After breakfast, Jiang Que took a stroll in the alley to aid digestion. At first, he found the small bridges and flowing water somewhat interesting, but after a while, it became monotonous. He decided to take Shen Tazhi and head back home.
Shen Tazhi casually asked, “Leaving so soon? Don’t you like it here?”
“Not really, it’s not that I dislike it,” Jiang Que kept walking, “I just find it boring. It all starts to look the same after a while.”
He sidestepped pedestrians coming towards them and added, “And there are quite a lot of people here, a bit noisy.”
It wasn’t the noise that bothered him, but rather the various emotions of the people that clashed and disturbed his eyes.
Being around a crowd for a short while was fine, and Jiang Que had even felt momentarily happy amidst the hustle and bustle. But as time passed, he started to miss the time alone with Shen Tazhi.
Shen Tazhi smiled, not trying to persuade Jiang Que to stay longer. He simply matched his pace and returned to the car with him.
During the peak of the midday sun, they spent their time at home.
The air conditioning was strong, and Jiang Que, sitting on the couch reading a book, needed a light blanket. Shen Tazhi, beginning his work on the couch, shared the blanket by placing half over him. Jiang Que wanted to snuggle back into Shen Tazhi’s embrace, only to realize Shen Tazhi couldn’t reach the computer if he held him.
“How come?” Jiang Que exclaimed in disbelief. “It used to work fine before.”
When they had just emerged from the abyss, he loved nestling into Shen Tazhi’s embrace. Shen Tazhi’s warmth and comforting scent made him feel happy when he was held by him.
This past week, he had been careful not to disturb Shen Tazhi’s injured arm while he worked, simply leaning on his shoulder at most.
But just a week had passed. How did things change so suddenly?
“Que Que,” Shen Tazhi gestured at his current height, “Didn’t you see your medical report? You’ve already grown ten centimeters taller since then. You must have grown even more recently, right?”
Jiang Que’s growth rate was extraordinary, but considering his non-human species and his pitiful height of just over 1.7 meters1DAMN YOU CALL THAT SHORT THEN WHAT AM I?? IāM ONLY 157 when he first emerged from the abyss, Shen Tazhi wasn’t too surprised by his rapid growth.
Of course, after shooting up ten centimeters and then some, Shen Tazhi credited last week’s stew for the growth spurt.
Jiang Que fell silent.
He hadn’t actually noticed how many centimeters he had grown according to his medical report.
At that moment, Jiang Que was more concerned about his tentacles. He quickly glanced to ensure there were no issues with his body before jumping to the back to look at the tentacle report.
Seeing Jiang Que’s expression, Shen Tazhi knew he hadn’t carefully read the medical report. He ruffled his hair, teasing, “In a little while, you might be as tall as me.”
Jiang Que wasn’t particularly excited about that prospect. He hugged Shen Tazhi’s arm and leaned against him, saying, “Then I won’t be able to let you hold me.”
At home, Jiang Que hadn’t deliberately changed the appearance of his tentacles. The eight huge black tentacles were resting on the couch.
As his main body hugged Shen Tazhi, the tentacles wrapped around them, enveloping Shen Tazhi’s waist and shoulders, nuzzling against him in a dependent manner.
Shen Tazhi gently stroked the tentacles.
He couldn’t help it. He quite liked it when Jiang Que would tiptoe to kiss him. Unfortunately, Jiang Que grew too fast, and now if he wanted to kiss him, all he needed to do was tilt his head up.
However, there wasn’t much of a difference. Jiang Que’s features had hardly changed at all, and his handsome appearance leaned towards the beautiful type. People who saw him now would likely just think he was a pretty high school student who happened to be tall.
Jiang Que still felt a bit aggrieved.
He enjoyed the feeling of being surrounded by Shen Tazhi’s scent throughout his whole body. It made him feel like Shen Tazhi belonged entirely to him. But now, that feeling was gone, and he could only hold onto Shen Tazhi’s arm.
Even his tentacles could wrap around Shen Tazhi layer by layer, so why not?
Huh?
As Jiang Que thought about this, he suddenly paused.
Exactly, why did Shen Tazhi have to hold him? He could also hold Shen Tazhi.
With this thought in mind, he simply did it.
