CH 133

Chapter 133 – Travel Preparation Plan

“We should go on a trip!” One day, Shi Yuan suddenly said to Lu Tinghan.

Lu Tinghan, as usual, sat on the couch reading a book. He looked up and asked, “Where do you want to go?”

“I don’t know,” Shi Yuan jumped onto the couch and nestled beside Lu Tinghan, curling up his tail. “I want to go anywhere,” he thought for a moment, “but it would be great if we could go to a place with flowers or visit the seaside again.”

Lu Tinghan said, “There are plenty of flowers in the nearby cities of Chui Xing and Ping Shan. The seaside is a bit far; it takes five or six days by aircraft to get there.”

“Oh…” Shi Yuan responded.

Lu Tinghan looked at him, rubbing his head, and asked, “Do you want to go?”

“Do you have time to go with me?”

“Of course.”

“Wow!” Shi Yuan’s tail wagged happily. “Let’s go together!”

“However,” Lu Tinghan’s tone changed, “it might be a bit difficult for me to adjust my schedule. Unless something unexpected happens, we’ll have to wait for a month or two.”

“That’s alright. I’ve been saving money specifically for this trip,” Shi Yuan said. “I also want to learn how to swim.”

And so, the plan was set.

Shi Yuan diligently worked at the theater. The new script, “Eternal Heroes,” was always well-received, drawing applause and a full house. Cheng Yi was in a delightful mood and rewarded everyone in the troupe with a generous bonus.

Shi Yuan rarely had such a large sum of money.

He made several trips to buy snacks from various places, preparing them for the trip.

Although the snacks weren’t much, just bits and pieces, he still had a lot of money left and wondered if he should buy something for Lu Tinghan.

—Shi Yuan had a gut feeling that he owed Lu Tinghan a lot of money. After all, since he arrived in the city, he hadn’t paid rent, utilities, and he had ruined Lu Tinghan’s clothes and wasted several cooking ingredients. There were countless other miscellaneous expenses… The flower shop business went bankrupt, and it was Lu Tinghan’s money that was spent.

Shi Yuan had sincerely worried if Lu Tinghan would go bankrupt.

Lu Tinghan said the possibility of him going bankrupt was even lower than Shi Yuan’s ability to untangle his own tail.

That was indeed a very small possibility.

Shi Yuan also knew that Lu Tinghan didn’t care about these things, but he still wanted to do something.

The last gift he bought for Lu Tinghan was a wilted xuejian flower, and he was ripped off by an unscrupulous merchant.

So, what should he buy this time?

His human was very clever, good at many things, and could effortlessly excel at them. However, when it came to hobbies and interests… he seemed to be lacking. Except for military matters, Lu Tinghan didn’t have many hobbies, at most, he had some interest in the universe.

Shi Yuan carefully looked around the gift shop but couldn’t find anything suitable.

He thought about getting a sketchbook but felt it was too ordinary, something that Lu Tinghan didn’t lack.

The female shop attendant, seeing his hesitation, enthusiastically approached and asked, “What does your friend usually like to do?”

“He reads books every day,” Shi Yuan said, “and there are already plenty of books at home, so I won’t buy that.”

The shop attendant said, “Wow, he’s so diligent! Does he have any other hobbies?”

“… ” Shi Yuan curled up his tail tip, feeling conflicted.

The shop attendant urged him kindly, “Think back, what does he spend the most time doing that brings him genuine happiness, you know, from the heart?”

“Umm…” Shi Yuan pondered.

The shop attendant, a young girl, suddenly clenched her fist and got excited. She said, “When people are doing what they love, their eyes shine! Just like me! I’ve always wanted to work in a shop like this since I was young! As long as you observe carefully, you’ll find that other people’s interests are too simple!”

Shi Yuan once again recalled what Lu Tinghan spent the most time doing…

When there was a sparkle in Lu Tinghan’s eyes…

When Lu Tinghan was genuinely happy…

Shi Yuan exclaimed, “Oh!”

The shop attendant asked eagerly, “Did you think of something?!”

“I did!” Shi Yuan suddenly brightened up. “His biggest hobby is playing with me!”

The shop attendant: ?

The shop attendant: ?

The girl’s beautiful hair fluttered in the wind as she couldn’t understand how the car suddenly accelerated to high speed under Shi Yuan’s foot.

Shi Yuan had figured it out. Lu Tinghan’s greatest hobby was playing with him. That happiness came from the heart, and it would be best to stick together every moment.

However, that didn’t solve the problem.

Because he couldn’t gift himself.

Shi Yuan left the gift shop, still at a loss. He aimlessly wandered the streets, the artificial dome lighting changing as dusk fell and the number of pedestrians gradually decreased.

