Chapter 96
After Lin Ran finished smoothing Yuanbao’s fur and saw Jiang Jie’s action, before he could react, Yuanbao reached out.
“Taking it off, you’re welcome.”
Shao Mian sneered, his movements swift and precise, easily brushing away the leaf in Jiang Jie’s hair.
Jiang Jie, who was originally waiting for A-Ran to smooth his hair too: ?
Who wanted to be polite with him?
He wanted Lin-zai to take it off for him!
“Okay, okay, everyone worked hard, here, an ice cream for each of you! Let’s go back and eat and rest!”
Seeing that they were about to start arguing again, Lin Ran directly handed out the ice cream he had bought at the small shop at the village entrance.
Jiang Jie, receiving the nut-covered ice cream bar, was instantly satisfied.
“Hehe, Lin-zai really remembers my favorite flavor!”
Lin Ran must be his best buddy for life!
Holding the ice cream in his hand, Jiang Jie was so smug that Lin Ran almost sighed.
How did it feel like A-Jie had become even more lively after they were separated for a while during school?
Shao Mian frowned and studied the mango yogurt ice cream in his hand.
Then he looked at the nut-covered ice cream bar in Jiang Jie’s hand, which was obviously much bigger than his, and started to wonder if the size of the ice cream symbolized something.
“This ice cream is the same color as your fur, golden and shiny, so I chose this one, don’t you like it?”
Lin Ran noticed that Yuanbao wasn’t moving and subconsciously explained. If he didn’t like it, he was going to exchange his small ice cream with Yuanbao.
“I like it, why wouldn’t I?”
Lin Ran’s explanation successfully appeased Shao Mian, the big lion, who tore open the packaging and stuffed it into his mouth.
Actually, Shao Mian had never tried this kind of human snack before, especially this kind of no-name ice cream from a small village shop.
But Lin Ran always felt that although this kind of ice cream wasn’t as authentic as the ones sold in big supermarkets, it had a unique hometown feeling, including the sweet saccharin taste, which was very familiar.
Little Feather and Sootball, the two little cubs, also curiously received a bag of Sprite ice pops. After tearing open the packaging, they each held one and started licking.
The sweetness just offset the heat from husking corn.
Sootball’s eyes almost lit up, feeling that the snacks A-Ran gave him were always the most delicious in the world.
Eating the small ice cream he bought for himself, Lin Ran squatted down again and curiously observed the black and white panda.
“But what should I do with you? Take you home with me? And report to the village committee?”
Actually, an adult panda should be very big, but this one didn’t seem that old yet, a medium-sized sesame ball.
Its big, dark eyes were also moist, and it would cling to Lin Ran’s feet and whine softly.
The little guy was clearly interested in Lin Ran’s ice cream, but Lin Ran smiled and held him back.
“Little animals probably can’t eat ice cream, right? It wouldn’t be good if you got a stomachache.”
As if understanding A-Ran’s words, the panda stopped trying to grab it and simply clung to Lin Ran’s feet, staring at him intently, making Lin Ran feel like he was doing a food broadcast and a little embarrassed.
Shao Mian looked at this clean and tidy demon, certain that it must be doing well in human society.
Compared to the black panther before, it seemed much more naive, exuding a sense of comfort from not having experienced the harshness of society.
But Lin Ran quickly found that every time he tried to pull the little guy’s head out, it would hide behind him again as soon as it saw Yuanbao.
So before Shao Mian could speak, he unexpectedly heard Lin Ran’s instructions:
“Yuanbao, move aside a little, it seems to be afraid of you and doesn’t dare to come over.”
Shao Mian：……?
Jiang Jie, who had finished his ice cream, instantly became happy. As expected of a national treasure, this was awesome!
“Good job, little guy, hold on, I’ll call for help for you right away!”
Jiang Jie tried to pat his panda buddy.
But it immediately dodged again, circling to Lin Ran’s side, clearly very vigilant, only leaving its butt to Jiang Jie.
Jiang Jie froze, and Shao Mian instantly chuckled.
“Eh, a little shy and socially awkward?”
Lin Ran reached out and rubbed it, hoping the little guy would cooperate.
Fortunately, after Lin Ran started walking home, the panda actually followed, closely rubbing against his feet and occasionally looking up at A-Ran.
Being looked at so much, Lin Ran gradually realized that this might not be an ordinary fluffy creature?
