Chapter 22 Running Away from Home

Chapter 22 Running Away from Home

Chi Luoxi took his classes pretty seriously.

Every time, he arrived on time, carrying a backpack, and after class, he came back carrying it again. The way he looked, he seemed less like he was attending a male gold digger crash course and more like he was off to a legitimate tutoring class.

He even took notes, filling up a lined notebook with them, and stuck radish-shaped stickers on it.

At first, his notes were very meticulous, almost copying the key points from the instructor's PPT one by one in tidy handwriting, using different colored pens to mark the highlights. The handwriting wasn't particularly beautiful, but each stroke was made with care.

Later, the content of his notes gradually became shorter. Sometimes, a page only had a few keywords, or he simply couldn't be bothered to write at all. His posture during class remained upright, though his eyes would occasionally glaze over.

But his attitude really couldn't be faulted.

One day on a whim, after Chi Luoxi had tossed his backpack on the sofa and gone to shower, He Angxiao picked up the notebook and flipped through it.

The first few pages, densely packed with text, even took him by surprise. He Angxiao hadn't expected Chi Luoxi to have such a studious side.

Truly a teachable kid.

He Angxiao closed the notebook and put it back in its place—it wasn't in vain that he had sent him for extra training.

To reward Chi Luoxi's diligence, He Angxiao made a point of setting aside two days, canceling all less urgent work and social events, to take Chi Luoxi out for fun.

Their destination was a scenic area in the suburbs famous for its autumn maple leaves, about a two-hour drive away.

He Angxiao had never given himself many breaks over the years, spinning like a high-speed gyroscope. He was accustomed to stress and efficiency, and filling every moment with work, to the point that occasional idleness only left him feeling a disorienting emptiness and restlessness.

He soon found a reason for himself: other people kept a sugar baby who flew abroad for shopping sprees, went to Macau, or sunbathed on a private island, their schedules packed full of extravagant displays.

The guy he kept, staying with him, seemed to do nothing but attend classes or stay home watching TV and playing on his phone. The farthest trip they'd taken was the late-night emergency room visit. That was too pathetic, too embarrassing for him, as if he was treating his companion poorly.

So, taking advantage of the maple season and the short distance that wouldn't interfere with Chi Luoxi's lessons, the plan was set.

In late autumn, the mountain forest was a patchwork of colors.

On both sides of the winding mountain road, the hills were covered in all shades of red, from deep to light, like an overturned palette, vibrant yet peaceful.

Chi Luoxi obviously loved it. He pressed his nose against the car window, eyes bright, watching the fleeting colors outside and occasionally letting out amazed "wow's."

Once they arrived at the scenic area, Chi Luoxi strolled slowly along the paved wooden path, crouched down among a pile of fallen leaves, picking out leaves with perfect shapes and particularly vibrant colors, clutching them in his hand. Soon, he had gathered a large handful.

"Honey, look at this one—doesn't it look like a palm?" He held up a five-pointed maple leaf, showing it off to He Angxiao. "So beautiful. I want to take it back and press it in a book."

He Angxiao, hands in the pockets of his trench coat, followed a few steps behind.

He had even bought Chi Luoxi a camera ahead of time.

The camera hung around Chi Luoxi's neck, and he took pictures everywhere they went—of the forest, the streams, the squirrels that occasionally darted across the path, the colorful leaves in his hands, and of He Angxiao.

At first, He Angxiao didn't mind and let him snap away.

He watched Chi Luoxi lift the camera, carefully focusing on a yellowed dog-tail grass, pressing the shutter, and found it somewhat amusing.

By the end of the day, Chi Luoxi must have taken several hundred photos.

On the drive back to the hotel, while Chi Luoxi, tired from playing, leaned on his shoulder and dozed off, He Angxiao reached over and took the camera.

He Angxiao clicked through the photos one by one.

Chi Luoxi had taken lots of landscapes, lots of leaves, lots of random stuff, and also a few pictures of He Angxiao—about five or six, all casual snapshots. Some only captured half of his body or a blurry back view.

The compositions were crooked, the lighting off—clearly just random snaps with no skill.

It was far from the scenario He Angxiao had imagined, of someone secretly snapping handsome side-profile shots of his husband to cherish.

