Honkai Impact: Grandma Pine Sparrow is still chasing me!

Chapter 290 I'm not the same as that idiot Na!

One day ago, at St. Freya's Medical Clinic.

Faced with his eldest disciple, who had suddenly become filial and come to visit him today for some unknown reason, Bai Ji hesitated to speak—for no other reason than that he had just agreed to Raiden Mei and Sora's engagement half an hour ago.

How to put it? There's this constant feeling that if I open my mouth, some heartwarming scene of paternal love, filial piety, and fraternal harmony will unfold. Even if Songque's filial piety and conscience simultaneously intervene and spares my life, there's a high probability that I'll be followed by Safrai pointing a submachine gun at my head, Serim burning me to a pulp with rage, and little Sera burying me in an abyss of guilt…

It's terrifying to think about. Maybe I should leave notes for Songque and Qiong respectively, and then ask for a week off?

Reason... How about going on a trip to China?

"Master, didn't you send him here to lay low for a while? Where is he?"

"Yeah, he didn't come."

So you came to see Qiong? Just because he said yesterday, "Why don't you come to the infirmary to lay low for a while?"

Song Que observed her surroundings but failed to notice Bai Ji's uneasy expression. Bai Ji, who had just been feeling anxious, naturally wouldn't be either.

"Didn't come? That's good... Hehe, do you still remember that saying, old man?"

Which sentence?

"That sentence!"

Instead of answering directly, the inexplicably excited pine sparrow took out a book from beside it and pointed to a passage on it.

"No matter how long the night, the day will eventually come!"

Oh, that's a phrase I vaguely remember.

That was a sentence that Qiong had mentioned when he first formally met Qiong and Songque. He thought it was good, but that was all—wait, is something wrong? Is his eldest disciple's memory of Qiong a little too deep?

Thinking of this, Bai Ji felt uneasy again: secrets can't be kept forever, how should he face Bai Ji in the future? Should he just tell her that he has betrothed his junior brother to Mei?

"Master?"

"Ahem, of course I remember... I think those words are very good. What's wrong? Why are you suddenly bringing this up?"

Song Que quickly pressed the book against Bai Ji's face, and only then did Bai Ji see the title: Macbeth.

"It's a long story, but anyway, it was around midnight last night when we went out and talked to Sera and the others about some things."

Even someone with a knee injury could guess that the contents are probably not good.

"Anyway, as we were chatting, we mentioned rice cakes to Little Sera—and to be honest, we actually miss her a bit."

When the topic of rice cakes came up, Song Que's tone carried a hint of nostalgia.

Nian Gao, what a wonderful person she was! (Even though she wasn't human.) She even gave her life for Mars. In the end, all she left for Qiong was, "You must come home..." In terms of seniority, even Song Que would have to call her "Sister Nian Gao" before her statue, then respectfully offer incense and offerings—the offerings would definitely be rice cakes mixed with cheese... After offering the offerings, he would silently pray that her spirit, this divine beast of Earth, would bless Qiong and himself with good fortune for the coming year, and in return, he would definitely take good care of that headstrong Qiong with his master...

Speaking of which, when she first arrived on Earth, she once thought that all animals on Earth could speak human language, at least snakes could? And that they could transform into humans after a certain lifespan, especially the "White Snake" Bai Suzhen from Chinese legends, wasn't that just another rice cake? She even considered having Donigor learn it, and even told Donigor that if he cultivated for a while, he might also become a handsome human man...

Well, it even caused a little bit of a joke.

"Back then, everyone knew that Nian Gao liked Qiong... But Master, you probably don't know that Qiong didn't like Nian Gao at first, and the reason she gave was this Shakespeare!"

Bai Ji was stunned. What was going on here?

"I think it was something like Celsius? I forgot. Anyway, if we hadn't brought it up, and if Little Sera hadn't pointed it out after reading this guy's work, we wouldn't have known that this guy actually used Earth's famous sayings to fool you, making it seem like he knew a lot about philosophy and was very cultured! Every time we read, he would think of leaving us behind to run away and play. He's such a jerk! We must find a chance to get revenge later. He won't be allowed to leave until we read ten books together!"

Song Que glared at the book through gritted teeth, while Bai Ji didn't know whether to laugh or cry...

"Master, you'll definitely help us, right!"

Bletilla: ...

"Master?"

Bai Ji opened his mouth, but didn't know what to say.

"Songque..."

"What's wrong, Master?"

"Qiong, Qiong he..."

"What's wrong with him? Master, please say something!"

After hesitating for a moment, Bai Ji decided to speak up: "What's done is done, whether it's a blessing or a curse, there's no escaping it. Taking a step back would be to confess, which would be a way for them to atone for their sins; taking a step forward would be to gain their trust, and if something really happened, they could help their little apprentice... Once the gossip spreads all over the academy, if a few people block my way out, I'll be bleeding money."

"He and Mei are getting engaged."

---------------

The house provided by Baiji was spacious and comfortable, and everyone was very satisfied with it.

After silently expressing her gratitude for the young master of the Bai family who had everything, Song Que couldn't wait to bring over three chairs and then squeezed herself into one of them—in her opinion, this should be the most comfortable corner in the entire living room.

