Wu Gang's smile grew even more malicious; he was just about to disgust the Rabbit a bit more when he suddenly sensed that something was amiss. Where was that rustling sound of chopping grass coming from?
Wu Gang prepared to circle around to the other side of the Rabbit to check the situation.
But Qin Shou followed his movements, turning in circles to prevent him from seeing.
"Stop right there!" Wu Gang suddenly had a bad premonition and yelled out loud.
With that, Qin Shou took off running!
As he ran, Wu Gang saw clearly that his straw sandals had been gnawed down to half their size!
Running, Qin Shou called out, "Wu Gang, do you take me for a fool? Your shoes are a magic treasure! Do magic treasures get dirty? The Immortal's shoes should be spotless, right? Besides, I am doing this to survive; even if they were filthy, I would still eat them!
When Qin Shou said this, he wasn't exaggerating at all. If it were just him, he'd rather starve than eat.
But with Chang'e to worry about, there was no way he would allow himself to die.
To survive, not to mention eating a pair of shoes cleaner than anything on Earth, even if it meant eating genuinely dirty shoes, he would do it!
That's Qin Shou for you: seemingly unrestrained and wild, but deep down, once he sets his direction, he's as stubborn as an ox and never looks back!
Now Wu Gang really panicked, roaring, "Damn Rabbit, if you eat my shoe, I'll chase you all the way to your home!"
Hearing this, Qin Shou screeched to a halt, his ears perked up, and his brows raised as he asked, "What did you say?"
Seeing this, Wu Gang had a brainwave and looked at Qin Shou with a sly grin.
Suddenly, Qin Shou had a bad feeling. Was the thing he feared most about to happen?
Then he heard Wu Gang snicker, "When I get to your house, don't blame me for telling Chang'e all about your crimes!"
Upon hearing this, Qin Shou's ears immediately drooped, and he muttered, asking, "Wu Gang, have you ever dated anyone?"
Wu Gang was taken aback, clueless as to why Qin Shou would ask that, and he replied reflexively, "No, why?"
Sympathetically looking at Wu Gang, Qin Shou tossed him back his shoe, saying, "Nothing really… just take it back, I'm scared of you now."
Wu Gang said, "You're scared? So it turns out you're afraid of that!"
Qin Shou replied, "You're wrong… I'm not scared, I just suddenly felt, we're both single dogs, only I've been one for ten years, and you for a million years. I just pity you."
"What's a single dog?" Wu Gang asked, puzzled.
Waving his hand, Qin Shou said, "Never mind, I'm off, see you later."
"Get lost, and let's never meet again!" Wu Gang swung his leg to kick!
Yet Qin Shou wasn't afraid. He looked up, eyes seemingly sparkling with stars, gazing at Wu Gang's slightly raised left foot with eager anticipation.
Wu Gang looked at his shoe and quickly switched feet.
Then he heard a whoosh!
By the time he looked up, the Rabbit was already a white dot in the distance, trailing a cloud of dust high behind like a speedboat on the sea.
Wu Gang was speechless, putting on his shoe, only to discover, much to his dismay, that the shoe could only cover his heel, leaving half the sole exposed…
"Damn it, is that rabbit dog-born? Biting everything!" He cursed, then shook his head, pulled up his pants, and walked back without thinking much, just pondering how to protect the few possessions left on his body from the Rabbit's vicious bites.
No matter what Wu Gang was thinking, on the other side, Qin Shou was happily hopping back home, touching his belly and musing, "What kind of belly is this, that has eaten magic treasures and seems only to feel stuffed, with no limit to its capacity?"
Qin Shou shook his head, thinking about what Wu Gang had said—that his illness stemmed from a deficiency in nature Yuan Qi, and it was no ordinary deficiency. Without a vast amount of Yuan Qi, there was simply no cure.
In the past, he thought 'vast' meant just being full, but now it seemed 'vast' really did mean immense!
As long as the illness wasn't cured, Qin Shou felt as if he had a fishbone stuck in his throat, unable to relieve the constant pressure in his heart.
But once he returned to the entrance of his own cave, Qin Shou immediately hid all the pressure from his face.
No matter how big the worries, he couldn't bring them home!
This was Qin Shou's principle: even if the sky were falling outside and he was covered in bruises, he would make sure to clean up before going home, leaving not a trace behind.
In his own words, "A man should bear all the sorrows himself. Bringing them home to worry the wife and kids, the parents—what kind of man does that?"
Similarly, Qin Shou believed there was nothing that couldn't be resolved by going home to see his loved ones who cared for him dearly.
So, he was truly relaxed, not just pretending.
"Where have you run off to again? Look, I've gathered so many osmanthus flowers! Come and have some!" Chang'e said, beckoning Qin Shou over to eat as soon as she saw him.
Qin Shou looked at the osmanthus flowers spread out to cover an entire bed!
The fragrance of the osmanthus permeated the entire cave, filling his nostrils with the scent of flowers with every breath.
Qin Shou squinted his eyes and thought to himself, "If there were no worries about food and drink, staying here every day with such fragrant flowers would actually be quite nice."
For the first time, Qin Shou entertained this thought, and then it began to take root and sprout in his heart...
"What are you doing? Go eat!" Chang'e tapped Qin Shou's head.
Qin Shou chuckled and said, "I'm already full, what else am I supposed to eat? You eat, I'll watch."
Chang'e, assertive yet caring, insisted, "No! You must eat! Eating more is only good for you, there's no harm in it, you're still growing."
Qin Shou replied in the same tone, "What am I growing? I'm already this big. You're the one who is still growing."
Chang'e looked stunned and retorted, "I'm already this big, what more could I grow?"
Qin Shou glanced at Chang'e's chest. However, his long eyelashes and years of exercising his ability to view a whole screen in one glance allowed him to look away instantly, making him an expert at keeping a straight face without blushing or skipping a beat!
As expected, the carefree Chang'e did not notice Qin Shou's sly glance but stood with hands on her hips, demanding, "Are you going to eat or not?"
Qin Shou, with an expression of noble sacrifice, threw his head back and said defiantly, "No!"
Chang'e, after all, was not tyrannical and couldn't think of cruel tortures like tiger benches, chili water, or whipping with a wet whip.
So, Chang'e pouted, huffed, and said, "If you don't eat, neither will I! We might as well starve together!"
Seeing Chang'e getting angry, Qin Shou immediately softened and approached cautiously, asking, "Are you mad?"
Chang'e pouted, pretending to ignore Qin Shou.
Qin Shou tugged at his two rabbit ears, pulling them beneath his chin like a small hat, his eyes rolling with a new idea. He approached her and suggested, "How about we play a game, and whoever loses has to eat, okay?"
Chang'e perked up at this and asked, "What game?"
"Rock-paper-scissors, ever played it?" Qin Shou asked.
Chang'e shook her head…
Qin Shou was speechless for a moment. Indeed, the worlds were different, many things were not the same, and this girl had never even played rock-paper-scissors.