Chapter 1106: The End is Near

The next morning, before dawn.

Lights were already on in Master Yu's residence.

Every morning at 3:15, Wan Hu would get up on time to practice his cultivation and meditation, and then light sandalwood incense throughout the villa.

Since becoming an apprentice, this was something he had to do every day after waking up, and he had never been negligent for a single day.

By six in the morning, Wan Hu finished his practice and washed up. As he went downstairs, he ran into his Master's nanny, who was carrying a porcelain bowl and preparing to go upstairs.

"Huzi, I've brought your breakfast out. Master can't get up, so you should go eat in the kitchen."

Wan Hu glanced at the porcelain bowl in her hand and asked softly: "How is Master? Can he eat anything?"

The nanny looked troubled and sighed silently.

"I fed him some bean soup with rice last night, but he vomited after only a few mouthfuls. Master doesn't look like he's in good shape. I steamed some egg custard for him this morning; it's easy to swallow, easy to digest, and nutritious. Let's see if he can keep it down."

Wan Hu's expression was grave. It was clear that he hadn't told the truth in front of Shen Ci; his Master's condition was not optimistic, and could even be described as dire.

But because of his Master's special status, the news of his sudden serious illness could not be leaked, otherwise it would surely cause turmoil for many people, and his bedridden Master would have no energy to deal with it.

"Make an appointment for Dr. He to come take another look," Wan Hu instructed.

"I've already made the appointment; Dr. He will come at noon. You go eat first. I'll go up and feed Master this steamed egg. I hope he doesn't vomit it up again, otherwise, how will his body have any nutrition to absorb?"

Wan Hu nodded helplessly: "Thank you for your hard work."

But before he could even pick up his chopsticks in the kitchen, the nanny hurried back: "Huzi, Master wants to see you."

Wan Hu was stunned, but didn't dare delay, quickly going upstairs and heading straight to Master Yu's bedroom.

In the bedroom, Master Yu was half-propped up against the headboard, looking haggard. His sick body was clearly weak, no longer possessing his former spirit.

"Master."

Wan Hu called out and walked quickly to the bedside.

Master Yu looked at Wan Hu, his fingers trembling slightly, but he couldn't lift them. Even lifting his eyes to look at him seemed to require a great deal of effort.

Seeing this, Wan Hu hurriedly leaned in closer: "Master, you must rest well. Whatever you have to say, wait until your body is better."

"Come closer," Master Yu said in a weak tone.

Wan Hu couldn't hide his worry, but he still leaned his ear in. He heard Master Yu mutter two sentences in his ear, and as he understood them clearly, Wan Hu's heart-wrenching brow furrowed.

"Master, it is still too early. You will be fine."

Master Yu twitched the corners of his mouth, pulling up a dry smile, and said in a hoarse voice: "It is not early. The end is near. I have my own premonition. Don't delay, lest I have no place to rest when I go."

After saying this, Master Yu began to cough violently. The intensity was accompanied by dry heaving, shaking his already gaunt body with pain.

Wan Hu was both shocked and afraid, quickly stepping forward to pat his Master's back and soothe his breath: "Master, please don't talk. Dr. He will be here at noon."

"Don't bother," Master Yu raised his hand: "You don't need to be afraid either. Birth, aging, sickness, and death are the laws of the world. I have lived for over a hundred years; my heart is satisfied."

Wan Hu's eyes turned red with sadness, because he could clearly feel his Master's life force flowing out of his body bit by bit. No one could grasp it, and he was powerless to stop it!

And that morning, Shen Ci woke up from her bed feeling refreshed.

This sleep had been exceptionally deep. After waking up, even her body felt much more relaxed. Not to mention nightmares, she hadn't even dreamed; she closed her eyes and opened them, and it was a night without dreams.

As expected of the only disciple to receive Master Yu's true teachings, Wan Hu truly had the capital for his confidence.

"Baili CBD."

As the end of the year approached, "Gourd Baby Studio" had completed its company registration, and Shen Ci kept the name "Gourd Baby" for the new company without making any changes.

The product team led by Guo Shangyong was also officially integrated into the new company, forming an independent product department, with Guo Shangyong appointed as Chief Engineer.

Shen Ci had purchased this office building in advance; it spanned three full floors and could accommodate over a thousand people, fully preparing for the subsequent recruitment of talent.

Moving into the new company site today, the team led by Guo Gong, who had previously been arranged by Shen Ci in the Artificial Intelligence Department of the "Jiangdong Group," couldn't help but feel excited the moment they saw Shen Ci.

"A-Ci, we finally have our own company."

"You said before that you would register it by the end of the year, but you never gave us any accurate news. I had no confidence in my heart and thought it was a lost cause."

"I see you've bought all the equipment too. We can finish all the debugging today and strive to throw ourselves into work at the fastest speed."

Everyone spoke at once, and Shen Ci listened, saying half-jokingly: "What? Were you not happy working in the Artificial Intelligence Department at Jiangdong?"

"No, not at all."

"No, no, we were quite happy. The people there are all very professional and very good."

Everyone denied it repeatedly, and Guo Shangyong said with a smile: "Everyone was actually quite happy, especially since we exchanged many product-related ideas with the team at Jiangdong, and everyone benefited a lot."

"But that was someone else's territory after all. We still wanted a place that truly belonged to us. A-Ci, the place you chose is really good, no worse than the department at Jiangdong Group."

Shen Ci smiled: "As long as everyone is satisfied. I don't understand professional matters, but what I can give everyone will definitely be the best."

As she spoke, she looked at Guo Gong and asked seriously: "I heard you've been very busy lately. Has there been substantial progress in the research and development of the new product?"

Guo Shangyong explained upon hearing this: "The new product is one aspect, but on the other hand, Auntie Xue from Yahai introduced us to a whole basket of new business."

"Grandma?" Shen Ci was slightly surprised, clearly not expecting that there would be a follow-up to the matters in Yahai.

Guo Shangyong nodded with a smile: "Yes. The field of artificial intelligence there is backward and immature. Ever since we got to know Auntie Xue, she helped us build our reputation in Yahai. Now, whenever there is any business involving artificial intelligence there, they all come to us in a rush. There are quite a few big projects, and we are clearly short-handed now."

Indeed, the employees of the new company were all the same people from the previous studio, and all of them combined barely exceeded a hundred people.

"After everything here is set up, I will have Manager Luo hurry to recruit new people. When the time comes, Guo Gong, you can communicate with Manager Luo about what kind of talent the new company needs. Don't worry about having too many people; as long as they are talented, we will hire them all."

"Okay, no problem!"

After chatting for a few sentences, everyone hurried to get busy again. Shen Ci was just about to help when her phone received a WeChat message from Wan Hu.

"Miss Shen, are you free today? I have something I would like to trouble you with."