GRMFBS CH263

Gu Jiancheng funneled all the energy he couldn’t use on Zhan Yan into “bonding” with Ghost King Lin Yuan.

The First Day of Cooperation:

Ghost King Lin Yuan: Vigilant.

The Second Day of Cooperation:

Ghost King Lin Yuan: Continuing to be vigilant.

The Third Day of Cooperation:

Ghost King Lin Yuan: ……?

Deep Shadow: “You bored? Want to watch a gourmet anime together?”

Zhan Jinli: …Is Deep Shadow hungry?

Gu Jiancheng had no other choice. Ghost King Lin Yuan’s tastes were simply too eccentric, and after pondering for a long time, he finally came up with this idea. Zhan Suiru had a hobby of playing games, but what did Zhan Jinli like? Making sickeningly sweet desserts and dedicating himself to promoting his unique tastes? He also seemed to have a hidden “Long Aotian” complex, but Gu Jiancheng couldn’t exactly hire people to come and act out a “Dragon King’s Return” drama for him. Oh wait, Lin Yuan has five ghost subordinates who could do that.

So, “food” was the only remaining direction—Lin Yuan chose to stay at Zhan Yan’s house, and surely that was because Zhan Yan’s father’s cooking was top-tier, right?

Gu Jiancheng knew he didn’t have the skills to conquer Lin Yuan through culinary talent. However, since he had a suspected dream of becoming a master chef or the “Cake King,” watching a food anime together was the next best thing. Maybe food anime was just like a “satisfying power-fantasy drama” to Lin Yuan? Even if he couldn’t do anything else, cultivating a shared hobby would suffice.

Zhan Jinli wanted to refuse. But in the initial phase of the Dawn World’s integration into the Reincarnation Cycle, there really was nothing to do. Idle = Doing nothing, which, in Deep Shadow’s warped logic, very likely translated to lying flat = lazy = needs striving = needs to be infused with the concept of hard work…

It was better to just watch a food anime.

[Ghost King Lin Yuan, Zhan Jinli, accepted the invitation from Deep Shadow, Gu Jiancheng. The two are now watching the gourmet anime “The Return of the Food God.”]

Zhan Yan: …Pfft.

Sorry, he really couldn’t help it. Watching a food anime was fine—at least it wasn’t a “reverse sprint” toward trouble.

“Yanyan, what are you looking at?” Gu Jiancheng leaned in again. This was his shadow clone.

Zhan Yan was quite curious about this skill and had already looked it up in the Gossip System. A shadow clone was like a remote-controlled doll; it had consciousness and perception but no physical sensations. It was more like data visualization—he could “know” the temperature of an object he touched, but he couldn’t feel the heat or cold. So…

Zhan Yan turned his head to look at him, always feeling like the expression on this clone’s face was incredibly pitiful.

“School is starting soon; we have to go home and pack.”

Gu Jiancheng: “…Oh.”

Oh, what oh? You’ll see each other when school starts in a couple of days!

Gu Jiancheng felt down. Once school started, he’d be in the dorms. Besides, his attempts to gain favor with his future brother-in-law over the last few days hadn’t gone very smoothly.

Zhan Yan kissed him. “We have plenty of free time for internships this semester.”

Which means you don’t have to stay at school!

Gu Jiancheng’s breath hitched, and his eyes instantly brightened like they’d been plugged into a charger.

That brightness didn’t last long, though, as Zhan Yan took Xingxing and headed home. With less than a week until the start of the semester, there was no time to waste.

When he arrived home, Zhan Yan was startled by the state of the courtyard. It had been completely renovated while he was out. The stone tiles had been removed, the dirt had been planted with various flora, and a swing set had been set up on the lawn. New plants had been transplanted for the summer, and any that had already bloomed had been pruned so they could focus on adjusting to their new environment.

Xingxing was ecstatic. He bounced out of Zhan Yan’s cat backpack and took off running through the yard. Meow, meow, meow! Went out for a trip and came back to a new paradise!

