As the rippling patterns along his body faded away, Yang Zicang silently set both feet down on the hotel’s carpet.
Of all times, they had to come knocking for a bid now.
Sure enough… someone had already sold out everyone’s interests!
Yang Zicang extended his hand, glanced at the room key labeled with the brass number “407, ” and then clenched it tightly.
“I accept the new tenant’s bid. “
In the quiet room, Yang Zicang spoke words expecting no answer, then silently waited for two or three seconds. A voice from a small brass horn sounded on the wall inside the doorway.
— “The new lodger has prepared the story it wishes to tell. “
A very faint “thump ” sound echoed as if striking against the wooden door of the suite.
Yang Zicang stepped over, his hand twisting the round brass lock handle. With a click, he opened the door and looked out at the entrance beyond the foyer corridor.
Room 201 (Phoenix-Perching Tree) had just been challenged, and now his room was starting too.
Could Sword Thirteen and the others… truly be untrustworthy, or has some extremely dangerous enemy already entered the Divine Hotel.
Thump… thump, thump.
“I’m coming. “
Yang Zicang walked over with a cold expression. As he approached, a faint layer of energy force field ripples flickered to life at the entrance.
“Please prepare the special experience you wish to recount. “
Yang Zicang placed his hand on the lock handle and murmured: “To witness the world no longer as it once was, yet powerless to hold back change. “
His gaze turned a bit more resolute.
Crack! The door was pulled open with a fierce motion. Outside, the corridor was empty.
{Hmph! }
Yang Zicang, with anger burning in his heart, froze for a moment. His eyes traveled upward, then his expression shifted slightly as he saw, within the spreading halo of light, a tiny irate figure clutching its small arms.
“How can this be! ” Yang Zicang said, stunned. “Are you the little reporter? “
{I’m so mad! }
Li Li Ya flew straight into the room. Yang Zicang nervously poked his head out, glanced left and right outside the door, and then heard some faint murmurs coming from downstairs, as if many people were there.
He straightened up abruptly, turned back to look at the little reporter floating in the entryway, staring at him with a huff, and said sternly and quickly:
“Is that you, Li Li Ya?“
{Of course it’s me! Hmph, add one point for remembering me. }
Yang Zicang quietly stole another glance outside. The little reporter also floated over, poking her head out the door to look down the hallway.
“Did you see any odd people around here just now?” Yang Zicang listened intently to the vague sounds outside as he asked.
{Odd people? } The little reporter thought for a moment, {Lots of ’em. Quite a few were trying to catch Little Suān Su. }
“Little Suān Su?“
Sudden fear flickered across Yang Zicang’s face, chilling his skin.
He looked up at the tiny sprite, no bigger than a hand, slanted eyes down at him “She came too? Why would all of you turn up here?!“
Suddenly, Yang Zicang stopped mid-thought and stared suspiciously at the reporter, who looked back at him with bright, clear eyes.
“You… don’t tell me it’s you.?“
The little spirit floated to the door with a posture of retreat, moving solely with nature, turning its head to gaze into the bedroom environment. Apart from two chests in the corner and some clothes on them, there were other miscellaneous items, and a long ashen wooden pole placed horizontally in the corner.
{Hmm, these things are too obtrusive here! }
The little spirit flew inside. Yang Zicang’s eyes twitched as he followed to the door, watching her soar over the luggage chest and turn back to say:
{When you go out later, remember to take them away! }
“You—you! “
She abruptly pulled out a stack of paper-like phantoms tucked at her waist, which swiftly became solid.
{Now I’ll begin telling the story of the world’s transformation! Mhm, let’s start with the one bad–bad Yang likes best, the Great Party Goods Trade Hub! }
“Ah? ” Yang Zicang stood in shock at the door.
{You still remember what it looked like back then, right? Now the Trade Hub has grown completely different. First, it already has over twenty thousand refugees who’ve fled there! }
Yang Zicang’s mouth slightly opened.
