CH 83

Facing Si Di’s blunt and provocative taunts, for a split second, Xiao Zhenyun really felt the urge to pop another pill and fight him to the death, but thankfully, his reason managed to hold him back. Xiao Zhenyun got out of bed and locked the pills in a cabinet. “Seriously, your butt’s probably sore, and you’re still being stubborn?”

Si Di: “…”

He silently covered his lower half with a blanket and lay down, closing his eyes to rest.

“This place is really nice…” he suddenly remarked, “Quiet and serene, no need for white noise at night… it’s perfect for retirement. At least that ‘Xiao Zhenyun’ had a good taste.”

“But from the timing, location, and secrecy of the purchase,” Xiao Zhenyun took a sip of water, “I suspect he bought this house to imprison Si Chu. Otherwise, the privacy wouldn’t be this good.”

“…Now, looking at this little estate, I suddenly find everything about it annoying,” Si Di muttered.

The car delivering fresh fruits and vegetables to Xiao Zhenyun came once a week, and coincidentally, the day after Si Di arrived was the supply day. At dawn, the high-pitched neighing of a horse echoed loudly outside the house.

The abrupt neigh startled the sentinel, who had fallen asleep without white noise. Si Di instantly covered his ears, burying his head under the blanket in discomfort. Xiao Zhenyun, struggling between sleep and wakefulness, sensed the anomaly beside him. Even before his eyes fully opened, he extended his spiritual link, gently soothing the sentinel’s overstimulated hearing.

Feeling the concern, Si Di immediately clung to Xiao Zhenyun’s waist, nuzzling closer to the guide.

Xiao Zhenyun released a bit of his guiding elements, yawned, “Go back to sleep.” He pushed away the cuddly sentinel, put on his coat, and fitted his prosthetic before getting out of bed.

“Who’s out there?” Si Di asked in a hoarse voice.

“The delivery guy brought stuff—rice, noodles, veggies, milk, and a mishmash of other things… You don’t think the veggies we had yesterday were grown by me, do you?” Xiao Zhenyun brushed his teeth in the bathroom, his voice slightly muffled, “I ordered them online. They deliver once a week, or every two weeks if it’s a light load.”

“…You were woken up so early and you’re not even grumpy?” Si Di, still groggy, wanted to close his eyes, but another question popped up, making him smile. “You’ve gotten used to it.”

“Yeah,” Xiao Zhenyun wiped his face clean, “If you were woken up every morning at five by some wild rooster crowing out of nowhere, you’d get used to it too.”

Si Di snuggled under the warm covers, showing only half of his face, smiling like a satisfied fox. “Poor you. In just two months, even your serious morning grumpiness has been smoothed out.”

“…If you really feel sorry for me, after breakfast, take Tai Ji for a walk around and clear out all those wild chicken nests.”

“Sure,” Si Di tucked in the covers and turned over, intending to catch a few more winks, “Before it leaves, let it pee around the territory. Those wild chickens won’t dare to come close again.”

Xiao Zhenyun chuckled softly, his tone teasing, like feathers tickling Si Di’s heart. Excitedly, Si Di turned over again. “We haven’t had our honeymoon since getting married. How about traveling next month? Where would you like to go… Since it’s getting cold, how about soaking in a hot spring?”

“Next month? It’s only the beginning of this month.”

“I’m waiting for you to become more agile… Also, soaking in hot springs is a highly risky activity. Shouldn’t I give you some time to recuperate? Otherwise, you’ll be watching but not participating…”

“When I couldn’t get it up, you didn’t miss out on anything either.” Xiao Zhenyun gave him a reproachful look, closed the door, and slowly descended the stairs step by step in his slippers. The delivery guy seemed to know the homeowner’s sluggish routine, so after the first neigh of the horse alerted him, he patiently waited by the colt, organizing the goods neatly and moving them to the front door.

Xiao Zhenyun opened the door to the morning light, the faint golden glow reflecting in his smoke-blue eyes, blending into a dazzlingly beautiful hue.

He was greeted with a big smile, and when he looked up, the smile seemed to pause for a moment before becoming even brighter.

