Chapter 9: The Nine-Headed Whale

The scent was rose, and even the bouquet in the vase was composed of roses.

Wen Fan patiently trimmed each rose branch one by one. He hadn’t expected the flowers he casually bought outside Splendid Homeland to be so exceptionally fresh and beautiful.

That morning, he deliberately took a detour past Splendid Homeland, hoping that luck would favor him enough to catch a glimpse of his ex-girlfriend, whom he had broken up with three years ago. As it turned out, fortune truly smiled on him; not only did he find relief from his longing, but he also caught sight of Jing Chengyun’s current romantic situation.

“It’s found, President Wen. All information on Ruan Mianmian is right here,” said Wen Fan’s assistant, Jin Xuan, a 23-year-old human woman who stood out among many applicants and became the right hand of the powerful boss.

Wen Fan slowly took the form Jin Xuan handed him and read it carefully.

[Name: Ruan Mianmian
Age: 119 years old
Spiritual Power: Weak
Occupation: Unemployed
Family Members: …]

Wen Fan frowned. “Weak spiritual power and unemployed?”

“That’s right, President Wen,” Jin Xuan responded, “Because Ruan Mianmian’s spiritual power is weak, he can’t yet adapt to human society. I heard that after some time, his family will send him to school…”

This wouldn’t do! Wen Fan’s face darkened, his emotions a mix of bitterness and frustration.

It was one thing that Yun Yun had found someone new—after all, she needed someone to take care of her. Someone like that human named Chen Ji was quite suitable: intelligent, gentle in temperament, and able to endure Yun Yun’s frequent temper outbursts.

But why on earth had Yun Yun now chosen a dead rabbit?

Rabbits were weak, dull, and had little combat ability. They simply did not deserve Yun Yun!

Even if she wanted a new lover, she should choose someone clever and strong!

The darker Wen Fan’s expression became, the faster Jin Xuan’s heart raced. Being the assistant to such a domineering boss was no easy task. When the weather turned cold, she had to make sure the Wang Company went bankrupt; when little Zhang next door got reckless, she had to break his legs…

Now, with the boss’s beloved white moonlight in a mismatched relationship, Jin Xuan was terrified. Rabbits might be delicious, but Ruan Mianmian was definitely not a rabbit to be eaten!

Wiping the sweat from her temple, Jin Xuan just wanted to leave the office quickly. “President Wen, I still have some files to handle, so I won’t keep you…”

“Wait,” Wen Fan called her back. “You know my situation. You’re a girl too—what do you think my ex-girlfriend is thinking?”

Although Jin Xuan had performed excellently during her application, she was still a fresh graduate who couldn’t quite fathom her boss’s thoughts and didn’t know what answer to give.

“Just say whatever you think; I won’t get angry,” Wen Fan said.

Jin Xuan’s tense lips relaxed slightly. After a moment of thought, she said, “Rabbits are actually quite cute small animals. Maybe Miss Jing is simply taken with Ruan Mianmian’s cuteness?”

“Impossible. You just don’t understand,” Wen Fan said, glancing at the sofa beside him and motioning for Jin Xuan to sit and talk. His every movement carried an air of pride—as if only he truly understood Jing Chengyun. They were each other’s first loves, intimately familiar with one another.

Jin Xuan felt honored and sank into the custom-made sofa worth thousands, yet it felt no different from the sofa in her own home.

Recalling the days of first love, a gentle smile even appeared on Wen Fan’s usually cold face. “My ex-girlfriend likes smart people. That Ruan Mianmian is weak and dumb—where’s the excellence in that?”

***

Then, he briefly recounted his love story with Jing Chengyun to Jin Xuan.

On the first day of freshman year, a fight broke out on the playground, and Jing Chengyun slapped Wen Fan’s face with her size 41 sports shoes.

During the first assessment exam, only two people solved the final question correctly: Wen Fan and Jing Chengyun.

“Who told you that you’re a Border Collie and she’s a Killer Whale? Both animals are very smart,” Jin Xuan interjected, afraid that if Wen Fan continued, he’d ramble on endlessly.

Wen Fan was mostly a taciturn dog demon, except when speaking of his white moonlight. “I can’t let her be with a man who doesn’t deserve her.”

Understood. The boss wanted to break up Jing Chengyun and Ruan Mianmian. Wasn’t that being a home-wrecker? Jin Xuan felt disdainful and didn’t want to engage further.

After a moment’s thought, Wen Fan’s tone suddenly turned cold. “Book me a restaurant. I have a guest to entertain.”

***

At night, in a high-end restaurant.

With his hands unaccustomed to manual labor, Wen Fan personally poured a drink for his cousin and even began to talk more than usual. “Those dark circles are so heavy—you don’t even look like yourself anymore. You used to be so careful with your face.”

In terms of looks, both Wen Fan and his cousin were outstanding, but when compared side by side, Wen Fan was clearly at a disadvantage.

