"Yes, yes, Jessica, I'm formally inviting you to today's children's party. Daddy will be making lots of delicious things for us." Amy, holding the Ugly Duckling, nodded along, looking at Jessica expectantly. "Hurry up and open the gift. I think you'll love it."
"Going to a party?" Jessica's eyes lit up, and she looked at the dark bag in her hand with the same curiosity and anticipation. She looked up at Rebecca and asked, "Mom, can I open it?"
"Of course you can." Rebecca said encouragingly, looking at her.
Jessica carried the bag to the bedside with both hands, then carefully untied the little bow that Amy had tied on the bag. With a gentle tilt, a beige dress fell out of the bag, with a colorful butterfly embroidered on the chest, its wings spread as if it were about to fly into the sky.
"Wow! What a beautiful dress!" Jessica stared at the little dress on the bed, her mouth agape. She stood there for a moment before turning around and hugging Amy tightly.
"Jessica, do you like it?" Amy asked nervously.
"Yes, yes, I love it so much! I have my own little dress now, and it's the prettiest yellow one at that! Amy, thank you!" Jessica nodded, hugging Amy tightly, tears welling in her eyes.
Rebecca turned her head away, wiped her eyes, tilted her head back, and blinked.
"Then... could you let me go first? The Ugly Duckling seems to be dying..." Amy whispered.
"Meow~" the Ugly Duckling let out a desperate cry.
"Sorry, Ugly Duckling, I forgot you were here." Jessica took a step back and apologetically ruffled the Ugly Duckling's hair.
"It's okay, its head is made of steel." Amy said nonchalantly.
"Meow meow~" The Ugly Duckling gave Amy a resentful look, thinking, "It was me who almost died."
"Then I'll wear this dress to the party this afternoon! It's so beautiful, I've never received such a pretty gift before." Jessica said happily to Amy.
"Okay, okay! You can also wear that pretty little butterfly hair clip, it will look amazing." Amy nodded in agreement.
As Mai Ge watched the two girls discussing clothes and the delicious food they would be eating soon, a smile appeared on his face, and the gloom in his heart dissipated. Sure enough, as long as he was by his daughter's side, his mood would gradually improve.
After playing for a while, Mai Ge checked the time and realized he needed to go back to prepare for the party, so he and Amy said goodbye to them.
"I really don't know how to thank you enough." Rebecca said, standing in the doorway, looking at Mai Ge with deep gratitude.
"Then let Jessica play with Amy more. On the days off, she'll want to have someone to play with." Mai Ge said with a smile. He told Amy to say goodbye to Jessica, then slowly pushed his bicycle out of the alley.
The work of the personnel from the Gray Temple and the City Lord's Mansion is still ongoing, but the corpses and blood have been mostly cleaned up. The dark red water in several puddles indicates what happened here. It is just unknown whether the old man who died by hitting the wall will receive the burial he deserves.
Those who were eating bread, their faces finally showing some signs of life, looked at Mai Ge and Amy with gratitude. Although they didn't say anything, but their gratitude was written all over their faces.
"Daddy, they all seem very grateful to you." Amy said with a smile as they walked out of the bumpy alley.
"Half of it is out of gratitude to Little Amy. If Little Amy hadn't wanted to invite Little Jessica, we wouldn't have come here." Mai Ge said with a smile, hopping on his bicycle and riding towards the restaurant with Amy on the back.
The autumn breeze is still pleasant, and the autumn sun is still warm, hopefully, it can warm the hearts of those people as well.
...
Inside the City Lord's Mansion, in the conference room, the atmosphere was icy cold.
The officials from the City Lord's Mansion's faction present wore expressions of various emotions: anger, worry, and fear.
Brandley put down the paper in his hand, remaining standing, his eyes slightly red.
Michael sat at the head of the table, his expression grave and cold.
"From now on, Alva is dismissed and investigated. All documents in the logistics department are sealed. A thorough investigation will be conducted into the embezzlement of miners' pensions."
"Block the news. Request the Gray Temple's assistance in investigating all the Inspector Offices in the Chaos City. Thoroughly investigate and severely punish those who use the law as a shield to oppress civilians and commit illegal acts!"
"Raise the compensation standards for the families of the deceased miners and soldiers, and establish a special department to manage this matter, so that the same thing doesn't happen again and chills the hearts of the survivors!"
"I'll emphasize again: the laws of the Chaos City are established to allow everyone to live more freely and safely. If anyone dares to use them to oppress civilians and gain profit, I will make them pay a price greater than death, no matter who it is."
Michael's hawk-like gaze swept over every official present, his voice icy as he spoke.
A tall, stout official sitting nearby turned deathly pale and slid off his chair to the floor. No one dared to help him up.
"City Lord, I will report this matter immediately!" Brandley said respectfully, quickly leaving.
"If the law-abiding sit at the same table as the destroyers, those who are supposedly protected will inevitably suffer. This is what Norvan said to me when he refused to enter the City Lord's Mansion. I didn't quite understand the meaning of this sentence at the time, but now I suddenly understand. The most powerful destruction always starts from within." Michael glanced at Alva and smiled self-deprecatingly.
…
"Daddy, may I invite Sister Xi Xi and Big Bear one last time?" Amy asked as Mai Ge rode his bicycle with her near home, glancing at the magic potion shop nearby.
"Of course, but I don't know if they'll be free to come." Mai Ge said with a smile as he stopped the bicycle.
"I'll go ask." Amy said, climbing out of the bicycle herself. She greeted Black Charcoal and Green Bean, then with her short legs, she walked towards the magic potion shop.
"Stupid Fat Cat, are you carsick again? Look at you lying on your back, you look so stupid, hahaha..." Black Charcoal leaned out and looked at the Ugly Duckling lying on its back in the bicycle basket, its eyes glazed over, and mocked.
"Meow!" The Ugly Duckling looked up and meowed at Black Charcoal, but as soon as it got up and stretched out its little paws, its body fell backward uncontrollably, landing on its back with all four legs in the air. It looked up at the sky with a look of utter despair, which drew another round of laughter from Black Charcoal, and even Mai Ge was amused.
"Are you inviting me to the party?" In the shop, Xi Xi, holding two bottles of magic potions, looked at Amy with some surprise and delight.
"Yes, and Big Bear can come too! Daddy will prepare lots and lots of delicious food." Amy nodded, paused, and held up her little finger, saying, "There will also be your favorite braised chicken."
"Then I want to go!" Xi Xi's eyes lit up and she immediately raised her hand. However, she quickly lowered her hand and hesitated, saying, "But Lord Yulian went out this morning. The shop can't be left unattended."
"Then close the door. No customers will come if you leave it open anyway." Amy said matter of factly.