Chapter 2623: Fantastic Beasts in the Garden 30

By the time Jin Chen woke up again, it was already two days later.

He only felt as if he had slept a very long sleep.

【Detected Villain Heartthrob Value +10, total 69!】

Ling Gun Gun tugged at Jin Chen twice, reminding, 【Host, you slept so soundly, for a full two days! The Main God also kept you company for two days.】

Jin Chen dazed for a moment, flicked off the incessantly tugging Ling Gun Gun, got up and washed up.

He was almost sleeping in a daze.

Xiao Bai Rendong, as usual, went to inspect the park in the morning, handling some pre-opening preparations; he kept thinking of the unconscious little one, so he came back early.

He pushed open the bedroom door, habitually glanced at the bed, and found the corner of the blanket lifted, the little white lion was gone again.

"Jin Chen!" Xiao Bai Rendong's heart leapt to his throat.

"Huh?"

A low, slightly lazy and confused voice came from the direction of the washroom.

Xiao Bai Rendong snapped his head around, seeing the washroom door open.

Jin Chen stood at the sink, wearing a loose bathrobe, its sash loosely tied.

He had a toothbrush clenched in his mouth, white foam still on his lips; hearing the sound, he poked his head out to look at him.

Xiao Bai Rendong froze for a moment, unable to move his gaze from the person before him.

Jin Chen was somewhat different from his previous youthful form.

Perhaps, as Hu Caicai said, his monster power had recovered to its peak, and along with it, his transformed appearance became more mature.

His stature grew taller and straighter, shoulders broad, waist narrow, muscle lines faintly visible beneath the bathrobe, shedding the youth's inexperience, strikingly handsome with an aggressive charm, as if exuding an invisible allure that quickened the heartbeat.

Seeing Xiao Bai Rendong just staring silently, Jin Chen, toothbrush still in his mouth, mumbled, "What's wrong?"

Xiao Bai Rendong then came to his senses, quickly walked over, "You're awake? How do you feel? Anywhere uncomfortable?"

"I'm fine." Jin Chen hastily took the toothbrush out of his mouth, rinsed, and wiped the foam from his lips with a towel.

He then turned, pulled the approaching Xiao Bai Rendong into his embrace, wrapping his arms around his waist and back, "Really, I'm fine, just slept."

"Hmm..."

Xiao Bai Rendong buried his face in Jin Chen's neck, inhaled deeply, his nostrils filled with Jin Chen's strange scent, his anxious heart settling back down.

His voice was muffled, his arms tightening a little, "You scared me to death..."

【Detected Villain Blackening Value -10, total 35!】

Jin Chen had merely wanted to bluff his way through, not expecting the commotion of his monster power's recovery to be so great; feeling a slight dampness at his neck, he wrapped one arm around Xiao Bai Rendong, lowered his head, and gently rubbed.

"Sorry, I..." "It's not your fault, Bao Bao."

Xiao Bai Rendong lifted his head to look at him, his eye sockets slightly red, his gaze gentle, "I know now, you wanted to go to the mountains, not just to play."

He reached out, gently stroking Jin Chen's cheek, "It was my mistake to blame you."

Jin Chen felt warm and full inside, yet with a belly full of explanations and words, he didn't know where to start.

But he hadn't finished washing up; it really wasn't suitable for a deep conversation, so he first loosened his hold on Xiao Bai Rendong, returned to the sink, turned on the faucet, and carefully washed his face with clean water.

The big shot is quite attentive to his image management.

Especially in front of his wife.

Jin Chen stood before the mirror, using a towel to dry the water droplets on his face.

Xiao Bai Rendong quietly leaned against the doorframe, watching him.

In the mirror, the youth's posture was straight and tall, the bathrobe's collar slightly open, revealing faintly his firm pectorals, his white hair reaching to his waist casually draped behind him.

The fluffy white lion ears were also somewhat larger than before, standing atop his head, twitching occasionally; they had lost some of the cub's soft cuteness, gaining instead a mature lion's majesty and... another kind of charm.

Xiao Bai Rendong watched and watched, his heart slightly stirred.

He walked over, his fingertips gathering the silver-long hair, the feel irresistible, "Shall I tie your hair up for you?"

Jin Chen looked at Xiao Bai Rendong behind him through the mirror, nodded, "Okay."