Jiang Que removed his tentacles that were wrapped around Shen Tazhi’s waist and instead used his arm to hug Shen Tazhi’s waist, resting his chin on Shen Tazhi’s shoulder. He lazily shook off the tentacles.
Indeed, he was quite clever.
Shen Tazhi, who was being held, twitched slightly. He could even feel the muscles trembling through the fabric.
Jiang Que asked in confusion, “Did I hurt you like this?”
“No,” Shen Tazhi replied curtly.
Of course, it didn’t hurt. Compared to his tentacles that were often unpredictable, Jiang Que’s hands were quite gentle.
But…
Hands had warmth, and even through the fabric, he could feel Jiang Que’s body heat.
He couldn’t help but squirm, a strange itch spreading from where he was touched.
His waist had never been sensitive to itching before. Why did he suddenly feel so strange, even though he didn’t react when Jiang Que hugged him earlier?
Shen Tazhi felt uncomfortable and shifted slightly, feeling Jiang Que’s arm exert a bit of pressure, tightening around him.
Shen Tazhi: !
His waist, it felt… soft.
Shen Tazhi’s ears gradually turned a shade of red. All he had to do was tell Jiang Que to let go, but he felt like words wouldn’t help. He might even reveal his vulnerability to someone a bit unscrupulous.
Thinking ahead to himself in three weeks, Shen Tazhi clenched his lips and forced himself to ignore the discomfort around his waist, focusing on his work.
What he didn’t notice was that Jiang Que immediately noticed the reddening tips of his ears.
Jiang Que hesitated, looking puzzled for a moment, then noticed the unnatural trembling in his hand.
Ah… he had thought Shen Tazhi was already desensitized to the tentacles.
It turned out that the sensitivity had shifted to him, the human-sized Jiang Que.
Jiang Que lowered his eyes, smiling softly.
For lunch, they had dishes from the restaurant that Shen Tazhi had ordered for takeout: stir-fried broad beans, stir-fried pork with lettuce, and a portion of braised pork, served with mung bean soup.
The braised pork was sweet and rich, glistening with a reddish-brown shine from the sugar and soy sauce. Unlike the salty braised pork Jiang Que had in the north, which was firm, the meat here was stewed to a tender texture, reminiscent of Dongpo pork – half fat, half lean, melting in the mouth for the fatty parts and tender for the lean. Paired with home-cooked white rice, it was very satisfying.
Even though Jiang Que loved sweet flavors, after eating three or four pieces, he started to feel a bit overwhelmed. He switched to the crispy and refreshing lettuce and the soft and velvety broad beans, lightly seasoned to highlight the fresh vegetable taste. The mung bean soup with added lily bulbs and red and green silk2these are basically just fruit rinds/radish that are dried and preserved in sugar before being coloured with food colouring, flavored with a touch of mint essence, was refreshing and helped balance out the meal.
Jiang Que wasn’t a fan of the slightly bitter taste of lily bulbs, so he picked them out as he ate, enjoying the meal.
Shen Tazhi, rarely seeing something Jiang Que didn’t like, smiled and said, “Don’t like eating lily bulbs? I’ll cook it for you at home next time. It seems like a lot of mung bean soups here have lily bulbs in them.”
Jiang Que nodded repeatedly, picking out a piece of lily bulb and frowning, saying, “This is bitter, I don’t want it.”
He loved delicious food and had a high tolerance for various flavors, but he didn’t like sour or bitter tastes, as they reminded him of the malicious flavors from the abyss.
After picking out the lily bulb, Jiang Que finally reacted to what Shen Tazhi had said earlier. Disagreeing, he said, “No need for you to cook. Your arm isn’t healed yet. I can make congee. Just put mung beans and water in the rice cooker and set it to the congee mode.”
He wasn’t confident using the small pot for making congee, as he had to keep an eye on it to prevent boiling over, but he could manage the rice cooker.
Shen Tazhi raised his injured arm, trying to persuade, “It’s actually fine now… And making congee doesn’t require…”
Jiang Que glared at him fiercely.
Shen Tazhi fell silent, then raised his other hand in surrender, “I won’t say anything. I was wrong, I’ll listen to you.”
Jiang Que rolled his eyes, “Hmph,” and continued to drink the mung bean soup after removing the lily bulb.
