Chapter 33: A Helping Hand

Chapter 33: A Helping Hand

Shen Junlan pondered earnestly, stammering, "Whatever... is fine, I guess."

Grandpa Tree was right; he truly was slow-witted, failing to grasp many things. It was one thing to miss Huo Yanchi's hints, but he couldn't even comprehend direct statements.

The emerald-green leaves in the flowerpot all drooped. Shen Junlan curled into a ball, becoming a pitiful little lump, one that seemed to be constantly deflating.

Huo Yanchi poked Shen Junlan’s soft little belly, thinking his own reaction had startled him. The words he had been about to utter took a detour, turning into reassurance.

"Xiao Yezi, change back, okay? I can’t see your face like this. I don’t know if my Xiao Yezi is crying again."

Shen Junlan sniffled, retorting in a muffled voice, "I’m not."

He had wanted to cry but was afraid Huo Yanchi would be upset.

"Good little leaf, change back."

Under Huo Yanchi’s gentle coaxing, Shen Junlan slowly transformed back. He leaned into Huo Yanchi’s embrace, turning slightly to secretly wipe the corner of his eye.

"Huo Yanchi, am I very stupid?"

Shen Junlan’s voice was low, hoarse, and tinged with bitterness. He bit his lip, trying hard to hold back the tears welling in his eyes.

"Not at all. My Xiao Yezi is the smartest. It’s my fault—I shouldn’t have made you guess. Xiao Yezi, let’s play another game. Have you noticed anything unusual about me?"

The two were pressed extremely close. Shen Junlan squirmed uncomfortably, feeling something hard against his lower back—something... hot.

"Are you... uncomfortable?"

Shen Junlan looked at Huo Yanchi blankly, then shifted and sat up to face him directly.

"Huo Yanchi, do you mean... you want me to help treat your illness?"

Staring into those pure, watery eyes, Huo Yanchi’s Adam’s apple bobbed. He quickly covered Xiao Yezi’s eyes, afraid that the words he was about to say would be a desecration to him.

"Xiao Yezi, this isn’t an illness. It’s love."

Love—Huo Yanchi’s love for him.

The sound of fabric rustling echoed in his ears. The next moment, Shen Junlan was lifted into the air. His heart tightened, and he quickly wrapped his arms around Huo Yanchi’s neck.

The bathroom door was practically kicked open by Huo Yanchi, filled with an urgency and restlessness that Shen Junlan couldn’t quite describe.

His heart raced, but when he caught sight of Huo Yanchi’s bright red earlobes, he suddenly felt reassured.

No matter what, Huo Yanchi would never harm him.

The bathroom lights were as bright as day. Shen Junlan was held by Huo Yanchi and placed on the sink. He braced his hands on either side, meeting his gaze.

"Xiao Yezi, didn’t you used to love bathing with me? Are you still willing to bathe together today?"

"Of course."

Shen Junlan hopped down from the sink and without hesitation took off his bothersome shirt.

"Huo Yanchi, come on, let’s go together."

Under the bright light, Shen Junlan also noticed Huo Yanchi’s unusual condition.

"Master, actually, there are some things you can teach me. If I don’t understand, I can learn. Really."

The word "sex" seemed inherently not to suit his Xiao Yezi. Huo Yanchi leaned against the cold tiles, letting the cold water rush over him. He pinched the bridge of his nose, and when he spoke, his voice mingled with the sound of water—blurred yet determined.

"Xiao Yezi, when you like someone, you’ll have this kind of reaction. When you like someone so much that it becomes a natural instinct, you’ll understand."

"That won’t happen, Huo Yanchi. In this lifetime, I’ll only like you."

Huo Yanchi had only been part of eight years of his 323-year life, but those eight years meant far more than the previous 315. There would never be anyone else like Huo Yanchi—he could never like anyone else.

"My heart is very small—it can only hold you. Huo Yanchi, I’ll get the hang of it quickly."

As their eyes met, Huo Yanchi felt as if his entire body were on fire, nearly consuming all his self-control.

He slowly moved closer to Shen Junlan, pressing him against the wall. His trembling hand grasped Shen Junlan’s wrist and guided it to the source of heat.

"Xiao Yezi, let me teach you, okay?"

Shen Junlan flinched at the heat. He swallowed uncomfortably and let out a very soft "Mm."

Though it felt strange, it wasn't unpleasant at all.

