Chapter 8: The Southwestern Marquis Manor!

  Transtor: Krukist

  Different worlds, different tis, and naturally, different tastes and appetites.

  When the girl froze after taking a bite, Lin Yu’s heart sank.

  100 Spirit Stohat would cover his food for a month and leave enough for his sister’s allowance. But now, it seemed the girl didn’t like the food, and his hopes for the Spirit Stones were dashed.

  Sigh…

  Lin Yu sighed inwardly. Beside him, Qing Luan remained calm.

  Suddenly, the veiled girl’s shoulders trembled slightly. Qing Luan’s expression darkened, and she grabbed Lin Yu by the neck, shouting, “What did you put in the food? Did you poison it?”

  Lin Yu, choked and uo speak, struggled in her grip.

  As a Third-Grade Are Martialist, Qing Luan’s physical strength far surpassed that of an ordinary person. She lifted Lin Yu off the ground, his toes barely toug the floor. He gasped for air, on the verge of passing out.

  “Qing Luan, stop.”

  The veiled girl spoke, her voice trembling. “There’s no poison in the food. It’s just… it’s just… sob…”

  Tears streamed down her face, and a sieardrop fell onto the stone floor of the courtyard.

  Plop.

  “Miss, you…” Qing Luan released Lin Yu and rushed to the girl’s side.

  “It’s…”

  The girl’s voice quivered. “It’s so delicious. I’ve asted chi like this before. No one has ever cooked such a dish for me… sob…”

  Delicious!

  So delicious it moved her to tears!

  Lin Yu sat on the ground, gasping for air. His neck felt like it had been nearly crushed. He couldn’t help but ment the violence of cultivators in this world.

  I must bee a cultivator myself someday, he thought. If only for self-defeherwise, I might die without even knowing how.

  One chi, three dishes.

  The veiled girl’s appetite was astonishing. Lin Yu’s heart raced as he watched her devour everything. Despite her delicate appearance, she finished all the food—and even had three bowls of ribsp;

  Even Lin Yu couldhat mubsp;

  Is her family starving her or something?

  “500 Spirit Stones.”

  The girl patted her slightly rounded belly, her expression one of pure satisfa. She looked at Lin Yu with a newfound softness in her eyes.

  “Huh?” Lin Yu was fused.

  “Your cooking is amazing. I’ll give you 500 Spirit Stones, but on one dition,” the girl said sweetly. “I’ll e here often to eat.”

  “Sure, you’re wele anytime!”

  Lin Yu’s mind raced. 100 Spirit Stones just became 500! Maybe I should switch from running a medie hall to a restaurant. With just this rich young dy as a regur er, I’d be set for life.

  “However…”

  The girl’s tone shifted, and a hint of embarrassment crossed her face. She didn’t finish her sentence, leaving it to Qing Luan to expin.

  Qing Luan looked at Lin Yu directly for the first time, her voice calm. “We didn’t bring any Spirit Stones with us this time. We’ll return to our manor and have someone deliver the 500 Spirit Stoo you ter.”

  Lin Yu’s excitement faded, repced by a frown. Are they trying to skip out on the bill? Though unhappy, he didn’t dare voice his s. A Third-Grade Are Martialist could easily obliterate him with a single spell.

  The two womehe courtyard, and Lin Yu slumped onto a stone bench. His st chi was gone, and the only o in the coop was reserved for his sister’s favorite chi soup tomorrow.

  Not only had he lost the 100 Spirit Stones, but he also had to make do with roasted sweet potatoes for dinner. Bcky, asleep by the wall, seemed oblivious. Lin Yu muttered, “Sorry, Bcky.”

  As he ate the sweet potatoes, his thoughts returo the puter in his Sea of sciousness…

  ---

  The Southwestern Marquis Manor

  The setting sun bathed the grand Southwestern Marquis Manor in a golden glow. Located in the heart of Heavenly Cloud City, the manor was sed only to the imperial pa scale and grandeur.

  The Heavenly Cloud Kingdom had freat marquises, each guarding a cardinal dire. Among them, the Southwestern Marquis, Nan Zhan, was the kingdom’s only Sixth-Grade Are Martialist besides the emperor himself. A legendary war hero, Nan Zhan had once led a thousand cavalry to defeat an enemy army of ten thousand, earning his fame. Over the years, he had expahe kingdom’s western borders, driving back the barbarian tribes.

  Now, resting in the capital, Nan Zhan sat at a rge dining table den with sumptuous dishes. Beside him was his wife, Qin Caiyun, a beautiful woman in her forties whose fwless skin made her appear much younger.

  Despite the vish spread, the maids and servants standing nearby could only watd silently swallow their envy. The feast had been prepared by the renowned chef Situ Deng, Heavenly Cloud City’s ary King. At just twenty-five, Situ Deng’s dishes were said to be infused with spiritual essenbsp;

  Nan Zhan and Qin Caiyun admired the table with satisfa, but their faces betrayed worry.

  Their daughter, Nan Ziyan, suffered from anorexia. Over the past three months, she had grown armingly thin and had bee increasingly withdrawn. Hoping to lift her spirits, Nan Zhan had arranged for her to join a royal hunting excursion with young princes and princesses. He hoped the fresh air and wild game might stimute her appetite, as relying solely on spiritual medies was unsustainable.

  Nan Zhan had three sons and one daughter, but it was his you daughter whom he and his wife cherished the most.

  They had sulted tless physis and chefs to cure her anorexia, but their hopes dwindled with each failed attempt.

  Creak…

  The courtyard gate opened softly, and a graceful figure slipped in, followed by a woman in a green robe. If Lin Yu had been there, he would have immediately reized her as the veiled girl who had devoured his chi.

  Nan Ziyan froze upoering the courtyard. In the ter stood a rge dining table, her parents seated at it, surrounded by servants. The se was so quiet she hadn’t noticed it earlier.

  “Father, Mother, you’re here…” Nan Ziyan forced a smile. Before her parents could question her, she quickly expined, “I felt out of pce with the princes and princesses, so I sneaked back. Why are you eating in my courtyard? It’s fine, you use it.”

  She tried to slip away to her room, but her mother, Qin Caiyun, stood up with a warm smile.

  “Yan’er, wait.”

  Her voice was gentle. “We know you sneaked back. It’s fine if you don’t enjoy their pany. We prepared this feast especially for you…”

  Before her mother could finish, Nan Ziyan caught a whiff of the food and immediately vomited…

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