CHAPTER 428: CHAPTER 424: MEETING LORD DUMPLING

On the 13th, early in the morning.

The sun rose from the horizon, shrouded by the ground mist, turning a Chinese red. Below lay the city’s silhouette, and above stretched a clear, cloudless sky. The sight compelled Zhou Li to instinctively take out his phone, snap a picture, and send it to Brother Nan.

In Yan City, such intensely red sunrises were rare.

The reason was likely Yan City’s often cloudy, rainy, and foggy weather; it lacked the frequent clear skies of the north, and its air wasn’t as transparent.

Zhou Li quickly closed the window and pulled his neck in.

"It’s a bit cold."

"It’s already late autumn, and we’re in the north," Huai Xu, who had risen even earlier, remarked. "You’re dressed too lightly. You might feel better after changing clothes later."

"Perhaps."

"Lord Dumpling isn’t cold!"

"Of course, I can’t compare to Lord Dumpling."

"Meow!"

"However, Lord Dumpling, you still need to behave with more dignity later. Learn a little from Huai Xu—just a little, don’t copy him completely," Zhou Li said, gently stroking Tuanzi’s small forehead. "Let’s also uphold His Highness’s reputation."

"Lord Dumpling knows!"

"That’s good."

"His Highness cares a lot about his reputation!"

"Is that so..."

Soon, someone delivered clothes for him, tailored to the measurements taken last night. Naturally, they couldn’t compare to fully custom-made outfits, so several sets were sent for him to try on. A tailor accompanied them to make any necessary adjustments.

There was also a dedicated stylist.

It was all very thoughtful.

At nine o’clock in the morning, they departed on time, riding in a ceremonial car towards an ancient node left behind by the Demon Kingdom.

The drive took about half an hour.

The place had now become a wasteland, with no trace remaining of the buildings constructed in ancient times from the passage of time. The state had recently requisitioned this land. In their haste, they had simply covered it with gravel and flattened it, then laid out a red carpet to finally make it look somewhat presentable.

There were plans to rebuild it properly later.

Today, the area around the node was completely under martial law, and lines of sight were blocked—a not insignificant display of force. The small concrete road and nearby farmlands were the only things that seemed somewhat out of place.

They arrived at only nine-thirty.

Zhou Li stood next to Minister Wang and softly explained, "Although their Old Land World is fragmented, and the environment is likely terrible—with over ninety-nine percent of it shattered and uninhabitable—they can still make brief stays there. They also have ways to travel through these shattered regions. So, the principle behind their arrival today is to traverse these fragmented areas and appear on our Earth."

The minister nodded, struggling to understand. "Could it be understood as land contaminated after a nuclear war?"

"There are differences, but it can be understood that way."

"What does their Old Land look like?"

"I haven’t been there, but it’s said to be a very beautiful place," Zhou Li spoke respectfully to the elder he often saw on television. "Currently, the Old Land is a world almost superimposed on our Earth, and they rotate together."

"What’s the principle behind that?" the minister asked curiously.

"I’m not sure," Zhou Li glanced to the side. "Yin Le, did your ancestors have any understanding of these matters?"

"They might have, but it wasn’t passed down."

"Oh."

In fact, Yin Le knew even less about demons and the Old Land than Zhou Li did, even though what Zhou Li shared today was information Huai Xu had given him the previous night. But Huai Xu, after all, was a notoriously fierce Great Demon of some renown and was considered reliable.

「At ten o’clock sharp.」

The Demon Kingdom Delegation appeared out of thin air.

The Demon Kingdom’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs exists specifically to interact with human nations. The boundaries between demon kingdoms aren’t as distinct. If necessary, relevant departments from two demon kingdoms can liaise directly. Therefore, many members of the Demon Kingdom’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs can freely manifest their forms. Those unable to manifest freely were also present; they primarily handle tasks not requiring direct interaction with humans.

Those who arrived today were all visible to humans, having willingly manifested their forms, which instantly caused most of the humans present to widen their eyes.

As it was a diplomatic delegation, their appearances were relatively presentable—not too horrifying—and their physical sizes weren’t vastly different from humans. Even so, they bore obvious differences from ordinary humans, resembling the depictions of deities, buddhas, demons, and spirits found in ancient texts.

They were predominantly demons.

The two sides approached each other.

Zhou Li walked slightly ahead and was the first to go up, shake hands, and greet the chief official of the Demon Kingdom Delegation. "It’s a pleasure to finally meet you, Lord Han Hong."

