Ch 222: Guide to Running a Shop in Another World

Xu Xiaoxiao took the flyer, gave it a quick glance, and said in disbelief, “Xiao Ze actually believes in something like this? Tutoring for childhood—how ridiculous.”

“Hiss—hiss—” Erxin suddenly glared fiercely at Xu Xiaoxiao, raising its chunky “flower-patterned” paw as if to pick a fight, but the shop owner stopped it just in time.

Xu Xiaoxiao bent down, ruffling the chubby cat’s fluffy head. “It’s like it understands human language.”

“Hiss—” Erxin stuck its neck out, still attempting to nip at her.

Lu Yao held the chubby cat back, stepping away with an apologetic smile. “Maybe it’s just hungry; it hasn’t had dinner yet.”

This was an obvious fib.

Pig Cat wasn’t a tiger, and hunger wouldn’t make it want to bite people.

Xu Xiaoxiao wasn’t offended, waving it off and preparing to leave.

Lu Yao called after her, explaining that the shop currently offered a free childhood test, suggesting she give it a try.

Xu Xiaoxiao shook her head. “No need, thank you. I have no regrets about my childhood; no tutoring required.”

The system chimed in, “This customer is clearly not a potential client.”

After being with the shop owner for a while, the system had learned some business lingo and liked to show it off occasionally.

Lu Yao set Erxin down and went to get some cat food. “If she truly wasn’t interested, she wouldn’t come here repeatedly. Sometimes, facing one’s own heart requires courage. We’ll give it a little more time.”

The system found her words perplexing, though it often found her instincts correct in hindsight. “How do you know who needs tutoring? I’ve always been curious—you seem to understand everything, especially people’s minds.”

There was no record in the shop owner’s history to explain such experience.

Moreover, the system had noticed that as more stores opened in the alternate worlds, the shop owner’s thoughts became increasingly hard to read, different from her compliant nature when she first started.

Maybe it was connected to her lost memories?

When they first bonded, her condition had been dire, but her eyes had shone brightly.

The contract had barely been completed when she slipped into unconsciousness.

When she awoke, she was gentle and soft, forgetting about binding it and even her original purpose for accepting it.

What kind of person had the shop owner been before her memory loss?

For some reason, the system found itself intrigued.

But, bound by its own rules, even it couldn’t glimpse her missing memories.

Lu Yao chuckled softly. “When you want to understand someone, you naturally start noticing everything related to them. It’s not a difficult skill. Though it does feel like I studied something like this before, as it’s familiar.”

Perhaps she’d studied psychology to help with business.

Or maybe, in the past, she’d had someone she wanted to understand.

Lu Yao continued, “Don’t worry, I wouldn’t open a shop without confidence. More than anyone, I want to know what wish I once made.”

The system responded, “[…Understood.]”

…

Xiao Ze’s second tutoring session was scheduled for the weekend, and he’d been looking forward to it since Friday after work.

By Saturday morning, he was up before six.

He got up, washed up, had breakfast, then cleaned the house, finally making it to eight o’clock.

Xiao Ze quickly showered, changed into casual clothes, and headed to the Childhood Tutoring Center full of anticipation.

To his surprise, there was a long line in front of the shop, so he stood aside for a while.

Listening to the people in line chatting, he learned that many of them were weekend visitors from other areas.

The center’s Bubble Solution and Good Mood Glutinous Rice Cake had become internet sensations, initially dismissed as mere advertising by many.

But recently, people who’d tried the Bubble Solution and Glutinous Rice Cake had shared their experiences online, in posts and videos, leaving almost no negative reviews.

As word spread, the popularity surged, leading to the bustling scene here today.

Spotting Xiao Ze outside, Lu Yao called him to head into the tutoring room and wait there for a bit.

The customers in line thought Xiao Ze was cutting in line and began to show dissatisfaction.

Lu Yao explained, “He’s a student in our tutoring program, not here to buy anything.”

Someone asked, “Your little shop even has a tutoring program?”

Another person sized up Xiao Ze, unable to resist saying, “Isn’t this guy an adult? What are you here to study?”

Feeling a bit embarrassed, Xiao Ze quickly squeezed through the door and headed straight for the tutoring room.

Lu Yao took the opportunity to pull out a dusty flyer from behind the shelf, saying, “Our tutoring center specializes in childhood tutoring for those in need. Feel free to learn more if you’re interested.”

Childhood tutoring?

They didn’t quite understand.

It vaguely gave off a feeling of something dubious.

However, some found it intriguing and took a flyer as they left after making a purchase.

By the time Lu Yao finished, it was nearly nine o’clock.

