For now, let’s not mention whether he wanted to revisit the past or not. Shen Tazhi wasn’t prepared to hide anything from Jiang Que. He sighed and asked, “How much do you remember from the previous life?”
“Everything,” Jiang Que replied.
With that, Shen Tazhi didn’t need to explain further. He fell silent for a moment and then whispered, “I’ve just been thinking, I can live for at most a hundred years. What will you do after a hundred years?”
Yes, he had been thinking about that all along.
Although he kept advising himself not to dwell on this question, not to always think about the elusive future, but to seize the present.
However, as he spent more and more time with Jiang Que, the frequency at which he thought about this question increased.
He was simply a selfish person; he didn’t want the day to come when he had to leave Jiang Que.
“A hundred years?”
Only then did Jiang Que remember the issue of human lifespan.
The night before last, both he and Shen Tazhi were not quite clear-minded. Shen Tazhi was frightened by him suddenly falling unconscious, while he was angered by Shen Tazhi’s words and expression, only thinking to stop Shen Tazhi from saying such dangerous words again, completely unaware that he had misunderstood Shen Tazhi’s meaning.
He thought Shen Tazhi was implying that one day they would part ways, and Shen Tazhi never believed they could last.
“Okay,” Shen Tazhi calmly said, “Que Que, human life is limited. I will grow old and then die, while you will always remain as you are now.”
But Jiang Que asked, “But are you really still entirely human?”
“Huh?” Shen Tazhi was stunned.
Remembering his actions from the previous life, Jiang Que felt a bit embarrassed. He lay back down, tucked himself into Shen Tazhi’s embrace, and touched his abdomen, saying:
“In the previous life, when you died, I wanted to save you, and then… I used my eggs…”
Shen Tazhi stiffened at the mention of the word now, incredulously asking, “You did that back then—”
Jiang Que hurriedly explained, “No, no, I mean, I fed them to you through your mouth.”
He said softly, “At that time, I didn’t even know how to do it with humans…”
Having calmed down from his anger, Jiang Que began to blush. He tried to snuggle into Shen Tazhi’s embrace again, but Shen Tazhi couldn’t accommodate his large size, so he could only hold onto Shen Tazhi’s arm with a sense of grievance and continued:
“At that time, you went without eating or drinking for several days and were still alive. I thought you had been assimilated by me. Was that not the case?”
Shen Tazhi began to recall the events of the previous life. Because of Jiang Que’s death, he rarely actively reminisced about the past life, but now he remembered:
“I did feel something was wrong at that time, but I didn’t have time to think deeply about it. When I was reborn, my body returned to a normal state where not eating would make me hungry. So I think I should now be considered… human?”
“No,” Jiang Que affirmed, “I can sense something like when I sensed my maturity, something akin to a sixth sense. You definitely aren’t entirely human. If you don’t believe me, you can go to the Anomaly Investigation Department for a check-up.”
For the first time in over twenty years, Shen Tazhi learned that he might not be considered human. Even he had difficulty adjusting to this realization at first.
But considering the bizarre world he had encountered since his rebirth, Shen Tazhi didn’t think it was such a big deal not to be human.
After a while, he chuckled, patted Jiang Que’s head, and asked, “Okay, that’s fine. What time is it now? Are you hungry?”
He always seemed to worry about whether Jiang Que was hungry.
Not wanting Shen Tazhi to change the subject, Jiang Que interjected, “Wait, we haven’t finished yet.”
“About the incident from the previous life where I died…”
As Jiang Que began to speak, he noticed Shen Tazhi pursing his lips, looking quite rigid.
Raising his hand to embrace Shen Tazhi, his tentacles also encircled him.
Softly pressing against him, Jiang Que said, “Gege, you can’t keep avoiding this. I’m alive now, and I want to explain this to you.”
“No need for explanations,” Shen Tazhi said with difficulty. “I know it’s because of me. If I hadn’t considered using you and deceiving you from the beginning, if my actions had been quicker, or if I had reached the Abyss earlier…”
“Stop,” Jiang Que furrowed his brow.
He directly covered Shen Tazhi’s mouth with his hand. “Stop talking. You’re saying nonsense. It has nothing to do with you.”