He Angxiao raised an eyebrow and continued scrolling. The following photos were all of the same subject.

His precious terracotta flowerpot.

From all sorts of angles, at least a hundred or more.

Meanwhile, the decent photos of He Angxiao were few and of poor quality.

He Angxiao stared at the nearly identical terracotta pot photos on the screen, then placed the camera back in Chi Luoxi's arms.

What was there to photograph about some shabby flowerpot? And so many shots, from every angle, with such enthusiasm.

Chi Luoxi really had no taste.

That night, they stayed at a highly rated mountaintop lodge, known for its rustic style and local specialties. The most famous dish was freshly caught mountain spring fish, tender and free of any muddy taste.

When the steaming clay pot of fish was brought to the table, the milky white broth bubbled, filling the air with a fragrant aroma. The fish meat was snow-white, but there were plenty of fine bones. Chi Luoxi, staring at the pot, was practically drooling.

He Angxiao, looking at the fish, thought about Chi Luoxi's voracious appetite and impatient nature. If he accidentally swallowed a bone, the consequences were unthinkable. He Angxiao conservatively estimated the probability of a trip to the ER at eighty percent.

So, throughout the meal, He Angxiao dedicated himself to deboning the fish for Chi Luoxi. He'd pick out a piece, free of bones, and place it in Chi Luoxi's bowl.

Chi Luoxi watched He Angxiao bow his head, meticulously removing the bones, and was deeply moved. He said, "Thanks, honey," then picked up his bowl and ate. The fish was tender and smooth, the broth rich and delicious, so good that Chi Luoxi squinted his eyes in contentment.

He Angxiao barely ate a few bites himself, spending most of the time attending to Chi Luoxi.

Finally, Chi Luoxi ate his fill, slumped back in his chair, and patted his stomach. Seeing the nearly untouched bowl in front of He Angxiao, he belatedly felt a bit awkward. "Honey, I'll wait for you to eat."

He Angxiao picked up a napkin and wiped his hands. "As long as you're full, I'm not hungry."

The lodge consisted of private log cabins nestled in the mountains, surrounded by dense woods, offering excellent privacy. Theirs was on the second floor, with a spacious terrace.

The room was decorated in warm wood tones, with a huge floor-to-ceiling window taking up almost one whole wall, curtains made of heavy dark linen, half-drawn.

Chi Luoxi had taken a shower, now wearing a soft cotton bathrobe, loosely tied, exposing a large area of fair chest and collarbones. Barefoot on the slightly cool wooden floor, he walked to the floor-to-ceiling window, pressed his hands against the glass, and pressed his face almost to it, curiously looking outside.

Outside, the sky was completely dark.

The mountain night was a thick, inky blue, with only a few faint stars flickering weakly in the distant sky.

Nearby, the light spilling from their room and the dim illumination from other cabins revealed a not-too-wide mountain stream flowing quietly below the cabin.

The sound of water hitting the cobblestones, gurgling, had a natural, hypnotic rhythm.

The moonlight was faint, barely enveloping the stream and the dark silhouette of the trees on the opposite bank.

Chi Luoxi was mesmerized. In the mountains before, he had often fallen asleep to the sound of a stream, but his old place was rundown, with small windows. Staying in such a clean, warm room, looking out through a whole sheet of clean glass at the night scene of mountains and forest, was a first for him.

He Angxiao had also come out of the shower, dressed in the same type of bathrobe, drying his hair with a towel.

He saw Chi Luoxi clinging to the glass like a gecko, giving him the view of a thin back outlined by the bathrobe, showing off a supple waist.

Wet hair stuck to his fair nape, making that section of his neck appear even more slender and fragile.

"What are you looking at? Aren't you cold?" He Angxiao walked over, standing behind him. The mountain night was cold.

Chi Luoxi didn't turn around: "Honey, look outside, the stream is flowing so fast, and there are stars."

He Angxiao: "Stop looking, time for bed."

Of course, "bed" was a verb here.

He Angxiao was on vacation, so naturally he wanted to enjoy his time off.

Chi Luoxi suddenly turned his head, looked up at He Angxiao, a glint of excited anticipation in his eyes: "Honey, let's do it here today, right by the window, we can still see outside."

