Chapter 18: Balancing is Essential

Even though Shi Huai clung on tightly, Ming Ruan still gently set him down on the ground.

Ming Ruan closed the door and quickly walked over to Gray Wolf. He looked the wolf up and down repeatedly, inspecting him from every angle. Finally, he simply sat cross-legged on the floor and began helping to brush off the dust and plant debris clinging to the wolf’s fur.

His entire heart and eyes were filled with the returned Gray Wolf.

And the fox, cast aside to the side, was still standing there, frozen in place.

Xie Gewen swept his gaze over the red fox. Seeing that the fox wasn’t wearing a Light Brain, he more or less understood that this was the cross-district beastman.

Who knew what reason he had for running over here.

But Gray Wolf didn’t have time to ponder for long. He was interrupted by a hug.

Ming Ruan wrapped both arms around Gray Wolf’s neck, letting the wolf’s muzzle rest on his shoulder, and gave him a big, strong squeeze. “Welcome home!”

Xie Gewen froze for a moment, then obediently accepted the hug, his wolf eyes narrowing slightly.

Xie Gewen knew he was a very strong-willed and stubborn person. That was why, after sensing his own wavering regarding Ming Ruan, he had forcibly made himself leave.

But after leaving, he hadn’t been able to return to his former peace and quiet. On the contrary, more and more often, he found himself thinking about all his interactions with Ming Ruan. Thinking about those warm, inspiring emotions he had received from Ming Ruan. These memories and feelings kept the wolf tossing and turning.

Perhaps it was time to admit it—he wasn’t so completely unassailable after all.

Following his heart, he had returned here.

After a long, tight embrace with Gray Wolf, Ming Ruan let go. Looking at the wolf’s calm, gentle eyes, he couldn’t resist reaching out to cup the wolf’s head.

Just at that moment, a red shadow suddenly darted over from behind! It looked about to bite Ming Ruan’s arm.

Gray Wolf moved at the same instant. Stepping forward to block it, he caught the tiny red thing in his jaws and flung it aside. The little fox was sent flipping head over heels in the air, landing some distance away.

Dizzy and disoriented from being thrown, Shi Huai gritted his teeth.

He only wanted to stop Ming Ruan from petting this wolf!

Ming Ruan always hugging and embracing him was one thing—he could tolerate that. But who was this guy? How could Ming Ruan just go up and hug him, and then even be about to continue petting him?

This one was also a beastman. And if he wasn’t mistaken… this wolf was that legendary Council Speaker, Xie Gewen, wasn’t he!

How could Ming Ruan dare touch someone like him? Wasn’t he afraid of playing himself to death?!

Shi Huai didn’t yield an inch. He crouched low and bared his fangs in an attack stance. Gray Wolf stood ramrod straight, looking down from a lofty height, staring coldly at the fox.

The atmosphere instantly crackled with tension!

Suddenly, both the fox and the wolf felt a tight grip on the scruffs of their necks.

“What’s this, what’s this!” Ming Ruan pinched the napes of both animals. “No fighting, okay!”

The moment Ming Ruan intervened, the coldness in Gray Wolf’s eyes melted away. He stopped looking at the fox. Instead, he docilely tilted his head to rub against Ming Ruan’s hand.

Shi Huai: ?

Shi Huai couldn’t help but yip out a string of swear words, but no one understood him, and no one paid him any mind.

Ming Ruan went into the kitchen, intending to make some late-night snack for Gray Wolf to tide him over. Gray Wolf also walked over to lie down by the window, completely treating the fox as if he didn’t exist.

The fox yapped for quite a while before he finally curled up sullenly in his den, burying himself so tightly he seemed intent on cutting himself off from the entire world.

[Hold on, someone explain who this is. What’s going on here?]

[Newcomer, is your village just getting internet? This is the Council Speaker. Go brush up on the trending StarNet articles.]

[AAAAAH!! He actually came back!! Is my Wenming Party about to rise again?!]

