I am the old, fiery-faced man from the senior department.

"Sir! You've been staying up late again!"

"How can you not rest when you're clearly not feeling well!"

"Sir! Are you even listening to me?!"

The artist, propping his chin on his hand, raised his hand and tapped Bai Zhou on the head.

Even so, it didn't make the other party back down; the little devil still stared at her with a stern face.

Even though the other party was clearly the servant, his small body exuded an inexplicable aura that made the painter afraid to meet his gaze.

"Sir! Given your current health condition, staying up late is strictly prohibited!"

"It's not about staying up all night."

The artist seemed to have thought of something and spoke up to defend his actions.

"?"

Bai Zhou frowned and pointed to the table with several scrolls displayed on it.

"Didn't you stay up all night to draw this?"

"of course not."

The artist slightly puffed out his chest to show his toughness.

"I drew this all night."

"Ah, this..."

Seeing the artist suddenly become smug for some reason, Bai Zhou silently shut his mouth.

"Anyway, I'll go prepare some stomach-friendly food for you first. You must rest after breakfast!"

Then, regardless of whether the artist said anything or not, Bai Zhou got up and ran out quickly.

"This is really... troublesome..."

Although he said this, the artist did not show any sign of annoyance on his face.

It seems... he's really enjoying it.

"Sir, I will stay by your side."

Bai Zhou sat on the edge of the bed, holding a cup of hot water, staring seriously at the painter who lay helplessly on the bed.

"..."

Those kids who never smile are so annoying.

Normally, this little brat would obediently do whatever I said, so why doesn't she even smile when it comes to whether she should sleep or not?

Hmm... anyway, he's here... so I'll take a short nap... so he won't say anything more...

"First... um? He's already asleep..."

"Honestly, and they say they're not tired."

After tucking the artist in, Bai Zhou tiptoed to the window and closed it.

###

"There's plenty of juicy gossip to be had in Shuanglin Town."

"Huh? Murder... a crime of passion? He was cut into thirteen pieces, what a tragic man."

When the painter woke up, he happened to hear Bai Zhou talking to himself.

Looking up, a line of exaggerated headlines stood out prominently at the top of the newspaper.

[Shocking! The first major case in Yuanxi's three years has been solved! The reason behind it is surprisingly heartwarming!]

Good heavens, you guys are the ones who caused the melting of the ice city in the far north, aren't you?

But the artist didn't pay attention to any of that; she simply raised her hand and then waited for the little devil to call her.

"Sir, here is warm water, please have some."

In the blink of an eye, the little devil was already holding a cup of warm water and bringing it over.

"How long has it been?"

After drinking some water and feeling a bit more refreshed, the painter asked a question.

"It's only been three hours, sir, why don't you get some more sleep?"

"pat~"

Bai Zhou chuckled, covering his forehead where he'd been hit.

"Are you going to do some field research? I've already picked out the best sights near Shuanglin Town: the Silver Scale River and the Golden Statue."

Bai Zhou proudly showed the newspaper to the illustrator.

"Golden statue..."

Some of the names are familiar.

"Ah, sir, don't you remember? You rescued me from the river at the foot of the golden statue in Luodu."

The artist naturally remembered what the little devil said.

What she cared about was that there would still be that kind of thing here.

"Why are there golden statues here?"

"Oh, sir, you don't know this!"

"Oh?"

The artist squinted and stared at him.

Bai Zhou scratched his hair, revealing the familiar smile of the artist.

"I don't know either!"

*Smack!* (Tap on the forehead)

Returning to the Eighth Palace, the painting shines with vibrant colors, and the brushstrokes bring forth exquisite beauty.

"Now, the True Dragon found a sage to help him, issued an imperial decree to seek out the wise and talented, gathered all the extraordinary people and talents in the world, recruited millions of soldiers and armor, and carried out the great feat of creating heaven and earth, severing the connection between heaven and earth... As a result, the world was at peace, and the Emperor gathered all the soldiers in the world and assembled them in the capital. He ordered the immortals to cast two golden statues to show the unification of the world, thus ushering in a golden age of peace and prosperity!"

On stage, the storyteller in white robes spoke with a high-spirited tone and great vigor, while the common people below the stage clenched their fists, raised their fists, and bared their sleeves, as if they too had joined that magnificent battle and witnessed the rise of the Great Yan Dynasty.

"Well said! Sir, he said it perfectly!"

Bai Zhou was also deeply moved, and couldn't help but confide his excitement to the painter beside him.

"...Now that you've listened, let's go."

The artist remained expressionless, as if no matter how well the storyteller narrated, she would not resonate with him.

"Oh……"

Bai Zhou immediately noticed the painter's low spirits, and without saying anything more, he quickly followed her with his bamboo box on his back.

"Sir, don't you enjoy listening to audiobooks?"

Bai Zhou looked up, asking the painter with curiosity.

"I just don't really like that storyteller; he wasted a good story."

This was the first time Bai Zhou had seen the painter speak, and he was almost gritting his teeth as if he were doing so.

That person...

"Ha, I can't like guys who listen to a great story but refuse to give a tip."

An elegant voice rang out, causing the painter to stop in his tracks and turn to look in the direction of the voice with a cold expression.

"eleven."

Clad in white like snow, his proud figure like bamboo.

She saw Bai Zhou standing next to the painter again, and waved to him with a smile.

"Long time no see, Ah Xi."

"Ah, it really is you, Mr. Master of the Magic Pen. How have you been?"

Upon being addressed in this way, memories flooded back to Bai Zhou, and he recalled the identity of the person in front of him.

"Master of the Brush...?"

A strange look appeared in the artist's eyes.

How does that kid know her?

"Sir, this is my teacher who taught me to read, Mr. Magic Pen."

Upon seeing an acquaintance, Bai Zhou immediately introduced the painter to him.

"Teach you to read?"

The artist glanced at Bai Zhou, then at that annoying fellow.

"I only took the time to teach him for a while because I saw that this little guy had a lot of potential, and I knew his father and even received a rare piece of his calligraphy from him. Fortunately, he is still a rough gem, and my time was not wasted."

"but……"

The other person looked over.

"Can you explain why he's here with you, my sister, Xiyou?"

"Tsk."

■

"So it was you who saved him, no wonder... This time, you really did the right thing."

After hearing Xi's brief account of the "rescue," Miaobi, unusually, praised her.

"You don't need to say that."

Xi stared at Miaobi with disdain, clearly feeling awkward about her "little sister is awesome" attitude of praise.