Abnormal Gourmet Chronicle

Chapter 1202 575: The End Approaches (Part 2)

Since they didn't know when Luo Jun would die, and Luo Jun felt he was about to die, his request for the funeral was that a stage be set up to perform opera on the day of his death, which necessitated the opera troupe members to stay in Shan City on standby.

This request was originally hard to fulfill, but Luo Jun wielded the power of money.

Now the opera troupe members are stationed in Shan City, performing not at the local theater, but daily at Luo Jun's house. They rotate through their best operas, and if Luo Jun is satisfied, it's decided to be performed at his funeral.

Selection by the deceased.

With daily shows to chase and operas to listen to, Luo Jun's temper improved significantly, and he became more peace and love, less demanding on Zhou Hu's team than before. Since the hardest part had been solved, the remaining tasks were trivial, allowing the previously busy Zhou Hu some leisure.

With this leisure came time to follow Xu Tuqiang.

Yes, following Xu Tuqiang.

A high-end fortune teller often only needs the most rudimentary stalking.

Through two days of following, Zhou Hu successfully caught Xu Tuqiang buying a pricey 50-dollar lucky charm at a stall, and then quickly contacted Qin Huai to ensure Xu Tuqiang invested heavily in his most hoped-for lucky snacks, teaching him a bloody lesson to henceforth stay away from superstitions and not attempt to change his luck through fortune-telling and other crooked means, hoping to reap without sowing.

This series of slick operations by Zhou Hu left Qin Huai stunned.

At 5:17 PM, Qin Huai got off work, and conveniently handed 19 boxes of dumpling gift boxes he had prepared to Zhou Hu, who had just left Luo Jun's house.

Having received 30% of the deposit, Zhou Hu, now free from bending to a meager five bushels of rice, developed a sideline of boasting and deceit to pay off his mortgage, exuding a refreshed vibe, and his smile appeared less fawning than before.

"I'm still missing 41 dumpling gift boxes. If all goes well, they should all be ready the day after tomorrow. If Planner Zhou still needs more, you can always come back to me for more." Qin Huai had arranged to meet Zhou Hu at the underground parking lot.

This is quite convenient, allowing them to directly place the dumpling gift boxes into the trunk of Zhou Hu's car.

"Thanks, Master Qin." After having sent meals and conspired during the snack incident involving Xu Tuqiang and having been hospitalized for a few days, Zhou Hu and Qin Huai had gotten to know each other a lot better, turning a bit of the deference due to a future client into more respect for Master Qin.

"Was Mr. Luo satisfied with today's opera?" Qin Huai asked.

Luo Jun usually listened to operas during the day, while Qin Huai, busy with work, couldn't join the fun at Luo Jun's house; Chen Huihong, however, went to Luo Jun's house daily to listen, finding it quite enjoyable.

According to Chen Huihong, the opera singers' performance was quite pleasant, with a strong penetrating voice, and luckily they performed during the day; otherwise, despite Luo Jun having bought multiple floors nearby, the close neighbors would still complain about the noise.

"Pretty satisfied," Zhou Hu replied, "Mr. Luo really enjoys listening to operas; I can feel his mood improves significantly while listening."

"The stage plan was approved by Mr. Luo today; now we're just waiting for the arrangement of the mourning hall. Once that's decided, along with some other details, Mr. Luo's preparation work will be basically complete," Zhou Hu said.

"Hasn't the arrangement of the mourning hall been decided yet?" Qin Huai was a bit surprised, as he thought it had been agreed upon a long time ago, considering it was supposed to be the first thing settled.

Before Zhou Hu was hospitalized, his team would set up several versions a day, ordering large quantities of fresh flowers from the florist daily, making huge profits for the florist. The florist even secretly messaged Zhou Hu, asking which day the client's funeral would be so they could send two oversized wreaths.

"No," Zhou Hu shook his head, "Mr. Luo has never been truly satisfied. I can feel his dissatisfaction, but he can't pinpoint what specifically displeases him."

"We've tried almost every normal flower and color combination, even tried bright red, but Mr. Luo just isn't satisfied."

"Maybe our abilities are limited and we haven't created the design Mr. Luo envisions."

"It's okay," comforted Qin Huai, "there's still time."

Zhou Hu's expression was a bit complex; he thought for a moment, then approached Qin Huai and whispered, "Maybe there's not that much time left."

Qin Huai: ?

What do you mean? Do you find Mr. Luo such a bothersome client, that you're planning to assassinate him in the next few days?

