The siblings stayed up all the way until eleven at night, when Bing 'er carried her Xue' er back to their room to sleep.
Ouyang Shuo turned off the TV, hurriedly returned to his room, and logged into the game. In the game, it was also New Year's Eve, but it was already 11 AM.
The fireworks, Spring Festival couplets, and other New Year goods bought the day before yesterday had already been distributed to every household by the Supplies Division. As far as the eye could see, every household had already pasted Spring Festival couplets, hung peach talismans, and lanterns. Although Shanhai Town was simple and crude, the festive atmosphere here was much stronger than in reality.
Seeing that Ouyang Shuo was finally online, Qing 'er, who was hanging lanterns in the backyard, said mischievously, "Big Brother is so lazy. It's the New Year, but he's still sleeping in."
In the eyes of the NPCs, when players logged off, they were returning to their rooms to sleep. Ouyang Shuo was speechless towards Qing 'er's teasing. He deliberately put on a straight face and said, "Humph, so your big brother doesn't want his New Year's gift anymore?"
When she heard about the gift, the little girl's eyes immediately lit up. She didn't care about the lanterns that hadn't been hung properly and ran over to Ouyang Shuo with a swish. She said fawningly, "Hee hee, Big Brother is busy with official business, so it's understandable for me to occasionally sleep a bit more."
Ouyang Shuo shook his head helplessly and didn't tease her. He withdrew a jade pendant from his storage pouch and passed it to her before saying with a smile, "Here, this is a New Year gift from Big Brother. Happy New Year!"
Qing 'er took the jade pendant, and she was so happy that her eyes narrowed. This made Si Qin and Si Qi, who had just been recruited into the Lord's Mansion, envious.
Ouyang Shuo looked at Ying You's maid, Si Qin, and asked, "Do you know where Ying You is?"
Si Qin quickly bowed and said respectfully, "Sir, Miss is giving out red envelopes in the front yard!"
Ouyang Shuo nodded, turned around, and walked towards the front yard. Sure enough, he saw the Finance Department giving out red packets, with Ying Pomo standing at the side coordinating.
Seeing Ouyang Shuo, Ying You came over and said with a smile, "Big Brother, you woke up a little late today."
Ouyang Shuo ignored her teasing and asked, "How was the red packet distribution? Did it go well?"
"Everything went well. As for the military reward, little sister has already arranged for people to send it to the barracks. The two generals, Shi and Lin, are in charge of the distribution. As for the civil officials, they're almost done. "
"That's good." As he spoke, he took out another jade pendant and handed it to her. He said with a smile, "Here, this is the New Year's gift that big brother prepared for you. Happy New Year!"
Ying You received the jade pendant and said with a smile, "Thank you, Big Brother. Happy New Year!"
"I still have to deliver gifts to Mister Fan and Mister Tian, so I won't disturb you any longer." Ouyang Shuo smiled as he bid farewell and left. He turned around and walked into the administrative office.
After giving the two sets of the Four Treasures of the Study that he bought yesterday to Fan Zhongyan and Tian Wenjing, he chatted with the two gentlemen for a while. Before he knew it, it was already noon.
After lunch, Shanhai Town began to get busy preparing for the New Year's Eve dinner. As this was the first New Year's Eve in Shan Hai Town, the reunion dinner was made even more heartwarming under the planning of Du Xiaolan.
The entire New Year's Eve dinner was designed to be a traditional street banquet in China. The first table was placed in the main hall of the Liege's Mansion. The people lined up along the courtyard of the Liege's Mansion, to the square in front of the mansion, and then along the commercial street all the way to the town's entrance.
The banquet officially started at six in the evening. At the head table of the meeting hall, Ouyang Shuo, Fan Zhongyan, Tian Wenjing, Shi Wansui, Cui Yingyou, Mu Qingsi, Lin Yi, and Su were seated.
There were two tables in the courtyard, and one of them was occupied by the division chief and squad leader. There were a total of thirty tables in the square, and they were occupied by military soldiers and low-level government officials. Along the commercial street, there were a total of one hundred and eight tables, and all the townspeople took their seats.
The banquet lasted until half past eight in the evening when everyone was drunk and toasted each other. The system was quite humane this time. It didn't send the Nian beast to cause trouble during the reunion dinner.
Ouyang Shuo was still thinking about the Nian beast's spring event, so he didn't really drink alcohol at the table. He only drank plain water instead. All the military personnel were instructed by him not to touch a single drop of alcohol.
In his previous life, there was a muddle-headed Liege who got drunk on New Year's Eve. When the Nian beast came, he naturally didn't have the strength to fight back. His village was destroyed, and a happy occasion turned into a funeral.
"System Announcement: Gaia Year 1, February 19th, 9 p.m. sharp, the Nian beast will descend upon the wilderness. All Liege's, please prepare in advance!"
"System Announcement: Gaia Year 1, February 19th, 9 p.m. sharp, the Nian beast will descend upon the wilderness. All Liege's, please prepare in advance!"
"System Announcement: Gaia Year 1, February 19th, 9 p.m. sharp, the Nian beast will descend upon the wilderness. All Liege's, please prepare in advance!"
According to tradition, a territory would be allocated one to two Nian beasts. The Nian beasts in the first year were on average level 30, and they would increase by ten levels every year. The Nian beast would only attack the main territory, and subsidiary territories weren't within its attack range.
Hence, as long as they were prepared, they wouldn't cause any damage to the territory. Instead, they would be rewarded handsomely. After all, it was New Year's Eve, and the system didn't want to ruin the festive atmosphere. Organizing this kind of event was more of a way to liven things up.
