SSEWC Chapter 80

The Palace of Radiance where He Heng resides is, in fact, not allowed to have pets. He doesn’t possess a pet permit, and due to his recent appointment, the Heavenly Emperor would definitely not grant him one in the short term.

So, during these days, He Heng has been living a secretive life.

No one knows that the dignified and imposing Radiant Envoy is actually illegally keeping a fox in his palace.

Take this day, for example. Just like usual, after setting up his array, He Heng returned to his Palace of Radiance. As he opened the door to his bedroom, a round figure swiftly darted from the side table and pounced into his arms.

He hugged Yan Jiu, and the damp little tongue licking him made him feel a bit ticklish. Unable to hold back, he laughed, “Ah Jiu, stop licking. Did you not eat enough today?”

Now that he had been raising Yan Jiu for half a month, the little fox was getting more and more affectionate towards him, becoming increasingly unrestrained at home.

He often came back from work to find Yan Jiu sprawled out on his large bed, sometimes even revealing his snow-white and soft belly after a satisfying meal, letting He Heng pet him as he pleased.

He would sometimes tease Yan Jiu, saying, “I’ve never seen such an unreserved little fox before.”

“Squeak! Squeak! Squeak!” Every time this happened, Yan Jiu would protest loudly, then curl up his tail, refusing to let He Heng touch his belly.

Then He Heng had no choice but to lean over and coax him, “I was just kidding, Ah Jiu. You are the most handsome little fox I’ve ever seen. There’s no second one as cute as you in the entire Nine Heavens.”

“Mmm~”

Upon hearing this, the little fox would approach with a mix of skepticism and trust, bringing his head closer.

“Ah Jiu, you’re such a good boy.”

Seeing that the little fox was so easily pleased, He Heng immediately embraced him and then lay on the bed, rolling around with him.

As time passed, He Heng found himself enjoying more and more the feeling of having Yan Jiu as company. Sometimes, when he went out to set up arrays, the fluffy image of Yan Jiu would linger in his mind.

Meanwhile, Yan Jiu stayed cooped up in the Palace of Radiance, feeling quite uncomfortable.

Sometimes, he would squat behind the curtains at the window, peeking out with his little head, resembling a waiting stone, eagerly anticipating He Heng’s return.

Fearing that Yan Jiu would get bored staying in the palace all the time, He Heng began to occasionally sneakily tuck the little fox into his arms and take him out when setting up arrays.

Whenever He Heng was working on arrays, Yan Jiu would sneakily poke his head out from He Heng’s arms, curiously observing the mortal world.

Sometimes, he would also watch with curiosity the sparks of lightning that leapt from He Heng’s fingertips.

Seeing his curious expression, He Heng gently pushed away Yan Jiu’s little head that had leaned over, “Ah Jiu, don’t play around. Be careful not to singe your fur.”

“Mmm, okay.”

Seeing this, Yan Jiu had no choice but to retract his probing claws.

After setting up the arrays, He Heng carried the little fox in his arms, riding on auspicious clouds to take a stroll in the Peach Blossom Spring within the Heavenly Court.

Afraid that Yan Jiu would get bored staying at home all the time, this time He Heng secretly placed the little fox under a peach tree, hoping to let him move around freely.

However, coincidentally, when He Heng let Yan Jiu wander around in the peach grove, they unexpectedly ran into the city management officers under the command of the Heavenly Emperor.

The officer immediately spotted the white figure moving around in the peach grove and quickly ran towards He Heng, ready to find out what was going on.

Seeing the officer approaching, He Heng glanced at the diminishing distance and knew that it was too late to hide the little fox.

At that moment, his brain quickly went into overdrive.

Just as the city management officer was about to reach them, He Heng decisively lifted the little fox, wrapped him around his neck, and tucked his head into his own clothes.

Facing the skeptical gaze of the officer, he scoffed, “What are you doing? This is my scarf. It fell to the ground just now, and I picked it up. Any problem?”

The officer was highly suspicious of his words. Clearly, that thing was bouncing around on the ground just a moment ago. How could it now be his scarf?

Could this person really improvise on the spot?

So, he stared at the fluffy thing around He Heng’s neck and scrutinized it suspiciously, “Really? Is it truly just a scarf? Not something alive?”

He Heng remained firm and confident, “Really.”

The next second,

“Squeak!”

Because the little fox couldn’t breathe well being covered in the clothes, he couldn’t help but let out a “squeak!”

The city management officer immediately perked up his ears, “What’s going on? Scarves don’t make sounds, do they?”

He Heng: “…Super realistic, one-to-one reproduction of fox vocalizations.”