The two returned to the bedroom.

Jin Chen sat on the soft stool by the bed, the bathrobe loosening a bit more from the sitting motion.

Xiao Bai Rendong took a comb, sat on the slightly higher edge of the bed, and patiently, gently combed Jin Chen's long silver hair.

The motion was just as gentle as the countless times he had smoothed the little white lion's fur, the comb teeth gliding through the strands.

Jin Chen comfortably narrowed his eyes, the lion ears on his head twitching contentedly.

Xiao Bai Rendong couldn't help but chuckle lightly, gently rubbing the base of the ears.

Being rubbed like that, Jin Chen felt as if a switch had been flipped—his ears vanished with a swoosh.

"Huh?" Xiao Bai Rendong paused his combing, somewhat surprised, "Can the ears be retracted?"

"Yes, the tail can too." Jin Chen turned his head to look at him.

He suddenly reached out, pulled Xiao Bai Rendong into his embrace, then affectionately rubbed his nose against his cheek and neck, "This way I can stay by your side."

Xiao Bai Rendong was held in Jin Chen's arms, sitting on his sturdy thigh.

A secret tingling sensation quietly rose from his spine, making his Adam's apple unconsciously bob once, his mind a bit muddled.

Seeing the atmosphere gradually turning ambiguous, Xiao Bai Rendong still avoided Jin Chen's frank gaze, his cheeks slightly warm, he asked softly, "You've slept two days, Bao Bao, are you hungry? Want to get something to eat first?"

Jin Chen frowned slightly in displeasure, only able to reply, "Hungry."

Well, confessions and such can wait until after we fill our stomachs; anyway, the wife won't run away.

In the small living room.

Jin Chen sat at the window-side dining table eating; turning his head, he could see the green trees shading outside and occasional small animals running by, feeling quite content.

Having eaten enough, he put down his chopsticks, picked up a napkin to wipe his mouth, "Has the zoo been operating normally these two days?"

Xiao Bai Rendong sat opposite him, holding a warm herbal tea, and hummed gently, "The effect is still good; the animals are now now especially smart and obedient."

He looked at Jin Chen, his gaze soft, "Speaking of which, I still owe you a lot."

Jin Chen picked up the after-meal fruit and took a bite; hearing that, he looked toward Xiao Bai Rendong, "I originally came here just for you."

Xiao Bai Rendong's hand holding the tea cup froze; he didn't know if this was the answer, but his heart still went soft, joy and satisfaction filling his whole heart.

"For me?"

Jin Chen nodded, propping his cheek with one hand, tilting his head to look at him, very dissatisfied, "But you've become distant from me now."

"From when I woke up until now."

Xiao Bai Rendong's eyelashes twitched, his heartbeat quickened.

He lowered his eyes, watching the pale gold tea sway in the cup, his voice dropping a bit, "It's not distance, Bao Bao."

"What is that?" Jin Chen didn't want to maintain this ambiguous state.

He pushed the empty bowl in front of him aside, leaned forward to look at Xiao Bai Rendong, determined to get a clear answer.

Xiao Bai Rendong licked his slightly dry lips, his heart hesitating.

He knew clearly in his heart what the reason was: that subtly changed feeling, growing deeper affection, and the ensuing worries and uncertainties.

He also knew clearly what he feared: afraid Jin Chen wouldn't understand, afraid of scaring him, afraid of breaking the current balance.

During the two days Jin Chen was unconscious, Xiao Bai Rendong had also asked himself exactly when he had started to feel something for the little Lion.

But he discovered that every second spent with Jin Chen was deeply memorable, and recalling it made his heart flutter intensely.

Thinking of these, his heart was like that impulsive kiss that night, both fluttering and confused.

Xiao Bai Rendong fell silent for a moment, picked up a cherry from the fruit plate, and brought it to Jin Chen's lips, trying to ease the atmosphere.

Jin Chen lowered his eyes to look at the cherry being brought to his lips, then lifted his gaze, his eyes blazing as he fixed them on Xiao Bai Rendong, taking the cherry into his mouth along with the fingertips holding the stem.

Even though it was fleeting, the warmth lingered on his fingertips, and Xiao Bai Rendong's fingers trembled slightly.

Xiao Bai Rendong made up his mind and met Jin Chen's eyes.