Raising a Fox Spirit in My Home

The Set-Up

Perhaps there was a good reason why old-school communication was deemed as, well, old school—it was unreliable, even though it functioned by magical means .

For hours Li Yundong had stood on his balcony and waited for the paper crane\'s return, yet there were no signs of it . Maybe Su Chan had gone to bed already? Did Ao Wushuang confiscate the paper crane? Li Yundong sighed . This was stupid . He should head back inside . It wasn\'t like standing out here would make the crane come any faster .

Li Yundong pushed away from the railing and entered the living room .

Zi Yuan rose from the couch as soon as he stepped in .

"I\'m gonna head back," she said .

"Oh," Li Yundong said, closing the sliding door gently . "Thanks for dinner . I really appreciate it . "

Zi Yuan nodded . "Good night, then . "

Following Zi Yuan\'s departure, Li Yundong did a quick visual sweep of the apartment, which felt empty all of a sudden . Guess he had gotten used to Zi Yuan\'s presence inside his apartment .

He walked around the apartment for a bit and ended up standing outside Su Chan\'s room . A wave of loneliness rose inside him, but he tamped it down . He lowered his hand from the door knob and let out a heavy sigh .

Sneaking around in her room wouldn\'t make him miss her any less .

He strode into the living room, then moved past the couch towards the kitchen .

Zi Yuan had cleared the dining table and taken care of all the dishes . He came to a halt outside the kitchen . He turned and slowly walked towards the dining table .

Zi Yuan had replaced the table cloth .

A teacup sat at the center of the table . When he touched the teacup\'s surface, he found that it was still warm . Pressed underneath the teacup was a note: "The Heavenly Thunder is approaching . Stay focused . Drink it while it\'s still warm . "

Li Yundong picked up the teacup and studied its contents . He raised the teacup and then brought its rim closer to his nose .

He sniffed a few times and found that the liquid was odorless . He took a small sip and realized that it was tasteless as well .

Probably just warm water . . .

He drank up the rest .

Li Yundong nearly dropped the teacup when he felt it: a strong pulse in his lower abdomen, right at his lower Dantian .

It was like his Vital Orb had just grown stronger .

Li Yundong stared at the teacup . That couldn\'t have been just water . Even though it tasted just like water, he knew that Zi Yuan must have fed him something .

Li Yundong sighed and placed the teacup back onto the table . I\'ll just ask her tomorrow .

He turned away from the table and glanced around the apartment again, wondering what he should do .

The answer was pretty obvious .

He padded towards the center of the living room and got into a meditative posture .

***

The next morning, Li Yundong was proud to announce that the Running Man had set a new record: half an hour from New Hongsheng District to Tiannan University, and he\'d done it while carrying a bulky magical object on his back .

The strange looks and hushed whispers began the moment he walked past the campus gates . Great . The entire university had probably found out about yesterday\'s incident at the canteen by now . Right . As if that wasn\'t par for the course .

He wondered what kind of excuse he could come up with to justify the Fan of Seven Treasures\' magical properties . That it was a component of an AI-controlled robot? So believable right there .

What were Zi Yuan\'s reasons again for her insistence that he should return to the university? He honestly didn\'t know anymore .

On the way to the academic building, a voice stopped him in his tracks .

"Tsk, tsk, you think that guy can still walk?"

"Hmm . . . I don\'t know, Nana . But I think he might run into a little trouble considering how swollen his head must be . "

There was a giggle .

"Well, fame does that to people . "

Li Yundong laughed out loud . Those two . . .

He turned around and saw Feng Na and Cheng Cheng standing side by side, staring at him .

He gave them a wave . The two women waved back and began walking towards him . Cheng Cheng was dressed differently today . Instead of her usual casual attire, she was wearing a long-sleeved blouse and a pair of black dress pants .

"Whoa . Somebody\'s giving out a lot of OL vibes . " He gave Cheng Cheng a thumbs up . "Nice . Very professional . "

Feng Na stopped right in front of him while Cheng Cheng stood slightly to his left .

Li Yundong gave Feng Na a nod . "Morning . "

"Don\'t so sound surprise, please," Cheng Cheng said . "You make it sound like I don\'t usually look nice—"

Incoming!

