Clear Thinking

Tang Wulin rubbed her nose and said sheepishly, "Well, my dad and I have the same surname, while my brother and my mom share one."

Tang Wulin had her father's surname, and Wang Dong had her mother's. Could there be a more ridiculous explanation?

Did Xiao Wu even have a surname? And it was Wang, no less.

Even Xia Linyuan, a composed person who had weathered countless storms, was floored by that explanation.

To ease the awkwardness, Tang Wulin hurriedly introduced them. "This is Huo Yuhao, my brother's roommate."

A friendly smile appeared on Xia Linyuan's face. "Hello, everyone. I'm Xia Linyuan, Wulin's future roommate, and this is Gu Yuena, my friend."

They all nodded and greeted one another, making brief introductions.

"Linyuan, where are you headed?" Tang Wulin asked.

"I've been busy all morning, and I'm hungry. We were just about to go to the cafeteria for lunch. Want to come with us?"

At the mention of food, Tang Wulin's eyes lit up. "Sure!"

Wang Dong looked at Tang Wulin helplessly. Her hapless little sister had always perked up whenever food came up.

What had started as two people walking together turned into a group of five, thanks to Xia Linyuan's courtesy. They even split into three little cliques.

Business partners Xia Linyuan and Gu Yuena, Sea God Tang San's daughters Tang Wulin and Wang Dong, and the discarded son of the Duke's Mansion, Huo Yuhao. Perfect!

Suddenly, Xia Linyuan felt someone tap his arm. He turned and saw Gu Yuena. "What is it?"

Gu Yuena glanced toward Huo Yuhao and murmured, "Have you noticed? Huo Yuhao's been sneaking glances at you ever since we met. Do you know each other?"

"Kind of. And kind of not."

Gu Yuena blinked. "What does that even mean?"

Xia Linyuan explained calmly, "I know who he is because I know he's the White Tiger Duke's illegitimate son. The funny thing is, the White Tiger Duke had no idea he even had another son for the past twelve years."

"As for him knowing me, six years ago my father arranged an engagement between me and one of the White Tiger Duke's illegitimate daughters. It caused quite a stir at the White Tiger Duke's Mansion, so surely everyone heard about it. That's why we kind of know each other, and kind of don't."

Gu Yuena looked at him with a teasing smile. "I see. I was wondering why you could be so bold about refusing to return someone's affections. Turns out you already have a fiancée."

Xia Linyuan glanced at her. "No. To be precise, she's my future concubine."

Gu Yuena slowly conjured up a few question marks. "I've heard of a fiancée, but a future concubine? That's a first. They're marrying that girl off to make her a concubine, too. They must hate her pretty badly."

"That person really did plan it all out. They could humiliate her, get rid of this thorn in their side, and tie the Azure Cloud Duke Mansion to themselves all at once. What a sweet deal. Even I'm tempted."

"So that day, I couldn't help but repay the White Tiger Duchess and her son for some of what they'd done to me. I'll settle the rest little by little later. No rush."

Gu Yuena shook her head helplessly. "You really can't stand to lose even a little, can you?"

"That's right. I hold grudges. Usually, I get even on the spot. If I don't, it means I'm planning something even bigger." Xia Linyuan gave her a faintly amused look. "So don't ever mess with me. The consequences are serious."

Shrek Academy's cafeteria was behind the dormitory area, and each year had its own cafeteria.

When Xia Linyuan and the others arrived at the freshman cafeteria, it wasn't very crowded.

But as soon as they walked in, the atmosphere grew noticeably livelier.

The boys and girls alike let their gazes wander over the four of them other than Huo Yuhao.

Huo Yuhao was cute and handsome, but Xia Linyuan, Gu Yuena, Wang Dong, and Tang Wulin all had faces fit for immortals.

Gu Yuena especially drew the longest looks, as the "only" girl among the five.

Everyone except Huo Yuhao headed without hesitation for the only counter that accepted Gold Soul Coins.

Huo Yuhao, too, went without hesitation to the cheapest counter.

He might have been envious, but he knew what he could afford. He couldn't ruin his future just to keep up with others for a moment.

Watching Huo Yuhao savor even his stir-fried greens and plain rice, Xia Linyuan narrowed his eyes slightly but took no action.

Before long, a scene that left the Shrek Academy freshman cafeteria in disbelief unfolded.

Gu Yuena and Tang Wulin went back and forth between the serving counter and their table more than ten times, carrying plate after plate.

The two had flat stomachs, and everyone wondered under their breath how they could possibly fit all that food inside them.

At Gu Yuena's level, she no longer needed to eat to keep her body functioning. She ate purely to indulge her appetite.

Tang Wulin, on the other hand, was simply hungry and loved food.

According to the Tang family's ancestral creed of raising children without caring for them, Tang Wulin had been born early, before the start of Legend of the Dragon King at Sky Lake. She hadn't begun at Sky Lake—instead, she'd gotten a stellar start in life.

The Tang family had always believed in raising sons frugally and daughters lavishly. So as a girl, Tang Wulin no longer had to worry about money or the herbs needed to unseal her Golden Dragon King Bloodline, as she would have in the era of Legend of the Dragon King.

Though they hadn't managed to uphold the ancestral creed of passing down Blue Silver to sons and the Clear Sky Hammer Martial Soul to daughters, that didn't stop the Clear Sky Hammer Martial Soul, traditionally reserved for the Tang women's self-defense, from becoming the Golden Dragon King Bloodline.

As she ate, Tang Wulin noticed something: standing while eating seemed to let her eat more than sitting down.

With two bottomless pits in the group, Xia Linyuan, Huo Yuhao, and Wang Dong—the three innocent bystanders—were surrounded by curious freshmen, several layers deep.

Xia Linyuan understood now: having lunch with either Gu Yuena or Tang Wulin was asking for trouble.

Gu Yuena and Tang Wulin finally left the freshman cafeteria, satisfied after eating their way through more than half of it. Behind them, everyone stared with their jaws on the floor.

When they got back to the dorm, Tang Wulin suddenly remembered that if she didn't hurry and talk to her sister about switching rooms, the two of them would end up sharing a room with a boy they'd met less than half a day ago. She immediately rushed toward Dorm Room 108, where Wang Dong lived.

People on the Douluo Continent generally matured early, but to Xia Linyuan, who didn't even remember how long he'd been alive, there was nothing wrong with living with Tang Wulin, who was "the same age" as him.

After all, in his mind, Tang Wulin = 11 years old = a child = rounding up = a newborn little brat.

Hmm... The logic was crystal clear.