Skywater Academy Arrives

Looking at his wet, big eyes and messy hair, Dugu Yan's anger inexplicably subsided by more than half, but she still couldn't let him off too quickly out of politeness.

She snorted, pulled Jiang Lan into her arms, and looked at the three girls on the bed. "Alright, get up. If you want to stay here, behave yourselves and don't sneak into his room in the middle of the night. He's the boss, after all; what will people think if word gets out?"

"Okay," Xiao Wu stuck out her tongue and jumped out of bed first.

Ning Rongrong responded with a grin, then got off the bed with Doro in her arms.

Doro was still half asleep, held in her arms, his two little short legs dangling limply.

Zhu Zhuqing was the last to get out of bed. She straightened her clothes, nodded slightly to Dugu Yan, and that was her way of agreeing.

Dugu Yan then put Jiang Lan down and ruffled his messy hair. "Wait, I'll go cook you some fish porridge."

Jiang Lan felt as if she had been granted a pardon. She ran out of the room in a flash and only dared to breathe heavily when she reached the yard.

He crouched under the old locust tree, holding Doro in his arms, and sighed to the heavens, "I want to go back to Sea God Island."

"You can't go back," Doro said with his eyes closed.

"...I know, I was just saying." Jiang Lan buried her face in Doro's soft belly and muttered in a low voice, "If I had known it would be like this, I should have stayed on Sea God Island."

Doro felt itchy from Jiang Lan's hair brushing against him, kicked his little legs, rolled over, and went back to sleep.

A few months is neither a long nor a short time.

Honey Snow Ice City's business is getting better and better, and the branches that Ning Fengzhi funded have been gradually opened in several major cities around Heaven Dou City.

Jiang Lan's robots were also produced in batches. Although their appearance was still crooked, their work efficiency was several times higher than that of ordinary shop assistants, and they became the mainstay of each branch.

That afternoon, Jiang Lan was squatting in the backyard of Honey Snow Ice City, tightening screws on a new robot.

He was wearing a penguin onesie, his hat drooping behind his head, and his cheeks were bulging out from straining.

Doro lay on the stone table next to him, with a row of peeled Ju Zi in front of him, carefully arranging them in order of size and color.

Suddenly, a commotion erupted in the lobby, followed by the electronic voice of Guga One: "Welcome to Honey Snow Ice City! Today's special is Strawberry Mochi Boba!"

"Jiang Lan! Is Jiang Lan here?" A familiar, clear voice drifted from the front hall into the backyard.

Jiang Lan looked up, still holding the screwdriver, when she saw the backyard door being pushed open.

Shui Yue'er stood at the door, her light blue curly hair shimmering slightly in the sunlight, her eyes curving into crescents, her face brimming with undisguised excitement.

Behind her were Shui Bing'er, Xue Wu, and several other female team members from the Skywater Academy.

"Little Guga--!" Shui Yue'er rushed forward, scooped Jiang Lan up from the ground, and spun her around several times.

Jiang Lan only managed to utter half a "Little Guga" before she was pulled into her arms.

The hood of his Penguin Suit flew off, the drawstring tightening around his neck, burying his face in a soft, warm place, making it hard for him to breathe.

"I missed you so much! You've gotten even fatter! No, you've gotten even softer!" Shui Yue'er rubbed and pinched his face, and finally, not satisfied, she gave him a loud kiss on the cheek.

"Yue'er, don't be so enthusiastic right away, he's about to suffocate." Xue Wu stood aside, saying this, but she had no intention of helping him at all.

Instead, he raised an eyebrow with a leisurely air, seemingly enjoying watching Jiang Lan being ravaged.

Shui Yue'er loosened her grip slightly, and Jiang Lan took the opportunity to struggle free from her embrace. His face flushed, he retreated several steps until he reached the old locust tree, then patted his chest, panting, "Why did you all come! You didn't even tell me beforehand!"

"We're going to participate in the Continental Advanced Soul Master Academy Elite Tournament in Heaven Dou City, have you forgotten?" Shui Bing'er stepped forward, her voice clear and melodious, a faint smile on her face. "We'll be arriving a few days before the competition. I was planning to find an inn to settle in before coming to see you, but Yue'er kept insisting on having milk tea first, and I couldn't stop her at all."

"Let's see which is more important, you or milk tea? Of course, they're both important!" Shui Yue'er said matter-of-factly, her gaze already drifting towards the front hall.

"Jiang Lan, I heard your Milk Tea Shop has become quite big, and you've even partnered with the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect?" Xue Wu looked around the backyard, her eyes lighting up when she saw the robots. "These are the robots you were talking about? They really move on their own? Can they pour me a glass of water?"

Before Jiang Lan could answer, Guga Three rolled over on its own, scooped a ladle of water from the water vat with the ladle strapped to its arm, and steadily handed it to Xue Wu.

Xue Wu took the water, looked down at the small tin can that was only knee-high, and couldn't help but reach out and poke its head. "So cute, can I have one?"

"No way! These are employees, not toys!" Jiang Lan said, hands on her hips, adopting the demeanor of a capitalist.

"Then make one just for me." Xue Wu didn't consult him at all.

"Me too," Shui Yue'er leaned closer.

"Me too." Another girl from the Skywater Academy raised her hand.

Jiang Lan's head suddenly felt like it was going to explode.

He felt that every time he met these girls, it was like falling into a gentle trap from which he could not escape.

The last time I was in the carriage, they took turns pinching my face for two months. The numb, itchy, and inescapable feeling still makes my scalp tingle when I think about it.

"Little Guga, have you missed us?" Shui Yue'er came closer again, bent down, and brought her face close to his. Her blue eyes were bright and sparkling, like they held a whole clear sky.

"I... I thought about it a little." Jiang Lan turned her head away, her ears turning slightly red.

"How much is one point?" Shui Yue'er persisted, reaching out to poke his face again.

"It's just a little bit more than Ju Zi!" Jiang Lan blurted out in her haste.

"And what about me? Where am I ranked?" Shui Yue'er pressed.

"First place! First place is enough!" Jiang Lan had already given up on herself.

"That's more like it." Shui Yue'er straightened up with satisfaction and gave her sisters behind her a victory sign.

Several girls swarmed around Jiang Lan, some rubbing his head, some poking his cheeks, some examining the oil stains on his Penguin Suit, and one even squatted down to pinch his orange webbed feet.

Jiang Lan was like a carrot surrounded by sheep, completely at their mercy. Even Doro was held in Shui Bing'er's arms, being slowly fed Ju Zi.

"I knew it would be like this." Doro leaned into Shui Bing'er's arm, his large purple eyes half-closed, his tone carrying a calmness that seemed to have seen through the world. "You'll get used to it, you'll get used to it."

Amidst his busy schedule, Jiang Lan gave it a thumbs up, then someone pinched his face, making him yell in pain.