Why it never ends

Chapter 925 The Eternal Tree

"What did she say?" Rico asked Eucalyptus.

"She asked if she could exchange dishes with you." Eucalyptus looked at Eleven with some confusion, "But what you ordered is the same as what Rico ordered."

"And I've already taken a bite." Rico pointed to his plate, "Is that okay?"

Eleven understood the words directly from the gesture. She shook her head repeatedly: "It's okay, it's okay. I've taken a bite of mine, too. We're even!"

Rico didn't understand why, but he still exchanged plates with Eleven.

On the side, Hesta was cutting the pie on his plate as if nothing had happened, silently watching Eleven's expression.

When Eleven opened her mouth wide and bit into the pancake again, she finally put on the mask of pain - her pancake was only sprinkled with cheese crumbs on the surface, while Rico's pancake was filled with the strong smell of stinky leather shoes from the inside out.

Qiqi next to her also smelled some subtle scent.

"Are you okay, Eleven?" Qiqi asked worriedly, "Would you like to have some of my noodles and soup?"

Eleven held his breath and shook his head.

"That vegetable pancake," Qiqi pointed at Eleven's plate, "is it delicious?"

"good to eat."

Qiqi was obviously a little unconvinced, "Is it really delicious?"

Eleven clenched her knife and fork: "It's very delicious."

"…but it smells bad?"

"This is what goat cheese tastes like." Eucalyptus said, "Miss Rico is from District 4, so she might like it."

Eleven couldn't help but look up again. Sure enough, Rico was chewing the vegetable cake that she had just found difficult to swallow - she really liked eating this...

When Rico heard Eucalyptus mention his name, he looked in her direction, but he noticed that Hesta, who was next to Eleven, had a very obvious smile on his face.

"What are you laughing at?" asked Rico.

"Nothing," Hesta coughed a few times and calmly buried his head in his food, "I just thought of something funny... Do you want to try my pie?"

Everyone nodded, and Hesta began to cut the meat into pieces. When he handed over the last piece, a distant sound of bronze suddenly rang out in the restaurant.

At first everyone thought it was part of the background music, until Rico suddenly thought of something, raised his hands and said, "Everyone stop for a moment."

The children also noticed the changes around them - as the bells rang, more and more people in the restaurant put down their knives and forks, stopped talking, closed their eyes, and turned to the east, mumbling something. Eleven stared at an old man with a beard that grew to his belly button. His expression was the most exaggerated in the crowd. Not only were his eyebrows twisted and his mouth was twitching, but there were also tears in the corners of his eyes.

Eucalyptus noticed that several waiters standing at the front desk and customers who were checking out also stopped. They seemed to be frozen in place by a spell, and like the seated diners, they faced the east in silence.

Hesta was still chewing her pie. In the gentle candlelight, it seemed that they were the only ones at the table with their eyes open.

This sudden collective activity lasted for nearly three minutes. When the bronze instrument was struck again, everyone opened their eyes and returned to their respective activities. The people sitting around continued to eat as if nothing had happened. Those who were paying the bill began to pay and said good night to the waiter.

"What were they doing here?" Hesta asked. "Praying?"

"Yes, several times a day," Rico said softly, "sometimes I can see him at noon."

Hesta was just about to sigh at Rico for not bothering him when he noticed the gaze of the person sitting next to him - the man seemed to have heard that the conversation here was related to his prayers, and immediately cast a tense look at him as a warning.

Hesta glanced in his direction, and the man turned back unnaturally and continued to talk in a low voice with his companion.

... That night, when they returned to their residence, it was already past eleven o'clock at night.

Although today is not a curfew day, except for a few restaurants in the city center, the entire Saint-Lome becomes deserted after nine o'clock, with few vehicles and pedestrians on the streets.

Qiqi and Eleven had fallen asleep together, while Eucalyptus was looking at the night view of Saint Rom with curiosity.

"What are your plans for tomorrow?" Rico asked, "Are you going to see the transport team?"

"I won't join in the fun. I'm afraid something unexpected might happen," Hesta said. "I'll go to the city hall tomorrow morning and see the result. If it passes the review, we'll check out and leave in the afternoon."

"Okay." Rico nodded, "Do you want me to go with you?"

"No, you should stay in the apartment with Eucalyptus and the others," Hesta said, "I'm afraid there might be trouble again."

"You mean the police?"

"Not only that, now there are people who want to rush up to see me every day," Hesta replied, "When someone breaks in by force, you still have to teach them a lesson... Do you have a place to stay tonight? Sleep at our place."

Rico yawned, "Okay."

Hesta looked at the night lights outside the window, which were moving backwards quickly, and suddenly she felt a little tired. She thought about Boheng and turned around to chat with Rico.

"Look at it in a positive way," Rico said, "Maybe he is doing business in District 12, and his goods are stuck during this period, so he came to you for help."

Hesta smiled.

"Otherwise, he has been in a state of uncertainty for almost ten years. There has been no news from him in these ten years. Why did he come to my house at this time?" Li Ge turned around and said, "You should think about it and be careful."

"Yeah," Hesta nodded, "I know."

"Tell me again, what is this man's name?"

"Bo Heng."

Rico hummed softly and silently memorized the name.

……

The next morning, Hesta took the bus alone to the City Hall in the city center.

As soon as she got off the bus, she saw a familiar face in the queue - it was Valeria who had kindly helped her yesterday afternoon.

Hesta took the initiative to step forward and say hello, only then did he realize that Valeria was accompanied by several female companions. Upon asking, he learned that they all got up early to see the "Tree of Eternity", but Valeria had a document that had to be signed today, so her friends accompanied her here. As soon as the formalities here were completed, they went together to the Freedom Square near the river.

As the time approached half past eight, the waiting line outside the City Hall began to move forward, and Hesta and others also moved forward with the crowd.

"The Eternal Tree," Hesta repeated the name, "Is it the artifact that was to be sent to the third district?"

Valeria smiled and said, "If you're curious, why don't you come with us and take a look?"

"I won't go. I'll be there in a minute—"

"Do you know what the Eternal Tree is?" one of Valeria's female companions asked, "It's more than just a relic."

"what is that?"

"It's the tomb of growth," the man said with a smile, "It contains the bones of the kings of the twelve districts."