Chapter 688

NO．57：Being late is also a strategy

Since it spread from Eastflame, there vaguely seems to be a traditional festival covering the East Asian cultural sphere—the Qixi Festival, which falls on the seventh day of the seventh lunar month.

It is worth noting that this so-called 'seventh day of the seventh lunar month' is established under the Eastflame District's lunisolar calendar, i. e., the lunar calendar system that combines the lunar and solar calendars.

According to the lunar phase cycle, each lunar phase cycle is regarded as a month, the tropical year as the year's length, and the twenty-four solar terms and leap months are added so that the average year matches the tropical year.

This is the lunisolar calendar, which differs from the Gregorian calendar used globally.

Because of this, Qixi Festival's date on the Gregorian calendar varies; the only certainty is that it usually falls in August.

Either before or after Limit of Heat, this year it is clearly later, as late as August 28.

Indeed, it being a little late is no big deal; after all, nowadays few people live their lives counting holidays, unless it's a statutory holiday.

Although the Qixi Festival is gradually entering the global view as a holiday, with some regions even designing stages and creating celebrations for it, it is indeed not a statutory holiday in East Yan.

In Jidong it's also not. jpg

So Aomo's impression of it is not wrong.

It's a holiday for young people to celebrate, yet it gives no day off—whether attending class or going to work, everything proceeds as usual, leaving only promotional activities held in its name.

Only the evening is somewhat different—at least there is festival participation, right?

In the Jidong region, it also has a genuinely high level of celebration.

Even without a day off, it doesn't hinder them from holding nighttime celebrations, nor does it hinder a portion of the trainees in the chat room calling friends to join, shouting things like 'Is anyone up for going to the Qixi festival together?' and similar remarks.

It's evident that Qixi is a hurdle for many trainees; their chat logs never mention the existence of horse girls, as if the only option were to go together with brothers and sisters.

But this year, many of them have yet to notice that deadly change.

This year's Qixi not only arrived late, but also coincides with Saturday.

What does it mean to coincide with Saturday?

That means some girls can ambush you early, leaving you no chance to bring out brothers as a shield, and this usually rests on the premise that there is more than one girl.

Of course, not all trainees will face such a predicament.

Just like a certain demon trainee who never had an interest in strolling the festival from the start, and didn't even include it in his schedule, to the point that the three girls under him who knew his schedule never pressed to the point of visiting his door.

Meanwhile, some people are clearly unaware of this.

Holding the idea that 'just blocking the doorstep directly won't let the words on the screen be vague and pass by,' after drafting the plan in their mind, they assumed the other party had no reason to refuse such an invitation—

Then they first encountered the first obstacle.

Those on the same path can still conspire; those on different paths have only opposition.

On that short track, before the three sides could even compete, someone had already declared the end of the match.

Aomo had travel plans.

Not only did he need to travel, but it was also for official business—this directly dashed the three's hopes.

After all, who doesn't know that this guy's dedication to work is enough to outweigh everything else?

Could this be the reason Qianming said it's better not to go traveling?

Standing at the alley outside the office, wearing a hat and with a virtual-image disguise, Narita Hakuji felt somewhat helpless.

Having official business would be fine, but it also involves monsters, making the other party's stance extremely firm.

Ah, Karen merely wanted to tag along, but that's not allowed either—big brother really is something.

Standing on the other side, Zhenjiling was also somewhat speechless.

Unlike those two who directly invited the players, she, even if rejected, had reasons to stay; she had originally planned to wait and act, then look for another opportunity, but the result……

As a result, her brother remained as impeccable as ever; his firm wrapping, however, had concern at its core, making it truly hard for her to persist any further.

Willfulness as an attribute is only cute in moderation; she naturally understands this.

By comparison, Narita Hakuji, even if lacking this awareness, would not stubbornly stay put after an invitation fails.

Thinking that inviting Aomo herself hadn't been told to her older sister, she simply went back and lightly comforted herself, preparing to say goodbye to the two here who weren't very familiar 'opponents'—

Among the three, the most mature, Bixiketuxe·Shihuaiya, seemed to have already walked out of previous setbacks, smiling and inviting as if nothing were wrong:

"Since it's come to this, would you two like to go along together?"

