Elder Huo screeched at the top of his lungs when he saw that Ruan Chanchan had handed a bowl to the queen without even letting anyone taste it. He glared at her and then said to Queen Rong, "Your majesty, you should be careful. Even when people look like they are doing something for your good, they might secretly be hiding some sort of hideous intentions." As he spoke, he looked at Ruan Chanchan pointedly.

Ruan Chanchan: "..."

Ruan Chanchan was speechless. She was just used to giving the first bowl of food to whoever was closest to her. How in the world did she end up becoming someone who was scheming something? Was this old mer going senile?

She sucked in a breath and said in a low voice, "There is nothing wrong with this bowl of crayfish. If you don’t trust me then you can simply ask someone to try it instead of the queen. What’s with the accusation? The way you are speaking is as if I am trying to assassinate someone."

Elder Huo wanted to fight back, but before he could say anything, Queen Rong raised her head and looked at the mer. Her gaze was sharp enough to kill, which made the mer shiver.

Queen Rong, however, did not make a move. She calmly smiled and said, "Oh dear, you are misunderstanding, Miss Ruan. There is no way anyone in the tribe would make such baseless accusations. How can you, our precious guest, hurt someone? It’s just that the elders are so careful when it comes to my safety that they disregarded your feelings. I hope you will not mind it and won’t take it to heart."

Ruan Chanchan did not say anything. She simply snorted and turned her attention to the stove before stirring the base of the crayfish.

Though she did not say that she was upset, she did not forgive Elder Huo either.

This mer had been targeting her for quite some time, and she had said nothing to him. But it seemed like this idiot thought that she had no temper either.

Elder Huo was so angry when he saw Ruan Chanchan turning her face away that he ended up turning as red as the crayfish in the pot. He wanted to get angry, but he had no idea where to start. He could only lower his head resentfully. It seemed like he had to deal with this woman as quickly as possible. Ruan Chanchan had already gained the trust of the queen, and even the prince was hoodwinked by her.

If this went on, then Ruan Chanchan would surely snatch the position that belonged to his daughter. He had worked hard for so long and even went to great lengths to scheme and push his daughter as the top candidate for the position of prince consort. He did not want someone from unknown origins to come and ruin all of his hard work for no reason.

He furtively shot a look at Ruan Chanchan and flared his nostrils. This won’t do. He needed to send this woman away as soon as possible, or else she would ruin everything.

Ruan Chanchan could feel that someone was looking at her with a look of pure hatred, but she did not turn her head to look at them. She knew that with her popularity increasing in the tribe, people were bound to cause trouble for her.

It was better to ignore them all and just finish her own task.

As long as she finished her task, she could return to her own tribe, where Xie Daiyu was waiting for her.

Queen Rong did not let the foul words of Master Huo ruin the mood. She picked up a crayfish, and in just a few bites, she finished the single crayfish, and her eyes lit up. She looked at Ruan Chanchan and said to her, "This meal is even better than the meal that I once had in the royal palace."

"It all depends on the preparation, your majesty." Ruan Chanchan smiled. She had no intention of making herself look like she was better than the cooks of the royal palace. It was bad enough that she was receiving so much attention; if she dared to act arrogantly, then she was afraid that she might attract the attention of those who wanted to attack her.

Queen Rong, whose face had been somewhat serious, now showed a smile upon hearing Ruan Chanchan’s words. "Of course, it’s just a matter of preparation. But skills matter as well."

"Ruan Chanchan, how should I say this? Even though you do not have a totem core, you are probably the only woman who has a temperament similar to mine. As for the rest, I don’t think there is anyone who even comes close to it."

She then looked at Ruan Chanchan and said, "I have high hopes for you, Ruan Chanchan."

Ruan Chanchan: "..."

She had no idea what the woman was trying to say, but she still nodded and smiled. "Thank you for the compliment, your majesty."

"Don’t worry, I am not going to make you work for our tribe for free. I will arrange for an alliance oath to take place once the big bear tribe arrives. I know that the one thing that your tribe lacks the most is an alliance that can strengthen its power structure. I will naturally repay you and your tribe for all the help that you have given us."

Ruan Chanchan was quite happy when she heard Queen Rong’s promise. Alright, as long as she could get her hands on the alliance, nothing else would matter. "Okay, then I will wait for my tribe to arrive." What excited her even more was that Queen Rong had already called the Big Bear Tribe, which meant that they must be coming here to fetch her. When she thought about how she would be able to meet with Xie Daiyu very soon, her heart couldn’t help but thump wildly.

Rong Xian, on the other hand, frowned when he saw the smile on Ruan Chanchan’s face. He even found her smile unsightly for the first time in his life.