The mung bean soup here was flavored with mint essence, different from what he had before. It felt cool in the mouth, down the esophagus, to the lungs and internal organs, giving a refreshing sensation with each breath.
With the air conditioning in the room, sitting in the cool room on a hot day, sipping mung bean soup felt comfortable. Jiang Que couldn’t resist having another bowl.
Eating delicious food made him happy.
After lunch, Shen Tazhi didn’t have much to do, so he accompanied Jiang Que back to the room for a nap.
Of course, Jiang Que hadn’t forgotten to take a shower at noon. His twice-daily showers were more punctual than an alarm clock.
When the alarm rang again, it was already past four in the afternoon.
Impatiently shaking his head, Jiang Que reached out with his tentacle to turn off the alarm, then lay back down, hugging Shen Tazhi to continue sleeping.
It wasn’t until over twenty minutes later that he slowly woke up, meeting Shen Tazhi’s teasing gaze.
Blushing, Jiang Que released his hold and sat up, running his hand through his hair, “You should’ve woken me up when you did. Why stare at me without saying anything?”
Such a weirdo.
Shen Tazhi also sat up and casually said, “Because you look pretty when you’re asleep, I wanted to watch a bit before waking you up.”
Jiang Que was well aware of his good looks, as many humans would pause to gaze at his face.
However, despite receiving direct praise from Shen Tazhi, it still made him uncomfortable. Blushing, he turned his head and muttered, “You’ve been looking at it for over a month now… should have gotten tired of it by now…”
But then he thought again, it was a good thing that Shen Tazhi liked his face. Jiang Que leaned forward, propping himself up on the bed with his hand to get closer to Shen Tazhi.
With their noses almost touching, the beautiful non-human youth smiled with a hint of lingering blush and said, “But liking my face is also good. Gege, come closer and take a better look, enjoy it a bit more.”
If Shen Tazhi liked him, he couldn’t like other humans anymore.
This time, it was Shen Tazhi’s turn to blush and retreat.
It wasn’t because he was easily swayed, but because he could clearly sense that Jiang Que was just speaking the truth, without any intention of teasing him.
The more straightforward Jiang Que was, the more unsure Shen Tazhi felt about how to respond.
The romantic strategies on paper were useless in the face of genuine sincerity. A simple “liking” was more effective than any beautifully crafted words, and that was why Shen Tazhi always found it difficult to resist Jiang Que’s straightforwardness.
Accustomed to being evasive, he now had to awkwardly use straightforward words to reveal himself to Jiang Que.
He had lost all the grace of an elder in front of Jiang Que.
Shen Tazhi thought to himself.
He quickly stopped Jiang Que from getting closer, cleared his throat, and said, “I like your face, and I only like you.”
“…Don’t come closer to me, let’s go downstairs.”
Such ambiguous atmospheres weren’t very safe.
Jiang Que hadn’t learned how to read the mood yet. Satisfied with the answer, he happily led Shen Tazhi downstairs, circling him with his tentacle. He felt fortunate once again that he wasn’t human, or where would he find such a beautiful face?
He had no idea he had missed the chance to make things even more ambiguous.
After going downstairs, Jiang Que and Shen Tazhi checked out the restaurants together and decided to have dinner tonight at a small restaurant not far from the villa.
Jiang Que had originally wanted to choose the Black Pearl restaurant that Shen Tazhiās assistant had intentionally marked in red, but upon opening the menu and seeing mostly heavy dishes, he temporarily lost interest after feeling a bit overwhelmed by the braised pork at lunch. Opting for vegetarian dishes alone seemed uneconomical. Since there was always tomorrow, he decided to choose a light and simple small restaurant for now.
Coincidentally, the restaurant he chose was not far from the alley where they had breakfast earlier that day.
After tidying up a bit – mainly selecting Jiang Que’s backpack – they headed out for dinner.
Eating three meals a day, enjoying good food, and living a simple and peaceful life was just fine.
When they emerged from the restaurant, the sky had already turned completely dark. Despite aiming for a lighter meal, Jiang Que couldn’t resist adding a dish of braised mandarin fish in the end.
Even in July, the evenings by the river were somewhat humid and warm.
Jiang Que and Shen Tazhi each took a cup of mint water and leisurely strolled out of the restaurant, heading towards the small street, wanting to take a walk after dinner.
Crossing the street and arriving at the alley, Jiang Que stopped in surprise.
