By now, Bibi Dong, who was walking down the street, had long grown accustomed to this phenomenon. They were much as her teacher had said: lustful cowards, every last one.
However, when Bibi Dong passed East Street and spotted a hotel doing a roaring trade, her lovely eyes narrowed slightly.
"I've been traveling all day, and this useless stomach of mine is hungry again. This hotel is packed, so its food probably can't be too bad."
The moment Bibi Dong stepped into the hotel, she caught the fragrance in the air, accompanied by a faint medicinal scent. The inside and outside of the hotel were practically two different worlds.
One was noisy and chaotic, while the other was a tranquil world of fine food. Most importantly, all the diners wore smiles as they focused on eating their dishes.
Seeing Bibi Dong take a seat, a server immediately approached and said with a smile,
"Guest, I can tell at a glance that you're no ordinary person. Our hotel serves more than ten medicinal dishes. Would you like to try them all? I guarantee that each dish will give you a different experience."
Bibi Dong took the menu he handed her and leafed through it methodically. Her teacher was very strict with her. If she ordered all fifteen signature dishes, she would have to undergo dieting training again once she returned to Spirit City.
Yet every dish on the menu looked delicious at first glance. Bibi Dong pointed to one, then shook her head.
"This dish is too oily. I'll definitely get fat if I eat too much."
Then she pointed to another dish.
"This dish is too plain. It doesn't have much nutrition."
For a moment, Bibi Dong found herself unable to decide quickly. The server beside her, however, had his own set of recommendations for indecisive customers. He smiled and said,
"Guest, a lady as beautiful as you is best suited to our golden set meal. It comes with two vegetable dishes and two meat dishes, along with our newly introduced golden steamed egg custard. Not only will it not make you fat, it also offers various benefits, including nourishing your beauty and complexion."
"Really? This is the first time I've heard of dishes that nourish beauty and complexion."
Bibi Dong was delighted to hear this. Such a good suggestion truly saved her a great deal of trouble choosing dishes.
"I'll have a golden set meal, then!"
"Certainly! Please wait a moment!"
The server immediately handed the order to the kitchen, asking them to hurry and prepare the five medicinal dishes.
While she waited, Bibi Dong listened to several nearby guests discussing something interesting.
"Brothers, I've asked around. Siju Hotel, the most famous hotel in Gengxin City, is closely connected to Longxing Medical Hall diagonally across the street. And the physician at Longxing Medical Hall is truly miraculous."
After taking a sip of wine, that guest deliberately lowered his voice.
"That miracle doctor is known as a master of medicine. He can treat difficult and otherwise incurable conditions like kidney deficiency, physical weakness, and infertility. Just a few courses of treatment, costing fewer than ten Gold Soul Coins, can give someone a second spring."
"I know about that. That miracle doctor's reputation is so great that word has even reached our Chelsea City. He can cure illnesses that healing Soul Masters can't. But healing Soul Masters can't necessarily treat the patients he can."
"He's that amazing? I've been irritable and restless lately, and a little dizzy. Let's go have a look together after we finish eating."
Bibi Dong, sitting nearby, also grew interested in this young miracle doctor.
"This so-called young miracle doctor is rather interesting. He specializes in kidney deficiency!"
At the thought, Bibi Dong still laughed aloud. In her view, healing Soul Masters were far superior to ordinary physicians.
She had never expected an ordinary physician who far surpassed healing Soul Masters, with a somewhat comical reputation, to be living in Gengxin City.
If she could recruit him into Spirit Hall, her teacher would certainly be very happy.
Before long, the five medicinal dishes were served one after another. Their fragrance drifted through Bibi Dong's nose and into her throat.
In an instant, her taste buds were fully awakened. Filled with curiosity, Bibi Dong scooped up a spoonful of soft, tender golden steamed egg custard and put it into her mouth.
Before she could chew, the tender egg custard melted in her mouth. The fragrance within the egg continually stimulated her taste buds, while the few strands of Soul Power locked inside were absorbed and converted by her.
Bibi Dong's eyes lit up.
"I've never eaten anything so delicious. It's like eating a mixture of high-quality Soul Beast meat and pastries. It satisfies the appetite while also having the miraculous effects of promoting Soul Power cultivation and relieving fatigue."
"Delicious. It's so delicious."
Bibi Dong's noble, composed image vanished at that moment. Like a hungry ghost who had never eaten her fill, she polished off all five medicinal dishes on the table.
At that very moment, in a corner on the west side of the hotel, a gorgeous older woman dressed in a fitted black halter outfit with a strapless bodice was watching the distant Bibi Dong, who was paying no heed to etiquette, with nervous eyes. She murmured to herself,
"Ah, Dong'er! If His Holiness the Pope came here in person and saw you behaving like this, he would punish you again."
Besides nervousness, Ling Yuan also looked a little afraid. Qian Xunji had previously promised that, as long as she protected Bibi Dong well from the shadows, once she could break through to Titled Douluo, she would certainly have a seat in Elder Hall according to her merits and strength.
But if some minor matter caused His Holiness's years of instruction of Bibi Dong to come to nothing, that would be her fault.
Yet in the very next second, the same five medicinal dishes were placed before her, and their fragrance awakened her craving for fine food.
"These medicinal dishes... no wonder Dong'er couldn't restrain herself. Even I would find it hard to resist the temptation of such food. They smell wonderful."
"Who cares? It's only one instance of casting restraint aside and indulging in food. His Holiness is in Spirit City right now. He won't know about Dong'er's breach of etiquette."
Ling Yuan eagerly picked up her bowl and chopsticks and swept through the medicinal dishes before her like a gale scattering clouds.
Before long, Bibi Dong rubbed her full belly in satisfaction. But when she looked up at the ten empty plates on the table and the completely empty metal rice container, she felt a little regretful.
"Oh no, I ate too much. I ordered two golden set meals in a row. My weight is sure to soar now."
Yet just as she worried about what would follow, a bloated feeling surged through her belly.
"Urp-"
A belch suddenly escaped. Bibi Dong immediately covered her mouth to keep anyone else from hearing, while a blush gradually rose on her cheeks.
"Luckily, the people closest to me have already gotten up and left. They didn't hear anything so unseemly."
Bibi Dong immediately found a server, settled her bill, and hurried out of the hotel where her image had suffered, heading toward Longxing Medical Hall diagonally across the street.
Gengxin City's stone appraisal convention had drawn many visitors from elsewhere, and the number of people seeking treatment at the medical hall had only increased. Many patients had already formed long queues. As one patient left, another took their place.
At that moment, Long Qianming was running back and forth between the acupuncture room and the cupping room, repeatedly inserting needles, removing needles, and removing cups. Although these techniques did not take up much of his time, there were simply too many patients!
"Si Kai, Patient Twenty-Three's final round of treatment is finished. Go to the cupping room and help him remove the cups."
"Sure, I'm on my way."
As the youngest of the four Si brothers, Si Kai was now shouldering the arduous finishing work that kept him running back and forth.