Chapter 349

One Hundred and Fifty-Seventh Page – Never Give Up

When Lǐn Huā arrived, Wū Qínglán, Sister Lěi, and I were washing Yòu Zi on the first floor.

She leaned against the bathroom door and asked, “Cherry Sauce, what are you… doing?”

Shaking the water off my hands, I replied, “As you can see, Yòu Zi is too dirty and needs cleaning.”

Sister Lěi sprinkled some water on Yòu Zi’s paws, and the small animal by the plastic basin nodded with its beady eyes.

“Yòu Zi, is the water temperature right?”

“Mm, very comfortable.”

“Then shall we put her in the pot?”

“Please use different words!”

Sister Lěi held Yòu Zi in both arms and carefully placed her in the basin.

Although she wasn’t in the mood, this clean-loving little creature couldn’t tolerate any smell on herself, even though she couldn’t detect it herself.

“Please clean her thoroughly, but don’t pull out her fur.”

Without resistance, she knew her short little paws couldn’t reach everywhere, so only our help could make her all foamy and fragrant.

Lǐn Huā sighed, holding her forehead, “Really… Almost time to head to the research institute, and you’re still doing this?”

“There’s still time, Lǐn Huā. You’re too anxious.”

I pushed her to the edge of the plastic basin and said, “Help wash Yòu Zi, it might change your mood.”

“Xiǎo Kǎi is still missing. How can I have this mood?”

“It won’t help rushing things. If he was truly thrown somewhere else as Boss predicted, finding him without any clues will take careful planning.”

Since Lǔ Bífāng’s speculation lacked basis, even Queen felt helpless, only saying she would keep an eye out.

Lǐn Huā squatted beside the hot water basin and reached out to poke Yòu Zi’s nose.

“Wah! Cho! Yòu Zi sneezed slightly.

“You haven’t had a proper bath in a long time, huh?”

Lǐn Huā asked, and Yòu Zi meekly rubbed her paws.

“Autumn has been cool, and there’s no way to bathe in the Bǎozhū. Finding a random sink would make one catch a cold. Although it’s not serious for humans, it could kill someone like us. No one has ever complained about my smell, so I thought I wasn’t that dirty.”

Yòu Zi raised her wet paws to cover her face, a human-like shy action that was very cute.

Xiǎo Kǎi had indeed smelled her, but out of consideration, he didn’t mention it. Originally, he planned to clean Yòu Zi once he resolved his grandmother’s affairs, but it seemed that plan was just a thought now.

“Sigh.”

In just a few days, everything changed. Sighing, I couldn’t help but feel melancholic. No matter what I did, I thought of that good-natured person who would continue to influence me and others for a long time.

Assisting Sister Lěi in lathering Yòu Zi, Lǐn Huā asked me from behind, “Cherry Sauce, do you think there’s no hope for Xiǎo Kǎi?”

She had asked me this many times before.

“I’ve said it several times. I don’t want to discourage you, so please stop asking.”

Even after all these hints, Lǐn Huā persisted.

“Boss’s analysis gave me hope, but I also want to hear your opinion. After all, you know more about the Heavenly Path and the Deities… Is it a pessimistic conclusion?”

At this point, I could only shake my head helplessly.

“Yes, I think Xiǎo Kǎi is gone, but not because I understand the Heavenly Path. In fact, even Lord Hái, who is part of the Heavenly Path, can’t fathom its thoughts.”

The Heavenly Path is inscrutable. To us who can’t understand it, it sometimes seems disorderly and irrational…

Most importantly, the Heavenly Path’s decisions and judgments are not swayed by emotions.

It is cold and efficient. If it judges that Mother and Xiǎo Kǎi threaten the world’s stability, it will impose merciless heavenly punishment.

Upon hearing Xiǎo Kǎi’s name, Sister Lěi stopped her actions and looked up, “Since no one understands the Heavenly Path’s thoughts, why does Miss think Chairman is beyond saving? After all, he was only affected by the heavenly punishment, maybe the Heavenly Path still plans to give him another chance?”

“A simple logic. I am Xiǎo Kǎi’s exclusive auxiliary spirit. Our relationship is not just binding, but also complementary. If he is alive, I would definitely feel his presence.”

Wū Qínglán came from the shower room with a showerhead, then used her hand to shield Yòu Zi’s eyes while rinsing the foam off her body.

She said, “Little Ying, although I don’t understand divine techniques, I think your logic can be reversed.”

“What do you mean?”

She turned and asked, “If Xiǎo Kǎi really isn’t here, why are you still here?”

Her question was echoed by Sister Lěi, “That’s right! If I died, Elder Brother would die too, you said that back then. So if Xiǎo Kǎi really died, Miss couldn’t stand here properly…”

“Ah!”

Like catching onto hope, the fool excitedly tried to stand up but hit her head on the basin in the bathroom.

I had considered this content before, but my reason for not disappearing was not because of this.

