Chapter 359: Rejection
The Night Watchers entering Yang Haoran's villa was, naturally, with his permission. These Night Watchers were all very well-behaved, sitting obediently and waiting for Yang Haoran to appear.
Ever since they became Night Watchers, their perspectives had changed, differing greatly from ordinary people. Grand mansions no longer held the same shock value in their eyes as they once did.
However, they remained quite curious about Yang Haoran's residence, looking around here and there, not admiring the mansion itself, but rather the things within it.
Unfortunately, apart from being expensive and aesthetically pleasing, none of the decorations in Yang Haoran's mansion emitted any unusual energy fluctuations. This left them somewhat disappointed, as they all wished to broaden their horizons.
Shortly after, Yang Haoran appeared, followed by Old Master Wu, with Bai Xue and Xiao Kang close behind.
Bai Xue wasn't wearing her dazzling police uniform. Since it was a night out for a party and drinks, wearing a police uniform would certainly be inappropriate. So, she wore a tracksuit and put on her ugly mask, only revealing the area below her nose.
When Yang Haoran appeared, all the Night Watchers quickly stood up and bowed, their attitudes respectful.
"You've all worked hard during this period," Yang Haoran said with a smile. "Tonight, let's go out and relax. Please, everyone, play to your heart's content, let loose, and don't hold back."
After saying this with a smile, Yang Haoran led the Night Watchers out of the villa.
Yang Haoran's side had no objections to Bai Xue, but the Spirit Police were different; not all of them welcomed her.
Before the gathering, Captain Luo specifically held a meeting. The entire meeting lasted a full afternoon, and its content revolved entirely around Bai Xue.
The vast majority of Spirit Police found Bai Xue joining them unacceptable, as they disdained associating with man-eating demons. Two Spirit Police officers even declared on the spot that they would leave the force.
Therefore, Captain Luo and Vice-Captain Zhou spent an entire afternoon conducting ideological work with all the Spirit Police, clearly explaining the pros and cons.
Although Vice-Captain Zhou also disliked Bai Xue, his position was different, so he could only, like Captain Luo, try to persuade the other Spirit Police.
Through their combined efforts, although the vast majority of Spirit Police still strongly rejected Bai Xue, no one spoke out further, tacitly acknowledging that she would be one of them from now on.
Their choice to compromise was, first, because Captain Luo's indoctrination made them consider the bigger picture.
Secondly, it wasn't Captain Luo's personal decision, but rather the Administrative Chief's intention.
Besides these two points, there was another very important reason: the Spirit Police would soon receive a batch of resources. This batch included various secret manuals, magical artifacts, and reportedly even medicines that could enhance their strength.
These resources were treasures to any Spirit Police officer. If they could obtain them, their strength would undoubtedly rise another level.
In the face of absolute profit, not everyone would bow their heads, but many certainly would. Furthermore, it was merely one more demon in their team, and this demon had no old grudges or animosity with them. Of course, they wouldn't abandon these resources for the sake of a single demon.
Moreover, Captain Luo had stated that they aimed to expand their team, not just by recruiting Bai Xue, but by attracting even more demons, ghosts, and monsters in the future. As long as they could be of use to the Spirit Police, the Spirit Police would accept them.
For all these reasons, coupled with the allure of profit, Captain Luo and Vice-Captain Zhou finally managed to appease the Spirit Police who were unwilling to accept Bai Xue.
Of course, while they were appeased, the rejection of Bai Xue in their hearts would not easily disappear. This was why the atmosphere at the evening gathering became so oppressive.
Not everyone was a smiling tiger like Yang Haoran. The vast majority of people habitually displayed their inner emotions on their faces. With rejection towards Bai Xue in their hearts, it naturally manifested in their expressions and demeanor.
Bai Xue observed all this, and naturally felt quite uncomfortable herself. Although Captain Luo had mentioned this matter to her earlier today after she joined the Spirit Police, hoping she wouldn't take it to heart—and at the time, she had indeed felt it didn't matter and that she could understand—
However, when she truly faced the sarcasm and cold remarks of some Spirit Police officers, she found it hard to endure the rage within her. If Yang Haoran hadn't been discreetly giving her signals, she probably would have erupted long ago.
Captain Luo was also helpless about this, and could only try his best to explain to Bai Xue, hoping she could be more understanding and considerate.
According to Captain Luo, once Bai Xue completed a few missions alongside the other Spirit Police, their impression of her would definitely change. Until then, she would just have to bear the slight.
Yang Haoran observed all of this, marveling at Captain Luo's eloquence. When he first met Captain Luo, he had seemed to be a man of few words. However, as their interactions grew more frequent, Yang Haoran realized that Captain Luo wasn't simply taciturn, but rather knew when to be silent and when to be verbose.
This dinner with the Spirit Police couldn't be described as ending unhappily, but it was certainly the most oppressive one yet.
After the two groups parted ways, Yang Haoran had no intention of returning immediately. He had told his Night Watchers upon their arrival that tonight they should play to their heart's content and fully unwind. The oppressive gathering certainly hadn't been satisfying; not only the other Night Watchers but even he himself felt a lingering discomfort. So, he decided to take his subordinates to another venue.
"Boss, I won't be joining," Old Master Wu found an opportunity to whisper to Yang Haoran. "These old bones of mine can't handle such exertion. I'll take Xiao Kang home; staying out too late isn't good for him."
Hearing this, Yang Haoran nodded and replied with a smile, "Old Master Wu, you've thought this through. Then, I'll have to trouble you with this matter."
If Old Master Wu didn't possess his current strength, Yang Haoran might have believed that his old bones couldn't endure the strain. But with his current power, though his bones were old, they were not as frail as they outwardly appeared.
Yang Haoran knew that Old Master Wu's primary reason for saying this was to take Xiao Kang home and alleviate any worry. Although Old Master Wu didn't state it explicitly, Yang Haoran understood.
After Old Master Wu left, Yang Haoran pondered for a moment and decided to go to Guan Hai's bar for a visit. It had been a long time since he'd seen that kid Guan Hai, and they hadn't spoken on the phone in ages either.
He didn't know what Guan Hai had been busy with lately, but he himself had indeed been constantly occupied, with no time to meet up with Guan Hai. Since he happened to be free tonight, it was the perfect opportunity to visit Guan Hai's place.
"Come on, tonight I'll take you all to my friend's place for a while."
Yang Haoran called out, then led his Night Watchers, along with the masked Bai Xue, toward the location of Guan Hai's bar.
Since the gathering spot wasn't far from Guan Hai's bar, Yang Haoran's group didn't drive, opting to walk instead.
Although there were quite a few people in Yang Haoran's group, each of them seemed a little tipsy, looking no different from ordinary drunkards. Passersby unconsciously avoided them but didn't notice anything unusual about the group.
Just as they reached the bar's entrance, Yang Haoran's expression subtly changed. He seemed to sense something, and his brow twitched slightly.
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