Chapter 31 The Excuse: "I'm willful, reckless, and my own feelings outweigh..."
At this moment, Jiu Su finally couldn't care less about avoiding suspicion—it was better than being caught red-handed by Shu Tong—he silently shrank back under the covers, swam from her stomach to the other side, hid at her waist, and listened warily to the sounds outside.
Shu Qing was on the verge of tears, the strange sensation of the small snake's belly scales rubbing against her waist still lingering. She never imagined that one day she would become the playground for a game of hide-and-seek.
“No…Mom…not at all…” she struggled to say, “I’m still wearing my amulet, nothing will happen…”
Shu Tong had already lifted the blanket on the other side. In a moment of panic, the little snake actually darted into the sleeve of Shu Qing's pajamas and curled itself into a small ball.
Shu Qing: "..."
The snake's breath brushed against her armpits, making her feel a little itchy.
Being so close, she could almost feel his rapid heartbeat.
"What's with this strong feeling of being secretly taken advantage of?" she wondered in disbelief. "Weren't we talking about war and peace under the moonlight?"
“How can I not use it?” Shu Tong said, already lying down. She sighed wearily, “I’ve thought about it a lot, but I can’t just leave it at that. Just let Mom have some peace of mind…”
Shu Qing glanced at her out of the corner of her eye and silently breathed a sigh of relief. No matter what she said, at least the blanket was on.
Since things had come to this, she agreed verbally, rolled over and snuggled up next to Shu Tong to cover for Jiu Su's quiet escape. She muttered coquettishly, "Then I'm going to sleep in tomorrow morning, so don't wake me up."
“You still need to get up and eat breakfast,” Shu Tong’s attention was naturally drawn to her. “Skipping breakfast is bad for your metabolism. I checked, this hotel provides breakfast in the morning, you just need to get up before eight o’clock…”
Shu Qing mumbled "uh-huh" and "ah-ah," her eyes quickly glancing to the other side. A small, snow-white tail flashed and disappeared near the wardrobe door. It seemed Jiu Su planned to hide inside the wardrobe until they fell asleep, then find a chance to escape.
Okay.
Shu Qing closed her eyes with peace of mind and went to sleep, secretly thanking her great mother. If this conversation hadn't been interrupted tonight, she really wouldn't have known how to end it. If Jiu Su didn't get a "good" or "no," he definitely wouldn't have given up.
She couldn't answer this life-or-death question fluently; she needed to think about it more carefully.
Shu Qing fell asleep with this headache all over her head. Fortunately, perhaps because her parents were around, she slept relatively soundly and didn't fuss about staying in bed the next morning. However, she didn't eat the breakfast provided by the hotel because Jiu Su had run back to the kitchen of the photo studio across the street early in the morning to prepare breakfast for everyone.
The two elderly people had never dealt with monsters before, and they never expected that the snake demon could cook. They stared at the table full of colorful and delicious food in silence, thinking: Could it be some kind of illusion, like bird eggs or mice?
Even Qi Yun was seeing Jiu Su's skill for the first time, and he stared in disbelief for a while. Only Shu Qing was used to it, sitting down and stuffing half a xiaolongbao into her mouth, and even taking on the task of promoting it in her mumbled voice: "Delicious! Mom, Dad, you should both try it. His cooking is really good."
Jiu Su smiled at the two elderly people, her manners were polite and well-behaved, and she was also beautiful.
Shu Tong and Zhao Yuqing exchanged a glance, their feelings and expressions quite complicated. Shu Qing noticed this and secretly chuckled—at least, her parents' standards for a son-in-law had clearly been raised considerably.
Surely they wouldn't arrange any "high-paying" or "stable" blind dates for her, would they?
While everyone was engrossed in eating, Jiu Su gave Shu Qing a look: What have you thought about what we talked about last night?
Shu Qing lowered her head to slurp her noodles, using the soup bowl to cover her face: I can't see, I can't understand.
Jiu Su was extremely helpless.
Everyone finished breakfast, each lost in their own thoughts. Shu Qing checked her phone; there was still no word from Jin Wanli, and Jiu Su hadn't received a letter either. She chatted with her parents for a while, then opened her laptop to continue working on her short videos.
The seller of the multi-functional cooker gave her feedback, saying they had no objections to her idea, but requested that it be made more prominent for "family gatherings." So Shuqing started revising the second version.
Jiu Su and she were seated at the same table. Shu Qing was on tenterhooks, afraid that he would come and ask again, "Have you thought it through?"
However, he didn't say anything. While she was making videos on this side, he was making replacement protective items on the other side.
His paper peach blossom had to be replaced every day, just in case. Everyone in the photo studio had one—of course, everyone else only had a red paper talisman that they could just fold up and put in their pockets. Only Shuqing had a delicate paper peach blossom, which he pinned to her collar every day.
Now that Shu Tong and Zhao Yuqing have arrived, they also need protection. Jiu Su folded pine cones and paper cranes for them, specially to bring good luck.
Shu Qing glanced up casually and was drawn to the movements in his hands. After watching for a while, she suddenly had an idea: "What do you think about making some tutorial videos on how to make these amulets?"
Jiu Su glanced at her with a slight smile.
