Chapter 11
Ye Xiyao had never felt this happy before.
Maybe it was because the sun was shining brightly today, maybe it was because he had just gotten a new haircut, maybe it was because he now had a rabbit plush whose ears would perk up when he pinched its tail, or maybe it was because…
“Watch where you’re going.” Xing Xu grabbed his arm.
Ye Xiyao stopped bouncing around, straightened up, and smiled brightly, his lips red and teeth white. “I won’t fall.”
Despite his constant hopping, he was well aware of what he was doing.
Xing Xu recalled that time when Ye Xiyao tripped over flat ground near the entrance to their residential complex and let out a soft hum. “I wouldn’t be so sure.”
It was a mildly teasing comment, but instead of getting annoyed, Ye Xiyao felt delighted.
Friends only tease each other like this.
What’s more, Xing Xu wasn’t just making fun of him—he was also holding onto him, which showed that he was genuinely concerned about Ye Xiyao falling. That was kindness.
What a nice person!
Ye Xiyao pinched the rabbit’s tail, feeling as cheerful as its perky ears.
They walked back without taking the car, and by the time they arrived at the company, it was already 3 p.m.
It only just occurred to Ye Xiyao that he had done something rather absurd—on his first day at work, he had taken an extended lunch break and was late by a full hour!
Even though Xing Xu had reassured him that lunch with the boss counted as overtime, Ye Xiyao knew the truth.
It wasn’t overtime at all—his boss had just taken him out for some fun.
Feeling guilty, as soon as the elevator doors opened, Ye Xiyao waved at Xing Xu while holding his little rabbit. “Manager Xing, I’m going to find Brother Qiao and ask about the afternoon tasks.”
Before he finished speaking, he had already dashed off. His bouncing figure quickly disappeared around the corner.
Xing Xu didn’t stop him.
He went back to his office, and as soon as the door clicked shut, his phone rang.
If Xing Xu didn’t know better, he would’ve thought that Luo Yiji had bugged him—it was all too well-timed.
“How’s it going?” Luo Yiji jumped straight to the point. “After interacting with the target up close, what’s your assessment?”
By “interacting,” he meant Xing Xu taking Ye Xiyao to get his hair cut, treating him to lunch, and even giving him a rabbit plush at the end.
It all sounded a bit unserious.
But for their undercover mission, this was a critical first step.
Building a friendly relationship with the demon without arousing suspicion would be key for long-term monitoring of the target.
Xing Xu strolled over to his desk, sat down, and, with a casual sweep of his long legs, sent a mess of papers and pens scattering across the floor. He appeared relaxed as he answered, “His reactions are odd.”
Luo Yiji’s voice grew uneasy. “What’s odd?”
“He has no wariness about my approach. Even when I acted overly friendly, he didn’t seem suspicious at all. Wherever I took him, whatever I fed him, and whatever gift I gave him—he accepted everything without question. He didn’t even check the rabbit for hidden cameras,” Xing Xu summarized. “I don’t think he’s that naïve, so he might be deliberately playing along with my attempts to get closer.”
Luo Yiji was more concerned about another issue. “Wait, did you put a camera in the rabbit?”
Xing Xu: “I considered it, but decided against it.”
“That’s a relief. Demons are sly and cunning—we can’t afford to use anything that could leave evidence.” Luo Yiji sighed in relief, then asked, “But why would he be playing along with your friendliness? You two only just met, and you’re his direct superior. If he’s pretending to be human, shouldn’t he act more cautious and nervous? Could it be… that he’s already figured out your identity?”
“Hard to say.” Xing Xu couldn’t quite see through Ye Xiyao.
Earlier in the day, though Xing Xu hadn’t directly interacted with Ye Xiyao, he had kept an eye on him from time to time. He noticed that Ye Xiyao had almost no interaction with the other colleagues in the department.
There was only one instance where Ye Xiyao, struggling with a work-related issue, had approached Qiao Linchuan for help. But after exchanging just a few words, he withdrew to a corner by himself.
Xing Xu knew Qiao Linchuan from their university days. Qiao had always been a social butterfly, someone who loved group activities, took care of underdogs, and was so eager to help others that he often overextended himself.
So unless Ye Xiyao was actively avoiding him, Qiao Linchuan would never have let a newcomer be left out on their first day.
Yet every time Xing Xu pretended to come out to retrieve some documents, he would see Ye Xiyao quietly reading materials in the same spot. No senior colleagues guiding him, and no one striking up a conversation to ease his first-day nerves.
And when it was time for lunch, Xing Xu had even witnessed how Ye Xiyao silently drifted to the back of the crowd.
His solitary figure gave off an impression of being introverted and silent, so withdrawn that he seemed unsociable.
