Chapter 115
Extra 1: A Certain Day in the Future
Merxon Technology Corporation.
“It’s closing time, it’s closing time, Lin Ran, who isn’t working overtime today, it’s a holiday tomorrow, are you going to the dinner party tonight?”
In the office, the leader at the front looked at the young man beside him and extended the invitation, and the attention of the entire office silently gathered.
“Sorry, Supervisor Lin, I have to pick up my nephew from kindergarten today, can I go next time?”
Lin Ran looked up and smiled, his polite refusal not making anyone feel uncomfortable.
“Oh, okay, although it’s a pity, next time is fine too.”
The supervisor scratched his head and watched as Lin Ran quickly packed his things and left in a hurry.
“Aiya, we failed to invite him again!!”
“A bit of a pity, sob, sob, sob…”
“What’s there to be pitiful about? He’s already taken, can’t you see the ring on his finger!”
Everyone in the office watched as he left, then couldn’t help but sigh collectively.
This newly hired employee had an incredibly impressive resume. He graduated from the S University’s Department of Computer Science, with top-notch grades and awards, and he had even interned at Morson. He had also completed several projects exceptionally well in the year he had been at the company.
Of course, the reason he attracted so much attention, besides his impressive resume, was also related to his looks, which caused a stir in the company on his first day.
Unfortunately, anyone with discerning eyes could see the crimson gold ring on his ring finger. He wasn’t just spoken for, he was already married!
Thinking of this, several more sighs echoed in the office.
They just didn’t know what kind of person his partner was?
Curious.
“Been waiting long?”
After work, as soon as Lin Ran got out of the elevator and walked to the parking lot, he saw the car waiting for him and smiled, looking at the person inside through the car window.
As expected, a certain golden tabby who came to pick him up was sitting in the driver’s seat, sulking and not wanting to speak.
In fact, Shao Mian still couldn’t accept why Lin Ran didn’t work at his own company but insisted on working at some other random, no-name company.
“What random, no-name company? Merxon is a top game technology company in the industry.”
“And if I were in the Morson game development team, I wouldn’t be able to work normally, okay?” With all the fluffy creatures wanting to surround him, and him wanting to pet every single one of them, how could he focus on work?
Lin Ran suspected that even if he created a bunch of bugs, “Demon World” would praise him for deliberately testing everyone.
Lin Ran tried to reason with Shao Mian.
Shao Mian snorted coldly, just as he was about to say something, he was preemptively kissed by Lin Ran.
“Okay, no more anger after a kiss, drive to the kindergarten to pick someone up, quickly.”
After the kiss, Lin Ran, his eyes curved into a smile, looked at Shao Mian, who had been successfully appeased, and urged him to quickly drive to pick up the little guy.
Shao Mian, who was instantly appeased by the kiss: Heh! Humans!
It was always like this, it was the same when he secretly submitted his resume behind his back!!
Although they had kissed countless times, every time he was kissed, he couldn’t help but agree to everything.
This wouldn’t do, it made him seem too cheap.
Shao Mian resolved that he must stand his ground tonight… he couldn’t be so spineless anymore!
However, as he drove away, Shao Mian glanced at the group of people staring at them in shock not far away and frowned slightly in recognition.
After realizing that these seemed to be Lin Ran’s so-called new colleagues, Shao Mian deliberately turned the steering wheel, just enough for the golden wedding ring on his finger to catch the light.
After the car sped away, the group of colleagues who were about to go to the dinner party looked at the figure in the car window, their eyes blinded by the flash of the ring, and were collectively stunned.
“Wait, is that Lin Ran’s partner? He even came to pick him up from work?”
“Holy crap, he looks so young, and he looks a bit mixed-race?”
“And that car is ridiculously expensive…”
Everyone knew that Lin Ran had never hidden the fact that he was in a relationship, but they never expected his partner to appear like this, directly extinguishing all possibilities of pursuing him.
It was like an impenetrable wall.
And at Blue Sky Kindergarten, a little cub was obediently playing with building blocks in the classroom, waiting for his guardian to pick him up.
The little guy was very beautiful, but his personality was a bit aloof and irritable at first, making all the teachers and students a little afraid of him, but he gradually became different after integrating.
“A-Ran!”
Suddenly hearing the classroom window being knocked on, Little Feather’s eyes instantly lit up, and he stood up and rushed towards A-Ran outside the window.
“Stand still. Look at your posture, what does it look like.”
But just as he was about to be hugged by A-Ran, a large hand grabbed his collar.