"Master, will I be like this in the future too?"

Huo Yanchi let out a soft grunt. He wasn’t sure and couldn’t say. Avoiding Xiao Yezi’s probing gaze, he felt a pang of guilt—he had wronged Xiao Yezi.

"Then... will you help me too?"

After a long pause, Huo Yanchi let out an "Mm."

"Xiao Yezi, the clothes you bought were for this purpose. From now on, don’t just listen to Xiao Que’s bad advice."

Huo Yanchi hissed softly. Even while guiding Xiao Yezi, he was still clumsy. Truth be told, he wasn’t very skilled either.

"No, I have to listen. See, after listening to Xiao Que, we’ve spiced things up. I’ll ask Xiao Que for more advice in the future."

Oh no, it seemed he had made things worse again.

The temperature in the bathroom kept rising, and even the cold water couldn’t cool Huo Yanchi down.

"Huo Yanchi, why isn't this working? My wrist is sore."

"Mm, almost there."

Huo Yanchi responded distractedly. He leaned closer to Xiao Yezi, pressing a light, tender kiss to the tip of his ear—a kiss without a hint of vulgarity.

"Xiao Yezi, say it—you like me."

"Huo Yanchi, I like you the most, most, most, most."

After the bath, Shen Junlan went to wash his hands again. Huo Yanchi held him in his arms, his hands covered in soapy bubbles.

His palms were slightly red, water droplets sliding down his fingertips. The next moment, Huo Yanchi gently kissed them.

"Xiao Yezi, is it still sore?"

"No, it feels better after you kissed it. Huo Yanchi, why haven’t there been any nutrient solutions lately?"

After he said this, he clearly felt Huo Yanchi freeze. Before he could figure out why, Huo Yanchi said, "If you like it, we'll have some tomorrow."

For some reason, Shen Junlan felt restless and flustered, unconsciously holding onto Huo Yanchi's arm.

"No, I don’t need it lately. What I meant is, we already have enough fertilizer—don’t waste money buying more nutrient solution. We should save a bit. I don’t want you to work too hard."

Huo Yanchi’s fingers brushed unintentionally over the scars on his wrist as he responded with an absent-minded hum.

He said, "Better to wait." He didn’t want to waste Xiao Yezi’s spiritual power. If Xiao Yezi found out, any explanation would sound weak.

"Xiao Yezi, let’s go to bed."

Huo Yanchi picked up the tattered cloth from the floor first, examined it carefully, and confirmed it was exactly what he thought.

"Maybe we should just throw it away. It’s just a little expensive—even torn clothes cost so much. What a shame."

Shen Junlan felt sorry about the money—it was money Huo Yanchi worked hard for, and he didn’t want to discard it carelessly.

"It’s fine, Xiao Yezi. You can wear it later. I’ll wash it and put it away for now."

Shen Junlan couldn’t think of any occasion where he’d need it, so he gave an offhand 'oh' and went to warm up the bed for Huo Yanchi.

"Good night, Huo Yanchi. I wish for nice-smelling fertilizer when I wake up tomorrow."

"Alright, good night, Xiao Yezi."

***

The next morning, Shen Junlan not only enjoyed the nice-smelling fertilizer but also got to nibble on a nice-smelling Huo Yanchi.

Shen Junlan stretched lazily like a satisfied little spirit, squirming around on the bed before finally getting up.

"Xiao Yezi, stay home. Work's been busy lately, and if you come, I’ll only think of you and won’t be able to focus."

"Alright."

Just as Shen Junlan bid farewell to Huo Yanchi, he noticed Xiao Que hiding sneakily behind the door, chirping 'jiu jiu jiu' at him.

"Xiao Que, you're disloyal and ungrateful! You just abandoned me and ran off!"

Xiao Que felt a little guilty. He chirped twice and rubbed against Shen Junlan’s cheek as a way of apologizing.

"I don’t need to lie down? I'm not tired."

Xiao Que chirped in surprise, thinking to himself, *Could it be that Huo Yanchi can't do it? Doesn't seem like it.* Then it occurred to him that Jun Lan’s constitution might be different—after all, he’s a flower, not a human.

"What do you mean, ‘can't do it’? Xiao Que, I don’t get your meaning. Huo Yanchi didn’t hit me yesterday. It’s just… well…"

Shen Junlan started but couldn’t finish the sentence, mumbling instead, "My hand just hurt a little. Huo Yanchi isn’t as scary as you think. He cares about me deeply and wouldn’t let me suffer any harm."

