Ying Li, with a large basket and a small body, strolled through the strawberry patch. Her small hands picked up several strawberries, carefully wiping them with a clean handkerchief, then using her front teeth to gently break the skin, sucking the sweet strawberry juice, which she found irresistible, eating one after another, leaving her basket still empty. She wandered leisurely, showing no signs of the tension of a competition, almost as if she had forgotten they were in a race. Gudu was also diligently picking strawberries; her once large but empty basket was now filled with red, juicy strawberries.
Shuishui and Elder Huohu stood to the side, watching their fierce competition, eating strawberries soaked in saltwater, and sipping fragrant tea. “Have you ever regretted?” Elder Huohu said, his gaze still fixed on the vast red strawberry garden. “Regret? Regret becoming her guard? Regret becoming her husband?” Shuishui set down his teacup, his eyes also on the vast red strawberry garden, but his gaze was forever fixed on the figure in the light blue dress. Seeing her happy smile, his lips also curled into a joyful smile. “Both. Have you ever regretted?” Picking up a strawberry, he placed it in his mouth, savoring the rich fruity aroma. “Becoming the Cherry Blossom Ambassador has always been my dream, and protecting the goddess is something I’ve always wanted to do. Now that I am truly her guard, yet I still can’t protect her. If I had to say I regret anything, it would be my own incompetence.”
