24 What a Catch

When night falls and the moon's ethereal glow illuminates the sky, Fang Lei sits by the window inside his inn room. He peers up at the clear sky aligned with magnificent stars, but he doesn't take the time to admire its beauty. Instead, with an uninterested expression, he immediately glances away and abruptly stands up, deciding to go on a night stroll. There was still a little time to ask around for more information about Xu Jiyu's whereabouts, so he might as well use the rest of the time he has before reporting back to the King.

When he walks over to the door and opens it, he doesn't expect to see the person he'd believed he'd gotten rid of earlier—Wen Po! It appears that the merchant had also just opened the door from the room on the opposite side of Fang Lei's.

...So did fate decide to test Fang Lei's patience? Because how big of coincidence could it be to have the one person he couldn't stand the most rent a room parallel to his, in the same exact inn?

F*ck your mother, ah!

Fang Lei silently swears in his mind, immediately sneering at the man across from him. Without making any comment, he decides to ignore Wen Po's seemingly delighted gaze upon him, and swiftly strides towards the stairs.

Just as he reaches the stairs, he hears Wen Po's hurried footsteps following after him. The stupid old man even had the audacity to call out, "Wait!"

The agitated young man stops in his tracks and quickly swivels around on one foot, ready to curse the merchant out. However, in his fit of anger, he wasn't able to control the amount of force he used and found that time had slowed. He feels his body beginning to fall backwards, and manages to see Wen Po's panicked and worried expression on his face—wait just a damn second, why was his face getting closer, ah?!

Fang Lei feels arms wrapping around the small of of his back, and before he can even register what was happening, he's slotted perfectly against Wen Po's well-defined chest.

Almost immediately, time reverts back to normal and Fang Lei's mind blanks.

"Are you alright?" The taller man asks him, his breath tickling Fang Lei's cheek. Fang Lei doesn't understand why his cheeks are burning up and his heartbeat has quickened, but nonetheless, he pushes Wen Po to the side and skitters back five steps.

"You, you, you—!" Fang Lei stutters, unable to continue his sentence. Why is this human body reacting so strangely?! What kind of strange biological response is this?!

His heart is beating a thousand li per second, and he feels a as if butterflies were in his stomach. With his flushed face, he indignantly yells, "D-Don't come near me, you hear? You'd better stay at least ten steps away from me at all times!"

Wen Po visibly frowns, "Is that all you have to say to your savior? I like that energy. You would've fallen down the stairs if I hadn't caught you."

"Next time, catch me without touching me, stupid old man!" Fang Lei shouts, his face growing redder by the second.

"That's… not how that works." He says, amusement flickering within his eyes. He then adds, with a smug smile playing upon his lips, "Also, next time?"

Before Fang Lei can answer, a voice interjects.

"Oi, no roughhousing in my lobby! If you're going to flirt, get a room!" The innkeeper shouts from downstairs upon hearing the commotion above.

"I won't say we're not flirting…" Wen Po chuckles, making Fang Lei's lovely emerald eyes widen in surprise. "Anyways, that's a nice outfit you got on. Going to meet a special lady?" He raises his eyebrows, flashing another smile. Fang Lei's nightwear was surprisingly risque. His robe was half-open, with… apparently no inner-wear. Fang Lei looks down, then pulls one side of his robe to cover his exposed, snow-white skin.

Fang Lei retorts with an exasperated, indignant: "NO!"

"Oh… a man then?" Wen Po's violet eyes glitter with mirth.

Fang Lei suddenly wants to die, but realizes he's already dead. F*ck! He immediately opens his mouth to refute, but as usual, Wen Po smoothly interjects—

"If you're interested in men, would you allow me to take you for a meal?" Wen Po shoots his shot. How can he resist teasing this adorable man, ah? Every time he gets upset, he makes a loveable pout that would put most women to shame.

"You wish, old man." Fang Lei's stomach suddenly grumbles. Damn it. And to think he'd spent his money on the inn room for the night. "I don't even know your name. How can I trust you won't try to rob or threaten me?"

"Well considering you don't seem to have money for food and I can hear how hungry you are, I'm pretty certain I wouldn't profit off of doing either of those things. Also, this merchant is called Wen Po. May I ask your name?"

