Back in his room, Shen Yunhao closed the door, and the frustrated and resentful expression on his face immediately disappeared. Instead, he let out a long sigh of relief, walked to the table, poured himself a cup of tea, and drank it all in one gulp.

"I can sense that you don't actually have such a strong desire to have relations with that fox demon, so why were you in such a hurry to act just now?"

Just then, a faint blue light flashed between Shen Yunhao's brows.

A slender figure, seemingly formed from moonlight and cold air, silently appeared beside him.

The woman wore an ice-blue long dress, the hem of which moved without wind, shimmering with a faint ethereal light. Her face was exquisitely beautiful, yet it seemed to be covered by a layer of thin ice that would never melt. She was expressionless, except for a hint of human-like doubt in her clear, cold eyes.

Faced with Shuang'er's sudden appearance, Shen Yunhao smiled slightly, casually pulled over another chair from the table, gestured for her to sit down, and poured her a cup of cold tea as well.

Did I seem particularly anxious just now?

"..."

Shuang'er took the teacup without saying a word, simply gazing at him quietly with her icy blue eyes.

What do you think?

With all that banging on the door and shouting, if we didn't know your identity, the commotion would probably have alerted even the guards of the Demon Emperor's Palace hiding in the shadows, who would have come out to check if some lecherous fellow had dared to harass the little princess...

Shen Yunhao understood what she meant and couldn't help but chuckle.

“Okay, it was a bit rushed.” He nodded in admission. “But… being a little rushed isn’t necessarily a bad thing.”

Upon hearing this, Shuang'er's icy blue eyes deepened with doubt, and she tilted her head, giving off the vibe of a "curious child".

Seeing her like this, Shen Yunhao subconsciously wanted to reach out and pat her head, but he immediately realized his mistake halfway through raising his hand...

The one in front of me is not one of those two little devils I can pet at will. Even though she has acknowledged me as her master, our relationship is more of an equal one. Such frivolous behavior is really inappropriate.

So, his hand, which was halfway outstretched, swung awkwardly in the air for a moment before finally landing back on his head, where he ruffled his hair haphazardly.

"???"

The woman glanced at him, her face still expressionless, but her eyes clearly conveyed the message, "Your action is strange."

“Ahem…” Shen Yunhao coughed twice and slowly explained.

"First of all, no matter the situation or what kind of girl we're facing, we men... at least on the surface, can't back down! Even if we're just pretending, we have to put on a good show, otherwise we'll be laughed at... This is very important!"

Shuang'er blinked; judging from her expression, she clearly couldn't understand this strange theory.

Shen Yunhao didn't expect her to understand immediately, and continued, "Secondly, if I had really shown no interest at the time, given her personality, she would have taken it seriously and forced me into it. If it had come to that, I'm afraid I wouldn't have been able to sleep well tonight..."

He rubbed his temples, seemingly recalling some past experiences. "Of course, this is still considered good; it's just a bit tiring. The real problem is if she comes up with some other messy ideas."

After all, a young girl like her, who has just started dating, is the hardest to read. She might have regretted biting me impulsively and felt guilty, or she might have been secretly sad for days because of my sudden cold attitude. Girls' minds are sometimes so complicated..."

Hearing this, Shuang'er nodded as if she understood.

Although she couldn't fully empathize with those complex and delicate emotions, judging from logic and past experiences, Shen Yunhao did indeed have his own set of effective insights into how to maintain relationships with these women.

"One last thing..." Shen Yunhao held up his third finger, a faint smile on his face, "She must feel bad for messing with me today. In the future, it will be much easier for me to make small requests of her, and she will be more likely to agree. Why not make such a beneficial investment?"

Shuang'er slowly shook her head after hearing this, "Given the nature of that demon princess, she may not feel the so-called guilt you wish for."

Shen Yunhao picked up his teacup, took a slow sip, and spoke with an air of shrewdness and confidence. "Then... let's wait and see."

...

On the other side, Lei Yucheng had lost count of how many cups of tea he had drunk.

He had expected Bai Xiaoruo to make him wait a while, but he didn't expect that Bai Xiaoruo would slowly come out to meet him from the afternoon until the sun was setting...

The little fox had clearly gone back to her room and tidied herself up carefully. She had changed into a clean, moon-white long dress, and her smooth, black hair had been combed again and loosely tied up with a jade hairpin. A few strands of hair fell down to her temples, making her look fresh and lively.

But the first thing Lei Yucheng blurted out when he saw her was, "Boss Bai? Did you just take a shower?"

"..." Bai Xiaoruo paused, her expression freezing instantly. A hint of embarrassment and annoyance flashed in her pink eyes as she glared at Lei Yucheng and said irritably, "You brat... how did you figure that out?"

Lei Yucheng shrank back when she glared at him, but he still obediently pointed behind her, where two fluffy tails were dragging listlessly on the ground.

Unlike its usual lively, glossy appearance, the fur on its tail was drooping and still slightly damp.

"I've never seen your tail wag like that before, Boss Bai. It must have gotten wet and you can't retract it, right?"

Bai Xiaoruo glanced down, her cheeks flushing slightly, and she couldn't help but curse inwardly.

It's all that bastard's fault! My tail was covered in his drool, and I had to go back to my room to wash it for ages. It's not going to dry anytime soon...

For demons, tails and ears are not extremely private parts, so it doesn't matter if they can't be retracted.

But being so accurately exposed by Lei Yucheng in one glance still made Bai Xiaoru feel a little embarrassed, and also a little surprised... She walked to the main seat and sat down casually, raising an eyebrow and saying, "By the way, when did you become so smart?"

Upon hearing this, Lei Yucheng immediately put on a simple, honest smile, scratched his head of white hair, and chuckled, "Hehe, Boss Bai, you flatter me! It's all because I've been spending so much time with you, Boss Bai! As the saying goes, 'One who stays near darkness becomes ink,' so I'm sure I'll become smarter too!"

Bai Xiaoruo felt there was something odd about what he said, but she couldn't quite put her finger on it and didn't bother to investigate further. She waved her hand and said, "Alright, alright, stop being so cocky. You rushed here in such a hurry just to ask if I have any way to help you save people..."

When the conversation turned to business, Lei Yucheng's smile vanished instantly, and he quickly stepped forward. "Boss Bai... to tell you the truth, I'm truly desperate, that's why I've come to beg you! That evil spirit's blood energy is too bizarre. If this drags on any longer, I'm afraid... I'm afraid people will really be gone!"