Mordgemälde

Kapitel 41

“We don’t need any people,” Lan Ya explained as she elegantly sliced the bloody beef. “Living together, no matter how careful we are, it’s hard to avoid giving ourselves away.”

"But..." He clearly saw many waiters and butlers at the banquet that day. Although he hadn't seen any servants in the past two days, he figured they must be living in the back garden for convenience, otherwise how did they maintain their daily meals and room cleanliness?

“Those people were just hired temporarily; we sent them home before midnight.”

"Is that so?" He finally took a bite of bread, but before taking the second bite, he suddenly seemed to remember something and asked, "Then what about the meals for the next two days..."

“I did it,” Ruoya said calmly.

"Huh?" Feng Nian'en's mouth was agape for a long time. He wasn't surprised that Ruoya could cook, but rather that this elegant and meticulous woman shouldn't be standing in front of the stove with a spoon. In his mind, he had already vaguely placed her in a position of being untouched by worldly affairs.

"Surprised?" Ruoya glanced at him and said casually, "The Prince made breakfast today."

Feng Nian'en was too exhausted to even be surprised. Such a noble prince, with such outstanding status, wealth, appearance, and temperament, actually cooked for himself. This was even more unimaginable to him than Zhang Jiru cooking for himself.

The prince laughed happily: "Don't worry about it. If you don't like cooking, I'll do it tomorrow."

Feng Nian'en finally shut Zhang's mouth and quickly shook her head to indicate that she could.

"You just need to cook; others can do the cleaning." As if to comfort him, the prince spoke, then hissed, "White Crow!"

A bat flew out from the shadow of the curtains and landed on the prince's shoulder.

"Let's officially meet our new members."

The bat hesitated for a moment as if unwilling, but finally landed on the ground. Then, as if the tree had been watered with some kind of divine water, the bat's body quickly stretched and enlarged, its claws became thicker and thicker, and its wings became rounder and rounder. In less than half a minute, a naked man appeared in front of the vampires.

He quickly pulled a scarf from the sofa, skillfully wrapped it around his waist, and then, as if he were wearing the most elegant tuxedo to a banquet, gracefully and formally bowed to the stunned Feng Nian'en: "Welcome to the team, Your Excellency."

Feng Nian'en finally found his voice, and he spoke with difficulty, "You, you...you are that, that butler..."

"I am very pleased that you remember me."

Volume Two, Chapter Forty-Three: Father's Last Words

Feng Nian'en looked around and saw that everyone was looking at him with smiles, especially the big-eyed girl who looked gloating. He swallowed and said weakly, "We...we're not...we're not just vampires, are we?"

Deafening laughter erupted almost simultaneously from several vampires. The big-eyed girl and Lan Ya laughed without any restraint, Ruo Ya slumped in her chair, her body trembling violently, and the prince seemed to transform into a mischievous boy in an instant, bursting into laughter as well.

Finally, Lan Ya managed to suppress her laughter and explained to him, "Don't worry, we're not also wizards." After saying that, he couldn't help but laugh again.

“That’s how white crows are supposed to be.” The prince’s gentle voice was full of laughter.

Feng Nian'en was even more confused now. Was this how it was supposed to be? Was he originally a human? Then how did he turn into a bat?

"This guy is the legendary vampire bat." Ranya's voice was laced with mocking malice. "The kind of evil creature that lives by sucking human blood."

"That's not fair," White Raven protested. "Your Excellency also needs to drink blood."

Lan Ya shrugged: "Yeah, but I work for myself and find my own blood to support myself, unlike you who have to depend on others."

"It's not my fault, it's just that times have changed. If it were a hundred years ago, I could have come by myself," he said, sounding very aggrieved.

Later, Feng Nian'en learned that vampires and vampire bats were two different creatures; the former could only take on human form, while the latter could transform into bats. Furthermore, vampires only needed to replenish their blood periodically, while vampire bats lived on fresh blood. Unfortunately, he only had the ability to suck blood when he was in bat form. Bats had never been well-liked by humans, and in the Middle Ages, they were associated with wizards and vampires.

In the past, when most places were still wilderness, vampire bats could hide their tracks, but in modern times, when even crows are rarely seen, they are even rarer than pandas.

