The Silly Alchemist

“...Uh... About that....” Ye Lang had no words.

“Stop wasting time, go plan! This is a good opportunity!” Coldblood Five gave him a swift kick so he would go to the Full Moon Festival.

“Alright, alright! I’ll go!” Ye Lang did a magnificent backflip, landed, then left.

...

Upon arriving at the festival, Ye Lang was surprised to find the place busier than he expected!

This year’s Full Moon Festival was held in the yard of Zhu’s Soup House. The place was spacious enough to house a thousand attendees comfortably, yet right now Ye Lang was very, very uncomfortable. This proved that there were definitely more than a thousand people here now.

“Fuck me, how can I get closer to Li Yue in such a setting? I might as well take a nap at home!” Ye Lang was about to go home upon seeing the crowd.

However, there was a very unfriendly gaze coming from another direction... Ye Lang realised it was Athena. She was invited too.

Under her watchful eyes, he had no choice but to squeeze himself into the crowd. Athena watched as he disappeared quickly amongst the sea of attendees, making her frustrated. He was obviously avoiding her... Was she really THAT scary?

You’re not scary, you’re just annoying!

If she asked, this would be Ye Lang’s answer. It was his truth. Right now, Athena was the most inconvenient person ever because she was too smart for him and always needed him to follow her plans exactly.

Ye Lang usually ignored her when it became too tedious but this Li Yue plan was too important to not listen to Athena.

“Thud!”

He collided with a little girl as he was forcing himself through the crowd.

“Are you alright? I’m sorry, it was an accident... Hey, it’s you again! Looks like fate wants us to meet.” Ye Lang realised it was the same girl he’d collided with at the door when he helped her up.

“Eh, it’s you again!” The girl was equally surprised.

“Alright, let me buy you something. Do you want another toy?” asked Ye Lang.

“It’s fine, one’s enough! Do you have anything else fun?” said the girl, her eyes gleaming with anticipation. She was very satisfied with the toy he’d given her previously.

“Fun? I’ve got a lot of things that are fun! But they’re not suitable for a little girl like you.. Right, I think you’d really like this. Girls usually like this.” Ye Lang retrieved a huge teddy bear from his space ring almost as tall as the little girl.

“Wow, it’s adorable! What’s it called?” The girl was ecstatic, hugging the bear excitedly.

“This is called a teddy bear! See, I told you girls liked teddy bears. You can hug him to sleep at night, it’ll be fun!” Ye Lang smiled, then couldn’t help but stroke her hair.

“...” The little girl froze suddenly. She stared at him in confusion, her eyes filled with confusion.

“Hey, our boss Miss Zhu’s so playful today, she’s like a regular little girl!”

A few people started to wonder when they saw how Ye Lang and the girl interacted, some even whispering among themselves.

“You... You... No, that’s impossible. You can’t be him, he’s not from the fox tribe,” muttered the little girl, shaking her head. She seemed to think Ye Lang was someone.

As Ye Lang was about to ask, another person sprinted over, shouting, “Boss Zhu, what’s the matter? What are you doing with that toy? Hurry, it’s time for your speech! You’re the chairperson of the event!”

Boss Zhu? Was he talking to the little girl?

“Oh, alright! I’ll be there immediately!” answered the little girl. She was Boss Zhu indeed.

“Boss Zhu, why are you still holding...that? You can put it down before you go up,” reminded the same person before she went up the stage.

“No, this teddy bear’s my baby now.” And just like that, hugging the huge teddy bear, she walked up the stage and gave her speech.

Ye Lang finally understood that the girl was indeed Boss Zhu. She was the head of the restaurant and the chairperson of the chamber of commerce!

No one would’ve expected such a young girl to be the chairperson of a chamber of commerce. She must be very capable in the business world.

Ye Lang suddenly recalled a little girl who was in a similar position. That girl he knew was the breadwinner at just ten years old, and her family name was also Zhu... What was her name again?

“Zhu Ye’er...”

Yes! That’s her name! This was the little girl who once sought Ye Lang for help in business. She must be older now, as old as this girl.

Wait...

The girl on the stage is Zhu Ye’er? Ye Lang finally connected the dots moments after the name was mentioned in the speech. She said, “I, Zhu Ye’er, represent Zhu’s Soup House and the Zhu Ye Chamber of Commerce to thank everyone for...”

Fuck! So she is the same girl! This is such a coincidence!

Ye Lang was privately cursing for he now understood what Zhu Ye’er was previously about to say. He’d almost recognised him! Looks like he had to keep a distance from her from now on.

Zhu’s Soup House, why didn’t I think of it? This was obviously her property, she even named the place after herself!

He wanted to leave badly but he knew he couldn’t because it would attract attention.

To be fair, it wasn’t too big of a problem. It was just one time, it would be difficult for her to recognise me this easily. If she does, then Li Yue would too.

This was true because Zhu Ye’er would soon come looking for him... And if he was missing, she would’ve started to suspect.

When she finished her speech, the crowd cheered loudly and a huge group of girls started to crowd around her. They weren’t looking to make friends, they wanted to know where she’d bought the toy from.

Zhu Ye’er chuckled, even more sure that she wanted to have a chat with Ye Lang.

“Brother, what is your name?” asked Zhu Ye’er. Even Ye’er herself was surprised at how casual her tone was. She was used to talking business, she’d never act this friendly with anyone!