Abnormal Gourmet Chronicle

Chapter 1209 578: Untitled_2

"Such a simple side mission and you're not doing it? Are you planning to go against the heavens?" Luo Jun's mood was sour, and his words were full of sarcasm as soon as he spoke.

"Mr. Luo, I don't feel like making dumplings," Qin Huai said. "Even though you seem pretty normal right now, with enough energy to scold me here, whenever I think about how you don't have many days left, I lose the motivation to make such complicated snacks."

"And even if I manage to finish making dumplings in the next few days, completing Zhou Hu's side mission, I wouldn't have the mood to look at his memories."

Luo Jun was left speechless by Qin Huai's bluntness. He desperately wanted to retort, asking where Qin Huai's art of language had gone? The skills of speaking differently to people versus spirits? The Master Level lie? His eloquence? How come there's no performance in front of me? You speak such heartfelt truths, don't you mind me dying? Don't want to inherit the legacy? What do you mean, Qin Huai?

Luo Jun paused for over ten seconds, ultimately saying nothing, and even retracted the sarcastic look that was about to appear.

Finally, under Chen Huihong's watchful eyes, enjoying the drama with a handful of sunflower seeds, Luo Jun could only strain his neck to spit out, "Why hasn't Qu Jing gotten off work yet?"

The next moment, the doorbell at Luo Jun's house rang.

Being the closest to the door and having just finished eating durian, An Youyou hurried to open it. Outside stood Qu Jing, carrying a large clay pot.

Qu Jing joyfully walked into the house, first locking eyes with Luo Jun, she smiled at Luo Jun and then said, "Mr. Luo, I made a big pot of rice cake soup today with lots of added ingredients, cooked in pork rib broth!"

"Sister Hong said you haven't eaten much today, so you probably want some rice cake soup. I didn't know exactly what you wanted to eat, so I added everything!"

Luo Jun: "..."

"Chen! Hui! Hong! Are you insane!"

.

The joyful hospice care atmosphere didn't dissolve the anxiety and sadness that Luo Jun's impending true death brought to Qin Huai.

With Qu Jing's full-time leave and Chen Huihong's daily vigilance at Luo Jun's house for more than 12 hours, Qin Huai became increasingly aware that Zhou Hu's divination was not wrong, Luo Jun was indeed nearing the end.

He appeared energetic, spoke with a strong voice, and was loud when scolding Chen Huihong, but his appetite was very small.

On the second day of Qu Jing's leave, Luo Jun drank only two bowls of dried tangerine peel tea the entire day, didn't eat a bite of the snacks Qin Huai had brought, and his sleeping time was longer than before.

Even though Luo Jun adamantly claimed it was because during the day Chen Huihong and others squatted in his house, chatting loudly and chewing sunflower seeds, distracting him from watching TV, so he had to catch up on those shows at night, leading to more daytime sleep, everyone knew it was an excuse.

There's really only one reason.

His soul might be healthy, but his body had long rotted away.

On the seventh day after Zhou Hu's divination about Luo Jun's impending death, theoretically the countdown to Luo Jun's last day, Qin Huai was absent-mindedly kneading dough in the back kitchen of Yunzhong Restaurant.

At this critical and delicate time, Qin Huai actually wanted to follow Chen Huihong and go to Luo Jun's house early in the morning.

But he knew if he did Luo Jun would definitely get angry; besides, there was nothing he could do to change anything. What use is there in staying at Luo Jun's house? Could he pull out a side mission from Luo Jun, allowing Luo Jun to cross the tribulation successfully, or complete a mission and receive an Elixir of Immortality from the game so Luo Jun wouldn't die?

The reward of immortality doesn't mean much to spirits, as succeeding in crossing the tribulation naturally leads to immortality.

Failing in crossing the tribulation yet remaining immortal... Luo Jun might choose to jump off a building on the spot.

So even though Qin Huai had been absent-minded while making snacks these days, so much so that everyone could see his daze, and even Xu Tuqiang and Grandma Ding, relatively familiar regulars with Qin Huai, privately advised him not to work for these days, and to spend more time at Luo Jun's house, Qin Huai did not heed them.

Qin Huai didn't know how to describe his mood; he only felt such a countdown was torturous.

This unavoidable farewell made him lose interest in doing anything, feeling restless.

At 10:16 AM, Qin Huai's phone rang.