Click.
{There’s so much food needed every day, so the fields have expanded by many, many acres. Um… }
The little spirit’s face turned red. {There are some numbers I didn’t catch clearly. }
Click.
Her little hand flipped quickly. As Yang Zicang turned his head to look toward the bedside table, she recited as if reading from a script:
{Recorded on page three: Ma Junmin and his partner who checked in last month, also Niu Yu, Lin Zixiang, Huang Qianpei and Zhou Meimei, plus Xia Xingqi all by himself, the Zhulan Trade Delegation, three people from the Liu family… }
Yang Zicang, listening to a long string of names being rattled off, kept his gaze fixed on the scoreboard.
{They’ve all renovated the individual sleeping quarters and arranged the personal logistics; there’s also a long row of plank houses and ten toilets lined up. }
“Huh? ” Yang Zicang muttered as he subconsciously turned his head, “That’s pretty good. “
Click, click, click, click, click!
The scoreboard started whirring and rattling erratically. Having just glanced at the young reporter who was licking her pinky and turning a page, Yang Zicang suddenly snapped his head around in shock.
Clatter! The scoreboard stopped.
0V26.
Yang Zicang’s mouth flew open.
{Page 5 recorded: from two months ago—Zhao Ren, Liu Yida, Lu Jianwen, ah, Jiang Xuanqi, Wu Huijun, En Zhen… They planted water spinach, cowpea, and corn seedlings in the fields they had reclaimed themselves. }
Clatter and ching!
0V42.
Yang Zicang’s hands flew towards both sides of his head, his face filled with panic.
{Yunzhu Traveling Trader Team, Xia Xing, Wang Yong’an, Chen Peijian, Xu Shiying, Hu Deyong, Wang Huijuan, Wang Huiling… }
“Hold on, you can’t just tally it up like that! “
Li Liya looked up with an “Mm? “
The corner of Yang Zicang’s mouth twitched. “Um… Miss Reporter. “
Lili Ya flew over and watched Yang Zicang walk toward the scoreboard. He picked up the object and shook it. As the little reporter watched with curious eyes, Yang Zicang turned to her and said:
“Do you want to go see the ocean? “
{The ocean~ }
“That’s right, the ocean. You’ve never seen the ocean before, have you? It’s a place with lots and lots of water. “
A look of confusion appeared in Lili Ya’s eyes.
{Is there really such a place? That can’t be possible. }
“It’s real. ” Holding the scoreboard, Yang Zicang said solemnly to the little reporter, “We can see it from the room next door. “
Lili Ya, wearing her little sparkling dress, poked her cheek with her finger and said softly,
{I smell the scent of a bad idea. }
Yang Zicang cleared his throat, chuckled gently, and said warmly,
“Well… that room is quite special. Only if all the residents on this floor agree to connect it to a room over the sea can the two of us go out from there to see the ocean. “
The floating Lili Ya spun around at once, {Huh, you can’t be serious. }
“As long as you agree, this room will be yours to live in from now on, Lili Ya. “
Yang Zicang stared at her calmly. Seeing the little reporter deep in thought, he quickly added,
“From now on, you can be in charge of syncing our floor’s residential rooms with those empty ones every month, okay? It’ll be fun. “
{Ooh! Yes, yes! }
The little fairy floating in midair nodded briskly.
{So when are we going to see the ocean? }
“We could do it right now, but, ” Yang Zicang said with a frown, “I have some urgent matters to attend to at the moment. “
{Urgent matters. }
Li Liya slumped a bit in discouragement, one hand holding her notebook while her other arm hung limp by her side.
“Uh, ” Yang Zicang’s heart pounded as he said, “Then we could go and take a look now. It’s just— ” He glanced at Li Liya, “How did you get here anyway? “
Li Liya looked up and said, {I came from an underground stone house. }
“What! “
{Underneath the Lewissonate Auditorium, there’s a stone room, you know. }
Tap-tap, thud-thrum.
