Wagging My Tail in the Ice Queen CEO’s Embrace - Chapter 29

Du Yunxin felt as if she were dreaming, or perhaps Ming Ying and she were talking about two entirely different Fu Anyu’s.

“Why would there be a manuscript?” she blurted out reflexively.

“Because she liked it!” Ming Ying tilted her head, puzzled that Du Yunxin couldn’t grasp such a simple reason, and patiently explained, “Fu Anyu really liked that book, so she copied it by hand to keep as a collection.”

Du Yunxin knew foxes don’t lie. If Ming Ying said there was a handwritten manuscript of that cheesy, old-fashioned romance novel in the guest room, then it must be true.

But she was still half-convinced. “Since that guest room used to be Fu Anyu’s bedroom when she was younger, maybe, some neighborhood girl came over to visit and accidentally left the manuscript behind?”

“You don’t believe me?” Noticing her evasive gaze, Ming Ying grew a little annoyed. “I’ll take you to see it!”

Without waiting for Du Yunxin’s consent, Ming Ying wrapped her tail around Du Yunxin’s ankle and began dragging her upstairs.

“Hey, hey! Stop pulling!” Du Yunxin was startled. “This is Fu Anyu’s privacy! Even if there really is a manuscript, I can’t just look at it!”

“I’ve already seen it! It’s fine!” Ming Ying raised her voice. “If Fu Anyu asks, just say I forced you to look at her private stuff!”

Unable to resist, Du Yunxin reluctantly followed her.

Ming Ying led her to the guest room, opened a drawer, and took out the manuscript.

Bracing herself, Du Yunxin accepted the plastic case containing the manuscript. The moment she opened it and glanced inside, her mind went blank.

As an assistant, she was intimately familiar with Fu Anyu’s handwriting. One look was all it took to confirm whether the manuscript was indeed copied by Fu Anyu herself.

The writing on the manuscript, though somewhat childish, was unmistakably Fu Anyu’s penmanship to anyone who knew her well.

But this manuscript was clearly not the product of “copying it down because she liked it.” Back when Du Yunxin was still in school, she had dabbled in writing for a few years. After carefully examining the content, she was absolutely certain: the author of The Ice-Queen CEO’s Fierce Love was none other than her boss, Fu Anyu!

Was it too late to develop amnesia now?

Oh no, the little fox must never find out about this!!

Her hands trembling, Du Yunxin placed the manuscript back into the case, carefully returned it to its original spot, forced a smile, and turned to face the innocent little fox. “It really is Fu Anyu’s manuscript, but it must have been copied when she was very young, a long, long time ago. People and demons both grow up, right?”

Seeing Ming Ying’s confused expression, she continued, “What I mean is, the current Fu Anyu probably doesn’t even want to face it herself. Otherwise… otherwise, she wouldn’t have tucked it away in a drawer. She’d have framed it and hung it all over the walls! Don’t you think?”

She spun an exaggerated lie, her heart pounding with anxiety, hoping the little fox would understand her intention. If Fu Anyu found out that her secret identity had been exposed to a second person, the consequences were unimaginable.

Ming Ying thought her reasoning made sense. If it were her, she wouldn’t want to share childhood interests with others either. Then she recalled how she had chased after Fu Anyu that morning, addressing her repeatedly as “CEO-sama,” and Fu Anyu’s complicated expression, she wished she could dig a hole and hide.

“What should we do then?” she asked Du Yunxin in despair. “Is Fu Anyu even angrier now?”

Du Yunxin realized she had overlooked the word “more.” She patted the fox’s head and asked, “When President Fu left this morning, did you think she was angry?”

“Not, really?” Ming Ying thought for a moment, not entirely sure. “Before she left, she specifically told me, ‘I’m not angry anymore.'”

Du Yunxin had never seen Fu Anyu like this before. After hearing this, she rested her chin on her hand and fell into deep thought.

Ming Ying anxiously paced around the room. After a while, Du Yunxin finally said, “How about this: just pretend you never heard what I said. Interact with President Fu as you normally would, keep things simple and don’t let her notice anything off.”

“That’s easy enough,” Ming Ying quickly nodded. Seeing Du Yunxin sigh in relief and not continue, she assumed the matter was resolved and returned to the original topic. “But you still haven’t told me what ‘melodramatic dog blood’ is.”

Du Yunxin: “…”

In the end, she recommended all her treasured old-school melodramatic novels to the little fox and gave her a general overview of common terms used for novel characters nowadays, such as “female lead,” “villain,” and “supporting female character,” to help her understand.

“The book President Fu likes is completely free, but the ones I’ve added to your collection are paid books. After a few tens of thousands of words, you’ll need to subscribe to continue reading. I’ll set up an account for you later. If you run out of money, just let me know, and don’t go looking for pirated copies online!”

After giving these instructions, Du Yunxin felt the last part was unnecessary. The little fox still didn’t even know how to use an input method, where would she even find pirated copies? But since she’d already said it, she went ahead and explained, “A work is the author’s hard-earned effort. Buying books through official channels shows respect and support for the author. That’s how we encourage more authors to create great works.”

Ming Ying nodded in understanding. Once Du Yunxin gave her the account and showed her how to log in, she began reading the recommended novels.

“I only read lesbian novels, also known as ‘yuri’ novels,” Du Yunxin said. “If you want to read heterosexual novels or gay novels, I can help you find some.”

“Thank you, but that won’t be necessary for now,” Ming Ying politely declined. She opened a book page and began flipping through its page by page with great focus.

