The Companion Player Doesn’t Want a Shura Field [Quick Transmigration] - Chapter 11

Stepping into the cafeteria, Qi Ming raised his head and scanned the surroundings. The bright white lights overhead illuminated the plain white walls and light gray floor tiles, making everything look clean. Original wood-colored tables and chairs were arranged neatly, with several potted plants placed nearby.

The area was not particularly large, but it was exceptionally tidy.

The cafeterias for trainees and company employees were separate. Qi Ming saw a few young men sitting in a corner, talking and laughing. Their chopsticks clinked against the metal meal trays, producing crisp, short sounds.

A second later, those sounds came to an abrupt halt.

Holding their flat metal chopsticks, they looked toward the cafeteria entrance at the newcomers, especially the tall youth at the front. Soon, they began to whisper and lean toward one another. Except for a blue-haired boy in the center; his gaze remained glued to Qi Ming in an undisguised appraisal.

Completely ignoring these stares, Qi Ming strolled around as if taking a walk before leading the three behind him to an empty table. Beside it was a well-grown pothos plant; the dining environment was quite nice.

With just a glance, Qi Ming confirmed their identities. They were members of Neon Agency’s debut preparatory Group B, their competitors.

Compared to the famous entertainment companies in the city, especially the headquarters of RS, Neon’s main building could be described as pitifully small. However, as Yin Zhao had said, their company was like a sparrow: small but with all its vital organs. Though the land was remote, it was cheap, and the facilities were fully equipped.

The building was divided into Blocks A and B, forming a symmetrical H-shape. Qi Ming’s Group A had their dorms and practice rooms in Block A on the left. To reach Block B, one had to cross a long glass corridor at the end of the Block A lobby. They had just walked through this corridor to reach the cafeteria. A junction in the middle of the corridor led to the trainee cafeteria shared by both teams.

After sitting down, Cui Yuxuan’s peripheral vision was still flickering toward the corner as he muttered dissatisfiedly, “Brother, that blue-haired guy keeps looking at you. It is so annoying. Do you want me to go teach him a lesson for you?”

“Exactly! Have they never seen a handsome guy before?” Jin Youxing nodded and joined in with a pout, completely forgetting that he and Cui Yuxuan had been childishly fighting over the path earlier.

Pulling a wet wipe from the table, Qi Ming was carefully cleaning his fingers, sliding it slowly from his fingertips to his wrist. Hearing this, he asked with a light laugh, “Xiao Xuan, were you a school bully in high school? Why do you want to teach people lessons all the time?”

“No, I was not! I was a good student!” Although Cui Yuxuan’s grades were the second to last in his year, the school teachers were very kind to him, so he should be considered a good student, right?

“Then continue to be a good student. Do not worry about so much.”

Qi Ming did not care how others looked at him. Since eyes belonged to other people, it had nothing to do with him.

“But, I am unhappy. I do not want him to look at you like that.” Pursed his lips, Cui Yuxuan looked up at his face, his tone laced with obvious irritation as his index finger tapped the table with a quick rhythm. At this moment, Cui Yuxuan desperately needed something to soothe his emotions. But before he could tap many times, his finger was gently held.

Cui Yuxuan froze, not daring to move. His gaze suddenly fled from Qi Ming’s face and fixed onto the wood grain of the table edge, determined to stare a hole through it.

“Since Xiao Xuan is unhappy, let us go see what food is at the window today and find something you like, how about that?”

Holding Cui Yuxuan’s index finger, Qi Ming led him up toward the cafeteria window. Without using much strength, the youth followed step by step behind him like a prickly puppy on a leash. He stole a glance at the youth’s fair neck partially hidden by black hair, where he could vaguely see a silver chain. Cui Yuxuan remembered it; a ring was hanging from it, a very ordinary band.

“Brother, I will be happy if we find what you like to eat.” As they reached the window with their trays, Cui Yuxuan suddenly blurted this out, his unheld fingers trembling quietly.

“Hmm? Okay.” His eyes on the dishes before them, Qi Ming did not ask why and responded casually, causing the explanation that was already at the tip of Cui Yuxuan’s tongue to sink back down.

Did he not want to know the reason? In truth, Cui Yuxuan did not quite understand it himself. Perhaps he just wanted to know the other person better, to learn Qi Ming’s preferences and close the distance between them.

Beside him, Qi Ming did not pay much attention to Cui Yuxuan’s reaction. He directly skipped over the uniform selection of vegetable salads and chicken breasts. The more he looked, the flatter his expression became, nearly blander than the food itself.

This cafeteria served only low-sugar, low-calorie healthy dishes. For the sweet-toothed Qi Ming, this was nothing short of a nightmare. He had forgotten that trainees had to control their diets. South Korean food already did not suit his palate, and now, Qi Ming lost all interest in eating. He was not the type to gain weight easily and actually had a large appetite, often eating enough for several people in one meal. The excessive physical exertion from today’s practice made Qi Ming worry about being hungry at night.

He really wanted to eat cheese fried chicken, and an ice-cold Coke would be even better.

The youth did not hide his emotions at all, making it easy for Cui Yuxuan to catch them. He quietly looked at the other’s downcast eyelashes and cheeks slightly puffed out from unhappiness, feeling his heart soften. It became clear that Brother did not like any of this.

“Wow, there really is kimbap today! But is this amount not too small? It is limited to three pieces per person, so I definitely will not have enough.” Carrying his tray, Jin Youxing’s face was full of disappointment as he complained loudly. Since the cafeteria was empty and quiet, his words naturally fell into the ears of the other team of trainees.

