「Lunchtime.」

Huai Xu had plucked Tuanzi from the tree, holding her by the scruff of her neck.

And Tuanzi, behaving obediently, let him do so. Her limbs hung naturally, her tail covered her private parts, and her eyes were unconsciously fixated on the ground. Due to inertia, her tiny body was still swinging left and right.

Huai Xu tossed her onto the ground.

"MEOW…"

Tuanzi rolled on the ground for a moment before belatedly scrambling up. She shook her head, gradually regaining her senses.

She twisted her head, looking first at Huai Xu, then at Zhou Li. Next, she gazed at Brother Nan, Zheng Zhilan, Qinghe, and the group of big dogs gathered around to watch the excitement. After a long pause, she asked in a soft, gentle voice, "Why didn't you help Lord Dumpling down earlier? Lord Dumpling was calling out to you from up there for so long; my voice went hoarse."

"Didn't hear you," said Huai Xu.

"Liar!" Tuanzi exclaimed, turning her little head. "It'd be more believable if you said Zhou Li didn't hear, but you definitely did!" she added indignantly.

Just then, Zhou Li stepped forward, picked her up, and gently changed the subject. "Why did Lord Dumpling climb up the tree?"

"Lord Dumpling wanted to play."

"Play with what?"

"Play with the little birds."

"Emmm… How did you get up there?"

"Lord Dumpling did this, this, and then that…" Tuanzi gesticulated wildly, showing off her skills. "WHOOSH! I zipped right up!"

"Then why couldn't you get down?" Huai Xu interjected.

"Not talking to you!"

"…"

The small mountain village was surprisingly cool. But Zheng Zhilan mentioned that eating would make them feel hot, and Brother Nan also disliked the heat, so she went to turn on the electric fan.

The living room was equipped with an old-fashioned ceiling fan. Judging by the oxidation marks on the paint, it seemed to be at least ten years old. Its quality was genuinely robust, but it was definitely aging. As soon as the fan was turned on, it wobbled slightly, gradually picking up speed with a buzzing sound, taking at least a minute to reach its proper rotational speed.

Brother Nan stared at the ceiling. "Your fan is different from mine at home," she observed. "The highest setting is five here, but it's one at my place."

After a pause, she added, "But this one should be replaced; it's so old."

Zheng Zhilan just nodded.

Nearby, Tuanzi also craned her little head high, staring at the buzzing ceiling fan. "It's going to fall down," she said with trepidation.

"It won't," Zhou Li reassured her.

"MEOW~~"

Tuanzi kept looking up at the ceiling fan, tilting her head higher and higher until it went beyond a ninety-degree angle, then she tumbled backward onto the ground.

Zhou Li, smiling despite himself, pulled her up to sit properly and began to put tofu into her bowl. "Time to eat," he said. "Try this Bear's Paw Tofu. It's made from the paw of a nationally protected wild animal; one bear only has four paws."

"Liar~" Tuanzi chirped.

"No lies," Zhou Li replied.

"Lord Dumpling saw on Animal Planet that bears are very big and scary! Only tigers can catch them!"

"What about the Evil God?"

"Umm…"

Well, Lord Dumpling had better savor this!

So Tuanzi lowered her head, gently touched the tofu with her mouth, then looked up at Zhou Li again.

"It's too hot…"

"I'll blow on it for you… Open your mouth."

"AHH~"

"Is it good?"

"Too hot, hot, hot…"

The outside of the tofu had been cooled by his blowing, but the inside remained hot. Tuanzi was so scalded she kept hissing, while Zhou Li couldn't help but curl his lips into a smile.

He also tasted a piece.

Bear's Paw Tofu is first deep-fried and then stir-fried. It's coated with a thick sauce when served, giving it a golden-red appearance and a glossy sheen that makes it look very appetizing. The texture is crispy on the outside and soft on the inside, with a rich and robust flavor that lived up to its appearance.

No wonder Tuanzi also said it was delicious.

Zhou Li gave Zheng Zhilan a thumbs up.

This broth would probably be good with rice too…

Maybe not…

He was afraid Tuanzi would clamor for Bear Paw Rice every day from now on.

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Brother Nan and Huai Xu already engrossed in eating, paying no mind to offering praise, but words were needless anyway.

Zhou Li picked up a piece of Empress Tofu.

This one was relatively mild, which was evident just by looking at it—the complete opposite of the Bear's Paw Tofu.

He still offered it to Tuanzi first. "This is Empress Tofu," he said.

Seeing Tuanzi's eyes widen, he quickly explained, "It's the tofu that imperial concubines loved in ancient times. Because the ingredients are rare and valuable, only the most favored concubine in the Imperial Palace had the privilege to eat it. Today, Little Zheng spared no expense because Lord Dumpling is here."

