A week later, Ye Lu brought the perfect final version of the agreement.

The two of them weren’t planning to hold a complicated or formal ceremony; registering their marriage would suffice. After reviewing the finalized agreement, Xi Xianqing sent it over to Zhu Ming.

However, Zhu Ming didn’t reply immediately.

Since they weren’t a real couple and both had their own careers, they didn’t communicate much outside of necessity. Xi Xianqing was preparing for the upcoming assessment in District Two, while Zhu Ming was busy with his live-streaming work.

In addition to Xi Xianqing sending daily pictures of Dish Soap to Zhu Ming before bedtime for record-keeping, and Zhu Ming occasionally updating him on the progress of his drug research, the two of them wouldn’t talk about too many other things.

As stipulated in their agreement, they treated each other with respect and avoided interfering in each other’s affairs. Xi Xianqing was satisfied with this arrangement.

He didn’t expect Zhu Ming to respond immediately but was surprised that it took him so long.

After discussing the details of wax mold casting with a craftsman, Xi Xianqing checked his phone again, only to see an unexpected missed call notification on the screen.

“Is this Xianqing?”

Upon answering, he heard Zhu Yingying’s hesitant voice on the other end of the line, tinged with a hint of awkwardness. “I have a favor to ask, if that’s alright?”

Xi Xianqing paused. “Please go ahead.”

“I hope you can accompany Zhu Ming for a rehabilitation session.” Zhu Yingying sighed. “First, because after marriage, this will inevitably become part of your life together. Second, he never lets me go with him, so I suspect this kid’s not taking it seriously.”

“So please don’t tell him. Just secretly check for me to see if he’s following the doctor’s instructions properly, alright?”

If this invitation had come directly from Zhu Ming, Xi Xianqing would have flatly refused—it wasn’t part of their agreement, and he had no obligation to comply.

The issue, however, was that this request came from Zhu Yingying. In the eyes of this overly enthusiastic aunt, he was Zhu Ming’s fiancé, deeply in love and about to step into the sacred bond of marriage.

Even if Xi Xianqing wanted to refuse, he couldn’t bring himself to bluntly reject her at that moment.

Thus, at 2 PM local time, Xi Xianqing appeared in the rehabilitation medicine section of a private hospital in District Seven.

Behind the reception desk, a young nurse was humming a tune as she meticulously organized wheelchair user manuals on the shelf. When she turned her head, she saw a strikingly handsome young man standing in front of the desk.

With sharp features, broad shoulders, and long legs, he wore a well-tailored trench coat and stood straight in the hallway. He didn’t look like someone coming for treatment—he looked more like an actor who had just wandered off a film set.

He asked, “Excuse me, is there a patient in a wheelchair named Zhu Ming?”

His voice was deep and composed, carrying an air of restrained elegance. His tone was polite yet distant.

The nurse’s heart skipped a beat at first, but after hearing his question, she couldn’t help but laugh. “I’m new here, so I haven’t memorized all the patient names yet. But, sir, in this side of rehabilitation center, there aren’t many patients not in wheelchairs.”

Xi Xianqing added a more specific description. “He’s a young male patient who… is always smiling.”

The nurse tried hard to recall. “Hmm, that does sound familiar. Is he delicate-looking, fair-skinned, with especially gentle and beautiful eyes?”

The choice of adjectives gave Xi Xianqing a moment of pause. Eventually, he responded vaguely, “En. His spiritual manifestation is a white fox.”

“Ah, I know who you’re talking about!” Another little nurse poked her head out from a nearby room, grinning as she joined the conversation. “You must be looking for Xiao Zhu-gege, right?”

“He did come today, and if I remember correctly, he should be over at the artificial lake getting some fresh air.”

Xiao Zhu-gege.

On the short walk toward the artificial lake behind the private hospital, Xi Xianqing silently chewed these four words over in his mind.

