After Being Hopeless at Singing and Dancing, I Exploded in Popularity Due to My Appetite (GL) - Chapter 7
Lin Qianman noticed it too.
She immediately felt like she had found a savior, taking the meal box from Fang Wen and handing it to Tao Nian: “Are you hungry? Eat quickly.”
Fang Wen: “?”
Fang Wen didn’t know why; she hadn’t even figured out what Tao Nian’s gaze meant before her meal box was taken and given to Tao Nian.
Alright, Tao Nian wasn’t looking at anyone else now; her eyes were fixed on the meal box as she twisted it open.
Lin Qianman had said “don’t buy too much, just anything will do,” but Fang Wen didn’t dare to just buy anything.
She bought stir-fried dishes from Lin Qianman’s favorite restaurant and even brought a fruit platter.
Tao Nian had already opened it.
Lin Qianman eagerly offered a pair of chopsticks, kindly cautioning: “Eat slowly, don’t choke.”
Fang Wen: “…”
Wait, no. My artist has never cultivated a specific public image, but in front of outsiders, isn’t she generally gentle but distant, polite but aloof?
Who is this enthusiastic person right now?!
She didn’t see the moment Lin Qianman’s persona crumbled even further.
Because Lin Qianman watched Tao Nian eat two mouthfuls of rice with great relief, then told Fang Wen: “Go buy some more food, a lot… a lot more.”
Fang Wen walked out in a daze.
Lin Qianman instructed her from behind: “Drive there. Make sure to fill the trunk.”
Fang Wen stumbled.
What was she trying to do? Why buy so much food? Was she going to treat all the contestants to a meal?
Fang Wen was already gone.
Tao Nian looked left and right. There were no outsiders around, and this place was very secluded. Even if she revealed her true form, no one would probably notice…
She edged closer and closer to Lin Qianman, unable to resist sniffing her fragrance.
She swallowed.
Lin Qianman broke out in another cold sweat.
Strictly speaking, taotie never get full. They just want to eat food, senselessly devouring everything they see. Tao Nian’s father, after eating everything, was still not satisfied, and eventually, bit by bit, ate himself.
Lin Qianman wasn’t a taotie, so she didn’t know what that felt like, but she guessed it was probably like bulimia. But bulimia can be treated; taotie cannot.
Feng Jun had raised Tao Nian for several centuries, teaching her to be as she was now. Aside from an appetite that didn’t match her petite physique, she was almost like a normal human.
But whenever she encountered Lin Qianman…
The rich spiritual energy on a divine beast, the invisible and intangible blessings surrounding them, plus the inherent good fortune of a qilin—to a taotie, it was probably like lamb skewers generously sprinkled with cumin and chili powder.
And this skewer of lamb had to look after a bulimic patient, trying to cure them…
The thought of throwing in the towel crossed her mind but eventually subsided. Lin Qianman tried to remain calm, her hairs standing on end as she let Tao Nian sniff her, asking her: “Is the food not good?”
Tao Nian looked down at the lunchbox in her hand.
Fang Wen had bought Lin Qianman stir-fried beef, hand-shredded chicken, stir-fried greens, and a loofah soup for dinner. It smelled very good.
But all of it combined wasn’t as fragrant as Lin Qianman.
She really wanted to take a bite, not eat her whole, just one bite. To taste what she was like.
Tao Nian’s gaze grew hotter.
Lin Qianman couldn’t help but let out a drop of cold sweat. She decisively picked up a piece of beef with her chopsticks and put it to Tao Nian’s mouth: “Eat!”
Tao Nian stared intently at Lin Qianman, opened her mouth, and ate the piece of meat.
Mmm! It was delicious!
The beef was already chewy, sliced thin and stir-fried, each piece covered in sauce, with some green onion threads, a blend of spicy and sweet that perfectly merged with the beef flavor!
Tao Nian, who had been eating cafeteria food for over half a month and then two days of boiled everything, instantly brightened. She opened her mouth wide, looking at Lin Qianman, signaling for another piece.
This time, Lin Qianman took an even bigger piece. If it weren’t inappropriate, she would have even picked up the rice box and poured it directly into Tao Nian’s mouth.
Just as she was feeding her, bite by bite, Tao Nian’s phone rang.
Tao Nian’s mouth didn’t stop, but her hand took out her phone to look.
Lin Qianman, sharp-eyed, noticed a tooth mark on the top of the black phone, and the screen was cracked.
Tao Nian glanced at the screen.
It was a video call from Zhang Jingyue.
It was dinner time, and Zhang Jingyue hadn’t seen Tao Nian in the dorm or practice room. Afraid she had secretly gone to eat something, she was looking for her.
Tao Nian pretended not to hear, putting the phone back in her pocket with a bitter face.
Lin Qianman watched her natural actions, holding back but finally unable to, she put down her chopsticks and, stifling her anger yet being very firm, like a somewhat under-confident dean of students, said: “You can’t eat phones. They’re full of bacteria.”
Lin Qianman stopped feeding her, so Tao Nian picked up her chopsticks and ate by herself, nodding as she ate: “I know. Phones can’t be eaten. They’re very expensive, over two thousand yuan, which is half a month’s salary for me. Two thousand yuan is enough for me to eat for over a month!”
While what she said was correct, why did it always feel so strange?
Lin Qianman hesitated, then asked Tao Nian: “When you came down the mountain, what did Feng Jun give you?”
“A basket.”
“What was in the basket?” Lin Qianman asked, then rubbed her temples: “Never mind, you can show it to me later.”
