Chapter 244: A Moment of Leisure

The illusory door opened silently, and Yu Sheng stepped into the living room.

As soon as he entered, he saw three Erins sitting side by side on the sofa, a laptop in front of them, studying something intently.

He leaned over curiously to take a look. “What are you three up to?”

“My account got banned, so I'm looking into how to appeal it,” said the Erin carrying the painting frame (the host) without looking up. Only after speaking did she realize, “Wow! You're back?”

Yu Sheng casually patted the heads of the three Erins, then glanced at the large account ban appeal interface on the laptop screen. The corner of his eye couldn't help twitching. “Got banned for trash-talking in a match again?”

“I didn't trash-talk this time!” one of the Erins blushed. “I just genuinely think that XXX on my team has an intellectual problem, and the game designer does too—I really think so!”

“That's exactly what trash-talking is,” Yu Sheng said, casually pulling one of the Erins who was typing aside. “Especially when you curse at their family three generations, their neighbors, and even the dog across the street. Your ban wasn't unfair. Stop messing with it. That account is done for the next couple of days. Instead of this, why don't you work on improving your skills?”

He might as well have not said anything, because that set Erin off on a string of complaints. “How am I supposed to improve? When I press W and space on your keyboard, I can't press them at the same time! After clicking the left mouse button, I have to wave my hand in a fancy flourish to reach the right button! And this lousy mouse sensitivity is impossible to adjust—I have to do a full arm stretch on the desk just to turn the camera...”

Yu Sheng didn't wait for her to finish; he directly tossed a paper bag over, knocking the chattering little doll over on the sofa.

All three Erins immediately jumped up. “Hey! What are you doing? I was just complaining a little, you...”

But Yu Sheng cut the little doll off with one sentence. “Alright, alright, first see what's in the bag. I bought it for you.”

At that, Erin was stunned for a moment, and then the one who had been knocked over belatedly reacted, pulling the paper bag open to peek inside. In the next moment, she practically dove into it.

The next second, the little doll's happy and boisterous voice came from inside the bag. “Ah! New clothes! It's new clothes!!”

Yu Sheng laughed, sitting down on the sofa with a smug look. “On my way back from the Special Operations Bureau, I took a detour to the mall and bought it for you at the doll store. I said I'd get you new clothes a long time ago—I didn't forget. I've just been too busy lately. Today I finally had some time.”

Erin popped out of the paper bag, holding two small new dresses, her eyes shining. “Yu Sheng, you're so kind! But complicated doll clothes like these must not be cheap... I can tell the fabric is really good...”

“Don't worry about that,” Yu Sheng said, even more pleased. “I just got a big payout from the Special Operations Bureau. The money hasn't come through yet, but we can be a bit more comfortable for now...”

However, the little doll was no longer listening to his last words. The moment he said “big payout,” the Erin who had burned the dress earlier was already dashing toward the bathroom with the new clothes, shouting loudly as she ran, “No peeking! I'm going to change!”

Yu Sheng sat on the sofa, half laughing, half crying. “...Who would want to peek anyway.”

As soon as he finished speaking, a fluffy silver-white mass wobbled over from the side. Hu Li grabbed the back of the sofa. “Benefactor, benefactor, did you buy me something?”

Yu Sheng casually pulled a comb out of his pocket and handed it to her.

“Here, it's specially for brushing tails. You were complaining that the regular comb at home doesn't work well on your tail, weren't you? This one is large, has more teeth, and I asked—it's especially suitable for large... during shedding season...”

He was only halfway through when another Erin popped out from under his elbow. “Wait, why is there a comb specifically for shedding season... Did you buy it from a pet store?!”

“Well, duh! If I went to a regular supermarket and asked people what comb to use for a nine-tailed fox in shedding season, wouldn't they think I'm crazy?” Yu Sheng casually pushed Erin back down. “Besides, Hu Li has been using a regular comb all this time, and she said it doesn't work well.”

Hu Li, on the other hand, didn't care at all about what Yu Sheng and Erin were saying. She was obviously very satisfied with her gift. Happily, she waved the new comb a few times by her tail, then beamed a brilliant smile at Yu Sheng. “Thank you, Benefactor!”

Then she solemnly stuffed the new comb into her own tail.

And right after that, Erin, who had changed clothes, ran out of the bathroom, darting across the living room like a little rocket, and jumped onto the coffee table opposite Yu Sheng. “Ta-da—new clothes!”

It was a gothic dress with light purple and dark red, Erin's favorite colors and style. It looked much more playful than the dark black dress she usually wore, and it actually looked quite beautiful and fitting on her.

Yu Sheng didn't hold back his praise.