The ordinary stone path and small bridge that had already become a bit dull in the morning were now lit up with yellow light strips. The tiles on the nearby houses were also illuminated, along with various signs and even the dusty red lanterns from the morning, now shining brightly, hanging in rows under the eaves.
Ahead was a street gate with the street name written on it. Beyond the gate, on either side were streets, and in the middle was a small river. The riverbank was also adorned with light strips, bustling with people, and occasionally, brightly lit boats glided through the river, creating a lively and beautiful scene.
“The lights are on at night,” Shen Tazhi remarked beside him.
Usually, when he traveled around, it was for business purposes, and he rarely indulged in sightseeing. Reflecting now, the last time he had seen a scene like this was back in his student days.
For Jiang Que, it was a completely new experience. He curiously reached out and touched the light on the stone next to the street gate, only to quickly retract his hand from the heat.
Rubbing his fingers, he remembered the lights he saw at the amusement park and exclaimed, “Humans are amazing for inventing lights.”
They could instantly transform the once silent and dark night into a different spectacle.
Shen Tazhi took his hand and inspected his slightly reddened fingertips, seeing no major issues, and asked, “Do you want to go in and take a look?”
Observing the bustling crowd on both sides of the street, Jiang Que hesitated for a moment.
It was much busier at night than during the day. How did so many people suddenly appear in the evening? It was almost shoulder-to-shoulder, with a constant stream of people coming and going.
These people must be all sweaty. Just now, Jiang Que was already finding it hard to tolerate the sweat on his own body, let alone getting up close and personal with humans he wasn’t particularly fond of…
Seeing his hesitation, Shen Tazhi added at the right moment, “We can take a boat and travel along the river.”
Jiang Que was surprised. “You can actually ride boats in the river?”
Shen Tazhi nodded and pointed to the signboard next to the gate displaying boat ticket prices. Jiang Que readily agreed, saying, “Great! Let’s go for a boat ride. I’ve never been on a boat before.”
Following the directions, they walked down a set of stone stairs near a stone railing by the street, leading to a small platform where the boats and ticket booth were located.
Due to the incident with the cat in the morning, Jiang Que wasn’t particularly interested in the glass-roofed small tourist boats. Shen Tazhi decided to rent a wooden rowboat instead and they both got on board.
Tethered to the edge of the platform, the small boat gently swayed with the water. Jiang Que carefully helped Shen Tazhi onto the boat, and when he felt the boat tilt slightly, he nervously tightened his grip on Shen Tazhi.
He couldn’t swim… Would his tentacles float if he stirred the water a bit?
Shen Tazhi chuckled, reassuring the overly tense Jiang Que to relax and sit down, saying, “It’s fine. It won’t capsize. Look outside.”
Following his advice, Jiang Que glanced around.
From the river, looking up from below, he could see the light strips and the passing crowds on the side. Occasionally, people would curiously look down at the boats.
He wasn’t among the crowd, yet he felt like he was part of it again. The river served as the boundary between him and humans, and with Shen Tazhi by his side, he was observing the human world from a different, safe perspective.
Groups of girls in Hanfu attire gathered together to take photos, tourists holding ice cream passed by, and there were various shops and a constant flow of people coming and going.
“It’s really lively here.”
For the first time, Jiang Que didn’t delve into their emotions; he just wanted to sit quietly and observe.
Shen Tazhi softened his expression as well, “Indeed, it’s very lively.”
The small boat floated gently forward, creating ripples in the water. Jiang Que, who had never experienced this before, curiously reached out to touch the cool water of the river.
As he touched the water and looked up, he happened to see the receptionist girl from the noodle shop where they had breakfast earlier.
The noodle shop was still open in the evening, and the girl was busy taking orders and handling the cash. He could only see her busy figure from a distance.
“Well, actuallyā”
Jiang Que hesitated before speaking.
“Hmm?” Shen Tazhi patiently waited for him to continue.
Jiang Que said, “The cashier from this morning, her parents are divorced. She now lives with the owner of the noodle shop and helps out during the summer.”
“Her father has been in a slump since the divorce, drinking excessively, showing signs of domestic violence, and unwilling to work. The noodle shop is being held up by the apprentices, and who knows when it might close down.”