Saying this, he lifted the little fox from around his neck, pinched the fox’s claws a few times, and immediately, Yan Jiu started “squeak! squeak! squeak!” again.

He Heng stretched the fox into a straight line and held him up in front of the city management officer, “You see, there’s a switch that can activate it.”

City management officer: “…”

He almost believed it, but that was until he noticed Yan Jiu’s eyes sneakily opening a slit.

In the end, He Heng was slapped with a hefty fine, and the city management officer warned him that he must get rid of the little fox. If, within three days, he was caught with the fox again in the Palace of Radiance, he would be forced to take the fox to a compulsory pet shelter.

After careful consideration, He Heng ultimately decided to temporarily send Yan Jiu to the Matchmaker God, who had a pet permit.

On the day he officially decided to send Yan Jiu away, the little fox surprisingly became disobedient.

As He Heng carried him and his belongings towards the door,

“Wh- don’t go!”

Upon hearing that He Heng was indeed going to send him away, Yan Jiu immediately started “squeak! squeak! squeak!” and vigorously scratched the door frame, refusing to leave.

He Heng, feeling a bit helpless yet amused, said, “Why are you like this?”

Saying that, he pulled down Yan Jiu’s paws, turned his face towards himself, and said,

“Ah Jiu, listen to me. I don’t have a pet permit. The first time someone catches us, it’s just a fine, but if we get caught again, they’ll forcibly take you away and send you to an illegal animal detention center.”

“Where do you want to go?”

Upon hearing this, Yan Jiu shook his head, but then he approached and rubbed his fluffy head against He Heng’s neck, whispering softly,

“But I don’t want to leave… I want to stay with you.”

Though He Heng couldn’t understand the fox’s vocalizations, he could sense Yan Jiu’s reluctance from his actions. He also didn’t want to send the little fox away, but currently, he couldn’t obtain a pet permit.

After a moment of contemplation, he hugged Yan Jiu and comforted him, “The Matchmaker God is pretty good. Although he likes to play mahjong during the day, he won’t mistreat you. Besides, I’ll come to see you whenever I have time, okay?”

Yan Jiu: “Squeak! Squeak! Squeak!”

“Really?”

He Heng ruffled his head, “Really.”

After he said that, the atmosphere fell into silence. After a while, the little fox lowered his head and softly uttered, “Okay.”

The Matchmaker God is an old man with a lot of love for small animals, in simpler terms, a “benevolent furry creature enthusiast.”

He had taken the initiative to get a pet permit several years ago.

Obtaining a pet permit in the Heavenly Court is not an easy task. The Heavenly Emperor won’t easily grant one without several thousand or even tens of thousands of years of work experience. However, with the Matchmaker God’s qualifications, he could indeed keep dozens of small animals. His pet permit was approved quickly. However, finding a pet was much harder than obtaining the permit. Most small animals in the Heavenly Court already had owners.

The Matchmaker God often sends people to find suitable small animals to be kept at home. Before they set out, he always emphasizes that the animals must be fluffy, with a big tail and big ears, looking as fluffy as possible.

However, over the past few years, every time someone went on a mission, he either found the animals unattractive or felt they lacked a connection with him. Despite the effort, he hadn’t managed to adopt a single one.

Until today, when He Heng rushed over, telling him about a white little fox and asking if he could foster it. He listed a whole bunch of advantages, such as not being picky about food, not being timid, being well-behaved, and allowing anyone to pet him, etc.

Upon hearing this, the Matchmaker God immediately allowed He Heng to bring the little fox over for inspection.

When He Heng arrived at the Marriage Destiny Hall, carrying Yan Jiu and bringing the fox’s bowl and living utensils, the Matchmaker God’s eyes were practically glued to the scene.

In his entire life, he had never seen a snow fox with such a large tail and ears. This was truly the top-tier among foxes!

So, the Matchmaker God stroked his long beard, smiling so much that his mouth couldn’t close. He looked at He Heng and said, “Yes, yes, it’s fine to keep him here.”

As he said this, he wanted to walk over and pat the little fox.

However, much to his surprise, when the Matchmaker God’s hand was still about a hundred thousand miles away from Yan Jiu’s head, the latter whimpered and squeezed his entire body into He Heng’s clothes, even hiding his tail securely.

Seeing that the little fox was so afraid of him, the Matchmaker God withdrew his hand with a bit of disappointment and looked at He Heng, saying, “Ah, didn’t you say he’s not timid?”

He Heng was also a bit puzzled. When he first met the little fox, he was perfectly fine with being petted. How did he become like this now?

