Reverse Domestication chapter 80

Fairytale

Qi Yanbai was easy to please.

Perhaps because he knew he was in the wrong, his expectations for Lu Ye’s response were quite low. When confessing, he didn’t even require Lu Ye to say “me too.” As long as Lu Ye responded, he was already content.

To him, Lu Ye seemed like a walking charger. He leaned against Lu Ye’s shoulder for a while, just like a cat, until he felt “recharged.” Then he stood up, casually plucking a stray strand of hair from Lu Ye’s shoulder.

“Oh, by the way,” Qi Yanbai remembered something and asked casually, “We’ve been talking for so long, and I forgot to ask if you’re hungry. Do you want to have lunch now, or should we wait a little longer?”

“Braised pork ribs get cold and greasy if you wait too long,” Lu Ye said. “And didn’t you also make dumplings? I can try them now.”

“Alright,” Qi Yanbai smiled at his words and said, “I also stewed some pork rib soup, with a bit less Chinese herbal medicine for nourishing blood. But I wrapped it in gauze, so I’ll skim it for you in advance later.”

His tone sounded so natural. Lu Ye’s thoughts suddenly drifted to something familiar.

Before discovering Qi Yanbai’s stalking incidents, he had many conversations like this with him.

They lived next door to each other, seeing each other every day. Despite sleeping in separate beds, it wasn’t much different from living together.

Sometimes when Lu Ye had to work overtime and Qi Yanbai finished work early, Qi Yanbai would go home ahead of time, buy groceries, and cook. He would ask Lu Ye in advance what he wanted to eat and adjust the dishes based on his understanding of Lu Ye’s preferences, just like he was doing now.

During that time, even though Qi Yanbai had ulterior motives and intentionally moved towards Lu Ye’s ideal image of a “perfect lover,” his intentions were genuine, and the comfort he provided was real.

Perhaps because of this, even during the angriest times, Lu Ye still occasionally missed the days when Qi Yanbai stewed soup and helped him with other tasks.

In winter, he would return home shivering after work. As soon as he entered Yanbai’s apartment, he would find the warm air blowing from the heater, a warm yellow night light in the entrance, and a small tray on the shelf by the door. Sometimes it contained unopened warm packs, and sometimes freshly brewed ginger tea.

The door to this room felt like a small magical barrier. Regardless of how tired and troubled he was outside, when he closed the door behind him, it seemed to shut out all the chaos, leaving only a happy and bright fairytale world.

—A fairytale.

Lu Ye’s eyes flickered as he suddenly recalled the “magical story” Qi Yanbai had told Lu Mingming on New Year’s Eve.

At that time, Lu Ye didn’t have much of a liking for fairy tales. He thought the group of child traffickers, the “rabbit gang,” deserved to be brought to justice. However, now, looking at it from a different perspective, he realized that the little kid might have sensed something unusual.

But the temptation of the forest was just too great, so the kid thought it was worth taking the risk.

Just like Qi Yanbai, who, like the “rabbit gang,” was skilled at weaving sweet traps with details. Lu Ye had indeed detected the hidden danger, but he still circled around the trap several times before ultimately deciding to stay.

“Alright,” Lu Ye said.

Qi Yanbai was slightly surprised but immediately smiled, bent down to kiss Lu Ye on the lips, and then turned to leave the bedroom, heading for the kitchen.

As Lu Ye watched his departing figure, he suddenly realized that Qi Yanbai’s demeanor had become much more stable compared to when he had just woken up.

There was no obvious caution and anxiety in his eyes, and the tension from earlier seemed to have subsided. This casual conversation seemed to have triggered his pleasant memories of countless interactions with Lu Ye, relaxing him considerably.

Observing his state, Lu Ye couldn’t help but find it amusing. He couldn’t help but chuckle, but he quickly suppressed the laugh, fearing that Qi Yanbai might hear it.

Qi Yanbai soon returned with lunch. Including the time they spent working late before their cold war, it had been a long time since Lu Ye had a face-to-face meal with Qi Yanbai.

His cooking still had the familiar taste. The braised pork ribs were slightly sweet, and Lu Ye wiped away a bit of sauce from the corner of his mouth, once again avoiding the spoon that Qi Yanbai extended to him.

“I’m not disabled,” Lu Ye said helplessly. “There’s no need to feed me.”

“Consider it me liking it,” Qi Yanbai refused to relent, avoiding Lu Ye’s hand, and in a sticky-sweet manner, he coaxed, “I like taking care of you.”

“Taking care of me?” Lu Ye raised an eyebrow and said, “You like seeing me depend on you, don’t you?”

Qi Yanbai held his bowl and innocently blinked, not denying it.

He had always liked the way Lu Ye paid attention to him. Especially now that Lu Ye was locked at home and couldn’t move, Qi Yanbai’s possessiveness was stirring again. Like a cat’s paw, it scratched at his heart, always wanting to test Lu Ye’s boundaries.

Qi Yanbai had always been skilled at this kind of subtle advancement. Unfortunately, this time, Lu Ye didn’t give in to him. With a slight tilt of his head, he took the spoon away from Qi Yanbai and fed himself.

