Chapter 26 I'll do it, I'll do it

Chi Li discovered that once a secret is exposed, it's like a rice bag with a hole—you can't cover it up no matter what you try.

Ever since Tang Lu "personally" experienced the flare-up of her old injury that night, the image of her in Xiao Shu's mind seems to have subtly shifted from "the omnipotent Li Li" to "Li Li who needs to be taken good care of".

The specific manifestations are as follows:

First, there was a forced upgrade to the "bed warming" service.

Tang Lu used to like sleeping next to her because she was warm.

Now, every night before falling asleep, the little one will snuggle into Chi Li's arms like a little furnace, and solemnly declare, "Tang Lu is keeping Li Li warm! That way it won't hurt!"

Then she mobilized her meager wood elemental energy, striving to radiate a gentle vitality, like a small animal trying to warm an iceberg with its body heat.

Chi Li looked at the little heater in her arms that was working diligently, her feelings were complicated.

She really wanted to say, "This king's injury can't be healed by this little bit of heating..."

But seeing Tang Lu's solemn expression that said, "I'm doing something very important," she swallowed her words back.

Okay, it's warm then, and it is indeed... quite comfortable.

Secondly, there is a strategic adjustment to the content being "fed".

Tang Lu was no longer interested in researching those fancy (and dangerous) desserts, but instead turned her attention to various mild spiritual plants and fruits that were said to "nourish the meridians" and "replenish qi and vitality".

Every day, a small dish of clean, crookedly arranged spiritual fruits or a cup of perfectly heated herbal tea with a faint medicinal aroma would appear on Chi Li's desk.

"Lili, eat this! Sister Rabbit says it's good for your health!"

"Lili, drink this! It'll warm you up!"

The little one looked up with an expectant face, as if she had eaten not fruit, but a magic pill that could instantly cure any ailment.

Chi Li looked at the "tonics" that were of little use to her injuries but full of good intentions, and could only devour them all without changing her expression under a burning gaze.

The result of overeating is that His Majesty the Demon King feels... he seems to have gained a little bit of weight recently?

What made Chi Li both amused and exasperated was Tang Lu's self-created "injury recurrence monitoring system".

This little tree spirit seems to have used "soul resonance" as a 24/7 health monitoring device.

As soon as the cold energy within Chi Li's body changes even slightly, even if it's just a tiny bit, Tang Lu will immediately raise her head alertly.

She would drop whatever she was playing with, run to her side, and nervously grab her sleeve:

"Lili! Is it hurting again?"

"Tang Lu can feel it! It's cool here!" Her little hand would accurately point to the location on Chi Li's old wound.

Then, before Chi Li could explain that this was just a normal fluctuation of spiritual energy, the little guy had already begun to skillfully snuggle into her arms, trying to use his "warm" spiritual body to "neutralize" the slight chill.

Chili: "..."

She felt like a fragile glass cup, being watched over 24 hours a day by an overly anxious junior physician.

The key point is, she can't refuse!

Every time she tried to say "There's no need to be so nervous," Tang Lu would look at her with an expression that seemed to say, "Lili, are you trying to secretly hurt yourself again?"—a look that was a mixture of heartache and a little bit of reproach—making all her words die before they could even be uttered.

On this day, Chi Li was reviewing a memorial concerning border trade, which involved several numbers that required mental calculation.

She merely furrowed her brow slightly, as was her habit...

"Whoosh!"

A small head immediately peeked out from the flowerpot next to it.

"Lili!" Tang Lu asked anxiously, "Is your head hurting? Or is something else bothering you? Do you want Tang Lu to rub it for you?"

Chi Li looked at the complex numbers on the memorial, then at Tang Lu's little face that screamed "say yes!" and silently swallowed back the words "I'm doing the accounting."

She put down her pen, rubbed her temples, and readily... leaned back in her chair.

"Yeah, I'm a little tired."

Tang Lu immediately seemed to have received a royal decree, and crawled out of the flowerpot on all fours (yes, still crawling), ran behind her, and stretched out her little fists to massage her shoulders in a very serious manner.

Although the little fist had little force, it was more like a tickle.

"Tanglu, give Lili a massage! A massage will make her feel less tired!" The little one was full of energy.

Chi Li felt the kitten-kneading "massage" on her shoulder, looked at the mountain of memorials in front of her, and sighed inwardly.

It seems that today's government affairs can't be handled efficiently.

She's becoming less and less authoritative as a demon queen.

Being carefully "protected" by a little tree spirit as if it were a fragile item, constantly interrupted from my duties, and forced to accept "heartwarming services"...

Chi Li leaned back in her chair, closed her eyes, and felt the clumsy yet earnest movements of those small hands, as well as the pure worry and concern conveyed through the bond of their souls.

It doesn't seem too bad?

At least, this throne, which had been lonely for millennia, finally gained warmth because of her.

Today, His Majesty the Demon King is still under "over-protection," helplessly yet... secretly pleased, enjoying this sweet burden.