I open a restaurant in Mysterious Recovery

Chapter 698 Meng and Zhang

Does it fit?

Of course it's suitable!
Since Lin Yuan came under this identity, it wouldn't change at least for the time being. After exchanging a few casual pleasantries, he walked up to Li Qingzhi and said with a smile, "Old Li, we're here today to see an old friend off on his final journey. You can't keep a long face like that; it doesn't look good."

"Old Li, he's probably a bit withdrawn, but I think I can take care of him forever, damn it..."

Guo Fan immediately stepped forward, wanting to show his loyalty and also to emphasize his importance to Li Qingzhi, hoping to gain points in the "store manager's" eyes.

Clearly, he still knows very well who the real masters of these "feelings" and "marriages" are.

Moreover, he wasn't worried about his words being exposed, because although Li Qingzhi was called Old Li by the "shop manager," he was clearly a vengeful ghost who had been resurrected after death and couldn't possibly have self-awareness.

Isn't it just whatever he says?
The persona he set for himself and Li Qingzhi was that the latter was an elderly person who had developed some autism due to his age and needed someone to take care of him, otherwise his later years would be bleak.

And he, Guo Fan, was the best candidate to volunteer to take care of this old man!
He had initially considered whether to portray Li Qingzhi as having Alzheimer's disease, but later decided against it.

Li Qingzhi was, after all, someone assigned by the "manager," and he was also in charge of two large businesses within the Caesars Hotel: a breeding farm and a winery. The former was alright, as it was only one of the self-sufficient businesses of the Peace Hotel. However, the Ghost Lake Fishpond on the other hand had its own income in this regard, making it much more important.

However, the latter, namely the distillery where the new wine is made, is different.

The new wine is an indispensable product for all stores, from the main store to the branches and franchise stores, and Li Qingzhi has been in charge of this project without any problems.

To say he has Alzheimer's disease is to deny his contributions to the Peace Hotel, which is definitely inappropriate.

They are also questioning the "store manager's" arrangement, how could they have assigned someone with dementia to be in charge of such an important project? Isn't that implying that the "store manager" is blind?

This is absolutely unacceptable!
So he gave up. Although the symptoms of autism have lessened considerably, it's still something he can talk about for now.

However, before he could finish speaking, Li Qingzhi, who had been like a corpse, only knowing how to do things according to the rules set by the "shop manager," actually spoke up.

That's right, Li Qingzhi spoke!

"Thank you, I'm fine here."

Perhaps because he hadn't spoken in a long time, Li Qingzhi's voice was incredibly hoarse, with a metallic, abrasive quality that sent chills down one's spine and raised goosebumps.

Of course, only Guo Fan was in this state; he stared at Li Qingzhi in disbelief, completely dumbfounded.

In contrast, Meng Xiaodong, Zhang Bohua, and even Old Qin, while somewhat surprised, seemed to understand something and were not particularly shocked.

But his eyes also held a great deal of emotion.

Li Qingzhi glanced back at Guo Fan, his stiff face twitching slightly.

He seemed to want to make a certain expression, but couldn't quite manage it. Fortunately, it didn't stop him from speaking. "You should choose another target."

Guo Fan: "!!!"

What the hell!

Were all these old guys from the Republican era really this extraordinary?
Was Li Qingzhi a corpse that was raised in the Peace Hotel after he died and then resurrected, or was he a living person who was just pretending to be a ghost?

Guo Fan's mind was a bit of a mess, but he already had an idea in mind.

That means he can no longer target Li Qingzhi.

If it were just a ghost, he could convince himself that this was a way to control a vengeful spirit, and there was nothing wrong with it; the so-called price was nothing more than a marriage certificate.

For them now, marriage is something they can only dream of but never achieve.

Without a human body and emotions, what kind of marriage is there? So, if an ordinary person's marriage certificate could be used to bind a terrifying ghost like Li Qingzhi, it would be an absolutely worthwhile thing.

But now, Li Qingzhi is alive...

Faced with a terrifying ghost tamer, Guo Fan naturally couldn't get married, unless, at least, the other party had to be a woman, not a big man like Li Qingzhi who was taller and stronger than him!
Therefore, one's goals should shift to...

