Watching Su Mu bite into the flaky pastry in her mouth so viciously, Chen Qing immediately understood. She was treating this pastry like Chen Qing herself.
It seemed this Traitorous Shizun harbored quite a bit of resentment toward her.
However, seeing Su Mu stuff things into her mouth nonstop like a little hamster, Chen Qing’s mood inexplicably improved.
But Su Mu ate faster than Chen Qing had anticipated.
Several large pastries were quickly devoured halfway.
Seeing that Su Mu’s pace showed no signs of slowing, Chen Qing turned and walked toward the door.
“What are you going to do?”
Seeing Chen Qing just walk away like that, Su Mu asked with her mouth full of food, her words muffled.
“Go get the things to tidy you up.”
“What!”
Watching Chen Qing’s retreating back, Su Mu suddenly felt like the pastry in her mouth had lost its appeal.
Her constant chewing stopped as she stared blankly at the door that had been opened.
Crumbs from the flaky pastry clung to the corners of her mouth, adding a jarringly silly air to Su Mu’s otherwise aloof demeanor.
But after pausing for three seconds, Su Mu started eating even faster.
Anyway, she couldn’t escape Su Mu’s clutches—no, Chen Qing’s clutches. It was better to eat more now to pad her stomach, so she’d have more strength to resist her later.
Of course, Chen Qing’s words were just to tease her.
If she wanted to discipline Su Mu, she didn’t need any tools—just herself was enough.
She went to the kitchen again, and the inn’s chefs were already familiar with her.
“Esteemed guest, your little lady hasn’t woken up yet? Do you need me to reheat some pastries for you?”
“No need, she’s awake now. Make me some stomach-nourishing breakfast—remember to make plenty.”
“Got it.”
After Chen Qing gave her instructions, the chef immediately got to work.
After finishing the flaky pastries, Su Mu sat on the bed.
Her stomach felt only half full, so she figured she’d have to sneak to the kitchen for more after getting up.
Rubbing her belly, Su Mu extended her fair, delicate little feet from under the covers.
Bathed in sunlight, the air had warmed up, without the morning chill.
Still, stepping out of the warm bedding, her soft, jade-like feet felt unaccustomed to it at first, and she curled her dainty toes.
Then, steeling herself, she planted her foot on the cool floorboards.
But the wooden floor wasn’t as cold as Su Mu had imagined.
The temperature was mild, and the soles of Su Mu’s feet adapted quickly.
Once accustomed, Su Mu got fully off the bed.
She walked to the vanity. Her disheveled hair made her look a bit unkempt.
Yet the messy clothes on her body and the faint sleepiness on her pretty face gave her an ethereal beauty, like a sleeping princess.
However, the slightly grumpy Su Mu, fresh out of bed, had no intention of admiring her own alluring appearance.
Instead, she irritably scratched at her head of enviable raven hair, finding it a hassle.
She hadn’t realized before, back when she was a boy, just how troublesome it was for a girl to groom herself.
Looking at her tangled mess of long hair, Su Mu picked up the wooden comb from the vanity in frustration.
She had to get herself sorted before that detestable Villain Chen Qing returned. Maybe if she was all tidied up, Chen Qing would let her off the hook.
The more she thought about it, the more likely it seemed, so Su Mu hurriedly combed her hair in front of the copper mirror on the vanity.
But Su Mu had zero experience with long hair. Strands kept getting caught in the comb, hurting so much that tears nearly welled up in her eyes.
She didn’t dare yank hard, or it would hurt even more.
She withdrew the comb and tried again carefully, but it got stuck again after a few strokes.
Staring at her hair that kept snagging, Su Mu suddenly considered cutting it short.
Anyway, on Blue Star, plenty of girls looked good with short hair.
Plus, it’d be way easier to manage.
Though she wanted to cut it short, Su Mu still had to wrestle with this head of long hair for now.
After struggling for ages, Su Mu slumped over the vanity, her eyes lifeless.
Not only had she failed to comb her hair properly, it looked even messier now.
How was combing hair this difficult!
While Su Mu was inwardly wailing in despair, the Chen Qing she feared had already entered the room carrying a bowl of stomach-nourishing white porridge.
Beside the porridge bowl were many other dishes—the chef had clearly heeded Chen Qing’s request to make plenty.
The moment Chen Qing stepped into the room, she spotted the Traitorous Shizun slumped dispiritedly over the vanity.
One look at her messy hair and the comb clutched in her hand, and Chen Qing knew what had happened.
Hearing footsteps behind her, Su Mu whipped her head around.
Spotting Chen Qing with the steaming bowl of porridge, she immediately went on high alert.
This detestable Villain wouldn’t have slipped some weird drug into the porridge, would she? Waiting for Su Mu to eat it and then toy with her at her mercy.
A thousand ways Chen Qing could harm her flashed through Su Mu’s mind in an instant.
Seeing Su Mu’s wary little gaze, Chen Qing instantly knew what was on her mind.
The thought that she’d gone to all the trouble of fetching porridge from the kitchen for her, only for this Traitorous Shizun to stare at her so suspiciously, made black lines of irritation pop on Chen Qing’s forehead.
Seeing Chen Qing’s displeased expression, Su Mu’s wariness intensified. She was already plotting her escape in her head.
But Chen Qing’s next actions were beyond Su Mu’s expectations. She didn’t force Su Mu to drink the porridge she’d brought.
Instead, she gently set the porridge on the steady vanity and took the comb from Su Mu’s hand.
“You can’t even comb your own hair. You’re so hopeless.”
Chen Qing held up Su Mu’s long hair with one hand while sliding the comb through the glossy black locks with the other.
Su Mu’s hair quality was enviable—soft strands that clung nicely to the comb and straightened easily with a gentle touch.
Yet this complete novice had managed to make it worse after struggling for so long.
Seeing her hair behave so obediently in Chen Qing’s hands, Su Mu felt a twinge of resentment.
Hmph! I’ll chop you all off soon enough.
Unsure what ingredients had been added, the white porridge emitted a faint, fragrant aroma of grains.
It stirred Su Mu’s appetite—her half-full stomach rumbling as she swallowed greedily.
No, she couldn’t. Who knew what that wicked woman Chen Qing had put in it? She couldn’t fall for it just because of a moment’s gluttony.
Though Su Mu tried her hardest to restrain herself, her eyes couldn’t help drifting toward the steaming bowl.
“If you want to eat, then eat. Otherwise, I’ll toss it.”
Through the copper mirror, Chen Qing caught Su Mu’s little glance.
But seeing the full wariness in Su Mu’s eyes, Chen Qing’s combing grew a bit heavier for some reason.
“Hiss~ It hurts.”
Su Mu turned back, looking at Chen Qing with grievance.
If she’d been combing it herself, she’d have gotten used to the pain.
But with Chen Qing doing it, the sudden sting made Su Mu overreact.
