Chapter 45.2 – “Shen Tazhi, it’s raining.”

Jiang Que, who had figured things out, stood up immediately and was about to go out to find Shen Tazhi when the next second, he met Shen Tazhi’s eyes as he hurriedly pushed the door open.

Shen Tazhi pushed the door open hastily and said, “Que Que, I heard a noise, and you…”

Jiang Que adjusted his clothes and interrupted Shen Tazhi, saying, “I accidentally rolled off the bed. When I woke up, I didn’t realize it and thought I was still at home.”

The fall didn’t hurt him, so he didn’t pay it much mind, happily rushing towards Shen Tazhi and hugging him, “Have you finished your meeting? Is everything resolved? Let’s go home and eat.”

Being embraced by Jiang Que, Shen Tazhi looked at Jiang Que, who seemed unharmed, and then smiled, “Yes, everything is resolved. We can go home to eat. Shall we go home now?”

“Okay.” Jiang Que was already tired of staying in the empty office, so he quickly packed his backpack and prepared to leave with Shen Tazhi. In the meantime, he couldn’t help but ask, “What about Shen Liushi?”

I wonder if that annoying guy is dead.

“He didn’t come to the meeting.” Shen Tazhi helped him put away the untouched snacks on the table and replied, “But you won’t see him again. He’ll be in prison tonight.”

“Prison.” Jiang Que repeated with a frown, finally recalling memories related to prisons.

Thinking of the chaos he had seen in prisons, Jiang Que smiled satisfactorily, squinting his eyes, “That’s good, I hate him.”

The prisons he had seen were all bloody and violent, where bullying and abuse were common occurrences. Many humans were tortured to death in those places or chose death themselves. Shen Liushi would probably not survive in such a place.

Completely unaware of the vast difference between his understanding of ‘prison’ and the ‘prison’ in a civilized, peaceful country, Jiang Que happily took Shen Tazhi’s hand. As long as he thought that no one would compete for his brother again, he happily wanted to kiss Shen Tazhi.

That’s what he thought, that’s what he did, ignoring his slight germophobia. He tiptoed and kissed Shen Tazhi on the cheek, smiling while holding Shen Tazhi’s arm, “From now on, you’re my only gege, I’m so happy.”

Shen Tazhi was caught off guard by the kiss, stunned in place, only reacting after Jiang Que tugged him with his tentacle.

He quickly packed up the snacks he had bought for Jiang Que, then carried the snacks and left the company with Jiang Que again, under the discreet gossiping looks of the whole company.

It was already past midnight.

Jiang Que sat in the passenger seat, fastened his seatbelt, and sat down, but the tentacles in his backpack moved uncomfortably due to the dual pressure of Jiang Que and the seat.

Shen Tazhi started the vehicle and said, “Why don’t you sit in the back seat? I’ll raise the partition, pull down the curtain, and you can release your tentacles.”

“I don’t want to.” Jiang Que firmly refused, “I want to sit with you.”

During the meeting, Jiang Que was already reluctant to be separated from Shen Tazhi. If they had to be apart in the car as well, then what was the point of him coming out insistent in the first place?

Seeing Jiang Que’s firm refusal, Shen Tazhi was helpless. He had already mentioned this when they were leaving, but Jiang Que had steadfastly rejected the idea. Now, he was completely forgetful and still resolute in his decision.

Shen Tazhi reached out to help Jiang Que unzip his backpack slightly, instructing, “If you feel too cramped, just let your tentacles out a bit, don’t hold them in.”

Jiang Que agreed and the next moment, a tentacle eagerly poked out from the backpack, trying to hide towards the back seat of the car. The backpack started to rustle, as if the other tentacles inside were fighting to come out.

Shen Tazhi: …

Forget it, the sooner they got home, the sooner Jiang Que could release himself from this uncomfortable restraint.

He stepped on the gas pedal and drove out of the underground parking lot.

As they exited the parking lot, Shen Tazhi was surprised to see the dark and overcast sky outside, looking like it could rain at any moment.

The office had its curtains drawn as he had instructed, and the elevators in the building didn’t have windows, so Shen Tazhi hadn’t noticed the impending rain while he was inside.

Fortunately, there was an umbrella in the car, and they would be heading straight back to the villa’s garage. They wouldn’t get wet.

Thinking this, Shen Tazhi didn’t purposely speed up, maintaining a safe speed, and casually turned on the car radio.

The radio was tuned to the news channel he usually listened to, currently reporting on the midday traffic conditions. Jiang Que had been curious about the radio in the morning, but now he had lost interest, gazing out the window instead.

The bustling urban streets, crowded with pedestrians and shops lining the sides of the road, were sights he rarely saw.

He often saw one or two people, screaming themselves hoarse to death, or a group of people agreeing to turn on the gas and die. Most of these incidents occurred in cramped spaces or desolate wilderness. Occasionally, there were those who committed murder and suicide in public, but they were a rare few.

A large group of people living calmly, bustling with life and showing no signs of despair on their faces, was something he rarely witnessed. Therefore, Jiang Que was trying to analyze the emotions of the people he saw.