Li Yundong whipped his head to the side . At the same time, his hand shot out and grabbed . . .

Cheng Cheng\'s wrist .

Li Yundong and Cheng Cheng stared at each other for a second .

Cheng Cheng\'s eyes were wide with shock .

With a sigh, Li Yundong relaxed his stance and let go of Cheng Cheng\'s wrist .

"Sorry . That was a reflex," Li Yundong said . Then, he shot Cheng Cheng a worried look . "Are you okay?"

A smile spread over Cheng Cheng\'s stunned expression . "Nah . It\'s fine . I should\'ve known better . " She chuckled . "You\'re a trained martial artist after all . " She gave him a strange look . "Though you do seem a bit wound up tight today . I mean, it wasn\'t like I was trying to slap you or anything . I was just trying to pat your shoulder . . . "

"Yeah… My bad," Li Yundong said . "Like I said, it was just a reflex . "

Cheng Cheng waved off his concerns . "So . I heard from Nana that you put on a show again yesterday . At the canteen . "

Li Yundong groaned . "Don\'t even start . "

"I\'m pretty sure putting on a show is an understatement, Cheng Cheng," Feng Na piped in . "He tore the whole place apart!"

Li Yundong shot Feng Na a glare . "You\'re not helping . "

"What?" Feng Na hid a smile behind her hand . "I was just stating the truth . "

Li Yundong narrowed his eyes at Feng Na . "And you still want to be near me after what you saw?" Li Yundong jerked his chin towards his backpack, where the Fan of Seven Treasures sat . He\'d wrapped up the thing with another piece of cloth today . "Not scared that it might try to hurt you?"

Suddenly, Feng Na didn\'t look so smug anymore . "Um . . . Will it?"

Li Yundong laughed out loud . Either she was either slow on the uptake or she had balls of steel .

"No," he said . "It\'s completely harmless as long as you don\'t try to touch it . "

He could see the curiosity in Feng Na\'s eyes as she stared at his backpack . She was probably dying to ask him about what the fan does or how it works . In which case she would be completely out of luck, because Li Yundong himself had no clue .

"Damn . . . " Cheng Cheng clapped her hands together . "Now I\'m curious about what happened . Can\'t believe I missed the whole show!"

Li Yundong raised a brow . "You do know that it was a dangerous situation, right?"

Cheng Cheng shrugged as though it wasn\'t even a big deal . "Maybe I like to live precariously . "

Until death got in your face, he added mentally .

"Well? Just look it up on the goddamn forums," he grumbled . "I\'m sure it\'s up there already . " He looked towards Feng Na . "So what\'s up anyway? There has to be a reason why you guys are here bugging me so early in the morning . "

Feng Na broke into a grin . "As a matter of fact, we do!" she said .

"Uh-huh…"

"Yep! We need your help!" Cheng Cheng said .

"Right . Why am I not surprised," he said dryly .

Feng Na cleared her throat . "So we\'ve got these tables that we have to move, you see?"

Cheng Cheng nodded . "And since we know you\'re strong . . . "

Li Yundong chuckled and raised his palm . "Okay . Okay . You need my help moving a bunch of tables . I get the idea . " Li Yundong looked towards Feng Na . "When and where?"

Feng Na grinned . "We\'ll take you there after your lecture . "

Li Yundong smirked . "What if I just, I don\'t know, decided to run off after my lecture?"

Feng Na smirked back . "Not a chance . "

Li Yundong raised his brow . "You sound confident . "

Cheng Cheng giggled . "That\'s because we\'ll be following you around today to make sure you don\'t run off . "

Li Yundong did a double take .

The two girls were smiling at him cheekily .

"Are you guys serious?" he asked .

A smug look spread across Feng Na\'s face . "Of course we are," she said . "You\'re not getting off the hook that easily . "

"What about your classes?" Li Yundong studied the two women with suspicious eyes . "Your schedules just happen to be free right now?"

"Of course," Feng Na said smugly . "Which is why we\'ll be sitting in your lecture hall until your lecture ends, so deal with it . "

"Mm-hmm," Cheng Cheng said . "We\'ll be watching you . " She pointed two fingers at her eyes .

