The young man wearing a mask froze, but his professional training kept him from asking questions, and he led the way to the bathing room as Qin Suixi requested.
Qin Suixi placed Ning Qi’an on the counter and whispered, “I’ll be waiting right outside, don’t be afraid.”
Ning Qi’an didn’t understand what there was to be afraid of when taking a bath, but he obediently sat down without resisting, letting the staff member loop the leash around his neck.
The windows of the bathing room were transparent, allowing those outside to see the scene inside clearly. The hot, steaming water soaked his fur, revealing his true physique.
The fox had a coat of fluffy fur, but in reality, there wasn’t much meat on him; once the water hit, he looked even smaller and thinner. His head was tiny, his body was tiny, and only his eyes remained round and wide from beginning to end.
Qin Suixi took a photo and sent it to Qin Yuan.
[Random: (Image)] [Random: Dad, you’re too harsh on the fox.]
[Dad: You took him to take a bath?]
Qin Suixi noticed the pronoun used in the message, and remembering his father’s instruction to treat the fox as a sworn “cross-species brother,” he changed his tone.
[Random: It was the right choice to put my little brother in my care.] [Dad: Since when did I have another son?]
The conversation was completely off-base. After replying with “Never mind,” Qin Suixi put his phone away. The fox had just been covered in foam, and it looked like it would take a while.
Faint barking and meowing drifted over from the corner of the hallway. Qin Suixi glanced at the fox inside the bath who was being scrubbed by the staff. As if sensing his thoughts, the fox immediately clawed at the edge of the bathtub, trying to get out. He was held back by the staff, but he still tried his best to straighten his body, his clear, watery eyes fixed intently on Qin Suixi.
A high-pitched fox call pierced through the glass window and reached his ears, pulling at him like a rope.
Qin Suixi instantly lost his urge to go explore the source of the noise. Those were other people’s cats and dogs; only this one was his fox. Qin Suixi stopped walking; he stayed outside to wait, lest the fox feel abandoned.
Ning Qi’an: #%&@
Phew, phew, phew! Bath water! The bath water got in his mouth!
A few more splashes of water slipped into his mouth. Ning Qi’an was disgusted and spat it out, only to catch himself spitting right into the water that flowed over his paws. Ning Qi’an quickly shook his feet, but the staff member mistook it for him trying to escape and grabbed his foot, pressing him back down.
Ning Qi’an: …I might as well have washed myself.
The only thing he was grateful for was that the staff member was male. If it had been a girl, even if she were human, Ning Qi’an would have felt incredibly humiliated.
Ning Qi’an was in a sorry state, while Qin Suixi watched the show from outside. There is no harm without comparison—Ning Qi’an noticed his gaze and glared back at him.
What are you looking at! Is it entertaining?! You’re just standing there smirking, you’ve clearly got nothing better to do!
After agonizing through the bath, Ning Qi’an was tossed into a drying box, where the warm electric air made his fur fly everywhere. He stared blankly at Qin Suixi’s magnified face until Qin Suixi took a photo of his current soaking-wet appearance. Ning Qi’an immediately let out an urgent cry.
Qin Suixi is taking ugly photos of him! Qin Suixi is taking ugly photos of him! Qin Suixi is taking ugly photos of him!
Important things must be said three times. Ning Qi’an was unhappy and frantically clawed at the box. Delete the photo! What if a female fox sees it in the future?!
Ning Qi’an was burning with anxiety; this was about his future happiness!
His wails fell on Qin Suixi’s ears as acting cute. The fox was using cuteness to win his sympathy, trying to get out of that strange box. Qin Suixi felt a certain place in his heart stirred. He curled his lips, pointed at the fox’s paw through the glass, and said in a gentle tone, “You’ll get sick if you don’t dry off in winter. Bear with it a little longer.”
The fox’s paws kept scratching up and down like he was digging in dirt. The sight was truly adorable, and Qin Suixi couldn’t help but take a few more photos. He flipped through the photos, praising, “Pretty cute.”
Ning Qi’an: &%$#*@
Cute my foot! Why are you still taking pictures!
Qin Suixi misunderstood him again. Ning Qi’an concluded: I’m tired. Cross-species communication is just too hard.
Ning Qi’an stopped wasting his energy, turned around, and presented his butt to him.