It was a pity that he couldn’t check his notes during the update.
“Heavens, Lin-zai, isn’t this a giant panda? Did it come down the mountain to look for food because it was hungry?”
After arriving home, Grandma was even more surprised to see the giant panda and hurriedly went to find some bamboo shoots to feed it.
To Lin Ran’s relief, it wasn’t picky. After he peeled an apple, it immediately came over, sniffed it, and started eating obediently.
“So cute, baby, look at the camera.”
Even Lin Ran couldn’t resist this adorable scene and took out his phone to take pictures of this beautiful and rare fluffy creature.
The key was that it seemed to be a natural in front of the camera. Lin Ran found that it looked good from any angle.
It looked even cuter playing with bamboo shoots in the bamboo basket.
And when it was startled, it liked to waddle to Lin Ran’s feet and hug them, like a large leg pendant, its black, furry ears also round and cute.
So at the dinner table, Lin Ran subconsciously took his bowl and went to accompany the newly arrived fluffy creature, and everyone exchanged silent glances.
Not to mention Little Feather and Sootball, the two little guys, who hadn’t even given A-Ran their corn yet and felt like A-Ran had been snatched away.
“Cheep…”
Sootball even wanted to ask Grandma for some flour to cover himself in black and white!
“Why aren’t you eating? Young lads need to eat more to grow!”
Only Grandma didn’t notice anything unusual and happily told everyone to eat more.
“Jiang Jie, you start eating!”
She even added another spoonful of rice to Jiang Jie’s bowl.
When an external conflict appeared, the internal conflicts between them didn’t seem so sharp anymore.
For a moment, Shao Mian, Jiang Jie, and the others started eating in silence.
However, Shao Mian paused after the first bite, finding Grandma’s cooking unexpectedly amazing.
The braised pork rice was cooked just right, stimulating his appetite.
For a carnivorous beast, the value of this bowl of braised pork rice was hard to describe!
And Shao Mian’s repeated requests for more rice made Grandma Huang Guiying’s initially nervous wrinkles gradually fill with smiles.
To be honest, she was initially worried that Lin Ran’s friend from the city would find the food at home unclean, or dislike the less than ideal conditions in the countryside.
But he didn’t show any signs of that.
Seeing Yuanbao eating so heartily was the greatest affirmation and encouragement for Grandma!
Lin-zai didn’t really have many friends since he was young and would even deliberately avoid bringing classmates home to avoid troubling his family. Grandma knew this.
Most of the time, after school, Lin-zai would just obediently sit at the wooden table in the courtyard, turning on a desk lamp and quietly doing his homework, his profile looking well-behaved and innocent.
It made adults feel heartache seeing how sensible he was.
Now that Lin-zai was willing to bring friends home, Grandma was naturally overjoyed.
However, as Shao Mian continued to eat his fifth bowl, Jiang Jie’s suspicious gaze swept back and forth, and one of his younger brothers suddenly tugged at his clothes.
Jiang Jie turned around and was told the results of their analysis by his younger brother, who covered his mouth with his hand:
“Brother Jie, have you noticed? This blond guy seems to be deliberately trying to please Brother Lin’s grandma…”
After all, how could a normal person eat five bowls of rice in one meal!?
This was clearly an act of shameless flattery!
So that was your motive, blond guy!?
Jiang Jie slammed his chopsticks down and also handed his bowl to Grandma.
“Grandma, I want more rice too!”
He couldn’t tolerate this.
The sense of crisis had never been so strong. Jiang Jie felt that his position had been seriously challenged.
Shao Mian silently looked at Jiang Jie, who had suddenly gone crazy again, and felt that not all humans were so cute.
There was clearly only one cute human in the whole world.
His gaze fell on Lin Ran, who was playing with the panda in the courtyard, and Shao Mian felt that he could eat four more bowls of rice.
“Yuanbao, look! He even shook hands with me, isn’t he cute?”
Lin Ran noticed Yuanbao’s gaze, couldn’t help but hug the sesame ball, and held the little guy’s paw to show Yuanbao.
“…”
Heh, what was so great about that? He could also do it, he could even hold it with both hands, why didn’t he come and shake his hand?
The first thought that popped into Shao Mian’s mind was actually this.
“Grandma, I’ll wash the dishes!”
However, after Jiang Jie finished his bowl, he familiarly took the dishes and chopsticks to the kitchen.
