Chapter 1
“Heard you’re still messing with that original stuff~”
“Messing around, seems like it’s just like that~”
A sweet female voice faintly drifted from leaky headphones, quickly drowned out by the clattering keyboards in the cubicle farm. In the fast-paced office building of a major company, everyone’s mental state seemed like they were carrying a blood feud, either quietly going mad or frantically energized.
“Ctrl C + Ctrl V, what a rip-off to hire me…” Ning Zhixia took a deep breath, dark circles under his eyes, tremblingly glanced at the eight or nine 60-second voice messages from his boss on his phone screen, and directly submitted his resignation on the company’s intranet.
Several heads with keen noses lifted from their cubicles, whispering as they watched the young man clearing his computer.
“So many graduates fight tooth and nail to get in here every year, young people these days don’t know how to cherish opportunities.”
“Resigning from a perfectly good job, does he have a gold mine at home to support him?”
Ning Zhixia remained silent. Don’t mention it, he actually did.
It was the middle of winter, and the bustling streets were filled with traffic. Red lanterns hung on the trees lining the streets, their yellow tassels swaying in the cool breeze.
After leaving the company, Ning Zhixia sat on a bar stool by the window of a convenience store, poking at various job-seeking apps with a solemn expression. He studied media design at the Academy of Fine Arts, with excellent grades, and successfully landed an internship at a major company…
However, in just a few months, his anticipation turned to disillusionment, leaving him feeling like discarded fertilizer in this city.
Ning Zhixia stared at the screen, blinked, and dejectedly lowered his head, slumping weakly onto the table.
The store clerk observed him for a while, then offered a free cup of hot water, comforting him, “Don’t be sad, sir. It’s really hard to find a good job these days.”
“Indeed.” Ning Zhixia nodded in agreement, gazed across the street in thought for a moment, then sat up and dialed his… father’s number.
Three months later, Yucheng.
The door of a small detached house at 19 Qingxi Road was wide open, a wooden sign bearing elegant calligraphy.
“Monster Manicure Shop? Okay, I thought you were joking, you’re actually serious!” His childhood friend’s surprised voice came from the speakerphone.
Ning Zhixia fumbled blindly on the messy desk for a utility knife, saying as he searched, “Of course, I’ve been busy decorating for three months!”
Friend: “Impressive. How’s it going?”
The blade clicked out. Ning Zhixia’s face was full of resentment: “The pain of renovation, unforgettable!”
Friend: “…I’m sorry I couldn’t share the hardship with you.”
Ning Zhixia’s parents had amicably divorced and remarried, moving abroad the year before last. He was used to being independent and didn’t want to go abroad. Fortunately, both parents understood him, saying that the small detached house in his hometown, Yucheng, which was part of his grandfather’s inheritance, was left to him.
Yucheng was scenic, with a slow pace of life, a good place to live. However, since his family had moved away, Ning Zhixia hadn’t returned since going to university in another city.
The government had replanned the surrounding blocks. Although Qingxi Road wasn’t the main street, it connected the commercial district with several residential areas. Two rows of camphor trees provided shade and lush greenery, and many people strolled leisurely along the pedestrian path.
This street was mostly lined with small detached shops, with many cafes and bakeries.
Ning Zhixia’s number 19 looked brand new and exquisite, as if time had stood still, with white walls, a green door, and dark gray tiles. Even the length of the golden pothos hanging from the doorway was exactly as he remembered from his childhood.
His friend chuckled as he listened to his description: “Dude, you’re going for the Stardew Valley route.”
“Hmm, seems like it.”
A week after opening, he hadn’t made much money, but he had heard a lot of neighborhood gossip, like him and her, her and her, him and her and her.
“So how long are you going to stay in Yucheng?”
“Not sure, maybe I won’t leave.”
“Wow! Really? Then I want to come back and see you!”
“Yeah, yeah, you’re welcome anytime.”
The renovation and decoration were sponsored by his parents, who also frequently transferred money to him. After all the work, Ning Zhixia still had about 200,000 yuan in savings, enough for a salted fish like him with no life aspirations to lie flat for a while.
The two chatted for half an hour until a new delivery arrived, and Ning Zhixia reluctantly hung up the phone.
Dappled shadows danced across his face. Ning Zhixia looked up, the window mostly blocked by the swaying pothos. He reached out and lifted a vine, the green tendril clinging to his warm, soft fingertips, the golden-edged leaves trembling.
“Is there a breeze?” Ning Zhixia curiously poked his head out to look, then tossed the vine aside, muttering, “Seems a bit too long, still need to trim it.”
The trembling of the leaves stopped abruptly.
He turned to get the gardening shears, and immediately heard a rustling sound behind him.
When Ning Zhixia returned to the window, the vines that had been shaking like they were electrified seemed to be blown upwards by the wind, hanging quietly from the eaves.
Bright light from the window fell on his head. Ning Zhixia stared at the plants for a few seconds, then puzzledly put down the shears and continued tidying up.
He had played around with manicures with some senior classmates in college, so he expertly ordered several sets of gel polish, both domestic and imported. However, some luxury brands were too expensive, even though the colors were really beautiful, so Ning Zhixia restrained himself and bought the most practical series.
The gel polish that arrived this time was a complete set, and the seller included a color chart. Ning Zhixia thought it looked good and placed it directly on the walnut shelf by the door.
While he was busy, the grass rustled, and a shadow fell at his feet.
“Meow—”
A large ginger cat had squatted on the windowsill at some point, its head tilted against the wooden corner. It slowly lay down, tucked its paws in, and leisurely watched him work.
Ning Zhixia turned around and saw the golden loaf of bread.
He slowly curled his lips, commenting like a connoisseur: “Round head, thick neck, not a kitten, but a piglet.”