He Angxiao looked at Chi Luoxi, speechless for a moment.

Chi Luoxi really had these flashes of inspiration. Facing the mountain stream, it did seem romantic: "You like nature so much, shall we do it outside?"

Chi Luoxi blushed at that: "Then, honey, let's go a bit farther away."

He Angxiao thought Chi Luoxi was way too lewd: "...What's always going through your mind?"

"This is a guesthouse, not our home. It's dark outside, but there might be infrared equipment. What if some bored person points a telescope at the mountains to photograph the stars? If we get caught, you and I will be on social media headlines tomorrow."

He Angxiao could already picture the headline: A Certain CEO and a Mysterious Man Perform a Live Sex Show in a Deep Mountain Guesthouse—Is It Moral Decay or Human Distortion? He had his limits.

Chi Luoxi didn't care. He just wanted this.

He bit his lip, reached out, grabbed He Angxiao's bathrobe belt, and tugged gently: "Then let's pull the curtains over, hide behind the window, just leave a small gap, isn't that fine?"

As he spoke, with his other hand he pulled the linen curtain, leaving a vaguely visible palm-sized gap.

Chi Luoxi leaned his back against the cold glass, his front almost pressed against He Angxiao's chest. The same shower gel scent on them both mingled together into an intimate and ambiguous atmosphere.

He turned around and whispered: "So no one outside can see, right? But I can still see a little bit outside through the curtain gap..."

Chi Luoxi pressed his face against the cold glass.

He Angxiao was momentarily speechless at this maneuver, and his so-called principles began to waver.

Chi Luoxi was right—no one outside could see.

...

The curtain shifted slightly now and then, rustling on the glass, blending with the murmur of the stream outside and the occasional call of a night bird, making Chi Luoxi feel like he was actually outside.

Chi Luoxi's face was pressed against the cold glass, his eyes sometimes open, sometimes closed. The extreme sensation of ice and fire, the strange mix of taboo and nature, left his senses in chaos, intensely aroused.

Before leaving, Chi Luoxi happened to see a young girl nearby, also taking photos, who appeared to be in her early twenties, fashionably dressed.

He mustered his courage, handed over the camera: "Excuse me, could you take a photo of us together?"

The girl readily agreed, looked through the viewfinder, then looked up at He Angxiao and Chi Luoxi standing side by side: "Of course!"

A few soft clicks.

The girl returned the camera to Chi Luoxi: "All done. You two look perfect together!"

Chi Luoxi took it and said thank you.

He Angxiao stood beside him and leaned in to look too.

In the photo, the background was a sea of fiery autumn colors. He Angxiao wore a dark trench coat, tall and upright, with no particular expression on his face, but his eyes seemed softer than usual. Chi Luoxi, beside him, wore a light-colored sweater and jeans, leaning slightly into him, one hand holding his arm.

The two stood together, one cold and deep, one pure and bright, their posture intimate. Somehow, they surprisingly looked like they really matched.

Back in the city, Chi Luoxi couldn't wait to get out the camera, wanting to export the photos. But he fumbled around with his phone and computer for a long time and still couldn't figure it out.

"Can't do it?" He Angxiao asked.

Chi Luoxi nodded: "Honey, can you help me? I want to save all these pictures. And can you buy me a photo printer?"

Chi Luoxi wanted to print them out and hang them on the wall.

"I also want to change my avatar. Last time I logged into a game with WeChat, I got matched with a kid. He saw my avatar and said it was ugly. I want to change it."

He Angxiao took the camera, quickly exported the photos to the computer, and saved them in a dedicated folder. Hearing Chi Luoxi wanted to change his avatar.

"...Then what do you want to change it to?" He Angxiao asked.

Chi Luoxi: "I took so many nice photos, I'll pick one to use as my avatar."

But He Angxiao's mind was racing: Could it be that photo they just took together? That was the only good one.

Although the photo was indeed nice, if he set the photo of the two of them as a WeChat avatar, wouldn't it be like publicly declaring their relationship to everyone who could see Chi Luoxi's WeChat?

He Angxiao thought Chi Luoxi was quite a headache. If he really wanted to change it, there was nothing he could say: "Just don't change it to the Calabash Brothers, at least. Otherwise, next time people will call you tacky and childish."

