Shen Tazhi reluctantly explained the situation, rescuing Du Lulu from her embarrassment.
“So, you weren’t pregnant at all?” Du Lulu looked surprised at Shen Tazhi’s flat abdomen.
Shen Tazhi shrugged, “I’m a man, so it’s impossible for me to be pregnant, right?”
“You never know1”MPREG IS REAL!!” I say, as the people in white suits drag me to a padded room,” Du Lulu whispered.
After all, everyone knew that in stories involving extraterrestrial tentacles, there was usually some sort of body modification involved. Who knew what strange plays these two had engaged in.
She didn’t voice her thoughts but decided to let Shen Tazhi proceed with the medical examination.
“In any case, consuming Jiang Que’s eggs is no small matter. You should also have a check-up. This machine has never examined a human before, so the analysis might take a while,” Du Lulu advised.
“No problem,” Shen Tazhi nodded slightly. “Thank you.”
After the examination, Du Lulu went to deliver the medical reports. Since the results wouldn’t be available until the afternoon, Shen Tazhi and Jiang Que decided to head home and wait for Du Lulu’s email.
On their way out, they happened to run into Director Wu, who had been extremely busy since Jiang Que brought news of the apocalypse. They had only seen each other for five minutes during their recent visit.
“Director Wu,” Shen Tazhi greeted him.
Director Wu nodded and was about to continue walking when he suddenly stopped and turned to Jiang Que, “He Yun would like to meet you. Are you free recently?”
He Yun was the only adult who remained from the Qishan Taoist. She stayed behind to care for the young Qi Qing and Qi Qiu and wasn’t actually from the Qishan Taoists’ lineage.
Jiang Que remembered these details from his past life and recalled He Yun. He thought for a moment before replying, “Sure, when is she available?”
“Probably in… over half a month. After she revealed her identity at the Anomaly Investigation Department, she directly applied for a travel permit with me to accompany Qi Qiu, Qi Qing, and the others to the Abyss. She won’t be back for a while,” Director Wu explained.
He added, “The withered tentacles you had in the Abyss were placed in the trunk. Xi Jing took them with him. If you want them back, you’ll have to wait for Xi Jing to return.”
“Okay,” Jiang Que replied nonchalantly.
He wasn’t particularly concerned about the withered tentacles that had died with him. Remembering his previous memories, he knew that he should be able to grow new tentacles shortly after leaving the Abyss.
However, he felt a tinge of regret thinking about Qi Qiu, Qi Qing, and He Yun, whom he had not even met. He asked, “Do they need my help with the tasks in the Abyss?”
“No need,” Director Wu replied.
He glanced at Jiang Que in surprise, clearly not expecting him to voluntarily offer to “help”.
“You’re not part of the divination by the taoists, and you’re an outsider. There’s no need for you to get involved,” Director Wu remarked, patting Jiang Que’s head with a smile. “I didn’t expect you to be so considerate.”
Jiang Que covered his head to prevent him from being touched and said earnestly, “Because He Yun and the others are important.”
There weren’t many people in this world who were important to him. The taoists were already dead, so besides Shen Tazhi, He Yun, and the faint memories of Qi Qiu and Qi Qing, Jiang Que’s only connections were with humans.
“Got it. I’ll inform you as soon as He Yun returns,” Director Wu smiled and waved them off.
As they walked to the underground parking lot, the driver was already waiting in the car. Jiang Que sat close to Shen Tazhi, leaning quietly against him.
Though he didn’t speak, the tentacles curling around Shen Tazhi fully expressed all the emotions on his behalf:
Finally going home. Happy.
Shen Tazhi chuckled, finding it endearing, but suddenly remembered a question, “Que Que, can your tentacles still speak?”
He remembered that in his previous life, after consuming Jiang Que’s eggs, he could mysteriously hear the tentacles speaking. However, upon his rebirth, he couldn’t hear them at all.
