The temperament of children has always been quick to change.
After receiving five boxes of chocolates from Shen Tazhi, Jiang Que had completely forgotten about wanting to dislike him before, sticking to Shen Tazhi and calling him “gege” non-stop.
At the dinner table, Shen Qingxue smiled and asked, “Does Xiao Que like Zhi Zhi so much?”
“Yes, yes!” Jiang Que nodded vigorously. “I like Zhi Zhi-gege!”
Shen Tazhi was very handsome, and he even gave him delicious treats. Jiang Que liked Shen Tazhi.
Sitting beside Jiang Que, Shen Tazhi felt a bit uncomfortable at the mention of this, which made Shen Qingxue laugh again.
On the night Shen Tazhi woke up, the usually gloomy Shen household finally brightened up. Everyone enjoyed a relaxing dinner, chatting until late into the night.
Before leaving, Jiang Que hugged a box of chocolates almost his own height, struggling to hold another one with his tentacles. Reluctantly, he held Shen Tazhi’s hand and said, “Gege, can you come to send me to kindergarten tomorrow?”
Shen Tazhi glanced at Shen Qingxue with a questioning look, and she smiled and nodded, saying, “It’s fine. Tomorrow you don’t have to go to school. I can have the driver take you both.”
Shen Tazhi then patted Jiang Que’s head, smiling, “Okay.”
“Yay!” Jiang Que happily hugged Shen Tazhi’s leg.
Led by He Yun, he took three steps back, not wanting to leave. Shen Tazhi watched him go, until Shen Qingxue’s voice came from behind:
“Zhi Zhi, what do you think of Xiao Que?”
“Huh?” Shen Tazhi snapped out of his thoughts, turning to his mother.
“He’s very cute,” he replied after a moment of consideration.
Jiang Que is still a child, with a chubby face. Despite his non-human appearance, that adorable face was hard to fear. And with those cute little tentacles, who could be afraid?
Shen Qingxue covered her smile with her hand, “Don’t you think he’s a bit stubborn?”
Shen Tazhi responded, “Stubbornness is cute too. He’s still young.”
Shen Qingxue nudged Zhao Ruxin next to her, “Look, just like you back then. I would get mad at you, and you still found my stubbornness cute.”
Zhao Ruxin sincerely said, “Indeed, very cute. I’ve always thought that way.”
“You’re the only one who talks too much,” Shen Qingxue scolded him.
She turned to the puzzled Shen Tazhi and smiled, “It’s okay, let’s go home too.”
Zhao Ruxin nodded, “Yes, let’s go home. After you see Xiao Que off tomorrow, come to my study again. We’ll continue our discussion. Are you sure it was Shen Liushi?”
Upon hearing the words “Shen Liushi,” Shen Tazhi gradually lost his smile. He turned around and walked back to his parents, his face showing a composure not typical of a fifteen-year-old. “Yes, I’m sure I saw Shen Liushi’s face, but I’m not sure if the person behind him was Uncle.”
The night was deep.
In the house, ten-year-old Shen Liushi, who was playing games, sneezed.
He looked at the game character that died because of this sneeze, annoyed, and turned up the air conditioning a few degrees. “So annoying, Shen Tazhi must be cursing me. This guy can’t even rest in peace.”
In fact, the ten-year-old Shen Liushi had no idea what “can’t rest in peace” really meant; it was just something Shen He often said, and he learned it from that.
Shen Liushi restarted the game and continued playing.
Under the seemingly calm night, numerous undercurrents began to surge.
…
The next day.
Shen Tazhi, watching Jiang Que eagerly waiting for him with his backpack held in his arms because his tentacles couldn’t carry it, finally realized something was wrong.
With Jiang Que’s non-human tentacles so obvious, how could he go to kindergarten?
But Jiang Que didn’t say anything. Asking such a question would be impolite. Shen Tazhi thought for a moment, swallowed the words that were about to come out, and instead took Jiang Que’s backpack, opening the car door for him.
“Get in, today Uncle Zhao will drive us.”
Uncle Zhao was a relative who had sought refuge with his father’s side.
There were many examples of poor boys like his father climbing up the social ladder to wealthy families. Various relatives seeking refuge was quite common, but luckily his father could distinguish between those who were reliable and those who were not, eventually leaving behind one or two trustworthy and capable ones to help.
The driver, Uncle Zhao, was one of them.
Uncle Zhao was a middle-aged man who had received the message last night, so when he saw Jiang Que with eighteen little tentacles behind him, he didn’t show much surprise. Instead, he greeted them with a smile, “Young Master Shen, Young Master Jiang, good morning.”