"But can't you transform into a human?" Feng Nian'en asked. If they had the ability to freely transform, they could easily disguise themselves as ordinary people in normal times.

"And then transform into a bat three times a day to suck blood?" Lan Ya laughed. "This guy isn't like us, who can eat blood as long as it's not spoiled. It has to drink fresh blood that day. And its appetite is definitely better than yours." It is because of this that vampire bats have been loyal to the vampire clan since before the Middle Ages.

Bai Ya sighed, seemingly quite helpless about his own constitution.

"And this guy doesn't like being human." Huiya's tone was full of teasing, "as if his dark appearance is as pleasing as a phoenix."

"Not only is it pitch black, but this guy is also incredibly lazy," Lan Ya added maliciously.

"Your Excellency, that's very unfair of you," Bai Ya cried out indignantly. "I'm the one who takes care of this huge house. Although the garden isn't meticulously maintained, I'm just too busy to manage it all."

"Cooking? You haven't touched a spoon since you started following the prince, have you?"

"You know perfectly well that I can't get near the fire."

"Look how pampered the servant is," Lan Ya concluded. "He's pickier than his master when it comes to food, making the master prepare his meals but not preparing any for him. He just tidies up the room and acts like he's done something amazing. It's a good thing the prince is so kind; if it were me, I would have thrown this guy into a pot and boiled him into soup long ago."

Volume Two, Chapter Forty-Four: Father's Last Words

"What you said is really too much." He looked like he was about to cry, as if his heart had been broken.

"Alright, alright," the prince quickly said. "The greetings have been given, you can go and rest."

"Yes." It was another standard bow, and he was no exception when it came to Lan Ya.

"You've been in the palace for too long, putting on this show with just a veil." Lan Ya rolled her eyes, quite impatient.

But before he could finish speaking, the man wearing only a scarf disappeared, and the black bat once again hung upside down in the shadow of the curtains.

As a result, Feng Nian'en's good appetite was half-ruined. After finishing his meal, he followed Ruoya into the library and asked her, somewhat embarrassed and curious, if there was anything else in the room. To his surprise, the usually meticulous woman smiled slightly and told him to find it himself.

Although he knew it was a joke, he couldn't help but wonder if ghosts might appear in this old, luxurious, and spacious house.

"But it wouldn't be surprising if it did appear," he muttered, pulling out a book at random. "Ghosts and phantoms are always inseparable."

"You wish!" The sudden voice startled Feng Nian'en.

"I've lived this long and I've never seen a ghost before!" A big-eyed girl in a light blue dress emerged from behind the bookshelf; it was Huiya, who had entered at some unknown time.

"Is that so?" Feng Nian'en felt a little embarrassed when she was overheard talking to herself.

"Really?" Huiya pressed on, her face stern. "Are you saying I was lying to you?"

"Just because you haven't seen it doesn't mean it hasn't happened." Luckily, Ruoya, who had just walked away, came over and interjected.

"So you've seen it?" Huiya pouted.

"No, but just because I haven't seen one doesn't mean there aren't ghosts in the world."

"Even a prince has never seen it!"

"That doesn't mean it doesn't exist." Ruoya raised an eyebrow, unmoved.

“You’re so biased towards him!” Huiya exclaimed. “If that brat Cangya finds out, it’ll be terrible.”

Ruoya handed the book to Feng Nian'en, her expression unchanged, but her tone was very serious: "First, Cangya is older than you, so you have no reason or right to call him a brat; second, he is Cangya's junior, and I was entrusted by Cangya to take care of him, which the Prince knows, so it's nothing serious; third, I have something to say to him now, and I hope you will not follow me any further."

“I’m already nineteen, that little brat…” She still wanted to say something, but Ruoya suddenly turned around, her voice even carrying a hint of annoyance, “Cangya is three hundred and fifty-one years old this year, and you are already seventy-nine!”

After she finished speaking, she turned and walked towards the door. Feng Nian'en hesitated for a moment, then said "I'm sorry" and quickly followed her.

The two arrived at Feng Nian'en's room one after the other, closed the door, and Ruoya seemed to have regained his composure. Before he could sit down, he asked, "Are you planning to resign?"

He shook his head: "It's not easy to explain to Dad."

"Then we can't stay here anymore."

He raised his eyes in confusion, looking at him with some bewilderment.

