Chapter 53: Chapter 53: A Domineering Snow Wolf Outside, An’an’s Puppy at Home

"Young Master!"

Housekeeper Han hadn’t been paying attention to what Han Li said. All he knew was that it seemed someone was here to back him up.

He scrambled to his feet, wailing dramatically. "Young Master, you must stand up for this old servant!"

"This old servant came to buy food as you instructed, but who knew she would not only refuse to sell to me, but also humiliate me."

"It matters little if I am insulted, but she has insulted not just this old servant, but the City Lord Mansion itself!"

Housekeeper Han was crying his eyes out, snot and tears everywhere. He completely missed the way his Young City Lord was staring intently at Yu An, his gaze smoldering with longing.

Even though he was wearing a mask and dressed differently than before, Yu An recognized him as Han Li in a single glance.

She winked at Han Li, and the corners of his mouth curled up involuntarily.

The housekeeper wailed for a long time without getting a response from Han Li. Just as he was about to sneak a peek, Han Li kicked him to the ground.

"You worthless mutt!"

Han Li snorted coldly. "Don’t think I don’t know what you’ve been up to, throwing your weight around in the City Lord Mansion’s name. And you expect me to back you up? The nerve!"

"Now, hurry up and apologize to An’an... to Boss Yu!"

Housekeeper Han’s glare at Yu An was practically laced with poison. But under Han Li’s intimidating presence, he had no choice but to reluctantly force out an "I’m sorry."

When Han Li turned to Yu An, the gloom on his face instantly vanished, replaced by the gentleness of a spring breeze. "Boss Yu, do you forgive him?"

Yu An shook her head. "I didn’t hear anything."

Han Li immediately kicked Housekeeper Han again. "Did you hear that? Have you not eaten today?"

Housekeeper Han felt a murderous hatred for Yu An welling up inside him. Suppressing his rage, he used all his strength to offer a loud and clear apology. Only then did Yu An grudgingly accept it.

"Young City Lord, your housekeeper also spilled the food I was selling and damaged my property. How... should we settle this?"

Han Li glanced at Housekeeper Han, who was keeping his head down and acting as meek as a quail. He mouthed something to Yu An, then said aloud, "Naturally, we’ll do whatever Boss Yu thinks is best."

"Alright, then," Yu An nodded in satisfaction. "Housekeeper Han certainly can’t replace my things with identical items, so let’s settle it with money."

"I won’t ask for much. Just one hundred thousand copper coins will do."

"You call that ’not much’?"

Housekeeper Han’s head snapped up. "Are you robbing me?!"

Although he had amassed a fortune by exploiting his position in the City Lord Mansion, taking out one hundred thousand copper coins would be like taking half his life!

"Then I’ll just have to inform my Beast Father about what happened today," Han Li snorted. "Bullying others with borrowed power, ruining the reputation of the City Lord Mansion, and offending the Tiger Clan and the Merfolk Clan... What kind of punishment do you think my Beast Father will give you?"

Housekeeper Han froze, then reluctantly agreed to the compensation.

Housekeeper Han definitely wouldn’t be carrying such a large sum of money. Han Li thoughtfully offered to pay Yu An on the housekeeper’s behalf first, and Housekeeper Han could simply repay him later.

Housekeeper Han agreed with a pained expression. He had originally planned to just weasel out of the debt once Han Li forgot about it, but now there was no escaping it.

Receiving the Jade Pendant that could be used to withdraw money from the Ping’an Gold Bank, Yu An murmured, "It actually came true."

’You really do have to have dreams,’ she thought. ’Didn’t this one just come true?’

Besides, this also counted as completing her mission. Yu An glanced at the four large, full barrels of congee and decided to give it all away for free.

"Everyone should thank Housekeeper Han," Yu An said with a beaming smile. "The old man is truly a great person. The money he gave is more than enough to buy all this food."

"Housekeeper Han can’t eat it all himself, so I’ve taken the liberty of sharing it with everyone."

Housekeeper Han grew frantic. "Who says I can’t eat it!"

