Chapter 29 Each Has Secrets

Chapter 29: Each With Their Own Secrets

These past few days, Fu Rangyi’s browser search history had expanded beyond archaeology-related topics and the newly added travel vlogger to include a lot of supernatural searches.

For example: [What does it mean when you see things others can’t?]

Most of the answers were pseudoscientific superstitions, like having yin-yang eyes.

But that was off base. Zhu Zhixi wasn’t seeing ghosts.

Though, given his exceptional social skills, even if he did encounter a ghost, he’d probably befriend it.

Fu Rangyi suddenly wondered if Zhu Zhixi could cash out a lot of money from some group purchase app.

Now he was really missing the point.

Searching [A countdown appears on my hand, but no one else can see it]

Like before, most of the results were unreliable—either fiction or TV shows. He scanned them but found no real-world cases of similar experiences.

No matter how much research he did or how thoroughly he combed through information, he couldn’t find any identical cases.

Something like this would seem like a prank or a fairy tale to anyone. To the understanding of the world he’d built over the years, it was an unsolvable puzzle. But the more he carefully reviewed the details of his interactions with Zhu Zhixi, the more he began to believe it might be real.

Going back to their first blind date, Zhu Zhixi hadn’t initially shown any strong desire to marry. In fact, he’d outright stated he was an infertile Beta (a person in ABO dynamics who cannot reproduce)—clearly a way to sabotage himself.

But then their hands accidentally touched, and Zhu Zhixi had even held his hand. Just like many times afterward, Zhu Zhixi had found ways, intentionally or not, to make physical contact with him, and afterward, he’d always check his palm. Now, it seemed like he was relying on Fu Rangyi to keep him alive.

If all these details were just an act, then Zhu Zhixi was truly a brilliant actor, completely immersed in his role.

He sent a message to Li Jiao.

[Living Dad (a playful nickname for a father figure): I have a medical question for you.]

He briefly described the countdown situation and asked if it could be some kind of ophthalmological condition, like "floaters."

[Li Jiao: I knew your wife had to have something wrong with him—his brain just doesn’t work like a normal person’s.]

[Living Dad: There’s no need to be so harsh.]

[Li Jiao: ? Who’s the one calling me harsh? Oh, it’s Fu Rangyi, the harshest speaker in the world.]

[Li Jiao: You don’t actually believe him, do you? No way. We were educated in scientific materialism!]

[Living Dad (health product salesman mode): He’s been getting frequent nosebleeds lately and claims he has a serious illness, that he won’t live long. Whether the countdown is real or not, I want to take him for a full physical exam. Help me arrange it.]

[Li Jiao: Am I the family doctor in your little romantic drama, on call in the middle of the night?]

[Living Dad (health product salesman mode): Remember that single *Omega* professor you ran into last time at our institute? I can introduce you.]

[Li Jiao: !]

[Li Jiao: Ha! Like a little checkup is any problem? Leave it to me—top-tier service, we won't miss even the tiniest cyst or stone. 100% thorough.]

[Living Dad (in matchmaker mode): Waiting for your update.]

[Li Jiao: Hold on, you said Zhu Zhixi told you he has a serious illness. Why not just ask him what it is? Why go through all this trouble for a full physical exam? If you want it as thorough as possible, there'll be tons of tests—it’ll take a whole day.]

Fu Rangyi stared at the message, frozen over the keyboard.

Of course he had thought about asking directly, but Zhu Zhixi was completely blank the next morning, so thrilled about being able to touch that he practically bounced with excitement. Fu Rangyi was worried that bringing up the previous night’s conversation about his mother would upset him again. For a while, he couldn’t find the right opportunity to ask.

Later, despite not having called home in ages, he made a special call to his father to subtly inquire about Zhu’s mother. Only then did he learn that Zhu Zhixi’s mother had passed away from cancer—the kind that runs strongly in families.

Connecting the dots, Fu Rangyi had a rough guess. But deep down, he refused to accept it, convinced that it was most likely a mistake on Zhu Zhixi’s part or a hospital error—could've even been someone else's test results. Mistakes like that happen.

Well. Fu Rangyi corrected himself mentally. Okay, maybe not "happen," but there was still a probability.

[Old Man (Matchmaker Edition): I think the doctors he’s seen aren’t as reliable as your connections. I’ll leave it to you. Let me know the time and place once it’s scheduled.]