Before leaving, he gave Shao Mian a provocative look.
He didn’t believe that this guy could wash dishes better than him. At home, he was always the skilled worker who took care of washing dishes, okay?
That’s right, although Jiang Jie looked impressive outside, with countless younger brothers, at home, he always shared the dishwashing duty with his dad.
Shao Mian paused slightly and didn’t follow this time.
Because Shao Mian felt that he could just hire a housekeeper instead of competing in dishwashing for no reason.
And for this kind of thing, Shao Mian was quite self-aware. He might easily wash fewer and fewer dishes, and in the end, he would have to buy a new set to replace them.
“Have you eaten your fill? If so, go play with Lin-zai! I’ll go and stop A-Jie, how can I really let you wash the dishes?”
Grandma, seeing that Shao Mian had made a phone call, tidied up the dishes and signaled for Shao Mian to go upstairs and play with Lin-zai, telling him not to be so polite.
Shao Mian looked at the old lady, especially her leg, which wasn’t very convenient.
He felt that perhaps he should make another call and arrange a caregiver.
“This leg is an old problem. I fell when I was young, it doesn’t affect me much, it just doesn’t look good.”
Grandma, noticing Shao Mian’s gaze, tugged at her apron a little embarrassedly and explained first.
She was worried that it would be misunderstood as hereditary, Lin-zai’s legs were very good.
“No, you’re very capable, and the food you made is very delicious.”
This wasn’t flattery from Shao Mian.
Even in the Demon World, demons with congenital disabilities had to put in more effort and pay a greater price to raise cubs.
Moreover, it could be seen that Lin Ran had been raised very well by this family.
Grandma smiled again after hearing Shao Mian’s words.
“Are you Lin-zai’s classmate? Does Lin-zai get along well with everyone at school? Has anyone bullied him?”
As an elder, Grandma Huang Guiying was very curious about her grandson’s life outside.
But Grandma also knew that Lin-zai’s only flaw was that he only reported good news and not bad news, and he never told his family when he didn’t have enough money at school.
“Very well, everyone likes him very much, and they even fight to bring him food. By the way, he even won first place in the school gala program voting.”
Shao Mian recalled Lin Ran’s situation at school, certain that what he said was true.
It wasn’t just getting along well, those classmates almost fought to get close to him.
However, Lin Ran’s personality was introverted and quiet, and people who weren’t familiar with him easily mistook it for aloofness. And because he was so handsome, at first glance, people would feel a little embarrassed to approach him and only dared to watch from afar.
Over time, Lin Ran thought that he had a weak presence and no one cared about him. Actually, it was just because everyone maintained a subtle tacit understanding and balance, and no one dared to disturb him.
“Oh my, he even won first place in the program!? ”
Grandma became even more interested after hearing these details from Shao Mian and subconsciously forgot her restraint, asking for more details.
Shao Mian also patiently and seriously answered her questions.
Grandma would laugh every time she heard something interesting, saying that she would tell her husband and the others when they came back from delivering goods.
“They’re so old, and they’re still working and delivering goods?”
Hearing this, Shao Mian frowned slightly. No wonder only Grandma was at home, so the other laborers had all gone out to work?
“Of course, us old bones in the countryside don’t have any other skills, we can only do this kind of work to save some money for Lin-zai. Otherwise, if Lin-zai takes a liking to some girl, it wouldn’t be good if he doesn’t have a house or a car to marry her.”
Grandma shook her head, actually very concerned about her grandson’s marriage.
However, Lin-zai had never actively mentioned this topic and hadn’t shown any interest in any girl since he was young.
“By the way, does Lin-zai have a partner at school?”
Grandma then realized that she should have asked this question earlier.
“…………”
Shao Mian instantly fell silent.
This wouldn’t do, this was absolutely not allowed!!
So after a while, Shao Mian quietly added:
“It’s okay, maybe his partner is very rich and doesn’t care if Lin-zai has a house or a car.”
“That won’t do either, are we going to let the girl pay for the house and car? You young man, thinking about being a kept man at such a young age?”
Grandma looked at him disapprovingly, not expecting Shao Mian’s thoughts to be so progressive.
“Kept man? Can’t humans be kept men?”
Shao Mian really didn’t understand these slang terms.
“Aiya, it’s just… how should I put it. You have to be responsible, take the initiative to care for others, and not be a kept man.”
Grandma didn’t even know how to explain it.