Worried that customers might come in during Xiao Ze’s session, she posted a message in the shopping street’s work group chat, asking if someone free could cover the shop.

Two minutes later, Ji Feiming arrived.

He had just finished a delivery and came over after seeing the shop owner’s message.

Lu Yao asked Erxin to stay with Ji Feiming and then turned to enter the tutoring room.

For Xiao Ze’s second session, the time-space coordinates were set to the seventh day after his fifth birthday.

His mother, who had been absent for a long time, suddenly reappeared.

Young Xiao Ze only remembered the joy of seeing his mother again, which was quickly shattered by the sudden arrival of an unfamiliar man.

Five-year-old Xiao Ze didn’t fully understand why he felt so sad. He only remembered that he had waited for so long, sitting under the ivy-covered fence every day, longing for his mother.

His mother finally returned, but not in the way he had hoped.

On this day, Little Bean Xiao Ze was once again swallowed by a deep sense of helplessness.

After spending seven or eight days at the daycare, he was back in his familiar home. But instead of feeling happy, Little Bean Xiao Ze was gloomy.

The intensity of his sadness surpassed what the real Little Bean had felt, as it was now tinged with adult Xiao Ze’s awareness.

He was still deeply affected by what had happened on this day.

After dinner, his mother bathed him early and coaxed him to sleep.

Once she was sure he was asleep, she turned off the light and left.

Alfred flew in through the window and heard muffled sobs coming from under the blanket.

Landing on the bed, he used his short, stubby front limbs to gently pat the lump under the blanket. “Little Bean, are you crying?”

Upon hearing the familiar voice, Xiao Ze immediately threw back the blanket. The room was dark, so he called out tentatively, “Teacher Alfred?”

Before Alfred could respond, Xiao Ze extended his finger, illuminating the small space around him with a faint glow.

Seeing the familiar short, stubby claws, Xiao Ze’s face lit up with joy, and he immediately hugged Alfred tightly, his voice filled with grievance. “I missed you so much, chubby dragon teacher.”

Chubby dragon…

Alfred was speechless, helplessly trapped as Little Bean Xiao Ze wrapped his arms and wings around him, unable to protest.

Little Bean’s chest was soft and warm, damp from crying—he had likely been crying for a long time.

Once Xiao Ze calmed down, Alfred gently wriggled free, flew off to get some tissues, and returned. “Here, your face is a mess with tears and snot again. You didn’t wipe it on your pajamas, did you?”

Lost in his sadness, Xiao Ze had forgotten about such details and shook his head, bewildered.

Alfred sighed, pattering to sit at the edge of the bed. “You cried so hard; did something happen?”

Xiao Ze scooted over to sit close to Alfred and recounted his grievances word by word.

“Mom doesn’t love me anymore.”

This was Xiao Ze’s final conclusion.

A simple sentence of seven words, filled with profound despair.

In five-year-old Xiao Ze’s heart, his mother was his universe.

Adults often think children are unaware, but they are more perceptive than they seem.

The infant stage is one of the most vulnerable periods in a human’s life.

Young children are often more sensitive to danger than adults.

They simply don’t know how to express it.

Most children, when troubled by a sense of unease, will react with loud crying or tantrums.

Xiao Ze, however, didn’t cry or cause a fuss in front of adults; instead, he hid under the blanket, quietly sobbing, holding in his feelings of grievance.

Perhaps he’d had poor experiences with crying out loud in the past.

Adults think a child’s world is carefree, unaware that children start learning early on how to adapt to the world and continually adjust their behavior.

Through repeated experiences exploring the world, Little Bean Xiao Ze learned patience and waiting.

This was his way of coexisting with the world after feeling powerless to resist it.

Alfred spread his wings, gently patting Xiao Ze’s arm with a comforting gesture, his short, stubby claws waving as he spoke in a slow, calm tone. “Little Bean, ‘waiting’ and ‘enduring’ might seem like easier ways to get by. But if you only wait, a lot of things that could change might never change in the end.”

Five-year-old Xiao Ze couldn’t fully understand, but there was an adult awareness dormant within his young body.

After a moment of silence, Little Bean Xiao Ze climbed out of bed, holding his small pillow, tiptoed to open his bedroom door, ran to his mother’s room, and softly knocked, his voice thick with tears, “Mom, I’m scared.”

After a while, the door opened from within, and warm light spilled out from the room, illuminating Xiao Ze’s tear-streaked face.

His mother’s expression softened as she knelt down and picked him up. “Why are you crying like this?”

