A delicious aroma drifted out of the kitchen, tempting anyone who happened to pass by.
Prince Li caught the scent as he approached. His pace gradually slowed, and his earlier concern began to fade.
He had initially worried that TanTan might do something to FangFang, especially after learning that she was cooking in the kitchen. But somehow, he had begun to believe that it wouldn't happen again. The HuaMuTan he knew now seemed different from the woman she used to be.
Still, he wanted to see it for himself.
As he approached the kitchen, he suddenly heard FangFang cry out.
"Ouch!"
Prince Li stopped just before entering.
A moment later, he heard a gentle scolding.
"Be careful! It's still hot! Let me see..."
Then came FangFang's little complaint. Apparently, she had touched a hot bowl while trying to get her rice ball soup.
"Ugh... but I want to eat it now..."
"You have to be patient, FangFang. Come here, let me see your finger."
TanTan's gentle voice made Prince Li take another slow step forward.
He quietly watched from the entrance as TanTan carefully examined FangFang's injured finger. She treated the little girl with such tenderness, just as a mother would treat her daughter.
Prince Li was amazed by what he saw.
For some reason, he couldn't take his eyes off the woman in front of him.
Aunt Tong was the first to notice his presence. She was about to call out to him, but Prince Li quickly gestured for her to remain silent. He made the same gesture when he noticed XiaoRue looking in his direction.
Aunt Tong understood immediately. She quietly signaled XiaoRue to follow her out, leaving Prince Li to approach TanTan and FangFang without disturbing them.
"Now, now... Let me cast a magic spell to make the pain disappear!"
TanTan gently held FangFang's injured finger, blew on it softly, and recited a little rhyme.
"Pain, pain, fly, fly away! Don't come back again!"
She smiled at FangFang.
"There! All done! Does it feel better now?"
It was such a silly way to make the pain disappear, but surprisingly, it seemed to work. FangFang nodded and smiled.
"Hmm... I didn't know you could perform magic too. Is that some kind of healing spell?"
Prince Li's teasing voice suddenly came from right behind TanTan's left ear.
TanTan immediately stood up and turned around in surprise.
She hadn't expected him to be standing so close!
"YiFu!"
Meanwhile, FangFang was delighted to see him. She hurried over to show him what she and TanTan had been making.
"YiFu, look! We made delicious rice ball soup!"
Prince Li glanced at the bowl of soup and then surveyed the kitchen. There were traces of flour, scattered ingredients, and cooking utensils everywhere.
"Looks like you two have been quite busy."
"We were just cooking," TanTan replied.
She was still surprised by his sudden appearance.
Wasn't he busy discussing things with Uncle Hua? Are they finished already?
Prince Li suddenly turned his attention to FangFang.
"FangFang... are you all right?"
Both FangFang and TanTan looked confused by his question.
What's this? Does he think I might have hurt FangFang?
Prince Li continued,
"You're not afraid of the fire anymore?"
FangFang shook her head.
Only then did both TanTan and FangFang understand what he was referring to.
Being in the kitchen had reminded him of the terrible incident in which the original HuaMuTan had nearly burned FangFang alive.
No wonder he came rushing here to check whether I was doing the same thing...
A trace of sadness crept into TanTan's heart.
"It's not scary at all! It's actually really fun, YiFu! We kneaded the flour, rolled the rice balls, and then we..."
FangFang excitedly continued explaining everything she had done with her YangMu.
Prince Li listened with a smile. He reached out and gently wiped some flour from FangFang's cheek.
"Look at you. You're such a mess."
His gaze then shifted toward TanTan.
Suddenly conscious of her own appearance, TanTan felt a little embarrassed. Her clothes and face were also covered with flour, and a little sweat had gathered on her forehead.
She wasn't comfortable being watched by Prince Li like that.
"FangFang, I think we're done cooking for today. Let's clean ourselves up first before eating the rice ball soup together."
"Ah! Can't we eat it now, YangMu? I want to taste it!"
FangFang was clearly impatient to try the rice balls she had made herself.
Prince Li gently patted her head.
"Your YangMu is right, FangEr. Let's ask Aunt Tong and XiaoRue to help you clean up first. Then we can have this rice ball soup together at dinner. YiFu is curious about how it tastes too."
"Okay, YiFu!"
FangFang obediently headed out to look for Aunt Tong and XiaoRue.
Although XiaoRue seemed reluctant to leave TanTan behind, Aunt Tong asked her to accompany them. The three of them then walked back toward the living quarters.
Along the way, they encountered ManQi and QingQing approaching the kitchen.
ManQi immediately asked XiaoRue,
"Have you seen Prince Li?"
But XiaoRue simply walked past him without answering.
"Hey...?!"
ManQi was left staring after her, completely confused.
QingQing turned toward Aunt Tong, who briefly explained that Prince Li was in the kitchen with TanTan.
Back in the kitchen, TanTan was preparing to leave as well. She didn't particularly want to be alone with Prince Li.
