The lights in the shop flicker.
The sizzling of meat blocks grilling on the iron plate and the scent of spices fill the air.
All kinds of food are spread out on the table in front of the boy.
Ying An is wolfing it down, stuffing food into his mouth, the corners of his lips covered in grease.
“Have you been abusing Xiao An and not feeding him?”
“You just don’t understand him.”
Li Jue watches his messy eating appearance and explains lightly.
“Xiao An is at the age where he’s growing. He always eats like this. Looking at the situation, he should quite like the place you picked. I thought you would take us to one of those ridiculously expensive high-end restaurants to eat those strangely flavored premium ingredients.”
“I don’t like those messy high-end dishes either. What’s so good about black truffle and caviar? They’re not tasty at all, and they’re ridiculously expensive. They’re not even as fragrant as this ordinary iron-plate grilled meat.”
“These things aren’t cheap either, right?”
Li Jue glances at the food on the table.
Chicken legs, steak, grilled sausages—all meat, which fits Ying An’s tastes perfectly and can let him eat to his heart’s content in one go.
“But it’s delicious.”
This thought is exactly the same as Ying An’s.
If she really handed him over to Chu Jiuer for a few days, it would probably be large fish and large meat for every meal.
Li Jue does not usually spoil Ying An like this.
In the past, vegetables, beans, and milk were never missing from their meals.
She has already decided that for at least the three meals tomorrow, she will not let him see meat again.
They are sitting in a private room inside the shop.
Outside the window the night is vast and hazy.
Li Jue looks around and changes her tone. “Can we talk here?”
“Don’t worry. No one else will hear. But… are you sure you want to talk about it in front of Xiao An?”
“You don’t trust Xiao An?” Li Jue smiles.
“I have no objections. Do as you like.”
Chu Jiuer takes out her phone and swipes a few times on the screen.
“The procedures are all completed. It went quite smoothly. The main issue is the troublemaking demon we mentioned before. There’s still no trace of him.”
She hands the phone to Li Jue.
The screen is displaying the various pieces of information gathered on the target.
Xu E, code name “Ekui,” appearance age forty-seven, danger level two.
He has already attacked and killed multiple minors in their teens and drained the victims’ blood.
The police have intervened in the investigation.
His current whereabouts are unknown.
“So little information?”
“He was probably just an insignificant little demon before. There’s not much useful information that can be found.”
“Draining blood…”
Li Jue frowns.
“Does he want to refine blood essence?”
“Probably. It could also be some demon arts we don’t know about.”
Among demons there is an unwritten rule.
No activities may violate human laws, and it is also forbidden to let their identities be exposed.
Otherwise, it would attract police investigation and draw attention, which could very easily lead to the existence of demons being made public.
That would cause enormous trouble and be extremely unfavorable for all demons lurking in the human world.
It would also easily cause panic in human society and affect stability.
Therefore, demons who violate the rules are like having a wanted order placed on them.
They will be pursued by both the human and demon worlds at the same time and find it hard to gain a foothold.
Precisely because of this, most demons usually keep to themselves and do not casually stir up trouble.
“Has the Secret Society gotten involved?”
“They’ve currently only sent one specialist over to investigate the situation.”
Chu Jiuer says.
“Several of the old demons in the city who maintain order are tracking his whereabouts. The police are also doing their best to search.”
Li Jue picks up the tea beside her and takes a sip.
She happens to see Ying An staring at them without blinking, his two eyes shining with excitement, as if full of interest in what they are talking about.
Li Jue pats his head. “Full?”
“Mm-hmm. Sister, does this mean we can see demons fighting this time?”
“What are you thinking?”
Li Jue lightly knocks him.
“There are people who will handle this matter. It has nothing to do with us. Just obediently listen to Sister and don’t run around.”
Ying An has always wanted to witness the scene of demons slaughtering each other in reality.
Boys of this age are probably all full of fantasies about such imagined cool and magnificent scenes.
Especially after watching too many Chinese-style ancient fantasy entertainment works, they can’t wait to personally arrive at the scene and take photos as souvenirs.
However, just like human wars, slaughter means pain and death.
This is not something worth lingering over.
Over thousands of years, Li Jue has seen too many bloody struggles in both the human and demon worlds.
Life is fleeting.
As a nine-tailed fox demon who has lived for over a thousand years, the life and death of many humans and demons are nothing more than the snap of a finger in her eyes.
She simply does not wish to participate in disputes.
Unless someone actively seeks death, she generally will not take a human life.
“Speaking of which, Xiao An also fits the criteria of his targets. You two had best be careful.”
“If he dares to come, I’d rather admire his guts.”
Chu Jiuer knows Li Jue’s strength and does not need to worry about their safety.
Still, this kind of matter is best ended as early as possible.
She has also sent people to participate in the investigation of Ekui’s whereabouts, hoping to clean him up as soon as possible.
“In any case, caution comes first. If you discover anything, remember to notify us.”
“Got it.”
Li Jue turns her head to look at Ying An.
The little one is sitting obediently on the chair listening to them talk, dark red sauce smeared all over his mouth.
Li Jue pulls out a tissue to wipe his mouth while gently saying, “Xiao An, tomorrow we’ll go to the hospital for a full physical checkup, okay?”
“Checkup?”
“That’s right. Xiao An is almost at puberty. Your body is about to start developing.”
Ying An still only half understands the three words “puberty.”
He is not very clear about the specific changes his body will undergo during this period.
He only knows that he has grown taller… although he grows taller every year.
In the second science class after he starts seventh grade, the teacher will explain to him about another aspect of the body’s growth.
That is also a lesson Li Jue wants to teach him personally in advance.
Chu Jiuer listens to their conversation and always feels something is off.
She suddenly stands up. “Li Jue, come out for a moment.”
Ying An looks at them in confusion.
Li Jue pats her head and leaves the private room with Chu Jiuer.
They find an empty corner of the stairwell.
The dim light cannot illuminate their blurred figures.
“My good sister, what exactly are you trying to do?” Chu Jiuer folds her arms and looks at Li Jue with a face full of helplessness.
“Caring about my little brother’s physical health. Is there a problem?”
“We’ve known each other for several hundred years. I can still tell this much, right?” She looks Li Jue up and down.
The woman’s appearance shows no change from several hundred years ago.
She is still that beautiful and icy, revealing a dangerous and ruthless aura.
Looking a few more times can even make one’s blood run cold.
“Your care and concern for Xiao An isn’t pure overflowing maternal love, is it?”
Li Jue smiles, looking completely unconcerned, completely different from Chu Jiuer’s serious and solemn attitude.
“That’s between me and him.”
“You’d better think clearly about what you want to do. Don’t end up hurting him and making yourself regret it.”
Cold wind pours in from the stairwell window, brushing Li Jue’s long, jet-black hair.
She toys with the strands that have been blown into disarray at her temples, not taking Chu Jiuer’s reminder to heart in the slightest.
“Thanks for the reminder. I won’t regret it. He’s mine. I know how to use him.”