Part 2
Mu Qingzhou frowned slightly. The other’s aura made him feel disharmonious, even somewhat… antagonistic.
His gaze fell on the other man’s ear; the ear-cuff-style metal disguise device didn’t escape Mu Qingzhou’s eyes.
Wearing a disguise device in such a remote place… his identity must not be simple.
While Mu Qingzhou was observing Z, Z was also observing Mu Qingzhou.
Mu Qingzhou’s face was handsome, his temperament as cold as frostâindifferent and detached.
Yet this kind of aura was clean and pure, instinctively attracting the gaze of others.
Although Z’s aura didn’t mesh well with Mu Qingzhou’s, he couldn’t deny that Mu Qingzhou was indeed outstanding among his peers.
But that was all.
“This is Mu Qingzhou. And this is Z, my assistant,” Zhu Ran introduced.
“Hello. I’ll have to trouble you with Zhu Ran today.”
Z proactively extended his hand.
Mu Qingzhou shook Z’s hand: “Rest assured, I won’t let him get hurt.”
Their hands touched and immediately parted.
The atmosphere was a bit cold and heavy.
Zhu Ran also noticed that Z and Mu Qingzhou seemed to dislike each other, so he bid farewell to Z to break the suffocating tension.
“You can stop here! Mu Qingzhou and I are leaving now.”
Saying this, Zhu Ran sat in the passenger seat.
Z: “Be careful on the road.”
The hovercar hadn’t driven far before Zhu Ran received a Star-Message from Z.
Z: [Do you need me to send someone to protect you?]
Zhu Ran: [No need. Don’t worry about me, nothing will happen.]
Z: [Okay.]
Z: [If there’s danger, message me. I can come through a spatial channel.]
Zhu Ran: [Heterochromatic Cat holding an ‘OK’ sign.jpg]
Z stared at the emoji Zhu Ran sent for a few moments, and the low-pressure aura around him dissipated slightly.
Z: [The emoji is very cute.]
Zhu Ran: [I think it’s cute too. And don’t you think it looks a bit like you?]
The cat in the emoji had long golden fur and a pair of watery blue and gold heterochromatic eyes; it looked incredibly “Q-moe.”
It was indeed cute.
But… this cat looks like Z? Seriously?
Z: [So… this is how I look in your eyes? Cute?]
Zhu Ran paused at the question.
Z had a sharp aura, deep features, and a tall buildâreally, no matter how you looked at him, he didn’t have much to do with “cute.”
But in Zhu Ran’s view, there were times when Z truly was… quite cute.
Zhu Ran answered honestly: [Cute.]
Z suddenly smiled. Although “cute” certainly wasn’t among the evaluations others had of him, if… if Zhu Ran liked it, he didn’t mind being so.
Z: [Okay.]
With that, he downloaded and saved the entire set of heterochromatic cat emojis.
Then, Z raised his hand in a dismissive gesture.
The bodyguards who had been on standby nearby returned to their original posts and didn’t follow Zhu Ran.
Z desperately wanted to stay by Zhu Ran’s side right now, never leaving him for a second.
But since Zhu Ran said no, he wouldn’t follow.
Returning to the empty house, even though the sunlight on the balcony was warm and the natural plants were blooming brilliantly, Z still felt the house was cold and lonely.
Z pursed his lips, his expression indifferent, carrying a faint sense of pressure and ferocity.
He issued chilling orders one after another: [Dispose of it. Make it clean.]
After finishing a portion of his official duties, Z put down his optical computer and grabbed the light-colored throw pillow that Zhu Ran usually held, pulling it into his embrace.
His powerful fingers left indentations in the soft pillow.
He held it very tightly, so tightly it gave the illusion that he wanted to pin down the pillow under his hand and never let go.
In the next moment, Z buried his head in the pillow, smelling the residual scent on it.
It was very fragrant.
But… if he were holding Zhu Ran, the scent would be even better.
The first hour since Zhu Ran left home: he missed him.
The white hovercar drove steadily. There were few other cars on the vast aerial roads, making the field of vision feel extremely wide.
After watching the scenery for a while, Zhu Ran felt a bit hungry.
“Can I eat in the car?”
“You can. No need to be formal.”
Having received permission, Zhu Ran opened the lunchbox and picked up the bear-shaped sandwich with a napkin to take a bite.
Today’s sandwich used meat from a hard-shelled, eight-legged sea creature. The meat was chewy and had a fresh ocean flavor, paired with spicy mustard sauce; the texture was savory, fresh, and natural.
It wasn’t any worse than the Guzi Spicy Stir-fried Mutated Beast Meat.
Zhu Ran’s eyes lit up.
Mu Qingzhou asked casually: “Did you make breakfast yourself?”
“No, my assistant made it.”
Assistantâhe was naturally referring to Z.
