Chapter 43: Inner Beauty
As soon as An Yi finished speaking, A Jiao instinctively glanced at Huo Beixing’s arm. If that arm really swung in a full arc and landed a slap, his face would probably end up looking like he’d just paid a visit to plastic surgery.
He was quite satisfied with his appearance—he’d rather pass on any “free makeover.”
Still, he figured the other party was just trying to scare him. This was a society governed by law; hitting someone was hitting someone. As long as it caused physical injury, no matter the motive, you’d have to take responsibility.
A Jiao laughed it off as if unconcerned. “You’ve got quite the sense of humor. Being a homewrecker isn’t illegal, but hitting someone is. That comes with legal consequences. Once you have a criminal record, you could even lose your job.”
A Jiao added, “Madam, you wouldn’t want your husband to lose his job, right?”
An Yi: …
Maybe listen to yourself—what are you even saying to a little frog?
A Jiao regained a bit of confidence and asked skeptically, “Would he really slap me?”
Everyone weighs the pros and cons before doing something. Sure, there’s impulse, but most people think about the consequences first.
An Yi rested his hand on his chin. “He wouldn’t slap you.”
A Jiao let out a sigh of relief. See? Of course not.
An Yi continued calmly, “Because if he makes a move, it definitely won’t stop at just one slap.”
A Jiao: …
What is this? Some outlaw?!
The gray dirt where they were setting up the tent leaned against a reef. Only the top layer was loose. Just now, the guy had driven the tent stake straight into the ground with a single hammer strike—clearly a brute who relied purely on strength.
If he could hammer a stake into the ground, he could just as easily hammer him into it too!
A Jiao took a barefoot step back and tried to reason with them. “On South Island, as long as you cause physical injury, it counts as assault. Isn’t he afraid of breaking the law?”
An Yi shook his head. “Others might be. He isn’t.”
A Jiao sounded puzzled. “What, would he bribe the police to serve fewer days in jail?”
An Yi’s gaze was firm. “No. He’d be acquitted on the spot.”
After all, he currently had a mental illness diagnosis and could evade some legal responsibility.
A Jiao: …
Wow. Just… wow.
There really were people this outrageous in the world—dating the hottest guy around, beating people up, and not even going to jail.
Must feel amazing.
Meanwhile, Huo Xiao, who had been busy fitting the tent mesh and frame together, looked up and spotted An Yi arguing with someone not far away.
He craned his neck for a better look. “Brother Beixing, isn’t that Brother An Yi?”
He pointed.
Huo Beixing followed his direction, his sharp brows knitting together. He tossed the hammer aside and strode over.
A Jiao looked at An Yi, ruffling his hair in frustration. The duck that had practically reached his mouth had flown away. If he wanted to meet someone he found this attractive again, it’d probably be in his next life.
An Yi comforted him, “Forget it. If you really got together with me, not only would you become a despised third party, you’d also… change species.”
A Jiao frowned. “Change into what?”
An Yi replied, “From a normal person into a disabled one.”
A Jiao: …
You really know how to make metaphors.
A Jiao grew a bit anxious. “What do you even like about your husband?”
An Yi thought casually. “I like that he’s young. I like that he’s strong.”
A Jiao protested, “I’m young and strong too! I’m only twenty-one, still a college student—prime age. You could go on a date with me first and try it out. My family runs an aquarium—you can come with me, even make friends with sea otters.”
Huo Beixing’s voice came from behind him. “What are you talking about?”
A Jiao: …
He stiffly turned his head and met Huo Beixing’s terrifyingly dark expression.
Huo Beixing looked displeased, his face practically screaming: What nonsense are you spouting?
He spoke again, “I’m asking you—what were you just saying?”
A Jiao swallowed. From afar he’d already sensed this man wasn’t to be messed with, and now, up close, he was completely suppressed by the other’s intimidating aura. Not daring to act bold in front of the real deal, he quickly changed his tone.
“I just wanted to make friends with him. I said we could go to the aquarium together and make friends with the sea otters.”
Huo Beixing asked, “You’re friends with sea otters?”
A Jiao nodded. “Of course. Several of the otters in my family’s aquarium are my friends.”
Huo Beixing immediately pulled An Yi back. “Wife, you can’t be friends with him. There’s something wrong with his character.”
A Jiao: ???
Huo Beixing continued, “He’s actually friends with a domestic abuser. That makes him one too!”
A Jiao: …
Have you even watched a single episode of Animal World?
A Jiao tried to salvage his image. “I’m not a domestic abuser.”
Comrade Huo Dabao doubled down on his nonsense. “You are. Birds of a feather flock together. Sea otters are domestic abusers, you’re friends with them, so you’re a domestic abuser too!”
