Fox ... in striped socks.

Takes place “just more than a week” after the novel’s ending. Contains explanation for the ending. Also fluff.

Original Chinese character count: 3629
Translated word count: 3336
[TN. see extra 4’s notes for names.]
Much thanks to @lady-eden for the final once-over.

——

The afternoon sun slants into the room. In the corner, a humidifier sprays white mist. An overcoat lies discarded carelessly on the guest sofa, its folds turning into pleats, but its owner doesn’t seem to care. It’s inordinately quiet, and the only sounds are fingers tapping on a keyboard. Zhao Yunlan sits behind his desk wearing a pair of UV protection glasses, busy correcting a report.

The more he checks it over, the more his brows furrow.

Zhao Yunlan picks up the internal office phone and dials Criminal Investigation across the hall, and with an angry tone, he says, “Lin Jing, get in here.”

Thirty seconds later, Lin Jing smoothly gets in there, snickering. “Leader, you called for me?”

Viciously, Zhao Yunlan tears into him. “Can you count how many incorrect words are in here? I don’t even know what sort of proper work you all do from day to night that a report can be written like … what are you doing?”

Lin Jing isn’t in the mood to take a scolding at all; he’s squeezing closer and stretching out an arm to adjust the angle of his camera, saying, “Come on, leader. Say cheezee —”

Zhao Yunlan wears no expression. “…Cheese your sister.”

[TN. btw, in Chinese we say 茄子 / eggplant. Which sounds like: qie zi, or nearly like cheese. Eggplant your sister.]

The camera makes a snapping sound and Lin Jing manages to take a photo of the two of them, and turns it around with too much enthusiasm to show Zhao Yunlan. Because of the odd angle and placement, and Lin Jing’s face being so close to the camera, it resembles a giant flat cake, and behind him, Zhao Yunlan with his sour face looking like a haunted spirit.

“It worked!” Lin Jin is groundlessly happy. “I thought the chaos era gods can’t be captured by mere mortal electronics, but I guess it’s like with Teacher Shen — you really are a human incarnation, right? Can you shift into your real immortal body at will? Ai. How about it — can you bring out your real body and take a picture with me?”

[TN. In all of the extras, the staff at S.I.D. refers to Shen Wei as Teacher Shen. In the novel, they stopped calling him Professor Shen after they got to know him. Think of it as familiar respect.]

Zhao Yunlan says nothing.

Lin Jing says, “Just one.”

Zhao Yunlan says, “Get out.”

And as smoothly as he came, Lin Jing gets out.

The office is only calm for five minutes before someone else knocks. Zhu Hong comes in. “Zhao Chu, I want to take back my resignation.”

Zhao Yunlan gestures at the shredder with his chin. “Already done.”

“Oh.” Zhu Hong pauses, and looking for an excuse to stay, states, “Since tomorrow is lunar 15th, I need to take a day off.”

“Okay, I got it.” Zhao Yunlan doesn’t even bother looking up.

After a while, Zhu Hong is still sitting there unmoving, so Zhao Yunlan finally glances up at her. “Is there anything else?”

“I’m just a little curious.” Zhu Hong stretches forward a bit, lowering her voice to ask, “Why did the Divine Wood Shen Wei give me grow a third bud? And how did the other two grow?”

Going by Zhao Yunlan’s expression, it looks like he doesn’t want to answer, but after all Zhu Hong is a lady, and he’s always more polite to ladies; especially to the ones that had secretly loved him and he had mercilessly rejected.

“The first bud grew when he made the contract with Shennong, the second bud grew when he fulfilled his promise, the third bud grew when he decided to …” Zhao Yunlan pauses, his expression darkening. Some time passes before he’s able to force himself to keep his temper in check, continuing to say, “The Wheel of Reincarnation couldn’t be established in the Land of Great Disrespect because the Ghost Tribe did not have souls. And the Divine Wood growing three buds represents the Ghost King gaining his three souls. The Ghost King’s soul connected the Wheel of Reincarnation to the Land of Great Disrespect, and thus the concept of ‘Ghost Tribe’ ceased to exist. Get it?”

[TN. 大不敬 is historically a crime against the Emperor, and since he’s divine, it’s a crime against the heavens. It literally reads “Great Disrespect.” The land beneath the 黃泉 or Yellow Spring is called 大不敬之地, literally The Land of Great Disrespect. While we’re at it, 黃泉 / Yellow Spring is the Chinese equivalent of Hades. It’s not hell. There’s another word for that.]

[TN. 三魂七魄: In Daoism, every person has three immortal souls and seven mortal forms. tbqh this translator was raised Daoist and still doesn’t get it — you try explaining the holy trinity.]

