Chancellor Wen was shocked and cried out in innocence, fearing that others would think he had something unnatural going on with these creatures. “I am innocent! How could I possibly invite supernatural creatures to the school?”
Big Fish looked at Chancellor Wen as if he were a heartless man, and his voice was full of rebuke. “You obviously like us very much! I didn’t expect you to be such a fickle person!”
Chancellor Wen immediately retorted, “Nonsense, how could I like a supernatural beast like you?”
Although the original forms of these fish looked quite beautiful, they were obviously not something that should exist in this material world. Chancellor Wen was extremely resistant to them and did not want to see such supernatural creatures at all.
Big Fish retorted fiercely, “You named the lake behind us Wenyao Lake and built us such a big house. What is that if not you inviting us to live here?”
Everyone was shocked when they heard this, and their eyes were filled with confusion, as they all cast doubtful looks at Chancellor Wen.
Chancellor Wen stared at Big Fish’s appearance carefully, as if he understood something, and finally realized, “You’re a wenyao!”
These wenyao before them looked like carps but had wings. Chancellor Wen had been too surprised to recognize it before, but now that he has calmed down, he quickly realized what it was.
Vice-Chancellor Ling asked curiously, “What’s going on?”
Chancellor Wen smiled bitterly. The wenyao were supernatural beasts from the Classic of Mountains and Seas1. Compared to other fish creatures, the wenyao’s symbolism was far more auspicious. The appearance of other fish creatures were portents for either floods or droughts, but the wenyao‘s appearance signified a bountiful harvest. It was said that the 2008 Olympic Fuwa mascot, Bei Bei, was inspired by the wenyao.
Moreover, the character ‘Wen’ in wenyao was the same as his surname, which inevitably made him pay more attention to this supernatural beast and have greater preference for them over the others.
When the Eighth Cafeteria was being built, he was preparing to name the scenic lake behind the cafeteria, and suddenly his favorite supernatural beast—the wenyao—came to his mind.
Now, he thought to himself, ‘No wonder the school’s landscape trees have been growing so lush lately. The gardeners have been saying that the trees were somehow growing too fast.’
Chancellor Wen quickly explained, “The scenic lake behind the Eighth Cafeteria is indeed called Wenyao Lake. I was confused. If I had known this would be construed as an invitation, I wouldn’t have chosen this name.”
Everyone gradually understood and looked at Chancellor Wen with complicated expressions. Great, so it was you who led the Imperial Army2 to the school!
The fish creature was very proud and refused to take any responsibility. “That’s right, we didn’t commit any crime at all. It’s because he likes us so much that I brought my family here. Besides, we are auspicious beasts and will not hurt anyone.”
His sons and daughters all agreed, “Yes, yes, he likes us so much, so we all play with him reluctantly.”
Chancellor Wen: “…” I really don’t want this blessing.
Chancellor Wen sighed. He had originally thought that the story of Lord Ye’s love for dragons was absurd. If he were Lord Ye, he would definitely be delighted to encounter a mythical creature he loved. But when the wenyao actually appeared before him… He just wanted to apologize to Lord Ye for being too confident.3
Big Fish thought that Zhang Jing would let him go after saying this, but Zhang Jing still looked ruthless and said, “No, I still have to take you back to the police station for interrogation.”
Big Fish: “…” The times these days were really getting more and more unpredictable.
All twenty members of the wenyao family were taken away by Zhang Jing using a metaphysical weapon, leaving only the school leaders and Luo Huai’an at the scene.
… … translated by Maela @ whitemoonlighttranslations.com
Luo Huai’an looked at wenyao‘s back, feeling a little lost. The reason she came in was because she smelled the fragrance.
That was a wenyao.
… She has heard it was delicious.
That fish was so big that it couldn’t possibly be stewed in one pot, so she could definitely cook one dish in salt and pepper and then make another spicy dish!
Luo Huai’an felt a little disappointed and couldn’t help but sigh. What a pity, she was a law-abiding divine beast. Zhang Jing took those offending fish away, and she would not be able to enjoy them.
The five school leaders witnessed the whole thing and were still in shock.
Chancellor Wen looked at Luo Huai’an with a kind smile. He didn’t know who this girl was, but he was very grateful that she saved their lives, so he asked, “Are you a student in our school?”
Luo Huai’an shook her head, “No, I’m here to apply for a job.”
It turned out that masters didn’t necessarily live in seclusion in the mountains and forests; they also walked among the people.
Chancellor Wen digested this information and guessed, “You’re not that old. Are you here to apply for the counselor position?”
Luo Huaian smiled and said, “I’m not here to apply for the position of counselor, I’m here to apply for the position of cafeteria aunt.”
Chancellor Wen: “???”
Mythical Beast Cafeteria translated by Maela @ whitemoonlighttranslations.com
T/N: Wenyao is an auspicious mythical beast that has the body of a fish, wings, blue markings along its body, white head, red beak. Their sound is said to be like the cry of a luan bird. They taste sour and sweet, and eating them is said to cure madness. Their appearance signifies a year of great harvest.
When China held the 2008 Olympics in Beijing, they came up with 5 mascots, each representing an element. Bei Bei is the blue one on the far left and represents water, inspired by fish (or as in this novel, by wenyao).
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Chapter 3.1 — This Dish Will Corrode My Willpower
Chapter 3.2 — This Dish Will Corrode My Willpower
Chapter 4 — Do You Want to Operate the Eighth Cafeteria?
Chapter 5.1 — Don’t Go Near the Aero U’s Cafeterias!
Chapter 5.2 — Don’t Go Near the Aero U’s Cafeterias!
Chapter 6.1 — Alas, I Don’t Have the Knowledge
Chapter 6.2 — Alas, I Don’t Have the Knowledge
Chapter 6.3 — Alas, I Don’t Have the Knowledge
FOOTNOTES:
- Classic of Mountains and Seas is an ancient Chinese text that is a compilation of mythic geography and beasts. It has existed as early as 4th Century BCE. ↩︎
- They mean the Japanese army that once occupied China 😅 ↩︎
- Lord Ye loves dragons. Idiom. It describes someone who professes to love something but is actually afraid of it. The story goes that Lord Ye was known for his love of dragons, even decorating his house with dragon motif. But then when one finally visited him, he ran away in fear ↩︎
WHITE MOONLIGHT TRANSLATIONS 
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