Capítulo 32: Chapter 32: Qian Renxue - The Clumsy Beauty

"Using that…are you sure about it?"

Lin Luo stared in shock, speechless. *One hit with that thing and you'd send me straight to the next life!*

But Qian Renxue just stood there, grinning wickedly at the thick stick in her hand, though her smile gradually faded as if dissatisfied. She pursed her lips slightly and tossed it aside.

"Just you wait—today, it's either you or me."

With a menacing tone, Qian Renxue began rummaging around the room for a suitable "tool." She picked up one item after another, discarding each in turn before finally settling on a thinner, softer branch.

She tested it against her palm with a few light taps, but as it stung her hand, her brows furrowed, and she threw it down too.

"Hold tight—just you wait. I'll find something that'll hurt enough to make you cry. If I don't, I'm not Qian Renxue!"

She shot a fierce glare at Lin Luo, who lay sprawled on the table as if awaiting his demise. Pacing around the room, she finally spotted a white stocking lying on the bed.

Her eyes lit up.

"Huh?" Lin Luo muttered.

She folded the thin, soft stocking several times, then marched over with a determined look.

"Know what you did wrong yet? Admit it, and I might still let you off!"

She snapped the stocking in her hand like a whip, slapping it against her palm as if testing its sting. Her expression was all ferocity, though the "weapon" itself didn't carry the same weight.

Lin Luo couldn't help but let out a tiny internal scoff. *Still the same as ever, this woman… Can't bear to hit me but won't admit it.*

Feeling entirely unthreatened, Lin Luo leaned back on the table, arms braced behind him, legs stretched out, face set in a smirk that was anything but repentant.

Qian Renxue's brow twitched in irritation. "What's with that face? That attitude? You do realize I'm about to teach you a lesson, right?"

Come on, just spank me already—I've got spirit tags to draw for the day! Lin Luo sucked his thumb, completely unbothered.

Qian Renxue nearly exploded from the defiant expression on his face. She snapped the silk stocking against him with a flick, but all it did was send a soft fragrance his way.

She paused, surprised. This little rascal's smarter than he looks… I thought he'd at least tear up a bit just from my tone and expression.

Instead, he was studying the "weapon" in her hand as if assessing whether she'd actually follow through.

Three months old, and he's already this sharp? Qian Renxue shook her head in wonder. Who else could master saying "grandma" overnight? And just who had he inherited such smarts from? She huffed a bit proudly, then, a touch frustrated, tossed the stocking aside.

Hands on her hips, she scoffed, "All right, tough guy. Just because your grandma says you're allowed outside doesn't mean you're off the hook today. You'll pay for this eventually—count on it!"

She stepped over and stripped his clothes off, then scooped up the little bundle and headed for the bath. "Honestly, where's the diaper gone? And why do you smell like… like that?"

With a sigh, she slipped her long legs into the warm water, giving it a test swirl with her toes. Skilled from months of practice, she hiked up her skirt, tucked him snugly against her lap, one hand cradling his head, the other scooping water gently over him.

The warm bathwater made him squirm reflexively, and Qian Renxue, still mildly annoyed, couldn't help but chuckle.

"Hold still, will you? How long's it been since you had a bath? Here, let's smell those little feet."

She wrinkled her nose dramatically as she sniffed his toes. "Ew—stinky! What kind of baby has such smelly feet?"

She gave him a light-hearted, thorough scrub, leaving no spot untouched. For her, it was just routine by now, his tiny form as familiar as her own.

"Should I… be turning that part inside out to clean it?" she mumbled, frowning at the delicate dilemma of his "boy parts." She'd been pondering this for months, but hadn't dared ask anyone for advice. In the end, she just lifted the area to wash underneath, and Lin Luo lay sprawled out on her smooth leg like a soggy rag.

He remembered his first bath vividly. She'd been so clumsy that he slipped right off her leg into the tub, nearly drowning. With the utter panic on her face, she'd grabbed his leg, missing the fact that his head was still submerged. That night, he'd thought, Is motherly love even real? Is she trying to kill me?

But after she'd fished him out, she'd knelt by the tub, apologizing nonstop for a full minute before it occurred to her to check if he was still alive. He'd survived that night purely by luck. These days, though, his "clumsy beauty" had the bathing routine down.

Even now, whenever he started slipping, she would promptly raise her knee, stopping him in his tracks with her foot, looking smugly at him. "See? I'm good at this now, huh?"

And that exact scene had repeated many times.

After Lin Luo's bath, Qian Renxue tossed his little bare self onto the bed and went to scrub his dirty clothes by hand. For the sake of keeping his identity secret, she'd been doing work that was usually left to the servants, day after day, without complaint.

It impressed Lin Luo; he never imagined that Qian Renxue, who had grown up with a life of luxury, would stick it out this long. But here she was, dedicated, month after month.

Each time he thought of this, Lin Luo felt himself caring for her a little more. Maybe he hadn't even realized it himself, but Qian Renxue had become deeply woven into his heart, slowly replacing memories from his previous lives as one of his closest, irreplaceable bonds.

Lin Luo crawled to the edge of the bed, peering over at her as she sat by the wash basin. Sunlight streamed through the window, casting a warm glow over her stunning features, illuminating her fair skin with a golden shimmer.

She had tied her long hair back loosely, giving her a slightly unkempt, natural look. Stray golden strands framed her face, swaying gently with the breeze, and each one seemed to exude a hint of affection.

After scrubbing for a while, Qian Renxue wiped her forehead with the back of her hand. Catching a glimpse of Lin Luo's curious little head watching her from the bed, she smiled, the fatigue melting from her expression.

"Go on and play by yourself a bit, sweetie. Mama will come and join you once these clothes are done."