After exiting WeChat, Fu Rangyi opened his phone’s memo app—[Bunny Care Plan]—and added a line at the bottom.

[4. Put in for time off ahead to accompany him for the checkup.]

Toward the end of the workday, a colleague brought up the dinner gathering again. Fu Rangyi doubted whether Zhu Zhixi would have time to attend. He seemed unusually busy lately, often coming home very late at night, even though the museum was only open during daytime hours.

Yet despite this, Zhu Zhixi had genuinely kicked his sleep-in habit. Every morning, without fail, he would drag himself out of bed to see Fu Rangyi off at the door. Before leaving for work, Zhu Zhixi would ask to 'recharge his life' by holding hands, and Fu Rangyi would subtly let out some pheromones—these had almost become part of their daily routine. Even when Zhu Zhixi was so sleepy he could barely keep his eyes open, he would still shuffle over with his hand already reaching out.

His half-asleep hand was warm and even softer than usual. It felt especially nice to hold.

After savoring the memory, Fu Rangyi was about to subtly fish for information about the busy man’s recent schedule when the man in question sent a message first.

[Bad Bunny: Fu Rangyi!]

[Bad Bunny: Isn’t tomorrow S University’s New Year Cultural Festival? My junior is in the drama club and hooked me up with two tickets. He’s performing too, and I heard the script is pretty fun. Want to go with me? We can also check out your school while we're there.]

[Bad Bunny: Reply "YES" to reject, reply "YESYES!" to accept.]

[Dashing Widower: NO.]

[Bad Bunny: "NO" means "I can’t wait to go!" See, you didn’t even let me finish typing before jumping in—so impatient ^^]

After shooting off the texts, Zhu Zhixi stuffed his phone into his pocket and pushed open the gate of the stray animal shelter alone.

Ever since that day when he accidentally discovered Liang Yien’s secret—taking different animals out for "classes" every day—he had tried every way to pry for details. But Liang Yien was tight-lipped about it. Whenever Zhu Zhixi asked if he was dating someone, the guy would dodge the question, saying he’d been too busy with rehearsals lately and even invited him to watch the drama performance at the cultural festival.

[Zhixi-senpai: What’s the script about? Don’t tell me it’s Snow White.]

[Xiao En: ?? Why Snow White?]

Who else has a tragic backstory, a pretty face, and the ability to summon animals? You’d be perfect for the role—Disney would send you a cease-and-desist.

[Xiao En: No, it’s a script written by a junior. Basically, a terminally ill human girl meets the angel come to take her. Over her last few days, they fall in love, and in the end, the angel gives up his power to save her, disappearing afterward.]

Such a clichéd fairy-tale plot.

And yet, weirdly familiar.

For some reason, the first image that popped into his mind was Fu Rangyi with a pair of giant wings. But he quickly shook it off.

Him wearing a black cloak and wielding a scythe to collect me would make more sense.

[Zhixi-senpai: An angel collecting her? Is this a grim reaper angel or White Impermanence?]

[Zhixi-senpai: You’re playing the angel?]

[Xiao En: No.]

[Zhixi-senpai: You’re playing the terminally ill girl? Cross-dressing?] Your drama club director has… interesting taste.

[Liang Yien: I was originally in charge of props, but the director felt the dramatic conflict wasn’t enough, so they added a last-minute simp/second male lead role. She said I have a tragic second-lead look that makes the audience instantly empathize, so she made me take the part...]

Zhu Zhixi laughed for a long time at this message, thinking that attending the performance would also give him a chance to visit Fu Rangyi at S University—two birds, one stone. So he readily agreed, snagged an extra ticket, and took the opportunity to inquire about Liang Yien’s rehearsal schedule. He found a time when Liang Yien would definitely not be at the animal rescue center and sneaked over to see if there was anything unusual.

Having known Liang Yien this long, he was well aware of his personality. If it was something Liang Yien found hard to talk about, it must be a big issue, and he wouldn’t say a word until he had figured it out himself.

But Zhu Zhixi was an extremely curious person—he couldn’t wait at all.

As soon as he entered the small courtyard, the rescued dogs greeted him enthusiastically, their barks overlapping. Zhu Zhixi immediately ran over, scratching each pup behind the ears to soothe them, then opened the cans he had brought to feed the cats and dogs. He also let a few of the larger dogs out of their cages to romp around the front and back yards.

