「April 16, morning.」
Zhou Li tilted his head back, gargling with water and foam, making a gurgling sound. Nearby, an even more delicate gurgle accompanied him.
"Pfft!"
Zhou Li spat out the foam.
A few droplets splashed about, causing the Little Cat Girl to squint. But she was good-natured and acted as if nothing had happened. Clinging to the edge of the washbasin, she also spat out her mouthful of foam.
Zhou Li stirred his toothbrush around in the cup.
Tuanzi mimicked the exact same action.
Zhou Li poured out the water.
She did the same.
The movements of the human and the Cat Girl were almost in sync.
Then Zhou Li grabbed a towel, wiped his mouth, and bent down to wipe hers as well. She just stood there, letting Zhou Li do as he pleased. After that, Zhou Li began to apply sunscreen. She didn't make a sound, just stood by, looking up at him.
As soon as Zhou Li finished applying the sunscreen and put it down, Tuanzi immediately got on her tiptoes and reached for it, bending her waist close to the countertop.
But just as she was about to get it, the sunscreen disappeared.
"Hmm?" Tuanzi looked around in confusion before looking up again.
She saw Zhou Li holding the Small golden bottle, looking down at her. "What are you doing?" he asked.
"Want to put some on Lord Dumpling too," she answered.
"You don't need to use it."
"I need to use it! Lord Dumpling wants to use it!" she said, nodding earnestly as she spoke.
"...This is for hairless humans," Zhou Li seriously explained, putting his hand on her head—the height was just right. "High-level beings like Lord Dumpling, Great Demons, don't need it."
"Lord Dumpling is a Great Demon!"
"Right. Great Demons don't use it."
"Only the hairless use it?"
"That's right."
"Is it fun to use?"
"It's not fun."
"Oh." Tuanzi stood by the side and said no more.
Zhou Li started combing his hair. In the midst of it, the Little Cat Girl disappeared, and a small lion cat appeared instead.
The small lion cat jumped onto the washbasin, excitedly declaring, "Lord Dumpling will help you lick it!"
"No need."
"Lord Dumpling insists!"
"Suit yourself."
So, the small lion cat meowed. She perched at the very edge of the vanity. Due to her insufficient height, she even lifted her upper body, placing her two front paws on Zhou Li, stretching her neck, and sticking out her pink tongue.
She couldn't reach...
She moved a bit forward but still couldn't reach.
She felt as if Zhou Li was deliberately leaning back a bit. She observed Zhou Li's expression... It must be her imagination.
She moved forward again.
Tuanzi looked down; she was at the very edge.
She looked at Zhou Li's hair; it was still a good distance away. After some thought, she withdrew her front paws. Then, as though nothing had happened, she jumped off the vanity and slowly walked out of the bathroom.
When she reached the door, she glanced back at Zhou Li.
Zhou Li immediately tried to hold back his laughter.
Tuanzi left, reassured.
「About an hour later, Brother Nan woke up.」
She almost immediately saw Zhou Li. He was bending over a coffee table, writing something in a notebook full of words.
"What are you doing?" she inquired.
"Writing in my diary."
"Pervert."
"..."
"What are you writing?"
"Travel notes."
"Let me see!"
"No."
"Tch!" Brother Nan threw off the covers and got up. Hair disheveled, she put on her slippers and went to wash up. Afterwards, she kicked Zhou Li out of the room because she had to pack up her belongings and didn't want Zhou Li to watch.
They checked out downstairs.
The receptionist gave them an odd look, causing Zhou Li's face to turn red. He quickly left after retrieving the deposit.
The room was only registered for him and Brother Nan. However, Huai Xu had actually been coming in and out with them frequently. That wasn't the main point, though. The crucial part was that over the past few days, Huai Xu had switched genders several times and even changed appearance.
What the receptionist must think... I don't even dare to guess! Zhou Li thought. This goes against the principles of the anti-vice campaign.
Brother Nan was driving.
Zhou Li dutifully carried the fruits and snacks to the passenger seat and hugged Brother Nan's cushion.
Today, their destination was the Primeval Forest and Wild Elephant Valley.
Neither of these attractions was particularly special. They just happened to be close to Jinghong and conveniently on the way to other scenic spots. Brother Nan's idea was that since they were already there, they might as well drop by.
Since we're here anyway...
Neither of these attractions took too much time.