“Oh my, look who is shouting about not having enough to eat. Should the company provide you with meals based on a sumo wrestler’s standards next time? I think you are not here to be a trainee, but to gain weight. Besides, you eat so much and still do not grow tall, so do not waste food.”

At the far end of the corner, a boy with sleek black hair mocked him with a sneering tone. Following that, another trainee sitting next to him also laughed. “Hahahaha! If you had not said anything, I almost did not see him. When the time comes to go on stage, I am afraid the audience will not be able to find this kid either!”

Hearing this, a flush of red immediately surged onto Jin Youxing’s face. Since childhood, he had always been a head shorter than those around him. This matter was a thorn buried in Jin Youxing’s heart, the source of countless moments of insecurity regarding his height. Usually, he carefully concealed it. Now that it had been ruthlessly pointed out, Jin Youxing lowered his head, his hand holding the tray trembling violently.

Just as the food on the tray swayed and was about to spill, a large hand steadily supported his tray. Once Jin Youxing regained his grip, Qi Ming let go and used the public tongs to transfer his own three pieces of kimbap onto Jin Youxing’s tray.

“It just so happens that I do not like eating this, so I will trouble Xiao You to finish it for me.”

Gripping the edges of the tray with both hands, Jin Youxing looked up in a daze, nearly bumping into Qi Ming’s face, which had leaned close because he was bowing slightly. Those squinted green eyes created shallow lines at the corners, like a lake surface rippled by a spring breeze, spreading all the way to the corners of his lips, dyeing the entire emerald green with a gentle tenderness.

He stumbled back a few steps in fluster, completely forgetting the mockery he had just heard. He only felt that breathing had become a bit too difficult and the cafeteria felt too cramped.

“Okay, Brother. I will eat all of it.”

“Aw, so well-behaved.” Having his head rubbed, Jin Youxing lowered his head significantly, his chin nearly touching his Adam’s apple as if trying to hide.

Qi Ming only felt the curly hair in his palm constantly nudging toward him. He stepped back a few paces, and his waist was suddenly embraced by a pair of arms. But before he could turn around, the force vanished instantly, as if it had never appeared.

Meanwhile, Cui Yuxuan, who had been standing by Qi Ming’s side, was already heading toward that corner with his tray in a fierce manner. He looked like he wanted to slam the tray directly onto someone’s head.

“Cui Yuxuan.” The voice was not loud, yet it immediately made the person stop in his tracks.

Soon, the prickly puppy ran back obediently. He did not even dare to look at Qi Ming, talking to himself as if nothing had happened. “Tch, what should I eat?”

“How about some vegetable salad?” Though it sounded like a question, Qi Ming had already scooped a large spoonful of organic vegetables onto Cui Yuxuan’s tray. Meeting that stunned little face, he even blinked and offered a smile, saying considerately, “Does Xiao Xuan not like it?”

“No, no, I like it very much.” From the moment he was born, the little wolf who absolutely refused to consume any plant-based food was blinded by beauty. His mouth moved automatically, uttering words that were completely insincere.

After lingering with the youngsters, poor Qi Ming had to face the dishes for which he had no appetite at all. He braved it and took a few slices of grilled salmon, a steamed purple sweet potato, a bowl of brown rice, and a small dish of kimchi. Finally, he finished with a bowl of seaweed and egg soup. As for those several large plates of chicken breast, they did not deserve even a glance from Qi Ming.

It was a very simple dinner.

While the other three children were still picking their food, Qi Ming carried his tray and intended to return to his seat first, but he found his path suddenly blocked. It was those trainees from earlier; they had finished eating and were heading to the food disposal area.

His expression unchanged, Qi Ming took a step to the left. But the person also moved, blocking him perfectly. It seemed Qi Ming’s earlier behavior led these people to believe he did not want to cause trouble; their faces were filled with a desire to test him.

“What is your name?” The voice came from below, without using honorifics.

Scanning the surroundings as if just noticing, Qi Ming looked down at the person in front of him and replied with a smile, “Hello, are you talking to me?”

As if not expecting his reaction, the blue-haired boy choked for a moment. “Uh, yes.”

“But I want to know yours first. Can you tell me?” Faced with this face at close range, the boy suddenly did not dare to look. He stared at the leftovers on his tray and spoke hesitantly, “My name is Zheng Junyu.”

“Junyu.”

“I am here!”

“The employee cafeteria is on the opposite side. Remember to go the right way next time.”

Zheng Junyu was stunned. “Wha, what?”

Lifting his head sharply, he found the person had already bypassed him and was walking slowly back to his seat. Zheng Junyu frowned, still not understanding the meaning of those words.

“Brother Junyu, that guy is saying you look more like a company employee than a trainee.” A person nearby could not stand it anymore and kindly offered a reminder, only to be glared at fiercely by Zheng Junyu.

“Please, I am not the one who said it!”

Before Zheng Junyu could recover, his shoulder was suddenly hit hard by someone, and the remaining sauce in his tray splashed onto his clothes.

“Tch, why is there someone here? I did not even see you. My shoulder hurts from the collision.”

“Shibal, you kid!”

“Brother, you moved so fast. I could not find you just now.” Having failed to help Qi Ming in time, Cui Yuxuan felt guilty. After venting his anger for his brother, he ran back quickly, not bothering to listen to any nonsense.

“Because class starts at six thirty, and there is only one hour left.”

“Mmm, I eat very fast.”

A few shouts suddenly came from a distance. Qi Ming looked over thoughtfully and saw Jin Youxing, relying on his small and agile stature, weaving through those people and stepping on each of their feet.

So childish.

However, Qi Ming looked at Bian He, who was sitting opposite him with his head down, silently eating. He felt puzzled. Is this kid’s presence too low? When did he come back?