Thanks to Xing Hui and Ji Bai continually lowering their requirements, the house was completed faster than anticipated, although it was, in fact, nothing more than a crude shell.

Zhou Li stood with his hands clasped behind his back, surveying the fruits of their recent labor like a foreman.

There was quite a sense of achievement.

During this time, their relationship with Xing Hui and Ji Bai had also improved significantly, to the point where they could be considered friends. They especially spent most of their time with Zheng Zhilan, and their interactions were now quite harmonious, like long-standing neighbors, free of any initial awkwardness.

This made Zhou Li feel that his efforts hadn't been in vain.

In any case, he believed that Miss Zheng was truly outstanding on the inside. Although she was reserved, she was still an exceptionally charming young lady. As long as they spent time together, demons like Xing Hui and Ji Bai would quickly grow fond of her.

"HISS..."

Brother Nan stood beside him with her hands on her hips, inhaling sharply. After a good while, she remarked with emotion, "This is the first house I've ever built in my life!"

"Mhm," Zhou Li nodded.

"It's still completely empty now. I wonder what they will eventually make of this place."

"It should look very nice."

Zhou Li pointed to the empty space left in front of the house. "They will plant it full of flowers here, and over there, they'll plant vegetables and fruit trees. On this side, they'll set up a trellis for climbing vines. After many years, the roots of these vines will intertwine tightly, overlapping in layers so dense that even rain won't penetrate. Come spring, the hanging green vines will bloom with trumpet flowers."

"How do you know?"

"I heard them discussing it."

"Are they around now?" Brother Nan looked left and right.

"No."

"Huh?"

"They went up the mountain to chop wood for the wooden frame."

"Still chopping wood?" Brother Nan looked slightly disappointed. "I thought demons could just point a finger, add some special effects, and whatever they wanted would magically appear."

"Huai Xu is also a demon. Have you ever seen him do that?"

"I see it all the time!" Brother Nan looked at him with bafflement, suspecting he might have amnesia. "Doesn't he often magically produce things like ice cream, beef jerky, cola, and fried chicken burgers out of thin air?"

"..."

"Speechless?"

"Let's go back."

Zhou Li moved behind Brother Nan, placed his hands on her shoulders, and nudged her forward.

They had stayed here for a very long time, so they planned to leave after lunch. They inevitably felt a bit reluctant and could only wander around a bit before departing.

「Back in the courtyard.」

The flowers at the courtyard entrance were blooming beautifully, and the corn planted nearby was taller than a person. Big Yellow sprawled lazily on the ground with Tuanzi sitting primly on its back, creating a quiet and serene picture.

Miss Zheng and Qinghe were slaughtering chickens in the yard.

Brother Nan approached, grinning, and asked, "Chef, are we having chicken for lunch again?"

Zheng Zhilan turned her head and glanced at her. "This is for you to take with you. I heard it's hard to get authentic, local free-range chicken in the city. I've slaughtered two for you to take back and eat."

After a pause, she added, "I'll clean them thoroughly, pack them in several bags, and wrap them tightly so they won't dirty your backpack or smell."

Brother Nan blinked—

"Great!"

Zheng Zhilan seemed very pleased at her response and bent her head down to focus on slaughtering the chickens again.

Brother Nan stood to the side, craning her neck to watch her work.

Her chickens here were authentic mountain-raised, free-range ones that grew up eating insects, and for some reason, they tasted exceptionally good.

Perhaps it was due to their longer growing period? Or maybe the influence of the Evil God, like those endless pastures and the crows that obtained special abilities. Thinking about it, even among all the Great Demons worldwide, the Evil God must be a particularly unique existence.

After finishing with the chickens, Miss Zheng seemed to have gotten into the swing of it and went on to catch two ducks that were reportedly three years old.

Then came cured meat, smoked chicken, marinated beef, and her homemade pickled vegetables, as if she wished she could give them everything to take back.

"Okay, okay, that's enough, that's enough."

Zhou Li felt like he was taking advantage of her generosity.

Zheng Zhilan turned to look at him. Her vision was blurry and her hearing muffled. She uttered a faint, bewildered 'Huh?' and continued to stuff two pickled kohlrabies into his bag.

Zhou Li was quite helpless.

Meanwhile, Tuanzi watched from the side, seemingly very amused by their current predicament.

Brother Nan was also snickering quietly.