The guest raised his glass, about to take a sip, then suddenly remembered something and hastily withdrew it. “I’d better not drink. Alcohol isn’t good for the skin, and my dark circles are already bad enough…”

Wen Fan was taken aback. “Lele, what’s going on with you?”

There was no law forbidding demons from using magic to maintain their appearance.

Su Zile rubbed his tired eyes, lost in thought. Ever since encountering Jing Chengyun at the Star Tide Club, he had been downcast. He was afraid his job as a host might be exposed, and he couldn’t stop thinking about Jing Chengyun’s face.

This wasn’t like him. He was supposed to be proud and confident, always facing the world with the most beautiful appearance. “Cousin, to be honest, I was working part-time as a hostess at the club…”

Wen Fan’s calm expression shifted; he snapped angrily, “You let women touch you?!”

He couldn’t let a fox demon who didn’t uphold male virtue be given to Yun Yun!

“I didn’t!” Su Zile immediately clarified, “I quit after one day, and no woman ever touched me!”

After examining him carefully, Wen Fan half-believed his cousin.

He knew many wealthy young men, some of whom were indeed unchaste. Thankfully, he had met Yun Yun early on and understood that a man’s most important quality was male virtue—whether dog demon or fox demon!

Chastity was his best asset for winning Yun Yun back.

Wen Fan and Su Zile were distant cousins, tracing back several generations to a strange story of a dog demon and fox demon conceiving a child.

Yet this distant kinship had grown closer since both settled in Baiyun City, often exchanging greetings at holidays, with Wen Fan occasionally helping Su Zile financially and even offering him a position in his company.

Of course, Su Zile had proudly refused.

So Wen Fan was very surprised that Su Zile had taken a part-time job at an entertainment club and candidly admitted it.

His cousin was supposed to be proud and arrogant, disdainful even of using charm magic lightly…

Could it be that Su Zile’s secret crush was on a fox demon of even deeper cultivation?

Wen Fan took a sip of wine to steady himself. Since he needed a favor from his cousin, he had to keep him happy first. “Enough about that. Do you still have enough money? I’ll transfer you some more. Spend on what you need; don’t shortchange yourself.”

“No need. I can make my own money. The Time Travel Bureau pays well, and I’ll repay the money I borrowed from you soon,” Su Zile said gratefully. Since his secret charm magic studies were exposed and he was expelled from the family, only Wen Fan had treated him well and helped with his living expenses. He genuinely didn’t want to owe him any more favors.

After some small talk, Wen Fan cleared his throat and leaned forward slightly. “Lele, I won’t beat around the bush. The main reason I invited you out today is to ask for a favor.”

“Don’t worry,” Wen Fan tried to ease his cousin’s mind, “I’m hiring you for this job, and you’ll be paid upon completion.”

A glimmer appeared in Su Zile’s eyes. “What?”

Wen Fan’s expression was solemn. “I want you to lure someone away, to get her to break up with her boyfriend. Don’t let her keep making a fool of herself, stuck in that quagmire. She deserves a better partner.”

Such a big matter required careful thought before Wen Fan could bring it up.

First, Su Zile was noble, intelligent, and exceptionally handsome—barely good enough to be worthy of Yun Yun.

Second, both Su Zile and Yun Yun worked at the Time Travel Bureau, so proximity was advantageous.

Third, Ruan Mianmian’s mother also worked at the Bureau—fortunate coincidence upon fortune.

A flicker of doubt crossed Su Zile’s face. “Cousin, do you want me to be the third party? Absolutely not.”

Su Zile had his own principles and pride. He had been misled into charm magic as a child and only worked at the club reluctantly to get promoted. But being a home-wrecker was out of the question! That was moral corruption subject to universal contempt!

Wen Fan did not deny it. “Once they break up, you can quit anytime. You can ask for whatever you want.”

At this point, “affection” was greatly diminished in this negotiation, while “benefit” was elevated.

Su Zile clenched his teeth and thought it over.

He had always been curious about Wen Fan’s white moonlight ex—what kind of woman was she that his cousin cherished so deeply? More importantly, he really needed a large sum of money.

Perhaps he should treat this as a task, a commission, without burdening himself with moral judgment.

Su Zile made a concession: “I need some time to think. Do you have photos of her and her boyfriend? Let me see.”

Wen Fan pulled up a photo taken years ago. “You two work together, right? Not strangers?”

In the picture, a young woman in a short-sleeved shirt sat on seaside rocks, her muscles glistening with droplets, her white hair at the temples fluttering in the wind, smiling brightly.

It was her—Jing Chengyun.

Running his fingers over the phone screen casually, Su Zile struggled to suppress the surge of blood rushing within him.

His charm magic had already failed once on Jing Chengyun, but that was with only fifty percent of his power. Next time, he would not fail.

“So it’s Jing Chengyun,” Su Zile sneered. “Cousin, she’s tough, not easy to deal with. Give me five hundred thousand, and I’ll go seduce her.”