For a moment, Ruru's House descended into brief chaos.
The downside of having too many people became apparent at that moment.
With no fewer than twenty-three participants, even the slightest disturbance could cause an uproar among the whole group, never mind all the grudges and entanglements between them.
Without a shared stance or unified command, even with Gu Xingjian, Li Yi, and Ji Li present, the situation remained somewhat beyond their control.
And the hardest person to control was Chang Nian.
After Tong Guan's death, Chang Nian had visibly lost the will to survive. Her self-destructive tendencies were severe.
Especially given her longstanding disregard for other people's lives, she had become the greatest wild card in everyone's eyes.
Otherwise, with Gu Xingjian's reputation, why would anyone voluntarily activate a sin object to try to stop Chang Nian's sudden ambush on him?
"Sister Nian, our main goal today is still to complete the manager mission. Could you put certain things aside for now?"
Li Guanqi stepped forward to persuade her. Perhaps he was the only person among them who could still get through to her.
Chang Nian remained silent. Her eyes were bloodshot and her expression numb, and she paid no attention to Li Guanqi's appeal.
Still, she quieted down, as though wrestling with something or thinking it over.
Gu Xingjian said nothing more either. He had expected this all along and had never engaged with her from beginning to end, treating her with something like indifference.
He tossed the bag of frozen dumplings onto the Eight Immortals Table, covering the note.
The temperature kept rising in the sealed room. Water seeping from the plastic bag quickly soaked Ruru's Mother's message until the writing blurred.
Gu Xingjian acted first, opening the bag and taking out his share of the dumplings. Without