Two Old Monsters

A few days later, the two really did cut out a large window together out of guilt. Looking at how the room was much better lit than before, both of them let out a sigh of relief. Collecting wild herbs was a business for both of them, so they generally went up the mountains together. It was no difficult task for either of them. Although they met snakes, caves, darkness, and other obstacles that slowed down others, it only took both of them a day. As such, Fu Wangzhi would often bring a zither, and Xie Changan would bring along a jar of wine. Rather than going into the mountains to pick wild herbs, the two took the opportunity to date and enjoy nature together. Xie Changan tossed the full bamboo basket aside and leaned on an old acacia tree as he held the wine jar and nibbled on fruit. Fu Wangzhi began to play the zither leisurely. The melody carried through the forest, travelling to the clouds. Xie Changan was engrossed in the tune. He heard the sounds of the strings, understood the elegancy, and even sang along to the notes in rhythm. Before they knew it, it was already dark. No birds and beasts within the area dared to come near the two monsters. The two monsters were happy with that. They would use the ground of the green mountain as their pillow when they were tired, the sky as their blanket. It was quiet at night. They opened their eyes and admired the starry sky together. "Hey, look at those stars. Don't you think it looks like that thing when connected together? What the fuck, hahahahahaha!" Xie Changan pointed at the stars and let out a big laugh. "Hm?" Fu Wangzhi followed Xie Changan's hand, which trembled from laughing, and looked in the direction he was pointing. He was not sure which stars he was referring to. Xie Changan then used his fingertips and drew a pillar in the air, attaching two balls on each side. Fu Wangzhi understood immediately. He leaned up, supporting himself with his elbow and then rolled over to press Xie Changan down. He then pushed himself against Xie Changan's crotch a little, his eyes focusing on Xie Changan's effeminate and beautiful face, "The thing in the sky is nothing compared to mine." Xie Changan extended his arms and wrapped them around the other's neck. He lifted his head and nibbled ferociously on the other's lips. These two had absolutely no shame doing such things in the mountains when they were in the mood. Their mouths were so full of obscenities that even the starry sky blushed. Snakes and foxes were lascivious by nature. They lived their lives like that for a little over a year, carefully, not to live too lavish a life, but it was pretty fulfilling. One day, Xie Changan began to stare at the chicken from the coop's entrance and daydream again, so Fu Wangzhi went to the mountains alone. The flowing streams on the mountain were so clear that the bottom could be seen. Fu Wangzhi could see the golden carp spirit easily with just a glance. ‘The water bodies were truly all connected’, he thought. He did not expect to see it even here.
"Have you met your fated one?" The carp spirit surfaced and wagged its tail. "I have." "What kind of person?" The carp spirit was curious. "A mortal man." "A human, huh..." The carp spirit circled on the spot and hesitated for a moment before he resurfaced again, "Do you know that when a human's life will shorten if they come together with a monster?" Fu Wangzhi was astonished, "How so?" "Especially when they make love, a monster's sperm will shorten his life span greatly." Fu Wangzhi closed his eyes and did not utter a single word as Xie Changan's bright smile flashed across his mind's eyes. And through the month after that, the two slept properly on the bed without any activities, effectively cockblocking Xie Changan. He began to ponder. Had they gotten to a bottleneck in their relationship? Was it no longer fresh and exciting? One day, when the night fell, Fu Wangzhi took off his outer robe and untied his ink-black hair. Xie Changan followed behind Fu Wangzhi, reached out his hand and grabbed Fu Wangzhi's butt. Fu Wangzhi turned around and rubbed his head. He kissed his forehead and said, "Stop messing around." Fu Wangzhi blew out the light and lifted the quilt as he prepared to sleep, but he saw Xie Changan sitting crosslegged in bed, looking straight at him. "Why are you not sleeping?" Xie Changan did not answer and started to take off his own trousers. His legs were long and straight, making Fu Wangzhi's throat dry. Xie Changan pushed Fu Wangzhi onto the bed and lifted his knee to press on Fu Wangzhi's crotch as he lowered his head to nibble and bite. Fu Wantzhi was already hard way before, but he did not do anything.
Xie Changan sat up suddenly. He lifted his chin and stared at Fu Wangzhi, a mocking snicker at the corners of his lips. He went to sleep without speaking a single word. Fu Wangzhi knew he had screwed up then, but he could not explain himself. He could not tell others that he was a spirit, a monster that could harm humans. Xie Changan went out in the early morning. He took a bunch of gold which he had turned from stones, and wandered on the streets until he finally arrived at the brothel, "Go Back". The light was made of crystals, and the curtains were made of pearls stringed together. There was a jade lotus platform in the centre of the hall surrounded by red drapes, and a beauty was dancing on it. It was truly an intoxicating sight. Seeing Xie Changan's arrival, one of her largest-spending clients who had not frequented the brothel for a long time, a wide smile quickly grew on the Madam's face. She quickly called for a group of young ladies to meet this flirtatious young man, crowding the entrance almost immediately. A beautiful lady was glancing at Xie Changan from behind the crowd discreetly and began to cry. She was the lady who broke the jade bracelet. Xie Changan inadvertently saw the lady and lifted his hand to wipe away her tears in passing before he entered the hall. Xie Changan did not return even when the sky was dark. Fu Wangzhi creased his brows. Worried about the mountain beasts, he wrapped a fur around himself and picked up a lamp, going up the mountain to find Xie Changan. The sky was completely dark. It was a cloudy night, with no stars or moonlight. The mountains were appallingly gloomy, seemingly like a beast with a bloody mouth and a hideous face from afar, lurking in the dark and dead silence, waiting for his prey. Fu Wangzhi raised his hand to call for the birds in the mountains, called for the tigers, and even disturbed the Lord of Soil. He searched every inch of the mountain for Xie Changan. All to no avail.
