My Demon Friends-Chapter 594 - 568 Another Profitable Day

The night was deep and quiet, with a half-moon hanging outside the window.

Brother Nan had recently finished her bath. She was wearing a blue knitted camisole made of very little material. She leaned against the headboard playing with her phone, waiting for her hair to dry. The lamplight cast a delicate, ivory glow on her ample, snow-white skin, making it somewhat dazzling.

"What's the date today?"

"The tenth."

"When's your birthday again?"

"The sixteenth."

"Ah, it's coming up soon." Brother Nan slapped her head. "My memory is terrible! I can't even remember that, and it's the day right after that old custom."

"It's not a big deal."

"Exactly, I feel the same way." Brother Nan was glad Zhou Li felt the same way. "So, do you want any gifts?"

"No."

"I feel the same way. Getting gifts means having to think about what to give in return. It's such a hassle." Brother Nan, greatly pleased and as if bestowing a royal favor, deliberately turned, took Zhou Li's face in her hands, and rubbed his cheeks. "My dear consort's thoughts align perfectly with mine."

"Mmph... mmph..."

Zhou Li seemed to have something to say, but it didn't come out. He just opened his eyes and glanced at Brother Nan, his eyes blinking.

The camisole truly was skimpy. It would be exceptionally cool even in summer. Clearly, it was all she wore, and her movements revealed glimpses of creamy skin.

Just then, a small, plum blossom-shaped paw landed on Zhou Li's left eye, making him involuntarily close it.

Luckily, he still had his right eye.

But a second small paw quickly followed, then a third, and a fourth. He could distinctly feel the softness of the paw pads.

"Coming through..."

Tuanzi muttered as she stumbled across Zhou Li's face and squeezed in between him and Brother Nan, declaring crisply, "Lord Dumpling will sleep in the middle tonight! You two, don't squish Lord Dumpling. Lord Dumpling is very small."

"..."

"Is my hair almost dry?" Brother Nan fluffed her hair, sending a fine spray of water droplets into the air.

"Let's sleep."

"You go ahead and sleep. I want to play on my phone a little longer."

"Lord Dumpling wants to hear a story!"

"I'm so tired today."

"Nnnnngh..."

"What's your Little Trash Cat saying?"

"She wants to hear a story."

"Okay, go on, tell it. I'll listen too."

"..."

Zhou Li pondered for a moment. Since Tuanzi had squeezed into the middle, he could no longer rest his face on Brother Nan's arm. So, he covertly searched under the covers, found her hand, and began to gently knead the soft flesh of her palm as he started, "You have to sleep after this, okay? Once upon a time, there was a foolish cat..."

"Meow?"

"Not Lord Dumpling. It's a different foolish cat," Zhou Li clarified, then continued, "The foolish cat hated studying and didn't go to school. As a result, even when she had grown into a half-sized young cat, she still couldn't recognize a single word."

"Meow?"

"Finally, she was sent to school."

"The teacher taught her the first word: 'fish.' But just as the teacher wrote the word on the blackboard, the foolish cat stood up and said..."

"'Fish don't look like that! The noble Lord Foolish Cat has eaten fish before!'"

"Meow meow meow?"

"Lord Dumpling, don't interrupt. Concentrate on the story," Zhou Li urged. "Then the teacher explained that it wasn't a picture of a fish, but a word—a symbol used to represent 'fish'—and told everyone to copy it. The foolish cat tried for a long time but couldn't learn it. So she stood up and declared... 'Writing is useless! You just need to remember what fish look like! Besides, the noble Lord Foolish Cat doesn't need to learn the writing of mortals!'"

Except for the voice, Zhou Li's imitation was perfect.

"And then..."

Tuanzi, however, wasn't having it. She protested, "This story is no good! Tell a different one, a different one!"

"Alright, then I'll tell one about the foolish cat eating gra—"

"No foolish cats!"

"How about a fox? A fox eating grapes."

"That works~"

"Once, there was a fox... This fox couldn't reach the grapes and was furious. Standing under the tree, it said, 'These grapes aren't tasty at all! They're sour! Oh, the noble Lord Fox would never deign to eat grapes grown by mortals!'"

"..."

Tuanzi fell silent, eyeing him sideways. She seemed quite indignant.

Brother Nan, on the other hand, had been grinning the whole time. When Zhou Li finished the story, she said, "So that's how your Little Trash Cat always talks. But did your Little Trash Cat even understand the story you told?"

"Lord Dumpling is not like that at all! That's not Lord Dumpling! It's some other cat and some other fox! Zhou Li, tell her, isn't that right?"

"That's right," Zhou Li said.

"Want to hear more?" Brother Nan asked.

"Let's tell one more. How about the story of the little tiger cub who got a pimple but pretended not to see it?"

"Lord Dumpling doesn't want to listen anymore! Lord Dumpling isn't listening to stories now!" Tuanzi declared, rolling over and turning her head towards Brother Nan. "Lord Dumpling wants to hear Brother Lan tell a story!"

"She says she wants to hear you tell one."

"Me? Sure."

Brother Nan cleared her throat and began to think.

Ten minutes later, Zhou Li was already drifting off to sleep. Brother Nan's voice still echoed in his ears, "...then the great tiger flicked its tail—SWOOSH! HAH! The air cracked like thunder! The old Lion King howled in pain and leaped back, retreating thirty feet..."

The more Tuanzi listened, the more wide-awake she became, her eyes sparkling.

「The next day.」

Early the next morning, Zhou Li received a money transfer from Ms. Ji. She wanted him to take them all to Colorful Clouds Happy World for fun, and this was for their expenses that day. The amount she sent was enough for a group of ten.

Zhou Li didn't stand on ceremony and accepted it directly.

He even replied with a "Thanks, Boss!"

Colorful Clouds Happy World was an amusement park. It was very far from Baozi's Home but quite close to where they were.

After breakfast and putting on sunscreen, they set off. It was only about ten kilometers, so they didn't bother driving. Besides, it had been a long time since they'd gone for a fun bike ride. Zhou Li and Brother Nan pumped up their bicycle tires and rode there directly.

Baozi and Ji Xuan, however, arrived first.

There was a designated parking area for non-motorized vehicles. Zhou Li and Brother Nan locked their bikes together and then found the other two at the ticket vending machine.

"Hi!!"

Ji Xuan jumped up to wave, then looked behind them. "Where's Brother Huai Xu?"

"He came by car, so he got here before us. We biked," Zhou Li said smoothly. He then glanced at Baozi, who had a DSLR camera hanging around his neck. "Why bring a camera to an amusement park?"

"To take pictures of you all," Baozi said nonchalantly, then also looked around them. "Why didn't Lord Dumpling come?"

"Still asleep at home."

"Disappointing."

"Eaten breakfast yet?"

"Yes," Baozi replied quickly. "But I could still eat an ice cream."

"Let's get one this afternoon when it's hotter."

"Oh, okay."

They quickly got their tickets and entered the park without any queue.

The morning air was cool. The park wasn't very crowded yet and felt a little quiet.

Ji Xuan eagerly walked ahead, wanting to find Brother Huai Xu. Meanwhile, Zhou Li and Brother Nan looked towards the sound of screams, their gazes drifting up to the roller coaster overhead.

Baozi walked along at the back. He was wearing new shoes his aunt had bought him and had a new lens on his camera, so he was in high spirits. Although it didn't show on his face, his light steps and darting eyes revealed his good mood.

The two in front of him joined hands.

CLICK...

Baozi lowered his camera, his mood improving even more.