Shi Yuan thought he would give up for today. He still needed to go home for dinner. As he walked past a secluded narrow alley on the way to the station, he suddenly stopped in his tracks.

In the display window of a small shop, there was a violin.

The violin appeared quite old, with minor scratches on its surface that couldn’t be smoothed out. But even Shi Yuan could tell that it was a very good violin, finely crafted, and surely producing beautiful sounds.

It was a small grocery store, and Shi Yuan pushed the door open.

The shop owner sat behind the counter without lifting his head. “We’re closed.”

“I just wanted to ask about the violin outside,” Shi Yuan said.

This time, the shop owner looked up and glanced at Shi Yuan. “Why do you want to buy it? It’s just a decoration, quite old.”

“My partner has self-taught violin skills,” Shi Yuan explained, “and it looks like a good violin.”

The owner stared at Shi Yuan for a while and slowly said, “This belongs to my friend. He lost interest after a few days of learning, so I kept it as a decoration. This particular style… I don’t think they make it anymore, and I also like it.”

Shi Yuan asked, “Don’t you want to sell it?”

“It’s quite expensive.”

“It’s okay… I just received a bonus, so I should be able to afford it.”

The owner replied, “Is your partner good at playing the violin?”

Shi Yuan said, “He’s not good at all.”

The owner looked puzzled and after a few seconds, he said, “Then there’s really no need… Forget it,” he smiled and shook his head, “How about a thousand coins? Okay, eight hundred then. I don’t understand music anyway, and it’s a waste to have it sitting here. Your taste is pretty good; this violin is quite rare.”

He added, “If your partner gets better at playing and it sounds good, you’ll have to let me listen.”

Shi Yuan honestly said, “I don’t think there is such a possibility.”

The owner laughed.

Shi Yuan paid the money and took the violin home.

He thought that Lu Tinghan would take the initiative to learn the violin, which meant he must still be interested.

Even if it sounded really bad, he loved his human… even if his scalp tingled, even if his tail scales burst, even if he had nightmares, he wanted to listen to Lu Tinghan’s performance!

Shi Yuan waited for Lu Tinghan while organizing the snacks on the sofa.

Half an hour later, Lu Tinghan returned home.

Unlike usual, what crashed into his arms was not a soft Shi Yuan, but a Shi Yuan with a hard violin case. The impact was so strong that his ribs ached, weighed down by the profound love of the abyss.

Lu Tinghan took a step back before firmly embracing the abyss in his arms. “Shi Yuan, are you trying to murder me?”

“Oh no!” Shi Yuan was very happy. “This is a gift for you!”

He explained the cause and effect of the situation.

Lu Tinghan held the violin in his hands. The instrument had a delicate body and exquisite craftsmanship, clearly of considerable value. He gently ran his fingers over the strings and said, “I really like this gift.”

Shi Yuan became even more delighted.

He didn’t know that Lu Tinghan would like whatever gift he gave.

As it turned out, even a good violin couldn’t save a tone-deaf person.

Lu Tinghan started playing the music sheet. Lu Tinghan had always been handsome and charming, a dream lover of countless girls. He stood straight, lowered his gaze to the sheet music, and his slender fingers held the strings, elegant as a piece of art…

And then Shi Yuan spent the whole evening listening to the sound of sawing woods.

Squeak, squeak, the sound of the music would go high and low, as if scolding someone in a peculiar and discordant manner, so unbearable that even Shi Yuan’s tail scales were about to explode.

Late at night, as Shi Yuan struggled to rearrange his scales on the bed, he told Lu Tinghan, “They should put you on the city wall to guard it.”

Lu Tinghan asked, “Why?”

“You can stand there with your violin,” Shi Yuan said, “Every monster who hears it will be frightened.”

Lu Tinghan replied, “…”

He turned to the side and “ta!” flicked Shi Yuan’s forehead.

And on this weekend, Shi Yuan followed Lu Tinghan to the swimming pool.

Shi Yuan thought about going to the seaside to play, and it was only natural for him to learn how to swim. The swimming pool wasn’t open to the public, and on this day, there was no military training. The pool was empty, filled with the scent of disinfectant. It was Shi Yuan’s first time entering the water, and the cold pool water submerged his whole body, causing him to shudder.

Lu Tinghan taught him to practice breathing in the shallow water area.

Shi Yuan’s breathing technique was smooth, and he had good lung capacity. He held his breath for a minute and a half on his first attempt. Lu Tinghan taught him leg movements, and he quickly learned them with proficiency.

Lu Tinghan was a bit surprised. “Shi Yuan, I didn’t expect you to have such athletic talent.”