Zhu Hong thinks for a second, “Maybe … I guess I can understand it a little better. But where did the Ghost Tribe go?”

Zhao Yunlan waggles an eyebrow. “They’re nowhere, but they’re also everywhere.”

Zhu Hong says, “So … like how the Zhenhun Lamp that burns forever is everywhere?”

Zhao Yunlan makes a hum of agreement.

Zhu Hong asks another, “Then what about you? Will you return to Kunlun Mountain? Does the Zhenhun Ling still exist?”

Her voice carries a rare hesitation, as if she now remembers just who is sitting in front of her.

“Not going back.” Zhao Yunlan says as he copies a file to a USB stick and tosses it to Zhu Hong. “Give it a red header, and then put our official seal on it — Kunlun Mountain doesn’t have the kind of soil for tree planting and agriculture, so even if I go back I can’t exactly open the place up for agritourism. Go back for what? How interesting is it to receive morning prayers from a bunch of idiots? I’m definitely not going.”

[TN. Chinese government documents have red headers. Also, The yao tribes pray to Kunlun, and Zhu Hong is a yao, so he just called her an idiot.]

Zhu Hong catches the usb stick. “It still feels rather like a dream.”

Zhao Yunlan makes an inquisitive noise.

Zhu Hong says, “I was once secretly in love with Kunlun Jun. Why, fuck me, this old broad is awesome.”

[TN. That’s as close as I can get to 我擦，老娘怎麼那麼牛掰呢. Slang is hard. Old broad is referring to herself.]

Zhao Yunlan says nothing.

“Oh right,” Zhu Hong takes a card wallet out of her pocket, and finding a hotel discount gold card between her thick stack of bank cards and discount cards, tosses it onto Zhao Yunlan’s desk. “I heard you have a home you can’t go to. I’ll give you this 40% off. At least you won’t end up spending all your salary on cheap hotels. This is as much help as I can give you.”

Zhao Yunlan accepts the card without a word. He then rudely says to Zhu Hong, who’s been poking him where he hurts, “Get out.”

Zhu Hong gets out. Later, Chu Shuzhi brings in the documents Zhu Hong prepared, and then does an exceedingly unnecessary thing before making the delivery — like sitting across from Zhao Yunlan.

Zhao Yunlan throws his mouse. “Are you all quite finished?”

Chu Shuzhi says, “I’m only going to ask one thing.”

Zhao Yunlan says, “I never loved you! Also, Xiao Guo really is an incarnation of the Zhenhun Lamp’s wick. And now that we’re done talking you can get out.”

[TN. YL here says “I never loved you” and it is a meme that came from a short film about a couple breaking up. One of them asks via text “Before I go, I want to ask you one last question” and before they can text again to ask, the answer’s already come through, “I loved you.” Then it got memed and though the question’s always the same variation of “one last thing before I go,” the answers can be anything. You can say, “42,” for example. Or, “I’ll save my mom.”]

Chu Shuzhi asks, “So, that’s why he has great merit as granted by the heavens, same as Nuwa?”

Zhao Yunlan plays minesweeper on the computer with a savage expression. “To be a consistent kind of person for a hundred lifetimes as if for a day, consistently doing the same kind of things in order to keep the Zhenhun Lamp burning — would that not grant more merit than being a human? If you can’t fathom it because you suffer from middleschool disease, keep it to yourself. Stop being a disgrace.”

Chu Shuzhi’s brows furrow. “How awful. So he represents the conscience you especially lack?”

Zhao Yunlan replies, face utterly blank, “I’m going to say it once more. Get. Out.”

Chu Shuzhi takes one look at him, waggles a brow, and carries out his attack of ridicule. “Tch. An insatiable old man who can’t go home and has to go to a hotel can have such a terrible temper.”

Zhao Yunlan lifts his inscrutable face to stare dangerously at Chu Shuzhi. Chu Shuzhi shrugs, and humming a tune, slips out of the room.

On his monitor, minesweeper explodes in his face. Zhao Yunlan looks away, moody. “Fuck.”

He concludes his work, half the day spent idly minesweeping. When it’s nearly time to clock out, his office door is once again pushed open. Daqing shows his pitch-black cat head. “Ai. Someone’s looking for you.”

Zhao Yunlan looks up with astonishment, his UV protection glasses slipping down his nose a little. “I didn’t get an appointment…”

Daqing ignores him, turns around in a circle so he can use his butt to push the office door open, saying to the person behind him, “Come on in Teacher Shen.”