Tao Nian focused on eating; her phone was still ringing.
Lin Qianman picked up her phone, saw the video call invitation, and realized it was also a contestant. She switched to an audio call and accepted.
Zhang Jingyue’s voice boomed in her ear: “Tao Nian! Did you secretly go eat something? If you eat any more, you’ll get fat and die! If you’re fat, you won’t have money! You’ll starve to death in the second half of your life!”
Tao Nian still had food in her mouth, indistinctly saying: “No, I’m hungry!”
“Hungry for what? You ate such a big piece of bread at noon, and drank milk and oats. What are you hungry for?”
“No, I’m just hungry!”
Tao Nian said, angrily hanging up the phone, and gave Lin Qianman a slightly displeased look.
Lin Qianman listened to this conversation, thought about Tao Nian’s current state, and finally grew suspicious: “What have you been eating recently?”
Tao Nian thought for a moment, not knowing how to explain, so she gestured and told Lin Qianman: “Boiled vegetables in clear water. Like, white, crispy vegetables, and green ones like flowers, and carrots, and also meat! Not tasty! And there was only a little bit!”
Even normal humans wouldn’t find such food tasty, but a taotie was eating something like this…
“How many days have you been eating like this?”
“Two days!” Tao Nian said, feeling wronged: “I’m almost starving to death.”
Lin Qianman was filled with dread: “You can’t eat like that!”
What if she really got so hungry that she lost her senses and just ate her whole?
Tao Nian had already shoveled all the food from the lunchbox into her mouth in a few quick bites, took a sip of soup to wash it down and calm herself, then told Lin Qianman, feeling very wronged: “But Yueyue said if I want to earn money, I can’t get fat. Eating a lot makes you fat, and if you’re fat, you won’t have money, and if you don’t have money, you’ll starve to death in the second half of your life.”
Lin Qianman thought for a moment, understood Tao Nian’s logic, and nodded to her: “It’s okay, you eat. You won’t get fat.”
Just as she said this, Zhang Jingyue, who had found them but only heard their voices, dissatisfiedly said: “How can she not get fat eating like that? Do you know you gain ten pounds on camera?”
After speaking, Zhang Jingyue rounded the corner, focused her eyes, and finally saw the person who was encouraging Tao Nian to eat.
Zhang Jingyue stammered: “Lin… Teacher Lin, hello.”
Thinking that she had just so loudly questioned Lin Qianman, Zhang Jingyue’s heart crumbled, and she desperately looked at the instigator.
Tao Nian, having just received Lin Qianman’s assurance and now not worrying about the future while eating, was very excited. She completely ignored the outside situation, happily picked up the lunchbox, and poured the last mouthful of loofah soup into her mouth.
Lin Qianman hadn’t expected someone to find them and was also a little embarrassed. She nodded at Zhang Jingyue, treating it as a greeting.
Just then, Fang Wen, who had bought the food, called Lin Qianman, asking where she wanted to eat.
Her own room had cameras in the hallway, and it wasn’t appropriate for her as a mentor to openly take a contestant back to her room to eat…
Lin Qianman made a quick decision: “Let’s go to the cafeteria.”
It wasn’t mealtime, and everyone was trying to control their diets, so there weren weren’t many people in the cafeteria.
Fang Wen laid out all the purchased food, scattering it across two tables. Lin Qianman and Zhang Jingyue sat facing each other.
The 17 year old girl, eating with her idol on the first day, was very nervous. She cautiously picked up her chopsticks and ate in small bites, constantly watching Lin Qianman’s movements.
Meanwhile, Tao Nian sat beside Zhang Jingyue, burying her head and eating voraciously.
In just a blink of an eye, Zhang Jingyue saw Tao Nian in her peripheral vision, who had already eaten two small bowls of rice.
She was stunned then, instinctively covering Tao Nian’s bowl with her hand: “Are you crazy?”
She smiled apologetically at Lin Qianman, then used her eyes to question Tao Nian—”Lin Qianman is still here, do you have no image to maintain?”
Tao Nian was a little displeased and tried to pry Zhang Jingyue’s hand away, but couldn’t. So she started looking at Lin Qianman.
Although she didn’t know why this qilin was called “Sister Lin,” she seemed to have a lot of prestige.
Lin Qianman’s face was stiffening.
While she knew Zhang Jingyue meant well, but… if you don’t let her eat her fill, I’ll be in danger!
Lin Qianman cleared her throat, thought about her wording, and very subtly told Zhang Jingyue: “Let her eat. She… she’s not well, she has bad digestion, she doesn’t gain weight no matter what she eats.”
“But… even if her digestion isn’t good, constantly eating like this isn’t good for her health either. Isn’t her bad digestion because she eats too much?”
After Zhang Jingyue spoke, she suddenly realized something.
Why did Sister Lin seem to know so much about Tao Nian, even knowing her digestion was bad?
So Tao Nian must be very familiar with Lin Qianman, right? She not only kept it from her, but she even lied to her?!
Zhang Jingyue was in a daze.
Lin Qianman cleared her throat again: “It’s not good, but her… situation is special, and it will take some time to correct and treat.”
Zhang Jingyue, hearing this, lost her strength, and Tao Nian easily pried her hand away.
Tao Nian immediately stopped looking at Lin Qianman and buried her head, continuing to eat large mouthfuls of food.
Fang Wen looked at this person, whom she had originally thought had improper intentions towards Lin Qianman, and fell into deep thought.