Uncle Yue Guan, I Want Whale Rubber!

They arrived at the cafeteria.

It was the busiest time of day.

Students from every class were lined up to get their meals.

Qian Renchuan had just started toward the line when Zhang Meng stepped forward and stopped him.

"Class monitor, you take it easy!"

"How could we let you do this kind of chore yourself?"

Then Zhang Meng turned and shouted to one of his lackeys,

"Go get the class monitor's food. Pick out the best meat dishes!"

The lackey nodded repeatedly, grabbed a tray, and rushed into the crowd.

Qian Renchuan stared at him, baffled. "???"

Well, if someone wanted to wait on him, he was happy to take it easy.

He went to an empty table, sat down without a care, and waited.

Zhang Meng and the other lackeys didn't dare sit with him. They all sat properly at the next table.

Students from the other classes stared at the scene, eyes wide.

"Isn't that Zhang Meng from the Second-Year Class?"

"Why are they so respectful to a six-year-old newcomer?"

"You don't know? That's the Pope's eldest son!"

"But didn't the Pope order people to give him a hard time? How did he become the school bully?"

The students talked among themselves, looking at Qian Renchuan with awe.

Just then,

a commotion rose from the cafeteria entrance.

Qian Renchuan turned and was surprised by what he saw.

The newcomer was Chrysanthemum Douluo Yue Guan.

He wasn't sure why Yue Guan had come, but he guessed the man was here for him. Smiling, he waved.

"Uncle Yue Guan, I'm over here!"

Was I finally getting out of here?

Were they letting me return to Riverside Courtyard?

Hearing Qian Renchuan's voice, Yue Guan walked over from the entrance.

But the sight of Qian Renchuan's entourage left him dumbstruck.

Qian Renchuan sat there like a boss, while more than a dozen bruised and battered students sat obediently at the next table.

Another student carried over a tray piled high with meat dishes and respectfully set it before Qian Renchuan.

"Class monitor, here's your food."

Yue Guan was completely stunned.

What the hell?

Why was this so different from what I expected?

His Holiness the Pope had told these kids to give Qian Renchuan a hard time, hadn't he?

How had they all become his lackeys?

Was it because of last night?

Had that beating really made them submit already?

Yue Guan didn't know whether to laugh or cry. He walked up to Qian Renchuan and cleared his throat to hide his awkwardness.

"Eldest Young Master, you seem to be doing quite well for yourself."

Qian Renchuan picked up his chopsticks and replied casually,

"Can't complain. Uncle Yue Guan, what brings you here?"

"Did your Pope, Qian Xunji, finally come to his senses and decide to let me go back?"

Hearing him call the Pope by name, Yue Guan hurriedly glanced around and lowered his voice.

"Eldest Young Master, please watch what you say."

"His Holiness the Pope was pleased with your performance last night."

"He sent me to ask what you'd like as a reward."

So he wasn't here to send me back to Riverside Courtyard after all.

Qian Renchuan was disappointed.

But then he thought better of it. He'd be a fool to pass up something free.

If Qian Xunji wanted to reward him, he might as well ask for something useful.

Then he remembered the plan he'd made a couple of days ago.

Whale Rubber.

Qian Renchuan immediately put down his chopsticks.

"Uncle Yue Guan, I want Whale Rubber."

"Whale Rubber?"

Yue Guan paused, looking puzzled.

"Eldest Young Master, what's Whale Rubber?"

It wasn't surprising that Yue Guan didn't know.

In this era, the soul masters of Douluo Continent had no idea what Whale Rubber was really good for.

Most people knew it only as a cheap material found by the sea. It reeked of fish, and no one wanted to touch it.

It probably wasn't even called Whale Rubber yet.

So Qian Renchuan described it to Yue Guan in detail.

"It comes from a Sea Soul Beast."

"It's yellowish or black and looks like a big lump of solidified gel."

"It has a strong fishy smell."

"When heated, it softens and can be eaten."

As he listened, Yue Guan frowned and searched his memory of the treasures stored in Spirit Hall's vault.

After a long moment, he slapped his thigh in realization.

"Oh!"

"I remember now!"

"So that's what you mean!"

Once he realized what it was, Yue Guan grew even more puzzled.

"Eldest Young Master, what do you want that stuff for?"

"It stinks, and no one ever wants it. We do have some piled up in Spirit Hall's storeroom, but it's nearly gone moldy."

Qian Renchuan couldn't very well say that he wanted to feed it to his younger siblings and earn a tenfold return.

He waved a hand and brushed the question aside.

"Don't worry about that. I have my uses for it."

"If there's some in the storeroom, bring me all of it."

Since Qian Renchuan didn't want to explain, Yue Guan didn't press him.

His Holiness the Pope had ordered him to bring a reward. If the Eldest Young Master only wanted this worthless junk, Yue Guan would give it to him.

"All right."

"We do have some in storage. I'll go back now and bring it over in a little while."

Yue Guan nodded and turned to leave.

Delighted, Qian Renchuan hurriedly thanked him.

"Then thank you, Uncle Yue Guan."

Just then, the lackey who had fetched his food brought over a bowl of hot soup and respectfully placed it by Qian Renchuan's hand.

Qian Renchuan picked up his chopsticks again and turned to Zhang Meng at the next table.

"Zhang Meng, see our guest out."

Zhang Meng immediately perked up.

"Yes, class monitor!"

He and the dozen or so lackeys at his table rose at once.

Their movements were perfectly synchronized, and they made quite an imposing sight.

They bowed to Yue Guan in unison and shouted,

"Take care, Elder Yue Guan!"

"This way, Elder Yue Guan!"

Yue Guan had just turned around when the shout made him jump.

He stared at them, baffled. "???"

What the hell?

These little brats.

They really were treating the Eldest Young Master like a gang boss!

Even His Holiness the Pope didn't get a send-off this orderly!

Yue Guan looked at the bruised, solemn-faced students, his mouth twitching uncontrollably.

He had to hand it to Qian Renchuan.

The Eldest Young Master's ability to adapt was unmatched.

They had put him in the Second-Year Class, a class full of troublemakers. In less than a few days, he had turned them all into bootlickers.

Pope's Palace.

When Yue Guan returned, he reported everything he had seen and heard that day to Qian Xunji, including the reward Qian Renchuan had requested. Qian Xunji stared at him in disbelief.

"What does he want that stuff for?"

"Other than stinking to high heaven, it's useless. It usually just sits in a corner gathering dust."

"I don't know why the Eldest Young Master wants it either, Your Holiness."

Qian Xunji frowned in thought.

But no matter how he considered it, he couldn't make sense of it.

He understood that rebellious son of his less and less.

With so many valuable resources to choose from, Qian Renchuan had asked for a pile of junk no one wanted.

Still, Qian Renchuan had asked for it himself.

So Qian Xunji would give it to him.

After all, the boy had made him proud last night.

He had taken down more than a dozen Soul Grandmasters on his own. His talent and that feat were unmatched in the entire history of Spirit Hall.

"Forget it."

Qian Xunji waved a hand and gave his order.

"If he wants it, give it to him."

"Go to the vault yourself, take out all that Whale Rubber, and deliver it to him."

"Do your best to meet his request."

Yue Guan accepted the order.

"As you command."