Chi Luoxi seriously considered it for a moment: "Then I'll just change it to 'earth' then."

He Angxiao: "..."

Chi Luoxi actually changed it to his clay pot.

He Angxiao occasionally paid some attention to Chi Luoxi's studies, even quizzing him using his notes.

"In risk assessment, what aspects of the other party need to be focused on?"

Chi Luoxi, being tested, looked nervous, his gaze wandering, stammering and hesitating, unable to answer a single question.

Forget it. He Angxiao put down the notebook and stopped asking.

He thought to himself, watching Chi Luoxi every time he packed his little backpack and obediently went to class, even though he didn't learn much, that act of being serious was actually quite cute.

Most of the others in the class scattered as soon as class ended.

Some rushed off on dates, others would gather in small groups to head to nearby cafes or bars.

Only Chi Luoxi usually dawdled, being the last to leave slowly.

But that day after school, things were different. Chi Luoxi left first because He Angxiao was picking him up.

Chi Luoxi walked out of the office building, and a sleek black Bentley with an understated luxury finish glided silently up to him.

The driver's window rolled down, revealing He Angxiao's profile, sharply defined in the fading daylight and the car's interior lighting.

Today he wore a dark gray cashmere coat, a simple black turtleneck underneath. That innate aura of cool, refined elegance was still striking.

"Hurry up, get in. Can't park here for long."

Chi Luoxi got into the passenger seat, and the car was warm and cozy inside.

"Honey, how come you had time to pick me up today?" Chi Luoxi buckled his seatbelt.

He Angxiao said, "It was on the way."

Chi Luoxi just said "oh" and didn't press further. He leaned back into the comfortable leather seat and asked He Angxiao what they were having for dinner—he wanted to eat shrimp.

Chi Luoxi had no idea that when he opened the car door and climbed into the passenger seat of the Bentley, several classmates who had just finished class and were heading out for dinner happened to witness it at the entrance of the office building.

A black Bentley, understated yet undeniably luxurious. The man in the driver's seat—even though they only caught a glimpse of his profile and outfit—his striking presence and handsome features instantly caught everyone's attention.

More importantly, that man had come to pick up Chi Luoxi, who usually kept to himself and seemed a bit dull.

Chi Luoxi, who was always quiet and unassuming, actually had such an impressive sugar daddy.

The next time class started, as Chi Luoxi found a seat as usual and took out his notebook and pen, a figure appeared in front of his desk.

It was Yu Wu.

One of the most showy guys in the class. He was probably in his early twenties, good-looking, though most of his face was surgically enhanced, with shrewd and arrogant eyes.

On normal days, he always had a few people around him, and after class he would often gather a group to go to places where they could supposedly meet desirable dates to practice their skills.

He had casually invited Chi Luoxi a few times before—to a bar or some private party—with a condescending tone, as if doing him a favor. But Chi Luoxi always shook his head and refused, saying he didn't like going to places like that.

Yu Wu hadn't thought much of it back then; he just figured Chi Luoxi was clueless and a country bumpkin. Now he stood with one hand in his jeans pocket and the other resting on the edge of Chi Luoxi's desk.

"Xiao Chi," he said casually, as if they were old friends. "That handsome guy in the Bentley who picked you up after class the other day—is he your boyfriend?"

Chi Luoxi: "No, he's not."

"Not your boyfriend?" Yu Wu raised an eyebrow. "So he's your sugar daddy, then?"

Chi Luoxi frowned. He didn't like the term "sugar daddy." Although He Angxiao always talked about their relationship being one of mutual benefit, Chi Luoxi felt deep down that it wasn't quite that simple. He pursed his lips, wanting to argue, but then remembered He Angxiao's warning not to tell outsiders about their relationship. After hesitating for a moment, he chose a term that sounded a bit nicer in his mind: "...He's my brother."

"Brother?" Yu Wu looked like he'd just heard something hilarious. "What kind of brother? A sugar brother, right? He's really handsome and seems super rich. Can you introduce us? I can hook you up with some resources too."

Chi Luoxi refused: "No, you can't."

