Beauty and the Beasts

They needed to find seeds. She wondered if the herbivorous tribes had excess seeds.

 “You’re talking about rice seeds?” Winston’s low voice rang out from behind. “I found two bags when I was checking through the castle. They should belong to Rosa and her mother.”

 Bai Qingqing’s eyes lit up and she turned to look at Winston. “How much are there?”

 “Not a lot. Enough for you to eat for ten days.”

 Bai Qingqing did a rough estimate. If a bowl of grains she received were to be changed into rice, she would only have enough to eat for two to three days. It seemed that the female royalties had twice the amount of ordinary females.

 “That’s great. I also want wild grains. Are there any here?”

 Winston said, “No. I’ll go ask from the ape king later. I’ll be setting off to the coast to trade salt today.”

 “You’re leaving?” Bai Qingqing said in surprise, then smiled mockingly. “It must be the ape king’s arrangement.”

 Winston walked up to the fence, propping his big and coarse hands onto the stone fence, and looked at the empty land in the middle of the four castles. Many beastmen were busy moving out smoked meat, and two haggard-looking females were being kept under control, standing at the side.

 “Every year, we’ll need to move the food to the coast before the weather turns hot. It’s within reason to ask me to go,” Winston said.

 “How long will you be gone for?”

 Winston looked at the back of Bai Qingqing’s head, his eyes revealing his unwillingness to part with her. “If things go well, I’ll be back when the light rainy season is over.”

 The two of them were talking when a wolf howl rang out. Winston’s expression turned solemn and he straightened his body. “I should be leaving.”

 “Hold on.” Bai Qingqing stood up. She was considered tall, but yet, when she stood next to the tall and muscular Winston, she appeared small and petite. Her head only reached up to Winston’s chest level, and she needed to raise her head to look at his face.

 “Don’t go. Let the wolf king or the leopard king go.”

 Winston smiled helplessly. If he had a choice, he wouldn’t leave either. Days like these in which he could stay by Bai Qingqing’s side to watch over her were really hard to come by.

 “If I were to go against the ape king’s arrangements, all the other beastmen would be displeased.”

 Bai Qingqing smiled, saying, “You suffered internal injuries in the fight for the position of the tiger king yesterday. The ape king won’t send someone injured in this important mission, right?”

 “I don’t have any injuries!” Winston explained anxiously. He had gotten this position easily. Why would Qingqing think that? She was doubting his abilities!

 “I know.” Bai Qingqing smiled.

 Winston looked at Bai Qingqing’s smiling face and slowly understood her intentions. He felt relieved and said in a deep voice, “I’ll listen to you.”

 Bai Qingqing smiled and watched as Winston left. Standing from a high position, she saw the leopard king leading a big group of beastmen and heading out of the city.

 The beastmen were all lugging smoked meat that was like mounds, with a layer of animal skin covering them. There were also two haggard-looking females lugged along as if they were dead.

 “It’s a pity that there isn’t enough time. Otherwise, we can make a simplified wooden cart. It’ll be troublesome for them to carry the meat like this if it rains,” Bai Qingqing said with a hint of regret.

 When Winston came back, he brought back two full bags of grains. It was about the same amount as Bai Qingqing’s estimations.

 Parker took the grains, picked up a handful, and rubbed them. The rough grain shells released moving sounds as they rubbed against each other.

 “I’ll go plant them right away,” Parker said excitedly.

 Bai Qingqing said, “I’ll go too.”

 “Why would a female go to the fields? It’s cold outside. You can stay at home and accompany the young snakes,” Parker tied the bags of grain to his waist and said as he looked up.

 Bai Qingqing curled up her overly long sleeves. “I’ll just see what the fields here look like. It’s very boring at home and I want to go out to get a breather.”

Parker knew that Bai Qingqing was still feeling sad over Shuu’s death. After some hesitation, he agreed. “I’ll bring a coat for you to wear when you’re cold.”