With his mouth covered, Shen Tazhi could only silently look at him. Jiang Que met Shen Tazhi’s gaze.
Shen Tazhi had cried so many times that he had been comforted by Jiang Que many times before. Every time he cried, his eyes would be moist, looking like a pitiful creature that had been bullied, very pitiable.
Now, Shen Tazhi was looking at him with that same pitiful gaze.
Jiang Que’s tentacles began to stir restlessly. Frowning, Jiang Que silently tapped them as a warning and continued:
“Gege, actually I know the Qishan Taoists. I was raised by them.”
This opening statement was enough to surprise anyone and successfully drew Shen Tazhi’s attention, pulling him out of his self-blame.
Jiang Que breathed a sigh of relief and went on to explain how he had come to the Abyss with the Qishan Taoists, the taoist’s array and plan, and the Elder’s prophecy about the “Chosen One”. Then he smiled and said:
“I was confused after my memories were erased, thinking I needed to consume malice. In reality, they warned me many times not to eat that malice, even if I was starving.”
“But perhaps it was all part of fate…”
Jiang Que sighed, “So that’s why I met you when I was about to die. You carried me out, helped me regain my memory, and activated the reversal array to proceed according to plan.”
He lifted his head to kiss Shen Tazhi, embracing his bewildered body, speaking softly like a coquettish cat, “Gege, you came to save me. If it weren’t for you back then, we wouldn’t be where we are now.”
“Our meeting was destiny. I won’t let you blame yourself. Blame fate for playing so many tricks.”
It took Shen Tazhi a while to come back to reality, and he asked, “So when you jumped into the Abyss, was it to activate the array and reverse time as the Qishan Taoists planned?”
At this point, Jiang Que couldn’t help but start getting angry, angry at himself.
“Not entirely,” Jiang Que said grumpily, “Because I was a jerk in the previous life.”
“I had no idea what love was back then. I only knew that after I died, you would have a new life. I was unwilling to accept it, and didn’t want you to forget me, so I… deliberately said those hurtful words to you at the end.”
“Because at that time, I knew I wasn’t good to you, you didn’t like me that much, and I didn’t want you to forget me.”
As Jiang Que spoke, he got angrier, “What was I even thinking, making you worry for so long? You deserved not to like me.”
Turning his head in anger, Jiang Que met Shen Tazhi’s gentle gaze, and his momentum suddenly weakened.
Jiang Que tugged at Shen Tazhi’s sleeve, “That’s how it is… if you blame me, then blame me. Because the beginning of this life is actually built upon my excessive behavior from the previous life. You can hit me, but you can’t regret it. We are partners now.”
He was being forceful, trying to justify his actions.
Shen Tazhi chuckled at his antics, “I’m not angry, but how did we become partners?”
Jiang Que became anxious, “Why doesn’t it count? We’ve, we’ve already done all that!! We are partners!”
Shen Tazhi calmly replied, “But human partners get married and obtain marriage certificates.”
Jiang Que:…
That was something he and Shen Tazhi truly didn’t have.
Shen Tazhi chuckled happily, while Jiang Que, feeling indignant, bit his collarbone again and accused him, “You’re bullying me.”
Shen Tazhi said, “Aren’t you also bullying me? Making me worry for so long.”
At the mention of this, Jiang Que felt guilty again. He truly felt he had gone too far. Upon hearing Shen Tazhi’s words, he reluctantly released his bite on Shen Tazhi, saying, “I apologize. You can be angry with me, however you like, but you can’t leave me.”
He lowered his head, looking resigned to whatever Shen Tazhi decided.
The next moment, a warm hand landed on his head.
Shen Tazhi rubbed his head and helplessly said, “I told you I’m not angry. Why don’t you believe me?”
Jiang Que looked at him expectantly, “Really? Are you really not angry?”
Shen Tazhi sighed, “Really.”
“To be honest, it’s a bit surprising. I always thought the you from the previous life disliked me. I never expected you actually liked me so much back then.”
“Why would I dislike you?” Jiang Que shook his head vigorously. “I like you the most.”
He made up his mind, “After you rest, we’ll get married! Let the Anomaly Investigation Department handle it for me. I don’t care. I just want to be with you as partners.”