Guo Fan subconsciously turned his head and looked at the six-headed hellhound, Old Black, who was squatting next to the "shop manager".

Seemingly reminded by his gaze, Lin Yuan patted Lao Hei's middle head, "You're done here. Go wander around and we'll meet up here again when we get back."

"Wang!"

Old Hei stood up, turned around and ran into the path beside the road, disappearing in no time.

Guo Fan: "..."

He now suspects that the "store manager" is deliberately targeting him. Why is it that the targets he has his eye on either suffer a mishap like Li Qingzhi or are sent away by the "store manager" like Lao Hei?
Could it be that my choice in New York City made the "store manager" dislike me and deliberately make things difficult for me?

"Let's go, it should be about time."

Lin Yuan gestured, and Meng Xiaodong, Zhang Bohua, Li Qingzhi, and Qin Lao had no objections. They all sensibly let Lin Yuan go first, and Lin Yuan did not refuse, walking directly onto the path.

The path is not wide, and can only accommodate three people walking side by side at most.

Even He Yin'er didn't stand next to Lin Yuan, but took a step back.

In the past, Guo Fan would never have missed this opportunity to get close to the "store manager," but now he was caught in self-doubt and didn't go forward.

This resulted in Lin Yuan walking alone in front, followed by a large group of people. If it weren't for the obvious difference in their clothing, the scene would have looked like a leader coming to inspect the area.

After walking a few steps, Lin Yuan suddenly stopped and turned to look to the side.

The path was flanked by a dense forest, and it was clearly carved out of this forest. Lin Yuan had been here once before, and had also been here several times as "He," so he did not find it surprising or strange.

Not only him, but also Meng Xiaodong and others looked in that direction.

Although Guo Fan was still feeling down, he couldn't help but ask curiously, "Da He, what are Yuan Ge and the others looking at? I can't see anything."

"Ye Zhen is over there, doing... um, I think it's housekeeping?" He Yin'er said hesitantly.

This dense forest is a gathering place for the supernatural. Under each tree lies one or more corpses, all vengeful spirits suppressed beneath them. These trees are not ordinary plants either, but are filled with an eerie aura.

That is why ordinary people can't see very far here. He Yin'er was able to see part of what the "shopkeeper" was looking at because of the supernatural inheritance of the soul summoner, which is on the ghost eyeball in the left eye socket.

"Xiao Ye seems to be having a good time here, even chopping wood. Let's not disturb his cultivation."

No one else objected.

No matter what Ye Zhen is like, he is just a junior with only so-so strength, not worth Qin Lao and the others paying special attention to.

The most important thing now is Zhang Dong's funeral.

If they went over there now, Zhang Dong would probably still be alive, so Meng Xiaodong stopped after walking a few steps. His hand holding the vegetable basket trembled slightly, and he forced a smile, saying, "You guys go in, I'll stay outside for a while."

Zhang Bohua, Qin Lao, and Li Qingzhi had no objections.

"We will never meet again in this life!"

They still remember those heart-wrenching words clearly, even after decades or nearly a century.

Unless Zhang Dongzhen is truly dead, Meng Xiaodong would never go to see him!

Meng Xiaodong came today not to see Zhang Dong one last time, but to attend Zhang Dong's funeral.

"Granny Meng, we're already here, are you really not going in to see her? If you miss this opportunity today, it might truly be a permanent separation, and you'll never have another chance," Lin Yuan urged.

Meng Xiaodong shook his head again, his attitude very firm.

Seeing this, Lin Yuan had no choice but to accept it. After all, Zhang Bohua, Li Qingzhi, and Old Qin all had expressions of taking it for granted, which made him suddenly curious about the story between Meng Xiaodong and Zhang Dong.

Unfortunately, the expressions on the faces of these people clearly indicated that they wouldn't speak, so asking them would be pointless.

and so……

"Grandma Meng, what's the unresolved issue between you and Old Zhang? Can you tell me about it? Perhaps I can help?"

Well, Lin Yuan couldn't help but ask anyway.

