6 Six-Headed Whale

"You wouldn't want to lose your job, would you?"

This sentence is both a curse and a threat.

Willing to sell her charms to stay, willing to serve even the customers she loathed just to secure a work opportunity, Jing Chengyun was certain she stood on the side of advantage, controlling the flow of the game. She didn't care for psychological warfare; while orcas might rank at the forefront of intelligence among creatures on the Blue Planet, Jing Chengyun was a player who preferred a violent, straightforward victory.

At this moment, all her patience was derived from the panic in the Samoyed’s pitch-black eyes.

In the next instant, a hazy white light washed over the Samoyed’s entire body. As the glow dissipated, Su Zile’s stunning, beautiful features were revealed.

He kept his face cold, avoiding Jing Chengyun’s complex gaze, and gritted his teeth. "Jing Chengyun, keep this a secret for me..."

After taking a deep breath, Su Zile’s voice dropped to a whisper: "I am willing to let you do as you please with me."

*Click.* Jing Chengyun turned on the overhead light, eyeing Su Zile from head to toe. She had recognized him the moment the club owner was scolding him. It was only because he was her colleague from the Time-Travel Bureau that she had intervened.

Was this groveling, humble creature really the Nine-Tailed Fox she knew?

Jing Chengyun had heard rumors about fox spirits—that they were adept at using charms to bewitch humans, leading to the loss of lives or the chaos of the world. In short, there were almost no good ones in the legends. Although her own circle of connections couldn't compare to her aunt Jing Yan’s, she knew a few fox demons; they were all highly ambitious and loathed hearing those defamatory, scandalous anecdotes about their kind.

Therefore, until today, Jing Chengyun would never have imagined that a fox demon—and the most renowned Nine-Tailed Fox at that—would be selling his charms in a club!

"You, how far are you willing to go?" Jing Chengyun maintained a distance that kept him at arm’s length. Her explicit gaze remained fixed, undisguised, on the male fox spirit’s face.

After a long while, she cast her eyes toward the wine glass. The liquid at the bottom shimmered, reflecting the deep blue light from the ceiling.

Su Zile used his beautiful, slender fingers to pinch the middle of the glass. Suddenly, his waist leaned forward an inch, then retreated to its original position. Ultimately, he stretched his body fully to touch the bottle that Jing Chengyun had deliberately pushed away.

Su Zile possessed a slender, powerful waist, wrapped in a black shirt that faintly outlined its contours. When he turned back, he didn't sit properly; instead, he knelt on one knee on the edge of the sofa, lowering his gaze and biting his lip, saying almost silently, "...have a drink."

At that very moment, a sudden heat surged in Jing Chengyun’s lower abdomen. She stared at Su Zile’s face, unable to look away. This strange impulse did not stem from her appreciation of his beauty. Even though she was perfectly aware of it, her hand disobeyed her, reaching out to slowly cover the back of Su Zile’s warm hand.

As the liquor entered her system, Su Zile’s palm wrapped around Jing Chengyun’s shoulder. He remained half-kneeling, but his body leaned forward, as if he wanted to throw himself entirely into her arms.

He would ask, "Do you want to touch my tail? Do you want to touch the ears on my head? Do you want to do something even more outrageous?"

His voice was magnetic yet soft; when he spoke, it was like a feather brushing against her throat, making her heart itch uncontrollably.

"Get out!"

Jing Chengyun suddenly knocked over the wine glass and leaped off the sofa. She gasped for air, sweat beading on her neck. "You—you actually practiced forbidden charm arts!"

A layer of pallor crept over Su Zile’s face. His secret and his final trump card had all been delivered into Jing Chengyun’s hands, yet the use of that trump card had gone wrong!

In his panic, Su Zile slowly lowered the wine glass and moved a step toward the orca lady. "You are more formidable than I imagined, being able to see through my charm."

***

Jing Chengyun certainly could!

The Blue Planet was rich with spiritual energy, and countless demons benefited from it. Jing Chengyun was the cream of the crop; results that took other demons hundreds of years to cultivate, she achieved in just twenty-five springs!

Having nearly fallen into Su Zile’s dark trap, Jing Chengyun was furious. The other party was simply trying to offer himself to her, to let her gain some benefit in exchange for keeping his secret. This was understandable, and Jing Chengyun wouldn't normally be bothered by such trivialities, but this feeling of being manipulated, of losing her own mind—it was a terrible sensation, one she detested to the core!

Jing Chengyun’s legs trembled, and she had to lean against the wall to stand steady. "You secretly practiced charm arts and then worked in a club. Once exposed, it will bring shame upon the Nine-Tailed Fox clan and ruin your own reputation. Am I right?"

With her concerns easily voiced, Su Zile broke into a cold sweat. He feared losing his job, which would make it impossible to maintain his livelihood, and he feared damaging his reputation, bringing shame to his race.

Yet both of these fears were held firmly in Jing Chengyun’s grasp.

He had completely lost all initiative.

"That's enough for today. I will keep your secret for now. Go home and have a good dream, Mr. Fox Spirit." Unexpectedly, Jing Chengyun kicked the shards of the wine glass on the floor and turned to leave.

Fearing he might pester her, she added, "Do not follow me, or else..."

There was no need to finish what came after "or else"; Su Zile knew well. The door opened and closed, leaving him alone in the darkness. He collapsed dejectedly back into the depths of the sofa, his gaze vacant.

What could he do? He had no other choice.

*

That night, Jing Chengyun did not sleep well.

Whenever she closed her eyes, she could see Su Zile’s calamitous face. The fox spirit smiled in a soul-stealing way, one moment urging her to drink, the next stretching his arms to hook around her neck, exhaling his warm breath entirely into her collar.

