For the first time, he did not know how to respond in a situation like this.

He could tell they were genuinely worried about him, without any calculation or ulterior motive.

And yet, because of Sergei’s personality, he could not bring himself to honestly rely on them.

"Please rely a little on the friends you have finally made. And in return, a small amount of salary will do."

"That ruins it."

He wanted them to give back the emotion he had just felt a moment ago.

"Money is important, you know?"

Because they were smiling, he could tell it was a joke, likely meant to ease Sergei’s confusion and make him feel more comfortable.

"Then how about having tea together? It is quite a luxury for the busy prime minister to personally make tea, is it not?"

"That would be expensive. I will have to make sure you work properly in exchange."

When was the last time he had spoken so freely with someone like this?

Over the past several years, he had not been able to make anyone he could call a friend.

As the prime minister, people either avoided him or flattered him, and neither interaction brought him peace of mind.

When he asked their ages, the gap might have been large enough that they could be his children, yet after speaking with Qiong Xing, he sometimes felt Qiong Xing was the same age as him, or even older.

Being able to joke around and enjoy tea together like this made him realize he had found people he could truly call friends.

For that, Sergei felt grateful.

...

"Lian, here, say ahh."

"No."

"Just one bite is fine."

"No."

For someone so young, she was incredibly stubborn.

Even though he knew it was probably useless, Qiong Xing still tried offering vegetables just in case, but every attempt was firmly rejected.

Qiong Xing himself had a few dislikes, so he did not think it was necessary to eliminate all picky eating, but he could not help wondering what to do when Lian refused this much.

Leander and Albe who were also not fond of vegetables said it was fine, but from a nutritional standpoint, he still wanted Lian to eat at least a little, even if not everything.

Even if vegetables in miso soup were acceptable, miso soup did not appear on the table that often.

Their meals were usually bread-based and the rest depended on Qiong Xing’s mood.

"Do you really hate them that much?"

"No."

"Your older brothers are all eating them so happily, you know?"

He glanced at Albe and the others who despite saying they disliked them never left anything Qiong Xing made behind.

However, Lian shook his head as if that had nothing to do with him.

"I wonder who you take after. I do not really have any vegetables I dislike... Elias?"

When Qiong Xing called out to Elias who had been silent and looking down the whole time the slight jerk of his shoulders told him everything.

"Could it be that you do not like vegetables?"

"...A little."

Qiong Xing was surprised.

Unlike Leander and Albe, Elias usually ate anything without complaint, so Qiong Xing had assumed he had no dislikes.

"I, it is not that I cannot eat them. If I try, I can."

He said it was not a problem, but thinking that he might have been forcing him to eat all this time made Qiong Xing feel apologetic.

"You should tell me things like that properly. I would not be happy if you forced yourself to eat out of consideration. If you cannot eat something, then I will prepare something else."

"No, that is not it! I mean, it is not wrong, but... it is true that I am still not good with raw vegetables, but if it is something you made, I can eat it."

From what he heard, beastmen were not very fond of vegetables to begin with.

Even so, for the sake of health, they were still served as part of meals as an important food source.

"Ah, me too. If it is something Qiong Xing made, it tastes good to me."

Even Albe who had said he disliked them said that, and Leander nodded in agreement.

Since they always finished their food without leaving anything behind, it was probably true.

"Then do you think Lian will be able to eat them eventually?"

"Who knows. With how much she is rejecting them, it is hard to tell."

Joa also looked at Lian with concern. "But making miso soup every time just for that is... Ah, Lian, would miso be okay?"

"?"

Qiong Xing carried the salad plate to the kitchen. He then quickly stir-fried it and added miso.

Being careful not to make it too strong, he turned it into miso stir-fried vegetables and served it to Lian.

"It is the miso flavor you like. It smells good, right?"

Lian sniffed at it and the moment he opened his mouth, Qiong Xing popped the stir-fry in.

Lian chewed silently, saying nothing, and Qiong Xing began to think it had failed.

But then Lian opened his mouth again, clearly asking for more.

"...Is it good?"

"Yeah!"

Relieved that she was eating, Qiong Xing let out a small breath.

After that, perhaps influenced by Lian who had happily eating the stir-fry, Leander and the others also asked for some, so Qiong Xing made miso stir-fried vegetables with meat for them as well.

They ate it happily, saying it was delicious.

"Next time, should we try making a hot pot?"

"Hot pot? What do you do with a pot?"

It seemed that hot pot dishes did not exist here.

That felt like a waste.

"It is a kind of simmered dish. You put vegetables, meat, and fish into a large pot, and everyone takes what they like and eats together."

Seeing that they still did not quite understand, they decided to try it next time.

"Let us make it miso flavor for Lian."

"Meat!"

"Fish!"