In the kitchen.

The chicken sizzled as it stir-fried in the oil, releasing aromas of meat and spices, some of which were pungent.

ACHOO!

Brother Nan couldn't help but sneeze.

As the ultra-spicy Qinghai chilies hit the pan, white smoke rose, and the piercing aroma in the kitchen suddenly became overpowering, making Brother Nan's sneezing relentless.

ACHOO! ACHOO!...

"Who is cursing me?"

She rubbed her nose and glanced at the pot, her mouth already starting to water.

Suddenly, as if realizing something, she whirled her head, only to see someone leaning against the kitchen doorframe, silently watching them.

He looked somewhat pitiful.

She immediately broke into a smile and asked, "What are you doing here?"

"Watching you cook..."

"Can you even see?"

"..."

HEH HEH!

Brother Nan laughed as she pinched a piece of soy-braised beef and casually stuffed it into Zhou Li's mouth. "This is a reward for you!"

Zhou Li silently accepted the feeding.

Because Brother Nan's movements were rather rough, her hand touched his lips.

That must be considered a perk, right?

After finishing the soy-braised beef, Zhou Li still stood by the doorframe, watching the two young ladies bustling inside and listening to their chatter. Every time Zheng Zhilan finished preparing a dish, Brother Nan would take the first bite, then give the second to him, teasing him that he was only standing there to mooch food.

He also saw Qinghe wrapping chili-covered meat in pumpkin leaves and placing it into the stove to cook.

This was supposed to be his job...

He wasn't short on special treatment during the meal either.

Although his current vision was as impaired as Zheng Zhilan's usually was, when it came to self-care, he was far from matching Miss Zheng. As a result, someone not only poured his tea and served his rice but also helped him get food from the dishes and ladled soup for him.

He found the attention from Brother Nan, in particular, utterly addictive.

To have Brother Nan, his 'big brother' from the old days, personally get food for him... TSK TSK!

"The chicken is tasty."

"Then I'll get some more for you."

"It's a bit spicy."

"If it's spicy, drink some water. I just refilled your tea."

"Oh."

Zhou Li, with a serious expression, went to reach for his water cup, 'accidentally' missing it and knocking against the teacup, causing a few drops of tea to splash out.

So Brother Nan picked up the teacup and placed it directly into his hand.

A sly smile touched Zhou Li's lips, but he hid it in an instant. He caught Zheng Zhilan stealthily glancing at him out of the corner of his eye. Honestly, he had felt a bit embarrassed at first, but seeing that the kind Miss Zheng didn't expose him, he grew bolder.

He lowered his head to take a sip of water, and when he looked up again, his expression was calm. "Thanks, Brother Nan... can you help me with another bowl of rice?"

"Sure!"

"The soup is pretty good too."

"Shall I scoop another bowl for you?"

"Yes, please."

"Here you go."

"It's a bit hot..."

"Of course it's hot, it just came out of the pot. Can't you wait for it to cool before drinking?" Brother Nan felt a bit exasperated. "Am I supposed to blow on it for you too?"

"Then thank you, Brother Nan."

"?! You want me to blow it cool and then feed it to you?"

"I'm really troubling you."

"Trouble my foot!"

Brother Nan finally realized something was off. She tried to recall what had just happened, her brows quickly furrowing, her eyes also stinging from the spiciness. "Hey, I'm telling you, this whole act of yours is, for some reason, giving me a bit of a headache."

"What headache?" Zhou Li asked sharply.

SLAP!

"Sorry for troubling you." Zhou Li quickly lowered his head in apology, his voice weak. "I'll just do it myself later."

"Such a fake persona! It's cringeworthy!"

"Did chili splash into your eyes?"

"You're the one who's cringeworthy!"

"You... Why would you say that about me?"

"Shut up!"

MMPH!

Brother Nan took a deep breath. "I just realized! Your eyesight might be bad, but that doesn't mean your mouth is disabled, and it's not like you can't see at all. How come Miss Zheng isn't as fussy as you are?"

"So you've seen through my act..."

BANG!

It was only then that Miss Zheng finally couldn't help herself, lowering her head and letting out a soft chuckle. Just a single chuckle.

「Afternoon.」

Brother Nan took Zheng Zhilan out to climb mountains, saying they should enjoy the scenery and dig up some sweet potatoes.

Qinghe, Huai Xu, and Tuanzi went too.

Zhou Li did not go.

He stayed alone in his room, lying on the bed, the mat feeling slightly cool.

His phone was set aside, playing music.

He lay with his eyes open, staring at the ceiling. Usually, his vivid imagination could transform the corners of old newspapers and the uneven textures of paint on the ceiling boards into various animals, monsters, or people.

But now, it was all a blur.

He tried to superimpose his remembered image of the ceiling onto it, but regrettably and surprisingly, he found he couldn't.

The incessant chirping of cicadas filled his ears, accompanying the music. Lying alone on the mat in the empty room, it was the familiar feeling of summer from his memories.

He couldn't read. He couldn't play on his phone. It was inconvenient to go out. He wanted to take an afternoon nap but couldn't fall asleep. Life like this was terribly boring.

If this were to go on forever... Zhou Li felt a shiver of fear just thinking about it.

Obviously, he couldn't compare with Zheng Zhilan. At least, up to this point, he could see everyone around him clearly. Zheng Zhilan, however, had only met the first person she could truly see clearly when she turned eighteen. Before that, her world had consisted of only Qinghe and the Evil God.

Zhou Li felt even more upset. An oppressive tightness gripped his chest.

That was why he hadn't gone mountain climbing with them.

Suddenly—

POOF!

Half a figure appeared before his eyes. The Old Monster was looking directly at him without blinking, the corners of his mouth gradually spreading into a smile. "Feeling bored, aren't you?"

"Why are you back?"

"I was afraid you'd get bored, develop psychological issues from being cooped up, fall into the latrine pit while using the toilet, or fatally tumble down the stairs... Came back to check on you."

"Indeed, I'm bored."

"Then why didn't you go climb the mountain?"

"I wanted to experience how bored she must feel normally."

"And have you felt it?"

"A little."

"Then write a reflective essay about it. Around three hundred words, choose your own title, any genre except poetry."

"We usually write eight hundred words."

"You're so annoying!"

"You're even more annoying."

"What did I do?! I came back specially to keep you company—I didn't even go dig for sweet potatoes—and that's still not good enough?"

"You came back to laugh at me."

Although he said that, a smile was already spreading across Zhou Li's face, and his earlier gloom had dispersed. Truth be told, he really had to thank this Old Monster. But he definitely couldn't thank him out loud; otherwise, the Old Monster's ego would soar to the heavens.

"Actually, I should've exchanged my eyes for hers," Huai Xu said, scratching his back. "I could get by just fine even without eyes, but not you. You're such a weakling; just a slight drop in vision and you're useless."

"Then why didn't you say so earlier?"

"I just won't say it! What are you going to do about it?"

As he said this, a strange smile appeared on the Old Monster's face.

Zhou Li studied him carefully for a while before speaking, his tone somewhat relieved, "It's a good thing you became a demon."

"Why's that?"

"If you were human, you'd be absolutely no good for human society."

"..."

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