"Honey I'm back,"a girl's voice said and the girl herself took off the fur coat she was wearing and hanged it on the hanger. Realizing there wasn't any response from the other party she walked towards the counter and leaned on it letting her presence known. Behind the counter,a man in his mid twenties was seated on a high stool ,his fingers tracing the content on ledger book. His eyebrows were furrowed together and his lips were pressed tightly into a thin line,his facial expression - solemn as hell.
"Are you still stressed about the sales?"the girl asked finally gaining the man's attention and he looked up his gaze measuring the upper part of the body whose view wasn't blocked by the counter.
"Whose coat were you wearing?"the man questioned with an inquisitive gaze.
The girl chuckled and glanced back at the coat before replying." Oh that, I thought you didn't notice it. Someone interesting gave it to me,"She said with a mischievous smile.
"Someone interesting?"He asked his probing gaze not sparing her even a little bit.
"If you close that damn ledger book I will tell you more,"she continued with a flirtatious smile.
Curiosity took part of the man and in an instant he did exactly as the girl had instructed. He walked over to the front approaching the girl who threw herself into his arms. The man back hugged her ,her narrow back sinking into his chest.
"Tell me more,"the man demanded almost impatiently.
"Today I was walking along the market and guess who I ran into?"She questioned making him even more curious to a point that he wished he would dissect the body part that was responsible for delivering the information and extract the information by himself instead of impatiently listening to her give the story bit by bit teasing him with senseless questions.
"I met Zhao Ruoxuan from Zhao's Emporium and he offered me the coat because I was cold,"She said chuckling.
"And you gladly accepted it? Do you know how jealous I am right now?"the man asked teasingly.
"Don't worry about that. I'm faithful and will always be faithful to you only. And what's even more interesting is that ,that silly kid was enchanted by me and was staring at me like he wanted to eat me alive,"She laughed mockingly and the man joined in the laughter as well.
"I understand him. Who can resist your charm? How about the other Zhao?"the man pried further interested in the conversation.
"He was just watching from a distance. He's different from the silly kid. And tomorrow that silly kid invited me to his shop I guess that will be the opportunity for you to get rid of your rival,"the girl explained proudly.
"I didn't think that beautiful mind of yours could craft something like that,"he complimented her and his lips curved into an evil smile.
They continued fooling around in front of the counter since they were aware they would rarely be any customers visiting their shop now that Zhao Shenbao had stolen the spotlight. Their naughty hands fondled each other's body while their minds were busy brewing something cunning.
*****
"I will be going out for a while so take care of everything,"Zhao Shenbao instructed Ruoxuan before leaving the counter.
"Isn't it snowing heavily outside?"Zhao Ruoxuan asked in a concerned voice.
"Don't worry I'll be fine,"Zhao Shenbao replied curtly. .
In the previous night a blizzard had struck the town and still in the morning the amount of snowflakes falling from the sky was alarming. In mid winter predictably it would be even worse.
Zhao Ruoxuan watched his receding figure and with his thoughts entirely about the stranger girl he met the previous day,his anticipation grew even more. He was expecting the girl would show up and he couldn't wait to see her face again. Zhao Ruoxuan had already selected a few suitable coats for her and couldn't wait to showcase the collection he made to her.
With each passing hour Zhao Ruoxuan grew impatient and he could no longer hide the disappointment - it was clearly written on his face. He tried to comfort himself by coming up with all logical reasons that would lead to her not showing up at the emporium but still he didn't feel any better.
'Maybe I should just grab a novel and read to pass time ,'Zhao Ruoxuan thought.
He left the counter and walked further disappearing into the corridor leading to their rooms. For a minute he stood outside his door hesitant to go in. Maybe he should have picked a cultivation manual to hone his cultivation skills now that Zhao Shenbao had surpassed him. He walked to Zhao Shenbao's room and walked in without hesitation knowing that the latter had no problem with him accessing his room without his permission - they were almost like brothers.
Hu Lan was still curled up in bed,the slight breeze penetrating through the slight window opening blowing his long fur gently. Zhao Ruoxuan's eyes sparkled with excitement as he walked towards the fox forgetting all the grudges he had earlier held against Hu Lan. What mattered more was the fox's fur which had changed from reddish brown to pure white.
Not a single spot of his body was left with colour. Zhao Ruoxuan's eyes gawked in delight even as he knelt beside the fox examining it carefully. Compared to Zhao Shenbao,his knowledge of foxes was a little bit limited so something like that seemed like a miracle to him. He fearfully stretched out his hand intending to rub the fur with fingers but he was still afraid Hu Lan would attack him.
"Don't worry I won't harm you,"Zhao Ruoxuan spoke in a gentle soothing voice in attempt to negotiate with Hu Lan to let him touch the fur and it somehow worked because his fingers were already running through the white fluffy fur of the fox in a few minutes. It was half an hour later that he realized he had spent the entire time admiring a mere animal's beauty and even forgot his main purpose of going to the room. Just when he got back on his feet the owner of the room walked in clearly surprised by the encounter.
"Young Master look its fur has changed , "Zhao Ruoxuan revealed excitedly.
Zhao Shenbao took long strides towards the bed and sat beside Hu Lan scrutinizing him.
"What do you think happened?"Zhao Ruoxuan asked curiously.
"I heard foxes with strong cultivation power are able to perform a camouflaging technique. They changed their fur's colour to blend in with the season. Just like now its fur is white just like the snow and in spring and summer it might be yellowish or brownish ,"Zhao Shenbao explained lucidly.
Camouflaging technique ? Zhao Ruoxuan smiled at the words. He was glad he had learnt something new about foxes.
"By the way,that strange girl from yesterday is waiting for you at the counter,"Zhao Shenbao suddenly revealed. Zhao Ruoxuan didn't even bother to reply. He excitedly dashed out of the room to meet his so called date as his heart and mind imagined. Zhao Shenbao was clearly not impressed by her presence but there's nothing he could do about it anyway. Zhao Ruoxuan was an adult and he was allowed to do anything of his free will.
Zhao Shenbao opened one of the drawers and took out a comb and silently began combing Hu Lan's fur laying it in the appropriate direction. His movements were gentle and soothing that Hu Lan became somnolent shortly after. He somehow wondered how the man's hands were always able to give him such a good feeling.
Zhao Shenbao had already figured out Hu Lan must have been very powerful in his human form to be able to do the fur changing technique. Then consuming his golden core would boost his cultivation power very much but he had to suppress the thought not wanting to break his promise of helping Hu Lan regain his human form.