An Yi: …
A Jiao: …
Huo Beixing clearly had some understanding of “grouping like terms.”
Normal people just don’t have this kind of logic.
His affectionate peach-blossom eyes locked onto A Jiao, full of warning. A Jiao shrank his neck, not daring to step forward again.
Seeing his fear, Huo Beixing was finally satisfied. He pulled An Yi away, but not before turning back to glare at him one more time.
If he dared to provoke his wife again, he’d twist him up and toss him into the sea to feed the sharks!
However, after walking a few steps, Huo Beixing let go of An Yi’s hand, his face full of hurt.
An Yi thought he had misunderstood his relationship with A Jiao and quickly explained, “I didn’t mean to be friends with him. He came to ask me just now, and I rejected him right away.”
But Huo Beixing still looked downcast, so dejected it was as if he could only manage a single bowl of rice tonight.
He glanced at An Yi, yet didn’t cheer up at all. Looking at his wife’s fair, smiling face, he muttered, “That’s not why I’m upset.”
An Yi was puzzled. “Then what is it?”
Huo Beixing looked serious. “When he asked you just now what you like about me—how did you answer?”
So he had overheard their conversation. An Yi answered honestly, “I said I like that you’re young and that you’re strong.”
Those counted as Huo Beixing’s strengths, not exactly a wrong answer.
Yet Huo Beixing was very dissatisfied. “That’s exactly why I’m angry.”
An Yi: ?
Huo Beixing said, “I thought what you liked about me was my inner beauty.”
As he spoke, he looked like a wronged maiden, lamenting in despair, “I didn’t expect you to only value my youth and strength.”
An Yi: …
Inner beauty, my foot.
Guess I’m the shallow one.
After that, An Yi spent quite a while coaxing and playing with him in the tent before finally making Huo Beixing forget all about his “inner beauty.”
Of course, Huo Beixing didn’t forget about teaching An Yi how to swim. After nearly a month of living like a salted fish on South Island, on a bright and breezy morning, he dragged An Yi out of bed and took him to the beach with a swim ring.
The swim ring was large enough for An Yi to sit on and float. Huo Beixing led him into the water and slipped the ring over him.
“Wife, don’t touch the ground with your feet now. Try to float.”
The cool seawater contrasted sharply with the hot weather. Standing in the water, An Yi curled his toes comfortably.
With both the swim ring and Huo Beixing as his “protective shields,” An Yi had nothing to worry about and obediently followed his instructions.
This was the shallow area, and quite a few people nearby were also teaching swimming—though most of the learners were children between seven and twelve. An Yi was clearly overage.
But that wasn’t the little frog’s fault. The well he came from was dry—there was no water in it—so it was understandable that he didn’t know how to swim.
To teach someone to swim, you have to guide them forward in the water. Huo Beixing blushed as he reached out to hold An Yi’s hand, feeling immensely satisfied. “Wife, kick your legs. I’ll take you forward.”
An Yi nodded. He hadn’t expected Huo Beixing to be such a good teacher.
While swimming, An Yi often couldn’t maintain his balance and would tilt to one side. At those moments, he’d nervously squeeze Huo Beixing’s hand and look up at him for help.
Every time Huo Beixing saw that, the corners of his lips would unconsciously lift into a silly, lovestruck grin.
An Yi returned a bright smile. “You teach really well.”
Huo Beixing’s heart skipped a beat, and he became even more enthusiastic in teaching.
Soon, An Yi felt like he was actually swimming, being guided along by Huo Beixing. The buoyancy of the seawater supported him, making his whole body feel light and floaty.
Gradually, he got carried away.
His eyes lit up. “I think I’ve learned.”
As he spoke, he patted the swim ring—he didn’t need it anymore.
Seeing the eagerness in An Yi’s eyes, Huo Beixing asked, “Really?”
An Yi nodded.
The sky was clear, and he felt like he could do anything.
Huo Beixing looked at their clasped hands. “No, you haven’t learned.”
An Yi: “What do you mean I haven’t learned?”
Isn’t this how you swim?
Huo Beixing said, “I think you haven’t learned.”
Little frog: I don’t care what you think—I care what I think.
He had already learned.
Right now, he was like a scumbag who had regained his sight, ready to throw away his crutch!
“I really have learned.”
An Yi planted his feet in the shallow water, straightened up, and took off the swim ring. If he didn’t believe it, he’d just show him.
Following what Huo Beixing had just taught him, An Yi tried to keep his balance and float up. However… he ended up gulping down a mouthful of seawater.
“Pfft… glug glug glug…”
An Yi: …
Flailing in the water with all four limbs going in different directions, An Yi struggled helplessly. Seeing this, Huo Beixing quickly scooped him up.
“Wife, are you okay?”
Held up by him, An Yi silently fished the swim ring back over.
