Chapter 22 Part 1
Even though Lou Ting was experienced and knowledgeable, he had never encountered such an awkward situation before. Especially with his tail caught between his arms, it was neither hidden nor fully exposed.
Lou Ting’s hands trembled slightly as he tentatively asked, “If I were to say that I came here to admire the scenery, would you believe me?”
Clearly, He Yunzhou wasn’t a fool and couldn’t be fooled by Lou Ting’s words. Instead, he stared intently at the fox tail, which looked much larger than when Lou Ting was in his beast form, and asked, “Is that your tail?”
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Nsw Mkdt alrzkle, “Ls, kv’p dsv xkdl! Rv clzsdtp vs vbl zkvvzl qsm. Mbl zkvvzl qsm kp pbu yde eslpd’v oydv vs pbso kvp qynl.”
Nsw Mkdt aykple bkp byde yde nypwyzzu bke vbl vykz kdpkel bkp pbkav, ralvldekdt vbyv vbl qsm oyp bkekdt kdpkel, sdzu alhlyzkdt kvp vykz. “Ms cl bsdlpv, vbkp qsm kp ynvwyzzu xu rlv. Rv zkjlp vs awd yaswde, yde R qszzsole kv yzz vbl oyu blal vseyu.”
‘Xb?’ Tl Zwdgbsw vbswtbvqwzzu ypjle, ‘Mbld obu eked’v usw vlzz xl ycswv vbl zkvvzl qsm obld R xldvksdle kv lyazkla?’
Nsw Mkdt pxkzle yde pyke, ‘Ekze-lyale qsmlp yal ayal yqvla yzz. R oyp yqayke vbyv Ya. Tl oswze clnsxl qsde sq kv yde vau vs vyjl kv yoyu qasx xl, ps R elzkclayvlzu jlrv kv bkeeld. R oydvle vs jllr vbl zkvvzl qsm cu xu pkel.’
The explanation seemed reasonable. After all, who wouldn’t want to keep a good thing hidden? In their disparate positions, if He Yunzhou truly wanted to take it, Lou Ting wouldn’t be able to keep the wild-eared fox.
He Yunzhou asked, ‘What about the clothes?’
‘That day when I came to have you sign the divorce agreement…’ In an extremely tense atmosphere, Lou Ting had to come up with the most reasonable explanation as quickly as possible. ‘At that time, the little fox suddenly felt cold, so I took off all my clothes and gave them to…’
Lou Ting took a deep breath. He couldn’t continue the lie any longer.
Lou Ting threw his hands up and said, ‘Yes, I am the wild-eared fox!’
Lou Ting looked at him and asked, ‘Mr. He, do you intend to hold me responsible?’ Strictly speaking, the things he had damaged were just those robots and a few items he had broken while escaping.
He had the money to compensate.
Lou Ting said, ‘If it’s those damaged items, Mr. He can provide a list, and I will compensate accordingly.’
‘Compensate accordingly?’ He Yunzhou was surprised by this solution Lou Ting proposed.
Lou Ting nodded. Anything that could be resolved with money was not a big deal.
Seeing this, He Yunzhou took out his phone and started calculating. ‘A total of seventy-one damaged security robots, among which three are irreparably damaged and several others have light injuries or memory damage. Calculating based on the market price of three billion interstellar credits per unit, and full compensation for the irreparable damages, the total amount would be… 850 billion…'”
After a brief pause, He Yunzhou said, “Let’s round it down to 800 billion.”
Lou Ting: “…”
“And there are the clothes I prepared for you, as well as the loss of money due to delayed work and a few lost contracts…”
“Does that count too?”
He Yunzhou said, “It does.” He included everything in a lump sum.
“And there’s the cost of shipping snacks for the little fox from other planets. Let’s add another billion for all the miscellaneous expenses.”
Lou Ting opened his mouth but closed it again. It is said that businessmen have a special aura about them. At first sight, Lou Ting thought He Yunzhou was a wealthy and gentle character. But now, Lou Ting realized that He Yunzhou was a true businessman.
He Yunzhou continued calculating, “The total is 900 billion. Will you pay by credit card or bank transfer?”
Lou Ting: “…”
You’re valuing me at such an exorbitant price.
