Dragon Clan: Thought So Far.

The weather was too cold, and Lu Mingfei could only shiver as he wrapped himself in fleece clothes and scarves, but he still felt cold.

When he walked out of the Regent Hotel, the cold wind blew into his collar as if it had eyes. He shivered violently and pulled the girl beside him, who looked tall and slender despite her thick clothes, into his arms, using his body to block the wind for Eri.

Men who wander outside are always strong and tenacious, able to endure high temperatures and severe cold, and no pain can break a man's spine. But when you return home, your grandfather with gray beard invites you to sit down by the bed, holds your wrist with his old and dry hands and says, "Child, you must be very tired outside." At that moment, it seems that all your strength is broken. You just want to hug this old man who now needs help to get up like many years ago. At that time, you felt that the world was not so tall because someone helped you to hold it up. Now it's your turn to be this person, but when you return to the place where you once hid behind someone and cried, you still feel that you are still that cowardly child.

High temperatures and severe cold can easily bring you down, and that's only because you still miss the days when you had someone to rely on.

"Sakura is very familiar with this place." Eri hid obediently in front of Lu Mingfei and covered herself with the side of her coat.

The interior of the hotel is actually quite complicated, and you might get lost if you come here for the first time.

"Well, I grew up around here," Lu Mingfei said.

After his uncle opened a foot bath center and it became prosperous, Lu Mingfei often followed him to eat and drink with the local big bosses. The Regent Hotel was the restaurant they visited most often, and sea cucumbers, abalone, bird's nests, and shark's fins were all indispensable staple foods.

Chu Zihang and his bespectacled stepfather with a sideburns were often on his uncle's invitation list. They obviously didn't like such occasions, so they would always slip away through the back door under the pretext of playing basketball.

At that time, the back street was a small alley with many food stalls. Students in school uniforms often hung out there. There were also many billiard halls and game rooms. Lu Mingfei and Chu Zihang used to play billiard for an afternoon and then go to the game room to play Dino Fight. In the evening, they would go for grilled fish and sometimes grilled chicken wings.

There was no one guarding the back door, and this time Lu Mingfei easily avoided the waiters' sight, just like he had long ago.

After getting used to the blinding cold wind, Lu Mingfei sighed softly. His hometown was developing at a rapid pace. The small alley that he hadn't seen for two or three years had been flattened, and high-rise buildings that seemed to reach the sky had been built. Shining glass walls faced shining glass walls. When he looked up, even the gray-black sky didn't seem majestic. The steel and glass cut out a jagged skyline, which felt cramped, as if he was standing at the bottom of a huge steel rift valley. Looking up or around was a cage.

Eri was also very excited. She stood on tiptoe and looked around, hoping to see the whole picture of the city through the blooming umbrellas on both sides of the street.

It was a rather novel experience for her to be able to move freely in such a densely populated city. When in Tokyo, Gen Chisei usually did not allow Eri to appear in the downtown area.

"It should be because of the expansion of the CBD. Maybe the old houses in the old city will be demolished in the future." Lu Mingfei almost leaned over to Eri's ear to speak. The breath he exhaled was hot, causing a thin blush on the girl's almost transparent white face, but it couldn't be seen because of the huge mask.

This place has now become a meeting place for all kinds of famous brands, luxury cars and beautiful women. Even on a bitterly cold snowy day, you can still smell the scent of high-end perfume in the oncoming wind.

After walking a few steps, there were office buildings everywhere. Everyone walked silently with umbrellas in hand. People in leather shoes and high heels walked hurriedly. The road signs ahead were clearly marked. Which way to go, you can see the Mingjiao Temple, which way to go, you can see the river bank and the left bank with lanterns on the river bank, and which way to go is a nail salon with a good reputation in China. It seems that every stranger who comes here can easily find the place you want to go and the road you want to take, but Lu Mingfei held Eri tightly in his arms, but he felt like he was lost in the crowd.

"It's so beautiful." Eri looked up and said softly. After standing on the street for a while, fireworks began to be set off in the direction of the Fei River in the distance. All kinds of scattered beautiful lights bloomed in the gaps between the glass buildings like a flowing river of light, turning the gray and black clouds into rainbow colors.

The most touching things in this world are sounds, lights and shadows. Fireworks always make Eri stop and take notice. This girl is locked up in a high-level position in Genji Heavy Industries. She cannot see the cherry blossoms blooming in spring or feel the snow falling in winter. Only the colorful sparks blooming in clusters in the cold night sky during the fireworks festival can make her slightly dazed.

