Wagging My Tail in the Ice Queen CEO’s Embrace - Chapter 68

When she turned around, Ming Ying felt there was nothing left to fear. The sensation in the water would be dulled, she had endured it in the backyard earlier, so having her tail scrubbed in the water should be even less of a problem.

But she never expected Fu Anyu to scrub all four tails at once!

The discomfort from having one tail rubbed was still bearable, but with all four together, Ming Ying couldn’t hold back and shouted, “Stop!”

Fu Anyu stopped immediately, watching as the little fox turned around, her face flushed as she gathered all her tails back, awkwardly saying, “Let’s just scrub my body instead.”

Ming Ying’s hair was very long, and when soaked in the bathtub, it nearly covered half of it. Du Yunxin had mentioned trimming it earlier but hadn’t cut off much.

Fu Anyu moved her hair to one side, splashed water onto her shoulders, and began making small circular motions with her palm, both washing and massaging her.

Observing up close, she noticed the little fox’s skin was incredibly tender. After just a short soak in slightly warm water, it turned pink, feeling smooth and delicate to the touch. It was clear she had been pampered since childhood to have such flawless skin.

At first, Ming Ying was quite shy. Whenever Fu Anyu touched her, she would fidget uncomfortably, her body tense like a misbehaving child being punished, full of nervousness.

But then she remembered that when she was still in her fox form, Fu Anyu had bathed her many times. Her human and fox forms were both her, she couldn’t treat them as separate. Giving herself a mental note not to be nervous, she focused on enjoying Fu Anyu’s massage and gradually relaxed.

Before long, she was so comfortable that she narrowed her eyes, her body swaying slightly with the motion. The rising steam made her cheeks feel warm, and she couldn’t help but gently pat her face to cool down.

“Uncomfortable?” Fu Anyu asked.

“No, it feels really good,” Ming Ying quickly shook her head. “I didn’t know you were skilled in massage!”

Fu Anyu smiled faintly and moved on to scrubbing her arms.

“Sometimes I think it would be nice to stay in the human realm with my family,” Ming Ying suddenly said. “There’s everything here, it’s so convenient, and I could be with my friends. Or if the two realms were connected, even if I went home, I could come back anytime to see you.”

This struck a chord with Fu Anyu, but she didn’t respond. In her view, the little fox’s wish was simply impossible.

First, the two realms couldn’t be connected. If the benefits of interconnection outweighed the drawbacks, the rulers wouldn’t have let the entrance to the demon realm disappear for a full century. Second, if Ming Ying truly returned home, as she had mentioned, she would likely be married off to another fox clan. Even if not, her clan would never allow her to leave again.

“Don’t you want to escape anymore?” Fu Anyu deliberately asked.

“Where could I even run to in this unfamiliar place?” Ming Ying lowered her head. “Besides, if I really escaped, wouldn’t you all be upset? You’ve taken care of me for so long and promised to help me find my home. If I still ran away, wouldn’t that clearly show I don’t trust you?”

The human realm was simply too vast. When she first arrived, she had naively thought escaping would be easy, which was why the idea had crossed her mind.

“Although I’m willing to stay by your side peacefully, I still miss home,” Ming Ying said, her voice tinged with sadness. “Even if I could just send a letter to my family, I want to tell them that I’m doing well in the human realm, that no evil spirits are chasing me, that I’m not suffering, that I have people willing to take care of me, and… and that I’ve gained a ‘sister’ who is much younger than me.”

“After your bath, I’ll go urge Master Hu,” Fu Anyu said.

Ming Ying obediently agreed, then thought for a moment and asked, “So, if there are any clues about ‘Sack,’ will we have to leave home to search for the demon realm?”

She found the four-character nickname too long and simply started calling Hu Xiuliu “Sack.”

“Yes, when the time comes, I’ll take time off to accompany you,” Fu Anyu said, scrubbing her back before adding, “We won’t delay too long to avoid complications.”

“Thank you, sister. You’ve worked hard,” Ming Ying expressed her heartfelt gratitude.

“Why are you so sweet with words now?” Fu Anyu laughed. “Did you learn that from Xiao Du?”

“Not entirely,” Ming Ying thought about it. “The comment sections of online novels often say things like that. I learned it from there. Xiao Du said it’s called ‘rainbow farts,’ used to praise authors, but you can also use it to compliment family and friends.”

Though she didn’t understand why rainbows were associated with farts, since Xiao Du said it was a compliment and Fu Anyu had just praised her for being sweet, she figured it must be a good term.

“Don’t learn everything you see,” Fu Anyu reminded her. “Novels are ultimately imaginary worlds. Some things that seem sweet in stories can be awkward when done in real life.”

“Yes, I know,” Ming Ying nodded.