Hearing the system announcement, Ouyang Shuo gestured to Shi Wansui and Lin Yi to bring the soldiers back to the camp. He returned to his room to take out his weapons, and brought Black Whirlwind from the stable, heading straight for the camp.
When he entered the camp, the soldiers were already prepared. As this was different from the previous battles, he felt the need to give some instructions beforehand. He smiled and said, "Don't be nervous, everyone. This time, to deal with the Nian beast, the main goal is to trap the enemy, and injure the enemy is secondary. Hence, everyone must protect yourselves. I don't want anyone to get hurt in this battle. "
"Yes, sir!" The soldiers shouted in unison.
"Go!" Ouyang Shuo turned his horse around and charged out of the camp.
Ouyang Shuo personally guarded the north gate, and Lin Yi led fifty cavalry to guard him. Shi Wansui led the newly formed infantry platoon to guard the west gate, while Zhao Sihu and Li Mingliang led the remaining fifty cavalry to guard the east gate. The military intelligence department was responsible for the communication between the three sides. Everyone used the fireworks as a signal, and once the Nian beast appeared, they would immediately gather.
At 9: 10 p.m., there was still no trace of the Nian beast. Ouyang Shuo gestured for everyone to calm down.
Ten minutes later, two giant beasts headed straight for the north gate. The Nian beast was more than ten feet long, and its body was covered in dense dark green scales. Only its neck and tail had a few tufts of golden fur. There were horns on its head, and its eyes were like copper bells. It had sharp teeth, and its gaze was ferocious.
The two Nian beasts, one big and one small, galloped like the wind, occasionally roaring "Nian ~ ~". These two Nian beasts were a pair of male and female. The larger one was the male, and the smaller one was the female.
Ouyang Shuo ordered Lin Yi to release the fireworks signal while he used Detection to check the Nian beast's attributes.
[Name]: Nian Beast (Spiritual Beast)
[Level]: Level 40
[Skills]: Blood Slaughter (Increases Kill Points by 80), Charge (Increases Attack by 60)
[Combat Strength]: 80
[Rating]: An evil beast from ancient myths and legends. It was said that in ancient times, Nian beasts would attack villages at midnight at the end of the year. Any village that was conquered by the Nian beasts would suffer a cruel massacre, and the horns on their heads were the weapons of slaughter. After the massacre, the Nian beasts would eat the heads of the villagers.
They were really lucky this time. Not only did they encounter two Nian beasts, but their levels were ten times higher than the average. Ouyang Shuo was a little worried that the beginner contract scroll wouldn't work.
Under Lin Yi's command, the cavalry quickly formed a circle and ran clockwise, trapping the two Nian beasts in the middle. It wasn't a good idea to fight the Nian beasts before the infantry arrived.
The two Nian beasts were very agitated after being trapped in the middle. They kept charging, trying to break through the cavalry's encirclement. Unfortunately, the cavalry was no longer the same as before. After a few big battles, they were all very skilled with bows and horses. Whenever the Nian beasts moved, the encirclement would move as well, making the two beasts return empty-handed.
In order to increase the chances of taming the beasts, Ouyang Shuo had to order the cavalry to use bows and arrows to fight back. As long as they didn't hit the eyes or any other vital parts, they would be able to get rid of the Nian beasts.
They were, after all, ferocious beasts. Under the pressure, the horses of the cavalry couldn't take it anymore. They couldn't run as fast as they started, and there were a few times when they were in danger. Fortunately, Shi Wansui from the west gate and Zhao Sihu from the east gate had received the signal and arrived at the north gate as reinforcements.
There was no suspense in the battle after that. The infantry kept the Nian beasts at the front while the cavalry kept firing from behind. In less than ten minutes, the two Nian beasts fell to the ground.
Ouyang Shuo signaled the army to stop attacking and quickly walked in front of the Nian beast. He took out the beginner contract scroll and opened it slowly. The scroll turned into a white light, covering him and the Nian beast in it. Following that, a pleasant system notification sounded.
"System notification: Congratulations to player Not Naked for taming the Nian beast. The Nian beast has automatically become the guardian beast of Shanhai Town. Reward: 500 reputation points!"
Under the white light of the contract scroll, the Nian beast's injuries were healed. It nodded at Ouyang Shuo, showing its affection and taming. It then turned to the female beast lying on the other side, looking at its master with a pleading look.
Ouyang Shuo understood and nodded, "Don't worry, I'll heal it."
Nian was a very intelligent monster. Especially after they signed a contract, they would be able to communicate telepathically. Naturally, it understood what Ouyang Shuo meant and nodded happily.
Ouyang Shuo ordered Lin Yi to arrange for a stretcher to carry the female beast to the medical center for treatment. The rest of the soldiers returned to camp. On the way back, he took the opportunity to check on the changes that happened to the Nian beast after it became the guardian beast.
[Name]: Nian Beast (Spirit Beast)
[Type]: Shanhai Town Guardian Beast
[Level]: Level 40
[Skills]: Blood Slaughter (Increases Kill Points by 80), Charge (Increases Attack by 60)
[Combat Strength]: 80
[Traits]: Deterrence (Increases security of the territory by 20), Guardian (Increases defense of the territory by 10)
[Description]: An evil beast from ancient myths and legends. It is said to be the offspring of an evil dragon and a black Qilin. As a guardian beast, it can activate the Qilin bloodline and evolve.
Ouyang Shuo nodded in gratification. As expected of a guardian beast, the two traits were very useful. More importantly, there was a certain chance that the Nian beast could evolve into a Qilin. It was just that the Pigman from his past life didn't have this condition. In this life, he could only rely on himself to figure it out.
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