When the Wild Beast is Trapped in the Nightmare Cycle (BL)
Chapter 256: Sulking Husky

Chapter 256: Sulking Husky

Shen Nianzu palmed his forehead and asked with a helpless look, "Can we lower our voices or move somewhere else?" What was he supposed to do if Jin Jiuchi were to ask him what a ’gigolo’ was? And to think that he was already struggling to come clean about the ’couple’ thingy!

Unfortunately, his words seemed to backfire instead because Master Shen grew more incensed. "What? Why should we move?!"

"Nianzu," Madam Shen tried to persuade his son with a gentle approach. "Mother has no problems with your sexual orientation, but all this time, you have never brought anyone else home before. And once you do, he... is that kind of person. You can tell Mother if you encounter any difficulties, okay? It’s not like our family can’t help you find a suitable partner. You don’t have to settle for less."

All of a sudden, Shen Nianzu’s keen hearing picked up a faint clatter from inside as if someone had sprung to their feet. Alarm surged through him. Oh no, if Jin Jiuchi were to come out now, then everything would become more chaotic! Acting swiftly, Shen Nianzu pressed his back against the door, gripping the handle tightly as he asserted in a loud voice, "I will not consider anyone else!"

Master and Madam Shen were taken aback. This was the first time they had heard their son raise his voice like this.

Shen Nianzu, on the other hand, sensed no more movements inside and heaved out a sigh of relief. Goodness, this was just – if not more – nerve-wracking than challenging a Cycle. If he had to repeat this a few more times, his life would be cut off short for sure! Convinced that Jin Jiuchi wouldn’t burst out yet, Shen Nianzu relaxed his stance and lowered his volume back to normal, "I will not be seeking another partner, so please don’t bring it up anymore. Not now, not in the future. One more thing, he is not a gigolo. I understand he must have looked weird to you, but..." he squeezed his eyes shut and forced himself to utter the cringe words, feeling goosebumps prickling on his skin. "That’s just a part of his charm and I... I adore that about him."

The thought was one thing, but voicing it out loud, especially to his own parents at that, was a whole other ordeal! Was this the day of ’let’s join hands to embarrass Shen Nianzu’ or something like that?!"

An astonished look flashed across the couple’s eyes. The trip this time had been full of surprises. First, they discovered that their aloof and detached son suddenly acquired a gi— a boyfriend. Second, they managed to glimpse so many vivid expressions he had never shown in front of them before.

The two of them exchanged complicated glances, realizing that Shen Nianzu was nothing but serious when he uttered those words. However, when they recalled the odd things Jin Jiuchi had mentioned before, they couldn’t help but get worried again. Would their son be okay with that kind of wild and peculiar man?

Shen Nianzu could sense that his parents were still uncertain about Jin Jiuchi, and thus he spoke again, this time with a more confident tone. "You know I’ve only had eyes for the best since I was young. Do you think I would settle for less when it comes to my partner? So why doubt me now?"

The earnestness in his eyes, combined with how self-assured and firm his demeanor was, had a convincing effect on his parents. Knowing Shen Nianzu, he would not be foolish enough to let a wild gigolo into his house. Perhaps there was more to Jin Jiuchi than their initial impression suggested?

Master and Madam Shen were indeed getting swayed, but the thought of receiving Jin Jiuchi so readily still did not sit well with them. After another silent exchange, Master Shen cleared his throat and proposed, "You told us to move somewhere, right? Let’s do that. We will continue our conversation on the way."

Madam Shen’s eyes brightened, and she quickly rushed forward to link her arm with her son’s, half leading and half dragging him towards the car. "Your father is right. It’s been ages since the three of us had a chance to hang out and spend time together. Unless... you’d rather stay now that you have a boyfriend?" Her words were laced with meaning. It was apparent that her impression of Jin Jiuchi in the future depended on the answer Shen Nianzu would give.

"W–Wait..." Shen Nianzu was caught off guard, but he did not dare to use force against his parents. Just like that, he found himself being led to the car and he only managed to shout at Qing Mo, "Take care of him for a while!" before being bundled into the vehicle, which quickly drove away from the villa.

