Chapter 171: Midnight Blood Theft

For several days in a row, while the cheerful joy with Mo Xiaohu was a world apart, Fu Qianchen always wore a gloomy, listless expression, unable to take any interest in anything.

However, he always tread carefully, never showing a hint of it in front of Ye Qingran. Yet whenever he was alone, he would always reveal a lonely sorrow, especially in the deep quiet of night when everyone was asleep; he would stare blankly at the night sky, a solitary aura surrounding him, as if abandoned by the whole world.

That night, deep and still, all sounds hushed, a tiny figure slipped into Ye Qingran's room; by the moonlight streaming through the window, one could faintly discern that the small silhouette was Fu Qianchen.

The curtains swayed lightly; on the bed lay a figure, the quilt slightly puffed, that stunning face now only lightly drowsy, leaving only a faint breath.

Fu Qianchen restrained his aura, even deliberately slowing his breathing, fearing to wake the person on the bed.

He approached the bedside, gazing at the sleeping Ye Qingran, a faint smile appearing on his face, whispering softly, "Piao Liang Niangqin…"

The voice was very soft, so the person on the bed naturally did not hear it.

Fu Qianchen then shifted his gaze to the hand of Ye Qingran that was exposed, his brows slightly furrowing, as if caught in some inner conflict.

After a brief inner struggle, he finally made up his mind, lightly brushing the underside of Ye Qingran's finger, a splash of rosy blood appearing. He hurriedly caught it with a Jade Bottle, after dripping three drops he carefully sealed the bottle and set it aside, then applied a special medicinal paste to the wound; within a breath, the wound miraculously healed.

Probably because Fu Qianchen had been watching Ye Qingran's hand the whole time, he failed to notice her long eyelashes tremble when the fingertip was cut.

After confirming no trace was left, Fu Qianchen tiptoed out of the room, his figure flashing like a ghost as he leapt toward the outside of Ye Residence.

When the door closed again, the previously sleeping Ye Qingran suddenly opened her eyes, sat up, raised her hand to look at the unblemished fingertip, after a moment stared at the tightly shut door, a trace of contemplation flashing in her eyes.

Xiao Chen, what are you doing?

……

After leaving Ye Residence, Fu Qianchen, in a secluded alley, blew a whistle; after a dozen breaths, a figure in a black cloak appeared before him.

"Young master, summoning a subordinate at midnight—do you have any orders?" the newcomer bowed, his attitude respectful.

Fu Qianchen looked left and right, confirming no one was tailing him, then stepped forward a few paces and handed the two Jade Bottles and a Jade Order to the black‑clad figure, "Take my Jade Order and hurry back to the Summit of the Deer Hunt, deliver these two sample bottles to the Grand Elder, have him perform a Bloodline Detection. Remember, no one must know. Not even Father Lord, is forbidden!"

"Yes, subordinate will obey the young master's command!" the black‑clad man took the order, bowed, and vanished on the spot. Watching the direction where he disappeared, Fu Qianchen's face tightened.

Mo Xiaohu and Piao Liang Niangqin's blood relationship was discovered through Bloodline Detection.

Although he knew that the Bloodline Detection result between him and Piao Liang Niangqin indicated the possibility of a mother‑son relationship was vanishingly small, he could not bear not conducting a test, no matter what!

Clenching his fist, Fu Qianchen stood in the night for a while before turning back toward Ting Yu Xuan.

The next day, when Fu Qianchen saw Ye Qingran, he recalled last night's events, feeling uneasy, his eyes flickering, daring not to meet Ye Qingran's gaze.

Ye Qingran seemed not to notice Fu Qianchen's oddity, whatever it was, whatever.

Only when they were alone did Ye Qingran finally look at Fu Qianchen seriously; after a while, when Fu Qianchen's scalp tingled, she waved at him.

Fu Qianchen lowered his head and walked up to her, this time not slipping into her arms as usual, nor calling her intimately "Piao Liang Niangqin".

"Xiao Chen, I'll ask you a question; answer me truthfully."

Fu Qianchen's heart tightened, anxiously thinking, could it be that his sneaking into the room last night to steal Piao Liang Niangqin's blood had been discovered?

What to do?

If discovered, would Piao Liang Niangqin get angry and then reject him?

In the brief span of a breath, Fu Qianchen's mind raced thousands of times, sweat beading on his forehead.

"Why are you so nervous? I'm not going to ask you if you have a girl you like…"

Uh…

Fu Qianchen raised his face in surprise, seeing Ye Qingran raise an eyebrow, smiling teasingly; suddenly he was no longer that nervous.

"Piao Liang Niangqin, I only like you…"

Ye Qingran smiled, patting the top of his head, and said disapprovingly, "You'll still have girls you like in the future. Could it be you want to stay single forever?"

Clearly Fu Hanxiu had never discussed such topics with Fu Qianchen, and Fu Qianchen's cheeks turned red.

Ye Qingran's heart softened a great deal; Xiao Chen is so innocent!

Unable to resist, she planted a kiss on Fu Qianchen's little cheek; Fu Qianchen was stunned, clearly not expecting Ye Qingran to suddenly kiss him then, his face flushed even more, as if dyed with rouge, looking extremely cute.

"Piao Liang Niangqin, why did you kiss me?"

He asked weakly.

"What, can't mother speak to you now? You weren't like this before; you and Xiao Hu both vied to be mother's favorite. Could it be you truly have someone you like outside?"

Fu Qianchen: "…"

A large bead of sweat hung on his forehead.

What's wrong with Piao Liang Niangqin today?

"Sigh, indeed having a daughter‑in‑law makes you forget your mother; mother's side hurts so much!" Ye Qingran, in a melodramatic pose, pointed at her heart, eyes on the verge of tears.

"Piao Liang Niangqin…"

That scared Fu Qianchen terribly; could it really be that he had angered Piao Liang Niangqin?

"Xiao Hu already calls me mother, why do you still address me so awkwardly? It hurts me."

Fu Qianchen's heart fluttered, looking at Ye Qingran in disbelief, his pupils constricted, the light within astonishingly bright.

What does Piao Liang Niangqin's words mean? Is she telling him to, in the future, also call her mother like Mo Xiaohu does?

But how can that be?

Xiao Hu is her biological child; he isn't, so what right does he have to call her mother?

Fu Qianchen lowered his head forlornly.

Ye Qingran kept watching his reaction; seeing him bow his head with a forlorn expression, a dull ache involuntarily rose in her heart.

For some reason, she could not bear to see this child sad, even though he wasn't her own child. Yet she felt for him the same affection as for Xiao Hu, as if he and Xiao Hu were no different, both flesh and bone that fell from her.

She also hoped Xiao Chen were her child; then wouldn't everyone be happy?

But how could that be possible?

Back then, on the Jiufu Forest Duanhun Abyss, she was tormented by Ye Huanhuan and Lin Xueyan, who prematurely performed a Caesarean to extract her only child, then threw her off a cliff, causing a five‑year separation between mother and child.

"Xiao Chen, you heard what, right?"

Fu Qianchen's body trembled slightly; meeting Ye Qingran's gentle, watery gaze, he nodded slowly.