After Keqing left, the vast hall was suddenly empty except for Elias Graves and Lord Zhang, who lay in his ice coffin.
Before transmigrating to this world, Elias Graves's family had been in the funeral business for three generations. His father had even given him a name whose pronunciation was a homophone for "sending to the underworld."
Therefore, being alone with the corpse didn't frighten him much, though the cold air emanating from the ice coffin was a bit unsettling.
Outside the hall, servants and guards with various expressions came to inquire about the situation from time to time.
When they learned that Lord Zhang had been poisoned by Pan Huilian and Zhang Feng in a conspiracy, they all chose to go to the treasury, collect their remaining wages, and leave decisively.
With their departure, the once lively and bustling mansion instantly became deserted.
Just then, a set of footsteps approached, and Hu Tao and Zhongli walked in together.
Hu Tao ran up to Elias Graves, her big eyes twinkling with schadenfreude, so excited she was practically dancing. "Hee hee, Scumbag Graves, business fell through, didn't it! This is what a scoundrel like you deserves!"
Elias Graves looked at the eccentric girl before him and said faintly, "Director Hu Tao, I'm sorry, but I might have to disappoint you. Mrs. Pan has already paid the deposit for the funeral arrangements—a full two million Mora."
Hu Tao froze on the spot, her expression instantly shifting from gloating to utter disbelief.
Her eyes widened, her mouth hung open, and it took her a moment to recover before she exclaimed, "A two-million-Mora deposit? Why don't you just rob someone? The most expensive funeral package at Wangsheng Funeral Parlor only costs one million Mora."
Elias Graves continued unhurriedly, "At the time, I did recommend your Wangsheng Funeral Parlor to Mrs. Pan. But who would have thought that as soon as she heard you had the ability to send souls to the afterlife, she immediately changed her mind."
Zhongli, who was standing nearby, heard this and immediately understood why Pan Huilian would rather spend the extra money to avoid the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor and choose Elias Graves to handle the funeral arrangements.
Hu Tao, with her simple mind, didn't grasp the key point. Instead, she began to show off proudly, "There are always some souls who linger in the mortal world, reluctant to leave. It's my duty as Director to send them on their way and help them find peace. Ah, it seems that Mrs. Pan must have thought I was too amazing and that her money wasn't enough to hire me, so she chose a guy like you instead."
As she spoke, she made a funny face at Elias Graves.
Elias Graves's lips curved into a slight smile. "Director Hu, let's not talk about that for now. I have a business proposition I'd like to discuss with you."
Hu Tao was taken aback for a moment, blinking her big eyes. She retorted, "Discuss business with me? Don't you know we're rivals in the same trade?"
Elias Graves waved his hand, his expression serious. "Director Hu, you can't put it like that. We're all in the same business, like eating from the same pot. When one prospers, we all prosper; when one fails, we all fail. For the healthy development of our industry, we should help each other out. Don't you agree?"
Hu Tao found this utterly absurd. This Scumbag Graves was the most shameless when it came to snatching business, and now he was talking about mutual support?
She asked skeptically, "How exactly do you propose we help each other?"
Elias Graves replied, "It's like this: I plan to subcontract the task of guarding the body to your Wangsheng Funeral Parlor."
Hu Tao's face flushed red with anger upon hearing this. She put her hands on her hips and said indignantly, "The Wangsheng Funeral Parlor helps the deceased find peace; we don't guard corpses."
Elias Graves calmly stated, "Guarding the body requires two people. Ten thousand Mora per day."
Hu Tao's eyes lit up at the price, and she quickly did the math in her head.
She said directly, "Alright, it's a deal! From now on, Consultant Zhongli and I will stand guard here. However, you also have to cover our food expenses. That's non-negotiable."
Elias Graves immediately replied, "Food expenses cannot exceed two thousand Mora per day."
Hu Tao grumbled in dissatisfaction, "Scumbag Graves, you're being way too stingy!"
Elias Graves chuckled. "If you don't want the job, there are plenty of others who do."
Hu Tao was fuming. She wanted to refuse, but thinking of the parlor's dire financial situation, she reluctantly agreed. "Hmph, I'll let you off easy this time."
"Then I'll leave it in your hands!"
With that, Elias Graves turned and left to find his Senior Sister in the mansion.
After he left, Zhongli sat down in the chair Elias Graves had just vacated and closed his eyes to rest.
Hu Tao, meanwhile, could no longer contain her curiosity and ran over to the ice coffin to examine it.
She would lean in for a closer look, then circle around it, her mouth constantly clicking in wonder. "This ice coffin is really amazing. If only I had a Cryo Vision too."
At this thought, she actually clasped her hands together and began to pray piously to the Cryo Archon. "Oh, great Cryo Archon, please grant me a Vision! If you happen to unfortunately pass away one day, I'll send you off for free, without charging a single Mora. What a bargain!"
Zhongli, seeing this from the side, was speechless. He said calmly, "Director Hu Tao, speaking in terms of universal rationality, no one in this world has ever obtained two Visions."
It would have been better if he had remained silent. His words only triggered a relentless stream of complaints from Hu Tao.
"Consultant Zhongli, if it weren't for you always sending your bills to the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor, how would I have been reduced to taking on a job like guarding a corpse?"
"Just thinking about that look on Scumbag Graves's face earlier makes me really want to beat him up!"
"And you, Consultant Zhongli! So you brought the parlor a little business? How could that possibly be enough to cover your extravagant spending? I really don't understand Grandpa. Why did he insist that a young girl in the prime of her life like me has to support a freeloader like you? Hmph!"
Hearing this, the corner of Zhongli's mouth couldn't help but twitch. He said, "Director Hu, I will find a way to bring you more business."
But Hu Tao replied, "Forget it. I wasn't counting on you anyway."
Zhongli said nothing, but secretly resolved to help Hu Tao secure some business.
........
In a quiet corner of the courtyard, Shenhe stood like a fairy detached from the mortal world, quietly under a peach tree in magnificent bloom.
Pink petals drifted down, landing on her shoulders and in her hair, complementing her cold and ethereal temperament.
"Senior Sister, it's time to go back," Elias Graves said softly as he slowly approached.
However, Shenhe seemed not to hear him, remaining motionless where she stood.
After a moment, she finally spoke in that cold, emotionless voice of hers. "Junior Brother, I did not like the way you looked at that madam."
Elias Graves was stunned at first, then a light smile touched his lips. "If Senior Sister dislikes it, then I simply won't look in the future."
Hearing his answer, Shenhe finally moved, her figure gliding gracefully towards him.
As she drew near, Elias Graves said, "Since Senior Sister won't let me look at others, you must permit me to look at you, Senior Sister Ganyu, and Master."
Shenhe paused, hesitating for a moment before she finally gave a slight nod.
But the moment she nodded, she saw Elias Graves's eyes instantly light up, his gaze falling unabashedly and brazenly upon her full, perky chest.
Shenhe felt a surge of panic. She instinctively mobilized the Cryo energy within her. The surrounding temperature plummeted, and countless translucent icicles materialized from thin air, forming a fine shower of ice that rained down on Elias Graves, thoroughly cooling his heated mind.
Then, she turned and quickly walked away.
Her figure receded among the peach trees, leaving Elias Graves drenched and miserable in the icy rain, along with a scattering of wind-blown peach blossoms on the ground.
Elias Graves stood there and couldn't help but sigh: *Winning over my master and sisters... the road is long and arduous.*