"Mr. Zhou Li, I’ve long wished to meet you in person," Han Hong replied with a slight smile. "There’s no need to call me ’Lord’; ’Mister’ will do. It seems that title isn’t in fashion these days."

"Understood," Zhou Li replied quickly. He then turned to introduce the person behind him. "This is Minister Wang."

"I am honored to meet you," said Minister Wang.

"Not at all, the honor is all mine," Han Hong replied.

"Mr. Han Hong served as the chief official of the embassy to our country in ancient times, a post he held for over a thousand years," Zhou Li explained as he watched them shake hands. Members from both teams then proceeded to shake hands and exchange greetings, and Zhou Li continued with the introductions.

"That’s incredible!" exclaimed Minister Wang.

"We just live long lives," Han Hong said.

"Mr. Han Hong, do you recognize these two by my side?" Zhou Li pointed beside him. "This is Huai Xu; he likes to change his appearance a lot."

"So, it is Lord Huai Xu!" Mr. Han Hong fell silent for a moment. "...It’s been a long time. How is Master Ming doing?"

"He should be well," Huai Xu replied.

"And this one, Mr. Han Hong, do you recognize...?" Zhou Li began.

"Of course, I do!"

Mr. Han Hong stared at the air next to Zhou Li, his eyes widening. Then he bowed slightly, saying respectfully, "This humble servant pays his respects to Lord Dumpling!"

"No need for formalities, meow!"

"Thank you, Lord Dumpling." Mr. Han Hong straightened up and then said to Tuanzi, "I’ve heard Lord Dumpling has been traveling afar... for spiritual cultivation. I never expected to have the honor of meeting you here; it is truly a privilege."

"Lord Dumpling seems to have seen you before..." Tuanzi tilted her head, looking at him quizzically, as if trying to recall.

"I previously served under Lady Yu Xue."

"Oh! Yu Xue! Lord Dumpling knows her!"

Clearly, Lady Yu Xue’s official status was much higher than Mr. Han Hong’s. Zhou Li seemed to recall hearing of her renown; she was apparently on par with Lin Zhong. However, because she sided with Hong Ran, her fame wasn’t as widespread as Lin Zhong’s. After all, Hong Ran’s faction boasted many powerful figures, whereas Lin Zhong was the sole leader of the Radical Party.

Yin Le’s eyes had widened like copper bells, darting between Tuanzi and Zhou Li in utter astonishment.

Unfortunately, Zhou Li couldn’t let them continue chatting. Given Tuanzi’s identity and her ’status’ within the Demon Kingdom’s government, if she kept talking, Mr. Han Hong would have no choice but to remain standing there conversing with her, leaving everyone else waiting.

"Let’s get in the cars first. We can catch up properly later; it’s windy out here," Zhou Li suggested.

"That’s fine," Han Hong agreed.

The other members didn’t require an introduction from him, nor could Zhou Li have clearly introduced them all anyway. They would introduce themselves during the formal talks. However, before they got into the cars, he made a point of introducing Yin Le, as a small gesture of help towards him.

Subsequently, the chief officials from both teams sat together. They would engage in some conversation in the car to familiarize themselves with each other. The remaining team members did not sit together; they were separated, two per vehicle.

And Zhou Li still shared a car with Tuanzi.

The Little Cat Girl hugged his arm, her face pressed against his sleeve, acting as coquettishly as she did when she was a cat. "Was Lord Dumpling composed just now, meow?"

"Very composed," Zhou Li fibbed.

"’Will that person scold you anymore, meow?’ Tuanzi asked again.

"Which one?"

"That one!"

Tuanzi stretched out a small, pale hand, pointing at the car ahead, where Huai Xu and Yin Le were riding.

Zhou Li smiled faintly. "He wasn’t scolding me..."

He then silently patted Tuanzi’s little head. Meeting her bright eyes, he said, "Thank you, Lord Dumpling, for thinking of me even while you were performing."

"’Lord Dumpling was thinking of Your Highness!’"

That really stings...

This Little Trash Cat truly was shamelessly direct.

Since the conversation had reached this point, Zhou Li took out his phone to message Yin Le.

Zhou Li: How’s it going?

Yin Le: Awesome.

Zhou Li thought for a moment, then sent another message.

Zhou Li: Be more respectful to Lord Dumpling in the future. You see, even such a high-ranking official is so deferential to her.

Yin Le: I always thought she was just the Demon King’s pet.

Zhou Li: Before Hong Ran came to power, when the Demon Kingdom’s high-ranking officials voted to choose a temporary leader, she and Hong Ran were the only two candidates.

Yin Le: ????????

Zhou Li couldn’t help but laugh out loud.