Chi Yu returned after a massage and a relaxing hot bath, carrying several boxes of instant noodles back to the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor.
"Is the director back?"
"She's back, but she seems to be catching up on sleep."
"Did she eat dinner?"
"Probably not."
"Oh."
Chi Yu rubbed her stomach, feeling a bit hungry herself. She went to the kitchen, boiled some water, and made two bowls of instant noodles.
These noodles were freshly made by the boss that afternoon. He had made a large batch—some were sent to Ms. Ganyu and Ms. Ningguang as usual, while others were kept in the shop as snacks. The rest were prepared for Mr. Zhongli and Ms. Keqing, since the boss had heard that the food at the construction site was subpar.
Carrying the two freshly made bowls of noodles, Chi Yu headed straight to Hu Tao's room.
She pushed open the door and saw Hu Tao sprawled on the bed in a very unladylike position.
What an indecent sleeping posture!
As an elder, Chi Yu frowned and walked over, pinching the soft cheeks of her junior.
"Hu Tao, Hu Tao."
"Mm…"
"Wake up!"
Hu Tao struggled to open her eyes.
"Chi Yu, what is it…"
"Why are you sleeping as soon as you get back?"
"I've been staying up late these past few days…"
"And skipping dinner?"
"I didn't have an appetite…"
"You're going to ruin your stomach at this rate."
"It's fine… Let me sleep a bit longer…"
Hu Tao mumbled and closed her eyes again.
Chi Yu nudged her, but she didn't respond.
So Chi Yu returned to the table, opened the lid of the noodle container, and let the enticing aroma of instant noodles fill the room.
"!"
Hu Tao smelled the fragrance and immediately sprang up from the bed.
Looks like the old trick still works!
"Chi Yu, that smells amazing!"
"I made noodles for you. Come eat."
"I'll go wash up!"
Chi Yu watched as Hu Tao jumped out of bed, barefoot, and ran outside. She smirked and picked up her chopsticks to start eating.
Waiting? Not a chance.
After all, if instant noodles sit too long, the noodles get soggy and lose their texture.
A moment later, Hu Tao returned, looking refreshed, and sat down at the table. She picked up her chopsticks and joined Chi Yu in slurping noodles.
"Chi Yu, did Mr. Xia make a new flavor of instant noodles?"
"Yes!"
"Wow, there's beef at the bottom—such big chunks!"
"You've got the braised beef flavor."
"What about yours?"
"Mine's seafood. Look, there's shrimp."
"Give me a shrimp!"
"Here, take one."
"So tasty! You've got so many shrimp! I'll give you a piece of beef."
"No need, you eat it."
"Chi Yu, you're so kind…"
"Well, I already ate some of your beef while you were washing up."
"!!! No wonder there's so little beef left!"
"I only ate a few pieces."
"I don't believe you! Give me another shrimp!"
"Here you go."
"Instant noodles are the best. I don't even want to eat the meals at Wangsheng Funeral Parlor anymore."
"You still need to eat something, even if you don't want to."
"Sigh…"
"By the way, did anything unusual happen during your funeral duties this time?"
"Ha ha ha! Yes! This time, I went to Stone Gate for a funeral, and it was hilarious!"
"What happened?"
"They said an old man was working in the fields and accidentally fell. They thought he was dead, so by the time we arrived, he was already in the coffin."
"And then?"
"It was already dark, and the family served us dinner. I happened to bring two boxes of instant noodles you gave me, so I made them for myself and sat by the coffin to eat."
"And then?"
"Halfway through my meal, there was suddenly knocking from inside the coffin, scaring everyone."
"Was it a corpse reanimation?"
"No! The old man wasn't dead—he had just fainted, and his heartbeat was very weak. The family didn't check properly and thought he was dead, so they put him in the coffin. But the smell of the noodles was so enticing that it woke him up, and he started knocking on the coffin lid."
"…This…"
"Funny, right?"
"Funny my foot!"
Chi Yu tapped her with the end of her chopsticks.
"Ow! Chi Yu, why…"
"Wangsheng Funeral Parlor Rule #3. Recite it!"
"Rule #3: Before conducting a funeral, carefully confirm the deceased's status to ensure they are truly dead…"
"I thought you'd forgotten. Why didn't you check this time?"
"Well, I was planning to eat first and then check. Otherwise, I wouldn't have had an appetite… This was my first time encountering something like this. Have you ever seen this happen, Chi Yu?"
"No."
"See? No one would expect it."
"No backtalk."
"Okay, fine…"
"What, you still feel wronged?"
"Mm-hmm! I thought I had business, but it turned out to be a misunderstanding after traveling so far."
"It's good that the person is alive."
"But I missed the Mahjong King Tournament. The prize was ten million Mora, and now it's gone."
"…You don't seriously think you could've won, do you?"
"My mahjong skills are great! I'm amazing at Genius Invokation TCG too!"
"This year's champion was Ms. Ganyu. You played against her at the shop before."
"Oh, then it's fine. Chi Yu, did you make it to the finals?"
"Eat your noodles."
"Oh, I get it. What about Zhongli? Did he make it to the finals?"
"No, he lost in the first round."
"Ha ha ha! How tragic!"
"Eat your noodles."
"Chi Yu, you don't know—last month, Zhongli went to the teahouse every day to play cards. I thought he'd spend a fortune, but when I checked Wangsheng Funeral Parlor's accounts, it turned out to be the month he spent the least money!"
"Really?"
"Where is Zhongli now? He's back, right? I need to tell him to stop wandering around and play more mahjong."
"I think he left."
"Left? Where to?"
"The construction site."
"The construction site?"
"The one where the Jade Chamber was rebuilt. They're starting another project there, so Zhongli took on another consulting job."
"!!!"
Hu Tao suddenly remembered the time Dori…
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