The sound of hurried footsteps converged in the corridor outside the door. Amid the rising noise, the door echoed with a “bang-bang ” of hammer and nails being driven in.
Yang Zicang turned his head to look outside, and the little spirit also looked over.
Outside the door.
“I am responsible for this row of house numbers. “
“You all hurry up and start from the opposite side. And you too, Mr. Army Officer. “
“Hey, me? ” Outside the crowd, an army captain in uniform held a hammer in his hand, pointing a finger at himself.
Having just received the order, he was solemnly handed the quickly assembled hammers, mallets, nails, and a leather belt of Mongolian iron by his superiors and brought into the hotel. At this moment, he still hadn’t reacted. How could it be his turn to enter this place, so hard for ordinary people to get into?
“We can handle this kind of rough work ourselves. “
Ao Qi, belly protruding, walked over, patted him on the shoulder, and took the iron hammer from the Army Major’s hand with a smile.
The Army Major, holding the toolbox, had the rest of the tools taken away by another grinning man who walked up to him.
“Hey, guys, hurry up. Floors below are dangerous too. ” People shouted as they noisily nailed iron sheets to the room number plates.
The Major, who had solemnly handed over the hammer, nails, and iron sheets, now stood empty-handed, watching these busy Fogfolk.
Several people were pressing the iron sheets, pinching nails, and watching the hammer fall by room 407 when they all suddenly stepped back as a door of dark, peach-wood color was pulled open from inside.
The iron sheet nailed to the door rattled.
Yang Zicang glanced at it, then turned to look at the men outside who stared at him, dumbfounded.
“President, you… ” Their eyes fell on the airborne female reporter, and they asked Yang Zicang, “When did you return to the room? “
“Just now. “
Yang Zicang sighed and raised his hand, handing the key in his fingertips to the female reporter. “From now on, this room belongs to her. “
“……“
Grain-Ya, holding the key with both hands, stopped midair at the room’s doorway, her small eyes wide open.
Yang Zicang looked past the crowd at He Yishu and Wang Zhi approaching from the stairwell.
Swoosh! A faint light shot from the stairwell, trailing afterimages as it rapidly disappeared on the fourth floor of the inn.
The nearby crowd of people in various attires turned their heads, staring at the departing little luminous spirit.
“Buchen. ” He Yishu walked over, locking eyes with Yang Zicang, who was looking back from within the crowd.
“Hmm. ” He paused slightly in his tone, “That tree root from your original room 201 is still on the first floor. “
Yang Zicang noticed the young men around them all seemed a bit awkward, turning their bodies away and busying themselves silently with their own tasks.
“I already heard. Its room got bid away. ” Yang Zicang said as he walked over.
Wang Zhi stood in the corridor, looking at the scenery on the other side and quietly whistled to himself. But he quickly realized that gesture was too fake. He turned to look at Yang Zicang, his eyebrows scrunched together as he glanced sideways at the others who were busy pressing their fingers against the iron sheets, flustered that their room price had been outbid.
“I… have something I’d like to ask you. ” He Yishu’s tone was steady but carried a hint of inquiry. Turning his back to the crowd, he asked Yang Zicang in a low voice:
_”Just now, before I came in, Anlong, who was talking to Mr. Brown Lion, said he originally wanted to bring Haili Koni along too. But that girl had to record a video, and Hei Yang refused to let her go. However, she said you could personally come pick her up, instead of Zhao Anlong taking her away.
Yang Zicang’s expression instantly turned stern.
He Yishu cleared his throat gently, “That… your ex-girlfriend, she… “
“I don’t have a girlfriend. “
Wang Zhi, who was rubbing his chin next door, suddenly straightened his back. The breaths of the nearby people wiping doors and polishing nails grew even quieter.
Yang Zicang’s face turned slightly grim, and his brow furrowed.
