Chapter 63 - A Tiger? A Dragon?

Speaking of the mortal world: Down in the capital, Jing Yi was shivering in fear. He could feel the penetrating gaze of the girl from the other side of the room. Worst of all: After looking at Jing Yi for half a minute, Zhong Guanyu bounced over, he hands clasped behind her back.

What had her mother said, who he was? The son of her father's cousin? That was family in the end! "Big Brother!" She stopped directly in front of him, lifting her head up and grinning like a Cheshire cat. Who could resist such an adorable girl like herself?

Unfortunately for her, Jing Yi was exactly the exception. Looking at the girl grinning widely, seeing her teeth, his tears finally fell. Crying, he ran to his mother and hid behind her.

So scary! It seems not only mud monsters can turn into girls! This must be one of the tigers and dragons Mister Pi talked about! He clutched his mother's dress and cried even harder, thinking of how that ferocious beast had somehow taken a liking to him.

Qiu Ling stood next to the Zhongs, his arms crossed and a smug smile on his face. "See that, little girl? My love isn't that easily swayed! Get back to where you came from!"

Even if Guanyu could have heard, what Qiu Ling said, she certainly wouldn't have heeded his advice. She looked at the crying Jing Yi, unsure what to do. That was the perfect boy, she had always dreamed of! Well, minus the crying, of course, but Guanyu was sure, that such a bad habit could be altered. It would just need a bit of time.

She turned the intensity of her smile down a bit and made her way over to Jing Yi. The boy ducked behind his mother, wailing bitterly.

Qiu Ling took a glance at Jing Yi's crying face and lifted his hand. Guanyu took another step, the air moved and — plop — a small girl fell face down to the floor.

Zhong Gang and Li Fang, who had waited how their daughter would approach Jing Yi with bated breaths, leapt over, pulling her back to her feet and fussing around her to make sure, that she was alright.

Guanyu glanced in Jing Yi's direction. With the girl being distracted, he had stopped crying, but he was still hiding half hiding behind his mother and clutching her dress. Seeing him looking into her direction, Guanyu did, what she deemed best in this situation: Her lips quivered, her eyes turned red and tears dripped down one after another. She clasped her hands over her face and started sobbing.

Jing Yi looked on, not intending to go over and help, like other boys might have done. He was just happy, that she didn't come over. Guanyu peeked between her fingers. Seeing this scene, she was stunned. What is he doing? Why doesn't he come over to comfort me? Am I not pretty enough? I should have listened to mother and paid more attention to how I dress today!

Oh no! I should have listened to her! Now Jing Yi doesn't like me! What should I do?

Guanyu cried harder and harder. Her parents didn't know what to do anymore. She hadn't fallen that hard, right?

"Ah, Guanyu, stop crying, alright?" Her mother patted her back, but the girl only cried louder, intent on making Jing Yi take action. "Ah, what to do? Ah Gang, do something!" Li Fang turned around to her husband and glared at him, but Zhong Gang also didn't know what to do.

"Maybe … she's really hurt? We could bandage the wound?"

Qiu Ling rolled his eyes at him. "I didn't hurt her that much!"

Li Fang also understood, that she couldn't expect any help from her husband. She turned to the other direction and noticed Jing Yi peeking out from behind his mother. "Jing Yi!" Her face lit up seeing him. "Come here! Come to auntie! Guanyu seems to like you. Why don't you try calming her down?"

Jing Yi slid completely behind his mother again. Auntie is scary. Whenever she smiles, she tries to feed me to the dragon. I have to tell grandfather!

"Jing Yi?" Li Fang wouldn't give up that easily. As a woman, she naturally came to understand, why her daughter was behaving so oddly today. Their plan must have had succeeded. She really liked him and now she had fallen flat on her face right in front of him. Of course the only one able to calm her down was Jing Yi.

"Jing Yi, come over here", she tried again, but the boy stubbornly hid behind his mother and Madam Zhong didn't attempt to convince him otherwise. Li Fang didn't know what to do anymore. How could it be so hard to set two children up?

In the end, she could only sigh disappointedly. "I'll bring her up." She grabbed her daughter, but Guanyu didn't want to go. She started flailing around her arms and legs.

"No! I don't want to! I don't want to!" She screamed at the top of her lungs, her heart-wrenching sobs already forgotten.

"Then stop crying", Li Fang hissed in a low voice, so that the Zhongs wouldn't hear her. "He isn't going to pay you any attention because of that. You're just going to scare him away!"

Guanyu instantly stopped even her struggling, peeking in Jing Yi's direction again, but nothing could be seen of him anymore. In a spell, Guanyu's face scrunched up and tears trickled down once again. He really doesn't like me! I should have spent more time dressing!

In the meantime, Jing Yi had already fled to the courtyard, Qiu Ling right behind him.

How scary!, he thought again. That girl definitely has to be a dragon!

Ah, what would Qiu Ling think, if he heard that evaluation from his beloved?