Chapter 70: Return of the Stars and Moon |
After two idle days, Shen Siyuan suddenly found himself busy.
First, while he was "working", Shen Siyuan felt a thread of Merit descend from the sky and enter the space between his eyebrows.
Before he could even react, he saw Yin Xingyue ride a gust of Yin Wind, spiraling into the office.
Shen Siyuan put down his work and turned to walk toward the conference room next to him.
Such an action wouldn't seem strange even if someone saw it, as many people went to the conference room to make private calls.
Doudou, who was acting "sneaky" by the Finance Office door, immediately ran over when she saw Yin Xingyue.
"Big Sister, Big Sister… I missed you so much, where did you go…"
The Little One, like a chatterbox, followed behind Yin Xingyue, chattering nonstop.
Yin Xingyue smiled and reached out to pat Doudou's little head.
"I learned to breathe fire, rawr, rawr…" Doudou answered irrelevantly, saying proudly.
Then she tilted her head up, staring straight at Yin Xingyue.
"What's wrong?"
"Big Sister, you're a little different," Doudou said.
Even Doudou could tell that Yin Xingyue was different, so Shen Siyuan naturally could as well.
This time, upon her return, Yin Xingyue's entire person seemed much more cheerful. Her perpetually furrowed brow seemed to have smoothed out, and her entire demeanor seemed vastly different from before.
Once they were in the Conference Room, Shen Siyuan asked, "How's your grandmother? Is she in good health?"
Yin Xingyue nodded, then said, "Grandmother is doing well."
"That's good," Shen Siyuan said.
Shen Siyuan had initially been worried that Yin Xingyue's grandmother, upon seeing Yin Xingyue again, might not be able to think straight and follow Yin Xingyue into death.
Now it seemed he had overthought it.
Actually, Shen Siyuan's thinking wasn't wrong, but Granny Yin was stronger than he had imagined. She had been through countless storms in her life: losing her husband in her youth, her son in middle age, and her granddaughter in old age.
She had long since come to face Fate with equanimity. To her, there was no real difference between life and death; she felt neither elation and joy in life, nor sorrow and fear in death.
She had little education and didn't understand grand principles, nor had she ever pondered the meaning of life. She simply accepted her Fate passively, letting everything take its natural course.
Of course, being able to see her granddaughter again was something that made her very happy, but she never thought of ending her own life. She continued to live on, following the arrangements of Fate.
Naturally, if she were to die suddenly one day, she would accept that with the same composure.
This was her life.
She didn't know if her life had meaning; she just had to walk the path arranged by Fate, and it didn't matter if no one remembered her.
"So, now that your wish is fulfilled? Are you planning to stay here with me, or…"
As Shen Siyuan spoke, he reached out, grabbed Doudou by the ankle, and pulled her down from the conference table.
But soon, the little thing scrambled back up again, just like a Little Monkey.
Seeing this, Yin Xingyue broke into a heartfelt smile.
It was the first time Shen Siyuan had ever seen her smile like that.
He didn't rush her, but quietly waited for Yin Xingyue's decision.
Watching Doudou's amusing antics, Yin Xingyue's gaze fell back upon Shen Siyuan.
"Does Big Brother want me to stay?" Yin Xingyue said with a melodious laugh.
Having fulfilled her wish, she should have dissipated between heaven and earth like other deceased souls.
But the Ten Thousand Souls Banner bound her.
Only when Shen Siyuan released her could she return to nature, return to this world.
Shen Siyuan had given the choice to her, but she, in turn, gave the choice back to Shen Siyuan.
Shen Siyuan shifted his gaze to Doudou, who had once again climbed onto the conference table, and said, "Of course I hope you'll stay. You can help me with things usually.
This little thing is just a mascot, she's useless."
Unexpectedly, Doudou actually understood.
She scrambled to her feet, stood on the conference table with her hands on her hips, and huffed angrily, "I'm already at 'Mountain Sleep', you know! And I'm about to reach 'Is Sleep'! I can understand you badmouthing me."
"No, I was complimenting you on how cute you are."
"Really?"
"Of course.
A Giant Panda is a mascot. Isn't it cute?"
"It's cute."
"See? That's what I mean. When I say you're a mascot, I'm saying you're as cute as a Giant Panda."
"Oh~" Doudou's face lit up with understanding, full of excitement.
"Sweet Potato Bwother, can I raise a Giant Panda?"
"You haven't even gotten a dog yet, so don't be thinking about raising a Giant Panda," Shen Siyuan said, exasperated.
Yin Xingyue stood to the side, her eyes curved into crescents, and she laughed with extreme delight.
