hadn’t seen the other party’s face, he knew it was not the same person.

Mu Huanqing could trust Lady Feng with this matter because she knew her ability. Lady Feng knew what she should say and what she should not say.

No matter what Fu Yanlin asked, the other person could always answer and he couldn’t detect a hint of suspicion. He brought people to investigate the farmstead, randomly grabbing people to question them. He couldn’t find any useful trails so he put his doubts aside for the time being.

Lady Feng took this opportunity to request the General to catch the thieves and return their horses. She said that the horses stolen from this farmstead were of great value and they had suffered heavy losses.

The deputy general beside him answered on his behalf. He said that the court would deal with the matter and told them to await news from the government.

When Mu Huanqing returned to the manor, the sun had just risen. Before she came back, He Guan had sent Dou Dou home. As Mu Huanqing entered the house, she saw her daughter sleeping on the bed and Nanny Ji asleep by the bedside.

She lightly walked to the bedside and rubbed her daughter’s face. But Dou Dou did not wake up. She had been flying with He Guan for the whole day yesterday and only rushed by this morning. She was so tired that she would not wake up.

Nanny Ji woke up at that time and opened her mouth when she saw Mu Huanqing. “Master is back? Oh my——”

“What’s wrong?”

Nanny Ji kneaded her neck. “I think I twisted it.”

Mu Huanqing shook her head. “Really, you- A bed right here and you slept like that. What if it became an injury? Let me see.”

Nanny Ji also thought it was strange. It seemed like she had been asleep for a long time but why couldn’t she remember when she fell asleep?

“It’s ok. I will have them massage it with medicated wine. After applying a herbal plaster, it will be alright. The master has worked hard, do you need to wash up? Where’s Xin Yu?”

“Xin Yu attended to me already. She’ll be back later. You should quickly find someone for your neck. If it’s still sore, just find a doctor to take a look.”

“Oh, then I won’t bother, I’ll go now.” Nanny Ji rubbed her neck and tilted her head, slowly walking out of the room. As she walked, she wondered when she fell asleep. She must really be getting old, her memory was not good already.

Mu Huanqing shook her head with a smile. She sat on the bedside and looked down at Dou Dou’s sleeping face.

She looked at Dou Dou’s cute and pretty little face and couldn’t help but think of Fu Yanlin. The only man who she had been intimate with. She hadn’t seen him in four years and did not expect to meet him in the woods.

Dou Dou actually looked very like her father. She only looked 30% like Mu Huanqing. Fu Yanlin was a beautiful man. Dou Dou was naturally also incredibly beautiful.

She did not intend to conceal the matter of Dou Dou’s biological father. It was only that Dou Dou was still young. She wanted to wait until she had grown a bit before telling her about her father.

Although Mu Huanqing had planned it that way, He Guan couldn’t wait for that long. When the adults were away, he taught little Dou Dou was a ‘daddy’ was.

The demon uncle brought Dou Dou out of the manor and pointed to a family on the grasslands. He told her that that was the child’s mother, and the one next to her was the child’s father. Every child had a father and a mother. Little Dou Dou had a mother, then she would naturally have a father too.

The demon uncle even said that her daddy was very tall and very powerful. More powerful than all the other uncles in the manor. So little Dou Dou began to have expectations. She also wanted a daddy. She just didn’t know where her daddy was.

“I want daddy.” Little Dou Dou said.

After He Guan heard that, the pair of peach blossom eyes narrowed in happiness. “Little Dou Dou misses daddy, huh? Don’t worry. Your daddy is coming soon. When the time comes, uncle will bring you to see daddy. When you see daddy, remember to shout daddy, alright?”

The innocent Dou Dou was coaxed into happiness by the demon uncle and obediently nodded and agreed. What did daddy symbolise? Daddy symbolised taller, bigger, more powerful. He would hold her in his arms and play with her and would love her as mummy loved her. Little Dou Dou really wanted a daddy.

Naz's note: Since I put my interesting note at the beginning to people who understand what Dou Dou meant, I have nothing interesting to say here lol.

I laughed a lot at poor He Guan having to take care of baby Dou Dou~

Thanks for reading~