Shen Tazhi said, “…Que Que, don’t make things difficult for them.”
He looked helpless but was smiling, “I’ll take care of your identity issue. You don’t have to worry.”
Thinking about the Anomaly Investigation Department, Shen Tazhi remembered the events before Jiang Que fell unconscious and slightly furrowed his brow with some concern.
Jiang Que noticed Shen Tazhi’s change in emotions and asked, “What happened to the Anomaly Investigation Department?”
His sudden collapse had been too abrupt; he only saw Xi Jing rapidly aging and didn’t know what happened next.
“I’m not sure,” Shen Tazhi said. “I was focused on getting you out. The only thing I can confirm is that Xi Jing and the others probably… had a narrow escape.”
“Nine lives saved?”
Jiang Que was stunned, he had never expected things to be this serious.
He quickly picked up his phone.
The inbox of his phone was empty, no messages at all.
“Director Wu hasn’t sent any messages. What’s going on?”
Jiang Que turned to Shen Tazhi to ask.
Shen Tazhi also reached for his phone, checked his inbox, and found it empty as well. The earliest email was still the one with the information Director Wu had given him before heading to the northwest.
He thought for a moment and said, “At that time, your condition didn’t look good. Du Lulu probably reported to Director Wu, and they didn’t want to disturb us. Of course, there could be other reasons…”
“What other reasons?” Jiang Que inquired further.
Shen Tazhi replied, “Director Wu is probably busy right now and may not want us to get involved in the complex matters of the Anomaly Investigation Department.”
Although Jiang Que was technically an assistant of the Anomaly Investigation Department, ultimately they were still outsiders, so it was understandable they weren’t contacted at this time.
Shen Tazhi had already sat up, stretched his sore muscles, and took a few tentative steps out of bed.
Despite the ludicrous events of that night, Jiang Que had never harmed him, and after a day of rest, Shen Tazhi could tolerate the discomfort he was feeling now.
He was wearing the new pajamas Jiang Que had given him, still carrying the scent of shower gel.
Looking down at his clean clothes, Shen Tazhi jokingly remarked, “You’ve become quite caring, Que Que.”
Blushing, Jiang Que burrowed under the covers, “Because we are partners… Don’t laugh at me!”
Curiously, Shen Tazhi lifted a corner of the cover, “Why are you getting shy all of a sudden?”
That night, Jiang Que had never been shy at all, practically overpowering him.
Shen Tazhi teasingly pulled back the covers a bit more, “How come you’re feeling shy now?”
Jiang Que snatched the covers back, “I was angry back then, how could I possibly feel shy! Don’t lift my covers!”
Shen Tazhi laughed again, while Jiang Que wrapped himself up like a burrito, feeling annoyed and thinking Shen Tazhi was a bad person.
After laughing, Shen Tazhi went to freshen up. It took Jiang Que quite a while to unroll himself from the covers. He sluggishly made his way to the hotel’s bathroom, peeking his head through the sliding door and asking, “Shen Tazhi, are you really not angry?”
He was still tangled up in the issues from their previous lives.
Shen Tazhi was brushing his teeth. Upon hearing Jiang Que’s question, he quickly rinsed his mouth and turned around, saying, “Really, I’m not.”
He smiled and said, “Que Que, aren’t you able to perceive human emotions? Do you still think I’m lying?”
“You’re different,” Jiang Que whispered.
He couldn’t quite understand Shen Tazhi’s emotions. While facing Shen Tazhi, he didn’t see much difference between him and any other ordinary person, except that he might be a bit more sensitive to Shen Tazhi’s emotions.
It would be great if he could see through Shen Tazhi like he could with others. It would probably lead to fewer misunderstandings between them.
Shen Tazhi patiently repeated, “I’m not angry, really.”
“Rather than saying angry, I’m… a little happy,” he added.
Jiang Que looked up suddenly and stared at Shen Tazhi, looking surprised.
With a grin, Shen Tazhi said, “I’m really happy to be liked by Que Que to the extent that you don’t want to let go even in death.”
Jiang Que blushed inexplicably under his gaze, muttered “bad person”, and then slammed the door shut with a “bang” before running off.