It seemed like Ye Xiyao was intentionally avoiding people. But strangely enough, in front of Xing Xu, he suddenly became a different person—lively, cheerful, and full of smiles.
There was no doubt that Ye Xiyao’s demeanor around others was quite different from how he behaved in front of Xing Xu. There had to be a reason behind this change in behavior.
“We can first rule out the possibility that the demon simply wants to be friends with you,” Luo Yiji analyzed. “If you’re sure you haven’t exposed your identity as an exorcist, then there’s only one possibility left—”
Xing Xu already knew what he was about to say.
Sure enough, Luo Yiji gave the answer Xing Xu had anticipated: “The demon likely sees you as his next prey, which is why he’s intentionally getting close to you.”
One was actively trying to win over the demon in order to eliminate it.
The other was deliberately playing along in order to devour a soul.
It was a two-way pursuit, so to speak.
Xing Xu found himself saying, “Maybe he’s just a particularly dumb demon.”
“Xing Xu, don’t underestimate him,” Luo Yiji sternly warned, immediately dismissing the idea. “Let’s be real—any creature that can live among humans for 22 years without us detecting them isn’t a simple opponent.”
Xing Xu accepted this point.
He wasn’t sure why he’d said what he had earlier—a dumb demon? That kind of talk belonged to a novice exorcist who knew nothing about the real world.
Xing Xu had encountered too many demons to not know how vicious and terrifying they truly were.
“If he’s already targeted you, you’re in danger,” Luo Yiji considered the situation carefully before adding, “While he hasn’t formed too deep an impression of you, you should find an excuse to ‘resign.’ We can rework the plan, or have someone else take over this mission.”
Before Xing Xu could react to Luo Yiji’s suggestion, he suddenly heard a knock on his office door.
He immediately hung up the phone and turned it off, asking calmly, “Who is it?”
In truth, he already knew it was Ye Xiyao.
“It’s me, manager Xing.” Sure enough, Ye Xiyao’s voice came through the door. “Are you busy?”
Xing Xu was indeed busy—busy discussing how to kill Ye Xiyao.
He walked over, opened the door, and saw Ye Xiyao holding a piece of cake. “What’s up?”
“I brought you something to eat!” Ye Xiyao handed him the cake with a bright smile, his eyes sparkling. “Brother Qiao and the others bought this for me. They said since we didn’t have lunch together, they’d make it up by giving me a piece of cake.”
The cake was large, and even after being divided, there was still half left. Ye Xiyao had eagerly suggested sharing a piece with Xing Xu as well.
The expression on Qiao Linchuan’s face at that moment was hard to describe.
He had asked Ye Xiyao if Xing Xu had scared him that morning, and suggested that maybe giving the cake was a way to smooth things over. He even tried to comfort him, saying, “You don’t need to go out of your way to please that guy. Our big boss is reasonable. If Xing Xu bullies you in the future, just tell me and I’ll report him to the boss.”
Ye Xiyao quickly responded, “But I think Manager Xing is really nice.”
“What? Huh!”
Qiao Linchuan pinched himself hard for three seconds but ultimately didn’t stop Ye Xiyao from taking the cake to Xing Xu.
As Ye Xiyao proudly presented the cake to him, Xing Xu found himself unable to say, ‘I hate sweets,’ and instead said, “Thank you.”
Oh well.
It was all for the mission, after all.
“President Xing, I won’t bother you anymore,” Ye Xiyao said cheerfully before leaving. It was clear he was in a great mood.
Xing Xu watched him go, then set the cake down and pulled out his phone.
He sent one final message to Luo Yiji: [No replacement. This mission is mine.]
This demon could only be dealt with by him personally.
“Lunch was my fault, I don’t know how it happened, but I completely forgot about you. Maybe I’ve been so busy lately that my mind’s all over the place! Totally my fault, I take the blame,” Qiao Linchuan apologized to Ye Xiyao, adding, “Let’s have a proper get-together this Friday night!”
Ye Xiyao didn’t actually mind what happened at lunch. After all, situations like Xing Xu’s—where someone specifically seeks him out—were rare. For the most part, people like Qiao Linchuan tended to forget about Ye Xiyao if they weren’t paying close attention.
He even suspected that come Friday’s dinner, they might forget about him again.
But Ye Xiyao agreed anyway.
Might as well take a chance—what if they actually remembered?
The afternoon’s work was a bit more interesting than simply reading through materials like in the morning. Ye Xiyao was assigned to evaluate a nearly market-ready electronic product, and Qiao Linchuan asked him to test it out.
