Universe Infinite Canteen-Chapter 626: Gift

——[Jealous Lemon]

This was the fifth ingredient Ma Lu had collected in this plane, and it had the highest star rating of all—an impressive seven stars.

Nearly twice the height of a person, the lemon tree was laden with lemons that resembled hearts. As soon as Ma Lu approached, the lemons started shaking and chattering away.

"It's so infuriating! Why is this guy so lucky, stumbling upon a cosmic chef with amnesia!!!"

"He opened a restaurant and made a lot of money, now he even lives in a mansion! Why don't such good things ever happen to me?"

"And not only that, he became a principal, using despicable means to take all the power from the teachers and students for himself, yet ended up enhancing his own heroic image, and those poor sods still look up to him."

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"He says one thing but does another, completely without ideals, a slippery little rascal like an eel! He really has figured out the rules of the game!!"

"Exactly, it's revolting. He's also juggling multiple women at once, dating several girlfriends simultaneously, including a big star. Doesn't that guy realize polygamy is illegal in his country?"

"I'm so angry, just look at him; he's even a bit handsome. Why does he get all the good fortune in the world?"

Upon hearing this, Ma Lu couldn't help but laugh. These little lemons sure had sweet mouths, adept at flattering.

Unfortunately, he had to return to the school to meet Heroic Concealment; otherwise, he wouldn't mind listening a bit longer.

But no worries, once he transplanted this lemon tree into the Desktop Farm, there would be plenty to listen to.

Ma Lu then collected the chatty [Jealous Lemon] into the Collection Bag and led the teachers and students back to school.

By this time, dawn was breaking, and Li Zhengwei, Zhou Zuolin, and others were catching up on sleep after finishing their intensive lectures, only Cao Youyi was still waiting for Ma Lu and the teachers and students to return.

"You should get some sleep too," Ma Lu told Cao Youyi.

"No need, it's already this late, I'll rest after competing with Heroic Concealment," Cao Youyi replied.

"Sleep is important. I can look after those Heroic Concealment guys," Ma Lu said, "Do you still not trust me?"

"I do worry a bit," Cao Youyi said calmly, "Anyway, you're the principal, and there are some things that wouldn't be appropriate for you to handle personally."

"Ah, I always feel like your character must be quite a burden to bear."

"Seeing the school thriving and the students growing, I don't feel it's tough," Cao Youyi said.

"If my brother were still alive, he would also be very comforted seeing Hou De now. What he failed to accomplish in his lifetime, you've managed in less than a month."

"Brother Jinhua is a good man," Ma Lu said.

"Unfortunately, he wasn't a good principal."

"Don't say that. It was the targeting and suppression by the Hero Group that deteriorated the school's situation. By the way, do you have any clues about the grudge between us and Hero?"

Cao Youyi shook her head, "Hero Group's six schools, apart from one in the northwest, the rest are all in Xindu, whereas we've been operating locally.

"My brother was pushed into a corner this time, that's why he went to Xindu for recruitment. Before that, we had no interactions with Hero Group. I have specially visited and inquired with some old alumni and teachers. According to their memories, we haven't offended Hero anywhere."

"Then it must be a matter of interests," Ma Lu said, "There must be something inside the school that Hero covets. Considering Hou De's historical background, and its current ranking at the Ministry of Education, what Hero Group wants is definitely not just the school's reputation.

"Well, it's likely not the students either."

After interacting over these three weeks, Ma Lu was sure there wasn't anyone among the students that Hero might fancy.

It was akin to Qinghua not poaching from the Pingdingshan Coal Mine College; Hero wouldn't target Hou De over its students.

The same reasoning applied to the teachers; when Ma Lu had taken over, there were only three young teachers in the whole of Hou De, including Cao Youyi.

Since people were ruled out, it must be something else.

Hero must have set their sights on something within Hou De.

Ma Lu asked, "Has the previous principal, or any of the former principals left behind anything unusual?"

Cao Youyi continued shaking her head, "The old principal was incorrupt, he sacrificed his family's fortune for Hou De's sake. When he left, all he had were a few old clothes, a pair of leather shoes, and a worn blanket. As for the principals before that, it was too long ago, I'm not very sure.

"But the troubles at Hou De are not just from the last few years; if there really had been some treasure, they wouldn't have left it unused until now."

"Then it must be about the land," Ma Lu stroked his chin, "When I first arrived, I thought our school was overly spacious, covering half a mountain."

"But, after all, we are in Ping City, not Xindu, where land prices aren't that exaggerated," Cao Youyi said, "With the financial power of Hero Group, if they really wanted the land, they could easily buy several mountains. There's no need for them to resort to such cunning methods to snatch it."

"What if there is something underground we don't know about, like a gold mine?" Ma Lu brought up another guess.

Cao Youyi appeared shocked at this thought, "I hadn't considered that. Okay, in a few days I'll get a reputable geologist to come and take a look around Shouyang Mountain."

"Yes, if we can find out why Hero Group is interested, we could seize the initiative."

Ma Lu then continued to chat with Cao Youyi for a while.

The first to arrive were Ping City Daily's Lu Yingying and Wei Ruonan, both women had heard about Heroic Concealment's challenge and had sensed a major news story brewing.

Thus, they came to Hou De early in the morning. Among them, Lu Yingying even harbored some other thoughts, today she specifically wore a white polka dot short jacket paired with a blue wavy hem skirt, looking youthful and fashionable.

Upon seeing Ma Lu, she clung to his arm and cooed, "Principal Ma, you haven't forgotten our agreement, have you?"

"How could I, I'd forget anyone but not Ms. Lu."

Ma Lu first nodded to Wei Ruonan standing aside, then took out a portable cassette player, which he had bought online for over a hundred dollars and brought with him, adorned with a Radish Patch sticker.

In another plane, this type of old cassette player would already be considered a tear of the times.

But here, it was still a novel gadget.

Lu Yingying couldn't wait to fiddle with it, pressing different buttons; when she hit play, Deng Lijun's "The Moon Represents My Heart" floated from the portable player.

As "你问我爱你有多深" song filled the air, Lu Yingying was instantly enchanted by this touching classic, cradling the portable player in her arms like a precious treasure.

Wei Ruonan's eyes also flashed with amazement, both women had completely forgotten about the interview and were engrossed in exploring the new gadget they had just received.