Miss Zheng, standing beside them, bowed her head deeply.

「One hour later.」

The table had been swept clean.

While Zhou Li didn't use the tofu soup to soak his rice, Brother Nan didn't pass up the chance. It seemed their thinking was on the same wavelength.

This didn't mean any soup from the other tofu dishes remained.

There was still Huai Xu, after all.

Zhou Li suspected that if there had been a plate of steamed buns on the table, Huai Xu would have even wiped the plates clean with them, not even sparing the green vegetable and tofu soup.

"Let's take a break before cleaning up," Brother Nan said, half-reclining on the Taishi Chair, gaping, her eyes glazed over.

"You sit, I'll clean up," Zhou Li said.

"Hmm!"

Brother Nan continued to half-recline, one hand on her stomach, her eyeballs the only things moving as she watched Zhou Li and Zheng Zhilan clearing the bowls and chopsticks.

The two moved in and out…

The passage from the main hall to the kitchen wasn't very wide. Two people cleaning up were enough; any more and they would get in each other's way.

So she lay there, perfectly content.

Not only that, but as Zheng Zhilan passed by, she sneakily gave her bottom a playful pat.

This gave Miss Zheng quite a scare.

Brother Nan chuckled. "Eating your tofu…"

Miss Zheng, after all, wasn't from the world below the mountain. She knew this kind of teasing was quite normal there. But with Huai Xu also lounging nearby, she still blushed. She quickly picked up her bowl and hastened back to the kitchen to start washing dishes.

「Afternoon.」

Tuanzi ran out to play in the yard again. This time, she didn't climb trees but was completely engrossed in catching butterflies and bees, thoroughly enjoying herself.

Huai Xu was gnawing on roasted corn.

There were only six cobs of roasted corn, to be shared among three people and three demons. Huai Xu was allotted one and a half cobs. After finishing his share, he moved on to eating boiled corn.

The boiled corn was what Zheng Zhilan and Qinghe had for breakfast that morning. Since they had corn, they had been too lazy to bother making anything else for breakfast. According to Zheng Zhilan, she had recently started waking up later than before and had also become a bit lazier.

Brother Nan said it was all Zhou Li's fault.

Zhou Li hadn't dared to argue at the time.

Zheng Zhilan poured a cup of herbal tea for each of them and listened quietly to the cicadas and birdsong outside. She had originally thought the cicadas' song was their call. However, Zhou Li later told her it was produced by a vibrating organ in the abdomen of male cicadas. So, in her imagination, the cicadas' song transformed from a call made with an open mouth to a sound emanating from a mouth on their bellies.

From the sounds, she could identify the location of the cicadas and distinguish the different calls of each one.

There was also the sound of the wind…

The rustle of the leaves…

The flapping of birds' wings…

All these sounds sketched vivid images in her mind.

Zhou Li, of course, heard these sounds too and noticed Zheng Zhilan listening quietly. But he always felt something was off—

It felt like something was missing.

But he couldn't quite pinpoint what.

This feeling was quite unsettling.

He thought hard for a long time before it suddenly dawned on him. He asked Zheng Zhilan, "Right, why haven't we heard the Evil God's voice today?"

"He's in a bad mood," Zheng Zhilan replied.

"Is it because the weather is too hot?" Zhou Li asked.

"No, it's because he lost a fight."

"Hmm?"

"How is that possible! Who could beat him?" Huai Xu exclaimed, lifting his head. His mouth was smudged black on both sides from the corn, and his face was full of disbelief. "Could it be that Hong Ran ordered Zhisha to lead a group of Blood Demons to ambush him again, like before? Or perhaps it was that so-called strongest fighter in the Demon Realm… Anyway, in the entire Demon Realm, at most three or five individuals could beat him in a one-on-one fight, not even a Demon King."

"But if it really is any of those I mentioned…" Huai Xu continued to speculate, "then it wouldn't be a simple fight. He'd most likely be gone by now!"

"It's not that."

Zheng Zhilan shook her head. After a moment's hesitation, she said, "A few days ago, a very powerful master passed by our vicinity. Because his spiritual power was so immense, it attracted the Evil God's attention. The Evil God is belligerent, so he went over and picked a fight with him…"

Huai Xu was stunned. He immediately put down his corn. "Did that master win easily?" he asked.

"Very easily," Zheng Zhilan nodded.

She also stole a glance at Zhou Li.

Huai Xu let out a long breath. He already knew who that master was; only Master Ming possessed such formidable power.

"Sigh…"

After sighing, he continued to nibble on the corn.

Turning disappointment into strength.

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