Ye Xiyao worked meticulously and had an excellent memory. Not only did he quickly become well-versed in all the product materials, but he also analyzed the competition’s features, swiftly identifying the target audience’s preferences. After finishing all this, he shifted his mindset and approached the product from a user’s perspective, providing feedback that was both sharp and insightful.
After reviewing his work, Qiao Linchuan gave him a thumbs-up and said, “No wonder you skipped the interview process and got hired directly—you’ve got some skills! You handled that fast.”
Ye Xiyao smiled at him but didn’t explain the reason for his efficiency.
He had an eidetic memory and an exceptional ability to focus. Whenever he wanted to, he could master anything to perfection.
But this wasn’t a talent he was particularly proud of.
Ye Xiyao knew that the reason he was better than most humans was because he wasn’t human.
So, when praised, he felt less pride and more concern about someone discovering his unusual abilities.
Suddenly, Qiao Linchuan said, “Since you’re done, why don’t you come with me to the holographic amusement park?”
The holographic amusement park was an indoor facility funded by the company, where all the attractions were supported by holographic technology. The park had been completed for over six months, and after passing all the tests, it was scheduled to open next month. For a large-scale project like this, the product experience team’s feedback wasn’t going to make much difference to the final outcome.
But it was part of the job, so it had to be done.
Plus, it was fun—there was no reason to say no.
Naturally, Ye Xiyao agreed, and Qiao Linchuan took him to the park.
The amusement park was larger than Ye Xiyao had imagined, and experiencing all the attractions would probably take two or three days.
Qiao Linchuan, driven by his pursuit of efficiency, immediately led Ye Xiyao to the haunted house.
“These places are the best for testing enhanced technology and imaging quality. If the fake stuff here looks real enough to scare you, the rest of the park should be fine too.”
The whole time, Ye Xiyao barely had a chance to express his thoughts.
No, that’s not right.
He did express them, but Qiao Linchuan didn’t listen.
Ye Xiyao was terrified of such things. He didn’t really dare to participate.
By the time they reached the entrance, Ye Xiyao was silently wishing that Qiao Linchuan would just forget he was following behind.
But luck wasn’t on his side. When it came to work, Qiao Linchuan was meticulous. He grabbed Ye Xiyao and led him straight into the darkness.
“Brother Qiao…” Ye Xiyao’s whole body tensed up.
Qiao Linchuan finally noticed his fear and reassured him, “It’s fine, it’s fine. Just keep telling yourself it’s all fake!”
Ye Xiyao was on the verge of tears, “It’s the fact that it’s fake that makes it scary.”
If he were in real danger in life, he was confident he could handle it. In the worst case, he could unleash his demonic powers and at least save himself.
But this holographic experience was different.
A game has its own rules, and players must follow those rules. Everything in the haunted house was fake, so no matter how much power he unleashed, he couldn’t dispel these virtual images.
No matter how scared he was, he had to tough it out.
Ye Xiyao was frozen in place, unable to take a step. Qiao Linchuan laughed at him, “You’re a grown man, how can you be so scared?”
However, two minutes later…
Qiao Linchuan screamed, “Ahhh! Xiao Ye, run! Why are you so light?!”
Ye Xiyao replied, “Brother Qiao… I’m right here.”
Qiao Linchuan: “Then who did I grab?”
Ye Xiyao: “It seems like… something’s head.”
Ye Xiyao: “It’s dripping blood.”
Ye Xiyao: “Ah!”
Qiao Linchuan: “Ahhhh!!!”
The two of them missed a step and fell into a pile of what felt like mushy corpses.
“Let’s go, let’s get out of here!” Qiao Linchuan tried to climb out. “There’s an emergency help button to the right up ahead! Press it! The staff will come to rescue us!”
Ye Xiyao was also on the verge of breaking down.
He should have told Qiao Linchuan that he couldn’t handle this kind of thing!
Just as they were struggling to crawl toward the help button, Ye Xiyao suddenly felt something tighten around his waist, and then he was lifted off the ground. He screamed in terror, “Brother Qiao! A ghost’s got me!”
Qiao Linchuan screamed even louder, “A ghost is choking me! Ahhh!”
They both struggled frantically until they heard an impatient “Tsk.”
“Stop moving.”
It was Xing Xu’s voice.
In an instant, Ye Xiyao and Qiao Linchuan stopped screaming.
Ye Xiyao stopped flailing and reached out to touch the arm wrapped around his waist. The muscles were tense from exertion, solid and bulging. Okay, it was Xing Xu.
He had lifted them both out of the sea of corpses with ease.
It felt incredibly reassuring.
But Ye Xiyao couldn’t help asking, “Mr. Xing, are you moonlighting as a ghost here?”
Xing Xu: “?”
