Ch 132: Guide to Running a Shop in Another World

Lu Yao thought carefully for a moment, then nodded, “I haven’t read much lately, but I used to love it in school—whenever I had free time, I’d read. Is your ability related to novels?”

Jiu Hua shook her head, “I’m not sure, really. As a professional novelist, my pen is my most powerful tool, so it feels natural for things like that to happen.”

“…No, no, that’s definitely not normal,” Lu Yao’s tone grew slightly urgent. “It’s not like you’re the only guest in the shop who works with words, but none of them are like you.”

Jiu Hua: “Everyone is different; it’s normal not to be alike.”

Lu Yao: “…”

This person was playing dumb so obviously that Lu Yao didn’t even want to comment.

The car fell into a more awkward silence.

Jiu Hua’s expression remained unchanged as she focused ahead, but internally, she felt slightly anxious. After a long silence, she muttered, “Maybe that’s my problem.”

Lu Yao turned slightly, “What problem?”

Jiu Hua: “I don’t know if it’s because I’ve been too tired lately, but the line between reality and fantasy is becoming more blurred. Sometimes I can’t help but wonder…”

Just as Lu Yao was about to ask, “Wonder about what?” the car stopped, and Jiuhua said, “We’re here.”

A massive silver building stood before them, like a steel battleship. Unlike regular hospitals, there was no red cross; instead, a large sculpture of the Deep Sea Goddess adorned the main entrance.

Before heading inside, Lu Yao bought a fruit basket and a large bouquet of fresh flowers by the roadside.

The three registered at the reception, gave Qingmei’s name, received her bed number, and took the elevator to the nineteenth floor.

On the way up, Lu Yao noticed that people around them were subtly glancing in her and Harold’s direction, discreetly observing them. These people were cautious, only sneaking quick peeks before looking away.

Harold’s long hair was streaked with deep blue highlights, his features were strikingly chiseled, and he wore traditional robes from Alexander Continent, with a stern expression, making it hard for him not to stand out.

Lu Yao, with her gentle and clean-cut Eastern appearance, blended in a bit more with the people of Nightlight City, but she still felt more attention on herself than on Harold.

She leaned close to Jiu Hua and whispered, “Do I have something on my face?”

Jiu Hua found it odd as well and shook her head, “No.”

When they reached the nineteenth floor, Lu Yao quickly put the small matter aside.

Inside the elevator, several passengers had puzzled expressions, thinking the girl with the flowers looked incredibly familiar, but couldn’t quite recall where they’d seen her as she exited.

The three stepped out of the elevator and saw a crowd gathered near the nurse’s station, apparently in a dispute.

Lu Yao wasn’t interested in the commotion and, holding the bouquet, glanced up at the sign to locate Qingmei’s room directly.

Jiuhua peeked over, tugged on Lu Yao’s sleeve, and whispered, “I think that’s Qingmei’s parents.”

Lu Yao changed direction, quietly approaching the crowd to hear what was going on.

Harold, fascinated by everything around him, seemed like he’d stepped into a comic book world, his eyes glowing as he examined the hospital’s interior and followed closely behind Lu Yao.

The nurse at the station spoke with a hint of helplessness, “It’s not that we don’t want to process it, but if you want to discharge Miss Du, you need a discharge certificate from her attending physician. Without it, we can’t proceed.”

Du Shan and Zhang Hong exchanged a pained look, and eventually, Zhang Hong stepped forward, “It’s not that we don’t want to get the certificate, but Dr. Xie refuses to issue one. What can we do? He keeps saying she needs to stay for observation. It’s been over ten days, and there’s no sign of her waking up. Her life is already ruined. We came here from the farm, planning to bring her back. We didn’t expect this to happen and have used up all our money.”

Du Shan added, “Tomorrow, the farm’s boat will come to make a delivery. We’ll take her home ourselves. If she can’t be cured, so be it. It’s more affordable to care for her at home than to stay here in the hospital.”

Other patients’ families watched the commotion, thinking that although these parents came from a farm, they truly cared for their child. The accident was too severe and beyond their means, so this decision was understandable.

However, the nurse frowned and gently explained, “Miss Du hasn’t left the critical stage yet. Discharging her now…” She implied that if they couldn’t get her back to the farm in time, the patient would likely die on the way.

Before the nurse could finish, Du Shan suddenly raised his hand and shouted, “We must discharge her today! We’ve accepted that she won’t wake up, but you keep dragging it out. What are you trying to do? If you don’t let us discharge her, we’ll…we’ll call the media here…”

Not only was Du Shan loud, but he also grabbed at the nurse, causing a chaotic scene.

Soon, someone pulled Du Shan back, and a group of doctors at the end of the hallway noticed the disturbance and rushed over to inquire.

Lu Yao led Jiu Hua and Harold away from the commotion, turning to find Qingmei’s room. They brushed past a woman carrying a large bouquet of white roses. She was elegant, dressed stylishly, and wore sunglasses, but Lu Yao didn’t pay her any mind.