"Don't forget Zhou Renhou." Her tone was ordinary, but there seemed to be a bitter smile on her lips.

Were they laughing at him for not yet being aware of his vampire status? He wondered to himself.

Volume Two, Chapter Forty-Five: Father's Last Words

Indeed, with these thirteen lives taken, the hunter will definitely come looking for him again. Even if he doesn't take any action on the surface, he will definitely follow him secretly, since he may be the only vampire he knows in this city.

"So you have to resign." How can I explain this to my father?

“As long as we move out, everything will be fine,” she said, pouring herself a glass of apple juice. “He shouldn’t give you any trouble.”

Feng Nian'en was stunned. Although he didn't have a good impression of Zhou Renhou, he knew that Zhou Renhou was loyal and principled. Before Zhou Renhou did anything, he wouldn't attack him because Zhou Renhou had saved Xiao Kong earlier. But what about Ruoya? In order to find other vampires, Ruoya would definitely come to follow them, which would expose Ruoya.

"Do you think he'll find me?" Ruoya asked, squinting.

"Isn't that so?"

“If vampires were so easy to discover, they wouldn’t have been able to coexist with humans for so many years.” She sipped her apple juice, and her bloodless lips immediately brightened as if they had been painted with pink lipstick, making her porcelain-like skin appear even more delicate.

"But..." He scratched his head. Was it because he hadn't received proper education that he was so easily discovered?

"By the way, why did you run away the first time you met Zhou Renhou?"

"Huh?" He looked at him, somewhat confused.

"If it weren't for your abrupt behavior and the vampire-like characteristics in your gait, there wouldn't have been any trouble later."

"But isn't he a hunter?" What else can a vampire do if he sees a hunter but doesn't run away? Besides, he's just a newcomer who doesn't know anything.

“Even if Lan Ya didn’t teach you how to do it when she gave you the photos, you should know…” At this point, seeing Feng Nian’en’s blank expression, she put down her cup and asked in surprise, “Didn’t Lan Ya tell you?”

"What? Zhou Renhou? He didn't say anything."

"Who told you he was a hunter?" The voice had become sharper. Before being formally introduced, Feng Nian'en only knew a few vampires. She didn't say it was the prince; Cangya was in confinement, and Linya hadn't appeared before him yet. How could Feng Nian'en possibly know? The profession of a hunter is kept secret even from his family; after all, ordinary humans can't know about the existence of vampires.

"Nobody told me." Do I need someone else to tell me something like this?

"Nobody told you?" she said, squinting, enunciating each word clearly. "Then how did you know?"

Seeing her like this, Feng Nian'en was slightly surprised. Then she honestly recounted her feelings at the time and finally said, "I didn't think about it that way at first. I just felt so uncomfortable and wanted to run away. It was only when he caught up with me that I thought of it."

"Feeling?" She stared straight at him, as if horns had suddenly grown on his head.

"Is there something wrong?" Feng Nian'en asked, feeling a little uneasy under that gaze. Isn't it natural for vampires to feel uncomfortable with hunters?

"It's nothing." She finally looked away, stood up and said, "Go to sleep." As she reached the door, she seemed to remember something and added, "Finish reading the books I brought as soon as possible. Although doing business also relies on talent, being prepared is always better than being unprepared."

She walked out of the room, and Feng Nian'en's gaze fell on the heavy books. She glanced at them and inwardly groaned. Among the books Ruo Ya had taken were theoretical works like *The Peter Principle*, *Principles of Political Economy*, and *Institutional Economics*, as well as economic works closely related to contemporary economics, such as *The Second Shockwave* and *Investment Evaluation*.

Volume Two, Chapter Forty-Six: Father's Last Words

Ruoya might only be taking care of him because of Cangya, but he was still very grateful. However, these books were more boring to him than the price list of biscuits under Zhang's name. It seemed that he really had no talent. He had never seen such books in Zhang Jiru's study before.

What others can achieve with talent, he must have to put in a lot of hard work. He gritted his teeth, turned to the top page, and forced himself to read on.

After leaving Feng Nian'en's room, Ruoya went straight to Prince Eli's door.

"What is it?" The prince put down the documents in his hand and looked up to ask.

"Did I disturb you?" she said, closing the door and sitting down at the table.

"No, I was just about to hear your thoughts on this incident."