Shao Mian knew that after a whole day of coding, his arms would be a little sore, and if he was hugged by these little guys,
Little Feather pouted, wanting to be angry but not daring to, and silently felt wronged.
“You’re so fierce, Yuanbao, you scared Little Feather.”
Lin Ran reached out and rubbed Little Feather’s face, distressed.
“Mr. Lin Ran, are you here to pick up Little Feather?
The teacher beside him was amazed no matter how many times he saw this.
Although same-sex couples weren’t uncommon now, it was still rare to see such a handsome couple!
At first, she was shocked when she learned that Little Feather’s parents had passed away, but after seeing Jiang Lin Ran, this young acting guardian, the teacher gradually felt that this seemed quite good.
His care and concern for the little guy were far more meticulous than many biological parents.
“Thank you for your care, Little Feather’s situation is special, and it does require you to pay more attention.”
Lin Ran held Little Feather’s hand and talked to the teacher about the details, and the teacher nodded repeatedly.
In a sense, Little Feather was actually very smart and learned much faster than ordinary human children, so he would easily doze off when he felt bored in class.
“I’m thinking about having Little Feather skip a grade.”
On the way back, Lin Ran started to seriously consider this issue.
“Why bother?”
In the past, he would just be thrown into the forest! If he survived, he grew up, if not, then he was gone.
Shao Mian glanced at Little Feather in the back seat, and the little guy instantly puffed up his cheeks and turned his head away, not wanting to look at the bad guy who threw him into kindergarten.
He could have been with A-Ran all day long, but now it had suddenly changed!
Lin Ran couldn’t help but laugh and sigh, feeling that they really weren’t getting along. He didn’t know if it would change when Little Feather grew up.
However, Pear Blossom and Dark Cloud were a little envious that Little Feather could go to kindergarten.
Because after trying several times, due to their core being taken away before, they couldn’t maintain their human form stably.
“How long can you maintain it today?”
Lin Ran asked the little guy in front of him after returning to the Demon World.
“Chibi… Chibi, Chibi!”
The cub gestured with his little paws, one and two.
It meant two hours!
“Aiya, two hours is already very impressive. If you can gradually stabilize it to five hours, you can go to kindergarten.”
Lin Ran smiled and encouraged them, and Little Pear Blossom and Little Dark Cloud nodded obediently.
However, Lin Ran was indeed considering one thing, if Dark Cloud and Pear Blossom transformed into human form, wouldn’t it be very complicated to continue sharing one body?
If their personalities kept changing, it would be easy for others to notice the abnormality, right?
Pear Blossom’s personality was soft and clingy, while Dark Cloud was aloof, they were completely opposite.
“Just copy it, then they don’t have to share one body.”
Shao Mian, looking at Lin Ran, who was even thinking about the cubs’ problems while washing up, felt a little jealous as he gnashed his teeth.
Since he had solved the problem of their two personalities not devouring each other, the body problem was also easily solved.
“Copy? Can we really do that?”
Lin Ran’s eyes widened slightly.
“Of course, this is the Demon World.”
Shao Mian wagged his tail, whatever he said, it could be done.
It just required finding a few specific items, which were a bit rare.
“Yes, yes, yes, you’re the most amazing, you’re the Demon King, super amazing.”
Lin Ran praised him with a smile and was hugged around the waist by Shao Mian, who sensed the perfunctory tone, making Lin Ran subconsciously want to dodge, but he was kissed instead.
Even the faint vanilla mint toothpaste tasted sweet to Shao Mian.
Actually, Lin Ran still wasn’t very good at kissing, unless it was a quick peck, otherwise he would feel a little breathless if it lasted too long.
After reluctantly separating, Shao Mian wished he could hold him and be more intimate, but he couldn’t be too obvious about his intentions, otherwise he would be easily pushed away by Lin Ran.
“Having to brush my teeth again is a bit annoying…”
Lin Ran covered his lips, adjusted his breathing for a while, then looked up and protested, although his blush made his words unconvincing.
“Is it really that annoying?”
Shao Mian, certain that Lin Ran also felt something, wagged his tail and asked softly.
If it was uncomfortable, the rings would sense it.
Lin Ran blushed even more and chose to lower his head and ignore him.
How did it feel like this guy was becoming more and more shameless?
“You go pack your luggage, no one will help you this time.”
They were planning to go to the famous City W for a hot spring trip during this winter vacation.
Not only had they invited Luo Xiao and the others to meet them there, but Jiang Jie and the others would also come from home. It would also be very beneficial for Grandma’s leg.
