The snow is getting smaller and smaller.
The sky is getting darker and darker.
On the rooftop of a building next to the low house, Lin Qiye sat there quietly with two black boxes beside him, like a stone sculpture, standing still for a long time.
The city, like the sea level, stretches to the end of the field of vision, getting farther and farther away and darker and darker. At the junction of the ground and the sky, a ray of setting sun shines obliquely, giving the uneven shadows of the buildings a golden edge.
The light of dusk shone on Lin Qiye, stretching his back very long...
Those deep eyes contained a faint sunshine as they gazed at the busy family in the distance. There was a smile on the corner of his mouth. The breeze blew through the boy's black hair, and the air seemed to be filled with the fragrance of food.
After an unknown amount of time, a man carrying a child on his back slowly walked up to him, looked at the family from afar, and after a long while, he slowly spoke:
"Do you regret it?"
Under the setting sun, Lin Qiye shook his head slightly, "No regrets."
"You can't go back in a short time. The more often you come back, the more people will notice this place." Leng Xuan sat down next to him and said.
"I know."
"Actually, even if you didn't come today, nothing would have happened to them."
Lin Qiye turned his head and looked at Leng Xuan in confusion.
"Do you think that the captain's words about protecting your family are just talk?" Leng Xuan's mouth curled up slightly, he stretched out his hand and pointed at the low house in the distance.
"That day, when the captain and his deputy came to your house to deliver materials, they posted a forbidden object called [Wei Yang] on your door. This forbidden object is like a transparent piece of paper that can open a small forbidden area.
Once someone with bad intentions tries to break through the protection range of [Weiyang], it will be activated to teleport all the marked creatures in the house to another marked point, which is the underground of the Peace Office, to protect their safety.
Lin Qiye was stunned. He had never heard Chen Muye mention the existence of [Weiyang], and he didn't know when his aunt and Yang Jin were already under the protection of the forbidden object.
"[Weiyang]..." Lin Qiye muttered to himself.
"Like the [Unbounded Skyspace], it is one of the few man-made forbidden ruins of the Night's Watch. However, the price of this thing is not cheap. Even within the Night's Watch, not many people can use it." At this point, Leng Xuan seemed to remember something, and his voice gradually softened.
"However, in our 136th team, almost everyone's family has this thing to protect them."
Lin Qiye asked blankly: "Why?"
Leng Xuan looked at him meaningfully, "Why do you think... the captain is so poor?"
Lin Qiye's body trembled slightly, and he quickly thought of something, staring blankly into the distance.
Leng Xuan patted his shoulder, put the gun case on his back, turned around and walked downstairs. His voice was carried to Lin Qiye's ears by the breeze.
"Let's go. You won't be able to have the New Year's Eve dinner at this family, but you are always welcome at the other family."
Lin Qiye took a deep look in the direction of home. There, his aunt was carrying plates of fresh hot dishes and placing them on a small wooden table. Yang Jin was sitting beside her with a smile on his face.
After a moment, he smiled helplessly, stood up and walked towards the corridor.
Just then, a small, black, mangy dog appeared in front of him with a grunt, ran over quickly, and rubbed Lin Qiye's ankle with its head.
"Little black scab?" Lin Qiye bent down in surprise and gently rubbed its head with his hand.
The little black cat licked Lin Qiye's hand and burped.
"What did you eat? You're burping..." Lin Qiye said with a smile.
He picked up Little Black Lai and carried him to the bottom of the low building, put him on the stairs, and said softly:
"I'm leaving now, so hurry home. You're in for a treat tonight..."
He rubbed Little Black's belly, stood up, picked up the two black boxes, finally looked up at the closed door, turned around and walked towards the dim sky.
He stepped on the white snow, leaving a straight trail of footprints that stretched into the distance...
…
Ding Dong!
welcome!
As soon as Lin Qiye opened the door of the office, a rich aroma of food hit him in the face. The full contact between the oil and the ingredients made a slight sizzling sound, and as the pot shook, a rhythmic crackling sound was made.
There is no more soothing sound in the world than this.
Hongying sat at the dining table, staring at the stewed goose on the table, swallowing hard, and her restless hands quietly touched the goose legs...