Lu Mingfei felt neither sad nor happy. He already had his own worries and he had lived here for too long. He knew that people would often set off fireworks by the river or on Guangchao. When the fireworks were in full bloom, young boys and girls would kiss on the shore. The girl would stand on tiptoe and lean her whole body on the boy's chest, while the boy would shyly look around carefully worried about being seen by his teacher or his narrow-minded father at home. Their shadows were reflected on the rippling river surface. People were like peach blossoms and water was like a mirror. It was hard to say whether the real scenery at that time was the fireworks in the sky or the love quietly blooming by the river.

"Let's eat something nearby today and fill our stomachs first." Lu Mingfei rubbed Eiry's head. Eiry nodded. She raised her face to look into Lu Mingfei's eyes through the gap in her collar, hesitated for a moment, and put her hand in Lu Mingfei's.

Lu Mingfei scratched Eri's palm and smiled, "I'm fine, I'm just too hungry," he said.

In fact, it is not just that.

He still felt that his future was uncertain and he didn't know where to go. This escape had just begun and all it brought him was panic.

No matter how powerful a person is, how can he fight against the whole world? What's more, the academy may have been infiltrated by Odin and the forces behind him, and the people chasing them may not just be a group of half-bloods and ordinary people.

What’s worse is that Lu Mingfei doesn’t know whether he still has any truly trustworthy allies in this world.

An idea suddenly occurred to him. There was actually a guy who was absolutely trustworthy and not under the control of the academy...

"Spicy chicken, I want to eat spicy chicken." Eri's face showed some anticipation, "And Yangzhou fried rice."

Gome fried rice was Eri's favorite staple food when she was in Tokyo, and spicy diced chicken was probably because it sounded similar to yakitori.

Lu Mingfei agreed.

There are usually restaurants or eateries in the basements of office buildings, but Lu Mingfei took Eri's hand and left the unfamiliar back street.

Because between the buildings are Mercedes-Benz, BMW and Audi, ladies in mink furs and suits get out of the cars, and men with big bellies are strategizing, as if each of them is the master of the world, but they don't know that everything they are proud of almost disappeared on a snowy night in Tokyo not long ago.

Lu Mingfei didn’t like this place. It made him feel like he had come to the wrong place. Twenty-year-old girls wouldn’t like an old fat bear weighing 200 pounds and over 60 years old. They just liked the power the bear had in this forest. And the wives of old men wouldn’t be twenty-year-old girls who were ignorant of the world. They just liked the beauty and slimness of these girls. Desire made them not mind sharing a little bit of their power.

This is a place where power is exchanged for time, like the world of hybrids. Everything in the world can be bought. Power is so dazzling that even time has to serve him.

Walking through the bustling crowd to the back of the street, you will see a row of old but neatly-organized buildings along the river. The cast iron street lamps and flower beds paved with diamond-shaped tiles give a very 1980s feel.

This is a pedestrian street. You can feel the vitality before you even enter. Maybe because it is not meal time, the small restaurants on the roadside actually have a bit of the feeling of "Midnight Diner" in Japan. When Lu Mingfei and Eri walked in, the owner and the clerk were very silent, and the temperature and taste of the food were acceptable.

She was very interested in the Chinese restaurant Eri, and looked around as she sat down. Fortunately, in order to communicate well with Lu Mingfei's friends or relatives, this girl spent a long time learning Chinese and could accurately call out the names of all the dishes here.

As expected, she ordered Yangzhou fried rice and a plate of spicy chicken. Lu Mingfei asked the elderly boss to fry some hairtail fish, squeeze half a lemon in it, and give her a bowl of rice. Amid the bustling crowd and the sound of snow, he could vaguely hear cheerful music coming from afar, as if all the shops on the pedestrian street were playing that music. Lu Mingfei was a little confused, but he still bought two pairs of chopsticks for himself and Eri.

"Merry Christmas, big brother and big sister. Today is Christmas. All guests who come to dine will receive a free portion of steamed egg custard." The person in charge of serving the dishes in the kitchen turned out to be a very pretty girl, probably only sixteen or seventeen years old. She had a thick ponytail on the back of her head and no bangs, revealing a smooth and warm forehead. She had shallow dimples when she smiled.

She should be a student from a nearby school and is helping out in her family's restaurant during the holidays.

Lu Mingfei nodded and smiled and said thank you, while Eiry looked at the girl with anticipation as she placed the steamed egg custard in front of her. After opening the lid, white steam rose up and a thin spoonful of soy sauce was sprinkled on the tender egg custard, which had a jelly texture and was dotted with a few chopped green onions. Although it was simple, it made people feel very appetizing at first glance.

Eri ate it with a spoon. Egg custard is a very common food in Japan, but she still felt that today's egg custard was more delicious than any she had eaten before.

