Chapter 91: Genuine Goods and Inferior Goods (1)

Just when everyone had given up, the matter suddenly took an unexpected turn. Zhen Xiaoyan, who had already left, turned back at once and walked toward where Ye Lang was sitting.

She came to his table and looked at him with his head lowered over his food. It was obvious she had already noticed his presence; only, no one knew how she had realized it.

"Ye Lang, what are you eating?" At first Zhen Xiaoyan had been somewhat annoyed, angry that Ye Lang clearly knew she was here and had said nothing. If she had not discovered him herself, she would never have known he was right beside her.

But when she saw what he was eating, all that irritation was set aside for the moment. Her attention shifted to his dish.

"I’m eating your tofu," Ye Lang answered with complete seriousness.

At that instant, the entire tavern fell silent. Even the sound of a needle dropping to the floor would have been audible.

This Thirteenth Young Master really did dare to say anything. To say he was eating Zhen Xiaoyan’s tofu—that was brazen beyond measure.

"My tofu? What are you saying? If you keep talking nonsense, I’ll tear your mouth apart!" Zhen Xiaoyan did not immediately realize there was anything wrong with those words. Only after seeing everyone’s strange looks did she react, and let out a sharp rebuke at Ye Lang.

Ye Lang shook his head and said, "I’m not talking nonsense. This is your tofu. I couldn’t be mistaken about the taste. I eat yours every day, so I know it well."

"Shut up! You’re not allowed to speak!" Zhen Xiaoyan said, both embarrassed and furious.

"Haha, you little fool, you really are a little fool—but a very adorable one!" My cousin was already laughing without the slightest concern for appearances.

"I can’t shut up. If I do, how am I supposed to eat? Waiter, bring more dishes!" Ye Lang refused flatly.

Zhen Xiaoyan stared for a moment, then reached out and pulled the only plate on the table toward herself, making sure Ye Lang could no longer reach it.

"Fatty, give it back to me. I haven’t finished yet!" Ye Lang said as he reached for it.

"No. This isn’t for you!" Zhen Xiaoyan refused.

"Why not?" Ye Lang asked in confusion.

"Because this one isn’t good!" Zhen Xiaoyan said, taking over the answer herself.

"Your tofu is delicious," Ye Lang said honestly.

In response, Zhen Xiaoyan hurled the plate of tofu at him, plate and all.

"Say that again!"

"Hm-hm, not saying it. Eating tofu." Ye Lang raised a hand, and a circle of alchemy light appeared, neatly catching the plate of tofu without letting a single drop spill.

"Don’t eat it!" Zhen Xiaoyan cried, lunging forward to snatch it back.

"What are you doing, fatty? What’s gotten into you today?" Ye Lang complained after biting air.

"I already said this isn’t for you. Yours is here." Zhen Xiaoyan set that plate aside, then took out one exquisite dish after another from her spatial pouch. Each one was fragrant, colorful, and beautifully arranged, far surpassing the earlier plate of tofu.

"Huh, this..." My cousin was a little surprised and immediately picked up her chopsticks to taste it.

"This is too delicious. This is what real delicacy tastes like!" she praised at once, and this time her admiration was entirely sincere.

"Ye Lang, who is this young lady?" Only then did Zhen Xiaoyan notice my cousin’s presence.

"My cousin," Ye Lang replied, offering no further explanation.

"How should I address her?" Zhen Xiaoyan asked with a reminder.

"Just call her Cousin," Ye Lang said carelessly.

For some reason, Zhen Xiaoyan’s face colored slightly. "Hello, Cousin. Thank you for the compliment. Please, help yourself."

"Hehe, all right, all right. So you’re Zhen Xiaoyan, then? I’ve heard about you. You’re truly beautiful. Little Lang really does have some ability!" What my cousin paid attention to first was, of course, Zhen Xiaoyan’s looks and figure—an instinct natural to all women.

"Yes, he’s amazing. He always manages to surprise people!" Zhen Xiaoyan nodded, speaking of Ye Lang with unmistakable admiration.

"You’re very good too. Remember to take good care of my foolish younger brother in the future." My cousin smiled faintly, with the slightest trace of intimacy in her tone.

"I can’t really take care of him. I only know how to cook," Zhen Xiaoyan said, shaking her head. With Ye Lang, she truly could not be said to be the one doing the caring, because he was simply too much to worry about.

"Being able to handle one thing is enough; the rest can be found elsewhere," my cousin said with a smile.

Zhen Xiaoyan fell silent for a moment, while Ye Lang remained entirely detached, as though they were discussing someone else.

"All right, let me ask you something. That earlier plate of tofu—wasn’t that made by you? How could there be such a huge difference?" my cousin asked.