However, neither Sora nor Kiana sat down. Matsujaku saw that "Mochi," who had transformed into a beautiful woman, had been relentlessly attacking Sora since the very beginning, and didn't even intend to avoid her!

But Qiong was actually dodging and weaving; perhaps he couldn't accept a human-snake relationship?

Not far away, a man tossed his long hair in a cool pose and then winked at a gray raccoon that was still in shock—a sight she'd never seen before! Song Que swore she would never forget this scene!

"Sora, I love you~"

"Could you please stop using your mother's image? Have you considered how this older man feels...? I have no interest in your mother!"

Qiong's voice grew louder and louder, loud enough for even the largest sparrows to hear. Qiong was a man of principle; he believed one should not covet a friend's wife, and anyone who dared to be disrespectful would be met with a beating from Qiong!

Even appearance is unacceptable!

"Yes, yes, that's just to fool them. I'm sincere with you, so of course I'll communicate with you the real me!"

After selectively filtering, Kiana's purple eyes were almost slicked back; that tender, affectionate gaze... well, let's just say...

I feel so uncomfortable!

"You know what? I'm not the same person I used to be. Not only can I protect everyone with my strength, but my knowledge has also improved by leaps and bounds! I'm a top student taught by two PhDs!"

Feeling amused, the sparrow left its chair and slowly approached Sora and Kiana, trying to hear their conversation.

"You know what? Shakespeare once said that when a woman's body temperature exceeds 37 degrees Celsius, it means she's in love! And that's exactly what I'm feeling right now! I miss you so much, and since you'll agree to marry me anyway, could we... tonight..."

"Absolutely not! Kiana, how old am I?!"

And with such a glaring flaw, why don't you say that Lu Xun said it?

"It doesn't matter anyway! Besides, my body won't affect your condition, and it can even help me accumulate Honkai energy. Let's go home quickly~"

Qiong's face flushed red, and she ruthlessly pushed Kiana away—what goes around comes around. She absolutely couldn't break her vow for such a reason. What if he got addicted? Wouldn't he use this excuse to harm Bronya and Seele when they got back?

You academically challenged, paramecium-like student, don't drag me down!

"You idiot Na, at least be a little more plausible when you're lying! 37 degrees is Celsius! Celsius only came up with that in 1742, and Shakespeare died in 1616. How could he possibly say that?"

"Huh? Maybe I remembered wrong, but my feelings for you—"

Taking advantage of Kiana's momentary explanation, Qiong retreated three steps and quickly grabbed the spectator, Matsuki, to use as a shield between the two. Leaving Kiana, the dim-witted girl whose academic abilities could drive Einstein and Tesla mad, standing there bewildered.

In Qiong's opinion, perhaps (just perhaps) he will make more choices in the future, but he can't make more choices just because a Kiana he's never met comes back and says he will make more choices—for now, Mei is still a single-choice question!

"We were just passing by... Qiong, why don't you let us go?"

If we don't leave soon, the kind and gentle Rice Cake Master might turn into a python and eat the little sparrow! The sparrow tried to struggle, but the hand on the sky's shoulder remained motionless, as if it were cast iron.

dong dong dong.

"Great opportunity! Oh no, I mean, let's go open the door!"

With a valid reason, Qiong had to let go, and Song Que immediately went to open the door. Standing outside was an ordinary-looking man in a suit.

The man held a document between his fingers and wore a fawning smile.

"You must be Master Song Que? I've heard so much about you! May I ask if Master Bai Zhu is here?"

"exist!"

The man entered the house, his gaze falling on Qiong.

"Master Baishu, I am here on my young master's orders to deliver some information to you."

"Information? Information is good! What kind of information?"

Just when he was worried about not being able to avoid Kiana, he immediately forced himself to be interested in Bai Ji's information—no, he was a good student who loved to study and read!

He's not like that idiot Na!

Seeing how friendly Qiong was, the man's smile widened.

"My young master said that this information contains the combat records of the participants in this year's Ten Arts War, but he also felt that its usefulness was limited. By the way, my young master is also participating, so please remember to go easy on him!"

"Of course, of course. Besides, this information is very important, I need to study it carefully! Please thank your young master for me!"

Qiong took the information and pretended to be very interested in it, but everyone present except the man knew perfectly well that Qiong was not interested in a weakling who wanted her to kneel down and beg him not to die.

Kiana was extremely dissatisfied, and her cheeks puffed out, clearly telling Sora that she was unhappy and needed to be coaxed!

However, Qiong, who was focused on the players' information, didn't look at Kiana at all, which made Kiana even more unhappy.

"Not at all, you're too kind! By the way, my young master said you should be careful of Mr. Lithost, the organizer. Although he's a friend of my young master, he's actually quite unfathomable..."

Qiong's eyes were "quantum reading" through the thick stack of documents—not seeking any practical use, just enough to buy time and avoid Kiana. He hadn't figured out what to do yet, and now that things were out in the open, it was even more troublesome than dealing with a snake...

Hika, Da Zhuang, Josh—these names all sound like noobs, and Qiong doesn't care at all—oh, and there's also Shafulai and Scudder. Shafulai actually won every game just like him? Scudder, well, he has a lot of room for improvement.

Qiong flipped through several pages to kill time until he saw that name and photo.

"Luo...Luo Chenxue?"

No way, you, the second-in-command of Ouxia City, are actually a billion-year-old?