Chapter 63
Today, Bai Nuosi, taking advantage of some free time, made a variety of number cookies and finger cookies for the babies to chew on. In addition, he prepared a lot of fruit jam gummies and fruit candies as snacks.
The babies loved to snack, and having these healthy yet tasty treats was the most effective way to cheer them up.
After a busy morning, and a simple lunch, Bai Nuosi planned to take the two cubs outside for some outdoor activities.
The snake baby was easy to manage, but with the little lion being so active and mischievous, he didn’t want it to feel too cooped up.
Bai Nuosi prepared the babies’ food, water, and some essentials, then brought tea and fruit snacks into the golden eagle’s room.
The golden eagle had become much quieter lately. Its originally reddish-orange eyes were gradually lightening, turning into a shade of amber, with only a ring of red in the middle, clearer than before.
Its golden feathers had regrown, fluffy and smooth, and indeed very beautiful!
The window in the golden eagle’s room was open, and it had moved its cage closer to the window. Every day, it would watch the growth of the five potted plants. When new shoots sprouted, it would become excited. If Bai Nuosi was late in watering them, it couldn’t resist pouring its own drinking water into the pots.
Once, it even poured Bai Nuosi’s brewed fruit tea into the pots. When Bai Nuosi found out, he explained to the golden eagle that plants were different from people and couldn’t drink fruit tea—if they did, they would die.
This scared the golden eagle so much that it didn’t dare approach the plants for a few days.
Today, when Bai Nuosi came in, he saw the golden eagle had moved closer again. Upon seeing Bai Nuosi enter, it crouched cautiously in a corner, looking guilty.
Bai Nuosi raised an eyebrow. With that expression on the golden eagle’s face, could it be…?
Bai Nuosi placed the food he had brought on a low table—something he had specifically brought in for the golden eagle. He felt it wasn’t appropriate to put the golden eagle’s food on the floor since it wasn’t a real bird; it was a beastman.
Smiling, Bai Nuosi said, “Mr. Golden Eagle, this is your afternoon tea. I’m going to take the cubs out to play, and we’ll be back in the afternoon. You should have a good nap while we’re gone.”
The golden eagle remained in the corner, its eyes filled with guilt, not daring to look at Bai Nuosi.
Bai Nuosi paused for a moment, then turned and approached the potted plants, inspecting each one.
The plants were growing well—green, lush, and full of new shoots. Bai Nuosi hadn’t started pruning them since they were still small. But when he lifted the first pot to inspect it, his eyes widened, and he exclaimed, “Ah!” before setting it down.
He quickly stepped back several steps, staring at the potted plants in shock, and then looked at the golden eagle.
The golden eagle: “…”
Its expression was equally stunned, its eyes filled with guilt and confusion. It tilted its head at Bai Nuosi, as if not understanding why he was so scared.
Bai Nuosi: “…”
After a few moments of silence, he finally managed to speak, albeit with difficulty. “Mr. Golden Eagle, did you put the bugs on Little One?”
Bai Nuosi had named the five potted plants “Little One,” “Little Two,” “Little Three,” and so on up to “Little Five” to give them character, hoping this would increase Mr. Golden Eagle’s sense of responsibility and help it accept the plants more quickly.
The five pots contained different types of flowers, each with its own distinct color. Bai Nuosi hadn’t even had a chance to nurture them to bloom before they faced numerous challenges: tea was poured on them, and now they were being fed bugs…
Green caterpillars, each as thick as a pinky finger, had been placed in each of the pots from Little One to Little Five—two per pot, all the same size. It was clear that Mr. Golden Eagle was very fair to its “children,” showing no favoritism.
Bai Nuosi was terrified of bugs. Now, he couldn’t even go near those five pots, feeling an urge to wash his hands.
Seeing that he was scared, the golden eagle immediately stood up from its corner, walked to the cage, and let out a low cry as if apologizing. It seemed it had frightened Bai Nuosi.
Bai Nuosi reassured it, “I know, you don’t need to apologize. You’re in your beast form, and your instincts as a golden eagle are taking over. Feeding the plants bugs is like treating them as your children. I understand. But Mr. Golden Eagle, I still need to tell you, the potted plants are plants—they’re different from us. They don’t eat bugs; bugs are their enemies and can harm them.”
The golden eagle’s eyes widened, seemingly never considering that.
Although its mental state had stabilized recently and its emotions were less volatile, this was largely because its mating instincts had shifted. Its affection for Bai Nuosi and the companionship of the plants had tricked it into thinking this was its nest, that it needed to take care of its “mate” and “children,” so it had calmed down.
In reality, it still had limited human consciousness; it was more like a true wild golden eagle.
Why would Little One through Little Five fear bugs if they were its children?
The golden eagle’s understanding of the situation was once again challenged, leaving it surprised and confused.
However, if Bai Nuosi said it was so, then it must be. It resolved not to feed the plants bugs anymore.
