After finally finishing everything, Shen Jianxi and Xia Er sat side by side on the sofa to rest. As soon as they caught their breath, the phone rang.
She picked up her phone and turned on the speaker. "Hello?"
"Teacher Shen, come out and play!" As soon as the call connected, Su Ying's loud voice filled the entire room. The sudden sound startled Xia Er, who was dozing.
"Who!" He stood up alertly, looking around.
Shen Jianxi picked up the phone, turned off the speaker, and put it to her ear. While pulling Xia Er back down, she replied, "I won't be going, Teacher Su. You guys have fun."
Su Ying on the other end seemed to understand something and let out a meaningful "Oh," "Alright, Teacher Shen, happy dating~" Then, urged by the person next to her, she hung up.
Shen Jianxi: "......"
What did Su Ying understand?
She put down her phone, looking puzzled, and turned to face Xia Er.
He frowned, his gaze following the phone, his face full of confusion.
Shen Jianxi silently retreated a little. The distance was too dangerous; a slight movement felt like it could lead to a kiss, making her feel insecure.
"What is this thing?" Xia Er asked.
Facing his fierce gaze, Shen Jianxi tightened her grip on the phone. "It's for communication."
They stared at each other for a while, then he suddenly spoke, "I just remembered the second time I saw you. I have a question. If you are a god—"
"Then why were you captured by me?"
His eyes were as cold as ice, a flicker of suspicion briefly crossing them. His once cute and innocent puppy-like eyes now held a power that made her unable to move, the danger of a beast radiating from him.
Unlike the previous kidnapping, Shen Jianxi now felt more genuinely that the person in front of her was a beastman, one who had experienced tribal struggles and possessed innate divine strength.
She pressed her fingertips hard into her palm, using the pain to calm herself.
"Do you think anyone can travel between two worlds?" This was her biggest reliance. She gambled that no one in Xia Er's world had this ability.
As her words fell, Xia Er fell into thought. The terrifying eyes from moments ago returned to their harmless state.
Watching him, Shen Jianxi increasingly felt he was like the little dog next door—especially when he was threatening someone, they were exactly the same.
After a long pause, Xia Er stopped dwelling on it. He waved his hand and said, "Whatever. No matter what you are, as long as you give me good food, I won't kill you."
"You're the thing!" Shen Jianxi said indignantly.
Xia Er didn't understand why this female was angry and could only follow her words, changing his tune, "Alright, alright, you are not a thing, I am. Is that okay?"
Pfft! Shen Jianxi heard the sound of her own blood sputtering.
...
After that day, Xia Er officially moved in.
Every day when Shen Jianxi went to work, he would wait at home, help her sweep the floor, dry her clothes, and wait for her to come home from work with good food for him. Everything seemed perfect, if one ignored certain things.
"Xia Er! Put that down!"
The passing neighbors heard this roar, their steps paused, then they shook their heads, sighing, "Here we go again," and hurried away.
Inside, Shen Jianxi glared at the beastman standing by her dressing table. This was not the first time; Xia Er had been messing with her cosmetics and skincare products while she was at work.
In just these few days, she had already ruined many, her heart aching to the point of numbness.
Knowing she was angry, Xia Er dared not misbehave further. He reluctantly put it down obediently, standing with his head bowed, looking extremely pitiable, like a child being punished.
This look made Shen Jianxi's mouth twitch.
Here we go again, here we go again. Every time he was caught, it was like this, making her feel guilty, and the matter would end inconclusively.
But next time, he would still commit the offense!
Under his training, Shen Jianxi had developed a heart of stone. When she saw this expression again, she felt no emotion and could even coldly tell him to "scram."
Seeing that his trick no longer worked, Xia Er cast a reluctant glance at the skincare products on the table and dejectedly left the bedroom.
Leaving Shen Jianxi alone, she looked at the mess in front of her and let out a long sigh, resignedly following his tail to clean up.
As she cleaned, she gritted her teeth, thinking that if the pendant wasn't malfunctioning now, she would have sent him back long ago!
However, the past few days of living together were not entirely without gains. Perhaps Shen Jianxi was the only one he was familiar with here, and coupled with the fact that she prepared a lot of delicious food every day, Xia Er's fondness for her increased exponentially. His dependence on her grew day by day without him realizing it, and he became much clingier.
"What is it, boyfriend?" As soon as Shen Jianxi answered the phone, the person who had been in the living room instantly appeared at the doorframe, staring at her with bright eyes.
Shen Jianxi: "......"
Is he crazy!
Listening to the girl's cheerful voice on the other end, Feng Chuyao smiled, his eyes filled with tenderness and affection. "What are you doing, little one?"
Shen Jianxi's heart skipped a beat. Others might find the term "little one" too much, but she loved it. Especially every time Feng Chuyao called her that, she couldn't help but feel her heart flutter.
"Mmm..." She feigned thought for a moment, then said, "I'm thinking about when my boyfriend will finish his work and when we can go on a date?"
Hearing this, Feng Chuyao's hand, which was sliding the mouse, paused. Guilt instantly washed over him. Looking at his thesis, which was almost finished, he made up his mind.
"How about tomorrow? Do you have time? Want to go to the music festival together?"
Glancing at the little raccoon by the door, ears pricked up, eavesdropping but unable to hear, she nodded without hesitation, "Sure!"
If she didn't get out soon, she was afraid Xia Er would drive her crazy!
They spoke lovingly for a while. Until they hung up, Xia Er couldn't clearly hear what was said on the other end of the phone, but he vaguely guessed that Shen Jianxi was going out tomorrow.
He immediately put on a wronged expression and looked at her, saying resentfully, "Where are you going to leave me?"
"A date."
"I'm going too!" he declared definitively.
Unexpectedly, Shen Jianxi's attitude was even tougher, "You're not going! Why would I take you on a date? To be a third wheel?"
After a few days of learning, Xia Er already knew the multiple meanings of "third wheel" and immediately retorted, "He's the third wheel!"
"?" Hearing this, Shen Jianxi let out a laugh, full of mockery. "He's my boyfriend, and you are?"
"I! I, I..." Xia Er, unwilling to be outdone, wanted to prove himself but found he had no standing.
Just as Shen Jianxi was about to go cook, Xia Er suddenly stepped forward, pushed aside her hair, bared his canine teeth, and bit her shoulder.
Shen Jianxi felt a sharp sting in the bitten spot, followed by a dull heat.
Having achieved his goal, Xia Er backed away and said triumphantly, "Now you are my mate! You've been marked by me. In our place, one male can only mark one female, and the marked female is his mate."
Hearing his words, Shen Jianxi was speechless and just wanted to exclaim an obscenity.
"M.a.d.e!"