The ’hanging out’ in the Shen couple’s dictionary meant another visit to the hospital. Understanding how much he must have worried them, Shen Nianzu resigned himself to the inevitable and allowed himself to undergo a comprehensive medical examination that stretched for hours.

Only God knew how mortified he was when he had to change out of his clothes and exposed the bite mark on his neck for the world to see. He almost did not dare to meet his attending doctor and nurses’ eyes. Again, he cursed Jin Jiuchi inwardly for being such a zealous bitey. It was all his fault! Maybe this time Shen Nianzu had to buy him a chew toy on top of the collar and leash he’d owned!

Subsequently, it was not until Master and Madam Shen received the reassurance that nothing was wrong with him that they finally relaxed.

When Shen Nianzu finally got back his phone, almost five hours had passed by and the sky was painted with the hues of orange and purple. He quickly composed a brief message to Jin Jiuchi, asking him to tell Qing Mo if he needed something, then accompanied his parents to have dinner.

After that, the couple had to catch an international flight for yet another business trip, and Shen Nianzu was eventually sent back to the villa, not before reassuring them again and again that yes, he would take care of himself just fine and no, Jin Jiuchi was not the type to swindle him out of money.

He stepped into the villa when the sky had completely turned dark, and despite the lack of physical exertion, he felt as though his bones were about to crumble into dust. What a tiring day, he thought.

"Young Master!" Qing Mo stood up as soon as he caught sight of him. For fear that Shen Nianzu would hold a grudge against him for revealing his illness to his parents, Qing Mo quickly blurted out, "I have sent dinner to Mr. Jin’s room, but I’m not sure whether he has eaten yet. He has been holed up there since you left and doesn’t come out at all."

Sure enough, Shen Nianzu immediately forgot about his plan to teach Qing Mo a lesson for his entire attention was focused on what the man had just told him. "He holed himself up in his room?" He repeated, alarmed.

He dismissed Qing Mo with a wave of his hand, who was more than eager to scamper away. After that, he climbed the staircase and headed straight to Jin Jiuchi’s room, rapping his knuckles gently against the door. "Jin Jiuchi, I’m back."

No response came from within. The corner of Shen Nianzu’s eyes twitched. What could he be up to in there? Wait a moment... could he have slipped away through the windows to track Shen Nianzu down?! Given Jin Jiuchi’s brazen personality, that was just something he would do! Alarmed by the possibility, Shen Nianzu knocked again, his voice more firm. "If you don’t open the door when I count to three, I’m coming in. One, two, three..."

Still, only silence hung on the other side of the door.

Shen Nianzu twisted the handle and found that the door was unlocked. Of course, what would he expect from the person who did not even feel the need to lock his house when he went out? Without any delay, he pushed open the door and entered. The room was cast in shadows, bathed only in the subdued glow of moonlight streaming in through the floor-to-ceiling window. His eyes swept over the space until they landed on a sizeable mound on the bed, covered by a blanket from head to toe.

That was... Jin Jiuchi, right?

Torn between laughter and tears, Shen Nianzu walked over, plopped himself down near the head of the bed, and playfully prodded the motionless mound with his finger. "Hey, not going to talk to me?"

When the man inside remained still, Shen Nianzu raised a brow and continued, "Really? Well, if you don’t want to talk, I guess I will just leave..." he began to rise, but a hand suddenly shot out from under the blanket, gripping his wrist tightly and preventing him from going.

Shen Nianzu’s lips twitched into a smile. Somehow, this sulking husky was quite... adorable. He settled back down and leaned his entire weight on Jin Jiuchi, allowing the man to hold onto his wrist. "Are you upset? Don’t take their words to heart, they meant no harm. Moreover, they have already left, so you will not have to see them for a while."

After a moment of lingering silence, the long-awaited response finally emerged from beneath the blanket, his voice muffled and dejected. "...Nian’er, I am weird, am I not?"