A short while later, the head chef finally finished explaining what had happened.
At the dining table, the other three all turned their eyes toward Gao Shang.
Gao Shang: "..."
When the head chef's gaze followed theirs, Gao Shang could only scratch his head with an awkward chuckle. The system hadn't told him about this either.
But thinking it over, this really was his fault.
These chefs had never seen the ingredients he provided, so it was perfectly normal that they didn't know how dangerous Polar Ice Phosphorus Shrimp and Fire Heart Vegetables were.
But he had known full well that the Polar Ice Phosphorus Shrimp possessed the Ultimate Ice attribute, yet had given no warning beforehand. That really had been rather inconsiderate.
With that in mind, Gao Shang said outright:
"This was my responsibility. How about this? I'll pay the restaurant and the injured chef a hundred Gold Soul Coins each in compensation, and give you another hundred as thanks. What do you think?"
"A hundred Gold Soul Coins?!"
The head chef instinctively cried out in surprise, his voice turning shrill.
Su Yuntao and the other two beside him were startled as well.
Su Yuntao knew Gao Shang's finances best. Taking out three hundred Gold Soul Coins in one go would definitely be an enormous burden.
He really wanted to point out that the compensation didn't actually need to be so high.
But on second thought, the restaurant really had suffered considerable losses over this, and Gao Shang had already spoken. In the end, he kept quiet.
Gao Shang didn't notice their reactions. Instead, he gave the head chef a rather odd look.
Hadn't his voice changed pitch a little too much just now?
Was this guy a eunuch?
But it wouldn't be appropriate to ask about something so private to his face, so he simply raised his hand, took out three hundred Gold Soul Coins, and looked at the head chef.
"It looks like you agree to this compensation arrangement. Shall we consider the matter settled, then?"
Yet once he finished speaking, the head chef hesitated.
After a moment's uncertainty, he finally asked cautiously:
"Um, young man, could I exchange my share of the Gold Soul Coins for the ingredients you used to cook today?"
"Hm? Are you sure?"
Gao Shang looked surprised.
Was this an occupational obsession flaring up, or was he simply craving them?
"I'm sure. If I can exchange them for ingredients, I don't mind getting a little less."
The head chef nodded hurriedly. Seeing that Gao Shang didn't immediately refuse, his eyes lit up, and he even couldn't help swallowing.
Seeing that he genuinely loved the ingredients, Gao Shang simply agreed. They were worth the same amount anyway.
He raised a hand and pointed at the three dishes on the table.
"Sure. Pick one of these three ingredients, then. They're all a hundred Gold Soul Coins per jin."
At those words, the head chef sucked in a breath of cold air. As a chef, he could naturally tell that these ingredients were extraordinary, but he hadn't expected their prices to be so outrageous.
Still, he was a man who had seen something of the world. It wasn't as though he had never seen ingredients more expensive than these.
Gritting his teeth, the head chef finally pointed at the plate containing the Fire Heart Vegetables.
"I'll take this."
There was no helping it.
As the chef in charge of the wok, he simply wanted to know what this miraculous ingredient tasted like far too badly.
If he didn't try it today, he feared he wouldn't sleep well for the next year.
Gao Shang nodded, took back those hundred Gold Soul Coins, and brought out a Fire Heart Vegetable, placing it on the table.
"That's settled, then. Take this one."
"All right. Thank you, young man. Hee-hee."
The head chef paid no attention whatsoever to the Gold Soul Coins, casually sweeping them into the large pocket of his apron.
When handling the Fire Heart Vegetable, however, he was as careful as though it were some rare treasure.
First he cradled it in his arms, stroking and sniffing it, before finally breaking into a satisfied, foolish grin.
That "hee-hee" made Gao Shang shudder.
He looked at the head chef's arms, which were thicker than his own thighs, and silently shifted his chair farther away.
He probably really was a eunuch. Not someone to mess with. Better keep my distance.