Even if he doesn't get an answer, he still has to ask, otherwise it's very uncomfortable to keep it inside. And now he wants to live a relaxed and carefree life, so he can't let himself suffer.

As expected, Meng Xiaodong shook his head with a wry smile and said, "Boss Lin, please don't ask about this matter. I won't tell you."

Given the personal emotional issues involved, and the particular era in which it took place, how could Meng Xiaodong possibly reveal her true feelings just because of Lin Yuan's words?
Despite having stayed at the Peace Hotel for so long, Meng Xiaodong and the other seven elders suffered less supernatural erosion than others because of their terrifying strength and the fact that Lin Yuan did not forcibly affect their consciousness, but only the passive effect of the White Mist Ghost Domain every night.

Meng Xiaodong also developed a strong liking for the Peace Hotel and Lin Yuan under this influence, but she was not yet at the point where she would give up everything for Lin Yuan.

Moreover, Meng Xiaodong looked at Lin Yuan with a complicated expression, "Mr. Lin, do you really not know?"

Lin Yuan: "..."

Got it!
He forgot that his persona was that of a big shot who had lived from at least the Republican era to the present. With that persona in mind, he really couldn't be unaware of the little things that happened between Meng Xiaodong and Zhang Dong back then.

But it doesn't matter, he's not "He" anymore, he's "the shop manager".

"How could I possibly know? Granny Meng, look at me, I'm only in my twenties. How would I know what happened decades ago?" Lin Yuan helplessly spread his hands, his sincere expression earning praise from anyone who saw him.
Honest young man!
However, this sentence caused the scene to fall silent instantly.

Twenties?

Who among those present doesn't know that you're an old monster who survived from the Republican era?

Moreover, it's the kind of being that, in order to conceal its own traces, erased the memories of everyone in the world at a certain special stage—an incredibly terrifying existence.

How dare you say that you're in your twenties and don't know what happened decades ago?

what?
You say you are now the "store manager," not "He" with complete memories?
That's fine then, otherwise, that shameless attitude of his really deserves a beating!

The character design was effective right there, and quite well at that. Looking at the people around him, especially He Yin'er and Guo Fan, who seemed hesitant to speak, Lin Yuan chuckled.

"Granny Meng, since you don't want to talk about it, then forget it."

Just as Meng Xiaodong was about to thank the "store manager" for his understanding, he heard Lin Yuan mutter to himself, "Anyway, I can use the time travel device to go back several decades. When that time comes, I'll see for myself. I'll definitely take a good look at what happened, and I'll take photos and videos too."

Meng Xiaodong: "..."

puff!

He Yin'er couldn't help but laugh. She really didn't expect that the "store manager" would have such a "cute" side. However, this "store manager" was much more lively and comfortable to look at, which made her more willing to get close to her.

Fortunately, everyone's attention was on Lin Yuan. Apart from Guo Fan, no one paid attention to this young girl, even though she had the inheritance of a soul summoner.

Meng Xiaodong stayed behind, but the others continued onward.

The path ended quickly, leading to the old house, which looked extremely eerie; if you didn't know, it might even be a haunted house.

However, two figures were standing outside this old house.

One of them was Zhang Xianguang, but this time Zhang Xianguang did not turn into a gorilla, but was in the state of a normal person.

He also saw the group of people walking towards him.

When he looked at Zhang Bohua, Qin Lao, and Li Qing, he subconsciously wanted to avoid them, but stopped when he saw Lin Yuan.

Looking into his eyes, there was clearly a look of disbelief, as if he was wondering why there was no white mist around when the "shop manager" came, and why he hadn't turned into a gorilla.

Could it be because this is Zhang Dong's territory, and even His power cannot affect this place?

Or perhaps it's because it wasn't the "store manager" who came, but "He"?
Soon, Lin Yuan gave Zhang Xianguang a clear hint, "Hey, Old Zhang... no, now you should call me Little Zhang. Old Zhang is at the old house. But Little Zhang, you're still pretty handsome. When you worked at the post office before, was that a gorilla suit? The work style at your post office is really quite interesting, the work clothes are so unique, tsk tsk tsk tsk."

(End of this chapter)