He had been too arrogant.
Oh mighty swim ring, I will forever respect you.
An Yi was hauled out of the sea like a drenched chicken, water dripping from head to toe. Huo Beixing reached out and rubbed his face, a little worried. “Wife, did you choke on water?”
An Yi shook his head. “No.”
They had already been practicing for nearly an hour, and after that mouthful of seawater, Huo Beixing decided to take him back to rest. Holding the swim ring in one hand and An Yi’s wrist in the other, he led him back to the hotel.
There was a strangely innocent air about it—like if he wasn’t teaching swimming, he wouldn’t even dare hold hands.
Reaching the floor-to-ceiling windows of the VIP lounge, he tossed the swim ring aside and led An Yi up the steps.
The VIP lounge was filled with members of the Huo family. After staying here for a month, their appearances no longer drew much attention.
Huo Beixing brought An Yi to a corner booth where it was quieter.
Mainly because no one paid much attention there, so they wouldn’t be disturbed.
Huo Beixing’s main social circle within the Huo family was the children. At family banquets back at the old residence, he didn’t have many hobbies—he just liked teasing kids. He got along well with them, and whenever he appeared in the lounge, children would come over to play with him.
But Huo Beixing only wanted to spend time with his wife. Unfortunately, those little brats would come looking for him every now and then, making it impossible to enjoy any alone time. For the first time in his eight-year-old mindset, he experienced the true “power” of naughty kids.
After enough times, he learned his lesson. So now whenever he brought An Yi here, he deliberately chose a corner seat. When he realized the kids weren’t coming to bother them anymore, he felt extremely satisfied.
As expected of him.
It was noon now—time to eat. An Yi sat down in the booth.
Standing beside him, Huo Beixing bent slightly and asked, “Wife, what do you want to eat? I’ll go get it for you.”
An Yi thought for a moment. As expected, deciding what to eat was the hardest problem in the world.
“I’m fine with anything. Just get what you want and bring me a portion too.”
Neither of them liked troubling the waitstaff, so most of the time they went to the buffet area themselves.
Huo Beixing nodded and left.
An Yi relaxed completely, slumping against the booth like a puddle of jelly.
“Haha, look at him—he’s practically no different from an idiot.”
“So clumsy. Do you think he’ll stay dumb forever?”
“Who knows? He’s been like this for over a year and hasn’t improved. Probably won’t change.”
“Didn’t expect the Huo family to produce an idiot.”
“He’s not an idiot!”
A voice cut through the group’s chatter. An Yi stood beside them, his expression stern and clearly displeased.
He recognized these people—they were all from the Huo family, around twenty-two or twenty-three, roughly the same generation as Huo Beixing, relatives as well.
Huo Beixing was sensitive about this. He didn’t like or accept being called an idiot, and there was no way these people didn’t know that.
For family members to say such things—it was truly disgusting.
The group was momentarily stunned that Huo Beixing’s male spouse had come out to refute them, but they didn’t take him seriously.
With Huo Beixing’s condition, although his influence in the family still existed, it had shrunk significantly. After all, who would side with an “idiot”?
They scoffed at An Yi’s claim.
“If he’s not an idiot, then what is he?”
An Yi replied, “He’s a person. His mental age is just a bit younger, that’s all.”
Then he looked at them sharply. “From now on, don’t call him that.”
He’ll really cry his eyes out, okay?!
One of them stood up. “What if I call him that anyway? What, you gonna shut my mouth?”
An Yi shook his head. “I won’t shut your mouth.”
The man sneered, thinking he had no real ability.
An Yi said, “I’ll tear your mouth apart.”
A sudden thud shattered the relaxed atmosphere of the lounge, followed by continuous noise—shouts and scuffling. Everyone turned toward the sound and saw two people wrestling on the floor in a remote corner.
Startled, they rushed over.
It turned out to be An Yi and one of the Huo family juniors. They were fighting on the ground—no, not really a mutual fight. An Yi was straddling him, delivering a one-sided beating, while the younger man flailed his arms, grabbing at An Yi’s clothes, trying to fight back but completely powerless.
The younger man grimaced in pain. “Don’t think I’m afraid of you! If I hit you, you’re done for!”
An Yi responded with another punch.
“I’m getting mad!! You’d better let go!!”
Another hit landed on his face.
“Damn it, I’m really getting mad!”
The younger man tried to struggle up, only to be firmly pinned back down by An Yi.
Younger man: …
Do I have no dignity at all?
His nose bleeding, the onlookers quickly stepped in to stop it. It took quite a while before they managed to pull An Yi off him.
Watching the whole scene, Huo Xiao looked at the younger man wiping his nosebleed and shook his head.
Serves you right—why did you have to provoke him? When he fights, he really goes all in.
