As Your Teacher, Let this be a Lesson to You

As we arrive at the restaurant that Yue has been talking up, we are nearly turned away at the door. If it wasn't for Yue's presence I really think they would have used force to try and keep us out, not that it would accomplish much against a rogue group like ours. An attendant guides us to one of the upper floors, seating us in one of the many private rooms, no more like this place only has private rooms, while we were brought up I didn't see anything place that looked like it was meant for general seating.

Taking a look at the menu here, Yue really wasn't kidding when she said this place caters to the rich upper-class. The extravagant prices speak for itself, but one of the peculiar things I noticed is the choice of raw fish and caviar, isn't Shengdi landlocked with mountains surrounding the entire continent, just where does the fish come from? It would have to be from a lake or river, but I don't recall seeing any around Shipping.

"Hey, Yue, where does the fish come from? Raw fish spoils quickly, is it really alright for consumption?"

"Do not worry, all the food is guaranteed to be safe, it's managed to pass inspections with flying colours, I of all people would know. But if you're really curious, the fish served is from the underground lake that's located beneath the central bureau. The place is really well hidden that most of the locals here aren't aware of it, it's under strict supervision at all times and only a small portion of restaurants are allowed to access the fish from the lake, for a hefty fee of course."

"Ok, I just wanted to make sure I won't be getting sick. I'll have the raw pufferfish," I say.

"Teacher, your words seem a little contradicting, pufferfish is known to be very poisonous after all. More importantly, how can a restaurant serve poison to their customers?"

"You may know much more than we do about Shengdi, Wanjing, but when it comes to gourmet food, I'm confident I know more. I've heard that, although it is a little difficult, an expert can properly prepare pufferfish without the worry of killing their customer," I explain.

"As expected of you, my gourmet comrade. While not super popular here in Shenzhou, in Yamato this is considered a great delicacy that requires a great chef to prepare. I've was told that in order to prepare this dish, the head chef went to Yamato to study under a master chef. And not only does this place serve delicacies from Shenzhou and Yamato, but Samhan as well. There are not many chefs with the dedication to truly great food like the head chef here. I believe that I too will order the pufferfish."

Perhaps spurred on by the moment, not only does Yue order the raw pufferfish, but Lia, Aurelia, and Daijian chose to order it as well. Wanjing was still a little put off by the idea of eating a poisonous fish, but with a little peer pressure, we forced... convinced Wanjing to get the raw pufferfish as well. Of course, both Yue and I got much more than that, much to the despair of Wanjing's wallet.

With so many orders of the raw pufferfish coupled with the difficulty it takes to prepare the dish, the meals came out a little staggered, but the other food that Yue and I got came out in a timely fashion. As the first plate of pufferfish arrived, I naturally took it for myself as the first one to order it, then everyone else got theirs in the same order with Wanjing being the last. Contrary to her initial unwillingness, after eating it, Wanjing was quite satisfied and even thought about getting more, but once she thought about the price she stayed quiet.

"That was good, almost as good as the old man's skewers," I say.

"Geez, do you ever shut up about this old guy's skewers? Who even is this person?" Aurelia asks.

"He's an old Dragonoid that runs a street stall selling skewers in the Alliance Capital. I hear he's been in business before even my parent's time but knows seems to really know for certain just who he is. He's just been on the streets of the Capital selling his skewers for as long as anyone can remember," Lia explains.

"I didn't know about that, but it doesn't matter, the old man's got some good food and it's cheap, so that's all that matters," I say as I lightly smacking my slightly bloated stomach.

"Are they really as good as you make them out to be, I'm a little interested. I've been curious about the food of the outside world for a while now," Yue says.

"I would suggest you give the Interdimensional Restaurant a try, not only can you enjoy food from the rest of Grauntia, but also the food of completely different worlds. There might even be a branch somewhere in Shengdi and you just don't it yet," says Aurelia.

"Do you know anything about this, lazy fox?" Yue asks.

"I would prefer you to not call me that, but to answer the question, as far as I'm aware I've never heard of a place called the Interdimensional Restaurant. However, my information network isn't perfect so who knows, but I might be able to find out if I knew more about it," Dai Jiang says.

"I don't know much about it myself, it employs some kind of spacial ability that allows it to have doors in all sorts of locations that all lead to the same entrance. It has an extensive menu beyond belief and its prices are rather high," Aurelia explains.

"Noted, I'll try and get my people to look into it. Now, changing the topic, from what I understand there will be some members of the Imperial Guard coming with the next couple of days and they'll be on the lookout for you. Just what do you all intend to do about the auction, While they might officially not be able to participate in unlawful activities that involve the sale of illegal goods, I wouldn't put it past those rats to sneak their way in without their uniform," Dai Jiang says.

"She's right, especially when I consider the leader of the group that's coming, he doesn't exactly have the best rumours surrounding him, so I really wouldn't put it past them to do something like that. Wanjing and Aurelia might be able to hide easily with a simple mask and robe, but you and Lia will stand out no matter what you wear. How are you going to approach this situation? I'm planning on staying put at the lazy fox's place until you all leave."

"It's not like I'm really selling anything and Cory you could just hand over the few things that you were going to put up for auction over to Wanjing and let her take care of it. So following Yue's plan is a good way for us to avoid detection.

"I guess that works, but staying put for so long without doing anything is kinda boring."

"Don't complain, it's better than getting into a fight and making a mess of things in the middle of the city, then we'd probably have to leave Shenzhou if you fought seriously in the middle of the city."

"Fine, but I'm going to spend the next few days doing something teacher like for once and start drilling Wanjing in biology to kill time."

"What! Why? Of all the things I want to learn from you, I don't want to learn about that. It feels like your just picking on me because you upset about not being able to leave Aunt Jiang's house," Wanjing complains.

"That's because I am," I say as if it's the most natural thing in the world.

Ignoring her protests, we call someone over to settle the bill. Seeing the price for our meal, Wanjing actually faints for a moment before waking up to beg everyone else to pay for their own meals. Both Aurelia and Lia don't have much of the local currency, so she focuses her pleas on Yue, Dai Jiang and me, but I don't budge as this was a part of our original deal to begin with when she borrowed my money. Eventually, with tears in her eyes, she managed to convince the other two to pay for themselves.

Not caring for the bad looks I'm getting from everyone one else in the room, I say, "as your teacher, let this be a lesson to you, don't borrow money from bandits."