Chapter 195: Like an Old Friend Arrives 11

In the evening, after the last patient left Su Mo's clinic, she also planned to go home.

She just picked up her bag, and the fox followed her out.

Su Mo turned her head toward it: "Didn't I already prepare dinner for you? Just rest here."

The fox immediately hopped onto her foot and clutched her calf.

"Whine~" it cried nonstop.

Su Mo bent down, picked it up, stroked its silk‑smooth fur, and turned back inside.

She tried to place it on the bed, but it tangled around her arm and wouldn't let go.

Su Mo frowned: "Behave, or you'll have to sleep on the street~"

"Whine~"

The little fox whined once, feeling extremely aggrieved.

Su Mo sighed, then held it and sat on the bed: "Then I'll stay and keep you company~"

The fox, satisfied, adjusted its posture and unconsciously nudged her.

Su Mo scratched its fluffy head, then its neck; it closed its eyes contentedly and fell asleep in no time.

She quietly lifted the fox from her lap, got up, and left.

By the time the fox on the bed recovered, Su Mo was already standing outside, having locked the door.

It perched by the door, frantically scrabbling its paws, whimpering plaintively, "Whine~".

Su Mo squinted and waved at it: "Goodbye, rest well."

The little fox sat there, looking aggrieved, watching her silhouette fade away.

When Su Mo returned home, she saw a pair of men's leather shoes at the doorway.

She stepped toward the kitchen; indeed, the person who had been on a business trip for a few days had returned.

Xuan Qing, without turning his head, said, "Wash your hands, get ready to eat."

Su Mo asked puzzledly, "Weren't you supposed to be on a seven‑day business trip?"

It's only the fifth day, right?

"I finished early, so I came back early."

Su Mo smiled, passed by him, and went to wash her hands.

As she turned, she heard Xuan Qing ask, "Did any special patients come to the clinic today?"

Su Mo thought for a moment, then smiled and said, "A fox that can't shapeshift came in; its body seems corroded by something, and it's badly injured. I let it stay in the clinic to recover."

Xuan Qing's brows furrowed slightly.

After the meal, Su Mo curled up on the sofa to read.

Xuan Qing walked over, embraced her, and pressed his head against her neck, whispering, "Did you miss me?"

Su Mo stared intently at the words on the book and nodded, "Mm."

In the next instant, that person snatched the book from her hand and said, "You say one thing but mean another; is that how you think of me?"

"I…"

His lips brushed down gently; Su Mo instinctively flinched, only to be pressed fully onto the sofa by him, a lingering, intricate kiss pouring down.

Later, he carried her straight to the bedroom.

Half‑dazed, she heard him say, "Next time you miss me, be serious."

Su Mo felt as if she were standing on a sea of clouds, utterly lacking the energy to answer him.

"Tomorrow we'll go register; I want my name change to be proper and smooth."

Su Mo, exhausted from his embrace, mumbled groggily, "Okay…"

…

So that early the next morning, when he pulled her up from the bed, her head was still fuzzy.

Xuan Qing looked at her half‑dazed eyes, smiled lightly, and said, "Forgot the promise you made last night?"

Su Mo frowned, thought for a moment, and vaguely recalled something.

"Everything's ready; after breakfast we set off."

The person in front of her seized her hand and slapped a card onto it.

"All my earnings over the years are on this card; keep it safe."

Then he produced a stack of red notebooks: "All the properties across the regions are here too."

Su Mo looked at the pile before her, somewhat surprised.

Before she could react, she felt a chill at her fingertips. A delicate ring slipped silently onto her ring finger; sunlight streamed in through the window, refracting into a dazzling glare.

Xuan Qing gently cradled the person before him, his tone as breezy as spring wind through willows, and said, "In the end, I'm the only one left. Everything else can be discarded, but me, you must not discard."

She reached out, hugged him tightly, squinting, and said, "I won't discard."

She looked at the perfectly sized ring on her fingertip and smiled, "These should have been prepared by me."

"It doesn't matter; as long as the result is you, everything else is irrelevant."

…

When Su Mo and Xuan Qing arrived at the Administration Bureau, work had just begun there.

After taking a photo, they proceeded to the registration hall to queue.

Su Mo answered a call; at that moment she was speaking not far away.

Someone carrying a stack of forms walked over and asked routinely, "Do you want to register or collect the certificate?"

Xuan Qing looked at the forms in his hand, frowned, and felt a lingering, unrestrained yearning swell within him.

He knew clearly the difference between the two: the registration form could be claimed many times with a Succubus, but that certificate could only be claimed once.

The delusions in his heart grew like vines, devouring his reason; if she could belong solely to him...

"Sir, have you decided?" the person in front urged.

Xuan Qing took a deep breath and said, "The registration form."

They will surely come; her side... is destined not to be only him.

He cannot bring the known answer and let her make a wrong decision; that would be unfair to her, and unfair to them as well.

When Su Mo hung up the phone and walked over, Xuan Qing had already filled out his information.

She looked at the registration form in her hand, actually somewhat surprised.

But as long as he has decided, that's fine.

Su Mo quickly filled out her information, then handed over the two photos.

After completing the procedures, Xuan Qing left some wedding candy for the staff, then took Su Mo's hand and walked out.

Su Mo voiced her doubt: "Why didn't you take that form, the marriage registration form, just now?"

Under the scorching sun, he lowered his head to look at her, his eyes filled with an inseparable tenderness: "Because you will surely meet other good people in the future; I don't want you to make any decision you'll regret."

Although he wanted to possess her exclusively, he hoped more for her happiness.

The reunion was to bring her happiness, not regret.

He had a premonition that they should be coming soon; the fox aura on her body last night was... the best proof.

Su Mo looked at him with some doubt, not quite understanding why he was so certain.

But it's fine; she is the type to go with the flow.

Xuan Qing took her hand and walked through the park toward the parking lot; before reaching the car, he saw two tall figures standing not far away.

The trees lining the road were lush and verdant; dappled tree shadows cast specks of light on the two people, like a slow-motion shot in a film.

Xuan Qing could clearly see the momentary loss of focus in the eyes of the two people opposite; it seemed their arrival speed was faster than he had imagined.

Mo Xiao almost rushed over; he couldn't even remember how long it had been since he last saw the person before him. The fleeting image that flashed in his midnight dreams finally appeared alive before him, a shock that words could not express.

He was afraid that in the blink of an eye, she would disappear again before his eyes...

He really wanted to hold her tight now and tell her just how much he missed her.

Since that day's battle, after Jiang Wu vanished in ashes from that final strike, she too disappeared without a trace.

He forever remembers what she told them: she said she wouldn't die, perhaps just gone to a very distant place.

He believed her, and so he kept searching, never stopping...

The water of the River of Forgetfulness is cold; it burns those who touch it, but as long as he can find her, everything is worth it.

Mo Xiao's impulse to rush forward was stopped by Fei Yan.

He looked at Su Mo's bewildered gaze and softly reminded, "Don't scare her."

Mo Xiao looked at the person before him with red-rimmed eyes; her gaze was unfamiliar, and in an instant he understood what it meant.

Suppressing the surging emotions in his heart, he stared unblinkingly at the person he had day and night thought of not far away; thousands of words were on the tip of his tongue, but now he didn't know how to speak.

Su Mo looked dubiously at the person not far away, allowing Xuan Qing to take her hand and walk over.

She softly asked, "Your friend?"

Xuan Qing slightly tightened his grip on her hand, nodded, and then smiled, explaining, "Also your friend."

After saying that, he corrected himself: "They are important people in your life."