"I think I should go and clean up too. Excuse me..."
"Wait."
Prince Li stopped her.
TanTan turned around, wondering what he wanted.
He slowly approached her until he was standing directly in front of her.
So close.
TanTan's heart began beating faster.
Prince Li looked at her for a moment before suddenly chuckling.
"Look at you! You're as messy as FangFang."
Before TanTan could respond, he raised his hand and gently wiped a patch of flour from her cheek, just as he had done to FangFang earlier.
For a moment, everything became quiet.
Their eyes met.
TanTan suddenly felt nervous. Her body stiffened, and she couldn't find the words to say.
Prince Li, too, seemed to become lost in the moment. Without consciously realizing it, he slowly leaned closer to her face.
Their lips were only inches apart...
But just as the distance between them was about to disappear, footsteps and the sound of the door opening interrupted them.
Prince Li immediately pulled back.
QingQing and ManQi had just entered the kitchen.
"Ehem... Master, I'm sorry to disturb you..." ManQi said awkwardly.
Prince Li felt embarrassed by what he had almost done. But seeing QingQing suddenly reminded him of something he had wanted to ask TanTan.
He quickly composed himself.
"HuaMuTan, tell me honestly!"
"What... what is it?"
TanTan was still struggling to regain her composure. She blamed herself for becoming so easily caught up in the moment.
"Why did you ask QingQing to join the gift delivery?"
TanTan's eyes widened.
QingQing is joining the delivery?
She turned toward QingQing, who simply smiled at her before quietly mouthing,
I'll explain later.
"Well? What's your plan?"
Prince Li's sharp gaze was very different from the one he had given her just moments earlier.
TanTan quickly tried to work out what was happening.
QingQing must have a reason for joining. Maybe she's just doing it for fun? But it could actually be useful for me. I can ask her to help keep an eye on the delivery and Uncle Hua...
"Is there anything wrong with letting her join?" TanTan asked in return. "You wouldn't let me accompany the delivery, so I thought it would be a good idea to let her represent me and help make sure the gift arrives safely. Isn't that right, QingQing?"
"Absolutely! Just trust me. I'll make sure nothing interferes with the delivery."
QingQing was relieved that TanTan had agreed with her spontaneous decision.
Prince Li still seemed unconvinced, but eventually chose to accept their explanation.
"I hope so..."
"Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to clean up."
TanTan grabbed QingQing's hand and pulled her out of the kitchen, leaving Prince Li and ManQi behind.
ManQi glanced around the kitchen. His eyes eventually landed on the bowl of rice ball soup.
"I never knew Young Madam could cook."
"Neither did I, ManQi. I've never seen her cook before."
Prince Li picked up a spoon and tasted one of the rice balls.
ManQi couldn't help asking,
"How is it, Master?"
"...It's good."
Prince Li answered quietly.
But inside, he was still processing what he had just discovered.
The fact that HuaMuTan could cook was entirely new to him. Yet what surprised him even more was that he no longer felt the hatred he had once held toward her.
Instead, he was becoming increasingly attracted to this new HuaMuTan.
Prince Li didn't want to think too deeply about those unfamiliar feelings, so he quickly changed the subject.
"ManQi, let's return to my room. We need to prepare everything carefully for tonight. We've already obtained the location and time. Tonight's operation must not fail."
"Yes, Master!"
The two men then left the kitchen.
On the other side of the mansion, TanTan had pulled QingQing all the way to the outer courtyard near her room.
"Wait, HuaMuTan! Let me explain!"
TanTan suddenly stopped and turned toward her.
"Then you had better explain. Why did you suddenly decide to join the gift delivery?"
"Because I want to help you, of course!"
QingQing answered without hesitation.
"I heard that this gift is very important to you. And I have plenty of experience delivering things, so I thought, why not? Besides..." She grinned mischievously. "It's also a good opportunity to work alongside my beloved ManQi!"
TanTan rolled her eyes.
"As I suspected. Your real reason is simply that you want to spend time with ManQi."
She sighed before continuing.
"Very well. I'd be grateful if you could genuinely help make sure the gift is delivered safely. But don't forget that you also have another important task to help me with... tonight!"
"Tonight?"
For a moment, QingQing seemed to have forgotten about their planned visit to the black market.
Then she suddenly remembered.
"Ah! Right... tonight!"
She looked at TanTan more seriously.
"Are you really sure you want to go, HuaMuTan? I must warn you..."
"I know it's dangerous. You've told me that more times than I can count!"
TanTan interrupted her.
"But I still want to go. I need to find that masked man and get some clues. Otherwise, I feel like I'll be stuck here forever without knowing how to move forward."
Her expression turned determined.
"So don't worry about me. Just show me the way."
QingQing studied her for a moment before smiling.
"Well, you're certainly a brave woman, HuaMuTan. All right, I'll help you. But do you really think you can sneak out tonight?"
TanTan gave her a confident smirk.
"I'll find a way."