Chapter 699: Chapter 700 Accidental Discovery
Nian Shutong walked and walked until she stood at a certain spot in the school, and then she stopped moving.
"Could it be that I’ve flown around so much I’ve made myself stupid, why do I get lost every time I’m on the ground."
Nian Shutong had gotten lost again. The last time she got lost, she stumbled upon the Chi Family by accident, but this time she didn’t know if she would be lucky enough to have a reversal of fortune.
Now, she really felt an urge to just fly up into the sky and travel that way.
The answer, of course, was that it was not okay. The entire Imperial Military Academy strictly forbade flying.
No matter if you were some kind of leader or a professor, you had to follow the rules of passage, at most riding on a small ground transportation vehicle like a balance scooter.
Nian Shutong simply adopted the most straightforward method, choosing a direction and walking.
She walked with an expressionless face; no one could tell she was lost. When she encountered a signpost, she would just take a look and that would be almost enough.
If she used a Light Computer to navigate right now, then everyone who saw her would know she was lost, which definitely wouldn’t do.
Nian Shutong had walked briskly for nearly twenty minutes when she finally arrived at the back door of a large building. The back door of the building was open, and people were moving something inside.
"Master, master, I smell the scent of Crystal Stone."
Crystal Stone?
The little white mouse had been in Nian Shutong’s pocket all along, along with several Zodiac Beasts that she had brought with her. Only the Little Pink Pig went back with Dou Dou and the others.
The remaining Little Silver Snake was serving as a hairpin on Nian Shutong’s head, and the Little White Rabbit had also morphed into a tiny one, in another pocket of Nian Shutong’s.
Which made Nian Shutong’s pockets bulge awkwardly.
"Xiao Bai, this is the school, and if there’s Crystal Stone, it belongs to others, we can’t take it."
"Master! It’s not the school’s!"
"We can’t take it if it belongs to someone else either."
"Oh master, it should be unclaimed." Xiao Bai anxiously communicated telepathically, "The bag that man just carried contained Moshi used for power, but that Moshi had been tainted with the scent of Crystal Stone. I think it’s likely that two mines were close to each other and the scents mixed."
Listening to Xiao Bai, Nian Shutong calculated in her heart. It wouldn’t hurt to check it out.
"Let’s go have a look, and if we find that the mine already has an owner, then we’ll leave it be."
However, if it was unclaimed, Nian Shutong would definitely not be polite.
She’d been planning to investigate anyway, so Nian Shutong rolled up her sleeves and stepped forward to help.
"Let me help you!"
She moved quickly, reaching out to help two guys carrying Moshi, bending and stretching out her hand, ready to lend a hand.
"No need, classmate. We can handle it ourselves."
"Yeah, put it down, it’s too heavy!"
Moshi was very dense and even though it was just bags of Moshi, the weight of a single bag was more than ten times that of a brick.
Yet these pieces of Moshi were extremely fragile and delicate, broke easily, and could disrupt magnetic fields, which is why they needed to be carefully moved manually instead of transported by a spatial button.
"It’s okay, I can lift it!"
Nian Shutong easily picked up a bag of Moshi with one hand, and another with her other hand. She looked relaxed as if she was carrying two bags of cotton and asked the two guys, "Where to?"
Seeing Nian Shutong handle the bags so easily, they didn’t decline any further; this was the Imperial Military Academy after all, and heartfelt assistance was nothing out of the ordinary.
Normally, anyone with a need could call out and instantly have several hundred people come to help.
"Walk this way."
"You’re quite strong, classmate, which year are you in?"
Both of them, looking at Nian Shutong’s youthful face, guessed that she was a student.
"Ha ha, I am—"
"You two hurry up, it’s mealtime, we’re going to be late!"
Before Nian Shutong could finish her reply, she was interrupted by a bald master who was walking towards them.
"Coming right up!"
"I know!" said Nian Shutong as she followed two anxious people. After storing the Moshi, she had no time to ask questions and hurried along with them. After several trips back and forth, all the Moshi were finally moved.
"Today we really owe you one. We wouldn’t have finished this quickly without you."
"Yeah, seriously. I didn’t expect a female soldier to be so strong."
Nian Shutong was all smiles, ready to speak, but as the two were anxious to get back to work and it seemed she would miss her chance, they turned and called back.
"Miss, hurry up!"
"We’ll treat you to a meal!"
"Hey, I’m coming."
Nian Shutong didn’t stand on ceremony; she still had questions to ask, and there was no point in working for nothing.
When Nian Shutong followed them through a large iron gate, she stepped into a completely different world.
Dozens of large pots were being continuously stirred, with steam rising nonstop from some of them. Countless chefs were shouting and calling out, perspiring heavily.
"Serve food at window seven!"
"Serve food at window three!"
"Serve food at window one!"
...
The chanting shouts filled the bustling space of the kitchen.
"Miss, wait and have a meal with us. Don’t leave!"
"Yeah, don’t go. We’ll be free in a moment!"
The two left these words behind and went back to work.
Nian Shutong stood alone in an open space, looking a bit lonely as people occasionally passed by. For the first time, she felt like she was truly in the way.
"The one standing there, if you’ve come, you should work!"
The bald master chef, mistaking Nian Shutong for a student working for extra credit in the cafeteria, shouted at her to get to work.
Nian Shutong responded with determination: Here I am! Might as well work since I’m here.
She blended in perfectly, where others carried one tray at a time, Nian Shutong carried four without any mishap or spillage.
Lifting large pots with one hand and picking up steamed buns with the other, she worked as efficiently as several people combined.
Eventually, she even took over for the master chef and started cooking.
The key point was that the dishes she cooked were in no way inferior to the master chef’s, and even seemed better.
When the bald master chef finally had a moment to spare, he asked about the one who had moved the Moshi earlier.
"This student doing extra credit work is good. Give her full marks if she keeps up the good work."
Extra credit?
The guys who had moved the Moshi took a glance at Nian Shutong, who was cooking and even flipping the wok, and realized she was the one working for extra credit.
At the Imperial Military Academy, every student is required to work in any department of the school to help out and get acquainted with each Legion’s duties.
And since the cafeteria staff were all ex-military, they had the authority to award credits based on student performance.
Misidentified as a student working for extra credit, Nian Shutong finished cooking the last dish and finally took a break.
"Student over there, come sit down. It’s time to eat."
Still mistaken for a student, Nian Shutong washed her hands and joined a group of old chefs with great gusto.
"Ha ha ha! Good, that’s the spirit of a soldier."
"Keep it up, and I’ll give you full marks later."
Full marks for what?