Chapter 76: Rare Harmony

Wen Qian was exhausted; her home felt like a Beast Fighting Arena.

The Little Fox sat haughtily on the sofa.

Li Jiu was perched on the head of the swan centerpiece, pecking at the grapes on it.

Chi Heng was nestled on the balcony with his eyes closed, enjoying the breeze.

Yin Zhi impartially detested every other beastman in the house.

Just then, the doorbell rang...

Gu Mian stood outside, quietly looking at Yin Zhi.

After a moment, he walked past the young man and went straight to Wen Qian.

He handed her a milk tea, offering a faint smile.

The milk tea was sweet, but Wen Qian felt a sense of powerlessness, like an eighty-year-old who had hauled sixty buckets of water under eight scorching suns to water vegetables at the edge of the village, only to realize after she was done that it was someone else’s garden.

Because at that moment... the Little Fox’s gaze grew even more reproachful.

He leaned down to her ear and repeated the question, "Exactly how many beastmen do you have?"

Wen Qian didn’t know how she was supposed to count them...

’Am I supposed to add them all up and give him the total?’

’...Can’t he count them himself?’

"Qi Ke." Gu Mian’s gaze landed on the fox, his voice light.

’Our appointment was for Sunday, why is he here today?’

’And at Wen Qian’s house, no less?’

"You’re the one I spoke to on the phone?" The Little Fox glanced at him. Sensing the aura of the Snake Clan on him, Qi Ke pursed his lips in distaste.

’Is the female trying to collect one of every kind?’ he thought.

"Yes," Gu Mian replied. He had originally planned to just drop off the milk tea and leave, but now he’d suddenly changed his mind. He looked at Wen Qian, a slight smile playing on his lips. "I’ll go make dinner."

The next moment, the man walked into the kitchen and casually took an apron from its hook on the wall.

He was clearly staking his claim.

The gazes of a tiger and a fox—four in all—landed on Wen Qian simultaneously.

Wen Qian was a picture of confusion. ’Why are they looking at me... Do I have something on my face?’

Sensing Wen Qian’s confusion, the little tiger immediately ran to the coffee table and snatched the fruit platter away from Li Jiu... He was determined to outdo Gu Mian.

’It’s just cooking, right?’

’I’ll go to the kitchen right now, boil some syrup, and make a candied fruit swan...’

Wen Qian had no idea what he was thinking. She casually scooped up the little bird from the table, placed him on her lap, and started shelling sunflower seeds for him.

Li Jiu, who had been sad about the disappearing fruit platter, was now eating sunflower seeds and had started flapping his wings in excitement again.

The Little Fox was exasperated by this. "Why would you take in such a dumb bird?"

"Li Jiu isn’t dumb," Wen Qian said, defending him. ’He’s a smart bird who can find the Critical Stone, which makes him an incredibly useful asset.’

Hearing this, Li Jiu also opened his tiny beak and chirped at Qi Ke...

Qi Ke said nothing, but a moment later he also grabbed a handful of sunflower seeds and began to shell them.

He shelled them one by one, collecting the kernels in his palm.

Wen Qian thought he was saving them to eat himself, but unexpectedly, once he had a small pile, he poured all the kernels into her hand.

"Th-thank you..." Wen Qian was pleasantly surprised.

’This haughty Little Fox is surprisingly nice,’ she thought.

The Little Fox snorted. "I don’t like eating that stuff."

"Well, thank you anyway," Wen Qian said with a sweet smile.

The next moment, the Little Fox blushed.

He turned his head away and went back to shelling seeds.

At the dinner table, Gu Mian and Yin Zhi brought out the dishes one by one. Yin Zhi placed the candied fruit swan, its neck held high, right in the center...

For once, everyone was in rare harmony.

Wen Qian was about to put some food on a plate for Chi Heng, but he beat her to it, walking up to the dining table and hopping onto a chair.

Wen Qian placed a plate of food in front of him. In his wolf form, Chi Heng ate quietly, looking almost elegant.

The Little Fox had been sitting next to Wen Qian, but Yin Zhi physically moved a stool over and squeezed him out of his spot.

He relentlessly piled food into Wen Qian’s bowl until it looked like a small mountain.

Finally, Gu Mian, unable to watch any longer, also put a few choice pieces on her plate.

’Of course he would; the scheming tiger was only giving her the dishes *he* had made...’

The Little Fox had taken an impromptu leave from his film set that afternoon. Since he had to go back to filming the next day, he left early after dinner.

While Gu Mian and Yin Zhi were cleaning up the kitchen, Wen Qian decided to walk the Little Fox downstairs.

Now that she was full and satisfied, she had finally figured out how to talk to the Little Fox about the Critical Stone.

The nights were getting a little chilly this time of year, so Wen Qian changed into long pants and put on a knit cardigan before following the Little Fox downstairs.

The Little Fox was silent the entire way down, but his dark eyes couldn’t stop stealing glances at Wen Qian.

"To be honest, I didn’t think you’d wait for me." With her hands in her pockets, Wen Qian’s voice was soft.

She hadn’t been able to speak freely in front of Yin Zhi and the others, but now she finally could.

The Little Fox looked taken aback. After a moment, he lowered his gaze, his voice sounding muffled. "I didn’t think I would either."

The day Wen Qian stood him up, he had been furious. In his heart, he blacklisted every single human on Blue Star and swore he would never trust them again.

But still, he couldn’t help but curl up in the most conspicuous spot in the alley, waiting for her all day long.

He’d returned home in a huff, only to reappear at sunrise the very next day.

This repeated for days on end.

Back then, he truly felt that time stretched on forever. He waited quietly every day, but she never came.

He even started to resent how slowly time passed. If it could just go a little faster, then maybe that person would appear sooner.

"Is your name Qianqian?" the Little Fox asked, his head still lowered.

"Yes. My name is Wen Qian." ’Now I remember,’ she thought, ’I never even told him my name.’

The Little Fox’s eyes brightened. Now, even if Wen Qian stood him up again, he would be able to find her.

Qi Ke said, "My name is Qi Ke."

Wen Qian wanted to say, "I know," but she changed it to, "It’s so good to see you again."

In truth, the Little Fox’s life in the alley had not been easy. Food was scarce, the surroundings were filthy, and strange beastmen often prowled the area...

Unlike other beastmen, a fox’s combat abilities weren’t particularly strong.

He was beautiful and musically gifted, but lacked strength... and was often bullied.

But he still chose to stay, figuring that at worst, he just had to be more careful not to be discovered.

But then, the alley was scheduled for demolition. The Little Fox was devastated... He was afraid he would never see that human again.

That is, until he met a fellow member of the Fox Clan and, through sheer effort... became a star on Blue Star.

He moved into a residential building near the old alley, even though it was far from his studio and the rent was shockingly high.

But he still didn’t give up...

What if she suddenly came back one day... and couldn’t find him?

And so, he waited for ten years.

Later, he finally made his debut, gained some fame from a hit short-form drama, and earned a bit of money. The very first thing he did was rent a massive screen and put it on a loop in the most eye-catching location possible.

And just as he’d hoped, she saw it.

See? Waiting had been worth it. Time had not let him down.

"Qianqian, I’m a rich fox now..." Suddenly, the Little Fox lifted his head. His voice was incredibly melodious. "I have enough money for you to keep me."