Capital Planet, Upper City District.
Global Tower stood by the Blue River bank. In the heart of the Upper City District, where land was worth its weight in gold, this building reached straight into the clouds, resplendent and glorious—an undisputed landmark of the Upper City District.
On the 24th floor, inside the spacious, open-plan private suite, the bustling traffic of the Upper City District was fully visible. This was the usual gathering place for a few young masters of the Upper City District.
On a dark red leather sofa, Ji Buyan slouched lazily against the backrest. A metal ball before him projected a holographic screen. He scrolled through the latest online amusements with boredom.
His black leather jacket, studded boots, flamboyant red hair, and raised, sharp eyes—everything about him screamed eccentricity.
His good friend, Si Zhen, was dressed far more conservatively: a black casual suit, the jacket now draped over the back of the sofa, wearing only a black shirt. His features were chiseled, his aura serene. He looked up at his friend. “You’ve been looking much better lately, mentally.”
Both were Alphas. Ji Buyan suffered from severe insomnia and extreme mental instability, filled with pent-up hostility and addicted to extreme sports. Only in those thrilling activities did he feel any relief.
Recently, though, he seemed to have improved a lot.
“Mhm.” Ji Buyan rubbed his chin and looked up. “Been able to sleep. There’s progress.”
“Any secret recipe? Which master managed to solve our Young Master Ji’s life problem?”
The two were like brothers, having grown up together, and never minced words. Si Zhen was genuinely curious.
“Found a sleep-aid streamer recently.”
Ji Buyan had been forced to take over some of his family’s new media business some time ago. Late one night, he stumbled upon a stream by chance. Its viewer count was pitifully low, but for some strange reason, he had lingered there a long time.
It was a male Beta with fair skin, doing trivial mechanical repair work in a cramped and dilapidated room. The streamer never showed his face or spoke. The quiet stream held only the faint sounds of tools colliding. His movements were unhurried and methodical, carrying a quiet, cold, steady rhythm.
He was so pale he seemed overexposed. His figure was tightly wrapped, slender but not overly skinny. His fingers were long, knuckles distinct. Occasionally, an arm or a delicate collarbone would be exposed. Sitting cross-legged, the movements would hint at a subtly concave waistline… Fragility and strength intertwined, quietly attending to his own business.
Once—he remembered it was once—perhaps lost in his work, the streamer lowered his head, revealing a small, pointed chin, a delicate Adam’s apple that bobbed slightly. It was very beautiful.
He didn’t see the face, yet Ji Buyan simply felt it was beautiful.
For reasons he couldn’t explain, he kind of liked him.
“A streamer?” Si Zhen had imagined many reasons but never this one. He thought about the streaming industry he knew of, pondering for a moment. “That’s… quite rare, then.”
Ji Buyan pulled his thoughts back, swatting away the small orb in front of him, and sat up straighter. “Is ‘The One’ coming back to the Capital Planet soon?”
Si Zhen paused slightly. “The one from the Seville Group?”
Ji Buyan leaned forward to stab a piece of fruit and put it in his mouth, elbows on his knees. He looked up at the person across from him and nodded noncommittally.
“Ah, well, our dear Head of the Xu Family has certainly schemed extensively to find that enemy. Searching the whole world over.” He spread his hands.
“The universe is boundless. Even Xu Zhiyuan has people he can’t find. Looks like he’s still empty-handed.”
Their families were business partners with the Seville Group. They’d had some minor connections in childhood, but nothing deep. In the business world, they were acquaintances, friends to some degree.
“I wonder how that Beta offended him. It’s been five years. He’s practically digging three feet into the ground. Seems determined to settle this until death.”
Si Zhen took a sip of tea. “What happened on that Lower Planet back then was completely sealed off by the Xu Family Head. Not a single bit of information leaked.”
“The Xu Family Head says he’s looking for someone, but he won’t give a name, won’t give an appearance, no information at all. Only knows it’s a Beta. I don’t think it’s an enemy. More like…” He gently tapped the teacup wall.
Ji Buyan stretched lazily, looking at Si Zhen with interest, finishing his unspoken thought: “A lover?”
The two pondered for a moment, then felt it wasn’t right.
“The Xu Family Head, a Top-tier Alpha, how could he find a Beta for a lover?”
“I’d really like to see just what kind of sacred being that Beta is.”
…
Lower City District. Heavy rain.
Because of the rain, business at this small, broken-down hotel was unusually good. Check-ins, various customer requests, and things like leaking roofs all piled up. Shen Qiuxun was run off his feet.
Fu Mingchuan was missing. No word for two days.
[Aren’t you going to look for him?]
Shen Qiuxun checked the time, running up and down the stairs with a basin. ‘Working hours, bro.’
[Cease flirting with the System.]
‘.’ Couldn’t be bothered to respond.
He was only finally free by evening. The rain hadn’t lessened one bit; the whole world was shrouded in a blurry curtain of water.
Shen Qiuxun craned his neck left and right, then opened his umbrella and locked the door.
[Do you know where he’s hiding?]
Shen Qiuxun didn’t speak. He looked up at the gray, overcast sky, gripped the umbrella handle, and rushed into the heavy rain. Where else could he be?
Avoiding the crowds, Shen Qiuxun returned to his secret base—that row of abandoned houses. He found the one with the ancient tree in the courtyard, stood under the eaves, and closed his umbrella. He patted his damp sleeves and opened the door.
The ground floor was silent. The lighting was terrible; discarded building materials lay in the dim air. His arrival did not disturb this sleeping house.
Shen Qiuxun put his umbrella away against the wall, took out his light and switched it on. A small sound came from behind that low wall. Shen Qiuxun walked a few steps closer and heard a faint, airy meow mixed with the pattering rain.
