Chapter 53: Keep Going, Brother-in-Law (Part 30)

After collecting the rent, Xining followed Ye Yu to exchange the money. One hundred copper coins could be exchanged for one silver coin, and fifty silver coins for one gold coin. Xining converted all the rent payments into gold coins for easier carrying. Just from today’s rent alone, he had collected over ten gold coins, and there were still two or three days’ worth of rent remaining from other shops. The rents in the city shops were truly high.

After a busy day, it was time to eat!

Ye Yu inquired about the best barbecue restaurant in the city, and the two dragons set off grandly toward it.

Under the watchful gaze of the fire-breathing dragon, the customers inside the restaurant were so frightened they fled outside, watching warily from a distance. The trembling waiter was forcefully kicked out by the owner and other staff to serve the guests.

Xining ordered ten whole roasted sheep, two whole roasted cows, one whole roasted camel, one roasted unicorn goat beast, and two carts full of vegetables, tossing down two gold coins. Dragons were truly expensive to feed!

The owner’s eyes lit up—it was practically a day’s earnings, a big client indeed! He led the other waiters and the chef out with joyful smiles. Although the fire-breathing dragon was terrifying, the dazzling gold coins were irresistible.

They ordered so much that every roasting oven and fireplace in the restaurant was put to use, yet it still wasn’t enough. They even piled wood in the courtyard and roasted on the spot.

For a while, smoke from the burning wood billowed into the air. The palace guard mistook it for a fire and flew over on their dragons to investigate. After circling above and understanding the situation, they flew back.

The aroma of roasted meat wafted as far as two streets away. Xining and Ye Yu tried some roasted beast lamb together. Some beast meats could enhance a mage’s power; while ordinary people might not gain longevity, the meat was more nourishing and strengthening than regular lamb.

Though the little dragon disliked meat, Xining asked the owner to roast a suckling pig, which the little dragon finally ate. When offered more, it refused and went back to munching on the two carts of vegetables.

The fire-breathing dragon devoured all the meat without leaving a bone, even pulling out a small tree branch to use the twigs as toothpicks, then lay back contentedly.

Hearing about the delicious roasted meat, the younger dragons in the guard unit grew envious; they usually ate raw meat and hadn’t expected to enjoy cooked meat. The roasted aroma faintly drifted across eight streets to the guard’s courtyard.

Although the guard’s pay was high, young dragons ate a lot, and most of their wages went straight to filling their stomachs. A whole roasted sheep cost a silver coin, and one dragon needed at least ten to feel full.

They began to protest, some even threatening strikes; the weaker ones rolled on the ground, all clamoring for roasted meat. Among them was a beautiful young female dragon, stunning enough to tempt any admirer.

In the end, even owners who refused were dragged by their dragons to the barbecue restaurant.

To foster goodwill, Xining splurged, tossing out two gold coins and ordering 120 whole roasted sheep at wholesale prices. This delighted the young dragons and the guard alike. Otherwise, half a month’s salary would only afford such a feast once, and the rest of the month they’d be starving.

As they waited for the roasted sheep, rows of young dragons in the courtyard salivated, watching the little dragon leisurely nibbling on cabbage, their eyes practically glowing with pink hearts.

The fire-breathing dragon, lying on its side digesting, pulled out its makeshift toothpick and growled, “What are you staring at? Keep looking and I’ll neuter you all!”

The captain dragon was clever, quickly raising his claws to cover his eyes but peeking between his fingers. Others followed suit, filling the courtyard with young dragons hiding their eyes but sneaking glances. Anyone entering at that moment would think they had mistakenly walked into the guard’s dragon yard.

There were still two days left to collect rent; ordinary inns probably dared not charge rent that high.

The guard wanted Xining and company to stay in the guard’s courtyard, but Xining declined.

The barbecue owner’s business exploded today; he had earned a month’s wages in one day. He gave up his own room and went to stay at a relative’s place for the night.

The first floor was for business, the second floor housed the owner’s room and a guest room. Xining and Ye Yu each took a room. All tables and chairs on the first floor were pushed aside, and the little dragon slept there. The fire-breathing dragon stayed in the courtyard, barely sleeping through the night.

The beautiful female dragon had stirred the young dragons’ desires, and after eating the roasted sheep, their bodies were heated and restless. One by one, they tossed and turned, sneaking over to the yard.

One young dragon crept to the door and peeked through the crack.

Suddenly, a deep voice behind him said, “What are you doing?”

That voice—turning around, the young dragon saw a huge, jet-black true dragon behind him, two golden eyes gleaming fiercely in the night.

The dragon forced the first smile of its life: “Father-in-law, greetings…”

The fire-breathing dragon was even angrier, grabbing the young dragon’s tail and hurling him outside: “Go to hell, father-in-law!”

“Whoosh”—one young dragon was thrown from the courtyard, barely stabilizing before crashing near the bell tower, flapping his wings frantically to avoid smashing it.

“Whoosh”—another followed, and the first quickly dodged, watching his comrade fall into the fountain in the square, flailing on his back.

Great, someone’s worse off than me, the young dragon grinned widely.

Someone began playing the lute; Xining sneaked a look out the window… whoa, dragons could play music too, and quite well.

This artistic young dragon sat elegantly under the moonlight, playing briefly before the fire-breathing dragon grabbed him by the neck and kicked both the dragon and the lute away.

“Get lost, get lost!” The fire-breathing dragon was a formidable combatant, throwing out all the lustful young dragons one after another.

Even the talented captain dragon, who finally got the beautiful female dragon to the window to shyly offer a handful of long barley flowers to the little dragon, was grabbed and tossed out with a plump thud.

This farce only ended when their owners came over. Dragging, coaxing, and promising to propose the next day, they finally pulled the dragons back.

The next early morning, the owner returned, startled to find the entire guard present.

The little dragon hid behind the fire-breathing dragon, occasionally peeking out cautiously with big, pink eyes.

Too adorable… The young dragons gaped, tongues nearly hanging out.

The fire-breathing dragon snorted coldly, adopting a stern parental tone: “My daughter is still young, only a bit over two hundred years old. She must be at least three hundred before she can lay eggs! No more pestering her, or next time I won’t be so polite!”

Over two hundred years old—well, dragon years weren’t like human years.

The guard was secretly pleased, dragging the dejected dragons back while reassuring them that their dragon maiden was still young and not to rush. In truth, they were delighted—dragon love affairs might cause trouble! After last night’s chaos, who knew what would happen next?

This was good anyway; after all, they would never see their contracted dragons again. Let them chase after mates and lay eggs. When they died, so be it.

At last, the young dragons settled down—the fire-breathing dragon was really something!