Si Yan was even filthier. She found so large leaves to screen the cave entrance, then used the water Bei Ji had finished with to give herself a quick rinse.
So filthy, like a thick shell!
After washing off the layer of gri, she put on a beastskin skirt. She then boiled water several more tis, filled a bucket, and gave her hair and body another thorough rinse.
The two cubs deliberately turned their heads away, averting their gazes.
After washing up, Si Yan managed to pry open a slit to her dinsional space and with so difficulty retrieved the only set of olive-drab military attire she had, then put it on.
Once Si Yan had dressed, the two cubs turned to look at her.
With the thick mud washed away, Si Yan’s skin was revealed to be as creamy white as Bei Ji’s. Her features were delicate and exquisite, making her exceptionally pretty.
Looking at her now, Xi Qing suddenly felt that Bei Ji actually bore a strong resemblance to her.
The two cubs could never have imagined that the ’bad female’ hidden beneath the gri was actually so beautiful! If it weren’t for the Beastn’s innate ability to recognize others by scent, which allowed the cubs to clearly sense that this female was indeed their mother, they would have definitely thought the female before them had been swapped for another!
It’s just... where did she get these clothes? And her clothes are so strange, the cubs thought.
Si Yan rinsed her own and Bei Ji’s beastskin skirts with the used bathwater. Just as she was about to leave the cave to dispose of the wastewater and hang the skirts to dry, Xi Qing suddenly stopped her. "Don’t go out!"
Si Yan asked in confusion, "Why can’t I go out?"
Xi Qing’s gaze flickered evasively.
From the bed, Bei Ji spoke loudly, "Mother, sothing will happen if you go out."
Si Yan: "..."
"Bad female," Xi Qing said mockingly, "have you forgotten? The Yanxiang Tribe has over two hundred male Beastn but only seventeen females."
Si Yan looked as if she had been struck by lightning.
She suddenly rembered that when she had gone to collect at, she had only seen male Beastn and no females. She hadn’t thought much of it then, but it turned out there were hardly any females in the tribe at all.
"If you go out now, many males will want to mate with you," Xi Qing said. "Female, are you planning to take a few males for yourself?"
Only now did Bei Ji and Xi Qing realize why their legendary and formidable wanderer father-beast had chosen Si Yan as his mate. Once clean, Si Yan was indeed very beautiful—beautiful enough to be ranked first in the Yanxiang Tribe, at least.
"How could that be?" Si Yan quickly said. "I don’t want a mate! I can support you all by myself!"
Xi Qing gritted his teeth, snatched the beastskin skirts from her hands in disdain, and said, "I’ll go hang them up to dry."
With that, Xi Qing left with the beastskin skirts in his arms.
Suddenly, Si Yan regretted bathing. Perhaps it would have been better to stay filthy rather than risk being surrounded by male Beastn, she thought.
Sighing, she took a small mirror from her dinsional space and looked at her reflection. She bore a strong resemblance to her past self—about eighty to ninety percent similar!
It was truly miraculous.
After pondering for a long while, Si Yan gave up trying to figure it out. She took out foundation and a brown eyeliner pencil from her makeup supplies and began to apply them to her face.
Bei Ji watched her intently. He saw the ’bad female’ sohow produce a black tube from nowhere and then watched as she altered her face, giving herself a dark, freckled complexion.
So strange. Where does the ’bad female’ get all her things? Bei Ji wondered.
After Si Yan finished with the eyeliner pencil, she put it back into her dinsional space and turned to ask Bei Ji, "Bei Ji, do you think I can go out now?"
Bei Ji stared at her with his big, round eyes. After a mont, his small face flushed slightly, and he nodded.
Si Yan’s cave was in a very secluded corner of the tribe, so she didn’t encounter any other Beastn when she went out.
She dragged a large stone back to the cave. Using a snake scale, she painstakingly hollowed it out to create a water basin, then fashioned a lid for it from another piece of stone.
Carving stone was much more laborious than working with wood, so Si Yan spent the entire afternoon on this task, unable to do anything else.
Then, she fetched water from the river. She took a piece of non-woven fabric, normally used for bandages, from her dinsional space to filter out the sedint from the river water. Finally, she poured the filtered water into the stone basin and covered it with the lid.
As evening approached, the beastskin skirts dried. Bei Ji changed back into his and climbed down from the bed. To avoid appearing too conspicuous, Si Yan also changed back into her oversized beastskin poncho-like skirt.
After a busy day, there was nothing left to eat in the cave. Si Yan looked at the sweet potatoes the two snake cubs had brought back and asked, "Can we eat these Red Earth Fruit?"
Xi Qing pursed his lips and remained silent. Bei Ji didn’t answer directly but instead asked, "’Bad female,’ why didn’t you suspect earlier today that we stole these Red Earth Fruit?"
Si Yan replied, "Why would I? I trust you."
"We are thieves, bad seeds, cold-blooded snake Beastn," Bei Ji said. "That’s what the entire Yanxiang Tribe calls us."
Perhaps it’s precisely because of this that they’ll gradually beco disillusioned with this world and eventually turn into major villains, Si Yan thought calmly.
"You are my children. Of course, I believe you," Si Yan said nonchalantly. "Besides, I would never stand by and watch my cubs be bullied by others."
Si Yan then added, annoyed, "And I’ve told you many tis: don’t call ’bad female.’ Call Mother!"
Xi Qing looked at her with disdain.
Bei Ji hesitated for a mont, then slowly said, "Mother..."
Xi Qing stared at Bei Ji in shock. Bei Ji, too, felt a pang of guilt, as if he had betrayed Xi Qing. But from yesterday to today, the female before them seed to have changed, becoming like the gentle mother he often dread about.
Even if she’s bewitched, I hope she stays like this, he thought.
Si Yan finally heard Bei Ji call her ’Mother.’ She was overjoyed, imdiately scooping him up into a hug and playfully pinching his soft, tender cheeks.
Bei Ji yelped in surprise. His cheek was pinched, but it didn’t hurt much. A slight blush crept onto his face as he said, "Mother, Xi Qing and I dug up the Red Earth Fruit ourselves. They’re safe to eat."
His words answered her earlier question.
Si Yan smiled. "Alright, I’ll go wash the Red Earth Fruit and prepare them for you."
Bei Ji hopped down from her arms and picked up the Red Earth Fruit. "I’ll wash them."
Xi Qing glared as Bei Ji ran out, looking very angry.
After Bei Ji washed the Red Earth Fruit, Si Yan roasted so of them in the fire and also boiled the sweet potatoes into a soup. These were the two dishes they prepared.
Once the food was ready, Si Yan and Bei Ji began to eat. Xi Qing sat at a distance.
Si Yan said, "Co and eat."
Xi Qing stubbornly said, "You said I couldn’t eat."
Si Yan said, "I was just talking nonsense. Hurry up and co eat!"
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