My Evil Wife Is a Nine-Tailed Fox

Zhao Yichen listened to Gu Liuxian's story. The latter told him tales and his experience when he was still at med school and when he started working as a doctor. He tried his best to focus on what his friend was saying, but he couldn't ignore the fact that the same demoness who arrived with Gu Liuxian today… was in the same room with them, glaring at Yu Yan. 

The woman hadn't said anything, only looking at them in confusion. No doubt, she was curious why Zhao Yichen could see her and how the black cat managed to set a barrier to protect him from sneak attacks. 

"Yichen, do you remember when we were younger?" Gu Liuxian suddenly asked, taking Zhao Yichen's mind out of trance. 

Zhao Yichen stiffened at that question. Most people found him peculiar and creepy when he was young. Hence, he didn't have a lot of friends in the past. 

"What about it?" He asked in return, sensing that his friend wanted to ask him something, only to find Gu Liuxian hesitating. 

"When we were younger, there had been talks that you could see something that we couldn't. Our schoolmates kept talking about how you would always be on your own, not making friends with anyone. Some even claimed that they'd seen you running in the hallways in fear and talking to yourself. 

"You are my friend, and I didn't want to believe them… though I did find you peculiar at times but never questioned you, but…" Gu Liuxian's words trailed off as he took a deep sigh. He then mustered all the courage he had to confront Zhao Yichen. 

"Zhao Yichen, can you really see them? If you do, can you help me just this once?" He asked. 

There. He said it. He wasn't sure whether Zhao Yichen would help him or not, but he didn't have anything to lose by lowering his pride and asking Zhao Yichen for this favor. 

"What is this about, Gu Liuxian? If you are here to mock me for what happened in the past, I think you should leave now," Zhao Yichen replied and rose to his feet, intending to leave. However, Gu Liuxian held his wrist, stopping him from leaving. 

"No. No. No. It's not like that! If you were upset with me because I chose to keep my distance from you during our high-school days, then I'm sorry. I was really foolish back then. I should have believed you the first time you said you could see them!" Gu Liuxian exclaimed. 

Zhao Yichen stared at his friend and then at the demoness whose expression had changed after witnessing Gu Liuxian's sudden outburst. Truth to be told, he didn't hold it against Gu Liuxian when the latter stopped hanging out with him and chose their schoolmates instead. 

Because of his unwanted ability to see ghosts, Zhao Yichen was forced to isolate himself from other people. He was frequently bullied and hurt intentionally by the malevolent ghosts he encountered as well, and so Zhao Yichen would rather keep everyone away than have someone hurt because of him. 

He took a deep breath and came back to his seat. Something must have been on Gu Liuxian's mind for him to ask for help. 

"Then, tell me what is it about? Is there a malevolent spirit harming you?" He asked, gauging Gu Liuxian's reaction. There was something about the way his friend spoke that bothered him. If this demoness following Gu Liuxian was feeding on his life force, then he would ask Yu Yan if she could deal with it. 

Gu Liuxian shook his head, his hands tightening around the cup he was holding. 

"No. In fact, I want to see someone. I want to see her again." He lowered his head as he remembered the old days. 

'Her?' Zhao Yichen thought and then glanced at the demoness who was staring at his friend.

"Fourth Master, would you mind hearing a story?" Gu Liuxian said in a tone with such helplessness Zhao Yichen had never heard from him before. 

Gu Liuxian was a chatty person. He could easily befriend someone and get along with others without a problem, unlike Zhao Yichen. 

Zhao Yichen nodded, while Yu Yan leaped on the glass coffee table in front of them and stared at Gu Liuxian's face as if she was also interested to hear his story. The demoness hadn't done anything suspicious nor tried to attack Zhao Yichen, but that didn't mean the black cat had lowered her guard just because she wanted to listen to his narrative. 

"When I was still in my freshman years at med school, I met this young, beautiful woman during a heavy rainfall at a local park." Gu Liuxian started, "Do you know the first thing I thought of when I saw her? I thought: 'Damn, she's a real beauty. Even the stars would fail in comparison to her.' 

"She was dressed in a pink robe, the one you've seen on historical dramas. I initially thought that she was an actress and there was an ongoing shooting in the area, but there was none." 

He then left out a chuckle as his mind took a trip down the memory lane, the first time he met her. Meanwhile, Zhao Yichen and Yu Yan were getting a hint that the woman Gu Liuxian was talking about… was the demoness that had come with him today. 

"I asked her what she was doing in the middle of a rainstorm, and she said with a cold tone: 'I'm here to protect these flowers. They wouldn't survive this storm if I left them on their own.' 

"I thought that she was speaking nonsense and offered to share my umbrella, but she declined. She insisted on staying at that place, covering the bushes with the sleeves of her robes.. In the end, I had no other choice but to give her my umbrella and leave as fast as possible, hoping I wouldn't miss the train."