Duan Chi let out a sound of acknowledgment and waited for Jing Xi to elaborate.
“How about this? Remove your blazer, mess up your hair, and wrinkle your shirt. I’ll then carry you in my arms and inform them that I’ll be sending you home personally,” Jing Xi explained, “Even with the torment of their curiosity, they could never lay a hand on you in my presence. So all you have to do is just bury your head into my chest. What do you think of that?”
As Jing Xi’s voice faded into silence, Duan Chi found himself at a loss for words.
Two men stood on the balcony, staring into each other’s eyes. Only after some time did Duan Chi extend his hand to unbutton his blazer unhurriedly. “I have a simple and exciting solution. Would you like to give it a try?”
Instantly, Jing Xi’s brows snapped together.
Duan Chi enticed, “I’m sure you’ll love it very much.”
With that said, he grabbed a bathrobe from the wardrobe, as well as a pair of disposable slippers and his phone. All of which were handed over to the other party.
Subconsciously, Jing Xi took them off his hands, only to find Duan Chi’s arm on his shoulder. A glimmer of thought flashed across his eyes. “You want to…”
Before he had the chance to complete his sentence, Duan Chi lifted him into his arms and stepped onto the ledge. Without further conveyance, he took a leap off the balcony.
The sea-facing building had an unrestricted view of the waters and boasted a tropical garden open to all its guests for a stroll.
A walkway meandered around the garden, which eventually led to the side of the building.
From the seventh story, one look was all that needed to take in everything.
A sea breeze carried with it a woody scent that was unique to this region caressed his face as his pupils shrank at the sight of the approaching gravel walkway. Not long after, his body was tossed upwards before the sound of clothes shredding slid into his ears. In a split second, he fell onto a plush cushion.
The enormous white beast stretched out its body in midair and landed on its feet. It took the beast no longer than 0.5 seconds to stand nonchalantly on a small path.
Before he could regain his composure, a hand reached out and grabbed the bathrobe in his arms. He inclined his head to look at the other, only to be greeted by the sight of Duan Chi’s bare back and straight shoulders.
Whereas, Jing Xi hazarded a look in his direction silently.
Despite having innumerable admirers over the years, he could not help but somewhat marvel at his first encounter with someone like this. However, there was no denying that his actions had not engendered a hint of revulsion within Jing Xi. Instead, he had indeed found it exceptionally exciting.
Duan Chi’s eyes surveyed him from the top down twice over. Only when he noticed that Jing Xi was not transfixed with horror did he feel relieved enough to put on his slippers. Grabbing his phone, he declared, “Alright. Let’s go.”
Upon hearing that, Jing Xi bit back the words he wanted to say and followed him.
After skimming through the newly received message, Duan Chi informed, “They are on their way to the research institute, so we should just head there directly.”
Jing Xi nodded in acknowledgment before asking Artificial Stupidity, “Which branch are they heading to? It can’t be the same one we were at previously, right?”
System answered, “Of course not. That branch is too far away, so they are currently traveling to the Luay branch. There appears to be a branch in almost every other city on Planet Howe, and it just so happens that there is one built in this city.”
Perplexed, Jing Xi pondered, “What’s the point of building so many when there are so few Lupinus Mutants?”
“That is because Howe represents the “Tail” star[1] in the Hurzy Asterism,” System explained, “Whereas, the main star in the Hurzy Asterism is where the Celestial Lupin Headquarters is situated at, so the entire Asterism can be considered their active zone. With their immense wealth, every habitable planet was similarly built. What sets the main planet apart is that every city has a research institute, but beyond this Asterism, they are sparse in numbers.”
With that, Jing Xi’s doubts were dispelled, and he carried on his quiet saunter down the path until he left the garden. On seeing the tourists, a thought sprouted in his mind.
Although the transformation seemed prodigious, he would still be reduced to his birthday suit when he reverted to his original form. Fortunately, few people were treading the path in the garden at this time of night. Otherwise, people would be making a big deal out of this matter. Moreover, he was merely in a bathrobe, so it was understandable to suspect that a certain individual had only done so intentionally.
With that in mind, he called out to the person in front. “CEO Duan.”
At this juncture, Duan Chi halted in his tracks and turned around.
To his astonishment, Jing Xi’s eyes were gradually drawn to the hem of his bathrobe. “Does it feel nice and cool on this breezy night?”
Instantly, his question left Duan Chi flummoxed and speechless.
It was Jing Xi’s sarcastic question that jogged his memory about his previous tension — to have left the bathroom in such a hurry that it slipped his mind to grab some underwear. “It’s nothing. I was just asking casually, so there’s no need to answer.”
After all, he happened to have seen something by accident when he was bridal carried by Duan Chi earlier. Hence, he was well aware of his current situation.
On this very night, not only had they exchanged verbal blows with each other, but they had also jumped off a building. As a result, they quite incidentally landed themselves in their current awkward position. In spite of the confusion, it was brilliant to see that they had ditched social niceties and politeness.
After all, money could solve most problems in this world.
Somewhere along the way, they purchased some clothes and disposable underwear. Once fully clothed, they made their way to the research institute together.
As Jing Xi followed him out of the car, he ruminated for a while before probing, “Since you’re on your way to check on your nephew, why don’t I join you, CEO Duan?”
Upon hearing that, Duan Chi’s electrifying stare pierced through him.
Waving his hand, Jing Xi explained, “Look, the medication available today is still unable to cure your issues, so neither of us is sure how long we would be bound for, and there’s no telling when I might just run into your nephew. Instead of being caught off guard by the situation, I would much prefer to meet him in person while he’s at the research institute. In any case, he has already smelt the other’s scent.”
He would really love to meet the individual, especially when he was the male lead. Moreover, the future would entail moments of him debugging the storyline, so there was no way they could avoid each other at all costs.
Duan Chi watched him with an intent gaze for a moment before noting, “I will run it by him.”
With a nod, both of them parted ways. On the one hand, Jing Xi decided to check on Jin Yumeng, while on the other hand, Duan Chi made his way to his nephew’s side and relayed Jing Xi’s request.
In a split second, the three wolflings’ eyes went wide open in succession.
A couple of seconds later, Duan Xiuwen decided to meet him and forced words out between clenched teeth.
He had lost his parents at a young age, so all he had was his uncle. Should they ever get together, that would signify that Yi Zhou would also become his family. Hence, there was no reason for him not to meet his family.
Upon hearing that, the two other wolflings looked at him with tears in their eyes.
As soon as a round of stimulus had come to an end, another sprung up instantaneously.
They could not help but regard how horrible this situation was for him. As such, they forcedly extended their hands and dragged him into their embrace.
[1] I believe the author made up their own constellations, but if this were to be converted into that of real life: 尾星 – It is one of the stars in the Chinese constellations and represents the tail of the Azure Dragon. You can read more about it here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tail_(Chinese_constellation)You can read more about the Chinese constellations here: https://en.citizendium.org/wiki/Chinese_constellation