Venerable Demon King & The Doting Immortal (QT) novel Chapter 101

Chapter 101: "And stay away from my produce!"

"Fine," Xiang Yu replied, reaching into his clothing and pulling out the hidden potatoes. He placed them in Han Xin’s hands, the warmth of the tubers seeping into his palm as if they had just come out of the oven. His brows furrowed, feeling like they were burning a hole searing his palm.

"Go make some boiled potatoes or something with them," Xiang Yu said with a sly quirk on his lips before turning to walk away.

"And stay away from my produce!" Han Xin yelled after her, clutching the potatoes tightly.

Xiang Yu trudged back to the carriage, his shoulders slumped. He sprawled on the seat, feeling an empty, cold sensation on his chest where the potatoes had been. He had grown accustomed to having them on his chest. They kept him warm and toasty.

Lian, ever curious, noticed his unusual demeanour and pointed at his chest. "Master, what happened to your...?" she asked, her eyes wide. "Did you get robbed in a short space of time?"

Before Xiang Yu could respond, Mei chimed in with a dismissive wave. "They probably fell out. Who would rob our master of anything?" she said, her tone light but her eyes sharp.

Xiang Yu smothered his face into the quilt and groaned in dissatisfaction. He was mourning the loss of his precious potatoes. This Han Xin was a tyrant drunk with power. How could he confiscate his potatoes? Now, everyone was going to look at him weirdly.

Lian, seeing her master’s distress, gently patted his hair. "There, there, Master. We will get you more potatoes. Or maybe we could buy some oranges instead. As an added bonus, you will smell like citrus," she suggested with a hopeful smile. She was one to talk when she was also guilty of stealing their master’s oranges while he was asleep.

Xiang Yu sighed deeply, finally finding his voice. "Forget the potatoes. Tomorrow, I will take you both shopping," he declared, trying to lift the mood.

Mei’s smile grew, her eyes twinkling with excitement. "We are on a budget, though. Each one of us gets two sets of clothes and one good meal," she reminded them, her tone firm. Mei was like an accountant, always practical and prepared but in Xiang Yu and Lian’s eyes, she was a money-grubber or cheapskate.

In the past, she would even prohibit them from getting hawthorns, saying we could make them at home, and when they wanted wonton soup, she would ask ’don’t we have food at home?’ If you wanted steamed fish, she would say ’let’s go to the river, catch fresh fish and make our own’. It was another form of torture.

Lian and Xiang Yu, both dissatisfied with the constraints, grumbled together. Xiang Yu, feeling a mix of amusement and frustration, silently addressed the divine emperor in his mind. "I better be rich in the next world, old man," he thought, a wry smile tugging at his lips. This little miser had to be stopped; otherwise, the pair would start arguing at every turn.

Meanwhile, Han Xin stepped back into the carriage, the cool night air still clinging to his skin from his bath in the river. He sat down on the seat he intended to sleep on, pulling off his boots with a sigh. Opposite him, Han Zhan was meticulously polishing his sword, the blade catching the flickering light of the lantern.

"Oh, the physician brought the medicine you asked for. He also said that I should tell you that Her Highness took the last of her medicine, and she has already fully recovered," Han Zhan said without looking up.

Han Zhan sheathed his sword, his expression softening slightly. "The way you looked at her earlier?"

"What do you mean the way I looked at her? So, if I look at her, does it mean that I like her?" he said, continuing to defend himself. Han Zhan looked at him his expression saying ’really’.

"You kissed her, though, and she passed out too," he said, and Han Xin was exasperated. He didn’t kiss her. She kissed him, her tongue almost reaching the back of his throat. "Just pursue her openly and honestly. Don’t coerce her into anything.

Han Xin sighed, leaning back against the seat. "I was helping her take the medicine. She was refusing to get up and then she... and then she kissed me. I didn’t kiss her."

Han Zhan smiled faintly. "Xin-er, you are the general of the northern army. Are you telling me that you couldn’t find anyone to help the princess drink her medicine? Really couldn’t find one?"

Han Xin lay down and pulled up the quilt over his head while saying, "You are overthinking. It was an emergency."

Han Zhan, "...."