It was Jiang Que’s first time seeing a private driver. With Shen Tazhi’s help, he got into the car and replied, “Good morning.”
Shen Tazhi nodded and then leaned over to fasten Jiang Que’s seatbelt.
Qi Qing, with her excellent medical skills, had been nurturing Shen Tazhi’s body with traditional Chinese medicine while driving out the gu poison. Therefore, after a night’s rest, Shen Tazhi could already walk normally, and his complexion had improved significantly.
Jiang Que looked up at Shen Tazhi, who no longer had a pale face, and straightforwardly said, “Gege, you look even more beautiful today!”
Shen Tazhi had just retracted his hand from fastening Jiang Que’s seatbelt and chuckled at the comment. “Jiang Que, you can’t call boys beautiful, you should say handsome instead.”
Moreover, he didn’t have the kind of delicate and pretty appearance, so he was puzzled by Jiang Que’s compliment.
Furrowing his brows, Jiang Que asked, “Is it not okay?”
“No, it’s not,” Shen Tazhi replied. “You can say handsome, but don’t call other boys beautiful in kindergarten, they won’t like it.”
“But, my senior brothers and sisters all praise me for being beautiful,” Jiang Que said confusedly. “I donāt think Iād be angry over that.”
Shen Tazhi fell silent.
Well, Jiang Que was indeed very beautiful, transcending the typical human standards of beauty. But Jiang Que was not human, and he was still a child, so praising his beauty didn’t seem to be a problem.
“Gege?” Jiang Que asked again, “Am I not beautiful?”
Facing that face, Shen Tazhi couldn’t lie. He said, “..beautiful.”
Jiang Que became even more confused at this response, “So why can you say I’m beautiful again?”
Shen Tazhi tried to explain, “Because you are different, you are… exceptionally beautiful.”
“Am I exceptionally beautiful?” Jiang Que murmured thoughtfully to himself.
For a five-year-old, this complex concept was a bit too complicated. After pondering for a while, Jiang Que couldn’t figure it out, so he decided to stop thinking about it.
He reached out, pulled his backpack onto his lap, and then took out a tightly wrapped oil-paper package from the backpack, handing it to Shen Tazhi.
“Gege, this is for you.”
“What is this?” Shen Tazhi asked in confusion as he took it.
“It’s lotus seed pastry made by Auntie, it’s really delicious!” Jiang Que’s eyes sparkled. “You should try it.”
“Is… this for me?” Shen Tazhi asked uncertainly.
“Yes,” Jiang Que nodded repeatedly. “Like I said before, I can share snacks with you.”
Counting on his fingers, Jiang Que continued, “Qi Qiu has to practice swordsmanship every day, Qi Qing has to go around healing people, and Auntie is busy with the Anomaly Investigation Department. They are all very busy.”
“If you keep me company, I can bring you snacks every day.”
Facing the straightforward “bribe” from the child, Shen Tazhi found it somewhat amusing but mostly resigned. “Alright.”
Under Jiang Que’s expectant gaze, Shen Tazhi opened the oil-paper package, carefully picked up a piece of lotus seed pastry, tasted it, and then said, “Thank you, it’s delicious.”
Jiang Que beamed proudly, “See, Auntie’s lotus seed pastries are especially delicious!”
Shen Tazhi finished the whole pastry bit by bit under Jiang Que’s watchful eyes before continuing, “Yes.”
After a moment of thought, he added, “If you like it, you can keep it for yourself. Even if you don’t bring me snacks, I’ll still keep you company.”
Jiang Que was taken aback, “Really?”
“Really,” Shen Tazhi smiled gently. “You saved my life, so it’s only right for me to keep you company. You don’t need to bring me anything.”
The smile on Jiang Que’s face faded, and he set down his backpack, falling silent all of a sudden.
“Because… I saved you?” Jiang Que murmured softly.
At fifteen, Shen Tazhi hadn’t yet developed the ability to read subtle emotions, even though he had a naturally composed demeanor.
He didn’t notice the subtle change in Jiang Que’s mood and sincerely replied, “Yes, I’m very grateful to you, so you don’t have to do this.”
Jiang Que forced a smile at him, “Okay, gege.”
…He thought Shen Tazhi enjoyed accompanying him, but it turned out to be in gratitude towards Qi Qing and the others. If only he had been the one to save Shen Tazhi, he also wanted to be as amazing as Qi Qing.