“Good morning, Mr. Xiao,” the delivery guy stood outside with a box of fresh milk and another of yogurt. He seemed to have ridden a long way, as he was covered in sweat, his sleeves rolled up to reveal sturdy, tan forearms that contrasted sharply with his teeth, which appeared exceptionally white against his skin. “I’ll help you carry these in. Where did you keep the empty milk bottles from last time?”

Xiao Zhenyun took the shopping list from atop the yogurt and said, “It’s by the fridge. Hold on, I’ll get it.”

“No need, no need, I’ll help you. Your leg’s injured, isn’t it?” The delivery guy entered the kitchen, warm and familiar.

As he passed by, Xiao Zhenyun distinctly caught a whiff of ebony perfume. Holding the pen, he absentmindedly ticked off the dairy on the receipt.

Si Di lay relaxed on the bed, slipping back into a light doze. A minute later, his wolf ears perked up alertly, occasionally twitching. Another minute passed, and he snapped awake, his emerald eyes devoid of sleepiness, brows furrowed tightly as he stared intently toward the bedroom door, more precisely, the direction of the noise downstairs.

Wild chickens indeed!

A wild rooster crowing incessantly in the early morning!

Tai Ji leaped out of the spiritual domain, darting back and forth at the bedroom door, claws tapping on the floor with a clatter. He let out a light howl toward his master, indicating he was ready to take on the task and could easily kill three chickens with one bite.

Si Di ignored him, swiftly tossing off the covers and jumping out of bed, grabbing his clothes, then pausing, realizing something was amiss. He kicked off the pants he had put on, replacing them with the sleep pants he had prepared but never used.

Then he entered the bathroom, brushing his teeth, washing his face, shaving, combing his hair, tidying himself up immaculately. Yet, immediately after, he deliberately messed up his hair again, pinched his right cheek to create a faux flushed look as if he had just woken up, then loosened the collar of his sleep shirt to search for any hickeys. When he found none, he cursed Xiao Zhenyun under his breath for being useless.

After some thought, he deliberately buttoned his shirt wrong, calming himself as the wolf ears and tail retracted. Then, half-squinting, he ‘sleepily’ made his way down the stairs.

Downstairs, after Xiao Zhenyun confirmed the accuracy of the delivered items, he slowly signed the receipt. But as he handed the pen back, he felt the delivery guy, Gena, intentionally brush against the back of his hand.

“…,” Xiao Zhenyun lifted his eyes warily, only to see Gena flashing his trademark smile once again, like a sun-kissed blue-eyed boy.

Gena realized the man in front of him wasn’t the oblivious type, having an extra keen sensitivity to ambiguous and suggestive behaviors. So, stepping forward with a smile, he asked, “The person who came with me last time to deliver, that was my sister, a beautiful lady, wasn’t she?”

“Mm-hmm,” Xiao Zhenyun frowned slightly.

Gena continued, “My sister took a liking to you at first sight. Would you be interested in exchanging contact information with her?”

“No,” Xiao Zhenyun turned around and placed the two boxes of eggs he was holding on the table. “Thanks for her kind offer.”

Seeing his firm rejection, Gena’s face showed no signs of displeasure or disappointment. Instead, his smile deepened with meaning and teasing. He deliberately lowered his voice, “Do you not like women? …If you don’t like my sister, then… how about me?”

“…,” Xiao Zhenyun silently stepped back. “I seem to have mentioned before, I’m married.”

“Hmm, I don’t mind that,” Gena shrugged. “I’ve delivered goods for you five times in the past month, and from what I’ve seen, you’ve been living alone. Even if you’re married, you and your spouse seem to be living separately for a long time… You’re young and handsome, you must have certain needs.”

Gena approached closer. “Mutual consent, mutual benefit. You don’t wear a ring on your ring finger, is that what I think it means? …As long as we keep it between us, no third person will know.”

Xiao Zhenyun already heard the sound of footsteps on the stairs. He couldn’t help but shake his head with a smile. “Sorry.”