However, the woman paused after a few steps, glancing back at the trio.

Qingmei’s bed was in a four-patient room. When the three entered, the patient and family in the neighboring bed looked up. Jiu Hua quietly hid behind Lu Yao, as the patient and caregiver first noticed Harold, then turned their attention to Lu Yao.

Harold said nothing.

Lu Yao smiled and nodded at them, “We’re friends of the patient in bed 35, here to visit her.”

As she spoke, she set down the bouquet and fruit basket, then called Harold over, whispering, “Dr. Harold, could you check why she hasn’t woken up yet?”

The little black dragon had recently studied pharmacology and related magic extensively in Dragon Valley and was no longer just a simple brawler. Lu Yao had also learned pharmacology and magic from Alexander Continent, though her skills were rudimentary at best.

For minor injuries, she could apply healing magic directly, but for a serious case like this, a proper diagnosis was needed first. She trusted Harold, even if he had a difficult personality and needed some coaxing to help without complaint.

Harold, momentarily drawn back by being called “doctor,” hid a touch of pride and took on a professional demeanor as he examined Qingmei. “Head injury, with internal bleeding. Multiple fractures in the left arm and both legs. It’s been a while.”

“Can you heal her?” Lu Yao only cared about one thing.

Harold shook his head. “Not me.”

After a pause, he added, “You throw a couple of light spells at her, and she’ll be up in no time.”

This world was actually high-magic, though oddly, its people couldn’t use magic.

Relieved, Lu Yao pulled the curtain around the bed under the curious gaze of the nearby patient, preparing to treat Qingmei. She carefully controlled her magic, casting a tiny light spell on the injury on Qingmei’s head to clear the blood clot.

Qingmei’s face was pale and thin, her brow furrowed, and her eyelids trembled.

Just then, a cold voice demanded from outside the curtain, “Who are you, and what are you doing around my daughter’s bed?”

Harold and Jiu Hua blocked the visitor from approaching.

Qingmei’s eyes suddenly opened. She looked at Lu Yao, initially confused, staring at her for a long moment before speaking in hesitant disbelief, “Boss?”

“Don’t move. You’ve just woken up; try not to get too excited,” Lu Yao gently held her down.

Du Shan and Zhang Hong’s loud protests brought the nurse and attending doctor, who now stood outside the curtain.

Lu Yao gave Qingmei a reassuring nod, then turned and pulled back the curtain, explaining calmly, “We’re Qingmei’s friends, here to visit her.”

Zhang Hong pointed a finger at Lu Yao and shouted, “Friends? We’ve never heard of her having friends, and who needs to pull a curtain to visit someone?”

Du Shan’s gaze swept up and down Lu Yao and Jiu Hua, a glint of calculation flashing in his eyes.

The nurse at the foot of the bed looked at the patient, rubbed her eyes, and then looked again, exclaiming, “The patient is awake!”

Zhang Hong, who had been making a scene, abruptly went silent like a duck with its neck grabbed. Her expression shifted immediately, and she rushed to the bedside. “Qing’er, you’re finally awake! Mom was so worried about you!”

Qingmei, having remembered the events before her coma, turned her head away, unwilling to respond.

Zhang Hong reached under the blanket and pinched her hard.

The doctor approached, suggesting a full-body examination for Qingmei, and asked everyone else to step outside the room.

Lu Yao, Jiuhua, and Harold sat on chairs in the corridor, waiting. Du Shan and Zhang Hong stood at the far end of the hallway, whispering to each other and occasionally glancing at the trio.

Harold, feeling a bit bored, quietly relayed the couple’s conversation to Lu Yao word for word.

“They want the little shop assistant to go back home to get married.”

“Forced marriage?” Lu Yao thought she must have misheard; there had been no mention of that in the news report.

Harold: “They’ve already arranged it with the groom’s family. As soon as the shop assistant marries him, her younger brother’s rural residency status will be converted to Nightlight City residency.”

Upon hearing this, Jiuhua began to understand the situation. “They want to upgrade the son’s status but don’t have a legitimate way, so they’re using their daughter.”

Lu Yao quickly connected their residency status to a household registration system she was more familiar with. It seemed Du Shan and Zhang Hong had connections with some “important figure” who promised that, once their daughter married the man, their son’s rural residency would be upgraded to the capital city’s.

From any angle, the whole affair sounded absurd.

Harold frowned with evident disdain. “When the shop assistant was injured and in a coma, they didn’t want to waste money on her medical care and intended to take her home by force. The marriage plan was put on hold, but she has some savings. Now that she’s awake, they plan to proceed as originally intended. They’re even holding some contact number, threatening to call if she resists.”

Lu Yao stood up, took a deep breath, and then sat down again, composed.

As if concluding their discussion, Du Shan and Zhang Hong turned and began walking toward them.

Just then, someone rounded the hallway from the other side, spotted Lu Yao, and quickened their pace, reaching her before Du Shan and Zhang Hong could.

The woman removed her sunglasses, her eyes filled with astonishment. “Boss, is that really you?”

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