“Save your effort, Yanbai,” Lu Ye said with a light tone. “You’ll have opportunities to be playful with me in the future.”

Since Lu Ye wasn’t cooperating, Qi Yanbai didn’t dare to force him. He could only sit back in his place with regret and eat his meal obediently.

After lunch, Qi Yanbai’s phone in the living room suddenly started vibrating wildly. At first, he didn’t want to pay attention, but the ringing became more insistent, and even Lu Ye couldn’t stand it.

“Go and see who’s calling,” Lu Ye put down his bowl and said without looking up. “It might be something serious.”

His “kidnapping” of Lu Ye had been a momentary impulse, and he probably hadn’t taken care of the aftermath properly. Lu Ye glanced at the sunlight outside and thought that this time should have been Qi Yanbai’s working hours. The training center valued him so much, and he didn’t know how they managed to allow him to take a leave.

Lu Ye knew in his heart that this “kidnapping” was just a temporary. Once it was over, it shouldn’t affect either him or Qi Yanbai’s normal lives.

But Qi Yanbai was now very resistant to the outside world. He instinctively wanted to stay by Lu Ye’s side, avoiding any sudden situations that would disrupt the current situation.

“No need,” Qi Yanbai said, his expression unchanged. “It’s probably a prank call.”

As soon as he said that, the phone in the living room seemed to contradict him and started vibrating even more vigorously. Lu Ye raised an eyebrow, glanced in the direction of the living room, then back at Qi Yanbai, his tone carrying a hint of meaning.

“A prank call?” Lu Ye asked. “A prank call that’s so persistent?”

Qi Yanbai hesitated for a moment, knowing that his excuse was flimsy. He frowned slightly, showing a trace of inner struggle, and then got up to retrieve the phone. However, before he could leave the room, Lu Ye stopped him.

“Answer it and listen to what they have to say,” Lu Ye said, his tone calm. “After all, your training center deals with kids. We wouldn’t want anything serious to happen.”

Qi Yanbai had a very limited social circle. While he got along well with everyone he knew, there were very few people he truly considered close friends. The only person who would persistently call him like this, apart from Lu Ye, was his workplace.

Most of the kids at the training center were in elementary and middle school, a lively and vulnerable age. If something happened, it would affect more than just one family.

However, Qi Yanbai knew deep down that there was something suspicious about this situation. He was considered a semi-public figure due to his role as a recruitment attraction, so his colleagues at the training center had always been polite and had never bombarded him with phone calls like this before. The fact that they were urgently trying to reach him now meant that something was indeed going on.

Although the work at the training center was not a prestigious job, it was his first job of self-reliance after returning to China. Added to that were the children who called him “Teacher Qí” affectionately every day. Despite not wanting to answer the call, Qi Yanbai couldn’t remain completely indifferent.

He hesitated for a moment in front of the bedroom door, and in the end, he seemed to have persuaded himself. He turned and looked at Lu Ye, then reluctantly picked up the phone from the coffee table and walked into the kitchen, farthest from the bedroom.

“Hello…”

Perhaps he was afraid Lu Ye would hear something, so his voice was very low. Lu Ye carefully listened with both ears, but could only vaguely hear the gist of it.

“…Sorry, I’ve taken a leave,” Qi Yanbai said. “What’s the matter—”

The words that followed seemed to be interrupted by someone, and then the kitchen fell into a nearly endless silence. Lu Ye tapped his knee with his finger, counting the seconds one by one until over a minute later, Qi Yanbai’s voice sounded again.

“I understand,” Qi Yanbai’s voice still sounded somewhat hesitant. “But…”

Maybe the situation on the other end of the phone was really urgent. After this sentence, Qi Yanbai fell into silence again, making affirmative sounds as if he was listening.

After a while, the other party finally explained the situation clearly. Qi Yanbai remained silent for a moment and didn’t directly refuse. Instead, he said he would think about it and call them back later.

After hanging up the phone, Qi Yanbai paced around the kitchen for a while. Two minutes later, he returned from the kitchen with a cup of warm honey water. His complexion seemed much calmer than before, but he appeared somewhat troubled.

Lu Ye raised an eyelid and glanced at him, asking, “What’s wrong?”

“There’s a student’s parent causing trouble at the training center,” Qi Yanbai explained briefly. “The student just joined my class, but I took a leave before the classes started. As a result, the parent believes the school is engaged in fraudulent enrollment and went to cause trouble.”

“The parents made a big scene, and since there were many other parents at the training center for trial classes, it had a negative impact. So, the school wants me to go and explain,” Qi Yanbai said.

Lu Ye reached out to straighten the blanket and thought to himself that this wasn’t surprising at all.

Many students had enrolled in the training center because of Qi Yanbai. The “kidnapping” incident had happened suddenly, and he probably hadn’t planned everything carefully, making it easier for various issues to arise.

“Oh,” Lu Ye appeared nonchalant. “Then you should go. It’s better not to affect your job.”