This young man was handsome and tall, but he turned out to be so clueless?
Or was he planning to be a kept man?
“Then I’ll take care of Lin-zai, so there’s no need to worry about being a kept man, Grandma.”
Shao Mian’s words were so serious that even Grandma Huang Guiying was stunned.
“This…”
Grandma Huang Guiying looked at Shao Mian. To be honest, if Shao Mian was a girl, Grandma would feel that he was a little too tall.
And he didn’t look like he was from this country, although he was indeed handsome, like a model from a magazine.
“Grandma? Yuanbao? What are you talking about?”
Lin Ran, after searching for everyone for a long time, finally found that Yuanbao was still chatting with Grandma?
He vaguely heard something about being a kept man, and Lin Ran’s brain short-circuited.
“Aiya, nothing, you guys go play, go play!”
Grandma naturally knew that her grandson would blush easily at this topic and waved her hand dismissively.
She even signaled to Yuanbao not to tell anyone.
Shao Mian, seeing Lin Ran coming over, subconsciously and hesitantly held his hand.
Lin Ran was still suspicious and didn’t break free for a moment, instead pulling Yuanbao upstairs while looking him over.
“What did you talk about with Grandma for so long?”
To be honest, Lin Ran didn’t believe that Yuanbao could chat with an elderly person for so long.
“Talking about whether it’s okay to be a kept man.”
Shao Mian said it seriously.
Because his tone was too serious, Lin Ran couldn’t even tell if this “kept man” was meant literally.
“Grandma told me not to be a kept man.”
Shao Mian added.
Lin Ran was speechless.
“You shouldn’t need to be a kept man, after all, you have a good appetite, you can eat five bowls of braised pork rice in one meal.”
So Lin Ran calmly analyzed.
Shao Mian instantly knew that he was being teased and couldn’t help but frown and lean closer, but he was immediately stopped by Lin Ran, whose face was flushed and alert.
“Don’t lean over randomly, there are people at home.”
His ears were a little hot. Lin Ran was really afraid of Yuanbao. If he leaned over and pecked him again, Grandma would probably be scared.
“Grandma said you’re looking for a partner.”
So Shao Mian whispered.
“Don’t listen to them!”
Lin Ran instantly realized that Grandma must have thought Yuanbao was his classmate and was concerned about whether he had a girlfriend.
“Then are you looking for a partner?”
Shao Mian followed behind Lin Ran like a large pendant, refusing to leave, and kept questioning him.
Shao Mian realized, the more he thought about it, that there were indeed many girls at school who were interested in Lin Ran, he had even seen it a few times himself.
It was very suspicious.
Lin Ran exasperatedly pushed him to the windowsill on the second floor and looked up at Shao Mian.
“Yuanbao, how come I didn’t know you were so jealous before?”
He felt that if he didn’t say anything, the overwhelming jealousy could flood the second floor.
“…”
Actually, Shao Mian didn’t know that he could be so jealous either.
But just thinking about that scene, he couldn’t accept it at all, and even suspected that he would uncontrollably do something dangerous.
And when Lin Ran wanted to pull Yuanbao into the room, he found that the big lion was standing motionless, and after looking at him for a while, he even looked a little dejected.
After a while, Lin Ran finally sighed helplessly:
“Isn’t it because I’ve almost found a boyfriend? How can I find a girlfriend…”
Shao Mian: !!?
The moment he vaguely heard this sentence, Shao Mian’s tail almost popped out uncontrollably, and he held Lin Ran’s hand, refusing to let him go.
“What? Say that again, I didn’t hear you.”
The look in his golden eyes at this moment was almost indescribable.
It was like spring had suddenly arrived in the entire Demon World forest, and everything was about to grow.
“You’re so annoying, Yuanbao, come in and see Bai Bai first!”
Lin Ran blushed and regretted sighing, knowing that this guy’s tail would definitely be wagging to the sky.
In fact, Shao Mian didn’t care about Bai Bai, Hei Hei, or anyone else at this moment. He just wanted to confirm his title with Lin Ran!
This was the most important thing, okay!?
So Shao Mian started to seriously think about the true meaning of this sentence.
If it was true, could he kiss him every morning when he woke up… and also before going to bed?
No, since he was already thinking about it, why not be bolder?
Shao Mian pondered with a serious expression for a long time and found that his thinking was too petty.
He could clearly kiss him at least five times a day!