Yu Wu was rejected, and his smile dimmed a little. He straightened up, crossed his arms, and looked Chi Luoxi up and down. "Fine, forget it. But if you introduced me, he'd probably switch to someone else anyway. You think you'd still have a chance?"

"You're here taking this class because you don't have what it takes to keep him. Otherwise, why would you need to learn all this?"

Chi Luoxi pressed his lips together, getting a little angry.

Seeing Chi Luoxi so stubborn, Yu Wu found it boring and a bit insulting that he had been brushed off. He snorted, turned around, and walked back to his group of friends. He muttered something under his breath, and the group immediately snickered, glancing sideways at Chi Luoxi.

Chi Luoxi felt very uncomfortable. He decided he'd just stay as far away from Yu Wu as possible from now on.

But things didn't end that easily.

The next day during class, Yu Wu walked in from outside, holding a freshly bought cup of coffee and chatting with a few friends.

As he passed by Chi Luoxi's desk, the scorching hot coffee in his hand spilled—more than half the cup—right onto Chi Luoxi's open notebook on the table. The dark brown liquid quickly soaked through the paper and splashed onto Chi Luoxi's sweater sleeve and the back of his hand.

"Oh! Sorry, sorry!" Yu Wu immediately exclaimed, but there was no real apology in his voice. "I didn't mean to, Xiao Chi. Are you okay? That coffee's a bit hot."

Chi Luoxi felt a slight sting on his hand. He first tried to save his notebook, but it was too late.

The coffee had soaked through the pages, smudging the notes beyond recognition.

"You..." Chi Luoxi looked up, furious. "You did that intentionally!"

Yu Wu's apologetic expression vanished instantly, replaced by a challenging look. "Hey, I already said I'm sorry. What more do you want? It's just a shabby notebook, right? I'll pay you back. How much? Just tell me how much."

"Yeah, Xiao Chi, Yu Wu didn't mean to. He apologized and said he'd pay. Don't be so petty," someone nearby chimed in.

"It's just a notebook. How much can it cost? Yu Wu can afford it."

"We're all classmates here. Don't cause a scene."

The notebook itself wasn't very expensive, but the time Chi Luoxi had spent carefully writing down those notes, and the sadness and anger he felt at having them ruined—meant nothing to these people.

So annoying.

Chi Luoxi insisted that Yu Wu pay for a new notebook. When Yu Wu heard it cost six hundred yuan, he acted surprised and said, "Are you trying to rip me off? Be reasonable."

Then he said Chi Luoxi was trying to scam him and refused to pay.

That pissed Chi Luoxi off—he actually paid six hundred for it.

Yu Wu then added, "The stuff you're wearing is probably just knockoffs."

After that, the subtle exclusion in the class became more blatant.

The classroom wasn't big, and seats weren't fixed.

But every time Chi Luoxi walked in, people who had been spread out would unconsciously move forward, or crowd together with others, leaving the seats around him empty.

Most people in this "gold digger" training class were naturally ambitious and goal-oriented. They wanted to go from rags to riches overnight, to marry rich, and they were willing to swallow their pride, to fawn over people, and to ruthlessly cut out anyone who didn't fit in.

Chi Luoxi sat alone in the empty back row, feeling for the first time a strong urge to get out of this place.

He didn't want to stay here anymore. He didn't want to see Yu Wu's annoying face again.

So Chi Luoxi skipped class.

He Angxiao didn't notice the first time.

Or the second time.

He Angxiao signed Chi Luoxi up for that training class, but he never really expected Chi Luoxi to pick up anything useful. He certainly wasn't going to check on his attendance like a parent checking on a kid's attendance.

Around that time, a big acquisition deal was at a critical point. He Angxiao put all his energy into it, leaving early every morning and coming home late, mostly just sleeping when he got back.

So Chi Luoxi couldn't be bothered to go anymore.

What was the point of going there? Listening to things he didn't understand and didn't want to understand, seeing those fake and snobbish faces, putting up with Yu Wu and his crew's snide remarks and ostracism, and always worrying about his stuff getting ruined again.

Home was so much better.

So Chi Luoxi felt perfectly justified staying home again.

That day, he was wearing a soft loungewear set, barefoot, sitting cross-legged on the beige carpet in the living room, with a bag of chips and a can of cola in front of him.