Jiang Que lowered his gaze, recalling the word he learned at kindergarten yesterday: “Love the house and its crows.”
He didn’t want Shen Tazhi’s “Love the house and its crows”.
Uncle Zhao soon arrived at the navigation destination. Shen Tazhi looked at the dilapidated courtyard in front of him, feeling skeptical. “Is this… the kindergarten?”
By now, Jiang Que had regained his spirits. He unbuckled his seatbelt and, to Shen Tazhi’s surprised gaze, jumped out of the car directly. “Little Teacher Lulu!”
Shen Tazhi also got out of the car and looked ahead. Outside the courtyard, a girl of about ten years old was waving to Jiang Que from a distance, following an adult. “Jiang Que, you’re here for class.”
In the dilapidated courtyard, a door opened, and a curious little head peeked out. It was a boy of about five or six years old, with long silver hair, pure white eyes, and right in the middle of his forehead, there was a pearly white little horn.
Like a unicorn’s horn.
— This was also a non-human being.
Shen Tazhi looked at the two women standing at the courtyard gate, one big and one small, and roughly understood the situation: This should be a kindergarten created for non-human children.
As for why the kindergarten was so dilapidated and why they accepted Jiang Que, Shen Tazhi had no interest in investigating further–his father had instructed him last night that before truly deciding to understand the world of Jiang Que and the others, it was best not to be too curious about their lives.
This was to protect himself and also to show respect for Jiang Que and the others.
“Gege– remember to come pick me up this afternoon–!”
Jiang Que waved to him from afar.
Shen Tazhi also waved back at him, watching him enter the small courtyard before turning and getting back into the car.
Following the principle of “see and hear less”, Uncle Zhao sat in the driver’s seat without looking around. After Shen Tazhi got into the car, he didn’t ask a single question, simply driving Shen Tazhi back home.
Shen Tazhi looked at the oil-paper package in his hand and couldn’t help but smile.
Although he had never thought about having a little brother, having a cute and clingy guy like Jiang Que wasn’t so bad after all.
He is five years old, while he is fifteen, much older and will mature much earlier than him.
Even though it had gone beyond the scope of “repayment”, Shen Tazhi thought that if possible, he wouldn’t mind always walking ahead of Jiang Que, treating him as his true little brother to protect.
He also liked Jiang Que.
…
Of course, Jiang Que had no idea about Shen Tazhi’s thoughts.
He was puzzled why the other’s indulgence towards him was merely out of “repayment”. He felt gloomy at kindergarten for a while, not even interested in listening to the thrilling adventure stories Little Teacher Lulu told.
“I just wanted a gege, so Shen Tazhi is fine too,” Jiang Que thought.
After a while, he thought again.
But he still couldn’t accept it. He wanted a gege who liked him, not a gege who took care of him out of obligation.
“Jiang Que?” Du Lulu called out to him.
“Why aren’t you very happy today?”
Jiang Que looked up at the girl in front of him who seemed like a little adult.
This kindergarten was run by Du Lulu and her mother, and it was filled with half-human, half-demon little youngsters like him.
Unable to attend regular human kindergartens and unable to live as “demons”, they could only be sent by their parents to learn human knowledge here.
Du Lulu’s mother was the principal and the only teacher. Du Lulu usually helped her mother by serving meals or checking their homework, and she would come out with her picture book to tell them stories.
Jiang Que pouted, “Don’t bother me, I’m thinking.”
Du Lulu became even more curious at his response. “What else can you be thinking about?”
Jiang Que became anxious, “Why can’t I think! You’re looking down on me. The questions I’m pondering are quite complex.”
Du Lulu smiled mischievously, “I don’t believe you, unless you tell me how complex they are.”
Without hesitation, Jiang Que blurted out all the jumbled and convoluted questions he had just been pondering, then smugly looked at the stunned Du Lulu.
“You see, I’ve mentioned very complex things. Even if I say them, you wouldn’t understand.”
Du Lulu took a moment to recover from her surprise. “…So, the Shen Tazhi who came to pick you up today is actually your brother?”
Jiang Que looked at her strangely, “How did you know his name is Shen Tazhi?”
Du Lulu: …
The news of the young master of the Shen family being unconscious and his parents seeking medical help with a hefty sum was known throughout the capital. How could she not know Shen Tazhi? However, she didn’t emphasize Shen Tazhi’s identity to Jiang Que. They spent their days together, so he should at least know who Shen Tazhi was.