Lost in his thoughts, his golden tail wagged without any disguise, making Lin Ran wonder if his brain was broken.
Bai Bai, who was standing in the room wearing black-rimmed glasses, stood there awkwardly, seeing Shao Mian lost in thought outside the door, not knowing where to hide.
Bai Bai’s hair was a little messy, his temperament a bit naive, and his features were those of a currently popular young idol.
He subconsciously wanted to hide behind A-Ran, but just as he got a few centimeters closer, Bai Bai felt an indescribable sense of terror, as if he would die if he got any closer.
“Yuanbao, look! Bai Bai has really turned into a human! And he’s even a freelance comic artist.”
Lin Ran tried to introduce Bai Bai, this little demon, to Yuanbao.
Lin Ran inexplicably felt that the temperament of a comic artist was quite suitable for Bai Bai.
Thinking of a panda holding a brush and a drawing tablet, slowly drawing comics all day long, he seemed even cuter!
The little cuties in “Demon World” were really too interesting.
In fact, Shao Mian had gradually become certain that these random demons from unknown origins were indeed easy to approach Lin Ran in their fluffy forms.
But once they transformed into human form and wanted to go further, all the preferential treatment would instantly disappear.
Heh, as long as he kept an eye on them, they couldn’t cause any trouble.
“Comic artist?”
So Shao Mian started to ask casually.
“Mm-hmm, I came here to gather inspiration and materials.”
Bai Bai was inexplicably nervous, and when he got nervous, he would confess everything.
“Is that so? Then what works have you drawn?”
When Shao Mian asked this question, Lin Ran also looked over curiously.
“My works are sold in bookstores, my pen name is Sesame Ball.”
Bai Bai added softly.
He hoped that A-Ran could get to know him better!
“So impressive? I’m just about to buy new exercise books for A-Jie, let’s go to Xinhua Bookstore in town this afternoon.”
Lin Ran looked at Bai Bai with even more surprise. He had actually heard of this comic artist, who was said to be quite popular.
Could Bai Bai be considered a pioneer of demon entrepreneurship in human society?
Shao Mian didn’t care about this at all.
Tsk, how could reading books be more interesting than confirming how many kisses he could get in a day…
Shao Mian wanted to protest, but Lin Ran pulled him along, and he obediently became the driver.
Jiang Jie, who insisted on washing the dishes, came out and his face turned pale when he heard that they were going to buy new exercise books. He didn’t even have time to ask why Lin-zai suddenly had another friend named Bai Bai.
At the bookstore, Lin Ran went to choose exercise books for Jiang Jie.
Little Feather and Sootball were clearly more interested in pictures and couldn’t tear themselves away from the children’s comics section.
Shao Mian, who had been abandoned, stood in front of the bookshelves, so bored that he wished it was already night.
Shao Mian’s gaze finally landed on Sesame Ball’s latest work, he frowned slightly and pulled out a copy to flip through.
“Adopted After Turning into a Panda!”
Shao Mian: ?
Seeing this comic title, Shao Mian had a strange premonition.
“Uh… th-that work isn’t very good, how about, another one?”
Bai Bai was caught off guard when Shao Mian suddenly chose his latest work and his face flushed red.
“Ah? How can you say that? Sesame Ball’s new comic is so heartwarming and healing!” “That’s right, are you a hater?” “I love the protagonist A-Ran inside!”
But before Bai Bai could finish speaking, a few young readers who were browsing protested, as if they had caught a hater offline.
“…”
Bai Bai was instantly speechless.
And Bai Bai’s suspicious attempt to stop him only made Shao Mian raise the comic even higher, frowning and flipping through the pages to examine it.
[Golden tabby tomcat flipping through pages.jpg]
Bai Bai could only watch as Shao Mian finished reading the entire comic with an expressionless face, then lowered his head, closed the comic, and looked at him with an unreadable expression.
This comic was indeed created by Bai Bai after several painful failures in the “Demon World” interaction selection, turning his grief and anger into strength and creating a healing daily life comic about a panda being accidentally picked up and carefully raised by the protagonist, A-Ran. Bai Bai didn’t even dare to serialize it on the “Demon World” forum, because he was afraid of being discovered by A-Ran’s other demon fans.
If Yuanbao knew some specific internet slang, he could probably more accurately summarize his current mood:
A-Ran’s biggest fan, refuses to acknowledge other fans.
