Time passed quickly, and within a few days, Jilin received some news: Lu Xiaoqian had been discharged from the hospital! Clearly, Shaniu was back in his hands. At the same time, Jilin could not help feeling a twinge of worry for Wang Tianba.
As night fell, Jilin looked at the virtual screen before him with great interest. On the screen, Huamei and You Suowei were having dinner in You Suowei's villa. After a few glasses of wine, You Suowei passed out due to his poor alcohol tolerance. Afterward, Huamei helped You Suowei upstairs.
Looking at You Suowei lying on the bed, Huamei felt conflicted and torn inside. One had to admit that Huamei was deeply versed in the so-called "tea ceremony."
Her "tea arts" belonged entirely to the level of an old fox.
Just then, Lu Xiaoqian also arrived at the entrance of You Suowei's villa. For some reason, as Jilin watched Lu Xiaoqian on the virtual screen, he felt as though there was a lush, green grassland sprouting right on top of Lu Xiaoqian's head.
Not long after, Jilin heard Helan returning home, so he quickly turned off Huan'er and put it away.
Meanwhile, Pigsy's situation was utterly miserable. As the saying goes, the passionate have always suffered from empty grudges, and this endless sorrow knows no bounds. Pigsy was all alone in the residence provided by You Suowei, blankly staring at the moon in the sky. Ever since he saw Helan at the hospital that day, Pigsy thought about her day and night.
However, by this time Helan already had Jilin, such a handsome man. Pigsy stood no chance at all.
Ever since coming to the modern world, he had hit wall after wall everywhere he went. First, he was locked up by Yellow Eyebrow in the Human-Seed Bag, then he gave himself food poisoning dining out with President Fan, and now came this lovesickness.
If Jilin knew Pigsy's current state, he could only say silently in his heart: "I'm sorry, Brother Pig, you'd better honestly go fetch your scriptures in the Western Heaven."
Around noon the next day, the sun was shining brightly as Jilin drove out with Chuchu and Helan to have lunch together. The atmosphere inside the car was relaxed and cheerful, and the three of them chatted and laughed.
Suddenly, a striking piece of news broadcasted over the car radio: the latest report about the Flying Man.
Hearing this topic, Chuchu in the back seat enthusiastically suggested, "Let's not rush to eat. Why don't we go check out that legendary Flying Man first?" Her eyes were full of curiosity and anticipation.
Hearing Chuchu's words, Helan chimed in, "Yeah, yeah, we aren't even hungry right now anyway." She was equally interested in the Flying Man.
Jilin smiled and agreed to their request, steering the car in the direction where the Flying Man had appeared. Before long, they arrived alongside a wide road, where they saw Lu Xiaoqian dressed as the Flying Man engaged in a fierce battle with Pigsy.
When Jilin and the others got out of the car, Lu Xiaoqian in his Flying Man costume noticed them and quickly flew toward them. Jilin observed the Flying Man closely, a trace of suspicion instantly arising in his mind—this person did not seem to be the real Lu Xiaoqian, but rather Yellow Eyebrow Great King transformed.
Sure enough, this fake Lu Xiaoqian, disguised by Yellow Eyebrow Great King, rushed straight at them. Realizing the situation was critical, Jilin didn't hesitate for a moment. He stepped forward to meet him and engaged Yellow Eyebrow in a fierce brawl.
Yellow Eyebrow Great King didn't want to stir up too much trouble here. He channeled his magic power, condensed a huge wolf-head shape, and launched a vicious strike at Jilin. Jilin had no time to dodge and was sent flying several meters away by the powerful force.
Seeing Jilin injured and falling to the ground, Yellow Eyebrow Great King seized the opportunity to abduct Chuchu, who was standing nearby. Panicking, Helan rushed over to help Jilin up.
"Jilin, are you alright? Are you hurt badly?" Helan asked with deep concern, her eyes full of worry. Struggling to his feet, Jilin shook his head to indicate he was fine, but inwardly cursed Yellow Eyebrow Great King: This guy has no martial ethics at all—he actually launched a sneak attack!
Jilin knew very well that he had taken that blow entirely with his bare physical strength. Although there was no danger to his life, his body still felt slightly uncomfortable.
Jilin told Helan to notify You Suowei to come here; for now, You Suowei's silver tongue was the best solution.
Just then, Yellow Eyebrow Great King grabbed Chuchu as a hostage, forcing Lu Xiaoqian to show himself.
Meanwhile, Lu Xiaoqian finally couldn't help stepping out to confront Yellow Eyebrow Great King. Thus, right there on the broad avenue, Pigsy, Lu Xiaoqian, and Yellow Eyebrow Great King fell into a stalemate.
However, this tense standoff did not last long. While everyone was deadlocked, You Suowei rushed to the scene and broke the stalemate.
In fact, there was no major conflict between Yellow Eyebrow Great King and You Suowei in the first place. The reason the two of them had parted ways was, on the one hand, because Wang Tianba and the others had been sowing discord behind the scenes; and on the other hand, it was You Suowei's reckless action of kicking away the washbasin back then, which had harbored resentment in Yellow Eyebrow Great King's heart.
With You Suowei's arrival, the atmosphere at the scene gradually eased.
After You Suowei sincerely apologized to Yellow Eyebrow Great King, Yellow Eyebrow Great King posed the final, crucial question on the spot: "In your heart, is she more important, or am I?" As he spoke, Yellow Eyebrow Great King pointed at Chuchu, whom he was holding hostage.