Rubbing her chin, Du Lulu thoughtfully said, “Since you don’t want him to love you out of obligation, then why not try to make him like you instead.”
She smiled and pinched Jiang Que’s cheek, “Our Jiang Que is very cute. Just spend more time with him, and I have a feeling he won’t be able to resist liking you.”
Jiang Que agreed with her reasoning and nodded approvingly, “I think so too.”
With Du Lulu’s advice, Jiang Que quickly shook off his previous despondency, reigniting his determination to make Shen Tazhi like him.
As the days passed quickly, Shen Tazhi, still recovering from his serious illness, had to take a break from school to recuperate. He only had one or two hours of tutoring each evening, which left him time in the mornings to pick up and drop off Jiang Que.
With Shen Tazhi’s help, He Yun was able to fully immerse himself in the work of the Anomaly Investigation Department, while Qi Qiu and Qi Qing were busy with their own tasks.
Since there was no one at Jiang Que’s house, he naturally ended up being sent to Shen Tazhi’s house. Except for the time spent at kindergarten, he spent most of his time beside his new handsome gege.
Even when Shen Tazhi was teaching his evening classes, Jiang Que insisted on sitting next to him, listening intently.
As the days flew by, a week passed quickly, and Jiang Que and Shen Tazhi became more and more familiar with each other.
On that Friday, it was Shen Tazhi who came to pick him up. Jiang Que, carrying his backpack, ran over to Shen Tazhi, holding his gege’s hand with his soft and harmless little tentacles.
“Gege, the teacher said we have the weekend off. Can I come play at your house this weekend?” Finally free from school, Jiang Que was very happy.
“Of course,” Shen Tazhi took his backpack.
He led Jiang Que into the car and asked, “Tomorrow night, I’m hosting a dinner party at my house with many humans. Do you have a way to hide your tentacles?”
The news of his awakening from unconsciousness was not kept secret and quickly spread within a small circle. Shen He and Shen Liushi were the first to arrive with gifts almost on the same day they received the news.
Shen Qingxue and Zhao Ruxin politely entertained them, but as soon as they turned away, they coldly tossed aside the gifts they had brought.
If they had any evidence or clues about the source of the gu worms and didn’t want things to escalate too much within the family, they would have probably just thrown the father and son out. This dinner party was more about testing Shen He and Shen Liushi, trying to catch them making a misstep. If they couldn’t catch anything, they would find a reason to distance themselves from them.
Of course, Shen Tazhi wouldn’t explain these details to Jiang Que. He simply said, “There will be a lot of people, so if you decide to come, stay close to me.”
Upon hearing this, Jiang Que frowned in distress. “I… I can’t hide my tentacles…”
They didn’t teach that at kindergarten, so he had no idea how to do it.
Shen Tazhi reassured him, “It’s okay, the dinner party is boring, and the food won’t be satisfying. You can come find me to play after it’s over.”
Jiang Que still felt a bit downcast. “Okay…”
He had thought he would have a break to play with Shen Tazhi.
The dinner party was truly annoying.
The tentacles that couldn’t be hidden were also annoying.
The tentacles, inexplicably scolded, poked their main body angrily.
[What’s it got to do with us! When we grow up, we’ll learn to hide!]
They should blame the main body for not eating properly; the tentacles shouldn’t have to bear the blame.
Jiang Que grabbed the unruly tentacles, but soon another tentacle started poking angrily. He caught the second tentacle, but then the third one started misbehaving.
Jiang Que became angry and started catching the tentacles one by one, like playing whack-a-mole.
Shen Tazhi couldn’t help but chuckle as he watched Jiang Que playing with his own tentacles.
Jiang Que turned his head and looked at Shen Tazhi with a hint of annoyance, “You’re laughing at me, I dislike you.”
Shen Tazhi: …
Being disliked again.
But it was fine; he was used to being disliked by Jiang Que at least three or four times a day.
Being disliked too much would eventually lead to discovery. When Jiang Que wasn’t angry, his half-playful “dislike” could be equated to “like”.
Dislike it is, just treat it as like.
Because Shen Tazhi’s family was hosting a dinner party the next day, Jiang Que didn’t stay long that evening and went back home early.
Once home, he hurried to Qi Qiu’s bedroom door and knocked.
Qi Qiu was getting ready for bed. Hearing the knock, he got up from the bed, opened the door, and asked, “What’s wrong now? Every time you come back from Shen Tazhi’s, you knock on my door.”
“Let’s be clear, Master has instructed me. I can’t teach you swordsmanship, nor can I teach you talismans and formations. You’re not a celestial master, you can’t learn these things.”