"This is ridiculous . " Li Yundong laughed . "You know there\'s no chance in hell you two can stop me if I really want to run right? I suggest you save yourselves some trouble and… What?"

Neither of the women were even looking at him right now . Instead, their eyes were focused on something behind him .

Li Yundong turned around and followed their gazes .

Li Yundong\'s stomach clenched .

Ding Nan was heading straight for them .

"Hey, Ding—"

Li Yundong was cut off by Ding Nan\'s cold voice: "Do you want to know where Zhou Qin is?"

***

It took everything in Li Yundong\'s power to stay cool .

"Yes," he said almost too quickly . "Where is she?"

Ding Nan didn\'t answer the question . Instead, she seemed to be observing him, watching his reaction to her words . Somehow, the frosty look on Ding Nan\'s face rubbed Li Yundong the wrong way .

"Ding Nan . . . " Li Yundong said, his voice betraying his urgency . "Stop playing games . Tell me where she is . Why isn\'t she attending her classes?"

A small part of him feared what he might hear from Ding Nan . But still, he needed to know the truth so that he could do something to help .

"Classes?" Ding Nan laughed snidely . "I doubt she\'d be able to attend classes ever again . "

Li Yundong\'s blood ran cold . His hand rose instinctively to grab Ding Nan\'s shoulders, but then he held himself back at the last second, fearing he might hurt Ding Nan .

"What\'s that supposed to mean? What happened to her? Tell me!"

A smirk pulled across Ding Nan\'s lips .

"Why, are you worried about her?" Ding Nan sneered . "Does your heart ache for her?"

Li Yundong took a step back and schooled his features .

"Of course I\'m worried about her," he said in a firm tone . "She\'s my friend . "

"Friend?" Ding Nan sneered, then pointed a finger at his face . "I bet you only befriended her because of her status and money!" A look of disdain spread across Ding Nan\'s features . "I wonder how you would treat her now that she\'s become a penniless nobody . "

Anger rose inside Li Yundong .

"I don\'t give a shit about her status and money," Li Yundong said coldly . "She\'s my friend . " Li Yundong took a step forward . "Now I\'m gonna ask you again . Where is she?"

Ding Nan\'s smug expression faltered, and she took a step backwards .

"If she\'s in trouble, then I wanna help . " Li Yundong said, softening his tone . "I don\'t care whether she\'s rich or poor . None of that matters . She\'s my friend . "

His words seemed to have renewed Ding Nan\'s confidence somehow . She snorted . "Just wait till you see the state she\'s in . "

Li Yundong\'s heart stopped . What the f*ck happened to Zhou Qin? Did she get hurt?

"So what if she\'s in a bad state?" Cheng Cheng said in a tone of disdain . "Li Yundong isn\'t a suck-up who only befriends someone for their status . " There was a pause . "Unlike a certain someone . "

Anger flashed across Ding Nan\'s eyes . She turned and glared daggers at Cheng Cheng and Feng Na .

"Drop the pretense," Ding Nan snarled . "You\'re all just a bunch of hypocrites!"

Cheng Cheng looked like she was ready to pounce, but Feng Na held Cheng Cheng back and gave her friend a subtle headshake .

Li Yundong decided to step in right then . "Quit stalling, Ding Nan . Just tell me where to find her . "

Ding Nan rolled her eyes and turned around to walk away .

Son of a bitch!

Li Yundong hurried after her . "Ding Nan! Come on!" He grabbed Ding Nan\'s arm and forced her to turn around . "If you know where she is, just tell me!"

They stared at each other for a moment . Ding Nan\'s expression was guarded and unreadable . As the staring match dragged on, Li Yundong began to sift through his memory for the contents of the Mahamudra Tantra . Perhaps there was a tantric mudra that would allow him to force the truth out of someone .

He came up with none .

Ding Nan freed her arm from his grip . "I\'ll give you one day to think things over . " She backed away a step, then turned around to walk away . "Come find me if you still wanna know where she is . I\'ll tell you then . " Ding Nan stopped walking and stood there with her back facing him . "You might not like what you see . Don\'t say I didn\'t warn you . "

Ding Nan began to walk away again .