“Sometimes, fate plays its tricks on people. “
“If fate plays tricks, then we should try to change it, shouldn’t we? ” He Yishu said, watching him with a hint of concern in his low voice.
Yang Zicang heard the sound of footsteps gradually approaching from downstairs.
“There’s no way around it, ” Yang Zicang sighed, “if I change it, some people who exist now might disappear in the future. “
“Some people in the future? “
“My son. “
He Yishu glanced toward the stairs, then quickly draped his arm over Yang Zicang’s shoulders, turning him aside and lowering his voice to a near whisper:
“This place isn’t bound by the laws of our hometown. “
That hand patted Yang Zicang on the shoulder.
The young man blinked, lost in thought.
“When it comes to wanting a son, if you’re willing—you could have several, couldn’t you? “
Yang Zicang’s head suddenly stiffened as he looked up. He felt a somewhat familiar presence behind him.
In a moment of clarity, he realized the little spirits might have come along with someone.
Yang Zicang tensed, his Adam’s apple bobbing nervously.
At the same time, He Yishu inexplicably felt a prickling tension as if needles were pressed into his back. He found his own breathing becoming uncontrollable, tightening for no reason.
A faint chill crept up from behind.
He Yishu turned his head inch by inch, glancing over his shoulder at the clear figure of Zhao Xuemei, whose hair was as crystalline and slightly blue as frost, standing on the carpet of the corridor behind.
He Yishu gently patted Yang Zicang’s shoulder, then retracted his hand.
Yang Zicang turned to look, and Zhao Xuemei gave him a sweet smile.
“To find the succubus. “
The words he had spoken to this girl on the phone earlier surfaced in his mind.
Then his gaze shifted to the stairwell entrance, from where the sound of footsteps was growing increasingly clear.
Yang Zicang’s heart tightened abruptly.
Thinking of the child who had emerged from the golden path, calling out “Daddy ” to him, he shook his head violently.
“No. “
“Why no? ” He Yishu asked urgently in a low voice.
“I have already changed the future. “
At the thought of that chubby, horned boy, Yang Zicang suppressed the surge of agitation reigniting in his heart.
“So don’t try to talk me out of it. “
“I wasn’t talking you out of anything… “
The clatter of footsteps came from the stairs.
“Nothing is constant, it seems. “
Yang Zicang closed his eyes, drawing his breath deep into his lungs, then opened them and let out a sigh, speaking with unruffled calm:
“Anyway, I’ve decided. Before I find that child’s real mother, I can’t… add too many more uncertainties to the creation of his future, that’s all. “
A woman’s profile, radiant like a Venus, appeared from around the stairwell landing. She turned her head, her hair swaying, and met Yang Zicang’s gaze.
“Mr. Zicang. ” A soft voice, like a murmured inquiry with elegant grace, was heard.
Zhao Xuemei, who had been standing between the two with her arms crossed, slightly shook her head and stepped back.
Yang Zicang’s mouth hung open, frozen in place. After a moment of stunned silence, he quickly steadied his tone and managed a few smiles, saying, “Uh, Miss Aiyuan, hello. “
The woman’s exquisitely beautiful face showed a slight, polite smile.
He Yishu, at his side, raised a hand to cover his face.
Tap tap.
Another figure, revealing an exquisite aura as pure and unadorned as uncut jade, walked down the stairs, coming to a stop beside Xu Aiyuan.
“It really is Zicang. ” Lin Site looked at Yang Zicang, who had frozen in his steps, and after a brief moment of surprise, a smile spread across his face.
Seeing Yang Zicang, whose temperament and appearance had changed so dramatically, He Yishu involuntarily let out a relaxed sigh of relief.
“Hello there, Lin Site. “
He stepped forward two paces on the soft carpet, wearing army-issue long trousers, and said with a smile, “Gentlemen, welcome to the feilü Hotel. “
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