Moving closer, he shone the flashlight toward the corner. The huddled figure had nowhere to hide. The man was in tatters, covered in several wounds. The sleeve of his white shirt was torn off, revealing a large wound at his elbow. The drenched shirt clung to his skin, outlining muscular contours. Hearing the noise, his unfocused eyes looked warily in this direction.
“Who’s there?”
Shen Qiuxun crouched down, waving a hand toward the darkness. ‘Oh no, he can’t actually be blind, can he?’
[.]
Fu Mingchuan gripped the knife hidden behind his back, shrinking deeper into the corner. Warily, he asked again, “Who is it?”
A black cat suddenly appeared from nowhere, landing lightly before Shen Qiuxun. It rubbed against his calf, meowing coquettishly.
Fu Mingchuan’s expression relaxed. Those eyes seemed to be searching for Shen Qiuxun’s shadow. “Dongxun?”
“Mhm.” Shen Qiuxun rubbed the kitten’s head, picked him up, and looked at Fu Mingchuan. “How did you end up in this sorry state?”
Fu Mingchuan lowered his head. His cheek had a red abrasion. A bitter smile touched his lips. “I’ve been put on a wanted list. Got injured while escaping. Had nowhere to go… So I could only come and ask this cat to take me in for a few days.”
Shen Qiuxun nodded. Hearing the word ‘wanted,’ his expression didn’t change in the slightest. There was no trace whatsoever that he was the culprit.
[.]
‘Quiet, I’m acting.’
Shen Qiuxun had seen a notice on the bulletin board a few days ago:
The Federal Government had always been divided into the New Faction and the Old Faction. The previously stable pattern had become increasingly volatile in recent years. Social unrest grew as the two factions locked horns. Recently, the Old Faction had gained the upper hand, while the New Faction’s power waned.
It was a warning missive. The general gist was that due to recent social instability, if residents encountered New Faction members disturbing public order, they must report them promptly to the Interstellar Public Security Bureau.
At the time, Shen Qiuxun looked at the notice and rubbed his chin. ‘I have a new idea for the guide.’
[?]
‘The book says you need sufficient time together. But we’re still way too unfamiliar with Fu Mingchuan right now.’
[So.]
Shen Qiuxun tapped the notice, his eyes narrowing slightly, a faint, ambiguous smile curling his lips. ‘Let’s report him.’
[?]
‘That way, when we take him in later, won’t we be able to be together every day? Easy guide, simple.’
[.]
Shen Qiuxun put his plan into immediate action. He created a private anonymous virtual account and then, just like that, blithely sent the innocent Fu Mingchuan onto the wanted list.
Now, looking at the pitiful Fu Mingchuan before him, he was very calm. “Oh.”
Fu Mingchuan clenched his fist and turned his head. Even in such a wretched state, his brow held no resentment whatsoever—only guilt for disturbing Shen Qiuxun. Enduring the pain, he forced out a trace of a smile to comfort Shen Qiuxun. “Our interactions haven’t been many. You don’t need to worry about being implicated by me… I’m truly sorry for the trouble.”
The neglected kitten angrily scratched Shen Qiuxun’s knee, only to be ruffled into a mess. “So where do you plan to go after this?”
Fu Mingchuan lowered his eyes, pondering for a moment. His smile was bleak. Suppressing the pain in his body, his voice was a bit weak. “As things stand… I truly have nowhere to go.”
He shifted his leg. A pained gasp inadvertently escaped his throat—low, magnetic, quite pleasant to hear.
Shen Qiuxun sighed helplessly. “Then stay here for now. I’m not going to take care of you.”
[The Host’s acting has greatly improved.]
Fu Mingchuan suddenly coughed violently, as if he had choked. He braced a hand on the ground, his entire body trembling. His tattered collar hung down, completely failing to cover his body. The skin of his chest was fully exposed. “Cough, cough, cough… Too bad, my eyes… can’t see either… Cough, cough, cough.”
He had originally been thinking about how to get closer to Shen Qiuxun. When the news of his wanted status came, he could have left. But on second thought…
A down-and-out friend… he should be able to stay in Shen Qiuxun’s house, right?
“Tch.” Shen Qiuxun released the black cat, which had been startled by the man’s coughing. “Want me to buy you some medicine?”
Fu Mingchuan took a long while to catch his breath. He was flushed with a sickly hue, weakly supporting himself on the floor as he looked up. His eyes, bloodshot, turned toward Shen Qiuxun. His lips were pale, his state utterly miserable. “I… I can do housework, cook… Could you take me in for a few days?”
“You can do quite a lot.” Shen Qiuxun raised an eyebrow, shifting his weight to the other leg. He added slowly, “Too bad, my place doesn’t have that many rooms for you to stay in.”
Fu Mingchuan lowered his eyes, hiding the obsession deep within them. He bowed his head and spoke softly. “Just a little space is enough… I will repay you… I can do anything.”
He shuffled forward on his knees, his hand slowly reaching for the tip of Shen Qiuxun’s shoe. Looking up from below, his expression was miserable. “Please.”
He was truly pitiful, utterly humble.
Shen Qiuxun stood up and took a step back.
Fu Mingchuan coughed in disappointment.
A long moment passed.
Shen Qiuxun reached out, unbuttoned his jacket, and tossed it to the man.
The black cat tilted its head, looked at Fu Mingchuan, then tilted its head up to look at Shen Qiuxun. Finally, it imitatively placed its front paws on the tip of Shen Qiuxun’s shoe, its green eyes perfectly round.
“Fine. Before your wounds heal… stay at my place first.” Shen Qiuxun scooped up the kitten. “You have to take good care of my cat.”
He paused, lowered his head, and used the tip of his shoe to gently lift the man’s chin. Looking down from above: “The kitten is more useful than you. If it weren’t for him, I wouldn’t bother with you.”
