An Unexpected "Guest"

Leaving the conference room, Yuan Ting exhaled, immediately feeling the pressure lighten. Whether in his personal level or his illustrious family background, this young master of the Fu family was someone far beyond reach. Facing him often brought the pressure of facing a superior, rather than treating him like a mere second-generation rich kid. Yuan Ting's gaze swept past two bunny girls walking by him—in the prime of their twenties, curvaceous, with pretty faces. There were seven or eight bunny girls in the villa, and every single one was a beauty. Despite being surrounded by beauties, Yuan Ting knew that this scion of a prominent clan stayed away from women. Compared to the beginning, the villa's bunny girls had already been replaced twice. Those newly hired girls had thought they had a chance to rise up and become a phoenix, unable to suppress their restless hearts as they tried to seduce the young master of the Fu family. Every single one had been dismissed. The girls remaining in the villa now were very obedient, doing their work dutifully without harboring any unrealistic notions. The bunny girls in the villa seemed more like an accessory to show off his status—or perhaps just Fu Qingyang's personal quirk. Leaving the villa and getting into his private car, Yuan Ting mulled over the contents of today's meeting. First, he reported critical intelligence such as the death of the Deceitful Eye Judge back to the Taiyi Sect. Having finished official business, he sent a message to his good friend Jian Ji: "Big news in Songhai. The Deceitful Eye Judge is dead, and his confidant Hei Wuchang is in hiding with the Holy Grail and the roster..." Jian Ji: "I'm so shocked I don't know what to say. The Deceitful Eye Judge died just like that out of nowhere? It feels like waking up to find a whole country wiped off the map." The two lamented back and forth for a bit, then worried over what would happen if the Fallen recorded in the roster collectively lost control. Jian Ji: "What else?" *Oh, plenty. That Night Wanderer who cleared Sheling Tunnel just slaughtered a Level 3 Bewitching Demon... Can't mention this. If word gets out, Elder Sun will slaughter me.* Yuan Ting's expression twisted slightly, and he typed: "There's one more piece of news. Just keep it to yourself and don't spread it. Elder Sun really lost his mind... That Night Wanderer he rejected..." *** In Songhai, inside a dim bedroom. The lights were off. The only source of illumination was three candles on the desk, arranged in a triangle. In the center sat a red-lacquered box, its surface embossed with an odd-looking insect. A figure wearing a silver mask knelt beside the table, slicing the pad of his finger with a small knife as scarlet blood welled out. He brought the bloody finger to the mouth of the insect relief. The insect came alive, greedily sucking the blood, and the wooden box's lacquer turned an increasingly crimson hue. A wailing wind whipped up, the candles tainted with a bloody shade. Crimson flames leaped high, forming a vortex of blood-red fire above the wooden box. "What is it?" From within the vortex of red flames came an indifferent, authoritative voice. "Subordinate has released the bait as you commanded. The Five Elements Alliance will search for Hei Wuchang at all costs. However, subordinate cannot guarantee that Hei Wuchang will remain hidden in Songhai." The authoritative voice said slowly, "My divination showed that Hei Wuchang is in Songhai. He must have a motive for hiding there, though the specific reason remains to be verified." "What else do you require subordinate to do?" "Secretly assist the Five Elements Alliance in searching for Hei Wuchang. Notify me immediately if there is news. During this period, I will be inside the Spirit Realm and may not be able to respond in time." "Do you have a mission?" "No, I am searching for the place where the Deceitful Eye Judge perished. Coincidentally, I crossed paths with that person from the Taiyi Sect. Heh, as expected, there are deeper secrets behind the Deceitful Eye Judge's death..." The voice gradually faded, and the vortex of blood-red fire died down. *** *Knock, knock...* After two knocks on the door, Grandma's voice came into the bedroom: "Yuanzi, time for dinner." Her tone carried a bit of lightness, seemingly in a good mood. Zhang Yuanqing opened his eyes. The bedroom was pitch black, the curtains blocking out the streetlights outside. *So comfortable. I've finally recovered what I spent during the day. It's just a shame you rarely see the moon in Songhai, or soaking in some moonlight would've been perfect...* Zhang Yuanqing yawned, slipped into his slippers, turned the bedroom doorknob, and walked into the living room. A rich fragrance drifted into his nostrils. The dining table was covered with dishes: sweet and sour pork, braised pork belly, roast duck, black chicken soup, asparagus, bamboo shoots, and more. Grandma, wearing an apron, bustled between the living room and the kitchen. His cousin was helping in the kitchen. On the living room sofa sat his white-haired grandfather, sitting bolt upright and watching television with rapt attention. Seated at the dining table was a middle-aged couple—Zhang Yuanqing's uncle and aunt. Aunt had attractive features and fair skin. Though no longer in her first youth, she was remarkably well-preserved. She wore a belted white maxi dress, wavy hair draped over her shoulders, with an air of delicate self-indulgence in her brows. The man beside her had facial features quite similar to Chen Yuanjun's. He wore a purple suit, slim-fit purple trousers, and a rose-colored shirt, looking