"That plate was made by me, but it was just thrown together from the leftovers of these dishes. I stir-fried it casually. It wasn’t for Ye Lang to eat," Zhen Xiaoyan said, giving an answer that left everyone speechless.

It turned out that up to this point, every dish she sold in the tavern had actually been something she made casually, simply to avoid wasting ingredients. Some of them were even failed attempts, and those failed dishes she absolutely would not let Ye Lang eat.

She wanted to give Ye Lang only the very best.

That was why, when she saw Ye Lang eating that plate of tofu, she immediately stopped him and refused to let him have it.

And yet even such a dish could be sought after by the crowd. In another sense, that only proved that Zhen Xiaoyan’s culinary skill had already reached a realm beyond the reach of others.

"Why are you so slow to catch on? Isn’t it obvious? Would I normally give you something like that to eat?" Zhen Xiaoyan grumbled at Ye Lang, as though the one swallowing inferior food had been herself.

Perhaps if she were the one eating it, she would not have minded so much.

"I can tell the difference," Ye Lang replied.

"You can tell, and you still eat it?" Zhen Xiaoyan asked in confusion.

"Why wouldn’t I eat it? It tastes just as good. It was made by you—there’s no difference," Ye Lang said in a daze.

After hearing that, Zhen Xiaoyan sat stunned for a very long time.

Yes, Ye Lang had recognized from the start that one dish was merely something Zhen Xiaoyan had tossed together carelessly, but he still ate it without complaint.

Truthfully, he was never very particular about food. So long as it was edible, he could eat it. Although Zhen Xiaoyan had gradually made his palate a little more discerning, even her casual cooking still fell within what he could accept, and naturally he had no objection.

And even if, by a stretch, this dish had been a failure and tasted dreadful, he would still have eaten it. He might directly say she lacked skill, but he would still finish every dish she made.

Zhen Xiaoyan knew this as well. Yet every time she heard Ye Lang say such things, she felt a little moved—just a little, at least; that was how she herself would describe it.

And because she knew this, the first thing she did after sitting down was to finish that plate of tofu, so Ye Lang would not continue thinking about eating it.

Ye Lang glanced at Zhen Xiaoyan, seeming to understand something, but soon lowered his head again to eat, no longer paying her any mind. Zhen Xiaoyan did the same, starting to eat as well, and even competing with him for the food.

"Hey, hey, I already bit that one. You’re still eating it?" Ye Lang called out.

"Hmph, and why shouldn’t I? You’re always so shameless, taking a bite here and a bite there, trying to keep it all for yourself," Zhen Xiaoyan shot back. It was not the first time such a thing had happened; Ye Lang was far too shameless.

"Then I’ll use my trump card. I’ll spit on it," Ye Lang said with a malicious smile. He was thinking of someone who had once spat on a whole table of dishes, after which nobody dared touch them.

But this tactic, Ye Lang was only talking about. It was simply too despicable; he could never accept doing something like that.

"You dare!" Zhen Xiaoyan raged. "If you do that, I won’t cook for you anymore!"

"Tch, you already signed a contract with me. You’ll be cooking for me for the rest of your life!" Ye Lang said with utter disdain.

"Hmph! I’m going to break the contract!"

"Then do it in your next life."

After eating and drinking his fill, Ye Lang and the two girls went out to stroll and shop, shaking off the others in the process.

After playing about all afternoon, Ye Lang sent Zhen Xiaoyan home, then prepared to return himself, to rub some ointment for his cousin and remove the scar on her forehead.

Just as they were parting, before Zhen Xiaoyan had even gone inside, she suddenly remembered something.

"Ye Lang, for the trial in a few days, are you ready?"

"Trial? What trial?" From the look of it, Ye Lang had no idea what she was talking about.

Zhen Xiaoyan said irritably, "I knew it—you never pay attention to anything related to the academy! Listen, this trial is preparation for next year’s competition."

"What?"

"What competition? Honestly, I don’t even know how to explain you. Next year will be the once-in-ten-years academy ranking competition," Zhen Xiaoyan said. Then she continued, "I’m sure you have no idea how important this competition is."

Ye Lang nodded.

"Well then, let me give you a simple explanation. This competition determines the academy rankings. That part needs no explanation. But what people care about most now is how many young talents will emerge in the competition—they will become the central figures of the continent in the future."

"About eighty percent of the continent’s top experts, both now and in the past, made their names in this competition! Because of that, besides the academy ranking matches, there are also individual ranking matches, further divided into the overall strength list, the martial artist list, and the magic list. Anyone who appears near the top of these lists will become the focus of everyone’s attention, and will also become objects of competition among the nations."

"Oh, so that’s how it is. But what does that have to do with me?" Ye Lang asked in utter confusion.

Yes—what did that have to do with Ye Lang? Did he need to become the object of everyone’s attention? Would he be willing to become one of the future central figures?

Surely everyone would know the answer was no.