Xiao Que fully agreed, figuring Huo Yanchi must have taken it easy on him out of concern for Jun Lan.

"Oh, then I’m relieved. I was worried your back might hurt, so I came specially to give you a massage."

Xiao Que exaggeratedly jumped on Shen Junlan’s lower back, his efforts like tickling more than actual massage, though his intentions were good.

"Did he tell you not to play with me, Jun Lan? I can’t live without you."

"No, Huo Yanchi isn’t like that. He didn’t say anything. If anything, I should learn more from you. There’s so much I don’t understand—if I’m too slow, Huo Yanchi might get tired of me."

Shen Junlan brought Xiao Que to the study, where shelves upon shelves of books lined the walls. He spoke a few titles and asked Xiao Que which one he should start with.

"You should look at your phone more—it has everything."

And so, one flower and one bird happily spent the morning scrolling on their phones.

Meanwhile, Huo Yanchi received a call from Lin Hang.

"Yanchi, I found the surveillance footage you asked for. It was indeed Huo Yaoyang. Tsk, he’s really vicious. The people he hired weren’t just ordinary thugs—two of them had done time for rape. His intentions are obvious."

Huo Yanchi gave a cold 'hmm,' his eyes icy. Huo Yaoyang’s previous schemes against him were trivial, but if he dared target Xiao Yezi, he’d have to pay for it.

"Lin Hang, does the Lin family still have business dealings with the Huo Corporation?"

With that one question, Lin Hang understood Huo Yanchi’s meaning. After all these years, it was time to settle their past grievances.

"No, after you started your company, I told my family. You know how much Grandpa adores you. Someone like Huo Qu isn’t worth collaborating with—we’ve basically stopped all business dealings."

"Understood. No one knows better than me what the Huo Corporation values most. Since they can’t manage it properly, I’ll take over."

Huo Yanchi had been planning this move for three years. It was time to begin.

Step one: start with what the Huo Corporation was most proud of—new energy.

"By the way, Huo Yanchi, how did you train that bird of yours? If I buy one, can you teach me how to train it too?"

Truth be told, Huo Yanchi hadn’t even gotten a clear look at Xiao Que. He was more concerned that it wasn't the bird who was remarkable, but Xiao Yezi, who could communicate with all things.

"That’s Xiao Yezi’s friend, not a pet we bought. He’s just staying temporarily in the poplar tree in our garden. Xiao Yezi usually feeds him, so he’s friendly."

Lin Hang said with regret, "That’s so cool—like being an animal tamer."

"Yanchi, no matter what, if you need anything, just say the word. The Lin family will always have your back no matter what."

Huo Yanchi felt a warmth in his heart, his lips curling unconsciously. "Thank you."

"Tsk," Lin Hang brushed off goosebumps from his arms. "I can’t stand this. Go away, go away—don’t let me hear those words again. I’m hanging up."

Between them, saying "thank you" felt too formal.

After assigning the specific work for dealing with the Huo Corporation, Huo Yanchi checked the time—it was almost noon. There wasn’t a single message from Xiao Yezi on his phone.

*Hah, and this is supposed to be Xiao Yezi’s proof that he 'can't stand being apart from me, missing me every second'?*

The video call rang out for a full 34 seconds before Shen Junlan answered.

The first thing Huo Yanchi saw was Xiao Que’s dark, beady eyes.

Puzzled, Huo Yanchi hummed, and only then did the camera shift to Xiao Yezi’s face. His eyes were slightly red, as if bloodshot.

"Xiao Yezi, did you miss me?"

"I did, I did! I squeezed in thoughts of you all morning."

*Mostly, the phone was too entertaining, so I forgot about Huo Yanchi.*

Seeing Shen Junlan’s guilty expression, Huo Yanchi understood completely. He began considering the possibility of setting up screen time restrictions on Xiao Yezi’s phone.

"I missed Xiao Yezi so, so much too. We’re having red-braised pork ribs tonight—wait for me to come home, and we’ll cook together. Don’t go into the kitchen yourself. It’s hot—I’m afraid my Xiao Yezi might melt."

"Okay, I’ll wait for you to come back."

Shen Junlan made a weirdly-shaped heart with his hands, and Huo Yanchi held it to his chest.

*Home. I have a home now too.*