「After lunch.」

The sun felt even more scorching than it had in July.

Zhou Li and Brother Nan, carrying their bags, stood at the doorway. A stark line divided the intense light and the shade. One more inch forward with their toes, and they would step into the blistering sunlight.

Huai Xu sat casually perched on a tree beside the courtyard, nibbling on a pear.

Tuanzi looked around curiously from Zhou Li's arms.

Zheng Zhilan, Qinghe, as well as Xing Hui and Ji Bai all stood behind them.

"No need to see us out, really."

"Big Yellow is enough."

"You all should head back."

"We're leaving."

"..."

Miss Zheng didn't speak. Only after they had taken a couple of steps did she silently follow them for a couple more.

She stopped only when she had seen them off to the village entrance, standing under the blazing sun, watching as their figures receded into the distance. The summer bamboo was lush, and the path was seldom trodden. They quickly disappeared into the bamboo thicket, vanishing from sight.

Miss Zheng wrung her hands in front of her, her eyes widening slightly. She thought their figures might reappear now and then in the gaps between the bamboo stalks.

But they didn't.

It took quite some time before she withdrew her gaze.

Turning around, she found Xing Hui and Ji Bai standing right behind her, with Qinghe not too far off either.

Xing Hui seemed to offer a smile. Although she didn't look human and was even somewhat ugly and frightening, her smile was warm.

"Have they left?"

"Yeah."

"It's very hot outside. Let's go back."

"Okay."

The sun was indeed very hot today.

Walking on the mountain was bearable, with occasional gusts of wind that felt like a mercy from the heavens. But once they reached a spot sheltered from the wind, it became uncomfortably hot.

Zhou Li felt sorry for Big Yellow and the cow, so he had sent them back when he went to Zhihong Guan to visit the elder of the observatory.

After the old demon left, the elder of the observatory became even lonelier.

But frustratingly, Zhou Li could do nothing about it. This world is full of such helpless situations, things you are utterly powerless to change no matter what.

「At the entrance of Mingjiu Mountain.」

Brother Nan opened the trunk to put the bags inside, frowning. A few days ago, when they had gone down the mountain, they had moved the car under some shade. However, it had still become swelteringly hot. So, she had Zhou Li wait outside while she climbed in, opened the windows, and turned on the air conditioning. She grimaced from the intense heat inside the car. Only after the temperature dropped did she let Zhou Li get in.

"Isn't Brother Nan thoughtful?" she turned and asked Zhou Li.

"Thoughtful…" Zhou Li discreetly glanced at Brother Nan's left breast.

"Let's go!"

Brother Nan, oblivious to Zhou Li's subtle glance, asked as she drove, "Did Aunt Jiang ask what you were doing outside all these days?"

"She did."

"What did you say?"

"I said I was helping with farm work at Huai Xu's House."

"Ah!"

"What about your family?"

"They didn't ask," Brother Nan said casually. "How would they ask? I reckon they've even forgotten I said, 'I'm going to a classmate's house.' They probably think I'm out working somewhere."

"Typical."

"So if Aunt Jiang asks if you were with Xiao Nan, what will you say?"

"Xiao Nan..."

"???"

"Just tell the truth," Zhou Li replied honestly.

"Oh?"

"They must have already talked about it amongst themselves," Zhou Li said, playing with Tuanzi's paws, using them to form a heart shape above its head.

"That's true."

Speaking of harvesting grain, Brother Nan suddenly said to Zhou Li, "Our hometown will be harvesting grain in a few days too. Want to come to my place and have some fun? I'll take you to walk across the pedestrian bridge. When I was in elementary school, I loved walking along the water pipes to get onto the pedestrian bridge after school and lingering there."

"And then have someone else do your homework for you."

"Huh, you knew about that?"

"..."

"Going or not?"

"..."

Is that going to your hometown to play? That's to harvest grain! Harvesting grain isn't what I'm afraid of; it's going back. Zhou Li, being such a coward, naturally had a fear of things like meeting parents.

Brother Nan didn't seem to mind. She just used one hand to scratch an itch and muttered to herself, "I think I still have some kind of card… Was it the Obedience Card?"

"That card can only be used for one day."

"You remember it so clearly!" Brother Nan said, slightly surprised. "Alright then, just for one day. The day I make you come back with me. You can leave the next day if you want; I promise I won't stop you!"

"..."

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