“That's because I'm already pretty,” Erin said, not modest in the least as she preened. Happily spinning around on the coffee table, she then stopped and moved her body, reaching up to touch her back. “But it's a bit scratchy back here...”

“Scratchy? Let me take a look,” Yu Sheng said with a frown, reaching out to call the little doll over while muttering, “That shouldn't be—doll clothes usually don't have tags on the back... I already cut off the other tags for you.”

Erin jumped onto Yu Sheng's lap, still mumbling. “Anyway, it's just scratchy and itchy.”

Yu Sheng checked the little doll, his expression turning slightly awkward. “...It seems a bit ill-fitting. The back is too tight, and there are a few decorative trims. To save effort, they hid all the seams at the lower back and fixed them with hot glue.”

Erin was taken aback and couldn't help complaining. “What kind of craftsmanship is that? Who makes clothes like this?”

“Is it possible,” Yu Sheng said, scratching his chin awkwardly, “that people who make doll clothes generally don't consider the wearer's comfort? They mainly just want it to look good in photos...”

Erin: “...#[email protected]#@ (elegant language) (birdsong and floral fragrance) (melodious tones)!”

“It's okay, it's okay. I'll fix it for you later,” Yu Sheng said, both amused and exasperated as he soothed the little doll who was about to jump up. “There aren't many changes needed. I can handle it.”

“Really?” Erin stared at him with her crimson eyes, looking skeptical.

Yu Sheng raised his hand. “Of course it's true.”

“Alright then...” Erin muttered as she climbed back down from the sofa and headed toward the bathroom. “I won't try on the other one either. The structure looks the same. You fix it first, and then I'll wear it~”

Yu Sheng watched the little doll walk away muttering, a smile involuntarily spreading across his face. Then he leaned back on the sofa and let out a long sigh.

He really did like this—no major events, just Erin making a racket at home, Hu Li wandering around foraging, life with its small incidents but nothing out of control, and he himself could just lounge on the sofa like this, idling his brain, thinking about random things, with the corner of his eye catching the wall clock, watching the hands tick away...

Even though he knew that such peaceful moments might only account for a small part of life—after hearing from Bai Liqing about the “Old Doomsday” and “Annihilation,” he could already foresee the turbulent days ahead.

But that didn't stop him from genuinely enjoying these few minutes of tranquility.

After a while, Yu Sheng got up from the sofa.

There was still some time before the “celebration” in the valley, but as the owner of the valley and the head of the biggest family in “Fairy Tale,” he definitely had to go early.

“Hu Li! Erin! Let's go. Let's see if Little Red Riding Hood needs any help!”

“Oh, okay!”

“Coming, Benefactor!”

In the valley that had merged with “Fairy Tale,” the rustic “town” was already bustling. Children and adults were busy preparing for the evening's celebration.

On the square at the edge of the “town,” the children had piled up a massive bonfire. They would light a grand fire here to celebrate the beginning of their new life.

The fuel for the bonfire came from dead wood collected in the Black Forest, along with thorns from the base of the walls of the Sleeping City. The warriors sent by the king also brought the most beautiful flowers from the wilderness of Oz—flowers that bloomed among the cooled trenches and machine-gun bunkers, with greenery covering every inch of the former battlefield. The children wove the flowers into wreaths and decorated the square with them.

The engineering teams and caretakers sent by the Special Operations Bureau and the Council were preparing dinner, including meat for barbecue. Large basins of marinated meat were wheeled directly onto the square on carts. The younger children were organized to skewer meat, peel onions, and doodle on colorful cards.

When Yu Sheng arrived with Hu Li and Erin, the entire square was already nicely arranged.

Now the children were only troubled by one problem.

“Bro, it's no good. It never gets dark here,” said Rapunzel, wiping her hands on her apron as she came over to complain. “A bonfire party needs to be at night for the right atmosphere. Your place is still as bright as day at midnight. That's not really a 'party' vibe—and I was also planning to set off fireworks.”

Yu Sheng blinked, looking at the children running around excitedly on the square and the huge bonfire not far away. “...Then why don't you just hold it over by the Black Forest? Or around the tower? The area where the valley merges with 'Fairy Tale' now has day and night cycles. I was even planning to move the vegetable patch over there. At least it has normal daylight there.”

“...Well, we figured since we're going to be living in this 'town' from now on, it's meaningful to hold the celebration here,” Rapunzel stuck out her tongue. “More importantly, I didn't think of it when we were piling up the firewood. By the time I remembered, we were almost done setting up.”

Yu Sheng: “...”

“Bro, think of a way,” Rapunzel said with a dry laugh, leaning in. “Make it dark, or at least dim.”

Yu Sheng continued: “...”

(This chapter ends)