Orion took out a small jade bottle, filled to the brim with pills: "These are a bit more advanced than the previous ones. Eating too many has no side effects, and they don't easily cause drug resistance, but you still need to be careful not to let your routine and endocrine system become dependent on them."
"Hehe, don't worry!" Although a few words she didn't understand seemed to have popped out, Xiangling still accepted the small jade bottle as if it were a priceless treasure.
Honestly, it wasn't that Orion didn't want to give her good things; he was afraid that with this medicine, Xiangling would become like those Koreans who rely on Iced Americano during the day, go to the gym immediately after work claiming to maintain health, stay at the bar until dawn, sleep for two hours, and then start the Iced Americano routine all over again.
Because Orion always felt that a person's personality was partly related to a normal routine, and if one's routine became extreme, it might cause changes in their personality as well.
For example, if everyone else is sleeping every night, but you are the only one awake all night long, with no one to chat with, no phone, and no computer, wouldn't a person with nothing to do easily overthink things? And once they think of malicious problems that the person's current methodology cannot solve, those who are completely baffled tend to get stuck in a rut, subsequently facing mental illnesses like depression, bipolar disorder, and so on.
Orion certainly didn't want Xiangling, who was like a bright orange, to become depressed. After all, look, what could Xiangling, a chef, do at night? She doesn't have a phone to watch live streams or play games; she definitely wouldn't have anything to do at night.
As a result, the subconscious statement Xiangling made after taking the medicine bottle completely stunned Orion.
"Alright, then I won't make you pay for that table."
"Huh?" Orion looked at Xiangling: "What table?"
"...Shenhe, did you do this?"
"Yes."
Orion stood in front of a table, with Shenhe standing on his left, Xiangling standing on his right with her hands on her hips, while he helplessly stared at a face-shaped indentation on the tabletop.
Orion pinched the bridge of his nose: "Can you tell me why a face appeared here?"
Shenhe gestured the movement: "I did this, pressing a person's face onto the table."
"Why press his face onto the table? Did he speak inappropriately to you?"
"Yes, he tried to touch my hand."
"Then why didn't you just break his hand?"
Shenhe turned her head and stared intently at Orion, saying: "Because I hadn't seen you for three days, I was very irritable. He told me to accompany him after work. I said someone might come to pick me up and I wouldn't go anywhere else. Then he said no one had picked me up the previous two days, that no one wanted me, and he also spoke inappropriately about you, so I pressed him onto the table."
Orion:..."I am truly terrible!"
"Hey, hey, hey! Don't do that, Teacher Orion, don't do that! Shenhe, quickly help stop him!"
Afterward, Orion, filled with guilt, promised Shenhe that he would try his best to pick her up every day, and if he had something going on, he would definitely notify her in advance.
As for Shenhe, forget it. As long as she didn't kill anyone, there wouldn't be any major trouble; otherwise, he would have to personally step forward and explain the "logic."
Moreover, considering Shenhe's face, similar incidents wouldn't be rare. It could essentially be summed up in five words: Just Because You're Too Beautiful.
Afterward, Orion went to discuss with Xiangling how often Shenhe should accompany Orion to WangSheng Funeral Parlor. Shenhe, meanwhile, watched Orion's retreating figure expressionlessly. Suddenly, she reached out and pressed the area over her heart, tilting her head slightly in confusion.
—When she heard he would come to pick her up every day, it felt warm, right here.
Before long, Orion and Xiangling had worked out the schedule: three days working at Wanmin Restaurant, one day going to WangSheng Funeral Parlor, and then one day off.
Orion then informed Xiangling that he would be visiting WangSheng Funeral Parlor today, so the three days at Wanmin Restaurant would begin counting from today.
After they finished discussing, the two of them asked for Shenhe's opinion, and Shenhe immediately agreed.
If it weren't for the fact that she still had to practice cultivation every day and occasionally return to the mountains to visit her Master, Shenhe would even consider that one rest day excessive.
Afterward, Orion also promised Shenhe that as compensation for not picking her up these past few days, he would give her some small gifts later.
Shenhe didn't actually feel that Orion needed to apologize, nor did she think she needed any small gifts, but her hand pressed the area over her heart, and she replied, as if possessed: "You know more; I'll listen to you."