Back then, he had secretly speculated that Jiang Que might have developed a form of dissociation from prolonged isolation in darkness, which could explain the behavior. He hadn’t had time to consider this issue in this life, but now that he had, he noticed something was off:
Clearly, Jiang Que had some psychological issues, but he couldn’t hear the tentacles anymore.
Upon hearing this, Jiang Que lifted his tentacles and calmly replied, “No, they can’t.”
He maintained the posture of holding Shen Tazhi.
“They stopped when you jumped off, because at that moment, I wanted to save you but couldn’t. My tentacles couldn’t either. When you fell, I realized that I had always been alone.”
“Since that moment, the tentacles have been silent. Probably because I realized it was all an illusion,” Jiang Que said calmly, as if he were discussing the most ordinary thing.
The collapse of one’s worldview could never be considered a trivial matter. Shen Tazhi could almost imagine Jiang Que waking up, misunderstanding his intentions, and feeling lost and upset once again in the darkness he was abandoned in.
Unable to resist, Shen Tazhi encircled Jiang Que, gently stroking his tentacles. “…From now on, you won’t be alone anymore. I’m sorry.”
No wonder Jiang Que had casually given away his withered tentacles before… In the past, Jiang Que had seen them as his sole companions for conversation. But after shattering the lies he had woven for himself, Jiang Que no longer needed them.
“No need to apologize,” every one of Jiang Que’s tentacles held onto Shen Tazhi firmly.
His overly dark eyes gazed at Shen Tazhi – ever since they emerged from the Abyss, he had been silently watching Shen Tazhi, afraid that everything would disappear as soon as he closed his eyes, like a fleeting dream.
“Gege will always be with me from now on, that’s all I need,” Jiang Que said, his eyes curved as he awkwardly attempted a smile at Shen Tazhi, a gesture he had just learned from Director Wu.
“I was very well-behaved when we went out today. I didn’t stop you from leaving, I didn’t attack any other humans, and I even had a good conversation with them,” Jiang Que continued. “Gege, I’m learning. You have to stay with me. You can’t leave me.”
…
Jiang Que’s medical report came out in the afternoon, showing that everything was fine except for some malnutrition. On the other hand, Shen Tazhi’s report was more complex, requiring a few more days for a detailed analysis.
Physically, Jiang Que was fine, but his psychological issues were far more severe than in the previous life. This was the most certain conclusion Shen Tazhi had reached over these days.
Leaving aside Jiang Que’s excessive behavior in bed, even when he got up, he seemed to want to connect with Shen Tazhi constantly using his tentacles. Shen Tazhi occasionally needed to go to the bathroom or step out to collect a delivery. When Shen Tazhi stopped him from following to the bathroom, Jiang Que didn’t protest. He simply stood quietly, watching him with those dark eyes until Shen Tazhi emerged.
Jiang Que was restless, constantly worrying that Shen Tazhi would disappear again.
Initially, Shen Tazhi thought Jiang Que was just adjusting and would be fine in a few days. However, as the days passed, Jiang Que’s anxiety only worsened.
When Jiang Que believed Shen Tazhi didn’t love him, he would cry, throw tantrums, and even get angry. But now that he knew Shen Tazhi liked him, Jiang Que began to consciously restrain himself. He would only stick close to Shen Tazhi, expressing his affection, without displaying any other emotions.
It’s as if in his world, there was no one else besides Shen Tazhi.
Jiang Que himself was unaware of this; he simply felt like he was dreaming these past few days.
Every day he could enjoy delicious meals, spend time with Shen Tazhi, sleep in a soft bed, and even have fragrant body wash for his baths.
Shen Tazhi allowed him to stick close, always giving in to his pouting and teary-eyed expressions. No matter how unreasonable the request, Shen Tazhi would agree, whether it was not removing his tentacles to cook, letting him browse through all the chat messages on his phone, and so on.
So, when Shen Tazhi carefully suggested the idea of seeing a psychologist for the first time, Jiang Que was surprised:
“A psychologist? You want to see a doctor?”
“Not me,” Shen Tazhi corrected. “It’s for you, Que Que.”
