Little Guga, How Have You Not Changed at All?

Lan Fozi swallowed the Pill and reluctantly bid farewell to Jiang Lan.

"Master, where are we going now?" Zhu Zhuyun asked Jiang Lan curiously.

She's had a blast these past few years with Jiang Lan.

In just a few years, her level has advanced by leaps and bounds; she never dreamed it would be so fast.

However, Zhu Zhuyun knew in her heart that without the resources provided by Jiang Lan and Sea God Island, as well as the trials of Sea God, she could not have leveled up so quickly.

Jiang Lan thought for a moment and said, "Let's go to Heaven Dou City first to see Sister Zhuqing and the others!"

Zhu Zhuyun nodded. "Okay."

The two people and one soul rented a high-class carriage and headed to Heaven Dou City.

In the blink of an eye, more than a month has passed.

As the outline of Heaven Dou City appeared at the end of the official road, Jiang Lan leaned out of the carriage window. The hood of his Penguin Suit was blown back by the wind, revealing his chubby face.

"We're here! We're here!" Jiang Lan shouted into the car, patting the window frame. "Sister Zhu Yun, look! Heaven Dou City is still the same as always!"

Zhu Zhuyun sat in the carriage with a roll of blueprints for a Soul Tool spread out on her lap. Jiang Lan had sketched it on the way.

She looked up and glanced out the window, feeling a sense of anticipation for meeting her younger sister.

"Hmm." Zhu Zhuyun rolled up the blueprints and tucked them into her sleeve. "I hope your Milk Tea Shop is still around."

"Definitely! The Guga Robot is managing it, profits are sure to keep rising." Jiang Lan retreated into the carriage, patting the pocket of her Penguin Suit. "I'm still waiting to see my little treasure chest."

Doro lay on the cushion, rolled over, and glanced at him with her big purple eyes half-open and half-closed.

The gist of it is: When have you ever had a secret stash of money? You always spend it all on food.

The carriage entered the city gate and proceeded along the main street towards Vermilion Bird Street.

Jiang Lan peered out the car window, noticing that while many shops on the street had changed their signs, the overall layout remained largely the same.

As he passed a pancake stall, he sniffed, then promptly pulled his head back, pretending he hadn't smelled anything.

"Master, aren't you going down to buy some?" Zhu Zhuyun asked.

"Let's go back to the shop first," Jiang Lan said seriously. "The pancake stall isn't going anywhere, but if something happens to the Milk Tea Shop, I'll lose a lot of money."

The carriage stopped in the middle of Vermilion Bird Street. Jiang Lan was the first to jump out of the carriage and stand in front of Honey Snow Ice City, looking up at the signboard.

The signboard is still that crooked, big red board, and the lettering is exactly the same as it was a few years ago, even the places where the paint has chipped off haven't changed.

A long queue stretched out at the entrance, while several Guga Robot busied themselves behind the counter. One was responsible for taking orders, another for preparing the food, another for sealing the packaging, and the last for packing—they worked together seamlessly.

At the far end of the counter, there was a miniature Penguin Suit robot squatting, with a small sign hanging on its chest that read "Assistant Manager".

When the little robot saw Jiang Lan approaching, its eyes flashed twice, it jumped down from the counter, wobbled over to him, and raised its iron hand in a salute.

"Boss, welcome back." The little robot's electronic voice was sweet and childlike. "This month's sales have increased by 17% compared to last month, and customer traffic is higher than the same period last year—"

"Stop." Jiang Lan reached out and pressed its head down. "Don't report it yet, I'll go in and take a look."

He pushed open the side door and walked into the backyard. The old locust tree in the yard was still there, and the colorful lanterns hanging among the branches had been replaced with a new batch, but the style remained the same.

"Hmm, Little Guga?!"

At this moment, Ning Rongrong came out of the bedroom and looked surprised when she saw Jiang Lan.

Ning Rongrong rubbed her eyes, then rubbed them again, and after confirming that she wasn't seeing things, she rushed over like a gust of wind.

"Little Guga!"

Before Jiang Lan could react, Ning Rongrong pulled her into her arms.

His face pressed directly against something soft, the hood of his Penguin Suit flipped over and fell onto the back of his head, and his two short legs dangled in mid-air and flapped twice.

"You little ingrate! It's been years! Do you know how many years!" Ning Rongrong picked him up and tossed him into the air, catching him again and again, kissing him on the cheek each time. "Have you grown taller? Let me see! Wait, why are you still so small? Is your face still so round? Have you gotten fatter?"

Jiang Lan was so dizzy from being tossed around by Ning Rongrong that the hood of her Penguin Suit was completely askew, revealing her face, which was flushed red from being kissed so much. Her little hands flailed in the air as she cried out, "Sister Rongrong, put me down! I just got off the carriage! I haven't eaten yet!"

"What are you eating for? Let me look at you first!" Ning Rongrong lifted him up to her eyes and examined him carefully.

The expression on his face gradually changed from surprise to confusion, and then from confusion to a kind of focused concentration akin to that of someone studying rare species.

She reached out and pinched Jiang Lan's cheek, then tugged at his arm, then patted his head, and finally pried open his mouth to check his teeth.

"That's not right." Ning Rongrong put Jiang Lan back on the ground, squatted down to look him in the eye, and frowned. "How many years have you been gone? Three or four years, right? How come you haven't changed at all? You haven't grown taller, your face hasn't changed, not even a single hair has grown. What did you eat to grow up like this?"

Jiang Lan rubbed her cheek, which had been pinched red, and said matter-of-factly, "I'm eating."

"Does eating prevent you from growing taller?"

"My Mom Bo Saixi, said the same thing."

Ning Rongrong stared at him suspiciously for a while, then suddenly reached out and gestured to the top of his head, then to the position of her own knees, her expression growing increasingly serious.

"Little Guga, do you know that you're still only a little above my knee? You're exactly the same height as you were a few years ago."

"So what?" Jiang Lan tilted her head. "Short legs, but fast running."

"It's not a matter of short legs." Ning Rongrong stood up, put her hands on her hips, and spun around him twice. "A normal person should grow taller after a few years, right? Even if you grow slowly, you shouldn't remain completely unchanged. Are you under some kind of strange curse? Or did you take some kind of drug that prevents you from growing?"

Jiang Lan thought for a moment, then shook her head. "No. I ate and slept well every day on Sea God Island, and Mom Bo Saixi even grilled fish for me every day. Maybe I just grow slowly."

Doro squatted down beside them, holding an Ju Zi in his little hands. His big purple eyes looked at Jiang Lan and then at Ning Rongrong, and he calmly called out.

The gist of it is: That's just how he is, don't ask anymore.

Ning Rongrong squatted down, cupped Jiang Lan's face in her hands, and looked at him from left to right. The more she looked, the more she felt something was wrong.

"Your skin is smoother than before." She pinched his cheek; it felt softer than it had a few years ago. "The flesh is firmer too. But your face is still the same face, still round, even the size of your cheeks hasn't changed."

"My Mom Bo Saixi, said I'm from a special race," Jiang Lan added. "That might be related."

"What special race?"

"I don't know, Mom didn't explain clearly."

Ning Rongrong stared at him for a long while, then suddenly sighed, reached out and pulled him into her arms, resting her chin on his head.