Witnessing this dramatic scene, Jilin muttered inwardly: "This is just Howling Celestial Dog getting jealous of the Second Brother!" Then, shaking his head to correct himself, "No, wait, he's a yellow-furred wolf..."
In the end, thanks to You Suowei's glib tongue, Chuchu actively threw herself into You Suowei's arms, and Yellow Eyebrow Great King happily returned to You Suowei's side, releasing the kidnapped wealthy businessman.
Seeing this, Jilin seemed to suddenly remember something important. Frowning slightly, he quickly checked for President Fan's whereabouts, but to his surprise, President Fan had vanished into thin air, leaving absolutely no trace behind.
"Oops! I got so caught up watching the spectacle that I forgot the main quest." Jilin slapped his forehead in annoyance, filled with self-reproach. Just like that, he had carelessly lost the crucial clue regarding the Bull Demon King.
Once matters were settled, the generous You Suowei offered to treat everyone and led the group to a restaurant for dinner. Around the dining table, everyone sat together in a relaxed and cheerful atmosphere. Through this dinner gathering, everyone had the opportunity to get to know and familiarize themselves with one another.
"Brother Lun, as an ordinary person, how can you be so amazing?" Lu Xiaoqian couldn't help asking out of curiosity, admiration sparkling in his eyes.
Jilin smiled and replied, "What's so amazing about me? I'm just an ordinary martial artist. I might have a bit of skill against ordinary people, but just now, facing Yellow Eyebrow's magical attack, I still haven't fully recovered."
Hearing this, Yellow Eyebrow awkwardly scratched his head with a trace of apology on his face. Afterward, he raised his glass to toast Jilin to show his respect. The two drank together, clearing up their earlier minor misunderstanding.
After the dinner ended, Pigsy watched with a sorrowful expression as Helan helped the drunk Jilin into a car and drove away. A hint of loss and helplessness flashed in his eyes.
"Stop dreaming, Brother Pig. Sister He is already far away." Seeing Pigsy looking like that, Lu Xiaoqian couldn't help teasing him.
"No, I keep feeling like I've met Jilin somewhere before. I just can't quite remember." Pigsy scratched his head, sinking into his memories, but no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't recall where he had seen Jilin.
After pondering for a long time, he shook his head and decided to stop thinking about it.
Instead, Lu Xiaoqian, who was standing nearby, fell into deep, thoughtful contemplation upon hearing Pigsy's words.
He found this question rather strange: why would Pigsy say he felt like he had met Jilin before? Could there really be some connection between them? Or was it just an illusion? Lu Xiaoqian decided to put the matter aside for now and slowly investigate it clearly later.
...Human desires are like boulders rolling down a high mountain. Once they start, they can never be stopped—unless those stones were already at the bottom of the valley in the first place.
Early the next morning at Eric Food Company, You Suowei sat in his office, supporting his head with both hands, looking at Shaniu before him with a painful expression.
His heart was filled with self-reproach and guilt because he knew that stealing Shaniu was wrong.
Yet he simply couldn't help wanting to possess such a magical mobile phone, which led him to commit this wrongful act. Shaniu quietly watched You Suowei from the side, able to feel the conflict and struggle within his heart. She tried to use words to comfort You Suowei and keep him from blaming himself too much.
That afternoon, Jilin slowly woke up in his room. Rubbing his still-aching head, he felt a deep sense of exhaustion.
Wine and women ruin the body; Jilin resolved to quit drinking once and for all.
Stepping out of his room into the living room, Jilin caught sight of Helan sitting on the sofa, softly comforting Chuchu, whose eyes were red and swollen from crying.
Jilin's heart skipped a beat: "You Suowei couldn't have already gotten Shaniu, could he?"
From Chuchu's sobbing words, Jilin learned that You Suowei had actually been mugged and was hospitalized with severe injuries! Chuchu had simply gone to visit You Suowei out of kindness, only to overhear him and Huamei still entangled outside his hospital room door!
With Helan's fiery temper, she immediately pointed the finger at Jilin.
"Look at you, what kind of trash is your cousin?! He actually toyed with our Chuchu's feelings. And you, drinking like a piece of dead mud yesterday..."
Listening to Helan's rapid-fire scolding, Jilin lowered his head almost to the floor.
...
At the hospital, dragging Huamei along, Yellow Eyebrow rushed tempestuously into You Suowei's ward.
"President You, the phone password is 'Huamei, I hate you'."
The moment You Suowei blurted out the password and Shaniu transformed into her human mode, Jilin kicked the ward door open with a *bang* and swaggered in.
Wow, what an awkward scene this was!
However, You Suowei didn't care at all; after all, Jilin was his cousin. Then, he had Shaniu help treat his injuries.
...After letting Huamei go, You Suowei curiously asked Jilin why he had come here.
Then Jilin told him about Chuchu's situation. Upon hearing about Chuchu, You Suowei felt a bit guilty as well. He prepared to go find Chuchu in person to clear things up...
Having fully recovered, and after gradually growing familiar with Shaniu's operations, You Suowei unknowingly "darkened"!
Because of the hurt You Suowei caused her, Chuchu no longer wanted to stay in Dali with You Suowei.
At night, on the rooftop, You Suowei wore a white combat suit, his red cape fluttering in the wind. He gazed into the distance with a resolute look in his eyes. Then, with a *swoosh*, he flew off in a certain direction, soaring across the skies above the city.