“Why?” Gena couldn’t understand why he was rejected. “I’m really good, I can be 1 or 0.”

Si Di stepped out from Gena’s blind spot, sleepily hooking his arm around Xiao Zhenyun’s shoulder, and naturally kissed his cheek, his voice sticky as he asked, “Ah Zhen, why did it take you so long to get a delivery downstairs?”

Oh no, Gena’s proposal came out in front of the real deal. Blushing furiously, Gena tightened his grip on the delivery receipt and pen, momentarily at a loss for words.

Si Di now regretted that special individuals didn’t adopt the custom of wearing marriage rings like ordinary people did. The scent they emitted served as the perfect indicator of their single or committed status, eliminating the need for any external adornments. Moreover, the physiological characteristics of special individuals meant that the vast majority of them would internally digest, with very few exceptions to the union between ordinary people and special individuals. Therefore, most ordinary people, upon seeing the distinctive features of special individuals, such as spiritual body and spiritual fusion forms, would no longer have any other thoughts about them.

But now, Xiao Zhenyun, hiding his identity here in seclusion, inadvertently fueled some ordinary people’s fantasies.

Indeed, his guide, a special agent renowned far and wide for his beauty, how could he leave him alone here?

Si Di belatedly began to panic.

However, as soon as he appeared, the delivery guy quickly retreated, realizing that his advantage lay in his youth and physique. But he hadn’t expected that the lover of the person he had been eyeing for a month surpassed him in every aspect. Not to mention, even if the handsome target agreed to his advances, he would have to consider whether he could withstand a few punches from the silver-haired man when caught in bed.

Forget about threatening words or warning glances, Si Di’s gaze didn’t even linger on Gena for more than half a second. Just this dismissive attitude alone was enough to show the sense of security his lover provided him. Xiao Zhenyun’s tough nut status was evident. Gena, knowing it was hopeless, rode away dejectedly.

“…It’s a bit dangerous for you to live here alone,” Si Di opened the fridge and grabbed a bottle of fresh milk to drink. With a good stomach, he downed half a bottle of chilled milk right after waking up, feeling not the slightest discomfort. “I need to find someone trustworthy to protect you.”

Xiao Zhenyun put the eggs in the fridge as well. “You can rest assured. I found out a few days ago that there’s also a basement under this house.”

“…,” Si Di was now sensitive to the phrase ‘basement’. “Don’t tell me there are pictures of Si Chu on the three walls inside?”

“Close… Well, not really.” Xiao Zhenyun quickly changed his tune under Si Di’s suddenly ‘predatory’ gaze. “The walls are covered with guns and ammunition. If someone breaks in and tries to harm me…”

He made a gesture as if holding a gun, and Si Di quickly kissed the ‘barrel’, asking in a dampening tone, “Can you aim accurately?”

“…,” Xiao Zhenyun, “What should we do then? Send the little dog to protect me?”

“The little dog is the vice captain of my Storm Squad now, busy with official duties.” Si Di said, “It seems like protecting the captain’s guide is a job for the captain himself… I’ll report here every rest day in the future.”

“Si Chu joined the Storm Squad?” Xiao Zhenyun also took a bottle of milk and poured it into the pot to heat. “Did Xiao Nian agree? Didn’t he fight you for it?”

“What does Xiao Nian have to do with this?” Si Di took over the pot, watching Xiao Zhenyun cover the pot worriedly, afraid he might spill the milk on the stove.

Xiao Zhenyun had suffered the consequences of hot milk spilling all over half the stove early in the morning, but he was happy to let someone else do it for him. “According to the original plot, Si Chu should be the captain of the Blaze Squad, not the vice captain of your Storm Squad.”

“Isn’t that a plotline for a year later? …I’ll find another reason to kick him out of the team and let him fend for himself.”

“He’s not your real brother, so you don’t feel bad doing such heartless things to him, huh?”

“Tsk, what are you talking about?”

Hello, everyone ヾ(＾∇＾). I hope you enjoyed the story! If you’re feeling generous, please buy me a coffee, share/comment on my translated works! Check out the link below for early chapters.  (๑>ᴗ