Despite the lingering confusion, He Heng was more concerned about the little fox getting used to the new environment after he left. He tried to comfort Yan Jiu by patting his back and soothingly said, “Ah Jiu, what’s wrong? This is your new home, you don’t need to be afraid. There are no bad people here.”

Seeing that the little fox refused to come out entirely, He Heng had to explain to the Matchmaker God, “He might need some time to adapt to the new environment since he just moved. How about trying to give him some treats? Maybe he won’t be so afraid then.”

Speaking of which, he took out Yan Jiu’s favorite jerky from his bag.

He grabbed a handful of jerky and placed it in the central courtyard, waiting for the little fox to emerge from his hiding spot.

But he waited and waited, and the jerky was almost snatched away by the birds in the sky, yet Yan Jiu still didn’t come out to eat his favorite treat.

In truth, the little fox’s thoughts were quite simple – he didn’t want to leave He Heng, nor did he want to live anywhere else. Even though He Heng had promised him, as soon as Yan Jiu arrived in this unfamiliar place, he immediately regretted it.

At this moment, the little fox was thinking quite straightforwardly: What if he just stayed in He Heng’s arms? What if he didn’t come out, would He Heng still send him away?

On the other side, He Heng noticed that it was getting dark outside, and he couldn’t stay overnight in the Matchmaker God’s palace.

Although he was reluctant to part with Yan Jiu, according to the rules of the Heavenly Court, he couldn’t keep a pet.

Seeing that the little fox still stubbornly refused to come out, he reluctantly decided to forcibly pull Yan Jiu out of his arms and placed him in the cozy little nest that the Matchmaker God had specially prepared.

“Ah Jiu, listen, be a good boy. I’ll come to see you whenever I have time.” After placing Yan Jiu in the nest, He Heng patted his little head and was about to leave.

However, at that moment, the little fox started to “squeak! squeak! squeak!” His cries sounded heart-wrenching.

He Heng, upon hearing Yan Jiu’s cries, immediately stopped in his tracks. He couldn’t bear to hear the little fox cry like that.

“Ah Jiu, how about this? I’ll come to see you every day, okay? I’ll come over tomorrow.”

“The earlier you let me go now, the earlier I’ll come tomorrow.”

“Um…” Hearing this, the little fox surprisingly found some logic in it.

Although he didn’t want He Heng to leave, he also hoped that he would come early tomorrow.

Seeing that the little fox had stopped crying and was just tilting his head, staring at him, He Heng continued, “Let’s make a deal then. I’ll come over at 7 am tomorrow. Ah Jiu, you have to listen to the Matchmaker God.”

After saying this, the atmosphere fell into silence.

After a while, Yan Jiu suddenly raised his paw towards He Heng, presenting the side with the meat pad, and softly “squeak! squeak!” twice.

Seeing this, He Heng raised an eyebrow, “Ah Jiu, are you trying to make a deal with me?”

“Squeak! Squeak!”

Yan Jiu nodded and patted He Heng’s palm with the meat pad, indicating that it was correct.

After all, his mother had told him that humans were creatures who didn’t like to keep their promises, so he shouldn’t easily trust their words. What if He Heng deceived him, and he never came to see him again in the future?

Therefore, Yan Jiu decided to make a deal with He Heng to ensure his promise.

Seeing the little fox’s serious and solemn appearance, He Heng couldn’t help but chuckle softly, “Alright.”

After saying that, he took Yan Jiu’s little paw and shook hands with him, using his pinky to hold the fox’s paw. After sealing the deal, He Heng couldn’t resist it when he saw Yan Jiu’s excessively cute face. He leaned in and gave him a “smack!” on the cheek.

This time, it was Yan Jiu’s turn to be dumbfounded.

When He Heng’s deep eyes were enlarged infinitely in front of him, Yan Jiu felt his heart pounding so fast that it seemed like it would leap out of his chest. He stood there like a stone statue, motionless, until he felt the warm touch on his cheek. Only then did Yan Jiu realize…

Did he just get kissed?

After He Heng kissed him, he didn’t think much of it. He smiled at the little fox and left with a parting remark, “I’ll go back now, and I’ll come to see Ah Jiu tomorrow.” Then he turned and left.

Leaving the “irregular heartbeat” little fox sitting alone on the ground.

Yan Jiu subconsciously patted his flushed cheek with the meat pad, unable to help but think in his heart:

Humans… are all so frivolous like this?

Why did he kiss me?

The little fox, unable to make sense of it no matter how much he thought, finally lowered his head. He looked dazed, and a thin blush appeared on his snow-white little face.

It wasn’t until much later that Yan Jiu realized, perhaps from that moment on… he felt a different kind of fluttering sensation towards that person.