"I don\'t need a day!" Li Yundong yelled after her . "Just tell me now!"

Ding Nan kept walking until she disappeared into the academic building .

"Son of a bitch!" Li Yundong ran a hand through his hair . "I should go after her—"

Cheng Cheng pulled him back . "You know she could be lying just to get your attention, right?"

Feng Na nodded grimly . "I agree . Their friendship ended months ago . " Feng Na glanced towards the academic building . "There\'s no way she could\'ve known Zhou Qin\'s whereabouts . "

Li Yundong sighed . "But they were in the same circle . " Li Yundong shook his head . "Ding Nan still have connections . She might really know something . "

"Why don\'t you head to class first?" Feng Na gave him a sympathetic look . "She said she\'s gonna tell you tomorrow anyway, right?"

"She\'s right, you know," Cheng Cheng said . "Besides, I don\'t think you\'re gonna get much out of Ding Nan even if you go after her right now . "

Feng Na rolled her eyes and snorted . "Yeah well, given how stubborn she is, I\'d say it\'s damn near impossible . "

Cheng Cheng shook her head in disgust . "I still think she\'s just vying for Li Yundong\'s attention . "

Li Yundong huffed out a breath . "Let\'s just go . "

It would be naive to think that Zhou Qin was okay at this point . Something had happened to her, and he was going to f*cking find out what .

***

The lecture went by in a blur . By the time Li Yundong was walking out of the lecture hall with Feng Na and Cheng Cheng, he could barely recall the contents of the lecture, super memory notwithstanding .

Feng Na and Cheng Cheng had stayed true to their word by sitting through the entire lecture with him . They hadn\'t said more than a few words to him during the lecture though . They had probably sensed his foul mood and didn\'t want to disturb his brooding .

"Hey, Cheng Cheng," Feng Na said in a faux cheery tone . "How was your internship job? We never got around to ask . "

Li Yundong knew that Feng Na was just trying to lighten the mood, but he was honestly too worked up over their conversation with Ding Nan to care . As the three of them walked along the hallway, he stole a glance at Cheng Cheng . The girl seemed to be having some kind of silent communication with Feng Na .

Li Yundong sighed inwardly and decided to indulge them .

"Yeah, Cheng Cheng . How was it? Think you can get hired for good?"

"Ugh!" Cheng Cheng grimaced as though she had just swallowed something rotten . "Just thinking about that stupid job drives me mad . "

Li Yundong pulled up short . "What? Why?" He looked towards Feng Na . "I thought it was going well?"

"Well, the job itself was great," Cheng Cheng grumbled . "But the boss? Not so much?"

"What happened?" Li Yundong pulled Cheng Cheng to a stop, then glanced at Feng Na .

Feng Na didn\'t look all that surprised, so he guessed she must have known about it already .

"I got sexually harassed is what happened," Cheng Cheng said with a sigh .

What the hell?

"What did the bastard do?"

"He kept staring at my chest whenever we were in the same room . " Cheng Cheng pressed her hands to her chest as though to emphasize her point . "If that was all he did, then fine, I could handle it . I mean I\'m already used to people staring at my chest anyway . But then yesterday he touched my legs and told me to stay at the office until after hours . " Cheng Cheng curled her lips in disgust . "Said he wanted to" —Cheng Cheng did air quotes—"discuss work-related matters with me . " Cheng Cheng rolled her eyes . "Stupid old geezer thought I\'d fall for that kind of thing . "

Li Yundong frowned . "Please tell me you kicked him in the nuts . "

An image of Su Chan kicking Director Qian flashed in his mind .

"Nah . He\'s bigger and stronger than me . " Cheng Cheng chuckled sadly . "I\'d be stupid to pick a fight with him . " Cheng Cheng glanced at him . "Though if I have your fighting skills, he\'d probably be dead now . " Cheng Cheng released a heavy sigh . "Worse . I can\'t even file a HR complaint . I mean, what would be the point? He owns the company . "

"What about…?" Li Yundong paused in thought . "Have you tried reporting him to the police?"

Cheng Cheng waved her hand . "I\'ve got no evidence against him . "

"So what\'d you do?"