He had turned off all the room monitors, expecting the place to look totally transformed. But when he went inside, it was spotless as usual—shelves filled with dog and cat food along with basic medical supplies, a bed, a sofa, a second-hand TV left by the landlord, and nothing else.

This was strange. If Liang Yien really had a bird or a snake, there should at least be a cage or a tank.

And taking a different animal out every day—was this some kind of familiar?

[46 days, 10 hours, 31 minutes, 28 seconds]

Staring at his palm, he suddenly fell into deep thought. When had this countdown appeared? Wasn’t it the day he returned to the country and picked up that little dog? Picked up the dog, fainted, woke up—and the countdown was imprinted on his hand, never disappearing since.

Could it be… that the little white dog wasn’t actually a dog, but some kind of supernatural dog yokai? I saved it, and now it wants to return the favor by warning me that I’m going to die soon, so it put a curse on me to make me see this countdown?

Liang Yien also said he picked up a dog. Liang Yien takes a different animal out every day.

Zhu Zhixi suddenly gasped.

Could it really be a spirit? A little white dog yokai that can shapeshift into other animals!

He immediately called Liang Yien. Whether or not Liang Yien was busy rehearsing, it took a long time for him to answer.

“What’s up, prince?”

Zhu Zhixi chuckled. “I just suddenly remembered—you told me before that you picked up a little dog, right? I’m jonesing for a dog fix. Do you have a photo? I wanna see.”

“A photo… I think I have one. Let me check.”

As soon as Liang Yien spoke, Zhu Zhixi keenly noticed a child’s voice in the background—sugar-sweet, calling out something like…

“Brother?” He accidentally muttered aloud.

Liang Yien: “Who are you calling? Is Professor Zhu with you?”

“Ah, no.”

“…Your man? You two are that close now? Calling him ‘brother’?”

How dare you flip the script on me!

His phone vibrated—Liang Yien had sent the dog photo.

“Sent you the photo. Gotta go.”

Zhu Zhixi lowered his head to look at it, disappointed.

This dog was clearly a samoyed. The one he had encountered was a small dog, thin, wearing a blue collar, with its left paw curled up.

No match. Maybe I really was overthinking it? After all, supernatural stuff isn’t exactly common...

*Crash!*—A loud noise came from the backyard. Zhu Zhixi followed the sound and found two little dogs fighting, accidentally knocking over a clothesline pole.

"You guys really know how to pile work on me," Zhu Zhixi muttered as he walked over, propping up the rack and crouching to pick up the scattered clothes one by one.

As he picked them up, he suddenly froze. He picked up one item, held it up, and unfolded it.

"This was a child’s sweater, wasn’t it?" Judging by the size, Zhu Zhixi estimated it was for a kid around… four or five years old?

Suddenly, he recalled the child’s voice he’d heard in Liang Yien’s room and over the phone.

He rushed to the bedroom and, sure enough, found a pair of children’s cotton slippers under the bed. In the bathroom, he also discovered a small frog-themed toothbrush and a child-sized towel.

Zhu Zhixi’s mind raced again. Between the possibilities of Liang Yien secretly having a child years ago with some guy or encountering a shape-shifting imp, he firmly chose the latter. Not for any particular reason—it’s just that Liang Yien would’ve told him about murder, let alone a kid.

The thought suddenly excited him.

If the strange things happening to Liang Yien were really connected to his countdown, maybe this problem might disappear too.

Despite not having a shred of evidence, Zhu Zhixi happily indulged in his fantasies—until Zhu Zeran’s call snapped him back to reality.

"Where are you right now?"

Zhu Zhixi was confused but answered honestly, "The stray animal shelter. What, are you coming to see me? Might as well bring some donations, CEO Zhu."

Zhu Zeran arrived in under half an hour, finding Zhu Zhixi playing with one of the cats.

"How many times do I have to tell you? If you’re allergic, stay away from cats. You trying to get yourself killed?"

"The cat came to me first," Zhu Zhixi stood up, pouting. "And I’m keeping my distance, see? What do you want? I called you back, but you were too busy to answer. Don’t blame me."

The moment Zhu Zeran got close, he frowned.

Dressed in an expensive tailored coat—probably avoiding cat hair—he didn’t even sit down. Instead, he dramatically tossed a sealed folder at Zhu Zhixi and cut straight to the chase: "Divorce Fu Rangyi."

