Chapter 22: The Expensive Meal at Zixia Peak

At the foot of the Zixia Peak, inside the Qing Canteen.

At this moment, a petite girl was holding a basin so large it could almost swallow her small frame, waiting in a long queue.

Beside her stood a woman who bloomed like a rose, mature and alluring, a neighborly big sister.

This pair of beauties, one tall and one short, quickly drew the attention of many diners.

However, perhaps knowing the identity of the stunning beauty, no one dared to approach and speak to them. Instead, those in line maintained a respectful distance.

Xiao Xixi, holding the basin, initially thought her mischievous mentor had chosen it to tease her.

But as she joined the queue and saw everyone, both men and women, using such large basins, her curiosity piqued.

She began to observe her surroundings, wondering why the ‘bowls’ were so enormous.

Su Mei noticed the small girl beside her, clumsily holding the large basin, her mind wandering as she observed the diners’ bowls.

To prevent the wobbly girl from falling, Su Mei gently explained, ‘Little Xi, do you know why the bowls are so big?’

Hearing Su Mei’s soft, seductive voice, Xiao Xixi turned her gaze from the others’ bowls back to her mentor and shook her head.

Su Mei, instead of directly explaining, extended her fair, jade-like right hand and grasped the air. In an instant, a small, shimmering blue crystal appeared on her palm.

The crystal was not large; Xiao Xixi thought she could hold three or four of them in her small hands.

As Xiao Xixi wondered what the beautiful crystal was, Su Mei placed it in Xiao Xixi’s basin and said, ‘Little Xi, this is called ‘Original Stone,’ the common currency of the ‘Cloud Mist Continent’ and this canteen. Each meal requires one Original Stone. Consider this a loan from me.’

Hearing Su Mei, Xiao Xixi was momentarily stunned. She hadn’t expected that even in the canteen of the cultivation world, one had to pay for meals.

More surprisingly, Su Mei, the leader of Zixia Peak, wasn’t treating her to a meal but lending her money.

Another shocking revelation was that one meal cost an Original Stone. Although Xiao Xixi had never seen this currency, she knew its value.

From novels, she knew a typical family’s annual income, if saved carefully, amounted to about three Original Stones.

Even after becoming a fox in this world, Xiao Xixi, through her brother’s occasional trips to the market, estimated that one Original Stone could buy four pigs. Now, a single meal cost one Original Stone.

Though her basin was already large, the thought of the extravagant price made Xiao Xixi hesitate. She was genuinely hungry, having not eaten in two days.

But the idea of owing her mentor Su Mei such a large sum made her pause. One Original Stone, if converted to cash, might be worth four pigs, or around 10,000 yuan.

A meal costing 10,000 yuan seemed absurdly expensive to Xiao Xixi, who had always been poor. She felt cheated.

After much thought, influenced by her poverty, Xiao Xixi stopped in her tracks.

Su Mei, seeing the hesitant girl just steps from the payment counter, wondered what was wrong.

She noticed Xiao Xixi pat her small stomach and tip-toe to peek at the meal window.

In Xiao Xixi’s pure eyes, Su Mei sensed her longing for the food. Just as Su Mei mused over Xiao Xixi’s simplicity, she saw the girl reach out, trembling, and take the Original Stone from the basin, offering it back to Su Mei.

Su Mei was taken aback, not understanding the gesture. Before she could comprehend, Xiao Xixi patted her flat stomach and shook her head.

Seeing these actions and the returned Original Stone, Su Mei quickly realized Xiao Xixi’s meaning. Perhaps she didn’t want to borrow money for the meal or thought the food was too expensive.

Su Mei was about to explain why the canteen’s food was so costly when she noticed something unexpected. The girl who had just expressed her unwillingness to eat now had tears glistening at the corners of her rosy lips, barely held back by her ‘slurp slurp’ sounds.

Seeing Xiao Xixi’s contradictory, greedy behavior, Su Mei and many others in line smiled. After all, this ‘little junior sister’ was not only cute but also charming in her actions.

…

Seeing Xiao Xixi’s pitiful state, Su Mei, as the leader of the peak, still took her hungry, impoverished disciple, paid the Original Stone, and entered the meal area.

The meal area was long, and due to the large basins, even the serving spoons and ladles were extra large. Unlike modern canteens that emphasize ‘balance of meat and vegetables,’ the canteen’s dishes were mostly meat, with a noticeably salty taste.

Xiao Xixi held her large basin with both hands. Perhaps due to her small stature or cute appearance, after one round of serving, Xiao Xixi’s portion seemed larger.

Holding her basin full of bounty, she followed Su Mei to find a seat. Looking at the aromatic dishes, the hungry Xiao Xixi wondered if she could finish them all.

As if sensing Xiao Xixi’s doubt, Su Mei first wiped the table with a handkerchief, then leaned on it, turning to Xiao Xixi with a seductive gaze. ‘Little Xi, you think the food here is expensive, right?’

Xiao Xixi nodded, for although the basin was indeed large, a meal costing 10,000 yuan was not just expensive; it was robbery.

Su Mei, seeing Xiao Xixi’s nod, glanced at a few outer disciples at the neighboring table. Their attire was not lavish, and their clothes showed signs of wear and tear, appearing more poor than wealthy.

Su Mei, without further words, wiggled her free left hand, and two jade chopsticks materialized in her palm. Although Xiao Xixi, from her novels, knew this was the work of a ‘storage ring,’ she still marveled at the magical feat.

Su Mei, after summoning the chopsticks, swiftly pierced an egg in Xiao Xixi’s bowl. Then, under Xiao Xixi’s astonished gaze, Su Mei placed the pierced egg in front of Xiao Xixi’s cherry lips.

Xiao Xixi, seeing the egg before her, knew Su Mei’s intent was for her to eat. But in public, being fed an egg… was this appropriate?

Though embarrassed, the hungry Xiao Xixi, under her mentor’s feeding, took a small bite. As the egg entered her stomach, Xiao Xixi felt a warm current flow through her body. How to describe it? Like the exhilarating, fulfilling feeling just before a climax in a small H-game.

This sense of fulfillment was so addictive that before Xiao Xixi could even swallow, her body leaned forward again, and she swallowed the egg, larger than her small mouth, in one gulp.

Across from her, Su Mei, watching Xiao Xixi’s small cherry lips engulf the impossibly large egg, recalled scenes from the forbidden books confiscated during the Green Phoenix Sect’s dormitory check. Those books depicted girls eating seemingly inedible things.

Su Mei suddenly realized the sinful nature of her recent action. Yet, along with this sinful feeling, an unfamiliar yet exciting sensation stirred in her heart.

Looking at the innocent, worldly-ignorant Xiao Xixi devouring her meal, Su Mei had a wild thought—should she experience those forbidden book scenes with this little one?

This thought startled Su Mei. Wasn’t she supposed to explain why the food was so expensive? How did it lead to this? This was unseemly!

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