Chapter 488: A Husband Is No Match for an Attendant; an Attendant Is No Match for a Stolen Love

The car door closed. Yuan Shiyao instructed the driver in the front seat, "We can go."

A light rain had begun to fall outside. Worried it would get heavier and make the roads muddy and treacherous, the driver quickly started the car.

Outside, Qin Muye’s face was twisted in anger. Cursing under his breath, he ducked into his own car and shot them a gesture that screamed, ’Just you wait. We’ll see if I don’t beat the crap out of you when we get there.’

Jiang Qingli said with a sigh, "Next time, just let Qin Muye in. He knows where to draw the line; he wouldn’t have lost his temper in the car."

’If that guy had gotten in, the car would’ve been struck by lightning and blown to smithereens, right?’

’Jiang Qingli is just too kind, having so much patience for a brainless, pretty-boy meathead like that.’

The partition in the car rose, sealing them off in a quiet space with just the three of them.

Frustration flickered in the young man’s eyes, but his voice remained soft as he apologized. "I’m sorry, Qingli. I just haven’t seen you in so long, and I wanted to talk to you."

The young man lowered his gaze, his turquoise eyes seeming to overflow with a deep, unspoken longing.

Jiang Qingli’s heart softened.

Before she could respond, a cool voice came from her other side. "The female master has been busy with work lately. You should be more considerate."

Out of Jiang Qingli’s sight, Yuan Shimo’s brows knitted together. He shot his twin brother a look filled with displeasure and threat.

"I’m sorry, I was being inconsiderate." Yuan Shiyao’s demeanor softened, and he apologized again. "Female master, please forgive me."

Yuan Shimo’s pupils contracted sharply.

’Who gave him permission to call her female master!’

But Jiang Qingli was so used to Yuan Shimo calling her ’female master’ that hearing such a similar voice use the same address didn’t strike her as strange at all.

She nodded. "Alright, I’ll forgive you this time. Just be more mindful in the future."

Yuan Shiyao’s eyes curved in a smile as he subtly moved his arm behind Jiang Qingli, attempting to sneakily pull her into his embrace.

Before he could touch Jiang Qingli, a shadow caught his arm and threw it aside.

He looked up, meeting his brother’s turquoise eyes, which were practically overflowing with murderous intent.

Yuan Shiyao paused, withdrew his arm, and instead hooked a finger around one of Jiang Qingli’s, leaning closer while bracing himself with his other hand.

"Thank you, female master." He lowered his eyes submissively. "From now on, I’ll learn from my brother how to be a proper Beast Husband."

Yuan Shiyao was being completely sincere.

But to Yuan Shimo, it sounded like nothing less than a provocation.

Yuan Shimo took a deep breath, fighting to control the throbbing vein on his forehead. "Female master," he called out.

The moment Jiang Qingli answered, she felt her other hand being enveloped by warm, slender fingers.

She turned her head to see the young man pressing his lips together as he gently pulled her in his direction.

A stubborn look crossed his face, which, combined with his subtle action, made him look quite petulant.

Jiang Qingli understood immediately. ’He’s jealous,’ she thought.

So she shifted toward the middle, striving to strike a balance between them.

Just then, the car entered a tunnel and suddenly slammed on its brakes.

Caught off guard, Jiang Qingli was thrown backward. She didn’t hit anything, as two hands simultaneously steadied her back.

"Careful!"

"You didn’t hit anything, did you?"

The two nearly identical voices surrounded her, one from each side.

Jiang Qingli froze.

When they were apart, she could clearly tell the brothers apart.

But at this moment, sitting between them in the dim light, being stared at by two identical pairs of turquoise, cat-like eyes...

For some reason, Jiang Qingli recalled a question Yuan Shiyao had once asked her—

"My brother and I, are we really that similar?"

Her fingers tightened unconsciously as a strange feeling suddenly blossomed in her heart.

She abruptly shook their hands off, lowered her head to fiddle with her terminal, and refused to interact with either of them.

Seeing this, Yuan Shimo shot his twin brother a look of displeasure.

Yuan Shiyao pretended not to notice.

He leaned back against the seat, tentatively reached out and hooked a strand of Jiang Qingli’s hair with his fingertip, only for her to slap his hand away.

Yuan Shiyao didn’t seem disappointed at all. His gaze fell on her reddening earlobe, and the corners of his lips quirked up.

...

When the car stopped in the parking lot at the foot of the mountain, Jiang Qingli quickly hit the button to open the door.

The doors on both sides opened simultaneously.

Neither of the young men beside her moved. They simply watched her, holding out their hands and waiting for her to choose a side to exit from.