Snapped!
Wu Xiangnan quickly grabbed Hongying's hand with his chopsticks and said, "Let's eat after everyone is here."
"I... I'll just take a bite, just one bite!" Hongying carefully stretched out a finger.
"no."
Hongying lowered her head in grievance and placed the chopsticks in her hand on the table. She lay limply on the table like a salted fish whose dreams had been drained away.
Suddenly, out of the corner of her eye she saw Lin Qiye walking into the room, and her eyes lit up again.
"Nana, are you okay?"
"I'm fine." Lin Qiye shook his head. "Has the archer been caught?"
Hongying pursed her lips and shook her head with a bitter face, "No, that guy ran too fast, and I didn't dare to chase him with the Forbidden Ruins in the city in broad daylight, so he got away anyway..."
Lin Qiye nodded thoughtfully, "It's okay, he probably has no ill intentions, it's just his identity..."
Lin Qiye has always been concerned about the identity of that mysterious man. Not many people know the location of his home, and they also know that it is ambushed by the Mad Scorpion Squad. Since he is not a Night Watchman, who else has such great power
"Captain, am I still cooking?" Wen Qimo walked up from the basement, touched his shriveled stomach, and asked.
"I've been busy for almost two hours, and this is with Xiaonan helping me. I don't know how many dishes he plans to cook. I'm starving~"
Hongying said with a sad face.
After a few minutes, the kitchen finally quieted down. Chen Muye came out holding a large pot of fish soup, followed by Si Xiaonan who was holding an armful of bowls and chopsticks.
Finally, everyone was seated.
A long table, eight seats, and sixteen delicious dishes.
Chen Muye, Wu Xiangnan, Hongying, Wen Qimo, Lin Qiye, Si Xiaonan, Leng Xuan... There was also an empty chair. Originally, a man named Zhao Kongcheng should have been sitting there.
Chen Muye slowly raised the glass in his hand. The orange beer emitted a faint halo under the light. His eyes swept over everyone.
"During this year, many things happened, old people passed away, new people joined...
But once again, we successfully defended the city for a whole year.
As the captain of Team 136 and the night watchman, I want to thank everyone here on behalf of the countless lives in Cangnan City. "
Chen Muye stood up straight, bowed deeply to everyone present, then raised his head, his eyes full of seriousness:
"I hope that next year, we will still be sitting here... without missing a single one.
Everyone,
Happy New Year."
Everyone stood up from their seats, raised the wine glasses in their hands high, and clinked them together, making a crisp sound. The wine rolled in different glasses like golden waves of wheat, connecting to each other.
"Happy New Year!!"
…
whoosh!
Snapped!!
The sound of firecrackers came from afar, and brilliant fireworks rose from every corner of the city, blooming in the black night sky. The colorful fireworks swayed in the wind and gradually dissipated without a trace.
"Brother, it looks like this year, only the three of us can celebrate the New Year together."
Baili Pangpang handed the can of beer in his hand to Shen Qingzhu, who stared at the gorgeous sky in a daze before coming to his senses.
"Don't drink while working." Shen Qingzhu shook his head.
"Drink a little. Even Cao Yuan, the half-monk, has drunk. You are just a worker. Why are you still being so pretentious?" Baili Pangpang grinned and pointed at the ceiling above his head. "Besides, my bodyguards are here. Even if you pass out from drinking, no one in Cangnan City can hurt me."
"But… "
"This is the boss's order!"
"… Fine."
Shen Qingzhu pulled the ring of the can, making a bubbling sound. Cao Yuan also walked over with a beer in his hand...
In a cramped and damp love hotel, three young men sat by the window, looking at the fireworks in the sky and clinking their beers together.
"Happy New Year!"
…
In a dark underground cave.
An Qingyu, wearing a black cloak, sat quietly on the stone platform. The chessboard in front of him had long disappeared, replaced by a can of Sprite that was already half drunk.
The hazy moonlight poured down from the mesh above, illuminating half of the underground space. The sound of fireworks came from afar, echoing in the empty space.
An Qingyu looked at the moonlight above his head, remained silent for a long time, and slowly raised the Sprite in his hand.
"Happy New Year."
He muttered to himself.