Chapter 364: Hello, 5024

"Yuer Chicken is just too delicious!"

Zhang Suannai felt that Yuer Chicken was the most delicious dish she had ever eaten in her life.

Originally, there was a Tofu with Intestines and Brain that could put up a fight, but the "brain" in Tofu with Intestines and Brain involved an insulting connotation toward her personally, which led her to associate the dish with her foolish self whenever she thought of it, thereby lowering the experience, so it was rated lower and had to settle for second place.

How could there be such delicious food in this world?

How could such delicious food be made by this person?

It wasn't that he was no good. A person is a person, and food is food. It's just that he is the Saint Son of the Spirit Sect, and the Spirit Sect has been getting by barely these years; although they have more of the stench of worldly fame and profit compared to the carefree Sword Sect, one has to admit that they have some substance now. Otherwise, once she becomes the Sword Master, she would definitely invite this person to the Sword Sect to be a cook, making Yuer Chicken for the whole sect to eat every day.

Such delicious food as Yuer Chicken, surely even if everyone ate it every day, they wouldn't get tired of it like they would with braised chicken, right?

Zhang Suannai thought as much.

She would be a wise Sword Master.

Zhang Suannai felt this way.

Wei Lvshi smiled, very fond of this simple-minded young girl: "If you like it, eat more. In the future, when you are in Yujing, if you want to eat it, just call Chen Banxia, Qingqing, and Xiaoxiao, and ask Chen Shu to make it for you."

Chen Shu twitched the corner of his mouth.

You are really being generous at someone else's expense...

"Okay, Auntie!"

Zhang Suannai agreed quite happily.

You really don't know how to be polite either...

"Right, right!"

Chen Banxia nodded repeatedly in agreement.

Another one joining in the fun...

Chen Shu thought to himself, but didn't say anything.

It was just that Qingqing glanced at him quietly, as if she knew what he was thinking, and then Chen Banxia also looked over at him happily, as if laughing at him.

"Why don't you stay in Yuanzhou for the New Year, Suannai?" Wei Lvshi said.

"I can, I can." Chen Banxia nodded in agreement again, "Sleep with me. Our family has Chen Shu cook every New Year, and there is so much delicious food. Let me tell you, many delicacies you can't eat outside can be eaten in different ways during these few days."

"I can't..."

Zhang Suannai was clearly tempted, but still refused: "The old man in my family is getting older and older, living one year less each year, probably not many years left. When he was young, he fought and brawled every day, didn't learn to be good, didn't take care of his health, oh, it's troublesome..."

"Fought and brawled every day, didn't learn to be good." Chen Shu couldn't help but repeat.

"Yeah." Zhang Suannai wondered if that wasn't just how it was, why was this person arguing, forget it, too lazy to pay attention to him, and continued, "And since I'll be in Yujing in the future, I probably won't be able to go back many times a year, so I still have to go back to accompany him every New Year."

"Suannai is filial."

Wei Lvshi was still smiling.

Having traversed the courts for over twenty years, she had seen more human affairs than any vanity fair, and had dealt with all kinds of eccentric people. In her eyes, most people's true nature would be known to her within half an hour. But someone with a heart as pure as Zhang Suannai's was still rare to encounter.

After dinner, Zhang Suannai stayed at Chen Shu's house, preparing to squeeze into a bed with Chen Banxia.

Qingqing and Xiaoxiao also went back.

After showering, Chen Shu returned to his room and opened his computer.

He logged into Wide and Narrow Alley.

Brother Cat still hadn't replied to him.

He hadn't come to him for feedback on the Rune Group's problems, hadn't asked him to modify parameters or provide improvement services. Of course, Chen Shu had confidence in his own design—this Rune Group itself had balanced and excellent performance, and any weaknesses were smoothed out by its performance. There should be very few places that needed adjustment. Perhaps, perhaps it just so happened that after Brother Cat got his hands on it and tried it, he found that all aspects were just to his liking, so there was no need for adjustment.

But Brother Cat hadn't come to him for small talk either.

Chen Shu thought for a moment and felt that perhaps he shouldn't have said "I rarely go on the Gray Net anymore" earlier, making Brother Cat feel that their connection had ended there. This was one of the few times his thinking had been inconsiderate, but it was the truth.

The connection between the two was already minimal, and with even less interaction, it was destined for them to fade from each other's lives.

The beginning and end of fate are both marvelous.

"Sigh..."

Chen Shu sighed and started typing.

Qingcai Baiyu Tang: It's almost New Year.

Qingcai Baiyu Tang: Wishing you a Happy New Year in advance.

He didn't receive a reply.

Instead, the sound of two girls playing started coming from the next room, chattering, accompanied by giggles, it was very noisy... Please, these two people, one at the Fifth Stage and one at the Sixth Stage Peak, can't they even use a simple Soundproofing Spell?

"Snap."

Chen Shu snapped his fingers, and the world went quiet.

Then he turned off the computer, lay on the bed, hugging his head and letting his thoughts run wild. He didn't know how much time had passed before he climbed back up.

Daily Cultivation.

The end of the year 5023 had arrived.

In a small city in the south, on a small hill.

A sweet southern girl sat on the ground, looking up into the distance, with a giant beast lying beside her.

The land in the distance had only gentle undulations, and the wheat stubble left after the harvest gave it a pale golden color. One could see to the horizon at a glance, and that small city was nestled in the middle of the land, with a highway running from south to north, cutting through the city, almost in a straight line.

Yan Keling was born in such a small southern city, though not in the city itself, but in the countryside, and only moved to the city after she grew up.

The terrain here is flat, and it is a nationally renowned granary.

