Chapter 31: Chapter 31: Reaching a New Cooperation with Lu Tingyan

Bai Su scowled. "Major General, you’ve already asked me this, and I’ve already given you an answer."

Lu Tingyan said, "I don’t know how you lost your ability to have children, but his birth coincides with that incident."

Upstairs, at the turn of the landing, Bai Xiaolang was crouched in a corner, secretly listening to the conversation below.

A Wolf Beastman’s hearing was always excellent. He didn’t need to be close to hear every word with perfect clarity.

’Could I really be her child?’

’Maybe I can find a way to prove it.’

A flicker of excitement lit up Bai Xiaolang’s eyes. Having heard what he wanted, he snuck back to his room.

Bai Su said, "You keep talking about ’back then,’ but I’m sorry, I’ve told you, I really don’t remember. Why don’t you tell me the story again, Major General? Maybe it’ll jog my memory."

’It would save me the trouble of investigating it myself.’

Something must have crossed Lu Tingyan’s mind, because his gaze turned cold. "There’s no need to dredge it up. It wasn’t anything pleasant, anyway."

’My attempt to get information out of him failed.’

Bai Su cursed him inwardly for being so guarded, then moved on to the second part of her plan. "Major General Lu, isn’t our contract up? The money you gave for food is gone, the orphanage repairs were finished long ago, and you don’t have to keep coming here to mooch meals every day."

"..." Lu Tingyan froze mid-bite. Suddenly, the food in his bowl lost its appeal.

The dining room was plunged into silence.

The only sounds were the faint chirping of insects in the summer night and the gentle rustle of the night wind, which carried a trace of mountain coolness as it drifted inside.

Lu Tingyan’s lips formed a tight line, his jaw clenched. His usually stoic face grew even colder.

Bai Su watched his wolf ears and tail slowly droop, even as he struggled to maintain his icy, imperturbable expression. She almost burst out laughing.

’Are all Wolf Beastmen this stubborn?’

Bai Xiaolang was like this, and so was Lu Tingyan.

Bai Su continued unhurriedly, "Besides, I’ve opened my restaurant now. It’s very busy, and it’s hard to look after your meals on top of everything. Cooking is physical labor, and I’m exhausted."

Lu Tingyan’s tail drooped another inch.

Bai Su nonchalantly poured herself a glass of water, hiding the grin that was threatening to break out.

Seeing that she had baited the hook sufficiently, she added with a slow sigh, "Sigh... and I’m a female running a business, after all. It’s inevitable that people will come looking for trouble. Dealing with them is a headache in itself. How could I possibly have the energy to take care of you, too?"

Hearing this, Lu Tingyan’s wolf tail suddenly started wagging again.

He cleared his throat, feigning composure. "If you need help, you can ask me."

But his grip on his bowl was so tight that veins stood out on his hand—a hand with long, well-defined fingers that radiated immense power.

’The novel had described his hands: calloused from years of holding a gun, the rough pads on his long fingers making his grip both flexible and powerful.’

’Yes, flexible and powerful in everything he did.’

’And had... other unique, wonderful uses.’

Bai Su raised an eyebrow, then looked away, feigning embarrassment. "Wouldn’t that be too much to ask? I can’t keep troubling you."

Lu Tingyan said, "My assistant told me about your restaurant. Your livestreams are constantly being attacked, and someone even came to cause a scene in your shop today."

Bai Su sighed in resignation. "I know. People are always pinning baseless accusations on me. I’m used to being the scapegoat."

Lu Tingyan considered this for a moment before saying in a low voice, "Let’s do this: we’ll draw up a new contract. I will guarantee your restaurant can operate safely. Any conflicts, any problems you run into, you can come to me. In exchange, I’ll come here for two meals a day."

’He’d actually had this idea earlier in the day, when he saw the news that she possessed a superpower.’

Females were treasures in the Interstellar Federation, but a female with a superpower was a treasure among treasures.

Even though she was only Level 2, just having a superpower made her incredibly precious.