The fox spirit had a soft, slender waist, and he conjured nine fluffy tails, smiling softly as he said, "Don't you want to hold me? Hold me, just hold me..."

"Good heavens—" Jing Chengyun woke up in a cold sweat. It was just dawn.

She subconsciously glanced at the nightstand and felt a pang of melancholy upon realizing that her photo with Chen Ji was no longer there.

After the melancholy came shock and shame. She had had an incredible dream—a wet dream.

And it was about Su Zile!

That charm art was truly formidable; even though she had seen through it at the time, the lingering effects were immense. She couldn't imagine what would have happened if she had actually fallen for it.

Jing Chengyun’s cheeks burned. She washed her face and took a shower with cold water, but that couldn't soothe the lingering effects of the charm. She ended up sitting in meditation on the bed, attempting to use her own demon arts to calm her mind.

After a cycle of circulation, the body heat finally subsided. Jing Chengyun breathed a sigh of relief. Deciding to skip her shift at the funeral home, she messaged the director and went back to sleep.

At eight in the morning, Jing Chengyun was awakened by a phone call.

"Yun, Sister Yunyun! It's Mianmian!"

"It's you?"

Just from the voice on the phone, she could imagine Ruan Mianmian’s joyful, coy, and shy expression. "Can I treat you to breakfast? Seafood porridge! If you want to touch my tail, that's okay too..."

Touch... touch the tail?

Jing Chengyun and Ruan Mianmian only exchanged greetings every morning and night; they weren't particularly close. She felt no romantic desires for Ruan Mianmian, so it was truly hard to be tempted!

"Fine, I live at Jinxiu Garden."

By the time the words escaped her lips, it was too late. Jing Chengyun gripped her phone in shock. Before she could react to what was happening, Ruan Mianmian on the other end was already cheering.

"Ah, ah, ah! Sister Yunyun said yes to Mianmian!" Ruan Mianmian stomped his feet in excitement. "I'll be there very soon, you have to wait for me!"

"Hello? Hello!" Jing Chengyun called out twice, but there was no response. A tingling sensation spread through her heart, a feeling that was hard to describe or define.

The wait wasn't long. Fifteen minutes later, Ruan Mianmian appeared downstairs at Jinxiu Garden. After getting ready, Jing Chengyun went down to meet him.

The weather was beautiful today. Ruan Mianmian was still wearing a white long-sleeved hoodie, his presence clean and refreshing. "Sister Yunyun!"

He had a refreshing, grassy scent about him that was incredibly pleasant. The way he looked up at Jing Chengyun with such fiery eyes made the orca lady’s heart flutter, and she didn't want to meet his gaze.

"Mianmian brought you a thank-you gift. Even though my mother already treated you to a meal, I feel it's not enough, so I wanted to thank you properly!" As Ruan Mianmian spoke, he took an exquisite gift box out of his backpack. "Ta-da! It’s an electronic watch!"

Jing Chengyun: "It’s too expensive. I can’t accept it. Sister Hui has already thanked me, you don't need to go to such expense."

Ruan Mianmian’s energy instantly withered. His tail drooped and wouldn't rise, and his two furry ears twitched. Looking closer, his eyelids were trembling too, and tears formed into glistening threads.

Jing Chengyun was stunned. Just as she was about to scold him and tell him not to cry, she found she couldn't move her lips at all.

He cried so beautifully, so adorably, that it made one want to bully him severely just to see him unable to stop crying...

Jing Chengyun was frightened by her own thoughts. She had always hated people who cried, so what was happening today? How could she feel like she couldn't get enough of watching him?

She coughed inexplicably and said, "Stop crying. Let’s go have breakfast first."

Ruan Mianmian wiped away his tears. He wanted to be an obedient little bunny; if his master told him not to cry, he could stop his tears instantly!

*

Not far away, a luxury black car had been parked for a long time.

Inside sat a handsome man in a tailored suit, wearing half-rimmed glasses and exuding a gentle, refined aura. His gaze had remained fixed on Jing Chengyun and Ruan Mianmian, never shifting even an inch.

"Jing Chengyun is truly insane; she doesn't pick and choose any man." With a cold sneer, the man rolled up the window and commanded, "Go investigate that damn rabbit. I want to know everything about him."

*

There were many breakfast shops on the street of Jinxiu Garden. Jing Chengyun chose one she frequented, ordering a bowl of seafood porridge and a grass cake. Ruan Mianmian had a delicate stomach; his digestive training wasn't well-developed, and he lacked the talent to accept a wide variety of foods—unlike Jing Chengyun, who could eat anything, be it meat, vegetables, sweet, or spicy, in large quantities.

The two could have sat across from each other, but Ruan Mianmian insisted on sitting on the same side as Jing Chengyun.

It was so happy to sit with his master. Ruan Mianmian wagged his tail unconsciously and finally asked the question that had been tormenting him for a long time: "Sister Yunyun, don't you like Mianmian’s tail? Mom said Mianmian’s tail is the softest and fluffiest; everyone should like it."

A rabbit’s tail was a good thing; it felt comfortable to touch. However, Jing Chengyun heard a hidden meaning in his words. Therefore, she remained non-committal, waiting for Ruan Mianmian to continue.

Ruan Mianmian spoke with a slightly trembling voice, his words the most sincere. His thoughts were very simple, and he felt no shame in such words: "I used to live in a rabbit cage, and Sister Yunyun loved touching my tail the most. That’s why I love my tail. I also love you. You are the kind person who adopted me, warmed me, and saved me. I am willing to let you touch my tail for the rest of my life."

A crystalline tear fell into the bowl. Ruan Mianmian covered his face and gently wiped away the tear mark. "I really want to keep being Sister Yunyun’s little pet..."