Seeing Shen Siyuan's gaze fall back on her, Yin Xingyue said, "Since Big Brother needs me, I'll stay."
As she said this, her voice trembled slightly, and tears welled in her eyes, but she still maintained a smile on her face.
Ever since her father passed away, she had always been disliked, made to feel like she was redundant—by her classmates, her teachers, her mother, and even her grandmother at first. This was the first time someone had ever told her that she was needed…
"In that case, I'll be counting on you to take care of her."
Shen Siyuan pointed at Doudou, who was still crawling around on the conference table.
"Mm."
Yin Xingyue nodded emphatically, then reached out, grabbed Doudou by the ankle, and pulled her over.
Like a little chick, Doudou was dangled in her hand.
"Big Sister~" Doudou called out pitifully.
"I'll teach you how to control the flames on your head," Yin Xingyue said."Get along well, you two."
Shen Siyuan said this one last thing, then turned and left.
"Sweet Potato Bwother…"
"Who's calling me?" Shen Siyuan said with great confusion as he walked out of the conference room.
Then, humming a little tune, he returned to his desk to continue slacking off and killing time.
Soon, it was noon.
Ding Youguang and Zhou Zhengdao came looking for him.
"Is Li Qunfang not coming with us?"
The few of them were working on something together, yet Li Qunfang had yet to show her face.
"She ordered takeout.
Let's not worry about her for now, but she promised to join us for dinner tomorrow night," Zhou Zhengdao said.
The lunch break wasn't long, so the three of them just planned to eat something casual downstairs.
It couldn't be considered a proper get-together, more like just pooling for a meal, so it didn't really matter if Li Qunfang came or not.
The three of them went downstairs, and Shen Siyuan immediately saw Lu Guanchang waiting at the company entrance.
"You guys go ahead and order. I'm going to buy a couple of drinks.
What do you want?"
Neither Ding Youguang nor Zhou Zhengdao stood on ceremony; one said Herbal Tea, the other said Cola.
Watching the two of them leave, Lu Guanchang tactfully came forward.
"How is it? Has your daughter arrived in Binhai?"
Seeing the joy on his face, Shen Siyuan could already guess a few things.
Sure enough, he saw Lu Guanchang nod, his face brimming with excitement.
"You came to find me because you want to see her?" Shen Siyuan continued to ask.Lu Guanchang nodded, then clasped his hands and bowed deeply to Shen Siyuan, saying, "I must trouble you, Great Master."
Shen Siyuan nodded and didn't refuse.
With a thought, the Ten Thousand Souls Banner appeared in his palm. He then formed a Hand Seal, and Lu Guanchang was directly sucked into the Ten Thousand Souls Banner.
But he was released by Shen Siyuan almost immediately after. The time was so short, the speed so fast, that Lu Guanchang didn't even have time to react or understand what had happened.
However, the fleshy tumors on his face had now all vanished, revealing his original kind and benevolent appearance.
Although the time was short, Lu Guanchang understood what had happened once he came to his senses.
His reverence for Shen Siyuan grew even deeper. For the Wandering Souls who had entered the Ten Thousand Souls Banner, the Banner Master was the god who ruled over their everything.
So he once again bowed deeply to Shen Siyuan.
"Go on, go and fulfill your wish," Shen Siyuan said with a wave of his hand.
"However, you may explain what happened to your daughter, but do not cause any more trouble," Shen Siyuan instructed.
Was he saying this out of the kindness of his heart?
Of course not.
This was actually a form of insurance. As the Banner Master, Lu Guanchang could not defy his will.
This would prevent Lu Guanchang from getting any funny ideas; he was not as naive as Yin Xingyue and Doudou.
"Yes," Lu Guanchang responded, transforming into a gust of Yin Wind and departing, but there was not the slightest trace of Netherfire on his body.
Not all Wandering Souls who entered the Ten Thousand Souls Banner could obtain various abilities.
Even after entering the Ten Thousand Souls Banner, they were still divided into different ranks.
The highest was the Great General, who commanded all the Wandering Souls in the Ten Thousand Souls Banner and was governed only by the Banner Master.
Below them were the Eight Commanders, and further down were the various Vanguards.
Below the Vanguards were the various Troops, which were the Cannon Fodder for charges.
The overall structure was very simple, designed only to make it easier for the Banner Master to command the thousands of Wandering Souls to charge into battle for him.
As for Lu Guanchang, although he had entered the Ten Thousand Souls Banner, he was merely a soldier of the lowest rank.
The ability to Control Yin Wind and Manifest Form were all the powers he possessed.
Because he could Control Yin Wind, he quickly arrived at his daughter Zhao Hongxia's residence.