Once Zhao Yunlan figures out who’s behind the door, his expression darkens at light speed and he lowers his eyes, goes cold to say flatly, “If you’re here to report a crime, please go to the local police station. We don’t directly accept cases.”

Shen Wei must have just returned from school, a dozen lesson plans still clutched in his hands, and he smiles, looking helpless. “Yunlan…”

“Who are you? Don’t call me like that. I don’t know you,” Zhao Yunlan interrupts. “Sorry ah, sir. I banged my head a couple of days ago and somehow lost my memory — my head’s all foggy. Lately, I’m not fit to receive guests. Please do close the door for me on your way out, thank you.”

Strictly speaking, this is the first day Zhao Yunlan came into work after the incident. Shen Wei was in a coma for more than a week, and Zhao Yunlan silently stayed by him for more than a week. But after Shen Wei wakes and he made sure there’s nothing wrong with him, Zhao Yunlan doesn’t say anything further, and looking like he’s done with their relationship, leaves Shen Wei and his own apartment behind to stay elsewhere.

Shen Wei looks like he’s about to say something, but the clock-out bell on the desk rings; with motions too fast for the eyes Zhao Yunlan shuts down his computer and puts his work things away. Picking up his overcoat and briefcase he goes for the door, saying, “Ai, sir, you need to get out of the way. We’re all clocking out.”

Shen Wei grabs his wrist. “…I’m sorry.”

“Oh,” Zhao Yunlan blinks, lowering his voice to say with a smile that doesn’t reach his eyes, “You’re sorry? What are you sorry about? Think about it, and say it again. Here’s a friendly reminder: I hate people who break promises the most.”

Shen Wei is immediately hushed, his words gone.

Black cat Daqing licks at his paws, unconcerned, watching the scene that has nothing to do with him unfold. “Aiya, SM Deep Love.”

[TN. 虐戀情深 literally reads ‘SM Deep Love’, and it’s a tag used for light novels with angst.]

Zhao Yunlan tries tugging his hand back but it won’t budge an inch, and furrowing his brows, replies, “If you have something else to say, hurry up and say it. I have a date at the hotel after work.”

Shen Wei’s hand tightens for a moment, but in the end he’s no oily-mouthed smooth talker. He takes ages to mull his words over, and the the only thing he repeats is still the same “I’m sorry.”

Zhao Yunlan sneers at him, on one hand trying to make him let go, and on the other elaborating with nonchalance. “No worries. That fine with you? Do you need us to ‘take a bow’ and ‘shake shake hands’ to finish things off?”

[TN. Yunlan is referencing a nursery rhyme for rock paper and scissors.]

“Aiya, off in a hurry to bed someone else, huh,” the black cat comments, dragging out all his vowels in an attempt to make it sound dirty. Shen Wei glances down at him, and hears him meowing out the next sentence unhurriedly, “He wouldn’t dare even if he’s lent a gallbladder.”

Zhao Yunlan can’t say anything.

This ungrateful animal!

Across the hall, Criminal Investigation is also quietly packing up to leave work. Lin Jing is the first out the door, and he stares blankly for a second at the scene before him. “Oh, good day Teacher Shen. You’ve come to stop him from leaving? Great timing!”

Chu Shuzhi appears behind him, clapping. “Great timing! Good technique!”

Zhu Hong busies herself flipping the pages of a novel on her cell phone, doesn’t even look up as she announces a hotel name and room number. “I think a night raid is a great idea. You can resolve your mental conflict with physical compatibility.”

Within ten-odd days, it seems Zhu Hong’s worldview has entirely shattered, and through some means accidentally ascended to the plane of “love him and therefore would love to see him crushed by someone else.”

Guo Changcheng is the last to leave. He locks the door behind him and politely says, “Good day Teacher Shen.”

Even though he has no idea what’s going on, he unprecedentedly breaks form to add, “Zhao Chu, please don’t be angry anymore. Weren’t you worried sick when Teacher Shen got hurt a while ago? You watched over his bedside the whole time, didn’t even get any rest yourself.”

All the senior members turn to him, and in Guo Changcheng’s entirely confused gaze, collectively give him a thumbs up — young man, right in the bull’s eye, good job!

Guo Changcheng is at a complete loss, having no idea at all that he’s just inadvertently told on their leader, and is unknowingly about to face down an entire year of bullying by the boss.

Zhao Yunlan is again unable to say anything.

These ungrateful animals!

In the blink of an eye they all scatter like birds and beasts, leaving behind only Daqing who recklessly stays to watch, attempting to get some preview on the next installment. Unexpectedly, Lao Li, who is always late getting off work, approaches with a lunch box, filling the hallway with the smell of dried fish. Daqing cusses, “Shit,” under his breath, and walks around and around Shen Wei’s legs, saying, “Your honourable one, please take me in!”