The scent of jasmine mixed with the steam made her drowsy, but she gathered her energy and tried to find a new topic.

“My tail seems to really like you,” she said. “Earlier in the backyard, it actually wrapped around you on its own! I’ve never seen that happen before.”

Fu Anyu didn’t have many demon friends and was learning for the first time that the trope “the demon and its tail are not the same being” was real. She teased, “Does your tail have a mind of its own?”

“I’m not sure, but I think it might,” Ming Ying stroked her tail. “Father once said that each of our tails is like an external incarnation, similar to how humans say ‘cats have nine lives.’ If one tail represents one life, then they should all have their own consciousness, right?”

At this point, she suddenly realized something terrifying: if her tails truly had their own consciousness, wouldn’t that mean she had gained many more rivals in love out of nowhere?! And to make matters worse, each tail was attached to her body. When she extended her tails to get closer to Fu Anyu, the tails were probably “watching” Fu Anyu too.

Should she retract all her tails now?

“Why did you suddenly go quiet?” Fu Anyu asked.

Ming Ying hadn’t snapped out of her imagination yet, her face flushed with embarrassment. Fortunately, she was still facing away from Fu Anyu, so she replied calmly, “I was just thinking about my tails.”

Even without seeing her expression, Fu Anyu couldn’t help but smile at her earnest tone.

“Are you jealous of your own tails now?” she asked.

“I didn’t!” Ming Ying instantly reacted like a cat whose tail had been stepped on when her hidden thoughts were exposed. “Th-they’re part of my body! Whatever they do is because I-”

She spoke without thinking, only realizing halfway how her words sounded. Her face, which had just cooled down, flushed hot again.

Before she could explain, Fu Anyu asked, “So, it was actually you who wanted to wrap your tails around me, right?”

This direct hit from the ice-cold CEO left Ming Ying disoriented, her mind buzzing.

She wanted to deny it, but she’d already dug her own grave while explaining her “tail jealousy.” Since Fu Anyu hated lies most of all, she absolutely couldn’t dance on that landmine!

So, Ming Ying could only wilt and admit: “Yes.”

“Why wrap them around me?” Fu Anyu tossed out an even harder question.

Ming Ying nearly blurted “love comes unbidden,” but barely held back. After struggling for a long time, she squeezed out: “Because, there’s something about you that makes me feel at ease.”

As for what exactly that feeling was, she hoped Fu Anyu wouldn’t press further. If asked again, she’d truly be at a loss for words!

“At ease?” She heard Fu Anyu chuckle lightly. “So many people fear me, avoid getting close, even think I’m ‘best admired from afar.’ Yet you like sticking to me.”

Hearing this, Ming Ying replied somewhat unhappily: “They’re them, I’m me! They’re either scared because you seem fierce and cold, or they fear your power and wealth. But when you take care of me, even though you were icy at first, you’re actually patient and careful. Having seen that side of you, how could I still be afraid?”

“But what you’ve seen are my better sides,” Fu Anyu said. “Little fox, everyone has at least two faces. Many friendships drift apart because people can’t accept the other side of each other.”

“Then you can try showing me your other side,” Ming Ying suggested. “We have no conflicting interests; we’re even from different worlds. I don’t understand human complexities; I only trust what I see.”

Though she said this, she still felt somewhat uneasy inside.

Could Fu Anyu possibly be one of those superficially refined and calm types who’s actually obsessive, crazy, and gloomy underneath?

If that were Fu Anyu’s true nature, she’d indeed need some time to accept it.

Not long after Ming Ying finished speaking, she suddenly felt warm water pouring over her head. Fu Anyu had produced a bath ladle from somewhere and was scooping water over her.

“I’m not ready yet,” she heard Fu Anyu murmur. “Let me keep wearing the mask a while longer.”

Fu Anyu thought to herself: The self beneath all these surface disguises was actually someone weak, content with the status quo, who wished she could live in an ideal world.

Before her parents’ accident, she hadn’t even planned for her future. Every day besides dealing with schoolwork, she immersed herself in creation, wanting to weave the many fantasies in her mind into moving stories, pouring them into words.

But after the car accident five years ago, everything changed.

That young writer full of whimsical ideas had long since disappeared without a trace.

She admired that version of herself, yet she also rejected it. Immersed in her creative pursuits, her world had become narrow, and she was never skilled at social interactions. When she first took over at Shengwei Group, she endured countless hardships, often found herself in awkward situations, and even contemplated ending her life.

Now, she had moved past those struggles, but deep within, many shadows remained.

She thought, Little Fox, born into wealth and privilege, had always sailed smoothly through life, carefree and untroubled, she would surely never be drawn to such darkness.

Yet, to her surprise, Ming Ying turned around, took her hand, and asked, “Do you not feel tired, forcing a smile in front of me?”