He could tell with just one glance, but the situation at the time wasn’t suitable for discussing it, so he didn’t mention it then and just forgot about it after returning home.
For Jiang Que, she was just an ordinary person. He had seen many humans with more challenging lives, and there were plenty of them walking on the streets. He couldn’t be bothered to investigate each one; he simply observed quietly.
But now, Jiang Que was puzzled, “Why is she still so happy?”
In his impression, shouldn’t someone like her be living in extreme circumstances?
Shen Tazhi thought for a moment and suddenly asked, “Can you sense the boatman’s emotions?”
“Yes, I saw it when we boarded the boat,” Jiang Que said matter-of-factly. “He has a son who didn’t get into university, so after high school, he went to study automotive repair. Now, he still relies on his father’s money to find opportunities for internships outside the city. Although the son is filial and sends money back, it’s unclear how long he’ll need support before becoming independent, which is why his father continues to row boats.”
“Many humans are like this, but their emotions are written on their faces, making it easy to discern, so I can observe them in detail.”
“Ah,” Shen Tazhi lowered his gaze and softly said, “Are you wondering why they aren’t as extreme as you imagined?”
Jiang Que nodded.
Shen Tazhi composed his thoughts and tried to explain, “There are nearly billions of humans in total, and only a small fraction of them will take the extreme path. But in the abyss, you happened to see only those individuals.”
“In reality, other humans are also in pain. No one is free from suffering. This kind of suffering comes from society, family, or oneself. As long as they are still thinking, they will encounter suffering.”
“What do they do then?” Jiang Que asked.
Shen Tazhi leaned back in his seat and shrugged, “Not much they can do. They live in pain, but it’s not like they are in pain all the time.”
He looked up at the bright moon and the crowd filled with laughter, saying, “At times like these, they are happy, just like when you eat something delicious. Living in every moment that is worth being happy about is enough.”
Jiang Que fell silent, and Shen Tazhi didn’t expect an immediate response from him.
Jiang Que hesitated before speaking.
“Well?” Shen Tazhi patiently waited for his next words.
Jiang Que said, “What about you?”
He looked at Shen Tazhi seriously, “I can’t see through you, but you’ve also had your share of suffering. Your parents passed away, you were forced to interrupt your studies and return to the country, your uncle targeted you, and your kind-hearted gesture towards your younger brother3lemme remind yall that Shen Liushi is his cousin but since you can call people of the same generation big brother/big sister/little brother/little sister was met with disdain.”
“Shen Tazhi, what about you? Are you happy now?”
Shen Tazhi was briefly stunned, then smiled, “I am happy now.”
Jiang Que pressed on, “Are you happy when you’re with me?”
Shen Tazhi replied, “Yes.”
Only then did Jiang Que feel relieved. He hugged Shen Tazhi and leaned on his shoulder, “That’s good. I don’t want you to live in pain. That would be too tragic.”
It would be even worse than in the abyss, as he only endured physical pain there. The intense emotional pain humans experience, which could break their souls at any moment, left a deep impression on him.
Shen Tazhi chuckled, hugging Jiang Que back, “So you were pondering over this question just now?”
He talked about humans with Jiang Que, but Jiang Que ended up contemplating about him?
Jiang Que shook his head, “Actually, I was thinking about something else. Can I say it?”
What couldn’t be said?
Shen Tazhi, puzzled, said, “Go ahead.”
Jiang Que then smiled. Despite the bustling surroundings that could easily mask their voices from the boatman, Jiang Que still leaned in close to Shen Tazhi’s ear and softly said:
“I was thinking just now, you’re so cool when you talk like that. And when you smile, you look so good.”
“I really like it, gege. Can I kiss you?”
The small boat swayed gently, and in the lamplight, Jiang Que could see the redness of Shen Tazhi’s ear tips.
He hadn’t lied; Shen Tazhi’s light laughter just now, like someone who had experienced much and was casually discussing the natural maturity of the world, had stirred his heart in an unexpected way.
Reliable, mature, yet so adorable. Shen Tazhi’s allure seemed to grow stronger with time, like a fine wine that he enjoyed more with each sip.
Blushing, Shen Tazhi gently nodded.
He never refused Jiang Que.
With permission granted, Jiang Que placed his hand behind Shen Tazhi’s head and, in the damp mist, lifted his head to kiss the older man’s lips.