Even more surprised, Jiang Que asked, “Me?”
They had just finished their nightly routine, with Jiang Que’s tentacles still near Shen Tazhi’s mouth. Shen Tazhi sighed helplessly and continued, “Que Que, don’t you think what we’re doing isn’t quite right?”
“What’s wrong?” Jiang Que looked puzzled. He thought things were going well as they were.
In a gentle tone, Shen Tazhi didn’t want to upset Jiang Que. He patiently asked, “Think about it, what do you usually do after waking up?”
“I look for you,” Jiang Que answered without hesitation. “At that time, you’re either making breakfast or already eating breakfast, so I go downstairs to find you.”
“Okay, we have breakfast together. And then? What do you do after breakfast?” Shen Tazhi continued.
Jiang Que replied, “We clean up the table together, and then I have to persuade you to accompany me for a bath… um, if nothing happens during the bath, then I go downstairs to watch you work and learn to cook with you.”
“What about in the evening?”
“In the evening, we have dinner together, and I have to wash my tentacles again because at night… um…”
Jiang Que didn’t finish his sentence, as Shen Tazhi covered his mouth.
“…You don’t have to be so detailed,” Shen Tazhi blushed slightly and turned his head.
Soon, he regained his composure and looked at Jiang Que, saying, “This is the issue I wanted to address, Que Que. Don’t you feel like something is off?”
Upon hearing this, Jiang Que furrowed his brow, thinking for a while but couldn’t figure out what was wrong. He asked, “What’s wrong?”
In his view, everything seemed fine.
Shen Tazhi sighed, “Everything is wrong. Your life revolves around me, and that’s not right, Que Que.”
It wasn’t that Shen Tazhi was afraid of Jiang Que’s somewhat obsessive behavior of constantly clinging to him; he simply felt it wasn’t very healthy for Jiang Que. A normal person should have their own hobbies and social activities, right? Relying solely on one person would eventually lead to issues.
Jiang Que was completely taken aback by Shen Tazhi’s notion of what was wrong. He was even considering if he was doing something to annoy Shen Tazhi every day. Upon hearing Shen Tazhi’s words, he hesitated.
“If you find me annoying… I can learn to go out and earn money,” Jiang Que suggested. He could work at the Anomaly Investigation Department. However, the thought of leaving Shen Tazhi made him feel sad.
“It’s not about me finding you annoying,” Shen Tazhi explained. “Que Que, I’ve never found you annoying, and you don’t need to learn to earn money. I just think… you should spend some time on your own hobbies.”
“Hobbies?”
“Things you enjoy,” Shen Tazhi clarified.
“But, I enjoy being with you,” Jiang Que blinked in confusion. “Isn’t liking you a hobby?”
“Liking me isn’t considered a hobby,” Shen Tazhi struggled to explain. “Hobbies are about things that are for yourself…”
As he spoke, Shen Tazhi suddenly realized what exactly was abnormal about their interaction.
At that moment, Jiang Que had lowered his gaze, gripping the bedsheet tightly, appearing to be reflecting uneasily. Shen Tazhi leaned in and kissed him gently, saying in a warm tone, “What I mean is, you can’t just like me, Que Que. You also need to like yourself.”
“Like myself?”
Jiang Que repeated slowly, seemingly pondering the meaning of these words put together.
“I… like myself?” Jiang Que repeated, his eyes showing confusion. “Why should I like myself? I like you.”
Shen Tazhi was at a loss for words, unsure of how to explain this to Jiang Que.
“I don’t know how to explain this to you. This ‘liking’ and your ‘liking’ towards me are not the same thing,” Shen Tazhi’s explanation sounded feeble.
He could only tentatively suggest, “I’ll have a psychologist come to the house, and you can spend about half an hour with him. He might have a better way to explain it to you. Would that be okay?”
Jiang Que held onto Shen Tazhi, always enjoying being close to him, seeking warmth like a love-starved kitten seeking solace.