The news was still just brewing online; the Federation hadn’t made a move yet. Those old higher-ups were always arrogant, looking down on internet news. They probably thought it was just some influencer spreading fake stories for clicks.

’If he didn’t strike first, other factions would soon be scrambling to get close to her.’

The terms of his proposal captivated Bai Su. Her full, plump lips parted unconsciously, offering a glimpse of a glistening pink tongue and pearly teeth.

She appeared to be mulling over the feasibility of his plan, completely oblivious to the man opposite her, whose gaze was fixed on her, the heat in his eyes slowly taking on a different quality.

Bai Su finally nodded. "Okay, I agree."

With that, she rubbed her nose sheepishly. "Then I’ll be in your care from now on, Major General Lu!"

Lu Tingyan gave a nonchalant grunt of acknowledgment, but as he lowered his gaze, his narrow eyes glinted with the satisfaction of a plan come to fruition.

Bai Su turned toward the kitchen. "Let me make you a dessert, then. It’s not good to eat so late without something to help digestion."

The moment she turned away, a sharp glint flashed in her eyes.

’Tonight’s goal: achieved!’

* * *

Bai Su’s restaurant grew larger and larger. More and more customers came, attracted by her reputation, and were then captivated by her food, becoming repeat customers.

Because she had awakened a Healing Ability, everyone was quite accepting of her food prices being on par with canned goods.

Bai Su had already gained some popularity for helping rescue over 100 Little Beastmen, and in recent days, she had garnered a massive wave of attention due to her identity as a female with an awakened superpower and her livestreams.

Many of the Beastmen who ate at her restaurant were healed by her food, with many of their old ailments being completely cured.

Even official Federation accounts personally stepped in to report on Bai Su’s deeds and promote healthy eating.

Because of Bai Su’s mountaintop restaurant, a small-scale food revival trend even swept through the Federation, advocating for eating natural, flavorful food and rejecting secondary processing and technological additives.

Although it wasn’t intended to target anyone, many canned food and nutrient solution manufacturers were still offended. They began to secretly ostracize this audacious young female who didn’t know her place.

Even though she was rare and currently in the limelight, adored by netizens, it didn’t stop unscrupulous merchants from secretly manipulating market prices.

Bai Su discovered that the prices of many fresh ingredients she ordered had recently gone up.

Her costs had increased significantly.

And fewer and fewer people were coming to eat at her restaurant.

Fortunately, she had already finalized her partnership with Lu Tingyan. With his intervention, her ingredient costs were brought under stable control.

Seeing the time was right, she posted a missing persons notice on her online account for the three Little Beastman cubs she had once lost.

A Little Snake Beastman, a Little Spider Beastman, and a Little Lizard Beastman.

She also asked Lu Tingyan for help, requesting that he secretly try to find the cubs she had lost.

It was a sword of Damocles hanging over her, the most pressing matter on her mind.

But Lu Tingyan was lost in thought, his mind elsewhere.

Frustrated, Bai Su waved a hand in front of his face. "I’m talking to you. Are you even listening?"

Lu Tingyan snapped out of it. His eyes flickered, and he cleared his throat, the tips of his ears turning bright red. "Right. Help you find the three missing Beastman children. I’ve got it."

Bai Su nodded. "Yes. This is very important to me. They’re all very important children to me."

But Lu Tingyan suddenly changed the subject. "Have you lost a lot of weight recently? Is running the restaurant that hard on you?"

Bai Su was taken aback for a second. "Oh, a little."

She had been intentionally losing weight. Combined with the effects of her own food’s Healing Ability, which had purged many impurities from her body, her weight was now down to a little over 140 pounds.

She was only 5’4", so at this weight, while she was noticeably curvy, she was at least healthy.

She was aiming to get down to around 120 or 130 pounds.

’Personally, she didn’t like being too skinny. You had no ability to defend yourself, and your punches lacked any real threat.’

It was better to be healthy.

The 120- to 130-pound range wouldn’t be excessively gaunt, but it wasn’t so heavy that it would be unhealthy, either.