Chapter 337: The Peasant Girl’s Splendid Manor
Chapter 337: Xiao Ruiyuan's Anger and Unexpected News (2)
In the blink of an eye, various speculations swirled in Xiao Ruiyuan's mind, each more unsettling than the last.
The hawk, enjoying being petted, sensed his distraction and pecked his hand, urging him to focus.
Xiao Ruiyuan snapped back to reality, his mood turning colder. He tossed the hawk aside and, perhaps to comfort himself, found a justifiable reason for Mo Yan's lack of reply: "She must have been delayed by something important, which is why she didn't have time to reply. You go back now, and if there's no reply, don't bother coming back."
The poor hawk was unjustly blamed. Frustrated, it let out a series of harsh cries, as if to say it was here to complain, not to be mistreated.
Xiao Ruiyuan, in no mood to care about the hawk's feelings, sat back at his desk and wrote another letter. To express his disappointment and catch her attention, he stubbornly wrote the phrase "Why didn't you reply to my letter?" eighty-one times.
Once the ink dried, Xiao Ruiyuan folded the letter carefully and placed it in the message tube. He tapped the motionless hawk, signaling it to leave.
The hawk, glaring with its eyes, remained as still as a statue. Having flown back and forth without rest and without food, it had no energy left. It refused to fly.
Seeing the little creature throwing a tantrum, Xiao Ruiyuan initially intended to reprimand it. But noticing its damaged tail and missing feathers, he touched its neck, finding it thin from lack of food. He called for a guard outside to bring some raw meat, which he then fed to the hawk.
Yet, the thought nagged him: Mo Yan was so kind, why hadn’t she fed the hawk? Had the hawk angered her, or was it something in the letter that upset her?
Xiao Ruiyuan, avoiding the latter possibility, stared at the hungry hawk with eyes like daggers.
The hawk shrank back, feeling a sudden chill. Hmph, it must be because it lost too many feathers. Just wait, it would get its revenge!
The raw meat, being neither fresh nor tender, was hard to swallow. The hawk begrudgingly tore it into pieces, longing for the fresh, delicious chicken and the revitalizing spring water from the Mo family.
Having eaten and drunk enough, the hawk still refused to leave. Its body was exhausted, and its spirit was wounded. It needed a good sleep. So, it hopped onto Xiao Ruiyuan’s sleeping mat, tucked its wings, and fell asleep.
Though eager to have the letter delivered, Xiao Ruiyuan couldn't bring himself to wake the exhausted hawk. He withdrew his hand and resumed reviewing the battle reports from the front lines.
The tent returned to its quiet state, with only the occasional sound of pages being turned.
…
Mo Yan, after much deliberation and careful phrasing, finally finished her reply. She read it over and over, ensuring there were no inappropriate words before folding it neatly and stretching contentedly.
She opened the door and went to the eaves to call for the hawk, but it didn’t come. Thinking it had flown off to play, she paid it no mind. Seeing it was already past the third watch, and feeling terribly tired, she dragged the sleepy furball under her desk into her space to bathe and then threw it on the bed.
The creature, half-awake, immediately snuggled up to her like a koala when she undressed and got into bed, rubbing its fluffy head against her face before falling asleep.
Amused, Mo Yan patted its head, feeling a bit helpless about its growing size. She had made a wooden house for it, placing it with Xiao Hua and Da Bai, expecting it to sleep there. But the little creature had grown accustomed to sleeping with her and refused to sleep alone. After several nights of being locked out, it made such a fuss that neither she nor the other two could sleep well.
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