Chapter 48: Two Tigresses

“Why are you panicking? What happened exactly? Are you saying she stopped breathing?” Lu Hu questioned Zhu Xiaoying while mulling over the situation in his mind: I only told Lingding Xiaowu to give her a scare. Who would've thought that tigress would actually go overboard and frighten her to death...

“Yes, that’s right. Her face turned a purplish-black, almost as if she was poisoned,” Zhu Xiaoying guessed wildly.

“What a mess. First you say she’s stopped breathing, now you think she’s poisoned. What is it, carbon monoxide poisoning?” Lu Hu teased her, then continued, “Carbon monoxide poisoning is easy to treat. Drag her outside the tent, lay her on the snow, and she’ll be fine after a while. If that doesn’t work, give her artificial respiration.”

Zhu Xiaoying turned to run out, but after two steps, she stopped and called back, “Godfather, what is artificial respiration? How do I give it to her?”

“You blow into her mouth, just like you blow into a bull’s horn. Drag her outside first—I’ll be right there,” Lu Hu replied.

“Oh!” Zhu Xiaoying, still bewildered, hurried out.

“Pearl, Jade, stay and keep your parents company. I have to handle some military matters. Uncle, Auntie, please rest well. I’ll take my leave,” Lu Hu excused himself, eager to study the electric baton alone, worried that Quan Zhenzhu might pester him and cause delay.

Sure enough, Quan Zhenzhu, clutching Xiaobai, tried to follow him, but Little Guanyin held her back, leaning in to whisper, “Don’t keep clinging to your godbrother. Mother wants to speak with you…”

Reluctantly, Quan Zhenzhu gazed after Lu Hu’s departing figure until he vanished through the door.

Quan Meiyu was less obvious, but the corners of her charming eyes still lingered on Lu Hu.

Outside the tent, Bai Dabai lay lazily napping at the entrance. A squad of Captain Li’s guards patrolled, but neither Ma Lihong nor Zhu Xiaoying were in sight.

That stubborn girl—at a time like this, she’s still busy bickering instead of saving someone.

Lu Hu strode over and lifted the tent flap, only to be stunned by the sight before him:

Ma Lihong and Zhu Xiaoying were tangled together like two wild she-dogs in a death match, heads pressed together in a furious scuffle...

What on earth had happened?

Earlier, after giving orders to the cooks, Zhu Xiaoying slipped in through the back entrance of the main tent, casting a cautious glance at Lingding Xiaowu. At that moment, the tigress had just finished scaring Ma Lihong, returned to the back of the tent, and was nursing her young.

Zhu Xiaoying was a bit afraid of Lingding Xiaowu, but seeing that the tigress didn’t even look up at her, she mustered her courage and tiptoed in.

Muttering to herself as she went, “Big sis, auntie, ma’am, I’ve never bullied your Xiaobai! It was that Ma-whatever who did it. We’re all Godfather’s people—if we’re all good, everyone’s good. No need to cause trouble for each other. Hey, where did that Ma-whatever go?”

She circled the tent searching for a while, only to find Ma Lihong lying stiffly on the tiger-skin seat.

This wretched woman, daring to lie on Godfather’s seat. Did she sneak some tiger wine and grow bold?...

Cursing under her breath, Zhu Xiaoying crept over, planning to startle Ma Lihong with a sudden shout—maybe even scare her enough that she’d need medicine every day and never hold her bladder again…

Let’s see if she dares to compete with me for attention in the future.

As she got closer and saw Ma Lihong’s face, Zhu Xiaoying was shocked and nearly screamed.

Ma Lihong, having just been frightened unconscious by Lingding Xiaowu, wore a ghastly, ashen face, white foam at her lips.

Zhu Xiaoying was about to call for help when she suddenly thought: if I shout and anger the tigress, what if she attacks me? That’s not worth it.

She scrambled out the front to report to Lu Hu.

On her second trip into the tent, Zhu Xiaoying was much braver, bolstered by Godfather’s promise to come soon. She no longer feared the tigress as much.

Though, to be honest, she still preferred not to provoke that rearing beast. Zhu Xiaoying tiptoed toward the tiger-skin seat.

Just then, Ma Lihong came to but didn’t dare open her eyes, still uncertain if she was alive or dead. She’d heard that ghosts can’t hear anything, so, hearing footsteps, she felt relieved: the tigress hadn’t killed her after all.

Then, a jolt of fear—why was that damned tigress still circling? Couldn’t she let her be? Best to keep pretending to be dead. If she opened her eyes, she might really lose her life.

Zhu Xiaoying, unaware Ma Lihong was feigning death, figured she was as good as gone. She grabbed Ma Lihong’s ankles, intending to drag her outside for the cold air to revive her, and then see how Godfather would perform artificial respiration.

With his skills, blowing on Ma Lihong would probably burst her belly!

If that happened, she’d be done for!

Zhu Xiaoying had never seen Godfather blow like that, but she had once stumbled upon the old princess’s guards doing something similar, which made her blush and her heart race uncontrollably.

She really couldn’t dwell on it—her whole body felt ablaze, as if she might start reciting poetry like Qianqian at any moment.

Clutching Ma Lihong’s ankles, Zhu Xiaoying gave a hard tug. Ma Lihong, reacting instinctively, yanked her legs back.

Caught off guard, Zhu Xiaoying cried out as Ma Lihong pulled her into her arms.

After years together, the two were intimately familiar with each other—they could recognize each other by their bones alone.

Hearing Zhu Xiaoying’s voice, Ma Lihong’s anger flared. If being bullied by the tigress was one thing, how could this shameless wretch dare to pick on her too? If she didn’t teach her a lesson, she’d take her surname!

Without opening her eyes, Ma Lihong seized Zhu Xiaoying’s hair, lifted her right leg, and with perfect aim, drove her knee into Zhu Xiaoying’s chest.

Zhu Xiaoying yelped in pain, winded and gasping.

I came to save you, and you treat me worse than a beast. Fine, I’ll risk my life to settle this with you!

Biting back the pain, Zhu Xiaoying grabbed Ma Lihong’s hair with both hands and pulled with all her might.

Neither woman uttered a sound as they wrestled, each determined to outdo the other—tugging mercilessly at each other’s hair.

Lu Hu entered to find them locked in this frantic struggle, and his anger flared. These two shrews—always at each other’s throats!

He stormed over and kicked them both. “Let go, both of you! Are you done yet?”

When Godfather spoke, nothing else mattered.

The two women immediately released each other and scrambled to their feet, their scalps aching so fiercely that tears streamed down their faces.

They sucked in cold air through their teeth, vigorously rubbing their heads in perfect unison, as if freshly drilled by a master—completely in sync.

Moments ago, they were clawing and yanking; now, they were rubbing and soothing. Their hair was a wild mess, looking for all the world like two chicken nests.

Lu Hu couldn’t help but laugh at the sorry sight.

Seeing him laugh, the two spirited women forced smiles themselves.