Professor Jiang didn’t have a meal card. He usually ate at the faculty dining window and didn’t need one. 

Just a moment ago, after finishing his class and heading to the cafeteria with a few teachers and students, he was about to go upstairs. As he reached the staircase, he happened to glance back and spotted a familiar figure standing by one of the windows on the first floor.

Professor Jiang wasn’t sure how he had managed to spot Yu Yao through the crowd in such a large cafeteria, but he didn’t doubt his sight for a second and walked over without hesitation.

“I don’t have a meal card. Wait here for a moment; there are a few students over there waiting for me. I’ll ask them to lend me one,” he said, seeing that Yu Yao didn’t want to give up her spicy hotpot.

However, before he could finish speaking, a hand reached out and tapped the card reader at the window. Yu Yao looked over and saw that it was one of the young men who had been discussing Professor Jiang’s “luring the boss” earlier. They hadn’t left yet, and upon seeing Professor Jiang, they stood by, watching with curiosity. Noticing that the esteemed Professor Jiang had to borrow a meal card, they immediately stepped forward to help.

“Consider this my treat for Professor Jiang!” The young man said awkwardly before quickly running off with his friends, leaving Professor Jiang unable to call after them.

“Forget it; I’ll ask other people later. They should know which class they’re from,” Professor Jiang said, helping Yu Yao carry her spicy hotpot and leading her towards the stairs.

Given Professor Jiang’s character, he wouldn’t let anyone treat him without acknowledging it, but there was no need to discuss it further now since a few people were waiting for him. The literature professors and students at the stairway were craning their necks to see who had just attracted Professor Jiang’s attention so suddenly.

Earlier, they had been chatting pleasantly when Professor Jiang, for some unknown reason, abruptly apologized and hurriedly walked into the crowd, startling everyone who thought something might be wrong. When they saw him talking to a young woman at the spicy hotpot window, they realized it was just someone he knew.

But who was this person making Professor Jiang so animated? He was usually so calm and composed.

Yu Yao, facing the curious stares of the seven or eight people, smiled and greeted them, “Hello.”

Everyone responded warmly, “Hello, hello!”

They all looked at Professor Jiang, waiting for him to introduce Yu Yao. But Professor Jiang only smiled and then said to Yu Yao, “Let’s eat on the second floor. It’s a bit quieter there.”

Yu Yao replied, “Okay, sure.”

Professor Jiang continued, “Are you just having this for lunch? Do you want anything else?”

Yu Yao responded, “No, this is enough.”

Professor Jiang asked again, “Isn’t this too spicy?”

“It’s not; it’s just mildly spicy,” Yu Yao fibbed, trying to avoid worrying him.

The accompanying teachers and students, overhearing Professor Jiang’s kind and patient inquiries, thought that this girl must be his daughter to receive such treatment. However, they hadn’t heard that Professor Jiang had a daughter.

Among them, a young tutor recalled that a few days ago, a junior had mentioned meeting a girl who was highly favored by Professor Jiang, possibly a relative. 

Perhaps this was her!

Once seated on the second floor, they ordered food. During the wait, Professor Jiang unpacked the spicy hotpot and placed it in front of Yu Yao. Realizing he had forgotten to get chopsticks, he went back to the window to retrieve them and also brought a cup of hot water, setting everything beside Yu Yao. He advised her, “Start eating; drink some water, and if it’s too spicy, you can have some hot soup later.”

“Would you like me to get you a bowl of egg custard?”

Yu Yao thought that as people aged, they seemed to believe younger people could eat a lot. Facing her elderly husband at this moment, she couldn’t help but recall how her grandmother used to take care of her when she visited her grandmother’s house.

“Don’t worry about me.” Yu Yao lightly kicked him under the table to remind him to be aware of the curious looks from others, and then she happily dug into her spicy hotpot.

Professor Jiang rarely cooked spicy dishes at home, so he missed this kind of hot and spicy food. 

The other guests were reserved and didn’t dare to ask directly about Yu Yao’s identity, mainly because Professor Jiang’s status was so high. Here, everyone was either his junior, disciple, or the disciple’s disciple, so they respected him and waited for him to introduce her.

This was very down-to-earth. A young student marveled internally. Usually too shy to speak to Professor Jiang, today she had come along to share a meal with her teacher. During the meal, she listened to the senior figures talk, feeling too intimidated to speak up, only gazing at them with admiration, especially Professor Jiang.