"Well..."
Nana instinctively wanted to refuse.
Ever since she was little, she had never been comfortable taking advantage of others, much less sharing a table with a stranger.
But on second thought, this might be a good opportunity to learn about Xu Tianyuan.
How had a useless prince mocked by the entire academy managed to move into Villa 007?
How had a Soul Grandmaster whose recorded level was twenty-nine beaten Xiao Hongchen into such a state?
Just now, amid the crowd, people had pointed right at his nose and cursed him, yet he had not even furrowed his brow.
Was someone like that really just a wastrel?
Nana could not figure it out.
Whenever she could not figure something out, she always had to get to the bottom of it.
She had to clear this matter up today.
And so, Nana finally nodded.
"All right."
"Great!"
Xu Tianyuan was starving too. Without the slightest hesitation, he took off running.
He was astonishingly fast, as though afraid there would be no food left if he arrived late.
"Hey, hey, hey!"
The corners of Nana's mouth twitched wildly. She simply could not understand why Xu Tianyuan was acting like a starving ghost.
She stamped her foot and jogged after him.
One behind the other, they passed along a tree-lined path and soon reached the cafeteria.
It was a brightly lit, three-story building, and the aroma of food reached them from far away.
Xu Tianyuan took a deep breath, his eyes lighting up.
It's good to be alive.
After reaching the cafeteria, Xu Tianyuan headed straight for the serving window and looked up.
A row of soul device screens hung overhead, covered with the names of all sorts of dishes.
Some were cheap, while others were expensive.
The cheapest cost only a few Copper Soul Coins.
The most expensive, however, cost upwards of a hundred Gold Soul Coins.
Of course, there were reasons the cheap meals were cheap and the expensive ones were expensive.
The cheap set meals included only unlimited white rice and two dishes, one meat and one vegetable.
Still, that was actually a very good deal.
The academy must have subsidized them.
Outside, a few Copper Soul Coins would not even buy any meat.
As for the expensive set meals, those were truly extravagant.
They were made entirely with Soul Beast meat, which helped improve cultivation and strengthen the body once eaten.
Even nobles could not necessarily eat Soul Beast meat every day.
After reading through the menu, Xu Tianyuan immediately made up his mind.
I'm this hungry already. Why bother saving money?
"Miss, I'd like two of your most expensive set meals. Please give me a little extra meat."
Xu Tianyuan walked up to the window and gave the middle-aged woman serving food a small smile, unable to resist rubbing his hands together like a fly.
His smile was sincere, his eyes curving into two crescents as he showed a mouthful of white teeth.
"Coming right up."
The cafeteria lady had initially been indifferent. Ladle in hand, she had been about to unleash her ultimate ladle-shaking technique.
She had practiced this supreme technique for over a decade, honing it to perfection.
One scoop and three shakes could shed half the meat and a third of the food.
But after hearing Xu Tianyuan call her "miss" and seeing how handsome the young man was, she immediately beamed, becoming as friendly as could be.
How many years had it been since anyone had called her "miss"?
Every one of these students called her "auntie" the moment they came in, making her seethe inside.
But this young man was sweet-talking, handsome, and polite.
The ladle in her hand stopped shaking.
Scoop after scoop, she packed the trays full.
"You're far too skinny, young man. You really do need to eat more."
The cafeteria lady handed over two trays piled mountain-high.
"That'll be two hundred Gold Soul Coins. You can pay cash or swipe your student card."
The students at the neighboring window were practically consumed with envy and resentment at the sight.
They were starting to question their lives.
Why did the cafeteria lady always shake her hand when serving them, trembling like a sieve until barely enough food remained to cover the bottom of the tray?
Yet this fellow's trays were stuffed full, with meat heaped above the rims?
It's not fair!
Someone immediately protested.
"Auntie, you've never filled my tray that much before."
"He isn't a relative of yours, is he?"
The cafeteria lady had still been all smiles, but the moment she heard someone call her "auntie," her smile vanished.
She pointed her ladle straight at the student and roared.
"Who are you calling auntie? You little shit, have you got no manners?"
"Hah! I decide how much food you get, not you. If you've got a problem with that, don't eat here!"
Anger flared in the cafeteria lady's heart, and she had already committed the student's face to memory.
She decided to tell the other ladies after work that whenever they saw this brat, they all had to unleash their ultimate ladle-shaking technique.
They would shake until the little shit questioned his very existence.
"I..."
The student was left speechless by her tirade, his face flushing bright red.
Yet he did not dare lose his temper.
After all, anyone who could get a job serving food in the cafeteria had some sort of family connection to the academy's higher-ups.
He was just a low-ranking student whose words carried no weight. Even lodging a complaint would be useless.
By the time he was done complaining, he probably would not get any food at all.
He could only slink away with the pitiful few pieces of meat on his tray.
"Thank you, miss. I'll pay cash. Here you go."
The corner of Xu Tianyuan's mouth crooked upward. He immediately took four hundred Gold Soul Coins from Xiao Hongchen's storage ring and handed them to the cafeteria lady himself.
That was right-it was the very ring he had just extorted from Xiao Hongchen.
Spending someone else's money to eat his own meat made this meal taste especially delicious.
"Mm, make sure you always come to this window from now on."
The cafeteria lady put the money into a box beside her, then rolled her eyes thoughtfully and asked, her gaze fixed on Xu Tianyuan's handsome face.
"Young man, do you have a girlfriend?"
"If not, I'll introduce you to someone. I guarantee you'll be satisfied."
"My niece just turned eighteen this year. She's as beautiful as a flower, and she's quite talented too. She's already a Soul King."
At that, the corner of Xu Tianyuan's mouth twitched slightly.
A Soul King at eighteen.
That really is impressive talent.
But his expression remained unchanged as he replied apologetically.
"Sorry, miss, but I already have a girlfriend."
The cafeteria lady waved her hand dismissively.
"It's perfectly normal for a man to have three wives and four concubines. My niece won't mind either, as long as you treat her well."
Now Xu Tianyuan was completely at a loss.
He had lived two lifetimes, and this was the first time he had encountered a sales pitch like this.
The problem was that he could hardly reject her outright.
After all, she had given him two trays piled full of meat. Both sentiment and reason demanded that he remain polite.
He could only answer in a relatively tactful manner.
"Ahem, my girlfriend gets very jealous. I'm afraid that won't be possible for now."
As though she had not caught his meaning at all, the cafeteria lady still refused to give up.
"No problem! Go back and talk to your girlfriend first. Who knows? She might agree."
"Don't worry, you definitely won't lose out by taking my niece! Her father is a Level 8 Soul Engineer, and she's his only daughter. That'll certainly be a great help to your future prospects."
A Level 8 Soul Engineer.
Xu Tianyuan's interest stirred slightly.
That status truly ranked among the highest in the Sun Moon Empire. A single word from such a person could mobilize more resources than ten Soul Douluos could.
At that thought, an absurd notion flashed through his mind.
Maybe... I should agree?
I'm the Sixth Prince now, after all, and I'm going to accomplish great things in the future. Another connection certainly wouldn't hurt.
Before you continue