He was cracking up at a funny scene in a movie, chip crumbs scattering onto the carpet, when his phone, which he had tossed into a corner of the sofa, suddenly rang.

Chi Luoxi crawled over and picked up the phone.

Before he could even speak, He Angxiao's voice came through rapidly on the other end, carrying an oppressive, storm-like presence: "Chi, Luo, Xi, you actually dared to skip class? Huh, I've already checked—you missed several classes in a row. Have you gotten bold? You didn't even tell me you weren't going."

Chi Luoxi dropped the half-eaten potato chip he was holding: "I... I... um... I..."

Having always been a good student, Chi Luoxi felt guilty the moment he was confronted like this.

"You what?" He Angxiao's voice grew even angrier. "Where are you now? At home? I'm telling you, I'm right downstairs, just parked the car. You'd better give me a reasonable explanation, otherwise..."

He didn't finish his sentence, but the threat in his words was unmistakable.

He Angxiao was downstairs? About to come up?

What to do? An explanation? He couldn't explain it away.

Admit fault? Chi Luoxi didn't think he was entirely wrong either.

Chi Luoxi sprang up from the carpet, barefoot, spinning frantically on the spot. Just then, the sound of the keypad lock being pressed came from the door—a few short "beep beep beep" tones.

He Angxiao was about to come in.

In a moment of desperation, Chi Luoxi's eyes darted toward the balcony.

Without a second thought, he lunged toward the balcony—not in human form. In a flash of inspiration, he plunged into the loose, moist soil of that terracotta flowerpot.

In the center of the pot, a blade of grass had been growing, but the next moment, from the middle of the soil, a small cluster of fresh, emerald-green radish sprouts emerged.

And Chi Luoxi, who had been standing in the middle of the living room, disappeared without a trace.

That day, He Angxiao had stormed back with the full intention of giving Chi Luoxi a proper scolding. He had finally finished his busy work and planned to take him out for some good food, only to discover that Chi Luoxi had been skipping classes repeatedly.

When He Angxiao pushed open the front door, ready to face Chi Luoxi's pitiful face, he found the room empty.

The TV was on in the living room, the volume low. A few potato chip crumbs were scattered on the carpet, and a half-drunk can of Coke sat there.

Where was he?

He Angxiao changed into his slippers. The sofa was empty, with only Chi Luoxi's phone lying there, the screen still lit, still showing the just-ended call screen.

"Chi Luoxi?"

He Angxiao picked up the phone from the sofa. The screen hadn't locked yet. His finger swept across it—the latest entry in the call log was the call with him from a few minutes ago. The phone was here, but the person was gone?

Had he heard He Angxiao was coming back to scold him and hidden somewhere?

Playing hide and seek?

He Angxiao began a thorough search of the house. The bedroom, under the bed, inside the closet, even the top cabinet where the bedding was stored—he opened it all. Nothing. The bathroom, behind the shower curtain, the laundry basket—still nothing.

The kitchen—He Angxiao even pulled open the rarely used cabinets. The study, the balcony storage room—every possible hiding corner, even places where it was impossible to hide, he searched.

Twice.

Three times.

Chi Luoxi really wasn't in the house.

"...He ran out?" he muttered to himself. "Well done—I say a couple of words, and he dares to run away from home."

He remembered Chi Luoxi's stammering, guilt-ridden tone on the phone and became even more convinced of his judgment: He must have fled to avoid punishment, leaving his phone behind.

Meanwhile, on the balcony, in that dusty terracotta flowerpot, the radish sprouts trembled in the evening breeze.

In his radish form, Chi Luoxi was terrified. He could see He Angxiao pacing anxiously in the living room like a caged beast. Every step He Angxiao took closer to the balcony made the little radish sprouts shake even harder, as if they wanted to shrink into the soil and disappear entirely.

Chi Luoxi's original plan was to wait until He Angxiao came home, couldn't find him, got angry, thought he had run out, and then left. At that point, he would quietly transform back, pretending nothing had happened, and simply say he had just stepped out to buy something and came back.

But he never expected He Angxiao wouldn't leave immediately. Instead, like a paranoid man, he tore the house apart.

Chi Luoxi, in the flowerpot, felt each second like a year, listening to He Angxiao's footsteps draw nearer and then fade away.