Looking at Shen Tazhi’s expression, even though he didn’t want to see other humans, Jiang Que slowly nodded, “Okay.”
Little Que wanted to be obedient, and he wanted to stay with Shen Tazhi.
…
Shen Tazhi was always proactive, and the next morning, he found a psychologist willing to sign a confidentiality agreement and come to the house for a consultation.
Out of respect for Jiang Que’s privacy, Shen Tazhi had initially planned to clean up the small study room to allow Jiang Que to have a private conversation with the psychologist. However, Jiang Que refused to agree, so Shen Tazhi could only reluctantly listen in on the side.
The psychologist’s name was Zhang, a somewhat renowned figure in the industry. He had mentally prepared himself before coming and, upon seeing Jiang Que and his eight tentacles, was briefly shocked but quickly regained his usual professional demeanor.
With a gentle smile, he said, “Hello, I’m Zhang Mingyuan. You can call me Xiaozhang. You are Jiang Que, right?”
The black-haired youth sat upright, giving a casual nod. However, when his gaze briefly met Shen Tazhi’s, he paused before answering, “Yes.”
Shen Tazhi was nearby, trying to show his support.
Dr. Zhang organized his materials and said warmly, “Just consider me a friend. Let’s chat casually. Is that okay?”
Jiang Que nodded slightly.
Twenty minutes later.
Dr. Zhang’s expression was somewhat stiff.
Not because Jiang Que was difficult to communicate with; quite the opposite. Jiang Que was too easy to talk to, answering almost as soon as he was asked. This made it clear to Dr. Zhang just how terrifying Jiang Que’s current psychological state truly was.
It’s terrifying, not just bad.
Ignoring Jiang Que’s nonsensical talk about past lives and present, even based on his more normal statements, Dr. Zhang felt a shiver down his spine.
“I keep looking at Shen Tazhi because I’m afraid this is all a dream. If I close my eyes, Shen Tazhi will disappear, so I have to keep them open and watch him.”
“I just want to be with Shen Tazhi. If he rejects me… I’ve thought about locking Shen Tazhi up, but if he rejects me, I’d be sad… maybe so sad that I’d actually lock him up?”
“It’s okay if Shen Tazhi doesn’t like me. I like Shen Tazhi.”
“The reason… I don’t know. I just like only him. He was the one who said he would take me away. I won’t accept any possibility of him secretly dying.”
Jiang Que spoke these words calmly, almost matter-of-factly, seemingly unaware that there was anything wrong with what he was saying.
The other major player in his narrative sat beside him, listening to everything without a trace of fear. His gaze towards Jiang Que grew increasingly compassionate.
…What are you feeling compassionate about?! This non-human creature wants to lock you up!
Dr. Zhang silently shouted in his mind.
He felt that not only Jiang Que but even Shen Tazhi might need psychological counseling. However, he didn’t dare mention this in front of Shen Tazhi, striving to maintain his composed expression, nervously wiping off a cold sweat.
From his excessive paranoia towards Shen Tazhi, constant delusions of the other’s death, and the confusion from the previous life to the talking tentacles’ split personality… If Jiang Que’s mental state could be visualized, it would be a tangled mess that couldn’t be unraveled.
Even if it were a human suffering from such a psychological condition, all Dr. Zhang could do was patiently listen, provide guidance, prescribe medication, and considering the situation with a non-human entity, Shen Tazhi wasn’t keen on Jiang Que taking psychiatric medication.
Dr. Zhang could only dryly say, “I roughly understand. So, your request is…”
“Gege said I should love myself a bit and not always love him,” Jiang Que calmly interjected.
Due to Shen Tazhi’s influence, even though the psychologist could see through Jiang Que at a glance, Jiang Que still maintained a basic level of respect towards him. He asked, “So, what do you think I should do?”
Dr. Zhang hesitated and then slowly swallowed, “…You could start with a brief separation? For example, spend time alone in your room, read a book, play on your phone, not just staring into space, but finding things to do for yourself, and don’t reach out to Mr. Shen. Start with five minutes and gradually increase the time.”
