"Oh, it's Big Mi and Second Mi!"
Hu Tao dashed up to the two stone lions.
Here was Liyue's General Affairs Department; Stelle recognized it from an earlier walk to Liuli Pavilion.
The department handled all manner of civic affairs—whether you wanted a market stall or permission to sail, you filed the paperwork here.
Last time, Stelle had even seen a cart-driver queuing to register his pull-cart.
The place looked perpetually busy.
"Stelle, come here—this is Big Mi, that's Second Mi," Hu Tao cheerfully introduced the stone lions.
"The General Affairs Department names its doorway lions?" Stelle stepped closer, gazing up at the majestic beasts.
She'd seen similar lions on the Xianzhou, though those had been larger.
"What do you mean? I came up with those names." Hu Tao shook her head.
"Huh?"
"We're good friends, you know. Aren't Big Meow and Little Meow cuter than your average tabby? Their fur's just a bit stiff."
"Er... cute?" Stelle studied the two stone lions again. Calling them majestic was fine, but cute felt like a stretch.
Hu Tao's sense of aesthetics was clearly one of a kind.
"Still, Big Meow and Little Meow have grown up and moved out, so they don't need me anymore." Hu Tao sighed wistfully.
Like a mother watching her children leave the nest.
Though at Hu Tao's age, motherhood was still a long way off.
"By the way, what's that board in front of the General Affairs Department for?" Stelle changed the subject.
She had noticed the notice board ages ago but had never taken a closer look.
"Oh, that? Mostly neighborhood news and shop ads. I've even put up Wangsheng Funeral Parlor flyers there." Hu Tao stepped beside Stelle and craned her neck at the board.
After searching for ages, she found no trace of her ad—only a few scraps of paper left behind.
"Tch, someone tore it down again." Hu Tao pouted in annoyance.
"Maybe it just got cleared away in the regular cleanup," Stelle offered.
"No way. I only put it up the day before yesterday."
"..."
Fine—Stelle had nothing more to say.
"Actually, as Liyue's most famous funeral parlor, Wangsheng shouldn't need ads at all, right?"
"Nope! The more clients the better. Now that I'm in charge, restoring Wangsheng's glory is my sworn duty!" Hu Tao declared earnestly.
Not that Wangsheng's glory needed much restoring.
"Alright, forget it. Let's go—let's check out that area." Hu Tao pointed into the distance.
From here the view looked lovely: an archway leading to twin pavilions and a lotus pond.
Stelle nodded, and the two strolled on together.
The arch opened onto a stone bridge; at its end the path split.
"Look right."
Stelle did and saw an imposing building whose style differed from every other house around.
Clearly no ordinary shop.
"That's Bubu Pharmacy. All of Liyue relies on it for medicine and treatment."
"Oh..." Stelle nodded—so this was Liyue's hospital.
No wonder it was so big.
"Let's—huh?!" Hu Tao cut herself off, suddenly switching moods.
"What's wrong?" Stelle followed her gaze.
Nothing there... wait, a blue cap.
As its wearer stepped into view, a tiny figure appeared before Stelle.
—
What a cute kid!
That was Stelle's first thought.
About Diona's size, yet completely different in vibe.
Expressionless, moving slowly, a strange paper talisman stuck to her head.
Right now the adorable child was hugging Stelle's thigh, hiding behind her.
"Qiqi, come on. I gave up on burying you ages ago." Hu Tao crouched, trying to talk, but Qiqi ignored her.
She kept shifting behind Stelle to dodge Hu Tao.
Hu Tao mirrored the movements, trying to face Qiqi directly.
Caught in the middle, Stelle froze; the two playing hide-and-seek around her legs felt downright bizarre.
Unable to cope, Stelle lifted Qiqi and stepped back, away from Hu Tao.
"What's going on here?" she asked, raising Qiqi to eye level.
Though she looked like a child, Qiqi didn't struggle; her beautiful eyes showed no emotion.
Instead, Qiqi reached out toward Stelle.
"Eh? Want me to hold you?" Stelle hesitated; Qiqi gave a small nod.
So Stelle adjusted her grip, cradling Qiqi in her arms.
She felt cool—her body temperature was low, far below a normal human's.
Stelle frowned slightly, then looked up at Hu Tao.
"Qiqi..." Hu Tao stepped closer; Qiqi shrank further into Stelle's embrace, clutching her collar.
"She's terrified of you. You didn't do anything to her, did you?" Stelle asked, surprised.
"Not really. I just tried to cremate her once—only got as far as digging the pit." Hu Tao sighed, spreading her hands.
"...Huh?!" Stelle's eyes widened in disbelief.
Cremate?!
"Hey, don't look at me like that—let me explain!" Hu Tao said hastily.
Back then she really had wanted to cremate Qiqi and give her peace, grabbing her whenever they met.
Baizhu kept stopping her; once Qiqi caught on, she developed a fierce will to live.
Moved by that will, Hu Tao investigated Qiqi's past in earnest.
After understanding the unexpected accident and the Immortal family's mystery, Hu Tao's attitude changed. She was willing to treat Qiqi as an exception, allowing him to continue living in this world.
She even started showing concern for Qiqi, but unfortunately, Qiqi's psychological trauma was too great, and he completely ignored her.
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