The highlight of the Primeval Forest was the "Peacocks Fly Southeast" performance, where one could see hundreds of blue peacocks flying together. Staff members started the performance at fixed times, and visitors could also play with the peacocks during the show.
They were all blue peacocks—the kind that are legal to eat. There is also the green peacock, which is one of the national birds and cannot be eaten.
Brother Nan liked to tease the peacocks.
Huai Xu also liked to tease them, enticing the peacocks to spread their tails, then mocking them for losing feathers and having incomplete fans.
Zhou Li liked to watch them.
Wild Elephant Valley was so named, but it was almost impossible to see wild elephants there; this required too much luck. Zhou Li had read online that even the staff seldom saw wild elephants.
Of course, *they* did see them.
Zhou Li had a wicked thought: Perhaps from the moment they decided last night to visit Wild Elephant Valley today, this group of wild elephants, hiding who knows where, started heading this way. They must have traveled all night just so Brother Nan could catch a glimpse of them.
Thinking about this, he smiled.
Whenever Zhou Li smiled, Brother Nan would assume he was up to something mischievous. Regardless of whether it was detrimental to herself or not, she'd throw an elbow first—it was never a loss to do so.
Zhou Li felt quite aggrieved.
Eventually, they all rode an elephant together and took a photo. Although the fee was a bit expensive, they had a professional photographer to help them, which was ten thousand times better than asking Huai Xu to take the picture.
"I'm so tired!" Brother Nan said, sitting in the car.
"Eat a banana." Zhou Li handed a freshly peeled banana to her mouth.
"So thoughtful."
When Brother Nan smiled, her eyes would narrow as if they were shining, with a hint of what could be called 'peach blossom eyes.' She took only one bite of the banana and then waved her hand, indicating she didn't want any more. She then glanced at Zhou Li's awkward expression out of the corner of her eye, trying to hold back her laughter.
"It's only five now. We'll stay near the Botanical Garden tonight and stroll through it early in the morning while it's cool."
"Okay."
"You don't like it?" Brother Nan glanced at him.
"No!" Zhou Li looked down at the neat bite marks on the banana and took a bite himself. Back when life was tough, no one fussed over things like this. I'll just pretend I'm from that era.
"The accommodations over there aren't good, you know," she said.
"It's fine."
"You look up the accommodations."
"Okay. What kind of room are we getting?"
Zhou Li asked, but when he didn't hear Brother Nan's reply, he lifted his head to ask again. Seeing Brother Nan focused on driving, he opened his mouth but couldn't bring himself to repeat the question. Instead, he murmured softly, "I'll see if there are any triple rooms, to save money."
Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed Brother Nan still concentrating on driving.
Zhou Li found a triple room, but it was in a small guesthouse, not as nice as the hotel they had stayed at in Jinghong.
The three beds were arranged side by side.
Zhou Li subtly conveyed to Brother Nan that the conditions weren't great. Brother Nan, however, responded that one shouldn't be so particular when traveling. Huai Xu sat alone in the back seat, hugging a cushion and eating a banana, eyeing them sideways with an inscrutable expression.
The guesthouse's conditions were worse than just "not good."
In the evening, you'd even get unsolicited phone calls.
Zhou Li was really too naive. After listening to a few sentences on the phone, he turned his head and asked Brother Nan, "Brother Nan, do you want a massage? They say they offer all kinds of massages. Maybe a massage would make you feel more comfortable."
The person on the phone was surprised. "Two people?"
Brother Nan paused for a moment, then nonchalantly walked over and took the phone. Without saying anything, she just coughed twice.
There was silence on the other end. Presumably, due to the recent intensity of the crackdown on vice and organized crime, they hadn't had business for a while. The woman on the phone then changed her tune, "We offer legitimate massages. We can provide services for couples too. How about a Thai massage?"
Brother Nan's tone was harsh. "No need. I can give massages myself. We won't trouble you."
BEEP. BEEP. BEEP.
The other party hung up directly.
Zhou Li looked at Brother Nan with surprise and anticipation. "Can you really give massages?"
Brother Nan looked at him speechlessly, a mix of annoyance and amusement. After a moment, she beckoned to him. "Really. Do you want one? Come here, I'll loosen your muscles for you. My skills are quite good, you know."
Zhou Li realized something was amiss and took two steps back.
But the room was only so big; where could he retreat? With Brother Nan's long legs, she caught up to him in just two or three strides.
"AH!"
Huai Xu promptly covered Tuanzi's eyes.