As we passed large shopping malls along the way, the cheerful music of "Gong Xi Fa Cai" was playing very loudly, indicating that Liu Yingdi had completely thawed out of his slump.
Tu Keke subconsciously sang along, watching the people coming and going on the street, each face beaming with the happy smiles of the approaching New Year, and the corners of her mouth couldn't help but turn up slightly as well.
"Uncle, how about hot pot for dinner tonight?"
The girl squeezed into the middle of the front seat, with Yan Luo in the driver's seat on the left and Tu Luoxue in the passenger seat on the right.
Yan Luo quickly turned his head to look at Tu Keke, then quickly looked back at the road. He chuckled and nodded.
"I haven't even had lunch yet, and I'm already thinking about dinner."
"I don't care, I want to eat." Tu Keke twisted in a dark way. Lu Jiajing and Man Sui, who were sitting on either side of her, exchanged glances and each reached out a hand to pinch Tu Keke's butt.
Tu Keke gasped and sat back down, playing with the baby-faced loli and the little pink-haired girl.
With the Lunar New Year just days away, Nangong was arranging for his men to give the abandoned ancient temple in Guangzhou a thorough cleaning, since it was the home of the corpses.
A home should be kept clean and tidy. At the same time, she summoned back the left and right guardians and the twelve zodiac ghosts who were on missions outside.
The Chinese New Year is all about family reunion; it's only proper when everyone is together.
After becoming ghouls, everyone lost their homes from when they were human, and Nangong gave everyone the meaning of home again.
As people of Longxia, everyone understands the significance of the New Year and looks forward to the upcoming one. Moreover, even the three Dharma Protectors and the twelve Zodiac Ghosts personally participated in the cleaning, so everyone worked even harder.
An Qiuxi carried a basin of water to Nangong's side, put the basin on the ground, and looked at Nangong, who was wiping the glass with a serious expression, and said, "Master, the water has been changed."
Nangong nodded, threw the tattered towel into the basin of water, and straightened the white paper hat on his head.
She sighed softly.
"Oh dear, this ancient temple is nice, it's secluded and large enough to accommodate many people, but it's too big and cleaning it is quite a chore. Luckily, we are corpse demons, so we don't get tired and have unlimited stamina, otherwise we would really suffer a lot."
An Qiuxi smiled and squatted down to rub the soaked, tattered towel and wring it out.
"It's okay, we have a large family, we'll be able to clean it up quickly."
Just as Nangong and An Qiuxi were talking, a middle-aged man who was fat and short ran over anxiously.
"My lord! My lord!"
The zodiac ghost [Pig] Zhu Lie knelt on one knee and said in a panic, "It's bad! You arranged for me and the Snake Monkey to clean the main hall, but they got into a fight over something and I, Old Pig, couldn't stop them by myself."
"I couldn't find any other Dharma protectors, so I had no choice but to come to you."
Nangong Fu's forehead slapped with a helpless smile. He helped Zhu Lie up and then led An Qiuxi to the main hall. Inside the hall, a tall, thin man was locked in a fierce battle with a woman of similar build. Both were locked in deadly combat, and neither was giving an inch. The once tidy hall was now a mess.
The two fought fiercely, neither willing to use bone spikes, but bare-handed. Every punch and claw aimed straight for the heart and head, their bloodshot eyes filled with rage.
"Stop!" Nangong's shout made the snake and monkey stop fighting.
The man and woman immediately knelt on one knee facing Nangong and respectfully called out, "My lord."
Nangong sighed as he looked at the messy hall, then approached the snake and monkey and helped them up.
"Yu Jingzi, tell me, what did you two argue about again?" Nangong asked, looking at [Snake] Yu Jingzi.
Yu Jingzi wore a stylish purple fitted sweater and denim shorts that revealed her long, fair legs. Since the Shiki couldn't feel the cold or warmth, Yu Jingzi could wear whatever she wanted.
However, this only applies when you don't go out. When you go out to meet people, you still have to dress like a normal person.
She took Nangong's arm, and the gracefully curved slime sandwiched Nangong's arm between them. Yujingzi pointed at the Monkey King and angrily cursed, "It's all this damned monkey's fault."
Wang Sun was so angry he wanted to grind his teeth. He stood next to the fat Zhu Lie.
"Hmph! You, my lord, and Xiaoxi and Laozhu, be the judges. Kyoko says she wants to adopt a child from an orphanage. We are ghouls, not living people!"
"She started fighting with me, Old Sun, without saying a word. I felt so wronged."
Nangong and An Qiuxi looked at Yu Jingzi in surprise. Yu Jingzi smiled shyly and stuck out her pink tongue, which was longer than usual.
Then, Yu Jingzi said with some grievance, "I was twenty-five when I died, and at twenty-seven I was with you, this forty-year-old stinky monkey. After the New Year I'll be thirty. What's wrong with wanting a child and wanting to be a mother?"
Having grasped the general situation, Nangong patted Yujingzi on the shoulder and said, "Don't worry, we'll start the final plan after the New Year."
"Since we can't have children or live with people, let's just have everyone join us."
As he spoke, Nangong's blood-red eyes shone even brighter, revealing his undisguised ambition.
Everyone in the Shiki organization was incredibly excited about this; if the plan succeeded, they wouldn't have to hide in this huge, cage-like ancient temple anymore.
At that time, the ghouls will no longer be called ghouls, but should be called—new humans.
The people standing next to Nangong nodded heavily, but Yu Jingzi's eyes revealed an undisguised disappointment.
Nangong noticed her low spirits and comforted her, "Kyoko, don't be sad. The power of [Origin] is very strong. I'm still analyzing it. I promise you, I will definitely find a solution, and you will definitely be able to have your own child."
Yu Jingzi nodded slightly. Seeing that Yu Jingzi's mood had not improved, Nangong pulled Yu Jingzi towards the outside of the main hall and turned to look at Wangsun.
"Little Sun, I entrust the restoration of the main hall to you."
After leaving those words, Nangong led Yujingzi away from the main hall, with An Qiuxi obediently following behind them, leaving only Wangsun and Zhu Lie standing there dumbfounded.
Zhu Lie sensed something was wrong and turned to run away, but Wangsun grabbed his shoulder.
"Old Pig, we've been brothers for years, how about you stay and help me, Old Sun?"
Zhu Lie slowly turned his head and said awkwardly with a smile, "Well, Brother Monkey, I feel a little thirsty and want to go get some water. How about I go get some water first and then come back to help you?"
With a flick of his hand, a powerful gust of wind blew through the wooden sliding door of the main hall, slamming it shut.
"What are you drinking? You're a ghoul, why would you drink water?"
"If you help me well, I'll treat you to fresh blood tonight."
Helpless, Zhu Lie had no choice but to stay and help Wangsun clean up the mess, while Nangong and Yujingzi, who had left the main hall, burst out laughing.
The main hall was in a mess, and Yu Jingzi didn't want to stay and clean it up. Nangong noticed this and comforted her by leaving the cleaning task to Wangsun.
————
(I've been busy cleaning the house these past few days, so please bear with this. You can save it for later if you want.)
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