Door-to-Door Service

After leaving Dawn's house, Chen Miemie went to the East District. Xi had sent a message saying she needed to see him.

Chen Miemie didn't expect that Xi was actually inviting him to her home for dinner.

During the society's group hunt last week, Chen Miemie and Xi had been standing at a distance. Right before Xi was about to eat the fatal fruit of the [Heart Orchardist], Chen Miemie had stopped her.

This was practically a life-saving favor.

Although as partners they would continuously help each other in the future and didn't need to be overly formal or keep strict score, Xi still wanted to show her gratitude for this crucial first assist.

Xi's home was in the Green Maple Building in the East District of Sixiang City.

Downstairs at the Green Maple Building.

"Xi, isn't this a bit sudden, meeting your parents already? I came empty-handed and didn't prepare anything. How about next time, I'll go get a perm first."

Upon hearing that Xi's parents were home, Chen Miemie shook his head vigorously, wanting to retreat back into his sedan.

Xi grabbed him.

"Why are you running? My family has already seen you."

"Huh? Where?"

"Let's go, let's go."

Pushed by Xi, Chen Miemie entered the building.

Xi's home was on the second floor. Having a place on this floor meant she came from serious money—a proper little rich lady.

The moment Xi opened the door, Chen Miemie knew his assumption was spot on from just one glance.

If normal home renovations were categorized into basic, refined, and luxury.

Then Xi's home belonged in the ultra-luxury category.

It wasn't the ostentatious kind of expensive, but an elegant, profoundly sophisticated kind of luxury.

Upon entering, a sweep of the eyes revealed that the living room alone was larger than Chen Miemie's entire house.

After changing his shoes and sitting on the sofa, Chen Miemie looked left and right, constantly feeling like a couple might suddenly rush out of a room to interrogate him about his background.

But no one came.

On the coffee table in front of the sofa sat a fruit platter.

It was filled with fruits completely unfamiliar to Chen Miemie. The only one he somewhat recognized was the hook fruit, which cost 10 hours a pound.

"Chen Miemie, have a seat for a moment. I just need to stir-fry one more dish."

Chen Miemie observed the living room.

Since a guest was coming, the living room had obviously been tidied up, making it look not too messy.

Yes, that was the right way to put it—just "not too messy." In truth, it was still a little bit cluttered.

It was hard to imagine a single room giving off both an elegant and a cluttered vibe at the same time.

The clutter was because, just like Xi's personal lounge at the [Court of the Silver Moon], there were paintbrushes and easels everywhere.

The walls were hung with many abstract art paintings of various colors and sizes.

Chen Miemie felt that if he stared at those twisted lines for too long, they would definitely have a hypnotic effect.

Before he could be lulled to sleep, Xi's voice arrived just in time, calling him to the dining table to eat.

Xi's dining table was huge, and it was already filled with a large spread of dishes that looked and smelled fantastic.

"Try it, I rarely cook," Xi said as she took off her apron.

"You made all this? It looks delicious."

"Yeah. I was quite the glutton when I was little. I would secretly eat the food halfway through painting it. Later, my family only gave me raw ingredients to paint, so I slowly learned how to cook them."

Chen Miemie glanced at Xi's astonishingly slim waist, completely unable to tell she was a foodie.

"Is it just the two of us eating? Aren't you going to call your family to join?"

"Oh, right. I'll call my mom and dad over to see you."

Chen Miemie wished he could slap himself for being so talkative.

Xi walked into an inner room and quickly returned.

She placed two picture frames on two chairs.

Inside the frames were a portrait of a man's face and a portrait of a woman's face. The woman looked about seventy percent similar to Xi.

"Chen Miemie, these are my parents."

"Ah, I'm sorry, Xi, I didn't know your parents had already..."

Before Xi could speak.

The man in the painting actually moved. He gave Chen Miemie an "I'm very fierce" expression:

"Are you that kid Chen Miemie? My daughter's partner?"

Chen Miemie rubbed his eyes, then his ears, making sure he wasn't hallucinating.

The woman's portrait moved too: "Keep your voice down, you're scaring our guest. Chen Miemie, what a spirited young man. I heard you just graduated this year. When do you plan to settle down? How many people are in your family?"

Chen Miemie looked at the two paintings, then at Xi, a bit unable to process the situation.

Xi ignored the two paintings with their exaggerated expressions and placed a piece of meat into Chen Miemie's bowl.

"These are my mom and dad. My family is all tied to paintings. They run the [Faded Gallery] year-round, so they are actually still over there."

"Oh no! Xi actually served this kid food! My precious little girl has never even served me food. I'm going to kill you, kid!"

Chen Miemie finally sorted out a small part of the situation.

These were Xi's parents. They were both still alive, and they were both likely Mystics.

"Hello, Uncle, Sister. Xi and I haven't known each other long, but she takes care of me a lot in the society."

"You're a good kid with a good eye. Sister likes you. Eat up, and come visit us often when you have free time."

"Hmph, smooth talker. I can tell at a glance he's up to no good."

"What, am I not worthy of being called 'Sister', huh?!"

The woman actually reached her hand out of her picture frame, into the man's frame, and pinched his ear.

"Let... let go, it hurts."

Xi stood up again, picked up the two paintings, and put them away in the inner room.

"You've met them now. They're too noisy. Come, let's continue eating."

The food Xi cooked was truly delicious. Chen Miemie ate two large bowls of rice in a row.

However, after finishing the meal, Chen Miemie didn't sit in the living room for long before taking his leave.

Xi's home was filled with paintings, including quite a few portraits.

Ever since meeting Xi's parents, Chen Miemie kept feeling like the people in these paintings were secretly staring at him, making him feel rather uncomfortable sitting on the sofa.

At 6:30 PM, dusk had just passed.

Chen Miemie immediately left Xi's home.

Before he left, Xi gave him a painting.

A very tall and large painting.

On the painting was a door.

Chen Miemie loaded the painting into his sedan.

"Chen Miemie, the door in this painting can actually be pushed open. Walk through it, and you'll arrive at the [Faded Gallery]. However, it will turn into an ordinary painting after one use, so you can save it for an emergency."

So this was the true thank-you gift of the day.