Shen Wei takes Zhao Yunlan’s apartment keys out of his pocket and hangs them around the cat’s neck. Then Daqing makes like a rocket leaving a bow, stout and roundly leaping out of the window.

Of course, Lao Li sees this. He nods sadly at the two left in the hallway, bending to leave the lunchbox in front of the door to Criminal Investigation. He says to Zhao Yunlan, “You can heat it up tomorrow for Daqing to eat.”

Zhao Yunlan doesn’t know what face to wear in front of the person who bullied his cat when he wasn’t around, and impassively nods back at him. Lao Li sighs, “But it won’t be crunchy anymore.”

Looking a bit desolate, he leaves.

Finally, they are the only two left in a twilight flooded hallway.

Shen Wei waits for a while in the silence before saying gently, “Are you still not willing to forgive me?”

Zhao Yunlan turns away, suddenly gaining a deep interest in the weather outside.

Shen Wei lowers his head, and little by little, lets him go. “Kunlun, you…you can punish me however you want.”

[TN: he literally says, “You can have/make me do whatever” (or make whatever happen to me) but above is the implication.]

Really, Zhao Yunlan hasn’t thought about punishing Shen Wei — he can’t hit him, and he can’t yell at him, but his heart won’t calm so he can only get angry. He equivocally says with neither yin nor yang in his tone, “What are you saying, sir? I really did come down with a case of am-ne-si-a without any warning. Honestly, I have no idea what’s happened. Don’t try to confuse me because I’ve become a fool — being a human means you have to be generous and kind, you know.”

Shen Wei’s lips are turning pale, and Zhao Yunlan steels himself so he would stop looking. He turns to leave, but he doesn’t even get to take a step before he hears a sound that makes him whip his head around, and finds Shen Wei kneeling.

It makes him pause before saying, “What are you doing?” Bending down to tug at him. “What is wrong with you? Get up!”

Shen Wei doesn’t make a sound.

Zhao Yunlan speaks again, “Get up!”

Shen Wei still doesn’t make a sound.

Exasperated, Zhao Yunlan doesn’t know what else to do but to join him, and sits down on the floor.

After a while, he reaches out to poke at Shen Wei, “Ai, sun’s about to set. Night shift’s going to come out. Aren’t you worried about losing face, your honourable Zhanhun-shi?”

Shen Wei whispers, “Didn’t you say you don’t remember me?”

Zhao Yunlan utters after a pause, feeling in no mood at all for this. “Yes, right. Who are you, sir?”

Shen Wei’s grasp tightens.

Zhao Yunlan is silent for a time, then says, “If Shennong wasn’t scheming all along, didn’t let the real Kunlun Jun out when you tried to rob me of my memories, what would have happened to me? Would I forget everything when I wake up like everyone else? To never know that you ever existed? Would everything that has to do with you also vanish, and I’m left to wonder who remodelled my kitchen — am I right?”

Shen Wei hesitates a beat before nodding.

Zhao Yunlan coldly asks, “Actually, I really want to ask: just how ruthless is your heart?”

Shen Wei tentatively reaches out, and on seeing that Zhao Yunlan doesn’t avoid him, slowly gathers him into his arms. He looks as though he has a million justifications, but none of them would leave his mouth. He doesn’t even want to mention his reasons, he just apologizes for the third time, this time next to Zhao Yunlan’s ear. “I’m sorry. I was wrong.”

It seems no matter how much pain he is in, he can bury all of it like a secret, cross it off with a single brush stroke; right and wrong doesn’t matter — he would admit to his mistakes as a matter of course.

What little anger was barely hanging onto Zhao Yunlan’s heart extinguishes all of a sudden, and so completely that not even ashes are left behind. Faintly, his heart aches.

He lets Shen Wei hold onto him and bringing them both up from the floor, heads outside, following a path of twilight.

Shen Wei follows, and he asks softly, full of hope, “Going home?”

Zhao Yunlan states, “Hotel.”

Shen Wei’s footsteps stop abruptly behind him, hope draining out of his gaze.

Zhao Yunlan sighs. Still sounding a bit mean, he tells Shen Wei, “I already paid for the room. So what if I stay another night?”

Shen Wei blinks, staring at him, not seeming to understand.

“Besides, I didn’t say you can’t come with.”

——-

And that’s all. Feel free to ask me about anything. I’ll probably get through extra 2 and 3 at some point, so i made a new tag to keep them organised. it’s #fox-translates-zhen-hun