I explained, “My situation is different. I am half of Xiǎo Kǎi’s soul and also the spirit of the notebook. Although I lost Xiǎo Kǎi, I still have this notebook as a home, so I can still exist in the world.”

The notebook, which is my main body, currently transforms into a set of clothes. Although I cannot use spells, this is still possible.

Although Xiǎo Kǎi is gone, my basic functions haven’t changed much.

Lǐn Huā asked, “But if the object you need to assist is gone, doesn’t that mean your mission is over? What are you now?”

So, whether I will disappear six months later is unknown.

“Now, I’m probably a spirit without a master. But I can’t do much. Without Xiǎo Kǎi, I can’t even use magic.”

Wū Qínglán wrapped Yòu Zi in a dry towel to absorb the water, then used a hairdryer through the towel to dry the little creature. Blowing directly might damage her expensive mink fur.

“Since Cherry Sauce can’t use divine techniques, the names written with pencils can’t be erased either, and the holy marks can’t be replenished, right?”

Lǐn Huā held her face with regret, “Sigh, not only did I lose Kǎi-Chan, but I’ll also lose Yáo-Chan?”

Hearing this, I checked the names in the notebook.

Besides the pregnant AJ, the notebook also had the name “Léi Là”… This was terrible. For the young policewoman, it seemed to be the worst outcome.

—

“So, let’s go to the research institute. I’ll return as soon as possible, Sister Qínglán…”

“No need to say more, I’ll take care of Xiǎo Wēi.”

Standing at the entrance hall to see us off, Wū Qínglán patted my shoulder hard.

After Old Lady disappeared, the curse of aging on her was lifted. Even if she got close to Old Dad, she wouldn’t turn into a child. However, she wasn’t happy about this result, as the price was too high.

“Thank you. There’s one more thing I’d like to ask you. If Mom agrees, I want you to bring her back to the estate to adjust her mood. With Mother and Xiǎo Kǎi gone, this house is just a place of sorrow for her…”

Thinking she would agree happily, she shook her head instead.

“No! Running away won’t change anything! I’ll stay here with Xiǎo Wēi and help her regain her spirit. But I can’t do it alone… So, you must also work hard to make this family warm again! Understand?”

“Really, why suddenly preach?”

I opened her hand trying to put it on my head, but she just smiled bitterly and rubbed her hand.

“Little Ying, I’ve observed you for a few days. You’ve been troubled these days. If you can’t overcome the loss of Xiǎo Kǎi, how can you comfort Xiǎo Wēi’s pain?”

“Easy to say. How can I muster the strength to rise again? Every time I close my eyes, I see that white light of the heavenly punishment that swallowed Xiǎo Kǎi, and it could have been avoided…”

“Miss, enough, don’t say such depressing things anymore! Little Wū, don’t speak lightly about letting go. It’s precisely because you can’t let go that you suffer!”

Sister Lěi rushed forward to cover my mouth and pushed Wū Qínglán back inside.

Lǐn Huā held my hand, intertwining our fingers.

“Cherry Sauce, your self-blame makes no sense. At that time, you and Kǎi-Chan were in a fusion state. Even if you didn’t notice the heavenly punishment, it wasn’t your fault. Everyone could see that he was more careless than you.”

“In fact, I can be careless too… Huh? Lǐ Qiūluó?”

Passing the stone path in front of the cat house, a silver-gray business car was parked outside the courtyard wall.

The woman with a ponytail and sunglasses opened the electric rear door.

Then she greeted us with a wave.

“Hey, two ladies, good morning!”

Sitting in the back seat, I asked, “Why are you here to pick us up?”

“As an employee of the Huángfǔ Group, it’s my honor to be your driver. Please don’t mind the low class of my car.”

Although I knew she was joking, I found even such jokes annoying now.

“…Sigh.”

The car jolted as it drove out of the village, turning right onto Mí Fēng Street and heading towards the wide riverside highway.

Lǐ Qiūluó then said, “Little Ying, I’m sorry about Xiǎo Kǎi’s situation. He’s our benefactor, and his kindness won’t change with this incident. If you need anything in the future, please let me know. I’ll do my best.”

She sounded almost like she was swearing allegiance?

Compared to her attitude towards Xiǎo Kǎi, her attitude towards me seemed different. Was it due to gender?

“There’s nothing that requires muscle power right now, and I’m not Xiǎo Kǎi. Why should I accept your kindness?”

“At least until he returns, please treat me as him.”

Another person who refuses to accept reality.

“Lǐ Qiūluó, Xiǎo Kǎi can’t come back…”

I sighed, but Lǐ Qiūluó loudly denied my denial.

“No! The chairman said, we shouldn’t give up yet! So I won’t believe he’s forever gone!”

“You mentioned the chairman?”

To this, Lǐn Huā explained, “Grandmother has gone to the research institute. Though she’s troubled by guilt, she sincerely believes Xiǎo Kǎi is still alive!”

Grandmother also thinks Xiǎo Kǎi is still alive?

In the end, the only one giving up is me.