Cheng Cheng stared at him like he\'d grown ten heads . "I quit the job and left, what else . " Cheng Cheng shrugged . "Bye-bye job opportunity . "

Li Yundong sighed . "Shit . . . That sucks . . . "

There was a snort . Li Yundong glanced sideways and saw Feng Na giving him a wry smile .

"See? I told you the other day, didn\'t I?" Feng Na said in a tone of resignation . "It\'s hard to get a good job these days . "

"Hey, Li Yundong . " Cheng Cheng smiled . "If you ever plan to start your own company, don\'t forget about us, okay?"

Feng Na nodded with zest . "Yeah . It\'s much better to have you as a boss than those perverts . "

"Me? Starting my own company?" Li Yundong chuckled . That was probably as likely as pigs flying . "Don\'t hold your breath . "

Li Yundong moved further along the corridor while the two girls followed him . They were headed to the media room . Apparently, these tables and chairs had to be moved from the media room to somewhere .

"If you want, I could call President Cao or President Yin and ask them if they have suitable positions for you two," Li Yundong said as they descended the stairs of the academic building .

"Really?"

"No thanks . "

Cheng Cheng and Feng Na spoke over each other .

The three of them stopped walking and stared at each other for a moment .

Cheng Cheng had sounded pretty excited just now, but Feng Na just flat-out denied the offer .

"What\'s the matter with you two today?" Li Yundong asked, his eyes narrowing . "Do you want me to put in the call or not?"

Cheng Cheng and Feng Na did their silent communication thing again .

"Uh, guys?" Li Yundong waved a hand in front of them .

"Um… Well . " Cheng Cheng laughed awkwardly . "I think I agree with Nana . Don\'t think that\'s a good idea . I mean, I don\'t think we\'d . . . " Cheng Cheng cleared her throat and grinned . "I don\'t think we\'d be a good fit there . "

Li Yundong gave them a strange look . What the hell was that about?

Feng Na clapped her hands together .

"Come on, let\'s go! The tables and chairs aren\'t gonna move themselves!"

***

It wasn\'t until Li Yundong had strode into the media room that he realized that he\'d just been played . These supposed tables and chairs were already arranged into neat rows when they got there .

The media room was filled with students, who sat in those chairs . Some kind of stage was set up in front of the room .

Li Yundong glared at Feng Na and Cheng Cheng .

"There never was any tables and chairs to move, was there?"

Cheng Cheng stuck her tongue out . "Ta-da!" She gestured proudly at the room .

"Nope . " Feng Na smirked . "That was just an excuse to get you here . "

"What the hell is this?" Li Yundong jerked his chin towards the stage .

Feng Na clapped his shoulders . "Relax, pal . The candidates for the student council president will be giving their speeches shortly . "

"What? I thought that\'s supposed to take place this evening?"

Feng Na waved her hand casually . "The schedules got moved up . The speeches will begin in . . . " Feng Na checked the time . "Probably fifteen minutes . "

Li Yundong laughed . "You know you guys could\'ve just told me, right? I already gave you my word that I\'ll be there when you deliver your speech . "

A slow grin spread across Feng Na\'s face . "Nope . That\'s not good enough . " Feng Na\'s grin turned into a smirk . "I had to be sure that you\'re here on time . "

"That\'s why you followed me around," Li Yundong said, shaking his head in amusement . "So you could drag me here . "

Feng Na shrugged . "I didn\'t want to take any chances . "

Li Yundong scanned his eyes across the media room . More students were filing in, and the chatter seemed to have gotten louder now .

Li Yundong tore his eyes away from the stage and looked towards Feng Na .

"I don\'t get it," he said, shaking his head slightly . "Why is it so important that I\'m here?"

Cheng Cheng laughed out loud .

"Well…" Cheng Cheng stepped towards him and patted his shoulder a few times . "The truth is, my friend, you play a crucial role in ensuring Feng Na\'s victory today!"

Li Yundong narrowed his eyes at the two women . What\'s that supposed to mean?

"What the hell are you two up to?"

Feng Na and Cheng Cheng exchange several looks .

"Oh . . . You\'ll see . " Feng Na smirked . "You\'ll see soon enough . "