After tasting a few bites, Eri scooped out a small piece and handed the spoon to Lu Mingfei's mouth. Lu Mingfei was stunned for a moment, opened his mouth to take it, then reached out and touched Eri's head.

"Happy birthday," he said.

Eiry was stunned. She blinked, and the surface of her clear eyes seemed to be immediately covered by a thin layer of mist.

"I remember Eri once said that your birthday is Christmas. I'll take you to buy a gift after dinner." Lu Mingfei smiled.

The feeling of freedom is good, and for Eri, there is no need to mention those worrying topics at this moment.

But he didn't expect that he had slept for two whole days and had already come to such a festival.

Speaking of birthdays, Lu Mingfei's heart suddenly trembled. He remembered the dance a few days ago when Ling buried his head in his chest and said, "Someone told me that if I like someone, I should tell him, because you may all die tomorrow, and then I can't express my love in my heart. I thought about it for a long time, and decided to tell you. I like you."

Her birthday is also today...

Just where are you, Zero...

The cheerful music inside the pedestrian street continued, and this time Lu Mingfei heard it clearly.

"Jinglebells, jinglebells, jinglealltheway..."

It is a very familiar Christmas song. Even people in China, a country that doesn't celebrate Christmas very much, will play this song on the streets when this day comes.

Lu Mingfei turned his head to look, and was surprised to find that the corners he had always ignored were full of signs of Christmas. The heavy snow brought down by Eri in the sky had turned into dense and soft snowflakes, and the warm lights everywhere fell just on the dining table where they were sitting, reflecting the girl's cheeks, making them look rosy and pleasant.

"Come closer." Eri hooked her finger at Lu Mingfei. The girl smiled with her eyebrows curved, like a little fox who had come up with a sinister plan. Although Lu Mingfei was confused, he still sat next to Eri.

The girl put her hands under the man's armpits, leaned her head slightly on Lu Mingfei's shoulder, and felt the warm breath from his body.

"It feels so good to be alive." She said, and at the same time looked up into the eyes of the man beside her. Lu Mingfei nodded and smiled, and Eiry also smiled, and as she smiled, tears came out of the corners of her eyes.

"Yeah, it's great to be alive." He said, touching Eri's cheek with his other hand, and then wiping away the tears rolling down the girl's cheek.

There was probably some event organized by young people deep in the pedestrian street. The crowd suddenly threw away their open umbrellas, and the umbrella flowers rolled to the ground. Everyone began to sing Christmas songs. The singing was like the tide, and the world became vivid and beautiful.

In fact, there is only an alley between this place and the office building behind the Regent Hotel, but that alley is like a natural chasm between the two groups of people. The people on the other side are cold and ruthless in their pursuit of power and desires, and the snow in the cold winter cannot extinguish the desires in their hearts; while the people on this side are like a bonfire on a winter night, the flames rise with the wind, and in the place illuminated by the fire, even the evil spirits and monsters cannot break through their defenses even if they use power as swords or guns.

It's like a portrayal of ideal and reality.

"Actually, I don't want any gifts. I've waited for many years, and you are the best gift the world has given me." Eri said softly, leaning on Lu Mingfei's shoulder, "The world is very gentle, allowing us to meet again."

Lu Mingfei was stunned.

He stared blankly at the girl's profile. The deepest and hardest part of his heart seemed to be pried open by something, and a restless little bug began to throb again.

"I want to go home and see them." Lu Mingfei suddenly said, "Let's go together... I can't find my parents, maybe going to my uncle's house can also be considered meeting my parents."

Eiry lifted her head from Lu Mingfei's shoulder. She tilted her head, and the mask hanging on one ear swayed.

When she smiled, it was like a stone was dropped into a slightly frozen ice pot, causing gentle ripples on the surface of the water. The girl straightened up slightly and kissed Lu Mingfei lightly on his lips.

The girl's lips left after just a moment. Eri blinked and shook her head. "If we want to get married, we have to go back to Japan. Although Eri doesn't have a father and a mother, she has a brother. We must tell her brother about this." She said seriously.

Lu Mingfei touched his lips, looked at the clouds rising on the little face pretending to be calm so close to him, and laughed out loud.

Eiry put her hands on her hips and looked at Lu Mingfei angrily with gritted teeth.

"Okay, if we get married, we will go back to Tokyo to meet Eri's parents." Lu Mingfei nodded heavily.

He didn't know whether Master Yue was still alive, so he didn't dare to tell the girl the truth that Eri was not a fatherless child. If everything was already missed, it would be better not to add to the sadness. (End of this chapter)