Just then, they hit a red light. Shen Tazhi controlled the vehicle to a slow stop in front of the zebra crossing, allowing Jiang Que to closely observe the people crossing the road.

A woman pushing a stroller passed by.

The woman’s face showed happiness, but also exhaustion and resentment towards another person. She seemed to love her child very much, but had an irresponsible husband and was struggling in life.

Several students riding bicycles passed by.

These people looked very happy, with no emotions on their faces other than simple joy. Did the thought of going home for a nap after school make them this happy?

An elderly woman carrying things walked by with a cane.

The emotions on this person were quite complex, sharp and biting, mainly directed at the vegetable vendor who overcharged her by three cents, and sadness because she had just lost her husband.

Hmm… there was also kindness and contentment, as she had bought a delicious little cake and was planning to give it to her granddaughter.

A very delicious little cake?

Jiang Que abruptly stopped observing others and carefully looked at the packaging of the little cake the old lady was holding. Soon, he spotted a shop with the same logo across the street.

“Shen Tazhi.” He sat up suddenly, “The little cakes from that cake shop across the street are delicious. I want to eat that.”

The traffic light turned green at that moment, and Shen Tazhi lightly stepped on the gas to start moving, asking in confusion, “How do you know that cake shop is good?”

Although he said that, he still parked the car in the public parking space next to the cake shop as per Jiang Que’s request.

“It was what the people who just crossed the street said,” Jiang Que replied.

He had no intention of hiding from Shen Tazhi the fact that he could see through people’s emotions. After the car was parked, he unbuckled his seatbelt, retracted his tentacles that were breathing outside, and explained to Shen Tazhi the emotions he saw on the woman pushing the stroller, the students leaving school, and the elderly woman passing by. He even added a self-praising remark:

“I’ve told you before, I’ve experienced many human emotions, so I can see through human feelings at a glance. Aren’t I amazing?”

Shen Tazhi also got out of the car, taking out a black umbrella from the car door. His expression was somewhat strange as he said, “Can you always see through every human’s emotions and what they are thinking?”

“Not always,” Jiang Que honestly admitted, “I can only see through most negative emotions. Positive emotions are harder to discern, but simpler ones can be judged because most of what I’ve seen are negative emotions.”

He furrowed his brow, “But there are exceptions among humans. I always can’t understand your emotions, as well as Xi Jing and Duan Yansu. I can’t see their emotions.”

Skilfully dodging questions about himself, Shen Tazhi replied, “Because Xi Jing and Duan Yansu are among the top in the Anomaly Investigation Department. In principle, if they want to, they can keep their emotions hidden.”

This was similar to Jiang Que’s previous guess. He didn’t dwell on it and instead pushed open the door of the cake shop, emphasizing once again, “Except for them, I can see clearly through everyone else. I’m really amazing, right?”

This was still Jiang Que being conflicted about Shen Tazhi not praising him earlier.

Shen Tazhi smiled and ruffled Jiang Que’s head, “Yes, very impressive.”

This praise was sincere, as Jiang Que’s abilities would be extremely useful in any field.

Even though he had known Jiang Que in his past life, he had always thought Jiang Que could at most discern the types of human emotions. If Jiang Que hadn’t explained it to him just now, he would have had no idea that his ability to see through people’s hearts could be so detailed.

The Anomaly Investigation Department probably didn’t know about this, otherwise, they wouldn’t have easily handed over Jiang Que for him to supervise.

But even if they found out, it wouldn’t matter. They wouldn’t dare to recruit someone who was immortal, had formidable combat power, and could see through all human beings.

As Jiang Que pushed open the door of the cake shop, the doorbell made a light “ding” sound. The cashier at the counter saw Shen Tazhi praising Jiang Que while ruffling his head, sighing at the sight of such loving brothers, and then asked, “Hello, what can I get for you?”

Glancing around the cake shop, Jiang Que was dazzled by the various baked goods and small cakes. Stepping forward, he asked, “There was an elderly lady in a purple floral shirt with a cane who came here earlier. What did she buy? I want that.”

His memory was always good, so he could recall the specific appearance of the old lady who had just been here.

The cashier was taken aback by this strange request, but she did remember the fierce old lady who had come to buy a cake earlier. She pointed to a cheesecake on the counter, saying, “She bought this semi-soft cheese cake.”

Jiang Que had no money, so he tugged at Shen Tazhi’s hand. Shen Tazhi immediately understood, walked over, and said, “Then we’ll take that cake. Please give us two pieces, I’ll pay for them.”

When they came out with the cake, the sky outside had become even gloomier. Jiang Que couldn’t feel it through his sunglasses, but he sensed the wind picking up, so he quickly pulled Shen Tazhi’s hand and got into the car.

The inside of the car was warm. Jiang Que, holding the cake, couldn’t wait and quickly opened the packaging, taking a piece with a spoon.

As he tasted the cake, Jiang Que’s eyes lit up.

“It really is delicious,” he exclaimed.

The cake was soft and almost melted in his mouth. It had a cheesy and slightly salty taste, like eating creamy goodness.