Some of the congee had splashed into his mouth earlier. Although it had burned him badly, he was certain it was the most delicious thing he had ever tasted in his life.

’If I can take this food back to the city, I might be able to recoup some of my losses.’

Han Li shot him a cool glance, and Housekeeper Han immediately fell silent, forced to watch as the Beastmen shared the food among themselves.

"You can head back first," Han Li said with a wave of his hand. "I still have some things to attend to."

With that, he walked off in the opposite direction from Yu An and her group.

Housekeeper Han’s heart ached with regret over the money, and he seemed to age several years in an instant. But there was nothing he could do about Han Li. Who could blame him? Han Li was the little master of the City Lord Mansion.

Just as he was about to leave, a young male beckoned to him from behind a tree.

Housekeeper Han had no intention of paying him any mind, but for some reason, he changed his mind and walked over.

"Are you looking for me?"

The male smiled. "Housekeeper Han, it’s my Female Master who is looking for you."

Housekeeper Han frowned. "Your Female Master? Who is she? I don’t think I know her."

’Could it be some female from the Qingyan Tribe who has taken a fancy to my status as the City Lord Mansion’s housekeeper and wants to take me as her Beast Husband?’

"You don’t know her, but my Female Master has a grudge against that Yu An. Would you be interested in coming with me?"

...

Once he was away from the crowd, Han Li took a shortcut to catch up with Yu An, reaching them just before they got home.

"An’an!"

Han Li moved to hug Yu An, but before he could touch her, Ao Wu blocked his path.

"Young City Lord Han, men and women should keep their distance. Stay away from my Female Master."

Han Li was a bit stunned. His attention had been entirely on Yu An, so he hadn’t even noticed the strange male standing behind her.

Now that he saw him, he sounded aggrieved. "An’an, who is he? I was only gone for a few days. Has someone already replaced me at home?"

"An’an, say something, An’an! You don’t want me anymore, do you~?"

Han Li’s voice had a tearful quiver. Yu An sighed helplessly. "It’s a little complicated. How about this..."

She looked at the others. "Mo Yan, you all head back first. I need to talk to Han Li about something."

Before Ao Wu could object, she shot him a look, and he immediately relented.

’Fine, fine,’ he thought. ’I’ll follow the house rules.’

Han Li beamed, distributing the gifts he had brought to the three Zaizai. Only after hearing their small, sweet voices call him "Beast Father" did he leave with Yu An.

"San Dan finally hatched. Good thing I didn’t forget about him when I was buying gifts."

It was just that Xiao Hu had such a low-key presence. He would sleep for the entire day, making it easy for people to forget he was even there.

After a bit more small talk, Yu An told him about the recent events. She glossed over the dangerous parts, but Han Li could still sense how perilous it had been.

"Thank goodness you’re alright," Han Li said, unable to resist pulling Yu An into his arms. "If I had known, I never would have gone back. I would have stayed by your side to protect you."

With no one else around, his beast ears popped out on top of his head and nuzzled against Yu An’s cheek, tickling her.

"I’m fine, aren’t I? By the way, how is your investigation going?"

"We finally get to see each other. Let’s not talk about that."

Han Li whined, "An’an, you have to promise me. You can look for Beast Husbands, but you’re not allowed to have any other puppies."

"I’m your only puppy. No one is allowed to take my place!"

Yu An let out a snort of laughter and instinctively reached out to stroke his fluffy ears.

"Aren’t you a Snow Wolf? How can you be a puppy?"

"I’m only a Snow Wolf on the outside. At home, I’m An’an’s puppy..."

"Tch. Take a look at your own sorry face. You really think An’an isn’t picky?"

Before Han Li could finish his sentence, Ao Wu’s sneer suddenly echoed from behind them.

He leaped down from a tree and strode over to stand in front of Yu An.

"Ao Wu, what are you doing here?"

"I came to see which shameless male was trying to seduce my Female Master."

As he spoke, the collar around Ao Wu’s neck became visible. He tilted his head back slightly, took Yu An’s hand, and pressed it against the collar.

He completely ignored Han Li’s gaze, which was practically shooting fire.