“…I don’t care about the job,” Qi Yanbai hesitated for a moment and then said in a low voice, “It doesn’t matter if they fire me.”

Since the moment he kidnapped Lu Ye, Qi Yanbai had been prepared to go all-in. He hadn’t thought about turning back, and he had long known that he would eventually lose everything.

“But your school has many students who came because of you, right?” Lu Ye said. “If you resign now, not only will you have to deal with the trouble of wrapping things up, but you might also have to face the training center’s attempts to retain you. What will you do then? Wouldn’t that be more troublesome?”

Qi Yanbai hesitated. Lu Ye’s words had struck a chord with his inner conflict.

If he could choose, Qi Yanbai didn’t want to leave at all. However, he had just kidnapped Lu Ye, and he didn’t know if anyone outside had noticed his disappearance. If he acted too strangely, it might arouse suspicion.

But leaving wasn’t something he was willing to do either. He still hadn’t stabilized mentally, and the thought of leaving Lu Ye’s side made him anxious, with his heart rate skyrocketing visibly.

Qi Yanbai was caught between a rock and a hard place. He was worried about raising suspicion and also suspicious of Lu Ye’s eagerness for him to leave. So, he hesitated and couldn’t come up with a definitive answer.

He didn’t know how long he could keep Lu Ye with him. Now, he was unwilling to take even the slightest risk.

“Go ahead,” Lu Ye could see his hesitation, so he raised an eyebrow and said, “If you don’t trust me, you can add another lock to me.”

Lu Ye had plans to escape but wasn’t prepared to do it right away, so adding a few more chains to his hands didn’t make much of a difference.

Perhaps it was his proactive honesty that made Qi Yanbai slightly lower his guard. He remained silent for a couple of seconds, furrowing his brow with some confusion.

“Lu Ye,” Qi Yanbai couldn’t help but ask, “Do you really want me to leave?”

“Of course, I do,” Lu Ye thought, “I care too much about your job.”

His resignation was a lie to Qi Yanbai. If he really ended up unemployed along with Qi Yanbai it could potentially drown him in tears in the future.

But he couldn’t say this openly, so Lu Ye thought for a moment and casually said, “Because right now, you’re keeping me locked up, and I’m broke. If you lose your job, I’ll have to starve with you.”

Qi Yanbai was taken aback.

“You can take a leave of absence, but don’t let me starve,” Lu Ye said as he reached out to pull the blanket and lay down. He added, “I’m going to take a nap anyway. The painkillers are making my head ache.”

After saying that, he closed his eyes, giving the impression that he didn’t intend to continue the conversation. Qi Yanbai stood by the bed, hesitated for a while, and was surprisingly swayed by his ridiculous reason. He turned and fetched a set of clothes to change into.

Qi Yanbai planned to resolve this matter quickly, but as he was about to leave, he couldn’t help but worry. He went back and removed all sharp and hard objects from the bedroom, not even sparing the aluminum bumper strip on the wardrobe. He didn’t know if he was afraid that Lu Ye might do something irrational.

He took away the cup with honey water on the bedside table, replaced it with a paper cup, and, after thinking for a moment, returned to the bedroom. With a troubled expression, he tightened the chains on Lu Ye’s hands and feet, leaving only a little length for him to move.

While doing all this, Lu Ye didn’t react, seemingly accepting it.

Qi Yanbai had initially worried that he might be going too far and that Lu Ye would react angrily. Seeing the situation, he finally felt a bit relieved and used his knuckles to lightly stroke Lu Ye’s earlobe before leaving reluctantly.

The door to the outer room opened and closed, and soon there was a muffled sound. Lu Ye quietly waited for a while, making sure there was no one else’s breath in the room besides his, before opening his eyes and sitting up on the bed.

“You little rascal,” Lu Ye smiled and tugged at the chain on his hand. He thought that Qi Yanbai was quite cautious.

The chain that had been tightened was not long enough for Lu Ye to get off the bed. He changed his position, leaning against the headboard somewhat awkwardly, and realized that the main part of the chain was much longer than he had imagined. Most of it was locked under the bed’s railing.

Lu Ye’s right hand was not locked, so he still had some freedom. He moved his arm slightly to check that the splint was securely fastened. Then he leaned over and managed to fish out the padlock from under the railing.

Previously, with Qi Yanbai around, Lu Ye hadn’t had a chance to examine the padlock properly. Now, after taking a closer look, he realized that the padlock under the railing had the same structure as the one in his hand, just a different model. The largest one was as big as his palm, quite heavy, and looked intimidating at first glance. However, after a closer inspection of its structure, Lu Ye secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

Luckily, Lu Ye thought, the Qi family wasn’t filled with good people, and they used various means to manipulate others. This made Qi Yanbai highly distrustful of safes and electronic devices, only trusting traditional mechanical padlocks.

Otherwise, when the day came for him to leave, it would have taken a lot more effort.

With this last bit of concern gone, Lu Ye completely relaxed and became carefree. With one hand, he pulled up the blanket and comfortably settled in for some rest.