It mainly produces wheat.

Every summer, the land is like a golden ocean, the wind blows through the wheat waves, undulating. Harvesters roll the wheat stalks into cylinders and leave them in the wheat fields. Tourists from all over the country come here to take pictures, saying that this place is like a world in a fairy tale. The Government also caters to them; every year after the harvest, they try their best to preserve the scenery here to obtain more tourism tax revenue.

"I loved summer the most when I was a child."

"When it's time to harvest wheat back home in summer, we would hire people who operate combine harvesters," Yan Keling said to the giant beast beside her. "I don't know why, but back then, all us kids loved watching the harvesters reap the wheat. A huge field of wheat would be harvested in no time, and in the end, they'd even roll the wheat into cylinders—oh, I don't know how to describe it, but I just felt that feeling was wonderful."

"During the harvest, my family would also have to provide the operator with lunch at noon. They'd eat better than usual, and I'd get to have a good meal along with them."

"Mom liked to buy marinated turkey wings from that cold dish stall in the middle of the street. Those wings were so big that one wing could be chopped into a whole bowl. Sometimes she'd buy their marinated chicken, too, which was also delicious... But a neighbor who lived very close to us also sold cold dishes, only theirs weren't very good. Every time Mom went to buy from the one in the middle of the street, she had to hide, carrying her basket on her back and pretending to go buy vegetables, otherwise she was afraid they'd be unhappy."

The giant beast's gaze was indifferent; it seemed not to be listening.

Yan Keling then pointed in a direction: "Our old home is right there. You can still see the village now... Hey! The signal tower there is still standing! It's just that we haven't been back for several years, and there's hardly anyone left in the village."

The bright yellow eyeballs shifted.

The giant beast looked lazily in the direction she pointed, then glanced back at her.

Yan Keling felt quite regretful: "I used to think that when I grew up, I'd also be a combine harvester operator. I'd only work one month a year and play the rest of the time. Not only could I earn money, but every time I arrived at a household, they would treat me to good food and drink..."

"It's a pity I grew up."

"After growing up, I never ate such delicious marinated food again. Even if I go back to the village to buy it, it doesn't taste as good as it used to. I don't know why."

The giant beast narrowed its eyes slightly.

This was one of the reasons it liked the little girl.

Once, they bestowed powerful strength upon some humans, or one could say they lent it; in essence, it was to seek a deeper level of cooperation with humans. At that time, many of its kin established such relationships with humans, whether for the purpose of serious experimentation and seeking knowledge, or purely for play. Relatively speaking, everyone preferred to get along with humans who had good personalities; humans with bad personalities would also invite their disgust.

They were not tools for battle.

But there was no need to worship them like deities, either.

Any excessively unequal relationship is bad, regardless of who is on top or bottom. Even if the one on top feels enjoyment at first, they will eventually grow tired of it over time.

"Lord Linjian, why are you ignoring me?"

"Roar!"

"Ying ying ying, how is it annoying..."

"Roar..."

Maintaining the aloof demeanor of a Ninth Stage big shot was also quite necessary.

"Alright, alright..."

Yan Keling frowned, scratched her head, stood up, and patted her round bottom: "Let's fly back to our old home and take a look! I wonder if that cold dish shop is still open. It should be open for the New Year, right? Let's see if the taste has changed back."

Lord Linjian also stood up.

The streets and alleys of Bai City were already filled with the atmosphere of the New Year, reflected in the dense kites floating in the sky above Jinghai, in the barbecue stalls by the roadside, in the faces of the pedestrians strolling leisurely, and in the lanterns and colored paper filling the streets. As night fell, all the lanterns on the streets lit up, and in response, the brightness of the streetlights dimmed, giving the whole city the sudden feeling of an ancient lantern festival.

Chen Banxia was wearing an outfit with traditional elements today.

Traditional elements, meaning traditional clothing that had undergone modern improvements.

Because while traditional clothing is beautiful, it is mostly complicated. It's fine for wearing to take photos, but if you wear it to work or class, or to go on an outing, it would be very troublesome and also very expensive. Therefore, modern times have simplified and improved it, making it possess both the characteristics and beauty of traditional attire, as well as the commuting capability of modern clothing.

For her top, Chen Banxia wore a pure black classic camisole inside, with a white, light, and semi-transparent airplane-sleeve jacket over it. On the bottom, she wore a black-based improved three-pleat skirt that only reached her calves, a pair of small black leather shoes on her feet, and a light champagne-colored belt around her waist. She looked simple and neat, without losing the traditional beauty.

"Chen Banxia, this outfit looks good on you." Chen Shu couldn't help but praise her.

"Right!" Chen Banxia immediately showed a look of pride, "My taste is good, right?"

"It's much better than those student outfits you used to wear."

"What student outfits?" Chen Banxia's smile stiffened, "You're talking nonsense again! That's because I'm naturally beautiful and look young. This is called a youthful vibe, you understand? So no matter what clothes I wear, I look young!"

"Tsk tsk tsk..."

Chen Shu couldn't be bothered to argue with her, and just said to Qingqing and Xiaoxiao beside him: "When I have time, I'll buy a set for you two as well, and give you a new skin."

Both the big and small sisters said nothing.

Chen Shu lowered his head again and said to Taozi: "How about I buy you a set too?"

Taozi looked up and glanced at him, but didn't make a sound either.

The four people and one cat still came to the edge of Jinghai to admire the scene of the city lights and the fireworks all over the sky reflecting off each other in the Jinghai. Then, Chen Shu also showed the residents of Bai City the Spiral Fireworks he had designed, setting off several in a row to bid farewell to the old and welcome the new.

Another new year had arrived.