Jiang Qingli had intended to leave on Yuan Shimo’s side, but then she remembered how shamelessly Yuan Shiyao had just tried to flirt with her in the car, and she changed her plan.

She slapped Yuan Shiyao’s hand away. "I’ll get out by myself."

As she passed, she deliberately stepped on the top of his foot. Twice.

Hearing a muffled grunt escape his throat, Jiang Qingli patted his cheek in satisfaction. "Behave yourself in the future."

With that, she looked to Yuan Shimo. "Cat Teacher, let’s go!"

Not far away, the other cars had stopped. Jiang Qingli waved to the brothers before going to join the rest of the group.

The two brothers lagged a few steps behind.

Yuan Shimo’s lips twitched into a sneer, his gentle voice laced with faint mockery. "Serves you right."

"The female master only stepped on me because she likes me." Yuan Shiyao completely ignored his brother’s taunt, a smirk playing on his lips instead. "Why else wouldn’t she step on anyone else? With some females, the more they like a male, the more they tease him."

After saying this, he even rubbed the back of his hand where Jiang Qingli had slapped it, a blissful smile on his face.

Yuan Shimo: "..."

He thought that while Qin Muye’s cursing was vulgar, sometimes the guy had a point.

Yuan Shiyao really was messed up in the head.

Seriously messed up.

Yuan Shimo said coldly, "You are not yet qualified to call her female master."

Yuan Shiyao froze, then lowered his head, his brow furrowed in a deep frown.

Yuan Shimo’s lips curled into a cold sneer.

’What’s with the pitiful act? That trick won’t work on me.’

He was just about to walk away faster when Yuan Shiyao looked up and said with ready compliance, "Alright, I get it. I guess I’ll just call her sister-in-law from now on."

His tone carried the brazen air of someone with nothing to lose.

Yuan Shimo didn’t believe for a second that this guy would give in so easily. He had a gut feeling that whatever came next would be even more infuriating.

And sure enough, Yuan Shiyao’s ’sickness’ flared up the very next second.

The black-haired young man gazed at the girl in the distance with his turquoise eyes and said in a serious tone, "As the old saying goes, ’A husband is not as good as a lover, and a lover is not as good as a secret affair.’ Perhaps this is my advantage."

The corner of his mouth lifted in a smirk as he said deliberately, "Thanks for the guidance, big brother."

Yuan Shimo: "..."

He only regretted one thing now.

’That back when they were in their mother’s womb, he hadn’t kicked this damn cat cub hard enough to make him an actual idiot.’

-

A misty drizzle drifted down. Above a seemingly endless flight of stairs, the mountain temple was faintly visible.

Without the Barrier, the rain fell directly on their faces, filling the air with a slight chill.

Jiang Qingli stood at the foot of the mountain and sighed. "It’s been a while since I’ve had to climb this many stairs."

"I’ll carry you!" Qin Muye immediately volunteered. He pushed past Yi Nuo and squatted in front of Jiang Qingli. "Hop on! I’ll get you to the top in ten minutes!"

His fawning display earned him some displeased looks from the other Beast Husbands.

Jiang Qingli pulled him up. "It’s fine. I plan on climbing it myself."

"But that’ll be exhausting." Qin Muye couldn’t bear the thought of her overexerting herself.

"It’s more sincere this way," Jiang Qingli said, finding the idea rather interesting.

Her physical constitution had always been good, and after awakening her Superpower, her body was even stronger than before. Climbing a flight of stairs was no problem at all.

Besides, if she let Qin Muye carry her, the other Beast Husbands would just start fighting over it. At that rate, would they ever even reach the temple?

Seeing Jiang Qingli’s insistence, the Beast Husbands didn’t say anything more.

The group made their way up the stairs, chatting idly. While some bickering was unavoidable, the atmosphere was, on the whole, harmonious.

When they reached the summit, a Divine Servant in a black robe stood to the side, using an instrument to confirm their identities.

Once they were verified, the group stepped through the gates of the temple.

The temple’s layout was complex. In addition to the main hall dedicated to the Beast God, there were also side halls for worshiping the divine mounts.

Disagreements broke out among the Beast Husbands about which hall to visit first, especially between Qin Muye and Gu Nian.

Seeing that they were about to start arguing, Jiang Qingli clamped a hand over each of their mouths, literally forcing them to be quiet. "You can each go look at what you want to see first. No fighting."

Only after they both nodded did Jiang Qingli release them.

But everyone’s gazes fell on her, waiting for her to be the tie-breaker.

As Jiang Qingli hesitated, a red figure suddenly entered her line of sight.

Her eyes lit up; she’d finally found an excuse to escape the conflict. "Oh, I see someone I know! I’m going to go say hi. You guys go on ahead!"