Shi Yuan replied, “Who knows? Maybe I can become an athlete in the future!”

“It’s possible,” Lu Tinghan chuckled. “Let’s practice a few more rounds of breathing.”

Shi Yuan continued to practice. After completing several sets of exercises, he attempted holding his breath underwater again.

He managed to hold it for nearly two minutes, which was quite impressive. Finally, Shi Yuan lifted his head, took a few quick breaths, and looked at Lu Tinghan, asking, “How was it? Am I amazing?”

His cheeks, either from holding his breath or the cold, had turned slightly red. His damp black hair stuck to his ears, his eyes were bright, and his face clearly expressed the desire for praise.

In the end, Shi Yuan didn’t receive any praise.

Lu Tinghan pulled him to the edge of the pool and kissed him, the coldness of their damp skin contrasting with the warmth between their lips, as if they were on fire.

After just holding his breath, this unexpected turn of events occurred. After a round of kissing, Shi Yuan pushed Lu Tinghan away and panted for a long time by his side. He protested, “You’re the one trying to murder me.”

Lu Tinghan was visibly pleased and raised an eyebrow. “Well, that’s not entirely impossible.”

He wanted to lean in again, but Shi Yuan flicked water at his face with his tail.

They went to the swimming pool two or three more times and finally arrived at the day when Shi Yuan started swimming.

Lu Tinghan stood at the edge of the pool, watching Shi Yuan’s arms and legs move, his movements precise, just like a fish diving into the water… all of this was what he had taught him. It had been a while since he felt a sense of accomplishment.

But that sense of accomplishment lasted only five seconds.

For some reason, Shi Yuan kept sinking while swimming, unable to come up for air. In the end, he hit the bottom of the pool and stood up, looking bewildered.

Lu Tinghan encouraged him, saying, “Just keep trying a few more times.”

Shi Yuan replied, “Okay.”

Lu Tinghan was gravely mistaken.

No matter how many times he tried, Shi Yuan continued to sink, unable to float up at all.

During their break, Lu Tinghan said, “Shi Yuan, do you know what you resemble?”

“Huh?”

“A submarine.”

“Why is that?”

“I’ve observed, and you sink very evenly,” Lu Tinghan said. “I’ve never seen someone sink so smoothly… You’re more impressive than a submarine.”

Shi Yuan remained silent.

They visited the swimming pool several more times. Despite Shi Yuan’s precise movements and seemingly flawless technique, he still couldn’t succeed.

Lu Tinghan stood by the pool, watching Shi Yuan’s efforts to stay afloat, only to sink to the bottom again.

He thought to himself that the military had professional divers…

And here, they had the elusive Diving Abyss!

Diving Abyss was extremely rare and precious. It even made purring sounds. It needed to be taken care of, such as by having a steaming bowl of beef noodles after swimming.

Just as they couldn’t figure out why the flower shop couldn’t stay open, they couldn’t understand why Shi Yuan couldn’t float.

In the end, it was Shi Yuan who solved the mystery.

He said, “I figured it out. My tail is too heavy.”

Lu Tinghan looked at him, tilting his head.

Shi Yuan explained, “You told me before that humans can swim because their body density is close to that of water… But my tail is heavy, so I sink.”

Lu Tinghan picked up Shi Yuan’s tail and weighed it in his hands. Each black scale had a good texture, and it did indeed sink. He said, “That’s very likely.”

Shi Yuan spent the whole night worrying about his tail.

The next day, he accepted the reality and gave up on the swimming pool. He went out happily with Lu Tinghan to have a meal, and in the evening, he listened to Lu Tinghan play the violin with the sound of sawing woods.

—In the end, Lu Tinghan’s violin still sounded terrible, and Shi Yuan still couldn’t swim.

But what did it matter?

They were about to set off.

On the day of departure, the two of them carried their backpacks and boarded the aircraft. Shi Yuan was filled with excitement as he gazed out the window at the scenery. The brown land flew past beneath their feet, bathed in the glow of the setting sun. Shadows of trees and mountains intertwined, and the world was a flowing golden-orange.

Lu Tinghan refused to reveal their destination, only saying that there would be a surprise.

Three hours later, the aircraft landed in a city.

In the city, there was a newly built laboratory. The two of them entered, and a researcher opened a door.

Shi Yuan saw two strange, sandy-colored animals on all fours, with short fur and raised bumps on their backs, resembling the undulating mountains he had just seen. They appeared to be cubs, they turned their heads to size up their group with their pitch-black eyes.

Shi Yuan had never seen such creatures and hesitated, “These are…”

Lu Tinghan said, “These are camels.” He leaned close to Shi Yuan’s ear and whispered, “The camels you’ve always wanted to see.”