"Are you looking forward to it?"
"Very much."
After giving Shenhe a couple more instructions, Orion prepared to report for duty at WangSheng Funeral Parlor.
"Then I'll be going now. If anything happens, you can find me at WangSheng Funeral Parlor. Bye-bye~"
Xiangling didn't know what 'bye-bye' meant, but she replied with the same phrase: "Bye-bye~"
Shenhe glanced at her palm, then also raised her small hand and waved it next to her head: "Bye-bye.
Remember to pick me up tonight."
Thank you, that was adorable.
Shenhe's emotionally detached appearance somehow reminded Orion of a novel by Nishio Ishin called *Shoujo Fujuubun*.
Orion felt that a book like this could also be published, simply to inform parents about the importance of proper education.
But that was a matter for later. The immediate priority was to see Hu Tao! Director Hu, I'm here!
Orion arrived at the entrance of WangSheng Funeral Parlor with such cheerful steps, but his originally joyful mood cooled down the moment he stepped inside, greeted by an air of solemnity.
Orion stopped, straightened his clothes, found a small round pair of sunglasses identical to Little Senty's and Scott's, put them on, and then approached the entrance of WangSheng Funeral Parlor with a serious expression.
The location of WangSheng Funeral Parlor could be described as being backed by mountains and facing water. Towering mountains stood tall, and water flowed gently. After climbing a few steps, the view opened up to a spacious platform, with a few stone chairs in front of a wooden railing on the left side.
Facing forward, under a green tiled roof was a wooden board resembling a bulletin board. Many nails were hammered into the board, and several wooden plaques hung scattered along the top edge.
If Orion remembered correctly, these wooden plaques served a function similar to a reservation service: "clients" would write the information of the deceased family member and their requirements for the funeral, and WangSheng Funeral Parlor would subsequently send someone to contact them, negotiate the customized funeral process, and finalize the price.
Orion walked up to the board, took down an empty wooden plaque, and sure enough, the back had Hu Tao's playful yet attractive handwriting.
[Buy One Get One Free]
Orion:...Maybe I should just hang it back up. One can only say that the fact she hasn't been beaten up yet shows that Vision holders still possess some deterrent power in the eyes of ordinary people.
Finally, the ancient building on the right side was WangSheng Funeral Parlor itself.
Most of WangSheng Funeral Parlor's buildings were actually hidden in the back; what passersby saw was only a two-story facade and two red-lacquered pillars.
Behind the pillars, on either side of the main entrance, was a couplet written in golden characters on a black background.
The first line was: Rituals Inherit Ancient Methods, Solemnly and Thoroughly Sending Off the Immortal Journey.
The second line was: The Dao Initiates New Life, Peacefully and Safely Guiding the Afterlife Path.
The horizontal inscription was: Yin and Yang are Ordered.
Above the horizontal inscription was a massive plaque, bearing the three large, gilded characters "WangSheng Funeral Parlor," written in Teyvat Liyue script.
Orion looked at the couplet, nodding and then shaking his head: "It lacks a bit of liveliness. It probably wasn't written by Hu Tao herself; it must have been passed down from previous generations."
Furthermore, in the game, there was no couplet at the entrance of WangSheng Funeral Parlor. This is likely another influence of the world becoming reality.
Orion walked up and knocked on the door, but no one came to open it. Although the door didn't look locked, Orion thought it best not to enter casually.
However, he wasn't idle. There were several treasure chests near WangSheng Funeral Parlor. Although they didn't contain much Mora, every little bit counts!
Not long after, a Ritualist Girl, dressed in black with her hair pinned up, walked over from a distance. She was carrying several oil-paper bags, apparently having bought some food.
Holding the pastries Director Hu had asked her to buy, the Ritualist Girl thought to herself: "Director Hu said that a consultant of equally profound learning would be arriving soon, within the next couple of days. He didn't come yesterday, so he must be coming today, right? I'll give this food to the Director, and then I'll come back to guard the entrance."
Just as she reached the platform, she saw a mysterious man in red climbing up over the railing nearby.
Orion flipped over and landed, unable to hide the smile on his face: "Ah, two precious and one common—not bad."
When he turned around, he found himself staring directly into the eyes of the Ritualist Girl.
Awkwardness spread through the air.
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