The fat orange cat hissed at him, and Ning Zhixia grinned, scampering away.
“Hmph.” The fat orange cat flicked its tail and tried to go back to sleep.
The young man, who had disappeared behind the screen, peeked out again: “Hey, piglet!”
Fat orange cat: “…”
After teasing the stray cat that frequented his shop, Ning Zhixia broke down the delivery boxes into cardboard and stacked them.
The small detached house was about 160 square meters. The entrance was lush and fresh with greenery, an old bench piled with potted plants, and fallen petals landing on the soft bellies of the kittens.
The first floor was divided by a screen into a work area and a small living room. Next to the storage room were the kitchen and bathroom. All the appliances were carefully chosen by his mother, who had reminded him to keep all the warranty cards.
The second floor had two bedrooms and a common area furnished with a fabric sofa and bookshelves filled with comics and merchandise.
Ning Zhixia quite liked this house. He had visited a few times with his grandfather when he was young. Usually, his grandfather would clean up and leave, and he and his friend would eat popsicles and play with stones outside. Sometimes, they would mischievously pull off a few leaves from the vines, and inevitably get a swat on the bottom with a broom.
The scrap collector hadn’t arrived yet, and he didn’t want the living room to be messy, so he picked up the cardboard, opened the door to the storage room, and a slightly musty smell filled his nose.
This room was dark, and even the humidity was higher than in other areas. Strangely, the walls weren’t peeling.
The workers couldn’t find the reason, so to be safe, they hadn’t put any furniture in it except for the existing rosewood cabinet.
Ning Zhixia piled the cardboard and clutter next to the cabinet, hopped onto the cabinet, and stepped on the thick cardboard to press it down.
“Creak—”
The dark red cabinet door opened with a sway, the space inside like a gaping black mouth, spitting out a brick-like book.
Was this thing here before?
Ning Zhixia picked up the book. It must have been pressed by something heavy, the pages were stuck together, and the cover was blurry, only vaguely showing the word “Monster.”
When he flipped through it, the pages were surprisingly smooth, as if they had been rebound. The first few pages were brand new and white, printed with warning-like red text—
“First, carefully discern a merman’s lies.”
“Second, don’t let a merman become curious about you.”
“Third, even the coldest merman can’t change his lustful nature.”
“Hmm?”
Ning Zhixia’s eyes locked onto a certain word, his shoulders suddenly shaking, a strange laughter echoing in the empty room.
Merman?
Sounds like they have strong lower back strength, a super pile driver!
Ning Zhixia’s face flushed: ^v^
He flipped through a few more pages. The yellowed, old pages were faded and blurry, only showing some strange-looking creatures.
“Eww, some kind of illustrated Classic of Mountains and Seas…”
Old folks really knew how to have fun. Ning Zhixia flipped through it a few more times, lost interest, and tossed the book back into the cabinet with a “clang.”
In the afternoon, a customer came and had a simple solid color manicure. After seeing the customer off, his stomach growled. Ning Zhixia casually ate a bowl of pot stickers takeout and opened a box of deliveries.
Inside were two neat rows of small white boxes, each containing sparkling Swarovski crystals.
“Oh my…”
Beautiful things always brought a good mood. Ning Zhixia touched each one, taking one out of each to make a display board.
The round clock on the wall ticked as time passed, the dusk outside deepening like a surging mist, isolating the street scene until the second hand clicked and slowly stopped.
A cool breeze brushed against the back of his hand. Ning Zhixia shivered unexpectedly and looked up at the clock, realizing it was almost 7:30.
It didn’t look like there would be any more customers. Ning Zhixia closed the door, turned to tidy up the desk, and suddenly heard a strange rustling sound, like fabric rubbing against grit.
As if sensing something, he glanced towards the gap in the window opposite, a red paper umbrella flashing past his vision.
“Knock, knock.”
“Knock, knock.”
Soon, someone knocked on the door.
Ning Zhixia opened the door, and a beautiful woman stood outside.
White-haired, with fox ears, a golden hairpin swaying, the woman in ancient costume and elegant dress, her beautiful eyes glancing over him, “May I come in?”
Ning Zhixia blinked blankly.
Wow, the cosplayers these days are so polite!
Ning Zhixia pulled the door open wider. Although he didn’t know which character it was, he said cheerfully, “Please come in!”
A subtle barrier dissolved with his words. The woman’s expression was momentarily surprised, then quickly returned to normal. She closed her umbrella and effortlessly entered the room.
Ning Zhixia sat back in his chair and waved to her: “Here, here!”
The fox-eared woman slowly sat down, nine large tails crowded behind her like blooming flowers. She shifted uncomfortably, catching a glimpse of the young man’s peeking eyes from the corner of her eye. She narrowed her eyes and reached towards his heart—
“Whoa!”
Ning Zhixia grabbed her cold, white wrist and lowered his head.
He looked like a fresh-faced newbie, but he acted like a seasoned and bold libertine.
The fox demon mocked herself for misjudging him, but then heard the young man exclaim, “Your hands are so beautiful!”
“Ah? Ah…”
The straightforward compliment stunned her. “Really…?”
“Your fingers are so slender and long, your nail beds are the perfect length and shape… why are they a bit long? But that’s okay, even your natural nails don’t need extensions…” Ning Zhixia nodded decisively, “Hmm, I’ve never seen such beautiful hands!”
The sincere tone made the fox demon’s heart flutter, thinking it was just about her appearance, but the nine tails behind her quietly twitched, wishing he would say more.
“But…”
Just as the fox demon was getting a little carried away, Ning Zhixia’s tone changed, pointing at her bright red nails, and said in a businesslike manner, “Removing them costs extra.”
The fox demon froze, agreeing reflexively, “O-Okay.”