However, Lou Ting was always bold in his actions. But he didn’t have that much money at the moment. He had just arrived and his career was just beginning, so he definitely couldn’t come up with that amount of money. “I will give you the money as soon as possible. If needed, I can write an IOU.”
Seeing Lou Ting’s serious expression, He Yunzhou stopped playing around and said, “I don’t need the money.”
“But…”
“You know about my condition,” He Yunzhou interrupted him. “Sometimes my mental state is in disorder, and I don’t even know what I’m doing. But when I hold the little fox, I can feel that my chaotic mental energy gradually stabilizes.”
He Yunzhou slowly raised his gaze and stared at Lou Ting without blinking, his voice slow. “So, I need a little fox that can help me soothe my mental energy.”
Lou Ting pursed his lips. “Are you threatening me?”
He Yunzhou smiled and remained silent.
Lou Ting snorted lightly. He had never been one to follow rules, so how could he be restrained by a mere few hundred billion?
In the next moment, He Yunzhou’s vision blurred with red.
The little fox sat obediently in front of him and wagged its tail. “Aoou!”
Deal! If we don’t mention money, we can still be friends.
He Yunzhou squatted down and reached out his hand to Lou Ting. The little fox effortlessly jumped onto his palm. He Yunzhou stroked the little fox’s head and felt that the money was well spent.
Then… he got scratched.
He Yunzhou looked down at the glaring little fox and calmly said, “Add 500,000.”
Lou Ting: “???”
Taking advantage of the stunned little fox, He Yunzhou caressed its fur once more and walked home with the little fox in a light and joyful manner.
The little fox curled up in his palm, glanced at him, and then lowered its gaze.
If it were before Lou Ting had spoken with Ji Xing, he might have thought that He Yunzhou’s talk of pheromones was a fabricated lie. But He Yunzhou’s situation was real. He released pheromones inexplicably when he transformed.
When he just transformed into his beast form, the unstable pheromones he emitted did have a mutual influence on He Yunzhou’s mental energy.
And…
His own transformation was also very unstable.
Sometimes he could transform smoothly, but other times he inexplicably got stuck in a form and couldn’t recover.
Upon careful consideration, most of the time he could transform at will was when he was around He Yunzhou as a fox. At other times, even though he occasionally managed to transform, it was always troublesome.
It wasn’t just He Yunzhou who had issues with his mental energy. Their mental energies were likely interconnected.
The current situation wasn’t too bad, but if there came a time when he suddenly couldn’t transform into human form and could only maintain his beast form, it might be too late to seek out He Yunzhou.
Instead of that, it would be better to help each other for now. When Ji Xing figures out a solution to this inexplicable connection between them, and if it can be resolved, then he will have time to divorce He Yunzhou.
As they were thinking, they had already returned to the room.
The room, which had been a mess a moment ago, was now clean and spotless, with no trace of what had just happened. It was hard to tell that something had occurred here.
“Before, I could sleep with you when you were a wild-eared fox, but now…” He Yunzhou said, “I have prepared a separate room for you.”
The little fox looked up at him.
He really didn’t expect that He Yunzhou would be quite a gentleman.
In the interstellar era, most of those who could transform into beast forms were powerhouses, and their beast forms were usually fierce predators oriented towards combat. Although Omega transformations weren’t as aggressive as Alpha transformations, they were still the same size as Alphas.
So, when he saw the small fox that was no bigger than a palm, his first thought was that some wild animal had gotten in from somewhere, and that thought was incorrect.
Now that he knew that the fox wasn’t actually a real fox, He Yunzhou didn’t even need to say anything; he voluntarily prepared another room for him.
This person indeed…
The words “not bad” had just flashed through Lou Ting’s mind, but he immediately dismissed them.
Looking at the neatly arranged square cat bed in the corner of the bedroom, Lou Ting: “…”
Bamboozled. He bamboozled me!
“Do you like it?” He Yunzhou reached out to touch the fabric and said, “This is a newly developed soft cotton by the Empire. It’s softer and more durable than regular cotton. When you lie in it, it’s especially comfortable.”
The little fox sat up straight, wagging its tail slightly, and thought to itself, I’ve really spoiled you.