Half of District Seven’s terrain was covered by snow-capped mountains, giving the region a dry, cold climate. The wind by the lake was strong, and there weren’t many people outdoors.

Most patients were accompanied by family members, making the lone figure by the lakeside particularly noticeable.

Beside the wheelchair lay a curled-up white fox, its fluffy tail wrapped around its body as it slept soundly.

Xi Xianqing stood behind Zhu Ming’s side and called his name, “Zhu Ming.”

He saw the figure in the wheelchair freeze briefly before turning to look at him.

The wind by the lake wasn’t small. Zhu Ming was only wearing a thin sweater, which loosely exposed his pale neck.

A thin cigarette rested between his fingers, and his hair, blown soft by the wind, moved gently.

As Zhu Ming exhaled a puff of smoke, the mist rose around him. He squinted slightly in contentment, his moist eyes gazing hazily through the fog.

“It’s you ah.” Zhu Ming didn’t seem particularly surprised. He gave a small smile and turned his gaze back to the lake. “I thought my aunt was here to catch me.”

The scent of nicotine lingered in the air, causing Xi Xianqing to frown silently. “She did send me.”

Zhu Ming nodded at this, then seemed to recall something as he glanced at Xi Xianqing curiously. “Wait, how did you know I was by the artificial lake? Clairvoyance?”

Xi Xianqing spat out four words, “Xiao Zhu-gege.”

The inexplicable term made Zhu Ming pause, momentarily confused.

But then he caught on, biting the cigarette between his teeth as he chuckled and nodded. “Oh… it must’ve been Nurse Xiao Zhou who told you, right?”

Xi Xianqing said coldly, “If your aunt’s schedule for you is correct, you should currently be in the therapy room for rehabilitation, not smoking irresponsibly by the lake.”

“First of all, to avoid bothering anyone else, I wheeled myself all the way to this deserted lakeside before lighting a cigarette. That makes me a very considerate citizen of District Seven.”

Zhu Ming said, gesturing with his chin toward a smoking area sign not far away. “Second, I’m just trying to get some pleasant nicotine and dopamine before rehab starts. Once I finish this, I’ll obediently report to my therapist.”

His tone was blatantly self-assured.

“Finish this cigarette, light the next one, and keep myself pleasantly occupied until 4:30, then snap a photo at the nurse’s station for my aunt and head straight home by taxi.”

Xi Xianqing’s expression remained impassive as he calmly dismantled the lie. “This is what you call obedient rehabilitation?”

Zhu Ming’s hand, holding the cigarette, froze for a moment. He narrowed his eyes slightly, finally meeting Xi Xianqing’s gaze directly.

A faint, meaningful smile appeared on Zhu Ming’s face. After a moment, he raised his hand and beckoned Xi Xianqing closer.

Xi Xianqing’s chest rose and fell faintly, already suspecting that whatever Zhu Ming was about to say wouldn’t be good.

“Fiancé ya.” Sure enough, as soon as he leaned closer, Zhu Ming’s gentle, sly voice brushed against his ear. “Why are you suddenly so meddlesome today ah?”

The address was so absurdly intimate that Xi Xianqing sharply turned to look at Zhu Ming’s profile, his jaw tightening. “You—”

“And if my aunt asked you to come, why didn’t you just brush her off with an excuse? Why go to the trouble of coming all the way from District Six to District Seven? Why so obedient?”

Zhu Ming continued, tilting his face upward slightly. His expression was curious, his tone teasing with a hint of laughter. “Are you that concerned about me? What’s this? Are you planning to turn our fake relationship… into the real deal?”

In the glow of the cigarette, Zhu Ming’s normally dark eyes shimmered faintly with an amber hue. He was so close that his lips nearly brushed against Xi Xianqing’s ear.

During their previous interactions, Xi Xianqing had already expressed dissatisfaction with Zhu Ming’s lack of boundaries.

But this—this overtly suggestive and borderline provocative remark—was trampling all over Xi Xianqing’s personal limits.