And this winter, good news seemed to keep coming. Not only had Luo Xiao and the others found jobs smoothly, but Jiang Jie had also successfully passed the written exam and interview and, after the probationary period, had become a public servant!
He had become a legendary figure among his younger brothers.
They all said that they didn’t expect that the thing their boss was worried about that year was actually a matter of people’s livelihood! He had frowned, worried about the suffering of the people!
Sigh, the realm of different people was truly different.
“Aiya, aiya, Lin-zai, you don’t even know, this grassroots work isn’t simple, there’s a lot to it, I’m so busy every day just compiling poverty alleviation data!”
Jiang Jie excitedly tried to share his work experience with Lin-zai, it was rare for them to meet during the holidays.
“Is it really that amazing?”
Lin Ran listened with a smile, seeing Jiang Jie’s energetic appearance, he was also happy, at least this was completely different from his predetermined fate in the mirror.
“Of course, let me tell you about…”
Jiang Jie wished he could cling to Lin-zai and not let that despicable and scheming blond guy get close at all.
When he first learned that Lin-zai’s partner was Shao Mian, Jiang Jie was shocked.
Because in Jiang Jie’s mind, Lin-zai, as his best buddy and the most outstanding student in the world, should find the most gentle and beautiful girl as his partner!
But a perfectly good gentle and beautiful girl had inexplicably turned into a blond guy who was even taller than him and had stiff muscles, how could he tolerate this!?
Even though he was very rich, and his looks were passable, and he was even… no, why was he speaking up for him!?
Anyway, no means no, there was no need to care about him!
“Heh.”
Shao Mian sneered, how could he not see through Jiang Jie’s intentions?
It wasn’t his place to object! Since he had obtained Grandma’s bankbook, his family status was legitimate!
Sootball and the other little demons in the backpack happily wore their small white towels, looking forward to the hot springs. It was said that hot springs were very comfortable.
“Lin-zai——long time no see!! How’s work been recently!?”
“You guys arrived so early, Luo Xiao!”
And after arriving at the hotel they had booked in City H, Lin Ran saw that Luo Xiao, Zhu Yao, and the others had already arrived and were chatting enthusiastically.
To be honest, after graduating for a few years, everyone’s temperament and appearance had changed somewhat.
Not only did Luo Xiao look more like a professional elite, it was said that he had started to take over the family business with his dad, even Zhu Yao, who was usually a bit unreliable, had become more mature.
Although the moment they met, their usual personalities were quickly revealed.
“Yeah, yeah, we’re already here. By the way, do you know? I recently met an old acquaintance, guess who?”
Luo Xiao pulled Lin Ran and kept him in suspense.
“Who?”
Lin Ran really couldn’t guess, he had so many old acquaintances.
“Senior Sister Qiu Yi from the teaching group last year! She asked me a lot about you, tsk, it’s a pity that I said you already have a partner, haha, and then she didn’t say anything.”
Luo Xiao actually wasn’t surprised by this. Lin-zai’s popularity in the department was very high back then, not to mention that they had gotten along exceptionally well during the teaching period.
“Sigh, do you think we’ve all become lucky after seeing that mermaid last year?”
Zhu Yao also recalled the past and felt that everyone had been so successful after graduating, it might be related to the mermaid they saw.
Except for Lin Ran, who smiled but didn’t say anything.
“Senior Sister Qiu Yi?”
Shao Mian, who had just arrived, heard a new name again.
“Hello, hello…”
Luo Xiao, Zhu Yao, and the others subconsciously became a little reserved seeing Shao Mian, especially Luo Xiao, who was even more restrained after knowing Shao Mian’s identity.
Although Luo Xiao had always been suspicious, how old was Shao Mian?
Based on his experience in the industry, the top executive of Morson theoretically couldn’t be so young, but Shao Mian didn’t seem to be much older than him and Lin-zai?
This was truly a mystery.
“She’s a senior sister from before, a very nice person, she just wanted to ask about my recent situation. Let’s go, let’s go in.”
Lin Ran tried to prevent Yuanbao from overthinking and just smiled at the mention of Senior Sister Qiu Yi.
He had used a bit of mermaid magic back then, so theoretically, Senior Sister Qiu Yi shouldn’t remember him transforming into a mermaid and saving her.
But there might still be some vague memories, which was also very normal.
If Lin Ran were to describe it, it was probably more like the suspension bridge effect.
Shao Mian was led away suspiciously, still never letting down his guard!
“Ah, De- ah, you’re here! And A-Ran!!”
Although he bowed in greeting when he saw Shao Mian, the hotel owner’s eyes lit up when he saw Lin Ran behind him.
