My Evil Wife Is a Nine-Tailed Fox

Shen Minyao had been frequently visiting Zhao Yichen since then, not bothering to hide the fact that she was meeting him anymore. Since she needed to establish her acquaintance with Zhao Yichen to escalate the impending nullification of her engagement to Su Yin, the fox woman made sure that she had been since visiting Zhao Yichen. 

"Classmate Shen, who are you visiting at the city hospital?" Li Fei'er asked the fox woman as they made their way to the hospital, along with Lu Anqi, after school. 

Since Jiang Chen and Lu Anqi had decided to pick up Jin Qian's case, they needed to gather more information about the girl and her missing mother. 

"I'm visiting my boyfriend," Shen Minyao said without batting an eyelid, "He's still recovering from his surgery, so I made sure to drop by to see him once in a while."

Li Fei'er would have tripped and planted her own face on the road if Lu Anqi didn't manage to hold her arm to keep her from falling. She then stared wide-eyed at Shen Minyao. 

"You have a boyfriend?" She blinked twice, not sure if she heard Shen Minyao right. 

The fox woman furrowed her brows upon seeing Li Fei'er and Lu Anqi's reaction. 

"Why are you so surprised? Is it really far-fetched to believe that I got myself a boyfriend?" 

"No, it's not that." Li Fei'er realized that she might have overreacted. "You've never mentioned him before, so we were surprised." 

Shen Minyao hummed but remained silent. It's only natural for them not to know Zhao Yichen as she hadn't thought of how she would explain how they met each other. What's more, they might suspect her identity if they found out that she and Zhao Yichen were at the same place and time of the nine-tailed fox's disappearance. 

"We just want to keep it private, considering how nosy people could be when it comes to my affairs." She was talking about how Shen Qing still annoyed her to this day. 

"Could you introduce him to us sometime later then?" Lu Anqi grinned. 

"I'll have to ask for his opinion first. He's quite a private and shy person," the fox woman replied before they realized that they arrived at the city hospital. 

One part of the hospital was under construction, which was ruined by the fire Mu Qing started after they managed to kill the spider demon. Guest and unauthorized personnel weren't allowed to get into that part of the hospital, and most of the patients were moved to the other vacant rooms, while the reconstruction of the neurology department was still ongoing. 

Shen Minyao parted ways with Li Fei'er and Lu Anqi as she went to the private recovery ward where Zhao Yichen was currently staying. She wasn't interested in getting involved with Jin Qian's case since she had nothing to gain from it in the first place. 

She found Zhao Yichen standing next to the window of his room, while Yu Yan was curled in the bed, sleeping peacefully. Now that his life was out of danger, Zhao Yichen felt better these days. 

"You know, you don't have to drop by to see me every day," he said once he spotted the fox woman standing in the doorway, still dressed in her school uniform. 

"I'm bored. There's nothing else for me to do except to study for the exams." Shen Minyao dropped her school bag on the nearby couch and pierced the strawberry yogurt drink with the straw in her other hand. 

"Are you waiting for another demon to show up?" He asked. This time, he faced her. 

Zhao Yichen was still dressed in a hospital gown, and he hoped that the bodyguard he sent away earlier would come back soon, with more appropriate clothes he could wear other than this. 

"It would have been better if a demon came my way. The faster I regain my strength, the better." The fox woman shrugged. 

"But what if the demon is too strong for you to deal with?"

Zhao Yichen was worried that she would sustain another injury again. Shen Minyao didn't tell him, but Xiao Bai and Yu Yan had made it known to him that she had almost lost her life the last time she hunted a demon. If she didn't defeat that spider demon, they had no doubt that she could have died from her injuries. 

Shen Minyao gave him a blank look. She wondered if he was truly concerned about her safety. Other humans would choose to break ties with a demon like her out of fear, but why was Zhao Yichen too calm in her presence? Wasn't he afraid of her anymore? 

The fox woman rose to her feet and sauntered towards her human contractor, invading his private space. She took a good sniff of his scent, but aside from confusion, she couldn't catch the scent of fear and terror on him. 

How odd, she thought. Aside from Little Jiu, Zhao Yichen was the second human being that didn't have any hint of fear on his scent when it came to her. 

"W-what is it?" Zhao Yichen asked, wondering what was going on in her mind this time. Shen Minyao had never been this close to him before. 

The fox woman stepped back and returned to her previous seat, waving a hand on her contractor's question. Zhao Yichen might have a misconception about him being her human contractor. However, soon enough, he would realize how wrong he was for letting his guard down, especially around her. 

"Are you worried that you will also die once I perish? You worry too much."

Zhao Yichen cocked his head to one side, wondering if she had somehow misunderstood his concern towards her.. Were all demons as prideful as the nine-tailed fox in front of him? However, what Shen Minyao said made sense to him. How could he forget that their lives were connected for a limited time until the fox woman was able to recreate another orb?