Shen Tazhi chuckled at the closed door and went back to brushing his teeth.
Turning around, he saw his disheveled self in the mirror and couldn’t help but soften his gaze.
Was he happy? Indeed he was.
Jiang Que’s desire for him, his obsession with him, mirrored his own feelings towards Jiang Que. It wasn’t a healthy love, but it brought him immense comfort.
It seemed like he could finally keep up with the free-spirited bird that was Jiang Que.
After freshening up, it was already afternoon. They had takeout for lunch, and then Shen Tazhi called for a helicopter, preparing to return to the capital to see what the situation was.
Jiang Que disagreed with this—Shen Tazhi’s body wasn’t fully recovered yet, and the helicopter would be bumpy for several hours, which was quite troublesome.
Then Shen Tazhi smiled and kissed him, making Jiang Que too shy to speak, blushing and letting Shen Tazhi lead him by the hand.
By the time he realized, he was already sitting in the helicopter with Shen Tazhi.
The second time on the helicopter, Jiang Que didn’t find it as exciting as the first time. He looked around the somewhat empty cabin, checked the luggage, and asked, “Did I forget to bring my tentacles?”
He was referring to his withered tentacles from before, which were placed in a black wooden box, carried all the way from the capital to Suzhou, and then jostled all the way to the northwest.
Now on the return trip, the largest piece of luggage was missing, and Jiang Que naturally noticed it first.
“Oh, that.” Shen Tazhi also glanced at the luggage in the cabin upon hearing Jiang Que’s words and said, “Back then, Du Lulu took it and threw it into a formation. I’m not sure exactly where it is. We’ll ask the Anomaly Investigation Department after landing.”
“Threw it into a formation?” Jiang Que was stunned.
Although his tentacles had grown back, the fact that his dead tentacles were now “missing” was shocking to Jiang Que.
Shen Tazhi responded with an “Hmm,” misunderstanding Jiang Que’s shock and added, “If they are indeed lost, I’ll make them compensate you.”
“That won’t be necessary.”
Jiang Que flexibly wrapped his shrunken transparent tentacles around Shen Tazhi and said, “If they happen to be useful, they can have them. My tentacles have all returned, they just owe me money.”
He remembered clearly that the wages from this northwest trip hadn’t been settled yet, and he needed money to buy things for Shen Tazhi.
Ten dead tentacles in exchange for a sum of money—fair deal.
Shen Tazhi was speechless. He patted the tentacles wrapped around him and asked, “What do you want to buy, needing so much money?”
“Um…” Jiang Que hesitated, “I haven’t decided yet. I want to buy you things you don’t have, but it seems like you have everything.”
Although he wasn’t sure what to buy for Shen Tazhi at the moment, he was determined to give the best. More money would be better for that purpose, Jiang Que thought.
The helicopter pilot ahead remained quiet as if he hadn’t heard all the magical or sentimental conversations in the headphones.
Given that the boss paid well, whatever the boss said was final. He might as well act deaf.
The journey from the northwest to the capital wasn’t too far; they would arrive in two hours. Jiang Que looked down at the gradually enlarging familiar villa below, feeling the rare sense of “coming home” that humans often talk about.
“Shen Tazhi, I see our home, we’re home!!”
Jiang Que pulled Shen Tazhi’s arm, urging him to look outside.
As the helicopter began to descend, Shen Tazhi followed Jiang Que’s gaze, and when he saw the lush flowers and plants outside the villa, he couldn’t help but feel a sense of familiarity rising within him.
“We’re home,” he smiled.
The helicopter landed safely, and they got off with their luggage.
During this time, Jiang Que had been very worried, using his transparent tentacles to support Shen Tazhi. He had read a lot of information online, knowing that normal people would experience back pain in such situations.
However, Shen Tazhi didn’t need his help. He agilely got off the helicopter and even stood below, asking Jiang Que if he needed assistance.
Jiang Que: …
He felt a bit uncomfortable.
But he couldn’t quite pinpoint the source of this discomfort. In the end, he simply got off the helicopter, entered the house with Shen Tazhi.
Just as they entered the house, before even having a chance to change shoes, Shen Tazhi’s phone rang.
Shen Tazhi glanced at his phone, then showed Jiang Que, who was curious about it, the screen:
Director Wu.