Jiang Que didn’t agree or disagree, just responded lightly.
Shen Tazhi had promised him just a thirty-minute visit from an outsider, and true to his word, Dr. Zhang rose to leave after the allotted time.
Jiang Que and Shen Tazhi accompanied him to the door. Just as Dr. Zhang was changing his shoes before leaving, Jiang Que suddenly spoke up, “Aren’t you going to mention it?”
“Huh?” Dr. Zhang was momentarily puzzled.
Perplexed, Jiang Que continued, “Weren’t you facing exclusion at the counseling center, preparing to resign? Taking on such a strictly confidential private assignment was precisely to meet Shen Tazhi, hoping to become his long-term counselor. Why haven’t you mentioned this yet?”
Dr. Zhang remained frozen in place. “How did you know?”
Jiang Que pointed to his eyes. “By looking at your eyes.”
Having spent an exhausting half-hour speaking with the psychologist had made him grow tired and lazy to continue explaining. His question was more out of curiosity than anything else.
Not out of curiosity about Dr. Zhang, but rather, Jiang Que was curious if Shen Tazhi would be willing to retain Dr. Zhang.
The feeling of being completely seen through by the other party sent chills down Dr. Zhang’s spine.
He trembled as he gazed thoughtfully at Shen Tazhi, weakly saying, “I feel… I lack sufficient knowledge and may… be inadequate for this position…”
After this confession, Dr. Zhang didn’t even bid farewell. It was as if he were fleeing from some monstrous flood or beast, turning and running away.
How could there be creatures in this world capable of seeing through the human heart? If the psychologist was completely seen through by the patient, then what was the point of counseling? The door closed, leaving only Jiang Que and Shen Tazhi standing at the entrance.
Jiang Que quietly held Shen Tazhi’s hand. It was only now that Shen Tazhi noticed Jiang Que had been unusually quiet all along, except for the one time he got angry with Du Lulu.
In the previous life, Jiang Que had been lively. Even when he appeared silent and stoic, he would secretly grumble with his small tentacles behind his back. Now, it was the complete opposite. While he seemed to talk more now, it was only about himself, and after speaking, he would just quietly watch Shen Tazhi.
It was as if a monster was reluctantly wearing a human skin.
Shen Tazhi understood that his past death had left an indelible shadow on Jiang Que, so he tried his best to provide Jiang Que with more reassurance. He gently took back Jiang Que’s hand and asked, “Que Que, what would you like for lunch?”
Jiang Que’s silence wasn’t a big deal; he could slowly guide Jiang Que to speak.
Jiang Que thought for a moment and said, “I want noodles.”
Shen Tazhi replied, “Okay, how about beef noodles?”
Jiang Que nodded. He had no objections and held Shen Tazhi’s hand, saying affectionately, “Anything is fine. Everything you make is delicious, gege.”
He had learned online that it’s important to praise your partner. Shen Tazhi often praised him, so Jiang Que wanted to do the same for Shen Tazhi.
Shen Tazhi smiled at his words. He ruffled Jiang Que’s head and continued, “Alright, I’ll go cook.”
He cautiously added the second part of his sentence, “I’ll turn on the TV in the living room. You can wait for me there and watch TV. This time, try not to come into the kitchen. Is that okay?”
The kitchen was not far from the living room, just a short distance where you could see the kitchen door from the sofa.
Jiang Que was taken aback. He didn’t expect Shen Tazhi to start implementing what Dr. Zhang had suggested so quickly.
His gaze shifted between the sofa and the kitchen door, estimating the distance, and couldn’t help but purse his lips.
Jiang Que, you need to act like a normal human. Didn’t you see the psychologist’s emotions earlier? Normal humans would be scared of your behavior. Don’t make Shen Tazhi afraid; you need to change slowly.
With these thoughts in mind, Jiang Que softly nodded in response to Shen Tazhi’s concerned gaze. “Okay.”
He had finally found Shen Tazhi again, and he didn’t want to disappoint him.
