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

Bai Zhou looked at the painter and their eyes met.

"Let's go back."

The painter raised her head slightly, and the dragon responded and went to her side, summoning a cloud to carry the two of them away.

■

"This is... Ah Xi, the coffee you were talking about?"

Looking at the steaming brown liquid in the teacup in front of him and smelling its faint fragrance, the artist's first impression of this thing was not bad.

"Pfft...cough..."

The artist unsurprisingly spat out the first sip of coffee he took.

"This stuff...why is it so bitter!"

If tea is slightly bitter before sweet, then coffee... pure coffee is simply bitter.

The aroma and color are all illusions, baits to lure you into tasting it.

"That's why we need to add milk and sugar, sir."

Bai Zhou took out a handkerchief and gently wiped the coffee stains from the painter's lips, then pushed the plate with sugar cubes toward her.

"Gu..."

The artist, half-believing and half-doubting, threw in four sugar cubes.

"Stir it again, sir. It'll be ready to drink once the sugar has dissolved."

Fuyu Town is just a small town by the river, and it's not easy to buy sugar cubes. Fresh milk is simply impossible to find.

"If it doesn't taste good..."

"If it doesn't taste good, I'll let you do as you please."

He smiled and vouched for her during the day.

"Ah."

The artist was stirring the cup intermittently with a stick.

"Ah Xi, where are we going next?"

She suddenly asked a question.

"Sir, do you remember where we first met?"

The daytime answered the question with a question.

"Um……"

Mentioning this artist makes me perk up.

She still remembered how pitiful the little guy looked, all wet and drenched, when she pulled him out of the water.

"Back then, you were so small and soaking wet. If it weren't for a piece of driftwood carrying you, you probably wouldn't have survived until I met you..."

The artist suddenly paused, remembering Bai Zhou's identity at that time.

"I'm afraid if I don't save you, they'll take you back."

The painters refer to the guards who secretly follow the daytime.

"Luckily they didn't make a move."

Bai Zhou took a sip of coffee, then his smile deepened.

"If I missed the chance to meet you because of this, I would regret it for the rest of my life."

"It's not that exaggerated."

As the artist said this, he slapped the floor beneath his feet in dissatisfaction.

“I think if that’s the case, my husband and I will meet again in another way.”

Bai Zhou then offered another perspective.

"How can one escape the fate ordained by Heaven?"

“You don’t disbelieve in God… Oh, right, you’ve become God.”

Only after the artist finished speaking did he realize the meaning behind Bai Zhou's words.

The little guy is subtly trying to sweet-talk her.

"Sir, you are only half right. This is the only thing I truly believe is that it was destined that I would meet you and be related to you."

"Sir, it's saccharified."

Bai Zhou just smiled, then reminded the artist.

"Oh... well, not bad."

The artist drank half a cup in one go before putting down the cup and praising it without changing his expression.

"If you like it, that's good. Hmm, please don't move, sir."

Bai Zhou took a handkerchief and gently wiped the coffee stains off the painter's lips, then pushed another plate of pastries towards her.

"Please have more, sir. These snacks go particularly well with coffee."

"Hmm. Since you recommend it so much, Ah Xi, I'll give it a try."

Ah Xi...

It's unclear when, but the artist has started using this title all the time, and it's impossible to shake it off.

"Sir, please eat slowly. These kinds of snacks are too sweet and cloying. Eating too many at once will make you feel uncomfortable."

"Okay. Ah Xi, you eat too."

The artist picked up a pastry, intending to place it on the plate in front of Bai Zhou, but seeing him with his mouth open waiting to be fed, he fed the pastry to him instead.

"Thank you for your generous gift, Mr. Xie."

Chewing on the pastries, the sweetness between his lips and teeth mingled with the sweetness in his heart, and the smile on Zhenlong's face became even brighter.

Returning to the Capital at Seventy-Five

"Sir, sir, it's time to get up."

It was that familiar call again. Xi opened her eyes upon hearing it, and sure enough, it was early morning again.

"Waaah..."

Turning over, Xi saw that she hadn't gotten up yet when she called for her. Dissatisfied, Xi curled her tail and squeezed the dragon tail that was entangled with her.

"You're not even up yet, why are you waking me?"

"That's a bad word."

Sensing the resentment emanating from the tail, Bai Zhou smiled.

"The early bird catches the worm. Sir, you went to bed early last night, so I imagine you'll be full of energy even if you get up early today."

"...Absolutely not."

Xi Na pressed her forehead against Bai Zhou's chest, and yawned to dispel her drowsiness when Bai Zhou couldn't see her.

"Sir, we shall return to the capital today."

During the day, he would tell the evening about the itinerary.

"Whatever... wait a minute!"

Xi, who was eating steamed buns and drinking porridge with her head down, suddenly looked up, her eyes slightly trembling.

"Where?"

"Return to Shendu."

Bai Zhou no longer wore a smile, and this serious expression made Xi realize that something serious seemed to have happened.

"Has something happened to the new true dragon?"

Bai Zhou shook his head slightly.

"So... those guys caused trouble and you had to bail them out?"

"Yes and no."

"Hmm...so what exactly happened?"

Xi couldn't think of anything that could make him so serious.

"It has something to do with you, sir."

"Ok?"

Xi looked at him with a puzzled expression.

Is it related to her?

"..."

Wait... could it be!

Xi swallowed the porridge in her mouth, and an absurd thought arose in her mind.

Could it be that this foolish Ah Xi is trying to lure her back for the wedding ceremony?

If that's the case, those guys will probably be laughing and forcing her to kneel down.

"What are you thinking about, sir?"

It wasn't until the sound of daylight pulled her out of her reverie that Xi realized the steamed bun she had been holding with her chopsticks had fallen into her bowl while she was daydreaming about the future, and the bun's skin had become soggy from the porridge.

"No, I was just reminiscing about some things I did with those guys."

If they find out I'm thinking about that kind of thing, I'll be in big trouble. So I'll just use missing my family as an excuse.

"Sir...with so many brothers and sisters, the gatherings must be very lively."

His words during the day were tinged with an undisguised envy.