Love from the Male Protagonist’s Harem

The minutes quietly ticking by, Chu Yao finished plucking the last pheasant.  Just as Xia Ge had given up hope of receiving a reply, Chu Yao finally spoke.

“I’m not angry at you.”

Chu Yao lifted her head, her light brown eyes heavy with some deep emotion that Xia Ge hadn’t ever seen in them before.

“I even thought you looked very dazzling, using that bow.”

Getting up, Chu Yao cleaned the two pheasants and the wild goose.  When done, she brought them back to Xia Ge’s makeshift grill.  The sky now dark overhead, Chu Yao fed the fire and tossed some seasoning on the roasting birds.

Xia Ge sat down across from Chu Yao, so that the two of them were face to face.

Chu Yao’s words had confused Xia Ge and she wanted clarification: “So you……”

Flickering flames reflecting in Chu Yao’s eyes, she said softly: “I just think that I shouldn’t have let you……”

I shouldn’t have prematurely given you that killing bow.

Yet Chu Yao couldn’t say that aloud, so she settled for: “I’m angry with myself, that’s all.

When the bats had attacked, Xia Wuyin had been deeply afraid.

Chu Yao had felt it.

And even though Xia Wuyin was now acting nonchalant about what had happened……Chu Yao could still sense his fear.

Xia Ge picked up a persimmon: “You’re too strange.”

Chu Yao stared at Xia Ge.

Xia Ge tossed the persimmon, and Chu Yao caught it one-handedly.

Xia Ge: “I obviously made the choice.  Why should you be angry at yourself?”

Chu Yao contemplated the persimmon in her hand: “At the time, you were very scared.”

The night was warm and peaceful, the fire burned merrily, and the fragrance of cumin and roasting meat deliciously wafted.  Xia Ge took a bite from the second persimmon: “There’s many things in this world that I’m afraid of.  I’m afraid of ghosts and devils.  Afraid of starving.  Afraid of death.  Afraid of……”

Spreading her fingers as if to use them to count, Xia Ge concluded: “Ai, too many things, I can’t list them all.”

Chu Yao regarded Xia Ge; light brown eyes gleaming in the firelight.
“But with so many scary things in this world, can I expect to avoid them all just because I’m afraid?”

“So what if I’m scared?”

Xia Ge peered at the wild goose being licked by flames.  “At the very least, I should try not to have regrets.  That’s enough.”

“And……I’m very happy.”  Xia Ge raised her gaze to meet Chu Yao’s eyes.  “I’m happy that you trust me.”

Even when it’d looked like Xia Ge was aiming her arrow straight at Chu Yao, Chu Yao hadn’t hesitated.  Her sword hadn’t wavered, striking down the bats coming up behind Xia Ge.

Putting her life in Xia Ge’s hands.  That was the kind of trust Chu Yao had shown.

“I trust in you because I trust in the accuracy of my intuition,” Chu Yao said, “If I think you won’t do something, you definitely won’t do it.”

Xia Ge considered Chu Yao’s words: “……what do you think I won’t do?”

Chu Yao thought it over: “I’m not sure.”

Xia Ge held a hand to her forehead: “Hey.  Everything that happened and then us running away afterwards, was that really alright?”  Being reminded of the attack by the bat-creatures brought Xia Ge’s lingering fears back to the surface.

Chu Yao: “It’s fine.  When I get back, I’ll tell everyone that I shot that arrow.”

Xia Ge: “……”

Chu Yao: “You had nothing to do with the attack in the first place.  And I owe you thanks for what you did.”

Perhaps it was true, but Xia Ge was still embarrassed to hear it.

“Aiya, why are we talking about this?  I’m starving, let’s eat.”

Feeling flustering, Xia Ge wanted the subject dropped.  Hungrily gaping at the roast goose, she greedily reached for it, only for Chu Yao to swat her hands away: “It’s not done yet.  What’s your hurry?”

Xia Ge: “……”

After waiting with great difficulty for the goose to finish roasting, Chu Yao gave the goose to Xia Ge, taking none for herself.

Xia Ge took a bite out of the goose.

Crispy skin gave way to tender meat, juicy and with the aroma of cumin.  It was so tasty Xia Ge nearly bit her own tongue off, tears running down her cheeks.

It’d been a long, long time since she eaten such delectable food!!

Fucking delicious!!  Kneel down!

“What’s wrong?” Chu Yao, seeing Xia Ge suddenly cry, was taken aback, “Does it taste that bad?”

No, no, it’s not that it tastes bad, it’s that it tastes too good!  Good enough to leave a person speechless, that’s how delicious it was!

Xia Ge: “Wuwu, wuwu.”

Chu Yao felt a headache coming on: “Why are you crying?  Does the goose taste bad or good?  I haven’t……”  Cooked in a long time.

“Stop crying and don’t eat it if you don’t like it.  I’ll go pick some more persimmons for you……”

Xia Ge waved a hand while nibbling away: “Wuwu, no , no, no——”

“It’s very delicious!  Senior Chu!”

Chu Yao: “……”

Xia Ge spoke between chewing: “Senior Chu, why don’t you eat one of the pheasants?  I’m sure they’re delicious too!”

“I specifically caught those for Senior Chu!”

Chu Yao: “……don’t call me Senior Chu.”

Xia Ge: “But others call you that.”

Chu Yao munched on her persimmon, thinking for a moment: “Call me Sister Chu.”

Readily following good advice, Xia Ge efficiently reduced the roasted goose to nothing but bones.  Then she turned her greedy gaze on the two pheasants, itching to her hands on them as well: “Sister Chu, you won’t eat the pheasants?”

Shaking her head, Chu Yao was content with her persimmon: “You can have them, I’m not that hungry.”

Xia Ge took a pheasant in each hand with hypocritical bashfulness: “Ai, I’m a little embarrassed.

Chu Yao: “……”

The starry sky above was glitteringly beautiful and the night weather was mild.

Inexplicably happy, Chu Yao enjoyed watching Xia Ge eat.  Yet that didn’t change the fact that there were questions Chu Yao had to ask.

“Xia Wuyin.”

Busy gnawing away on the last pheasant thigh, enjoying the crispy skin and savory meat, Xia Ge managed to go: “Mmm?”

Chu Yao slowly took the charred remains of a little puppet.  Then she looked at Xia Ge and asked softly: “Do you recognize this?”

Xia Ge’s hand holding the pheasant thigh went stiff.

She already knew she couldn’t hide forever.  So……was that point already here?