Huh?
“Why is Director Wu calling at this time?”
Jiang Que quickly changed into slippers, went to turn on the central air conditioning, and then sat on the sofa waiting for Shen Tazhi to sit down.
Shen Tazhi was also puzzled, “I have no idea.”
Since Jiang Que had been in a coma, he hadn’t been in contact with the Anomaly Investigation Department, and they hadn’t reached out to him either. At this point, he knew no more than Jiang Que did.
Sitting next to Jiang Que, Shen Tazhi answered the phone and turned on the speaker.
“Hello?”
On the other end of the line, Director Wu’s cautious voice came through, “Hello, Mr. Shen, have you returned to the capital? How is Jiang Que’s condition now?”
Shen Tazhi turned his head to look at Jiang Que next to him, stretching out the eighteen tentacles that had been cramped all the way. He couldn’t help but smile and say, “Jiang Que is awake now, and the situation is not bad. All eighteen of his tentacles have grown out. We are planning to come to you for a check-up. Are you free recently?”
“All eighteen have grown out??” Director Wu was shocked.
He quickly regained his composure and coughed lightly, saying, “Sure, no matter what, as long as Jiang Que is fine, it’s good. I was actually planning to invite you to the Anomaly Investigation Department when I called you this time. When can you come? If you can make it the day after tomorrow, we can also do a physical examination.”
“Let us go to the Anomaly Investigation Department?” Jiang Que asked curiously, “Is there something you need my help with?”
Director Wu fell silent for a moment.
“No,” he said, “I want to invite you to attend the funeral of Xi Jing and the others.”
“I haven’t been in touch with you because Du Lulu told me about Jiang Que’s coma. I was worried about causing trouble for Mr. Shen. If I didn’t come back soon, it might be too late, so I called. Since you’re awake now, would you like to come together?”
He said it casually, but Jiang Que didn’t really believe the emotions in Director Wu’s tone, considering Du Lulu’s tearful phone call before.
Shen Tazhi turned his head and mouthed to him: Do you want to go?
Jiang Que held Shen Tazhi’s hand tightly and said, “Shen Tazhi and I will go. After we arrive, can you tell us what really happened?”
“Of course,” Director Wu chuckled, “You are also a member of our Anomaly Investigation Department.”
“Oh, one more thing, I think I should tell you. Your civil service appointment has come down, it was Mr. Shen who fought for it for you. He was thinking that if he was not around in the future, he wanted to leave you with a guarantee. It was not easy this time, you two should live well in the future. Such things should not be kept secret, they should be spoken out…”
Before Director Wu could finish his sentence, Shen Tazhi hung up the phone directly.
Jiang Que looked at Shen Tazhi, who was stiff in his movements, with a smile that was not quite a smile:
“Oh? Give me a guarantee after you die?”
Shen Tazhi silently stepped back, “I can explain…”
“Explain what.” Jiang Que laughed and approached, “Gege, with you thinking about me like this, I am moved.”
The tentacles wrapped around Shen Tazhi’s still soft waist, especially the one containing the swollen egg, was already trying to undress Shen Tazhi.
Jiang Que was already uncomfortable, and now he was about to explode.
“Tell me carefully, gege, what other selfless things have you done?”
Jiang Que gritted his teeth and dragged Shen Tazhi, who was trying to escape, back:
“Do I need you to be so selfless? Do you just hope I become a widow?”
“I…”
Shen Tazhi was cut off by the tentacles before he could speak.
Jiang Que laughed and rubbed against him, like a big cat being affectionate, “Gege, we’re home now, let’s continue.”
“Let’s talk more in bed.”
The eighteen fierce tentacles spread out, densely packed white suckers enveloping Shen Tazhi. The terrifying monster gnawed and tore at him, as if trying to swallow him whole.
And so, he was dragged into the bedroom by the monster.
“Que Que, Que Que… I mean, maybe you shouldn’t…”
Jiang Que silenced Shen Tazhi with a kiss.
After all, they were only going to the Anomaly Investigation Department the day after tomorrow. Before that, Shen Tazhi’s bad habits of neglecting himself and doing things without considering himself… he would correct them properly.
