Big Fish thought of Qing Niao and sneered inwardly. Once he’d latched onto this human, together they’d defeat the boss. He’d relentlessly exploit Qing Niao, making him work all day! 

But then he suddenly had a change of heart. It seemed that Qing Niao particularly enjoyed working; then wouldn’t this punishment not be painful for him, but instead be a reward?

Big Fish felt increasingly speechless as he thought about it, so he simply stopped thinking about that stupid Qing Niao and decided to stick to this human’s coattails.

“Big Brother, when are we going to overthrow the boss?”

Qi Ze, a law-abiding modern man, couldn’t comprehend the thoughts of the ancient wenyao, who revered strength above all else. 

After hearing his colleague’s words, he was immediately bewildered; why did this colleague sound like someone involved in organized crime?

Why should they overthrow the boss?

Big Fish assumed this human was a convict like himself, so he tempted him, “Big Brother, with such terrifying flames, your strength might not be much weaker than the boss. You can defeat the boss, take over the cafeteria and all the money, and then lock the boss in the kitchen to cook.”

Big Fish was actually quite smart; he knew he was currently a convict. If he and others defeat the boss, they would definitely be punished by the relevant authorities.

So he cleared his throat and said, “Because the relevant departments are paying too much attention to us, we can’t make any big moves. We should avoid direct conflict, strive for peaceful evolution, and use coercion to make the boss step down voluntarily.”

Big Fish had a beautiful plan: he would send Qi Ze to take the lead, and if Qi Ze succeeded, Big Fish would be credited for supporting the new emperor. Even if Qi Ze failed, he wouldn’t be implicated.

Moreover, if Luo Huai’an were a normal boss, even if she eventually won over the employee uprising, she would still feel apprehension and would probably never dare to exploit him as before.

Big Fish felt increasingly impressed with himself, using humans to fight humans—a brilliant tactic of using someone else to do his dirty work.

Qi Ze: “…”

Just as Qi Ze was about to ignore the strange employee, he suddenly caught a glimpse of a familiar figure outside the kitchen door.

Big Fish, unaware of the impending danger, continued chattering: “Big Brother, not only does the boss make a lot of money, but she also owns a mountain with a lake in it, and a large villa next to the lake.”

As Big Fish spoke, he grew increasingly excited, when suddenly a voice rang in his ears, “So you want the boss’ money and the mountain with everything on it?”

Big Fish, lost in his own fantasy world, chuckled and said without hesitation, “Of course.”

As soon as he finished speaking, he suddenly felt that the person who had just spoken seemed to be a woman, and the voice had a strange sense of familiarity.

Big Fish shuddered and turned around to find Luo Huai’an standing by the door, staring intently at him.

Then, Qi Ze watched helplessly as Big Fish was dragged away while wailing, and who knew where he was taken.

Qi Ze was confused, feeling that everyone in the Eighth Cafeteria, from the owner to the employees, was strange.

… …

Because he had a lot to do today, Qi Ze got off work later than usual.

After he finished roasting everything, he finally breathed a sigh of relief and was about to leave the kitchen.

At that moment, he suddenly noticed that there were still people in the rest area behind the kitchen.

Qi Ze peered in and saw that Big Fish, who had just been talking to him, was standing next to Luo Huai’an, trembling all over, his legs shaking.

A small, blue bird was perched on Luo Huai’an’s hand.

The little bird was beautiful and delicate, with a graceful tail. It nuzzled Luo Huai’an’s hand with its beak and spoke in a gentle voice, “I am a bird, he is a fish, and I am his natural enemy. It wouldn’t be good for me to frighten him.”

Luo Huai’an shook her head. “Who told him to covet my property? He’s like a mouse marrying a cat, courting death. From now on, when you’re not working, just perch on his shoulder and watch him work. If he’s not working diligently, peck at him.”

Qing Niao trusted Luo Huai’an and listened to her. Although he was incredibly kind and felt this wasn’t right, he still nodded and agreed.

Big Fish: “…” 

That’s like killing someone by attacking their spirit!

Big Fish could only sense that Qing Niao was stronger than him, but he never asked him his name or his original form. Only now did he realize that its original form was the bluebird. 

One of the natural enemies that the wenyao feared most were bird supernatural beasts. The three bluebirds of the Bluebird clan were favored by the Queen Mother of the West, and because a few of them attained enlightenment, the whole family ascended to heaven. As a result, the entire clan was very powerful and was among the most powerful bird supernatural beasts.

Big Fish glanced at the little bird and felt his DNA stir. The fear written in his genes began to take hold, causing him to tremble involuntarily.

Big Fish was on the verge of tears. If he had known the real-life form of his new colleague, he would never have dared to speak to him. Wouldn’t that be courting death? He would have run far away long ago.

Qi Ze, who overheard their conversation from a distance, was speechless.

This cafeteria was really strange.

Mythical Beast Cafeteria translated by Maela @ whitemoonlighttranslations.com

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T/N: I would have thought that birds and fish have nothing to do with each other— one being by water, the other by air—but I guess this refers to birds preying on fish that swim close to the surface.

As a point of interest, the pixiu is considered a hybrid beast associated with both sea and earth. It’s not a particularly elemental beast though but an auspicious, fortune-bringing kind.

Both ‘Luo’ and ‘Huai’ are names of rivers, and ‘An’ means ‘peace’ or ‘calm’.

Shameless plug, the awakened villainess protagonist in my other translation work, From the Day the Engagement is Broken‘ also has the same character 安 ‘An’ in her name. She is neither ‘peaceful’ nor ‘calm’ 😅

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