Is your nine-tailed fox gang so bold that they're willing to assassinate even a bi fang, truly worthy of being the go-to villain in TV dramas?

Qin Huai gave Zhou Hu a look of confused fear, prompting Zhou Hu to realize the misunderstanding immediately. Hastily, he explained, "I couldn't resist the urge to secretly do a reading for Mr. Luo a couple of days ago."

"Great misfortune."

"Mr. Luo truly might be facing his end, and at most... only has a week left."

Qin Huai was stunned.

Even though Zhou Hu himself didn't believe in fortune-telling, neither did Qin Huai usually, but upon hearing Zhou Hu's words, Qin Huai's first reaction was worrying about what to do if Luo Jun really passed away.

Although Luo Jun's passing was a foregone conclusion, with his funeral preparations having been in the works for a long time, Qin Huai wasn't prepared for Luo Jun to actually die.

Death is a very serious matter.

But Luo Jun happens to be a spirit, a spirit who failed his first attempt at the crossing tribulation, making his death seem less serious.

Luo Jun was the second spirit Qin Huai knew and the only one still in its first life.

The first spirit Qin Huai met was Chen Huihong; Huihui counts as half, as Huihui was a dissipated spirit who has become fully human in a sense.

Luo Jun was deeply involved in many spirit tasks and awakenings, providing Qin Huai with a lot of help and guidance. Compared to the confused plant spirits, a bi fang was undoubtedly the encyclopedia of the Spirit Monster World; he was knowledgeable about most spirits and kind of like Qin Huai's cheat code.

Qin Huai had become accustomed to reaching out to Luo Jun immediately whenever a new breakthrough or progress occurred with an unawakened spirit, calling for an online or offline tea party to hear Luo Jun's analysis.

Now, this cheat code is about to go offline.

Although it's a short-term offline, the downtime is conservatively estimated to be three to four years. No matter how quickly Luo Jun reincarnates, he would need to grow to at least three or four years old before he could use his parents' phone to contact Qin Huai.

Previously, Qin Huai didn't have a strong grasp on the impending death of Luo Jun, as everyone had been talking about Luo Jun's death so often that such a seemingly serious matter felt less serious, even somewhat lighthearted.

Just now, Zhou Hu's words stripped away that lightheartedness.

Qin Huai's first reaction was to be bewildered.

Utterly bewildered, like suddenly receiving a call where someone informed them that they would be getting married the next day and mustn't be late.

"Little... Master Qin, what's wrong with you? Are you alright?" Zhou Hu was startled by Qin Huai's reaction, his words tumbling out, unsure of what to say.

"I'm alright," Qin Huai replied calmly, "There're still 41 dumpling gift boxes. I… the day after tomorrow… let's not talk about this, I need to go now."

After speaking, Qin Huai rushed towards the elevator at Building A, heading straight to Luo Jun's house.

When Qin Huai rang the doorbell at Luo Jun's house, Luo Jun was, as usual, nested on the sofa watching TV.

Zhang Shumei opened the door.

Seeing Qin Huai arriving, Luo Jun didn't get up, only said calmly to Zhang Shumei, "Go out and buy some stuff."

Upon hearing the implied message, Zhang Shumei immediately left without even taking off her apron.

"What's the matter?" Luo Jun pressed a button on the remote to pause the TV drama, "Why so frantic? Is Wang Gen Sheng awakening?"

"No."

"Is Zhou Hu awakening?"

"Not that either."

"Have you discovered a new spirit?"

"No, I haven't."

Luo Jun gave Qin Huai a look that seemed to say, "Then why are you rushing here in a panic?" rolling his eyes with mild exasperation, and resumed watching TV with a press of the remote.

"Fruits are in the kitchen, grab some if you want."

"If it was An Youyou making you fetch fruit for her, tell her it's okay to come over and get some before 2 AM."

"It's not about fetching fruit." Qin Huai observed Luo Jun, noting how much calmer Luo Jun had become.

Not a single rebuke.

"Zhou Hu just told me he did a reading for you, and you have at most seven days left to live."

Luo Jun: ...

Luo Jun paused the TV again: "This is the first time you've heard I'm dying?"

"I can't bear for you to go," admitted Qin Huai straightforwardly, "I can't bear for you to just suddenly die."

Luo Jun was silent.

"If I don't die, whose inheritance will you inherit?"

"If I don't die, wouldn't the money spent on funeral planning be wasted?"

"I was always meant to die."

"Don't even think about playing the emotional card; failing the crossing tribulation was always in the cards for me."