Little Li zipped into the kitchen with the speed of a ninja, but alas, he was still a moment too late.
As he burst in, he caught sight of Ying Bing, spoon in hand, frowning as she sampled her concoction.
“Ice Chunk! Spit it out, quick!”
Li Mo, just as shocked as a cat in a dog park, rushed in, panicking. He pinched her ruby lips into an O shape, genuinely thinking he was going to do some treasure hunting in there.
Much to his dismay, like before, he found nothing.
“Did you swallow it all?!”
“You had some too! You devoured a whole pot! Cough…”
Before Ying Bing could finish her sentence, her mouth was blocked by a finger that was probably too hasty to do anything useful.
She tilted her head away and pouted, “Don’t mess around, it feels… weird.”
“Spit it out! This isn’t a joke! Are you feeling unwell now?”
“No… wait? Li Mo, have you mastered some new superpower?”
Right after Ying Bing finished her question, she felt a chill—probably because her body temperature went up quite a bit.
“Nope.” Li Mo was already rifling through his storage for a magic purple healing pill.
“Then why do you have three heads?!”
“Where on earth did three heads come from? Obviously, it’s two… um?!”
Little Li’s head shot up.
Cold Fairy’s once pale face now looked like a cherry blossom; her eyes sparkled with confusion and drowsiness, like mist hovering over an autumn lake, giving off a vibe of not being the brightest bulb in the box.
It might sound a bit heartless to say, but witnessing the usually frosty Ice Chunk looking so adorably dazed, Li Mo’s first thought was, “Aw, how cute!”
“Ouch…” Ying Bing clutched her stomach, beads of sweat shining on her forehead.
She collapsed right into Little Li’s arms, her vision fading into darkness.
…….
In the Empress’s palace, she hadn’t dreamt in ages.
But this time, the dream was particularly odd—the world transformed into a kaleidoscope, everything stretching and spinning, as if all of existence had morphed into a giant kaleidoscope.
She couldn’t recall what absurd illusion had captured her.
Oh, right.
She had eaten her own disastrous stew.
In her drowsy state, she felt something cool being fed to her—like a pill, and then a familiar voice gradually became clear.
“How’s Little Ice Girl doing? She’s about to get married! What are we going to do?”
It was Aunt Gu’s voice.
Then, she heard Xue Jing chime in:
“Little Ice Girl has a special constitution; it’s not a big deal. She’ll bounce back on her own soon. Little Mo fed her the magic purple healing pill in time, which will cut down the recovery time significantly. Just keep an eye on her, and let her have some restorative herbs to help.”
“I’ll take good care of her.”
This voice brought the most comfort to the Ice Chunk.
Xue Jing wondered aloud, “What on earth did Little Ice Girl eat?”
“She cooked a meal for herself,” Li Mo replied, feeling exasperated.
The room fell silent for a moment.
Xue Jing promptly declined the invitation to stay for dinner and left a prescription for a restorative soup, as if something terrifying was chasing him.
Li Dalong and Gu Xueqin exchanged glances and decided to start brewing medicine right away.
“Dad, find a place to bury the pot. And remember to pick a hidden spot—dig the hole a bit deeper.”
After this statement, the room fell silent again, while Ying Bing felt a warm hand placed on her forehead.
“I’m burning up.”
Li Mo frowned.
“I’m freezing cold.”
Ying Bing felt so weak that opening her eyes felt like lifting a mountain, and uttering a word was like using all the energy she had left.
As everyone knows, Ice Chunk is usually the cool fairy. Although not with Li Mo, she maintained a wise and frosty demeanor.
In normal circumstances, she often played the big sister role to Little Li, appearing stronger inside than her actual prowess.
Seeing her in such a sickly, feeble state was something new.
Earlier, Li Mo had been filled with worry, but now that he knew she’d be fine, he felt both pity and affection.
“Let me find something warm to comfort you.”
“Mm.”
Ying Bing nodded unconsciously.
Li Mo lifted the blanket and snuggled up next to her, enveloping her completely in his embrace.
Ying Bing: “?”
“You just tell me if it’s warm or not. Who could be warmer than me?” Little Li declared, full of confidence.
With her head spinning and everything looking like a funhouse mirror, Ice Chunk couldn’t argue—because yes, it was warm, a warmth that made one want to indulge.
“Still doesn’t taste great.”
“Ice Chunk’s got a soft side when she’s sick?” Li Mo laughed, echoing her previous words.
“Hmph…”
Ying Bing turned her head away, refusing to look at him, puffing in annoyance.
This pouty expression, surprisingly, suited Ice Chunk well.
Maybe it wasn’t just because she was sick, her head spinning—she had endured much worse in her past life.
But now, she didn’t need to pretend to be strong.
“It’s definitely not good, but I like it. Look! Didn’t I just break through my limits? Who knows how many people have suffered far worse just to break through—never mind if they succeeded.”
Li Mo wore an exaggerated expression:
“And think about it, how many would risk their lives for a bite of a meal made by the Cold Fairy? What a pity they never got the chance.”
“Not happening… I’m not cooking for others anymore.”
“Of course not! After all, the Cold Fairy is mine; outsiders don’t even get a taste.”
Li Mo played with her hair, speaking with all seriousness.
“I think my head is spinning even more.”
Ying Bing’s lashes fluttered at his words, mist pooling in her eyes.
“Don’t tell me there’s a lingering effect?”
Li Mo tensed up and, using his divine eye, checked her over, realizing she had no other symptoms. She just looked a bit dazed.
“No big issue, just a little fever, just as Elder Xue said.”
“You can even diagnose?”
“Have some knowledge of it, yes. To get better fast, a shot will do the trick; one shot and all fevers vanish.”
“A shot?”
Ying Bing had only heard of acupuncture; she figured a shot was a similar treatment.
She was about to boast about knowing a few needle techniques in martial arts but halted, frowning delicately, and took a gentle breath.
“What’s wrong?”
“My mouth hurts; I think I have a blister.”
“Let me check.”
Little Li straightened up, holding her chin seriously.