Ji Yueming was weeding in the yard, wearing a long apron and gardening gloves. When she saw them return, she straightened up from the shrubs and beamed.

There was ample space left between the plants for future growth, which to a cat, looked exactly like a small racetrack. Xingxing dashed around until he set his sights on a newly transplanted baby maple tree. He leaped onto it—Swing time!

Zhan Yan: “…Xingxing, get down right now!”

Ji Yueming: “It’s fine, let him play.”

That was a baby maple tree spirit. It wasn’t that fragile; a cat dangling from it wouldn’t hurt it at all. Zhan Yan had already checked the Gossip System. The maple tree spirit had only just gained sentience and was still naive. Its talent was sensitivity to “auras,” and it would change colors when it encountered unpleasant ones. When Zhan Yunkai and Ji Yueming passed by its original spot in the nursery, it felt their “auras” were amazing, so it had worked extremely hard to shake off its two best-shaped leaves, hoping to be taken home.

Zhan Yunkai and Ji Yueming had each picked up a leaf, and their eyes met, both thinking about “entrusting feelings to maple leaves.” They decided that adding an automatic color-changing environmental detector to the house wasn’t a bad idea, so they chose this highly motivated little maple tree.

Zhan Yan scrolled through the gossip tabs while heading to his room with his mother.

[Demon King Zhongming, Zhan Yunkai, secretly infused the maple tree spirit with a bit of spiritual energy to help it adapt to the environment.]

[Tianshi Ji Yueming retrieved plant growth repair fluid from the Abnormal Affairs Management Bureau and secretly irrigated the tree, hoping to repair its roots.]

[The maple tree spirit is fully fed. Seeing the tree thriving, both Zhan Yunkai and Ji Yueming believe it has great potential.]

Looks like there’s another pet in the house now.

“Mom, is Dad not home?” Zhan Yan asked.

“He went to buy groceries. Is there anything you want to eat? Call him and tell him to get it.” Ji Yueming was taking off her gloves and apron. Seeing Zhan Yan rummaging through his suitcase, she added, “Don’t rush, you just got home—take a rest.”

Zhan Yan turned his back to his mother, bustling about like a squirrel hiding nuts. Suddenly, he turned around, holding up a pair of intricately crafted glass flower vases. “Ta-da! Mom, do you like them?”

Ji Yueming’s eyes widened slightly, and she took them with a smile. “They’re beautiful! Yanyan has such great taste!”

Zhan Yan followed his mother around the house like a golden retriever, testing where the vases looked best.

“They look good here.”

“Oh my, they look lovely over there, too.”

“I didn’t buy enough, I didn’t buy enough!”

Xingxing, having run himself hot in the yard, trotted inside to follow them back and forth. Finally, his mother chose a spot she was satisfied with and placed the vases. Xingxing curiously sniffed around them.

“Xingxing, don’t knock them over.”

Xingxing was a nimble, clever cat; he wouldn’t break things. Unless it was on purpose.

Just as the vases were set, his father returned with the groceries. Zhan Yan pulled out his gift for his dad—a colorful recording microphone!

Zhan Yunkai narrowed his eyes. “What are you up to?”

Zhan Yan: “You can record when you sing, so Mom can listen anytime, anywhere!”

Zhan Yunkai: “Not a bad idea. Don’t you want a copy?”

Zhan Yan: “Sharing would be great, of course. I won’t leak it, I promise!”

His dad’s singing voice was so good that he’d kept it hidden for over a decade without them knowing. It was unlikely he’d ever hear his dad sing in person, so he’d listen to the recordings secretly—and maybe share them with his older brother and sister.

The youngest son’s eyes blinked rapidly.

Zhan Yunkai: “What do you want to eat?”

Hehe!