Only after seeing the head chef off did Gao Shang remember that there were three other people in the room.
But when he turned around, Su Yuntao and the other two all looked as though they had seen a ghost.
The three of them kept looking from Gao Shang to the three remaining dishes on the table.
In the end, Su Yuntao was the first to speak.
"Little Gao, these ingredients... really cost a hundred Gold Soul Coins per jin?"
Gao Shang smiled and spread his hands.
"Relax, Brother Tao. I've been doing some other business lately and made quite a bit of money. Just eat without worrying."
"Business? So the price of these ingredients is real?"
Su Yuntao had clearly missed the point.
To stop him dwelling on the price of the ingredients, Gao Shang could only take the initiative to change the subject.
"Forget the food for now. Brother Tao, there's actually something I need your help with for that new business."
Sure enough, at those words, Su Yuntao immediately shifted his gaze away from the table, his expression turning serious.
"What is it? Tell me."
Gao Shang took a sip of tea and slowly recounted what had happened outside the milk tea shop earlier.
At the end, he deliberately stressed:
"Brother Tao, that Zhou Qi is at least a Soul Elder. With his strength, he's kept his identity hidden all this time. He most likely has some secret that can't stand the light of day. And with how ruthless he is, he might even be a Fallen Soul Master."
Naturally, Gao Shang had made up the part about a Fallen Soul Master.
In his view, Zhou Qi was even more likely to be a spy for the Star Luo Empire than a Fallen Soul Master. This was a border city, after all. Having a few Star Luo Empire agents here was nothing strange.
But Spirit Hall wouldn't take the initiative to interfere in the struggle between the two great empires.
So he could only steer the suspicion toward Zhou Qi being a Fallen Soul Master. Only then could he get Spirit Hall to take it seriously.
Sure enough, the moment he heard the words "Fallen Soul Master," Su Yuntao's expression grew grave, and a trace of coldness appeared between his brows.
"Little Gao, don't worry. I'll tell Matthew Nuo about this as soon as I get back, then request support from the higher-level Martial Soul Sub-Hall. No matter what, we can't allow a Fallen Soul Master to endanger the people."
"Thank you, Brother Tao. All right, let's eat first."
"Sorry for the trouble, Brother Tao."
Gao Shang stopped there without saying anything more.
As long as the Martial Soul Sub-Hall intervened and investigated, Zhou Qi would have to lie low for a while, whether he was actually a Fallen Soul Master or not.
And that would give Gao Shang enough time to make another sum from whale rubber.
When the time came, whatever Zhou Qi's identity was, he would make him regret provoking him.
The meal ended with both host and guests thoroughly satisfied.
Even Sun Meng, the shyest of them, set aside her usual reserve and ate two whole large bowls of rice.
The only pity was that she wasn't a Soul Master.
The Bloodline Power contained in the Polar Ice Phosphorus Shrimp was far too concentrated. She could only sample a few bites and didn't dare eat any more.
Because Gao Shang's compensation had been generous enough, the restaurant didn't charge them for the meal. Before they left, it even specially gave them two bottles of its signature liquor.
At the restaurant entrance, Gao Shang handed one of the bottles to Su Yuntao.
Su Yuntao didn't refuse. After a brief goodbye, he hurried toward Spirit Hall.
He had to report this matter as soon as possible.
Gao Shang and Sun Meng didn't linger outside either, and soon returned to the milk tea shop.
As soon as he entered the courtyard, Gao Shang noticed a light on in one of the side bedrooms.
He glanced back at the storage room. It was pitch-black.
Curling his lips speechlessly, Gao Shang headed straight into his own bedroom.
He felt as though he had spent the entire day playing matchmaker.
Now, only the system's rewards could soothe his tender little heart.
Raising a hand to open the system panel, Gao Shang rubbed his hands together expectantly.
Then he took out the scroll titled "Complete Collection of Uchiha Ninjutsu."