She received the doubtful gazes of a college student and a middle school student.

——

Not only as an adult, but also as someone experienced in many affairs, Bixiketuxe is no longer in the realm of a young girl; her ability to rise to the position of Juanzhang in her hometown's law enforcement department already shows her experience.

Such a position has never been something young people could hold; those young people who can hold it are largely not 'young' either.

Her conduct will be sufficiently mature, even carrying a hint of bureaucratic air; she is accustomed to refusing certain invitations, and likewise accustomed to having certain invitations refused—no, this point is not entirely certain.

Aomo knows that Bixiketuxe is not truly a woman who started from scratch, having to scrape and struggle in her climb.

She is the eldest daughter of the Shihuaiya family, graduated from the Victoria Academy corresponding to the Hongying district in another world, then returned to the city named Longmen to develop, ultimately finding her goal.

This process indeed was not lacking in difficulties and hardships, after all, the Longmen Guard Bureau is not a corrupt department that can be ascended to merely by money.

Rather, if the law enforcement department were that corrupt, the city named Longmen would probably have already been smashed through……although it does indeed have a record of being stormed in its otherworld memories.

But to say one must grovel and kowtow, that's not the case either.

After all, the forum's data is enough to show that her elders and the rulers of Longmen are old acquaintances, and the latter's temperament is not bad.

And she also has two assistants who are almost like childhood friends, positioned in the black and white paths.

Although there were many contradictions in the early years, when a major problem truly arises, they will obviously lend a hand.

Besides that, the star bear officer he once met in Tianmen City is likewise Bixiketuxe's right and left hand.

Although this right and left hand maintained an increasingly distant superficial attitude during her rapid rise in status, it does not hinder serving as proof of Ms. Shihuaiya's ability.

Connections naturally also count as a kind of personal ability; Aomo, who once deliberately pursued this, would not doubt it.

So regarding whether such a person would often be refused…… Aomo's decisive judgment also wavered a bit.

Indeed, he can see that the other party harbors a certain expectation different from merely making invitations for others, which is no different from the expectations of Narita Hakuji and Zhenjiling—all are pure.

It reminded him of the several invitations he had received in elementary, middle, and high school from the class's enthusiastic group.

The children's invitations were just as pure, without complex motives, merely hoping you would join them and play together.

It also meant joining their circle and becoming one of them.

So, most of the time, he refused.

That way, he could always sit on the edge of being near yet distant, seeming to join them while being able to leave at any moment, and those people wouldn't really remember him.

But now is different from before.

Aomo clearly knew what changes he ought to make, and he could indeed make them, but today he simply could not.

"Are we there yet?"

"Not yet, haven't you ridden a starship before?"

"Last time you honestly slept right through with the gear and blindfold on."

"This time I also suggest continuing."

"I can't sleep! That's the Cosmic Archives! That's the Land of Light Office!"

"Quite like an elementary school student before a spring outing, Miss Xintiao."

"Ugh! Seriously, if it were before, I never would have imagined being able to go to a place like that!"

"Indeed, even my past self couldn't have imagined having such an opportunity; life's twists are always so wonderful."

"Hmm—I feel like ever since I met Xiaoshe, everything's been good! Indeed, coming straight to find Xiaoshe was the wisest decision of my life!!"

"Life is still long; there's no need to rush to a conclusion."

"There couldn't possibly be anything happier than going to the Land of Light Office, could there?"

"…Please remember your stance as a monster fanatic cook—when did you become such an Ultraman die‑hard fan?"

"Heh heh, that's just your shortsightedness, Xiaoshe."

"Well, then, don't hesitate to instruct me."

"The Cosmic Archives in the Land of Light Office surely also have data on the monster graveyard, right?"

"I see."

"Huh? Now I get it—I haven't even started explaining properly yet."

"That's enough; I only hope you still remember that our purpose is to find a suitable match for Chazuo and her."

"Mm, of course I remember that—we also need to work out the detailed data on the negative‑energy monster."

"Then there's no problem."

"But there's still a bit of a problem, Xiaoshe."

"Huh?"

"Going to see monsters on the Night of Sevens also counts as a date, right?"

"That's quite an unusual train of thought."

"But it suits me just fine, doesn't it?"

"It's hard not to agree."