Mu Qingzhou’s hand on the steering wheel tightened.
“Unfortunately, I only know how to make cold drinks. In the summer, I can make some for you to try.”
“Sure, if there’s a chance.”
Zhu Ran finished the sandwich in just a few bites and then sent a message to Z.
Zhu Ran: [Today’s sandwich was delicious.]
Z replied almost instantly: [As long as you like it.]
[Heterochromatic Cat blowing a heart.jpg]
A shallow smile rippled in Zhu Ran’s eyes: [Already using the emojis?]
Z: [Mhm. Since you said I’m like it, I have to learn well so I don’t stop looking like it.]
[Heterochromatic Cat peeking.gif]
In the gif, the cat poked its round head from behind a wall and blinked its eyes innocently.
Zhu Ran found it a bit hard to imagine what it would be like if Z made such an expression.
Hmm… thinking about the big cat Z, who was taller than him, peeking around…
It seemed… Zhu Ran wouldn’t mind that either.
Zhu Ran: [So you’re going to learn from emojis?]
Z: [Learning alone is a bit boring. How about you learn with me?]
With that, Z sent another emoji.
The emoji depicted a heterochromatic cat reaching out a small paw from behind to tap another black cat with green eyes. Next to the heterochromatic cat was written: “Pay attention to me.”
There was nothing wrong with the emoji itself, except… it was a couple’s emoji.
Zhu Ran looked at the emoji and paused for a moment.
He didn’t know if Z did it intentionally or not, but… if the other person was Z, sending some emojis that teetered on the edge of the boundary didn’t feel unpleasant to Zhu Ran.
Zhu Ran: [Black cat saying NO.jpg]
On the other side of the optical computer, Z’s heart skipped a beat, and then he replied: [Heterochromatic cat looking pitiful.jpg]
The two of them engaged in a childish emoji battle, scrolling through several screens in just a few minutes.
Seeing that Zhu Ran was constantly sending messages, Mu Qingzhou engaged in sporadic conversation.
“Have you and your assistant known each other long?”
“Not long, less than a month.”
Zhu Ran remembered that the atmosphere between Z and Mu Qingzhou earlier wasn’t great, so he added: “He looks a bit fierce, but he’s a good person.”
“I see…”
Mu Qingzhou’s tone remained calm, but a thin layer of frost condensed in the depths of his black eyes.
“I haven’t tried the lavender massage oil you gave me yet. Is it convenient for you to teach me how to use it in a few days?”
Massage oil is easier to use when someone else operates it. Mu Qingzhou had come to Planet Aps alone, so naturally, there was no suitable person to massage him.
Thinking this, Zhu Ran nodded in agreement: “Okay.”
Mu Qingzhou’s voice softened: “Thank you.”
“Don’t be so polite. I should thank you for taking me to clear the mutated plants.”
Zhu Ran thought of something and said, “By the way, when clearing the plants, can I keep a section for myself?”
“You can. Just do it like last time. I’ll vouch for you and register it on the website.”
“Is the mutated vine I gave you useful?”
Zhu Ran: “Useful. It’s very obedient, and it’s quite convenient for binding people.”
“Oh? You’ve even used it to bind someone? Did you encounter danger?”
“Um… I bound Z for a bit, but he broke free very quickly.”
Zhu Ran didn’t reveal too much information, which inevitably led Mu Qingzhou to overthink.
What kind of occasion required binding someone with a vine…
And what kind of occasion would allow someone to break free from a highly restrictive mutated vine?
Mu Qingzhou’s aura gradually grew colder.
“It came out with me today too.”
As he spoke, Zhu Ran rolled up his sleeve, revealing a section of porcelain-white wrist skin.
A black and red “wrist chain” was tied around his slender wrist. One had to look closely to realize it wasn’t a chain, but a mutated plant vine.
With the car on autopilot, Mu Qingzhou’s gaze fell on Zhu Ran’s wrist.
It was very white, the skin texture was excellent, and it was quite thin… and also a bit fragrant.
The red and black vine formed a sharp contrast with the fair skin, causing Mu Qingzhou to inadvertently look a few more times.
The frost-like aura turned warm for a moment, like a bright spring day, with the heat of the sun mixed into the chill.
Mu Qingzhou’s fingers on the steering wheel tightened unconsciously.
Then he reached out and helped Zhu Ran pull down the sleeve he had rolled up, his cold fingers accidentally touching Zhu Ran’s skin.
“Careful not to catch a cold.”
Mu Qingzhou’s tone was normal, but in a place Zhu Ran couldn’t see, he lightly rubbed his fingertips.
Lingering over the touch.
“Okay.”
Zhu Ran responded, but he also felt something was strange.
The hovercar was temperature-controlled; he wouldn’t catch a cold just by showing a wrist, would he?
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