As expected, Xi Xianqing abruptly straightened up, his expression darkening. “Don’t flatter yourself. Do you really think I wanted to come here?”

Zhu Ming spread his hands, the smile on his face unwavering. “Then you can leave now ya.”

Xi Xianqing stared at him for a long moment before abruptly turning to leave.

He wasn’t cheap. He had come all the way from District Six out of consideration for Zhu Yingying’s feelings, only to be met with such treatment. There was no reason to stay any longer.

However, after taking a step, he again stumbled on his feet and looked back.

Zhu Ming had his back to him, his dark hair gently brushed by the wind.

He was sitting alone in the wheelchair, smoke spreading from the cigarette at his fingertips, just staring at the lake motionlessly and quietly.

Xi Xianqing frowned silently.

Despite Zhu Ming’s usual flippant and carefree demeanor, Xi Xianqing had to admit that Zhu Ming’s family upbringing and way of handling things were actually something that couldn’t be faulted.

However, the words he said just now, such as “Why are you so meddlesome?” and “You can leave now”, were sharp and biting.

It was so unlike him, so deliberately harsh, that it almost seemed as though he was purposely making his words unpleasant and mean in order to achieve some purpose.

–Zhu Ming was deliberately provoking him to leave.

The moment he realized this fact, Xi Xianqing calmed down.

The silence around him led Zhu Ming to believe Xi Xianqing had already left.

As the cigarette in his fingers was about to burn out, Zhu Ming reached into his pocket for his pack, ready to light another. But just as he caught a glimpse of movement in his peripheral vision, his hand froze.

Xi Xianqing stood behind him, arms crossed, his expression cold and unyielding. The hem of his coat fluttered slightly in the breeze by the lake. He said nothing, simply staring at Zhu Ming quietly.

A hint of unease crept into Zhu Ming’s mind. “Why are you still here?”

“Didn’t you say you’d go to rehab after finishing that cigarette?” Xi Xianqing said from where he stood, his tone calm. “I’ll wait here until you’re done.”

Zhu Ming’s hand holding the cigarette silently trembled.

He glanced at Xi Xianqing in disbelief before plastering on a faintly mocking smile. “Fiancé, how truly considerate of you ah. Even a real lover wouldn’t go to such lengths.”

But instead of rising to the bait, Xi Xianqing remained composed. Still standing in place with his arms crossed, he gave a small, indifferent nod. “You’re welcome.”

Zhu Ming: “…?”

Xi Xianqing: “I promised your aunt I’d watch you complete your rehab, and I intend to give her a full report.”

The fox-like façade of leisure Zhu Ming wore began to crack.

Forcing a smile, Zhu Ming drawled through gritted teeth, “Rehab takes at least three hours. Don’t you have a packed schedule as a big designer? And shouldn’t you be preparing your luggage for your trip to District Two for your assessment…”

Xi Xianqing ignored the feeble attempts to distract him.

Instead, he stepped closer to Zhu Ming, bent down, and picked up the pack of cigarettes resting on Zhu Ming’s lap.

Taking one, he held it between his fingers, then leaned forward to light it using the smoldering embers of Zhu Ming’s nearly spent cigarette.

The tips of the cigarettes touched, and two small orange flames flickered in the gentle breeze by the lake.

Zhu Ming thought Xi Xianqing was simply lighting a cigarette for himself.

But in the next moment, the nearly burnt-out cigarette in Zhu Ming’s hand was taken away. In its place, the freshly lit one was gently slipped between his index and middle fingers.

–-Xi Xianqing calmly helped him to light a new cigarette.

“Just keep taking in your nicotine and dopamine.”

Xi Xianqing said as he straightened up, his tone tranquil. “I’m not busy today—I have plenty of time to spend with you.”

Author’s Notes:

The great peac0ck firmly caught hold of the little fox trying to escape treatment!