Finally, when He Angxiao seemed to give up searching and stood still in the living room, Chi Luoxi almost sighed in relief, planning to transform back the moment He Angxiao left the living room.

But He Angxiao didn't leave. Instead, he plopped down on the sofa, facing directly toward the balcony.

Time ticked by.

Outside the window, the sky gradually softened into a warm dusk, finally sinking into thick, ink-blue night.

He just sat there.

Chi Luoxi in the flowerpot went from nervous to scared, from scared to numb. Was He Angxiao going to wait him out? Wasn't he going to look for him? It was already dark—how much longer would he wait?

Just as Chi Luoxi was about to drift off to sleep, the silent figure on the sofa finally moved.

He Angxiao abruptly stood up, the movement so sharp it knocked over a cushion on the sofa. He walked to the center of the living room, raised his hand, and irritably mussed his usually immaculate hair, leaving it somewhat disheveled.

Then He Angxiao spat out a curse, dripping with intense resentment and frustration.

"Fuck..."

"Chi Luoxi, you've got guts. You actually dared to run. You'd better never come back. If you do, I'll kill you."

In the flowerpot, the little radish sprouts shuddered violently, their leaves curling up.

Although Chi Luoxi knew He Angxiao was probably just speaking in anger, the viciousness in his tone still sent chills down his spine.

He Angxiao seemed to have finally exhausted his last shred of patience, thoroughly enraged by the humiliation and sense of losing control from Chi Luoxi's disappearance. He strode toward the balcony.

He walked to the balcony railing, one hand gripping the metal rail, the other dialing a phone. With his back to the room, he stared down at the streams of car lights on the street below and the distant neon-lit skyscrapers. His chest heaved deeply a few times, as if trying to calm his surging emotions.

His gaze swept past the few potted plants nearby, including Chi Luoxi's precious terracotta flowerpot.

The radish sprouts in the pot swayed gently in the night breeze. He Angxiao's eyes lingered on them for less than a second before shifting away due to the anger and anxiety raging inside him.

The call was quickly answered.

"...It's me. Chi Luoxi ran off—left this afternoon, left his phone at home. Get a few people over to check the nearby surveillance footage. He doesn't know many people. Have Chunhui's people check for me. If you find him, bring him straight back."

He gave a few more hurried instructions into the phone before hanging up. Holding the phone, he paced back and forth in the living room a few times, then slumped down onto the sofa, burying his head in his hands, motionless.

Only his tightly pressed lips and slightly trembling shoulders betrayed the extreme turmoil inside him.

And so, in He Angxiao's mind, Chi Luoxi's "runaway" lasted a full day and night.

Because Chi Luoxi couldn't find a chance to transform back.

When Chi Luoxi turned into a radish in the flowerpot, he would easily fall into a deep sleep. As a result, when he woke up, he found people coming and going in the living room, making it even harder to get out.

This day and night were torture for He Angxiao.

Because the surveillance cameras hadn't captured Chi Luoxi leaving at all, yet a living person had simply vanished. He Angxiao was so angry and anxious he was about to pop a blood vessel; heavy dark circles under his eyes from insomnia and worry, he was in no mood to shave, and he looked unusually haggard and irritable. He lashed out at the person, "…A whole grown man! How can you not find him?"

The other side suggested he call the police.

He Angxiao was angry at first, but as time passed, he grew more and more frightened.

Chi Luoxi finally found a moment when He Angxiao was changing clothes to go out. Chi Luoxi quickly changed back, ran to the door, and pretended he had just returned.

When He Angxiao came out and saw him, Chi Luoxi looked at him helplessly: "Honey… I…"

Before Chi Luoxi could finish, He Angxiao rushed over and hugged him tightly. Chi Luoxi felt like he was being choked; he patted He Angxiao's back, trying to get him to ease up, because he could barely breathe.

The next second, Chi Luoxi let out a scream.

Because He Angxiao had fainted.

-----------------------

Author's note: President He goes from extreme joy to sorrow—he has separation anxiety.

Little Luobei: As a good student, even though I don't understand, this is my first time ditching class. No matter how I try, I just don't get it—I can't learn it and I can't forget it.

President He is such a dark and twisted character.