[In that case, mr won’t have so much energy left to bother our Baby Huai. That’s good.]

[LOL, I hope your idol here thinks it’s good too.]

Since it was nearly bedtime, Ming Ruan only quickly prepared some simple but tasty food for Gray Wolf to whet his appetite.

After Gray Wolf finished eating, he fastidiously cleaned around his muzzle. Then he walked over to the bathroom, sat down, and looked toward Ming Ruan.

It was very dirty out in the wild. Being back in Ming Ruan’s house, he wanted to wash up.

Ming Ruan had now figured out that the bathroom had a convenient cleaning function. Still, he walked over cheerfully, “Does Mr. Gray Wolf want a bath? Do you need me to help—”

“Yip-aow-wow-wow-wow!!” The little fox shot out of his den, emitting a tremendous yipping sound, and planted himself right in Ming Ruan’s path toward the bathroom, yelling at him loudly.

Shi Huai’s composure had snapped.

He hadn’t seen the situation clearly just now. It wasn’t that Ming Ruan was trying to make a move on the Council Speaker; it was clearly Xie Gewen who had ulterior motives, even proactively rubbing against Ming Ruan? What kind of issue was that! He wasn’t a real wolf!

If he wanted a bath, he could just use the cleaning system. Why call for Ming Ruan? He wasn’t actually planning to have Ming Ruan bathe him, was he?! Dream on!

However, Gray Wolf merely gave the fox a cold glance, nodded at Ming Ruan, and then went into the bathroom himself.

He was just letting Ming Ruan know.

Shi Huai: … Tch!

Ming Ruan looked down at the little puffed-up fox at his feet. Thinking for a moment, he suddenly bent down and scooped him up.

The little fox let out an involuntary, startled little ‘yip.’

Ming Ruan lifted the little fox over his head, gazing into his caramel-colored eyes and his ears that drooped slightly to the sides. He smiled. “Baby!”

The little fox’s ears instantly shot straight up. He looked at Ming Ruan as if startled.

“I really like our little Shi Huai Baby!” Ming Ruan spun around in a circle with the little fox held aloft.

The little fox instantly became awkward. He averted his gaze, his ears swiveling back and forth restlessly.

Oh dear, he was being shy.

Pets on Earth could get jealous; how much more so these much smarter interstellar little animals. Ming Ruan immediately deduced that the little fox’s reaction today was definitely not from fear of Gray Wolf. He had just gotten jealous.

As everyone knew, when there were two Babys in the house, balancing things fairly was absolutely necessary.

One absolutely had to make sure both Babys felt they were loved wholeheartedly.

Ming Ruan drew the little fox from the air into his arms, cradling him with one arm while stroking his fur with the other. Leaning in, he planted a kiss right on the little fox’s forehead. “Gray Wolf hasn’t been living well outside. Let’s let him stay here with us, okay? See, this way there’ll be another little animal to play with you. You won’t be lonely anymore.”

As for Shi Huai… Shi Huai wasn’t paying any attention at all to what Ming Ruan was saying.

He only felt that the spot where Ming Ruan had kissed him was like a tiny spark had been buried there. Starting from that center, his entire head, his entire body began to burn hot.

Ming Ruan’s movements just now hadn’t been particularly fast. He could have actually dodged. And this was right in front of the live broadcast camera!

Why hadn’t he dodged?

Shi Huai asked himself, ears burning.

Just admit it. He didn’t dislike the current Ming Ruan at all.

That light kiss from Ming Ruan, though merely planted on his forehead, was like a spark falling into gunpowder—BOOM—igniting both Shi Huai and the live broadcast room viewers.

Just as the viewers in the broadcast room were passionately sending barrages at the speed of light, their fingers moving so fast they became afterimages…

Some sharp-eyed viewer noticed that, at some unknown point, the bathroom door had been opened.

A silver figure stood inside the bathroom, gazing at the man and fox in the living room.

[!!!]