"Huh?" Zhu Zhixi was stunned. This wasn’t how the script was supposed to go.

Whose side are you on? Shouldn’t you be handing this to Teacher Fu with a line like, ‘Divorce my brother, and all this is yours’?

Though a five-million-dollar check probably wouldn’t sway Teacher Fu. Offering him five undiscovered archaeological sites might work better.

"Eldest Zhu, is your tycoon complex acting up again? What’s this performance about?" Zhu Zhixi didn’t even want to look inside the folder. "Just say what you want directly."

Zhu Zeran let out a bitter laugh. "Who’s the real drama queen here? How long are you two going to keep up this fake marriage act? I’ve had enough. I didn’t expose you in front of Dad, thinking your little game wouldn’t amount to anything. But enough is enough."

"Then keep watching. Stay out of my business," Zhu Zhixi deflected. "Hey, let me see my sister-in-law—"

Zhu Zeran’s expression darkened. "Fu Rangyi has malignant rut syndrome."

"I’ve known forever," Zhu Zhixi sighed in relief. "I thought it was something new. I’ve known forever."

"You knew?" Zhu Zeran said exasperated. "You think this is some trivial matter? This condition means he can’t control himself during his rut—he could become violent, could hurt people. Once he loses rationality, you have no idea what could happen. Stop being naive."

"It’s not as bad as you’re making it out to be," Zhu Zhixi shot back. "I stayed with him during his last rut. Nothing happened. He’s got way more control than you think."

"Each episode is different. This time was mild, but next time he might completely lose it." Zhu Zeran massaged his temples. "You shouldn’t be with someone so unstable. It’s safer to separate, or at least move back home."

"No."

"If it’s a fake marriage, why not?" Zhu Zeran said exasperated. "Zhu Zhixi, don’t tell me you’ve gone and fallen for him?"

Zhu Zhixi’s face flushed. "What nonsense are you spouting?!"

Zhu Zeran went all out, his words rapid-firing like a machine gun: "Then what's with the scent on you? Did he scent-mark you to warn other Alphas away? If nothing happened during his rut, why do you have a band-aid on the back of your neck? Did you trip and land your neck on his teeth? In a few days, are you planning to 'accidentally' end up in his bed on top of him?"

Zhu Zhixi, who had always been quick-witted and rarely lost in their twenty-plus years of verbal sparring, found himself at a loss for words under Zhu Zeran's interrogation this time. This only fueled his frustration even more.

"You! It's not what you think at all. Our relationship is strictly business, each getting what they need. Besides, he already came clean about everything you found out to me. We—"

Zhu Zeran crossed his arms and pinned him with a stare. "Then what about that time in high school when he hurt his physics teacher during rut? Did he confess that too?"

Author's Note:

————Mini Theater: Failed Morning Check-in————

Zhu Zhixi had been lying awake night after night, spinning wild fantasies about Liang Yien's secret and the countdown. It severely affected his rest.

So, on this particular morning, he didn’t wake up to his alarm. When he finally opened his eyes, it was already 10:30 a.m.

Fu Rangyi had an 8 a.m. class and had long since left—probably almost finished teaching by now.

Zhu Zhixi got up, zapped the stone-cold breakfast in the microwave, and ate his lonely breakfast in silence, staring blankly at his palm.

But in reality—

Before leaving for work, Teacher Fu made a show of deciding on shoes, changing them back and forth, stalling for quite a while. When Xiao Zhu still didn’t appear, he quietly made his way to the guest bedroom, knocked twice on the door, and pushed it open.

A human-shaped lump was curled up under the blankets, the curtains tightly drawn—Xiao Zhu was still fast asleep.

Wrestling with the decision for ten long seconds, Fu Rangyi finally whispered from the doorway, "I'm coming in."

He stepped inside, carefully navigating the clutter on the floor, and approached the bed. After standing there for two seconds, he crouched down, carefully tucked the blankets around Xiao Zhu, found his warm hand, held it, interlaced their fingers for five seconds, then let go.

"Has it paused?" Fu Rangyi murmured to himself, placing Xiao Zhu’s hand back under the covers and neatly arranging the blankets. Then he tiptoed out of the room.

In his daily checklist on his phone, he ticked off the morning routine item, got in his car, and drove to work.