Although her clan’s rules were strict, she wasn’t particularly averse to same-sex relationships. Her ability to adapt had always been strong, and besides, same-sex relationships were legal and accepted in the human world. After reading The Ice-Queen CEO’s Fierce Love, she had already begun to slowly accept such relationships.

She skimmed the beginnings of a few books and found that the writing quality of Du Yunxin’s recommendations was far superior to The Ice-Queen CEO’s Fierce Love. The characters were likable, and the story logic and pacing were convincing. Plus, they were all completed works.

However, after reading a few more books, Ming Ying felt that the romances depicted in these stories relied too much on coincidence, either love at first sight or arranged marriages forcing two strangers together. It all felt somewhat illusory and unrealistic.

At least from her perspective, she couldn’t understand why the female lead in some novels would fall in love with the second female lead when there were many other, more outstanding women around her.

Ming Ying checked the time and saw that there was still some time before Fu Anyu returned. She closed the tablet and went downstairs to find Du Yunxin for answers.

Du Yunxin was in the middle of making soup when she scooped a small spoonful to taste it. Just then, Ming Ying’s voice came from the doorway: “Xiao Du, why do you like Xiao Chen?”

Caught completely off guard by the direct question, Du Yunxin froze.

It wasn’t until Ming Ying called her twice more that she snapped out of it, bringing her hand to her mouth and clearing her throat softly. “I just think she’s a really good person, good-looking, strong, reliable, and she makes me feel safe. It’s like she can do almost anything, except comfort people.”

“How do you humans usually fall in love?” Ming Ying asked curiously. “If you think someone is nice, can you just marry them?”

“Of course not!” Du Yunxin couldn’t help but laugh. “First, you have to get to know each other, at least become friends. Once you realize you share similar values, you gradually grow closer. When the timing feels right, you confess your feelings. If the other person feels the same way, then you can officially become a couple and start dating.”

“That sounds so complicated…” Ming Ying murmured.

“What about you fox demons?” Du Yunxin stirred the soup and asked. “You mentioned it before, but you didn’t go into detail.”

“Mostly, it’s arranged by the elders,” Ming Ying explained. “When a female fox comes of age, she either marries out or a male fox is brought into the family.” After a pause, she added, “Before marriage, private relationships are forbidden, and even with a fiancé, we’re not allowed to be too intimate.”

“I see,” Du Yunxin said, tasting the soup again as she adjusted the seasoning. “So, you must find the human way of dating and marriage pretty hard to get used to, right?”

“I’m actually okay with it,” Ming Ying lowered her head. “The reason I ran away from home was because I refused to marry the person my mother chose for me.”

But then, she ended up caught in a series of unexpected events, somehow finding herself in the human realm, with no idea when she’d be able to return.

“Hey, don’t be sad. Let’s take things one step at a time,” Du Yunxin set down the ladle, walked over to the doorway, and crouched down to gently stroke Ming Ying’s head. “I heard from Xiao Chen that ever since you arrived, President Fu has been investigating your address and identity.”

At the mention of “identity,” Ming Ying’s heart skipped a beat uneasily.

Du Yunxin continued, “Don’t worry. Once everything is cleared up, President Fu will definitely send you home. So, for now, just stay in the human realm, eat and drink well, focus on recovering, and enjoy reading your novels.”

She paused, then couldn’t resist adding a warning: “But it’s best if you don’t lie to President Fu. She hates being deceived more than anything. Besides, you’re eager to go home, right? If hiding the truth makes the investigation harder, you’ll only be delaying your own return.”

Ming Ying fell silent, her head still lowered as she wrestled with her thoughts.

Now that she had three tails, her identity wasn’t something she couldn’t reveal, it was more that she didn’t dare.

She was unfamiliar with everything in the human realm. She didn’t even understand why Fu Anyu was keeping her, nor did she know if Fu Anyu had any other roles beyond being a “president.”

From their first meeting, she had been intimidated by Fu Anyu and knew this woman was no ordinary human, she was skilled in combat. Until she figured things out, she still didn’t want to disclose her true identity.

Before coming to the human realm, she had been hunted to the brink of death. That feeling of utter despair and helplessness was something she never wanted to experience again.

And if she were to be pursued once more, she feared she wouldn’t escape this time.

Seeing that Ming Ying was unwilling to talk, Du Yunxin simply patted her head, fished a piece of stewed beef from the pot, and fed it to her. “Don’t overthink it. Are you hungry? Should I serve you some meat first to fill your stomach?”

Ming Ying responded softly, took the beef, and finished it in a few bites before suddenly asking, “Can I become friends with you all?”

“Of course!” Du Yunxin laughed. “We’re already friends, aren’t we? We can chat, keep each other company, and even,”

“What about… Fu Anyu?” Ming Ying whispered.

Du Yunxin’s smile stiffened. After a moment’s thought, she sighed helplessly. “I can’t guarantee that. After all, President Fu is my boss. Becoming friends with a boss like that, I wouldn’t even dare to imagine it.”

“A boss ‘like that’?” Ming Ying looked puzzled.

“Cold and distant, with a somewhat unpredictable temper, like the ‘three no’s’: doesn’t talk much, shows no expression, and is impossible to read.” Du Yunxin sighed. “It might be different for others, but I just can’t be friends with President Fu.”

Ming Ying nodded in agreement, thinking that Fu Anyu indeed had all the flaws Du Yunxin mentioned.

Yet, for some reason, she felt an inexplicable sense of security whenever she was near Fu Anyu, whether in dreams or in reality.