Ning Qi’an was carried out of the drying box by Qin Suixi. As soon as he was held, he angrily scratched with his claws. But since the staff had just trimmed his nails, combined with the layers of clothing, Qin Suixi only felt the fox’s paw pads patting him, which felt a bit itchy.
His freshly blown-dry fur was exceptionally fluffy. One hand buried into it felt like sinking into a ball of cotton, carrying both the warmth of the hot air and the fox’s own body heat, chasing away the chill on his hands. Qin Suixi couldn’t help but stroke him a few more times.
Ning Qi’an shivered—partly from the cold. He rolled his eyes, having no strength left to resist, and resigned himself to warming Qin Suixi’s hands with his body temperature.
Before leaving, Qin Suixi noticed a row of leashes. His steps faltered, and he turned toward them.
“I have to take you out for a stroll sometime, so you don’t ruin your eyes watching TV all day.”
He held up a red collar and gestured at Ning Qi’an, saying, “Come on, see if you like this one?”
Ning Qi’an glanced at it and turned his head away in disdain.
Qin Suixi picked up a dark blue one. Ning Qi’an didn’t move his head; he opened his eyes, took a look, and closed them again.
“Don’t like any of them?” Qin Suixi put down the dark blue collar, picked up another one, bounced Ning Qi’an slightly, and asked, “How about green?”
This time, Ning Qi’an didn’t even open his eyes.
Qin Suixi couldn’t do anything with him, so he put Ning Qi’an down and said, “You’re so picky, then choose for yourself.”
Only then did Ning Qi’an condescend to pick one out. His gaze swept over the colorful collars one by one, and he turned his head away in disgust. Collars are for pets; he was neither a pet nor a dog. Ning Qi’an automatically ignored the dog bed he slept in.
But the Bureau of Monster Affairs taught them that pets should have leashes when going out. Although he wasn’t a pet, in human eyes, he was Qin Suixi’s fox—his pet. Ning Qi’an could stay holed up at home, but he couldn’t stop Qin Suixi from wanting to take him out to play, and it was true that not having a leash would be a bit troublesome.
Thinking that the other party had treated him well, Ning Qi’an was struck by a moment of kindness and was willing to accompany him for a stroll. However, Ning Qi’an would absolutely not wear a collar. That thing gave him zero sense of security, and Ning Qi’an was afraid he might accidentally strangle himself if he went out.
He skipped the row of collars and finally picked out a small yellow vest with two rings on the back that could be hooked to a leash. Ning Qi’an stood up and wanted to bite it, but he stumbled, and he ended up biting the black-and-white one next to it instead.
Before he could correct his mistake, Qin Suixi grabbed the mistakenly chosen black-and-white vest with astonishing speed and said, “You like this one?”
Ning Qi’an: …I don’t like it; I even think it’s ugly.
But he was too lazy to choose again; it wasn’t like he’d use it many times anyway.
Seeing that the fox had no objections, Qin Suixi fell into thought. The fox likes black and white. I’ve noted that.
Ning Qi’an hadn’t had his four paws on the ground for more than a few minutes before he was picked up again. His four black paws paddled helplessly in the air before resting on a sturdy arm. Sometimes he felt quite helpless; clearly, he was fully grown and mature, yet he was always treated like an infant in swaddling clothes. Is this what a fox’s daily life is like?
Ning Qi’an shook his head. He didn’t reject Qin Suixi’s hug. He adjusted his body, found a comfortable position, and settled down peacefully.
When they returned, Auntie Liu had already finished preparing dinner. Having not seen her for two days, Ning Qi’an missed Auntie Liu… and her cooking—dearly.
After happily finishing dinner, he and Qin Suixi lay on the sofa to let the food digest. Qin Suixi handed the remote control to the fox. He wanted to see just how this guy turned on the TV.
Ning Qi’an understood. He accurately found the power button and pressed it for a long time. A second later, the TV screen flickered to life. Because the last channel was the Animal Channel, as soon as the TV turned on, the first thing that greeted them was a colorful snake slithering around.
Ning Qi’an: …
He kicked the remote control away and dove behind Qin Suixi’s back. Power-on jump scare! He was terrified!
“Are you afraid of snakes, too?”
Qin Suixi laughed. He soothingly stroked the fox’s slightly bristled tail, picked up the remote, and changed the channel. Qin Suixi half-turned his waist to support the fox’s forelimbs, holding it on his lap with one arm, while his other hand stroked from the top of its head all the way to the middle of its back.