Qiao Linchuan was quicker to catch on and immediately understood: “You should’ve told us you were coming to try out the amusement park too! I would’ve had Xiao Ye hide behind you right from the start. Quick, put me down. You’re choking me—my neck hurts!”
Without a word, Xing Xu dropped him to the ground.
The next moment, Qiao Linchuan jumped up with a shout, “Why is the floor covered with severed limbs?! It’s disgusting! Xing Xu, help me!”
Xing Xu ignored him and turned to ask Ye Xiyao, “Want to get down?”
With Qiao Linchuan still screaming nearby, Ye Xiyao quickly shook his head. “Mr. Xing, I don’t want to get down.”
“Okay.” Xing Xu shifted his grip and suddenly lifted Ye Xiyao higher, adjusting him so that he was now sitting on Xing Xu’s shoulders, his feet neatly placed in Xing Xu’s palms.
Though Ye Xiyao wasn’t small—he was at least 1.75 meters tall and weighed a bit over 100 pounds—Xing Xu effortlessly lifted him as if he were a child.
Ye Xiyao, whose body temperature was already higher than average, noticed that Xing Xu’s body was also warm—comfortably so. Instinctively, he leaned in closer.
Qiao Linchuan glanced at the two of them, their figures overlapping in the darkness. Although he couldn’t see clearly, he had a pretty good idea of what position they were in: “Damn, you two—”
Ye Xiyao suddenly realized that this position was a bit too strange and quickly lowered his head to speak to Xing Xu: “Mr. Xing, won’t you get tired holding me like this? Maybe I should—”
Xing Xu pretended to loosen his grip: “You want to walk yourself?”
Losing balance, Ye Xiyao panicked and wrapped his arms around Xing Xu’s head, clinging to him: “No, no! Mr. Xing, sorry to trouble you!”
Xing Xu let out a light chuckle and adjusted his hold again. This time, instead of supporting Ye Xiyao’s feet, he placed his hand around his waist.
Though Ye Xiyao’s waist seemed slender under his clothes, Xing Xu’s grip revealed that it had a soft, full texture. When he gently squeezed, he could feel the subtle trembling of the person under his control. If he applied a bit more pressure, he could even hear Ye Xiyao’s faint, involuntary breaths.
Ye Xiyao trusted Xing Xu completely—he believed that Xing Xu’s hands were righteous; it was his own body that wasn’t.
But when Xing Xu touched that particular spot, it tickled him unbearably. He didn’t dare say anything, though, fearing that Xing Xu would find him troublesome and toss him back on the ground. So, he just instinctively wiggled, trying to get Xing Xu’s hand to move somewhere else.
Xing Xu’s body momentarily stiffened, feeling the soft body squirming against his shoulder, even through his clothing. He couldn’t resist giving Ye Xiyao’s waist a light squeeze and said, “Sit still and stop squirming.”
Ye Xiyao swallowed a soft moan and tried his best to keep his voice steady: “Okay.”
Meanwhile, Qiao Linchuan abandoned his dignity and asked, “Xing Xu, for the sake of our many years of friendship, can I sit on your right shoulder?”
Xing Xu glanced at him coldly: “You can try.”
Qiao Linchuan quickly backtracked: “Haha, just kidding.”
Then he quietly continued crawling toward the exit in tears.
With someone as intimidating as Xing Xu accompanying them, the eerie, terrifying atmosphere dissipated considerably.
Ten minutes later, they successfully exited the haunted house.
Qiao Linchuan’s legs gave out, and he collapsed onto the ground, gasping for air.
Xing Xu lowered Ye Xiyao to the ground, his voice cold and scornful: “You’re so scared of haunted houses, but you still insist on playing. What a bad habit.”
Already shaken, Qiao Linchuan flinched under Xing Xu’s glare and began trembling again.
Ye Xiyao, naturally assuming the comment was directed at both him and Qiao Linchuan, quickly admitted his mistake: “I’m sorry, Mr. Xing.”
Whenever he felt guilty, he also felt embarrassed, and his ears quietly turned red. “I won’t… play this again.”
“I wasn’t talking about you.” Xing Xu’s tone suddenly softened. He looked at Ye Xiyao and reached out to ruffle his slightly messy hair. “Next time you want to play, just let me know.”
Ye Xiyao’s heart skipped a beat, and under Xing Xu’s warm touch, he softly replied, “Okay.”
Still sprawled on the ground, Qiao Linchuan tugged at Xing Xu’s pant leg: “Then, when I want to play—”
Xing Xu: “Go ahead and play.”
Qiao Linchuan: “…”
—
Ye Xiyao: “There are no bad people in this world!”
Qiao Linchuan: “?”