“No,” Shu Qing rejected the idea herself. “This kind of thing can’t be taught haphazardly. If someone makes a mistake, it will cause a huge mess. But once this is over, we plan to officially announce the studio’s status, and my number of followers is about to break six figures, so we can hold a giveaway event to give back to our fans.”
She lowered her head and made a few strokes, then rested her chin on her hand and asked, "Is it possible to make some kind of lucky charm from the feathers that symbolize wealth? It's not good to give something as a gift to ward off disasters, as it's suspected of cursing people to encounter bad luck... but it's much better to change one's luck, and we all believe in that now."
"Sure." Jiu Su, who was folding paper crane heads in her hands, looked up and smiled when she heard this. "What are you planning to use to exchange for it?"
Shu Qing was completely taken aback by his question, "Change?"
"Otherwise, do you want me to do this for free?" Jiu Su said with a half-smile. "You picked me up, so it's only right that I do something for you and your family and friends. But what does your fandom have to do with me? In what capacity should I do this for you—friend, demon pet, or collaborator?"
"..."
Well, I knew he wouldn't let this go so easily.
Escaping is useless; continuing to ponder deeply is nothing more than fighting against one's own selfish desires.
Shu Qing put down the pressure-sensitive pen, looked directly at Jiu Su, and said, "I actually really want to agree. But after thinking it over, I still think it's not possible."
Jiu Su's face was expressionless as he looked at her indifferently. The smile on his lips disappeared as if the tide had receded, and he reverted to the cold and distant demeanor he had shown when they had just met.
"I am... well, I am indeed an emotional person," Shu Qing said frankly. "I am willful, unrestrained, and my own feelings are above everything else. I am the kind of person who will quit my job if I am unhappy, or even 'reorganize the workplace'. I can't buy happiness with money, and if someone makes me feel bad, I will definitely make them feel even worse in return."
Jiu Su gave a vague laugh, which seemed to be both an expression of appreciation and a hint of sadness.
"So someone like me, you really don't need to worry about what would happen to me if my boyfriend left one day or something," Shu Qing continued. "My family, my friends, my business partners, the viewers of my videos, my career... these are all very important to me."
"For modern people like us, love is just a seasoning. 'Love to the death' or 'the living can die for each other' doesn't exist. Meeting someone you like..." she changed her mind, "even a monster is fine. Living together for a while is good enough. When fate brings us together, we come together; when fate separates us, we part ways. That's normal. Why make such a big deal out of it?"
"Are you saying that there's no difference between agreeing and not agreeing..." Jiu Su asked, "Then why not?"
“Because although we can give up love, we cannot give up our conscience,” Shu Qing replied righteously. “If I agreed to such an unequal treaty, my conscience would not allow it.” She paused, then added, “Besides, I can’t do it.”
Jiu Su lowered his eyes; the paper crane in his hand was crumpled and wrinkled. He absentmindedly tossed it aside and picked up a new sheet of paper. The pen tip hovered in the air, unable to write; a drop of vermilion ink fell, ruining another sheet.
"Why don't you think about it again?" Shu Qing suggested while he was in a daze. "Anyway, this is my attitude. Either you don't force it and we let things take their course, or you can pretend that nothing was said last night."
Jiu Su did not answer. He put down his pen and silently stared at the talisman paper, but upon closer inspection, his eyes were actually unfocused.
She put it nicely. She talked about family, friends, career…
Didn't Lady Xiashan, who lived 1,700 years ago, have friends all over the world and a reputation that filled the immortal capital? Didn't she have friends, siblings, career aspirations, and ideals?
But in the end, he still gave up everything and came to the deserted island where he died, choosing to die with him.
If he stays, but she refuses to sever ties with him, how can he guarantee that Shu Qing will live a peaceful life in this lifetime, and that her life won't end as tragically as it did in her previous life?
He stood there in a daze for a while, not knowing what to do, until Shuqing reminded him, "Hey, your phone."
Jiu Su then realized what was happening and answered the phone—it was Jin Wanli on the other end. Ever since Shu Qing got Jiu Su a phone and SIM card, he would contact Jiu Su first whenever he needed something, quickly abandoning Shu Qing, the person who had actually reported the incident to the police. If it weren't for the fact that this person was reliable, Shu Qing would definitely have given him a big thumbs down.
Jiu Su turned on speakerphone, and Jin Wanli's voice, mixed with the noisy background noise, came through the microphone:
"Are you still at that hotel? We've found out, and this isn't as simple as it seems. It's gotten complicated, and it seems to involve several unresolved cases we reported earlier... It's hard to explain over the phone, but in short, this is a bit complicated. It's not just about one studio and one business. I'm coming to find you now!"
He shouted his words, as the sirens and horns blared, creating the atmosphere of an accident scene. Jin Wanli seemed to be rapidly moving away from the scene; he finished his sentence with a series of rapid-fire words and hung up. The static gradually subsided before abruptly ceasing.
Jiu Su's expression shifted slightly.
At this moment, the people next door also heard the commotion and gathered in Shu Qing's room, asking all at once, "What happened?"
"I don't understand either. Let Minister Jin explain later..." Shu Qing glanced downstairs casually, shrugged, "Oh, he's already here."
-----------------------
Author's Note: I've revised a section from the previous chapter.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