"I'll tell you after you've bought the food." Fang Lei glowers, admitting defeat.

"Fair enough." Wen Po chuckles, casually slinging an arm around the smaller man's shoulder. Fang Lei's face again begins growing red.

No matter what, he'll have to endure Wen Po's company for a while. After entering a human's body, he was forced to fall prey to his new body's biological needs, as he was not the King who had enough spiritual power to maintain the build at its best form.

That's why, even if he wants to throw Wen Po's arm off, he'll withstand it for now.

Food is truly the way into a man's heart, ah!

---

"And then, I'm sitting there, soy sauce on my—" Wen Po suddenly busts out laughing, unable to finish his joke. Fang Lei is already struggling, trying his best not to smile, covering his mouth with a hand.

'Must. Not. Laugh. At. This. Trash. Tier. Joke! I will not allow it!' He swallows down his laughter and barely maintains an unamused expression.

Wen Po sits, resting an elbow on the table, balancing his chin on a hand. On his face, he wears a relaxed, lopsided smile. His trademark smirk.

A waitress walks by just as Fang Lei looks up from his food at the man across the table. In her hand, a steaming wooden bowl of savory soup is on its way to another customer. The waitress' foot catches the edge of a leg of a table, and she tips forward, nearly losing her balance.

"Oh, I'm so sorry, are you alright?" The waitress, panicking, flits back and forth while Wen Po sits in silence. The steaming bowl of soup, fresh from the pot, had splashed across his back, drenching his robe and searing his skin.

Fang Lei's eyes widen as Wen Po lifts his head, exhaling. "I'm quite alright. No need to worry. But I can't very well wear these anymore."

The waitress blushes, peeking through her hands as Wen Po shrugs out of his soiled robes, revealing a surprisingly toned, pockmarked body. Fang Lei's heart rate skyrockets. "What do you think you're doing in a public place, you old man?! Where the hell do you think we are? And doesn't that hurt?"

Fang Lei's embarrassment manifests itself in the form of a barrage of questions.

"Slow down." Wen Po intervenes, "I've taken worse beatings than this." He lifts his arm, exposing his left side, where an angry, white mark shone on his skin. Fang Lei peers closer, forgetting himself for a second. Upon closer inspection, the mark took shape, and he realised it was a very old brand, in the form of a coiled dragon with horns.

Entranced, he reaches forward as if to touch the mark, but Wen Po grabs his wrist. "Don't." A cold light radiated from within the man's eyes, shattering the veneer of his usual cheeriness.

Wen Po then lets go of his wrist. He gathers his robe, tucking it under his arm, and saunters out of the tavern. On his way out, he drops a few coins on the bar as he nods in gratitude to the bartender.

Fang Lei sits in shock, processing what just happened.

The waitress shuffles over and bows to him, apologizing. "I'm sorry I spilled soup on your companion… I really didn't mean to interrupt your evening. But when you see him again, could you tell him I work every night around this time?" She then rushes off again, vanishing behind the counter.

....Your mother works every night around this time, ah!

---

Fang Lei sighs, before climbing into his bed. When he recalls the memories of today, specifically a mysterious merchant who lets on more than he seems to know, Fang Lei's face heats up once more.

Ahhhh!! F*ck! Why is he thinking about that stupid old man?!

He immediately shakes his head and rolls around on his bed, desperately trying to erase the man's attractive face from his mind, but to no avail. Every time he closes his eyes, he can see Wen Po's smirk, Wen Po's abs, Wen Po's—

F*ck! Not only did he get close to a human, now he's even obsessing over him! Stupid body! Stupid brain! Stupid thoughts, ahhh!

After a few minutes, he manages to calm his heartbeat and relax. He had mediated for a bit and has successfully cleared his mind. He has to forget about Wen Po, he's not important! They will never meet again. Good riddance...

Fang Lei takes a deep breath.

It's about time to go back to report to the King. Thinking this, he closes his eyes and disconnects himself from the young man's figure, leaving the body to sleep peacefully. Fang Lei then uses his spiritual power to transport himself back to the Spirit Realm, where the King eagerly awaits his return.