Zhan Yan was happy. Zhan Yunkai went to cook. There were pickled meat and preserved vegetable bits in the jars, but he hadn’t expected to run into “Xiao Gu” during his trip, so he hadn’t brought any. I’ll bring some when school starts.

After getting home, Zhan Yan went to take a shower and relaxed by scrolling through his feeds. He checked Weibo—he hadn’t logged in for a long time. Aside from a few promotional posts for games and grapes he’d done for Luo Luoluo, there was nothing else. The hype around “Ghost School” was fading, and his comments section had quieted down significantly.

Zhan Yan clicked into his father’s Weibo. Aside from a short hiatus when they were traveling, it was still his standard daily food log. His father never cared about the desperate pleas for new music in the comments. Hehe, you guys can’t hear him, but I’ll be able to soon!

Zhan Yan happily posted a picture of the microphone on his Moments.

Gu Jiancheng was the first to “Like” it. Even though he didn’t know why Zhan Yan had posted a picture of a microphone, he had to “Like” it!

Zhan Jinli watched as Deep Shadow suddenly took out his phone and started tapping away in the middle of watching the food anime. I don’t understand. I really don’t. Deep Shadow didn’t look like he liked food anime at all, so why was he dragging him along to watch it? He’d even prepared a full projection system.

Zhan Jinli looked away, bored, and kept staring at the screen. Food was meant to be eaten. A food anime only had visuals—he couldn’t taste or smell anything. What was the point? However, if Deep Shadow could be distracted by food anime, that would be great; then he wouldn’t be able to put pressure on him.

Gu Jiancheng wasn’t obsessed with food. If it tasted good, he was happy; if it didn’t, he’d still eat it. Watching the anime was just something to do.

The Little Cat Wan Yan sat on the floor between them, eyes wide, whiskers twitching as he watched with extreme focus. Ah… that looks delicious! Slurp! He swallowed hard.

“…Fragrant, sticky, and smooth; one bite on the tongue and it’s full of gelatinous goodness.”

Can braised pork really be this delicious? I haven’t eaten that yet! He couldn’t take it anymore!

Wan Yan stood up: “Meow-eeee-ao!” I’m leaving! He was going to find the “Chef.” The Chef had promised to make him a big meal! He wanted to eat braised pork!

Zhan Jinli grabbed the cat’s tail with lightning speed. “Where are you going?”

Who knew when the Dawn World would connect? Wan Yan had to wait here. Wan Yan pulled on his tail, unhappy: “Meow-ao-mee-woo-meow!” Don’t pull my tail! You guys watch good food and make me drool, but you won’t let me go eat! If you have the guts, watch me every day—one day I will run away!

Zhan Jinli had a headache. Wan Yan’s “restless” soul was acting up again. He really didn’t have the confidence to keep an eye on Wan Yan and prevent him from running away forever—Wan Yan had gained so much experience in escaping that he’d seize any opportunity to bolt.

Suddenly, his hand felt loose; all that remained in his palm was a tuft of cat fur that dissipated into sparkling, ghostly energy.

The Little Cat Wan Yan, having practiced “autotomy for survival,” had already bolted. The sparkles of ghostly energy gathered behind him, reforming back into a tail.

Gu Jiancheng: ?

This mentally unstable Ghost King cat wants to go find Yanyan? That won’t do!

Shadows spread, rapidly drawing a prison. “Don’t run!”

Wan Yan hit the wall of shadows thud, turned back, and stared at Deep Shadow with wide eyes. What is your problem? I have no grudge against you!

Zhan Jinli breathed a sigh of relief. “Thanks.”

Gu Jiancheng said deeply: “Don’t mention it. I don’t want him running off either.”

[Ghost King Lin Yuan, Zhan Jinli, and Deep Shadow, Gu Jiancheng, have reached a consensus on preventing Ghost King Wan Yan from escaping. They have developed “comrades-in-arms” camaraderie after jointly thwarting Ghost King Wan Yan’s various whimsical plans for escape.]