Claudia Qi glared fiercely at Quinn Shepherd. Quinn gave a helpless smile, and the girl beside him once again brought a peach to his lips, so Quinn had no choice but to keep eating.
Seeing his predicament, Claudia Qi didn’t know whether to be angry or amused. She put on a stern face and said, "Stop eating! They’re blue finches, gifts from Southern Emperor Vermilion to my master. Usually, they love to wait on people, and the most annoying thing about them is also waiting on people. They’re used to feeding birds with food in their beaks, so they’re treating you like a hatchling. And they have no sense of moderation—be careful or you’ll be stuffed to death!"
Quinn suddenly understood—no wonder these girls were always trying to feed him.
"Claudia, have you ever been fed mouth-to-mouth by them?" Quinn’s expression turned odd; he couldn’t help picturing the scene of these girls feeding Claudia Qi, and asked.
Claudia Qi’s cheeks flushed slightly. "When I was little, yes... Ugh! You’re still eating? Aren’t you getting up yet?"
The girl named Annie giggled and said, "Young Master Quinn, we can also feed you peaches by biting them, and even give you tea this way."
Quinn’s heart fluttered—the scene was too seductive, and just imagining it made his body grow hot.
He was no longer the innocent youth he once was. After reading the 'Capital Scandal Chronicles' at the Imperial Preceptor’s, he now knew a thing or two about such matters, and this scene was almost too much for him to handle.
Flustered, the young man hurried to his feet and said, "No more tea! No more food! Thank you for looking after me, ladies! Claudia—"
"Don’t call me ‘Claudia’—we’re not that close!"
Claudia Qi's face darkened. With a sweep of her sleeve, the rainbow-hued phoenix feathers of her robe blocked Quinn's view as she strode toward the front hall, sneering, "Master, why did you bring this lecher here? Your peach grove is so complicated—without your zither to guide me, I'd never get in. Clearly, you let him in on purpose!"
Quinn wiped his mouth and followed her into the front hall.
From behind the screen, the woman shook her head. "How could I have let him in? Heaven Duke meddled—he hung a star in the sky to guide him, breaking my peach grove's magic. I've already snuffed out that star, so he won't be peeping around anymore."
Claudia Qi replied, "Heaven Duke can barely protect himself, yet he still can't sit still."
Annie and the other girls brought over jade trays and cushions, inviting Quinn to sit.
Quinn sat upright, ignoring the peaches the lovely girls sliced and the tea they held to his lips.
Annie took a sip of tea, then brought her lips close to his cheek, gazing at him expectantly.
"Monk Mingxin once gave me a copy of the Many Heart Sutra—supposedly it keeps you calm even in temptation. How did it go again?"
The young man felt his mind wandering, his Dao heart under siege—his head was full of red lips, and there was no room left for sutras.
Quinn quickly changed the subject: "Just now, Claudia Qi said Annie and the others are blue finches, gifts from Southern Emperor Vermilion to the lady behind the screen. So, if Sister Vermilion is close to the lady, and anyone who can befriend her must be her equal, then the lady's true identity is obvious..."