Fu Wangzhi pondered for a long time: Xie Changan had no money with him, so where on earth could he be? In the end, he decided to check out the brothel, but the Madam insisted that Xie Changan had not visited since a year ago. Fu Wangzhi ignored the Madam and went ahead to check every room. It was not that he did not trust Xie Changan, but he had searched every other place he could think of. When Fu Wangzhi stepped into the Lotus Room, the expression on the Madam's face became unnatural. She reached out and pulled Fu Wangzhi's arm as she spoke, "Gentlemen, ladies are resting in there. This is a bit inappropriate." Fu Wangzhi uttered a quick apology before he pushed the door open. He could only see a soft, golden canopy above a bed made of eaglewood decorated with precious jade past the lacquer screen, but the room was empty. There was only a red fox, its limbs and the tip of its tail black, which was about to jump off from the window. It turned its head to see Fu Wangzhi breaking into the door. The fox was seemingly panicked and almost fell flat on its face. Fu Wangzhi's eyes met the fox's, and he felt a sense of familiarity and intimacy but was too preoccupied with the thought of finding Xie Changan that he did not dwell on it further. The Madam stood outside the door and glanced at the empty bed, confusion apparent on her face. Fu Wangzhi could not find Xie Changan even after searching the building. He had no choice but to leave and not to impose further. He stood absentmindedly on the street as the pedestrians were coming and going, and he could hear the horses pulling a cart and passing by occasionally. People went on with their lives, but Fu Wangzhi was at a loss. All the possibilities of what could have happened flashed across his mind. He thought that Xie Changan, a mere human, could easily get into an accident or even die. At this thought, Fu Wangzhi felt as if there was a sharp talon grabbing his heart, hurting him. A snake that had been enjoying his freedom for so many years was finally trapped in a cage. Three days later, Xie Changan was finally willing to come out of the brothel. The aroma of peach blossom brewed wine covered his body, his eyes not focused, no matter who he looked at, as if he had something on his mind. Xie Changan was still contemplating whether to go back but ran into Fu Wangzhi, who was waiting for him with a calm expression, the moment he turned the corner. Xie Changan was completely shocked and wanted to run away subconsciously but was grabbed by Fu Wangzhi. He tried to raise his arm to break free of him and even injected his spiritual power, but Fu Wangzhi's hand was so firmly on him to the point of causing him pain. No matter how hard he tried, he could not break free. Fu Wangzhi dragged him back home without uttering a single word.
Xie Changan realised Fu Wangzhi was still wearing the same clothes he did three days ago. His body was ice cold; there was even a layer of thin frost on his clothes. Seeing that, Xie Changan decided not to say a word and followed. Even when they returned home and closed the door, Fu Wangzhi's expression showed no hint of his mood. Xie Changan stood in the house and observed his every move when suddenly, he was pushed by Fu Wangzhi onto the bed, and he felt pain as he back hit the hard surface of the bed. Fu Wangzhi pinched both of Xie Changan's cheeks tightly, his face closing in as he squeezed out the words through his teeth, "You feel bad if you don't have sex for a day, is that right?" Xie Changan pushed Fu Wangzhi away and shouted, "I can do whatever I want!" Fu Wangzhi ripped off Xie Changan's underpants, surprising Xie Changan. Xie Changan tried to kick him away, but they ended up wrestling on the bed, fighting as they were fuming. Xie Changan eventually lost the upper hand after an extended period of time. Due to how both their bodies were used to each other's, it took Fu Wangzhi little effort to enter Xie Changan. Fu Wangzhi thrust forcefully; he had never been so rough before, and neither enjoyed it. It was more like they were torturing each other. "Do you get off from having anyone fuck you? Have you been fucking others like this in the last three days?" Fu Wangzhi thrust hard and touched a deep spot he had never reached before as he grabbed Xie Changan's face and forced him to look at him as he questioned. Xie Changan pursed his lips tightly together, not making a single sound, as he lowered his head and tried to push Fu Wangzhi away. Fu Wangzhi's sexual organ slipped out as he rolled away and kicked Fu Wangzhi's chest with all his might. Fu Wangzhi held Xie Changan down, not giving him a chance to struggle as he slapped Xie Changan's plump and smooth buttocks, making an extremely loud sound; the fair skin on his butt turned red and swollen in an instant. Xie Changan was so dumbfounded that he paused his actions, unable to utter a single word as his eyes filled with tears. Fu Wangzhi regretted it almost immediately. He subconsciously reached out, wanting to give Xie Changan a rub to ease his pain.
"Fu Wangzhi," Xie Changan finally spoke, "I think you're a snake. You're coldblooded and won't turn warm no matter how much I try." Fu Wangzhi froze. The hand that was reaching out stopped mid-air as he looked at Xie Changan. "I guess I'm dumb, too. I can't believe I came back and asked if you're lacking a wife without shame after being raped by you. I didn't even blame you for it. I'm so stupid to feel happy being used by you, both in bed and for making money to support us." The more Xie Changan said, the more aggrieved he felt. His eyes were becoming redder, and his voice was almost turning into a sob. He glared hard at Fu Wangzhi, "But you didn't say anything, so I can only guess. And for the whole past year, I've been trying to guess your thoughts." "Fu Wangzhi, how dare you get sick of me despite all I've done."