With that thought in mind, he instantly transformed into his human form, grabbed the cat bed in one hand, and slammed it over He Yunzhou’s head before kicking him out with a foot!
“Eh…” He Yunzhou’s vision went dark, but he stabilized himself and quickly took the cat bed from his head. He looked up and saw Lou Ting waving at him.
“Good afternoon.”
Then, with a loud “bang,” he slammed the door shut.
He Yunzhou walked up to the door and knocked, “Lou Ting, I…”
“Thunk.”
Lou Ting simply locked the door.
He Yunzhou was filled with question marks in his mind as he looked at the cat bed in his hand, recalling what his brother had told him.
“This cat bed is especially loved by your sister-in-law. When there’s nothing to do, she would transform into her beast form and lie inside.”
“Buy it and give it to your little fox at home. He’ll definitely love it too.”
“We’re brothers, give me a billion, don’t be polite with your brother.”
…
He Yunzhou looked at the cat bed and thought about the billion he had lost. He felt like… maybe… he was probably… deceived?
He threw the cat bed aside, knocked on the door, and said, “Lou Ting, don’t be angry.”
“Are you hungry? Come out and have something to eat before taking a nap.”
“I’ve prepared a lot…”
Before he could finish his sentence, the door suddenly opened.
Lou Ting looked at him and asked, “When did you start suspecting me?”
The more Lou Ting thought about it, the more something felt off. Perhaps He Yunzhou had already started suspecting him when he tested him yesterday. Lou Ting also knew that when he came to pick up the clothes today, he would definitely be surrounded.
But he couldn’t not come. If he didn’t come, and they found out later that the clothes were with him, he wouldn’t be able to avoid it. By coming, he could at least take a chance. If he managed to escape, everything would be fine. If he didn’t, it would be the same as the first outcome.
But one of the premises for these situations to occur was that He Yunzhou had already started suspecting him.
When did that happen?
Lou Ting thought that, except for the time he encountered Ji Xing, he had covered his tracks well at other times.
Moreover, he didn’t believe that Ji Xing would betray him.
So…
“My spiritual power can sense your pheromones. When the pheromones are faint, others might not notice, but I can.” Indeed, He Yunzhou had suspicions before, but he wasn’t certain.
“Hmm,” Lou Ting furrowed his brow, confirming that it was caused by the sudden transformation incident.
Lou Ting asked, “Then why did you wait for some time before testing me?”
At this, He Yunzhou’s expression changed. “Because… my sister-in-law led my thoughts in a different direction and took me on a tour of another planet.”
Lou Ting: “…”
Ji Xing was amazing.
He Yunzhou didn’t want to go into details about what he had experienced during that time. He cleared his throat and said, “Let’s eat first.”
Lou Ting sat at the table, which was already filled with various dishes, both Western and Chinese. There were even four or five different main courses prepared.
In the interstellar era, people’s diets tended to be convenient and fast, with few cooking at home except for in restaurants. Although He Yunzhou clearly hadn’t cooked this table of food himself, he had put a lot of thought into the comprehensive preparation.
He Yunzhou sat next to Lou Ting, too busy focusing on ordering from the menu without realizing how much he had ordered. It seemed like quite a lot now. “I wasn’t sure what you like, so I prepared everything.”
Lou Ting responded with an “Hmm.”
During the meal, He Yunzhou was extremely attentive, constantly serving him food.
By the end of the meal, Lou Ting barely touched his chopsticks. Essentially, as soon as he glanced at a dish, He Yunzhou would already have it served to him.
He Yunzhou hadn’t taken a single bite himself; he was too occupied with feeding Lou Ting.
Lou Ting ate a small portion of the steamed bun and couldn’t eat anymore with so many side dishes. He declined He Yunzhou’s offers to serve him, saying, “I’m full.”
“Alright,” He Yunzhou said, “If you’re tired, you can take a nap. My sister-in-law will come later to discuss the examination with you.”
After today’s massive physical exertion, Lou Ting was indeed a bit tired. He said, “Okay,” and turned to enter the bedroom.
When he was pretending to be a wild fox earlier, he had kicked He Yunzhou on the bed countless times. Now, lying on it in human form felt a little strange.
Lou Ting sighed and gently rubbed the blanket before resting his face against it and closing his eyes to sleep.
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