flamboyantly stylish like a nightclub playboy—no, an aging playboy. Zhang Yuanqing's uncle was an unreliable sort. In his youth, he had played in a band, claiming he wanted to chase his dreams and yearn for poetry and the distant horizon. So, with a knapsack on his back and flared trousers on his legs, he ran away from home with a few "like-minded" friends to become wandering street singers. A few years later, without having found his dream and bruised all over by society's harsh realities, he returned. Yet he still wouldn't get a job. Every day he carried a boombox around like a vagabond slacker, dancing wherever he went, spending his days either singing karaoke or fooling around with his fair-weather friends. Of course, that was how city youths were in those days—just drifting along. Because he was good-looking and had a silver tongue, he managed to marry Aunt, who came from a well-to-do family. After marriage, he did settle down for a few years, but as soon as she gave birth to his cousin, he quickly reverted to his old ways. Idling all day, refusing to work, just fooling around. "Yuanzi, did you miss your uncle?" Uncle was overjoyed to see his protégé. Uncle loved singing, dancing, and rapping. His favorite line was "Yo, yo, check it out, give me a Jianbing Guozi," paired with his own improvised dance moves. Apart from Zhang Yuanqing, no one in the family was willing to rap or cringe-dance with him. So Uncle valued Zhang Yuanqing deeply, treating him as his true successor. "Aunt!" Zhang Yuanqing greeted her, then casually brushed Uncle off. "Uncle brought back a present for you," Uncle said. "Oh, my dear uncle, you're finally back! Why didn't you tell me in advance? If you had told me, I would've definitely gone to the airport to pick you up, God as my witness!" Zhang Yuanqing did a complete about-face in his attitude, expressing dramatic, over-the-top emotion. Uncle and nephew laughed loudly, shaking hands and bumping shoulders. Uncle put his arm around his successor's shoulders and sat down: "Yuanzi, my boy, I traveled abroad recently and specifically went to learn rap techniques from chimpanzees. When we sing, we ought to add tongue trills and lip fluttering. It gives it so much more presence..." *I know what a tongue trill is, but what on earth is lip fluttering...* Zhang Yuanqing was dumbfounded. "Impressive! As expected of my uncle—astounding talent. By the way, Uncle, I'm a bit short on pocket money lately." "Small matter. Your aunt has money. I'll have her give you some later." Before long, Cousin and Grandma brought out the last few plates of food and called everyone to eat. "Why hasn't Auntie come back yet?" Zhang Yuanqing asked. "She said there was something at the hospital, so she'd be back late," Grandma replied. Uncle raised an eyebrow and chuckled slyly. "Something at the hospital? Isn't she on a date with a boyfriend?" Grandma scoffed. "Then I'd truly thank the heavens! Looking at her, she won't be getting married before thirty. What is wrong with young people nowadays? Not a single one wants to get married." Grandma was deeply dissatisfied with the modern world. Uncle piped up, "Speaking of which, Yuanjun is still single too. Yuanjun, bring a boyfriend home someday so your dad can have a look." The stern, steady cousin froze. "What?" Uncle shrugged. "You're already thirty and still don't have a girlfriend. Dad can only hope for a boyfriend then." No sooner had the words left his mouth than Grandma rolled up her sleeves, ready to murder her son with her bare hands. "Mom, Mom, I'm just kidding!" Uncle hurried to stop her. "Why don't you have a single ounce of humor? Pairing guys up as couples is all the rage now; youngsters love that stuff." Aunt ate with her head down, saying nothing. Her relationship with her mother-in-law was not good; there were few mothers- and daughters-in-law in the world who lived in harmony anyway. Grandma had a fiery temper, while Aunt was domineering. One complained that her daughter-in-law didn't do housework, while the other complained that her mother-in-law stuck her nose into everything. When Zhang Yuanqing was little, Aunt and Grandma often argued. Whenever they made a scene, his young aunt would crack melon seeds and watch the drama unfold. Zhang Yuanqing would try to mediate at the side, saying, "Please stop fighting," while simultaneously taking melon seeds from his aunt's hand. His cousin would usually do homework while cracking his aunt's melon seeds. Now Aunt had passed the impetuous days of her youth and could no longer be bothered to bicker with her mother-in-law, though their relationship remained lukewarm at best. At this moment, Chen Yuanjun looked over and said, "I heard something happened at your university today?" "Huh? I don't know anything about it. I came back early to sleep..." Zhang Yuanqing feigned ignorance. Grandma hurriedly asked what happened. Chen Yuanjun gave a brief explanation, and when Grandma heard that a criminal had slipped into the university, she became even more dissatisfied with the state of the world. As they were talking, a beep sounded from the security door, followed by the handle being turned. Sitting at the far end of the table near the entryway, Zhang Yuanqing turned his head to look. It was his aunt, Jiang Yu'er. Today she was wearing an off-the-shoulder hollow-knit sweater that revealed a smooth, fair shoulder, layered over a small black camisole, paired with spring-summer light white jeans and a pair of little white sneakers. Zhang Yuanqing's gaze drifted down to her calf, and his pupils abruptly constricted. Clinging to Jiang Yu'er's calf was a chubby little infant.