Chapter 226: Chapter 226: A Husband May Be Abandoned, but Not the Children
It was huge inside. The two little ones found themselves in the middle of it all, completely disoriented.
"Brother," Xiao Hu tilted his head, "which way should we go?"
Da Hu sniffed the air but couldn’t catch Yu An’s scent. He wasn’t sure either.
He thought for a moment. ’During the day, Fourth Uncle said that Beast Father was trying to curry favor with the Hall Master. That means Female Mother must be the Hall Master he was talking about.’
’This is the Beast God Hall, so Female Mother must be the most powerful person here.’
’So, we just have to look for the most heavily guarded area. That’s where we’ll find her.’
They decided to look around as they went, hoping they might run into their Female Mother.
Concealed by the night and their tiny statures, they hid in the bushes or behind rockeries whenever they encountered patrolling guards. Thus, their journey was tense but safe, and they remained undiscovered.
The layout here was somewhat similar to the Imperial Palace, a series of courtyards. They searched them one by one, but all the courtyards were uninhabited.
After searching several courtyards, Xiao Hu was exhausted. He hadn’t eaten all day, and his stomach was growling loudly. He flopped onto the ground, too weak to walk any further.
Looking at his teary-eyed little brother, Da Hu lifted a paw and patted his head. "Wait here for me. I’ll go find you something to eat."
Xiao Hu nodded. "Okay, Brother. Be careful."
Da Hu told him to hide somewhere safe and not come out, then followed a delicious scent in the air, disappearing in a flash.
It was the smell of roasted meat. There had to be a kitchen nearby.
Da Hu couldn’t help but think of the delicious food their Female Mother used to make for them, and his own stomach started to growl.
He was right. Not far off was a kitchen bustling with many busy chefs.
Da Hu found an opportunity to sneak inside. Spotting some white steamed buns on a table, he prepared to grab two and take them back to Xiao Hu.
He was nimble and went completely unnoticed. The buns were soft and tasty, but not as good as the ones Yu An made.
During the day, Da Hu had noticed that the people here made all sorts of delicious food, with some even selling it from stalls on the street.
He saw a large pork knuckle on the table, swallowed hard, and got ready to head back to Xiao Hu.
"You lot over there, hurry up! The Hall Master’s mealtime is almost here. We can’t be late!"
Da Hu froze, his head snapping toward the person who had spoken.
He seemed to be the Steward here, bustling about and giving orders. He even carefully inspected all the finished dishes to make sure nothing was missed.
’So all this food is for Female Mother? Doesn’t that mean if I follow them, I can find her?!’
Da Hu was ecstatic. He quickly grabbed the buns and rushed to find Xiao Hu. If they were fast, they could catch up to the people delivering the food.
When Da Hu returned, Xiao Hu heard the noise and ran over. As Xiao Hu ate, Da Hu told him what he had just overheard.
"I’ll eat faster," Xiao Hu said, picking up his pace. "Brother, it looks like we’re about to see our Female Mother!"
After quickly filling their stomachs with one bun each, they rushed back to the kitchen. They thought the food servers would still be there, but when they arrived, the kitchen was already half-empty.
The tables were empty too, with a few servants cleaning up.
Xiao Hu was on the verge of tears. "Brother, this is all my fault. If only I hadn’t been hungry..."
"Don’t say that," Da Hu quickly comforted him. "It’s okay. Female Mother has to eat tomorrow, too. We can just follow them then."
However, they weren’t going to just wait there until morning. They decided to try their luck again. What if they could find their Female Mother now?
Just as the two were about to leave, Da Hu heard the Steward’s fawning voice again. "Hall Master, you only need to give the order if there’s something you wish to eat. Why come to the kitchen yourself?"
Da Hu and Xiao Hu’s eyes lit up. Peeking out from their hiding spot in the corner, they saw a woman entering the kitchen, surrounded by an entourage.
And that person was none other than Yu An!
Xiao Hu was so excited that he moved too abruptly, knocking over some jars and pots in the corner.
Before Yu An could say a word, she heard the unfamiliar noise. The kitchen Steward immediately grew wary.
"Who’s there!"
Someone immediately went to investigate. Da Hu and Xiao Hu, single-mindedly focused on seeing their Female Mother, allowed themselves to be caught.
"Hall Master, it’s two little tiger cubs."
Before Da Hu could even cry out "Female Mother," he heard Yu An’s cold voice. "How did they get in here? Throw them out!"
’What?!’
Da Hu felt like his world was collapsing. He struggled to get down. "Female Mother, it’s us! I’m Da Hu!"
"Female Mother, don’t you remember Xiao Hu? You’ve forgotten Xiao Hu..."
They struggled so fiercely that the person holding them was caught off guard, and they managed to escape.
Da Hu and Xiao Hu immediately shifted back to their human forms. Each of them grabbed one of Yu An’s legs and refused to let go.
Yu An’s face darkened. "Whose children are you? Why are you calling me that? And how did you get into the Beast God Hall?"
"We are your Zaizais," Xiao Hu sobbed. "Female Mother, you can leave Beast Father, but you can’t leave us!"
Seeing that they wouldn’t let go, Yu An was exasperated. "I am the Hall Master of the Beast God Hall. It’s absolutely impossible that I am your Female Mother. Are you lost from your family? I will have someone look for them."
The Steward seized the opportunity. "Hall Master, allow this humble one to take these two children away."
Yu An nodded and was about to agree when she looked down and met two pitiful little faces.
One was bawling his eyes out, while the other’s eyes were glistening with tears that threatened to fall but never did. For some reason, something tugged at her heart.
She subconsciously changed her mind. "Never mind. Let these two children stay here for now. You, go find someone to ask around and see whose children are missing."
The Steward quickly agreed, giving Da Hu and Xiao Hu another look before heading off to handle the matter.
He wasn’t sure if it was his imagination, but he felt there was a slight resemblance between the children’s features and the Hall Master’s.
"Alright, no one’s taking you away now. Can you let go?"
Da Hu and Xiao Hu exchanged a glance and let go at the same time.
Yu An rubbed her stomach. She hadn’t liked the food that was sent to her, so she came to the kitchen to make something herself.
Although she had somehow lost all memories from before she became the Hall Master, she knew she possessed a personal space.
The space was empty of people but filled with cooking utensils. The moment she touched them, she felt as if she had cooked thousands of meals before; her movements were exceptionally practiced.
Taking out the necessary ingredients, Yu An skillfully mixed the filling and rolled out the wrappers. She didn’t have much of an appetite and planned to make a bowl of wontons to fill her stomach.
Her gaze fell upon the two children sitting obediently on a small stool, and she unconsciously mixed more filling and rolled out more wrappers.
By the time she snapped out of it, she had already prepared enough for three people.
Yu An didn’t know what was wrong with her. She attributed this strange behavior to the children being too cute, especially the shy way they clutched their rumbling stomachs, which was exceptionally adorable.
Her movements were swift. One by one, plump wontons with thin skins appeared on the board. Once the water boiled, she dropped them all in.
When the wontons in the pot floated to the surface, they were ready to be served.