“I don’t know how to become handsome, I don’t know how to grow taller, and I definitely don’t know how to skip straight to high school. Alright, what other questions do you have?”
He finished speaking in one breath, then looked at Jiang Que standing in front of the door.
Jiang Que blinked and asked, “I wanted to know if you know how to make tentacles transparent?”
Qi Qiu: …
Qi Qiu: “I don’t know either.”
Jiang Que disappointedly said, “Why don’t you know anything?”
Before Qi Qiu could respond, Jiang Que closed the door, saying, “Bye, sorry for bothering you, go to sleep.”
Qi Qiu: … His fist clenched again.
What was Jiang Que so disappointed about? Was this something he should know about?!
Why did this guy have so many strange questions?
Qi Qiu, always easygoing, couldn’t figure out where Jiang Que came up with these odd questions. In the end, he could only attribute it to Jiang Que being a child.
“Indeed, children are naive.”
Muttering to himself, Qi Qiu went to bed.
The next day.
Jiang Que woke up as usual.
He Yun had already prepared breakfast, and he ran over obediently. “Auntie, thank you for your hard work today as well.”
He Yun smiled and lifted him onto the stool, “Xiao Que, why did you wake up early when you’re not going to school today?”
Jiang Que ate his breakfast, “Because the teacher said we should sleep and wake up early, and eating breakfast every day helps us grow taller.”
Even though he was a monster who fed on emotions and could go without food, maybe eating an extra human breakfast or having double portions could help him grow faster?
Unable to hold back her laughter, He Yun wanted to stay and keep Jiang Que company, but she had to go to work in the Anomaly Investigation Department today. So, she instructed him, “After you finish your meal, just put the bowl in the dishwasher as usual. Qi Qiu and Qi Qing will wash them together after they finish eating.”
“Okay,” Jiang Que nodded, waving to He Yun, “Auntie, goodbye. I’ll behave and stay at home.”
He Yun patted his head, “Alright, the Shen family is hosting a banquet today, so don’t go causing trouble, okay?”
“I know,” Jiang Que pouted, “I’m not a kid.”
He Yun chuckled at his antics, then hurriedly left after a while.
Qi Qing and Qi Qiu woke up a bit later since they would be practicing spells in the evening and usually slept late. They came out when Jiang Que had already finished eating. Jiang Que didn’t have the strange habit of watching others eat, so after greeting them, he went to the yard to swing on the swing.
The villa they rented was next to the Shen family’s old mansion. Looking from the railing of the small garden, covered in vines, you could see Shen Tazhi’s house. Sitting on the swing, Jiang Que watched as the sparse vehicles entered the Shen family’s old mansion, unable to resist wondering. What was Shen Tazhi doing at that moment?
Would he be like in the photo He Yun showed him, wearing a nice little suit, standing next to Zhao Ruxin with a cold expression?
He hadn’t seen Shen Tazhi with a cold expression yet.
Lost in his thoughts, the roar of a car engine shattered the silence.
Who could it be? So uncivilized.
Frowning, Jiang Que looked up and saw a flashy red sports car driving all the way to the front gate of the Shen family’s old mansion before stopping.
The iron gate that would usually open automatically for vehicles seemed to be malfunctioning this time. The red sports car waited for a while but still couldn’t get through.
Eventually, the driver’s door of the car opened, and a middle-aged man stepped out. He rang the doorbell of the iron gate, muttering something.
The man was very fat, with obesity lines on his face, panting under the sun with greedy eyes.
Jiang Que uncomfortably closed his eyes.
Such unpleasant emotions, just one glance made his head ache.
Not only was there greed, but also resentment, along with a lot of malicious hatred wishing the person in front of him could drop dead.
Jiang Que had never seen such intense malice before in his life. He rubbed his throbbing temples, his tentacles curling up in response.
He passively absorbed emotions, unable to control what kind of emotions he took in. The unintentional intake of the distasteful emotions earlier made his whole body ache.
Uncomfortable, unhappyāhow could Aunt Shen and Uncle Zhao invite such a malicious person to the banquet?
Wait… they wouldn’t be unaware, would they?
Creakā
The swing abruptly stopped swinging.
Jiang Que’s expression changed several times.
If they didn’t know and this human harmed them, what should he do? Should he remind Aunt and Uncle?
Jiang Que stood in place, watching as the iron gate of the Shen family slowly opened, clutching his tentacles that he couldn’t hide no matter what, feeling conflicted.
