Chapter 9_4

Seeing Li Zhiyuan speak like this, the adults at the table looked much better, and many of them said:

"She likes it, just let her eat, it's fine."

"Just put the plate in front of her."

Li Zhiyuan kept waving his hands and shaking his head: "This can't be done, it's against the rules."

"Bang... Pop!"

A sound of firecracker came from outside, and the children nearby began to cover their ears and cry out.

Several firecrackers burst in succession, and when the last one ended, the whole venue dimmed, and everyone else at the table suddenly froze in place, as did the next table.

Everyone sat upright, staring straight ahead.

Although he didn't understand what was happening, Li Zhiyuan quickly imitated and did the same, glancing from the corner of his eye at Qin Li beside him... Well, she didn't need to mimic; she was a professional.

Outside the door, an old lady, surrounded by a group of boys and girls, walked in.

Her appearance made the atmosphere of the entire venue somewhat stagnant.

Through the gaps between people's heads, Li Zhiyuan recognized her, the old lady he had seen in his dream at Liu Jinxia's house, carried on the back by Niu Fu.

How could she be here?

He clearly remembered that when Niu Fu left the Grand Master's House, he was hunchbacked.

The old lady's body was slightly bent, but her spirit was surprisingly good, almost eerily so, her eyes glowing green, and fine fuzz appeared on her face.

Additionally, there seemed to be several black lines on her face... like black mustaches that suddenly grew out.

It almost... resembled a cat's face.

The old lady walked to the main table under the stage, smiling to everyone around:

"Today is my birthday, thank you all for coming, make sure you eat and drink well, hehe."

Once she finished speaking, the dimmed tones of the venue brightened back up.

Everyone who had been sitting rigidly began naturally to pick up food, eat, and chat again.

Li Zhiyuan felt relieved that he and Qin Li were sitting semi-behind the old lady, separated by several tables; being just kids, they probably wouldn't be noticed.

But just as he was comforting himself, he suddenly saw the old lady begin to toast table by table!

He recognized her, so she definitely recognized him.

This must be her dream... no, Li Zhiyuan now felt that the environment here couldn't simply be described as a "dream"; he and Qin Li might be in another special environment.

But either way, he shouldn't let her see him.

The old lady toasted quickly, saying a few words and then clinking glasses with the whole table; at this rate, it wouldn't be long before she reached their table.

Li Zhiyuan immediately shouted to Qin Li: "What, you miss grandma?"

Qin Li turned to look at him, once again puzzled.

Li Zhiyuan purposely slapped the underside of the table, causing the whole table to tremble, and many people's picked-up dishes fell back down.

"Hey, little sister, stop it, we're eating, if you don't eat, don't bother others!"

The puzzlement in Qin Li's eyes deepened.

Li Zhiyuan faced the others at the table and apologized: "Sorry, my little sister here..."

He pointed at his own forehead.

Everyone also showed an understanding look, their brains must be damaged, any unreasonable behavior is normal.

Li Zhiyuan pulled Qin Li up from the table: "Alright, I'll take you to find grandma, sigh, I really can't stand you, I haven't eaten enough yet!"

Immediately, Li Zhiyuan led Qin Li towards the door, but as soon as they got close, they saw a line of men dressed as house servants standing outside.

Some were chatting, others were preparing firecrackers; though busy, they completely blocked the exit.

It was impossible to leave this way, and, Li Zhiyuan noticed, from the old lady's actions, it seemed she planned to toast more than one round. If they continued to stay here, even constantly playing hide and seek, it would be easy for her to notice them.

Looking around, the staircase to the second floor was gone; now, the only area left to hide was the northwest corner, leading to the kitchen.

At this moment, noises of cooking could be heard coming from there.

Li Zhiyuan pulled Qin Li towards the kitchen, meanwhile, in order not to attract attention, he kept scolding Qin Li:

"Look at you, insisting on finding grandma."

"We finally have a nice meal, there are so many delicious dishes I haven't tried yet."

"Ah, old hen soup is coming up, you made me miss the chicken leg!"

Indeed, as they moved, people at nearby tables continued eating and drinking, no shadows appeared under their feet, everyone thought this was normal.

Finally, Li Zhiyuan and Qin Li entered the kitchen and saw a large plastic basin surrounded by many dirty dishes.

Seven or eight old ladies were squatting by the basin, holding rags, washing the dishes.

However, the basin wasn't filled with water, but sand; they were cleaning with sand.

Next to the large stove, an apron-wearing corpulent chef was skilfully cooking; one could tell he was a master chef.

But the ingredients in baskets beside him were all stacks of white paper;

In his condiment containers were not oil, salt, or vinegar, but various types of pigments;

There was also a large bucket beside him filled with paste.

He started by heating the paste in the pot, then dumped a stack of white paper into it, continuously stirring and adding various pigments. Finally, he intensified the heat to reduce the sauce and, when lifting the large pot to serve, what poured out was a dish with all the colors and fragrances.