He said as he scooped up a spoonful and brought it to Shen Tazhi’s mouth. Shen Tazhi had to pause preparing to start the car, bowing his head to taste a bite of the cake.

The taste was indeed good, ranking among the tastiest desserts he had ever eaten.

Shen Tazhi lowered his eyes, watching Jiang Que continue to use the spoon he had used to dig into the cake without any care, and softly said, “Hmm, very delicious.”

Although he hadn’t started the car yet, the vehicle had already been started, and the car radio had been turned back on, now playing the news.

Jiang Que, eating the cake, said, “See, I’m useful. In the future, you can take me to your meetings. I’ll watch from behind, and if anyone has ill intentions towards you, I’ll let you know.”

This idea had just occurred to him when he was paying for the cake with Shen Tazhi.

He couldn’t always spend Shen Tazhi’s money; he could also help Shen Tazhi. For example, in a situation like today, if he was brought along, Shen Tazhi could know the secret thoughts of everyone present, even those they thought were well hidden.

But those with ulterior motives had just been thoroughly cleaned out, and the remaining people probably wouldn’t dare to make a move in the next few years.

Shen Tazhi thought so.

But this didn’t prevent him from feeling warmth because of Jiang Que’s words. He didn’t take Jiang Que’s casual words to heart, so he smiled and said, “Alright, thank you.”

Jiang Que paused for a moment upon hearing this, keenly sensing the nonchalance in Shen Tazhi’s words.

Setting down the spoon, he took off his sunglasses and looked at Shen Tazhi seriously again.

It was overcast, and he didn’t need to adjust to the light to open his eyes, his black eyes full of focus.

“Shen Tazhi, look into my eyes. The most direct expression of human emotions is in the eyes. My eyes should also be able to sense emotions.”

“I’m serious. Bring me along in the future. I want to be a little helpful to you.”

Jiang Que couldn’t help but pick up the spoon again, poking at the cake in frustration, “After coming out of the abyss, you’ve always protected me, provided me with plenty to eat, a beautiful place to stay, and bought things for me. But even going out with you is difficult for me. I don’t want it to be like this.”

“I want to do something for you too. I don’t want it to always be you giving to me. It makes me feel…”

After thinking for a moment, Jiang Que reluctantly found a word to describe his feelings from last night until now.

“It makes me feel very powerless, as if I can’t do anything besides causing you trouble.”

“But I am actually useful. After hiding my tentacles, I can blend into the crowd. I also learn things quickly, and before long, I won’t be causing you trouble anymore.”

Don’t always treat him as a child who needs to be taken care of and indulged. Don’t even take his serious words as a child’s joke.

He also wants to be seen as someone trustworthy and reliable in Shen Tazhi’s eyes.

“You…”

Shen Tazhi’s words were cut off as soon as they left his mouth.

Looking at Jiang Que’s focused gaze, Shen Tazhi was acutely aware that Jiang Que truly wanted to do something for him at this moment.

He had only thought of bringing Jiang Que out, fulfilling all his wishes, and giving him the best life, but he had forgotten that Jiang Que wasn’t really a fragile little bird that needed his help to survive.

After an untimely brief silence, Shen Tazhi finally found his voice again, clearing his throat and saying, “I’m sorry, I didn’t think about these things before. In the future, I will try to let you help me too, okay?”

“It’s not that you owe me an apology.” Jiang Que frowned. “Clearly, I owe you now. I want to help you.”

It was strange, Shen Tazhi had taught him that communication between people was mutual, so this kind of help should also be mutual. Why did Shen Tazhi not feel this way now?

Jiang Que didn’t understand. He had never seen through Shen Tazhi and could only repeat himself, “You have to take me with you in the future.”

“Okay.”

Shen Tazhi responded, but it was more like a sigh. He raised his hand to pat Jiang Que’s head, as if he wanted to continue saying something.

Just then.

“*Patter.*“

A crisp sound, raindrops fell on the windshield of the car.

In just a few seconds, larger raindrops followed, and then countless raindrops poured down, hitting the car with a “pitter-patter” sound, while thunder rumbled in the distance.

The sky, which had been gloomy for who knows how long, finally released a summer downpour.

Jiang Que was stunned. He looked up at the raindrops sliding down the window, then at the people on the street who were starting to panic and run frantically, occasionally passing by pedestrians holding umbrellas. He couldn’t react until the raindrops covered the window completely.

A car drove by, splashing water on the road.

Jiang Que finally came to his senses. He put down the cake, rolled down the window, and reached out to catch the chilly raindrops.

The cool sensation, drop by drop on his hand, was different from the water flowing from a tap.

The sound of the rain was also pleasant, crisp, just as he had imagined.

This was rain, the rain he had only seen but never touched in the abyss.

He had finally seen the rain with Shen Tazhi.

Jiang Que was drenched by the rain that drifted into the car, but he was very happy. He completely forgot about his previous feelings of powerlessness and unease, raised his hand to show Shen Tazhi the raindrops on his hand, hugged Shen Tazhi all of a sudden, and said with a smile:

“Shen Tazhi, look, it’s raining.”