It was a call from Chen Huihong, not a WeChat call; it was a phone call.

Qin Huai instantly realized something, took a deep breath, hesitated for two seconds, and answered the call.

"Hello." This was what Qin Huai said.

"Hello." Chen Huihong said, her tone calm, "Xiao Qin, you better come quickly, Luo Jun is not going to make it."

Qin Huai felt his mind go blank; even though he had prepared for all this, he still wasn't ready.

Without changing his clothes or washing his hands, Qin Huai left the dough behind and rushed out of Yunzhong Restaurant, running full speed toward Luo Jun's house. He even forgot the fatigue during the run until he stood at Luo Jun's doorstep, when his body reacted belatedly, starting to pant heavily.

Without waiting for Qin Huai to press the doorbell, the door opened.

An Youyou opened the door.

The scene at Luo Jun's house was nothing like what Qin Huai had imagined.

Qin Huai had never really experienced the parting of life and death, nor had he seen a senior pass away in front of him; his imagination of similar scenes all came from film and television dramas. In those, such scenes usually occur around a hospital bed.

On the hospital bed, a dying elderly person weakly giving final instructions, surrounded by family quietly sobbing or forcing smiles while holding back tears; just watching these scenes induces tearfulness, warmth mingling with sadness, an unshakeable sadness.

But Luo Jun's house wasn't like that.

Luo Jun lay on his favorite lazy sofa, greeting the imminent arrival of death with a displeased look.

Seeing his posture, if there really were ghost messengers and Black and White Impermanence in this world, when they come to fetch souls, they'd first catch some slaps from Bi Fang.

The spirits were indeed gathered around Luo Jun, Zhou Hu was absent, likely sent away with some excuse.

The scene wasn't sad nor warm.

Chen Huihong was chattering away assuring Luo Jun, "Don't worry, Luo Jun, after you pass, we'll definitely give you a grand funeral, from the first seven days to the forty-nine days, we'll do everything right."

"Every year, we'll definitely visit the grave during festivals, on anniversaries, during Qingming, Lantern Festival, New Year, Qixi, and even on Children's Day!"

"Your tombstone will be the cleanest and prettiest in the cemetery; I'll hire someone to polish it daily, switch out the offerings every day, and the leftovers will be given to Youyou to eat."

An Youyou nodded furiously in agreement, "Rest assured, Mr. Luo, I'm not picky, especially with fruits; I eat everything."

"You won't finish the shows you haven't finished watching, and to prevent any scandals from affecting your favorite stars, once reincarnated it'll be years before you can watch TV again, and searching for these resources might become difficult. We'll download all the good shows from these years for you, ensuring you won't miss any good series."

"Even bad ones won't be missed."

"About those old magazines and newspapers you've stored in your room, we'll definitely regularly take them out to air and maintain, preventing moisture damage."

"If they get damaged, that's Xiao Qin's responsibility; he's your heir, so don't trouble me, find him."

Qin Huai: ?

"What else? Can't think of much more, I think you can pretty much feel at ease to go now."

Luo Jun remained silent.

Qu Jing quietly spoke, "Mr. Luo, you can rest assured, we'll definitely visit your grave regularly, and everyone will be there on your anniversary."

"There's one thing about reincarnation you should know; during infancy, you should keep a low profile, try not to act like a prodigy, or else school could be difficult, and if your parents are superstitious, they might make you drink talisman water."

The little bird genuinely spilled her heart.

Luo Jun: "… I'm not that stupid."

An Youyou also expressed, "Mr. Luo, I'm truly grateful you gave me that house! If I get rich while you're reincarnated in these few years, I will definitely commission a solid gold Bi Fang to dedicate to you!"

Luo Jun: …

Without giving others a chance to ramble further, Luo Jun turned his gaze to the outermost Qin Huai, asking, "What about you? Usually full of chatter, how come not a word during such a time?"

Qin Huai also wanted to crack a couple of jokes to lighten the mood, though it didn't seem to need his help brightening. Yet, as soon as Qin Huai slightly opened his mouth, tears started falling.

"Tsk." Luo Jun issued a disdainful noise.

"Nobody else cried, only you did; and you're supposedly the protagonist of a system novel—disgraceful."

"How many times must I explain to you? I'm just reincarnating, not truly dying, and we'll meet again in a few years, you still owe me money."

"Why stand so far away? Come closer, I have something to tell you."