Curious about how the golden eagle had even managed to catch the bugs, Bai Nuosi asked, “Mr. Golden Eagle, could you remove the bugs?”
The golden eagle nodded and let out a couple of calls toward the window. Bai Nuosi watched as a black bird flew down from the tree outside, landing on the windowsill and swiftly devouring the bugs.
Bai Nuosi: “…”
He was astonished. Despite being confined to a cage, Mr. Golden Eagle had underlings outside!
The bird devoured the bugs and promptly flew away, clearly a regular bird, not a beastman. However, it had obeyed the golden eagle’s orders, which Bai Nuosi found quite fascinating.
He cautiously approached the plants, checking each one. Sure enough, they were now bug-free.
Relieved, Bai Nuosi watered the plants and turned to the golden eagle. “I’ll take care of the watering and fertilizing from now on, Mr. Golden Eagle. You just rest and relax.”
If it added bugs to the plants again, he might faint.
The golden eagle nodded, still feeling a bit guilty. It gazed into Bai Nuosi’s eyes, looking somewhat embarrassed.
After all, when does a golden eagle let its partner handle the childcare? But if Bai Nuosi insisted, of course, it would listen to him.
Over time, the golden eagle had grown increasingly fond of Bai Nuosi. Seeing him preparing to leave, it started feeling anxious again.
Every time Bai Nuosi left, it felt uneasy. It didn’t realize that beastmen in their mating season experienced separation anxiety. It only knew it couldn’t control itself. If Bai Nuosi didn’t come to visit at the usual time, it would become extremely agitated.
Bai Nuosi, unaware of all this, but accustomed to the needs of his cubs, habitually told the golden eagle his return time. “I’ll be back in about four hours to bring you dinner, okay? Have a nice nap, Mr. Golden Eagle.”
With that, Bai Nuosi left the room, missing the longing look in the golden eagle’s eyes.
The golden eagle turned to look outside at the sunlight. Four hours—it mentally counted down the time, using this to soothe its growing restlessness.
When Bai Nuosi came out, he saw the little lion searching frantically.
What else could it be looking for? Of course, it was searching for the frog glasses it had discarded.
Bai Nuosi pretended not to know. He put on his hat and said to the little lion and the snake, “Cubs, we’re going to the park now.”
The snake, having been resting for days and not having gone out to play for a while, perked up and eagerly climbed onto Bai Nuosi’s shoulder. With everything prepared, Bai Nuosi smiled at the little lion. “Xingxing, we’re going out to play. What are you looking for?”
The little lion, hiding behind the sofa, clutched its face with both paws as soon as it heard Bai Nuosi’s voice.
As long as it covered its face, Teacher Bai wouldn’t notice its glasses were missing!
Ugh, it had promised to wear the glasses for three days to be able to play games, but it couldn’t even last half a day!
Bai Nuosi smiled as he walked over. “Xingxing?”
The little lion quickly turned its back to him, pretending not to hear. Even though Bai Nuosi called it three times, saying they were going out to play, it still remained huddled in the corner, unresponsive.
The livestream viewers were having a blast:
[Oh no, where did Xingxing’s glasses go? Did Teacher Bai hide them?]
[The little lion took off the glasses while sneaking cookies, and Teacher Bai hid them. I knew Teacher Bai wouldn’t let it play games at night!]
[The little lion is so cute! Does it think that by covering its face, Teacher Bai won’t notice?]
The little lion remained crouched in the corner, back turned to Bai Nuosi, expecting him to come over, ask why it was covering its face, and why it was hiding and not responding.
But Bai Nuosi stood on the other side of the sofa, calling out loudly, “Xingxing, I’m heading out now. The snake is coming too. Is it okay if you stay home and play by yourself?”
The little lion’s ears twitched, and it shot up, unable to ignore him any longer. It peered out from behind the sofa, staring at Bai Nuosi, who was ready to leave with the snake.
Bai Nuosi, dressed in his white uniform and holding a sunhat, had freshly baked bread and cookies in his pocket. His slightly longer hair was tied back in a small ponytail, and he genuinely looked ready to leave.
The little lion hesitated, shuffling its paws, unwilling to face Bai Nuosi directly but not wanting to be left behind either.
Bai Nuosi looked at the little lion. “Do you want to come along, Xingxing?”
The little lion hesitated and glanced back toward the sofa. Its frog glasses!
Where had they gone?
It had looked everywhere and still couldn’t find them. Ugh!
Bai Nuosi walked to the door, “Well then, I’ll take the snake baby out, and Xingxing can stay home.”
With that, he opened the door and prepared to leave!
The little lion: “!!!”
That was unacceptable!
It bolted toward him, clinging to his leg. As Bai Nuosi opened the door, it dashed out first.
Even if Bai Nuosi never coddled it, he always had it completely figured out.
The little lion sighed as it walked, thinking that Teacher Bai’s skill level was just too high. It seemed like there was no freedom here. Maybe it was time to move up its plans to run away from home and explore the world!