This hot spring hotel was actually secretly run by a demon in the human world, and the hotel owner was a cute capybara.
It was a healing and adorable creature that especially liked hot springs.
However, this oblivious fluffy creature ran the hot spring hotel very professionally. Not only was the environment in the mountains elegant, but the privacy was also excellent.
Even Luo Xiao and the others were surprised after experiencing it: “I can’t find this hotel online, is it invitation-only for members?”
“Ah… yes, but as A-Ran’s friend, you, can come for free~”
The capybara hotel owner’s slow and leisurely tone made people feel relaxed.
And on the other side, Lin Ran helped Grandma into the hot spring.
“Is the water temperature okay, Grandma?”
“It’s okay, it’s okay, you guys go play, it’s just a hot spring!”
Grandma smiled and waved her hand.
“Cheep cheep~”
Sootball was already spinning around in the children’s hot spring wearing a small towel.
Little Feather was a bit afraid of water and hesitated for a long time, only relaxing a little after being held by A-Ran and entering the water.
It was a bit difficult for a little bird to soak in water.
Snowball was no stranger to hot springs, and he preferred to play in the water in his snow leopard form rather than his human form.
“Aren’t you coming down?”
Lin Ran finally looked at Little Pear Blossom and Little Dark Cloud and asked.
The little guy hesitated, trying to let A-Ran see the lightning on his paw.
If he went into the water, the entire pool would be electrified!
“Eh, this is a bit of a problem.”
Lin Ran hadn’t expected this consequence.
“…Give me your paw.”
However, Shao Mian, who rarely had any patience, leaned down and had the little guy extend his paw.
Pear Blossom and Dark Cloud were a little hesitant, but they trusted the big lion guardian and obediently raised their paws to be held.
The next second, Shao Mian placed a simple restriction on them, and they wouldn’t conduct electricity temporarily!
“Okay, go play.”
With a “plop,” he started playing in the water, shaking his little head curiously.
“Chibi, Chibi!!”
Whether it was Pear Blossom or Dark Cloud, it was their first time playing so freely in a hot spring, and they quickly started making a fuss.
“It’s a good thing Ossi isn’t here, if he were, they probably wouldn’t be able to fight.”
Lin Ran couldn’t help but laugh, looking at the pool full of fluffy cubs having a water fight.
After all, Ossi was a professional at water fights.
It was a pity that he was recently being forced by Atylanthos to study hard. As the future heir of the Scythe Clan, Ossi couldn’t fall behind in his studies.
Although Ossi suspected that his brother was just jealous that he couldn’t go, so he took revenge and didn’t let him go to the hot springs with A-Ran!
This was too much.
“Cough, then shall we also go to the hot spring?”
After settling all the fluffy creatures, a certain golden tabby finally wagged his lion tail and softly asked.
He had just had that capybara reserve a hot spring with the best view on the mountaintop!
Lin Ran instantly realized why Yuanbao was so actively helpful, it was to send the little guys away.
But… it seemed quite good.
After working so hard, it was necessary to relax in a hot spring occasionally!
Although only after the little guys found that A-Ran and the big lion guardian were gone did they stop their water fight.
They tilted their heads, shook the water off their fur, and looked around for them, feeling wronged!
“Aiya, aiya, hot spring snacks are here, want to try some? A-Ran will be back soon.”
And the cute capybara owner timely appeared with a plate of exquisite snacks, and the fluffy creatures, although a little suspicious, each took one and started nibbling.
“Ee ee!”
Little Feather knew without even thinking that A-Ran must have been snatched away again!
“Cheep…”
Sootball was also seriously thinking, did he have to grow up like the big lion guardian to have A-Ran spend more time with him?
Snowball silently went into the water, not wanting to participate in this topic, because A-Ran was in a relationship!
Being in a relationship was naturally a little different.
That’s how it was always portrayed in TV dramas.
And by the mountaintop hot spring, leaves fell, and warm steam rose.
Afterwards, Lin Ran, a little sleepy, leaned against Yuanbao in the hot spring, his soft hair falling by his ear, and his fan-like eyelashes slightly wet.
His quiet and peaceful sleeping appearance was so beautiful that it was hard to look away.
Shao Mian, just looking down at this, felt his heart swell.
As if he had the whole world.
After gently pecking his forehead, he subconsciously held Lin Ran’s hand in the water and massaged it, their golden rings intertwined.
So Shao Mian started wagging his tail and thinking about how to subtly have that supervisor give Lin Ran more holidays.
But no matter what, next year would definitely be a good winter, may the New Year be better than the last!