Little Bean Xiao Ze wrapped his arms tightly around his mother’s neck, burying his face into her shoulder, sobbing, “Mom, I’m scared.”

The poor little one was crying so heartbreakingly that his mother felt her shoulder dampen with his tears and comforted him with a gentle tone.

On the bed, the man’s face darkened.

Once Xiao Ze fell asleep, he was carried back to his child’s room.

In the middle of the night, Xiao Ze woke up suddenly, realizing he was in his own room. His eyes carried a deep, heavy sadness as he murmured, “Teacher Alfred, the world after trying still feels so disgusting. Tell me, besides waiting and enduring, what else can I do?”

Adult Xiao Ze’s awareness had resurfaced.

Alfred replied, “Little Bean, where’s your key?”

Startled, Xiao Ze had thought Alfred was gone. He turned to see the chubby dragon crouching by his pillow, his deep blue eyes as vast as the night sky, quietly watching him.

This was the first time adult Xiao Ze consciously saw Alfred moving and talking. He sat up in surprise. “You’re still here?”

Alfred shrugged. “As your tutor, why would I leave early?”

Xiao Ze murmured and carefully extended a finger to gently poke the chubby dragon’s round belly.

It felt exactly as he remembered.

Soft and warm.

Alfred held back, enduring the constant poking, and with a serious expression, said, “…Stop playing. Where’s your key?”

Xiao Ze raised his right hand, revealing the key charm hanging from a black bracelet.

Alfred extended his paw, lightly tapping the key.

The lines that formed the key instantly unraveled, stretching in different directions and glowing in the dark.

“Your spiritual key starts from the moment of your birth, branching out into countless lines that extend infinitely in different directions. Do you know what that means?”

Xiao Ze looked at his spiritual key’s true form for the first time. Those lines that resembled threads were actual threads, and the small beads strung along them weren’t ordinary beads—they were his life’s trajectory.

A look of sudden realization crossed his youthful face.

Countless lines, countless possibilities, countless futures.

And for all these years, he had been stuck in the same dilemma, unable to move forward.

As a child, he didn’t know what to do.

As an adult, he had lost the courage to change.

After a long silence, Xiao Ze exhaled deeply. “I understand, Teacher Alfred.”

Alfred nodded in satisfaction. “Little Bean isn’t so slow, after all. It’s late; time to sleep.”

Xiao Ze pulled up the blanket, lying down. After a moment, he whispered, “Can I hold you while I sleep, Teacher?”

Alfred crossed his short, stubby forelimbs in front of his chest, pausing before answering with composure, “At most, I’ll lend you my tail for a little while.”

Xiao Ze lay on his side, clutching the chubby tip of Alfred’s short tail, closing his eyes.

Soon, his breathing steadied.

Little Bean was fast asleep.

Alfred whispered, “Goodnight, Xiao Ze, student number one.”

The second tutoring session ended.

…

Leaving the Childhood Tutoring Center, Xiao Ze took a detour to the supermarket to buy fresh meat and vegetables, planning to cook for himself.

Back home, he changed into comfortable clothes, washed his hands, and began preparing the ingredients.

The doorbell rang, so he went to the living room to answer it.

Xu Xiaoxiao stood outside, her nose slightly twitching, her eyes lighting up. “Smells good. Are you cooking?”

Xiao Ze nodded in acknowledgment, stepping aside to let her in.

Xu Xiaoxiao, also in casual clothes, walked straight into the kitchen and saw the prepared vegetables and meat. She was a bit surprised.

“Looks like a feast—lucky day.”

Xiao Ze said nothing, quietly plucking green onion leaves, peeling ginger and garlic, and chopping the aromatics to start cooking.

Xu Xiaoxiao, accustomed to Xiao Ze’s reserved demeanor, leaned against the doorframe, watching him cook, unbothered by his silence.

Such a quiet person, and yet, so different in his sleeping hours.

This was their first meal together at home, and Xu Xiaoxiao felt like she was getting to know Xiao Ze all over again.

Usually, he bought food for her when they were out.

They had rarely sat face-to-face, eating like this.

He ate elegantly, and his cooking was tastier than she’d expected.

After dinner, Xiao Ze washed the dishes.

Xu Xiaoxiao sat in the living room, scrolling on her phone and occasionally glancing at Xiao Ze’s back, feeling inexplicably content.

When he finished the dishes, Xiao Ze returned to his bedroom to change into clean clothes.

The smell of cooking clung heavily to his clothes and skin.

He intended to shower but decided to wait until after their conversation.

Xu Xiaoxiao looked up and saw Xiao Ze standing by his bedroom door with a strange expression.

Today, there was something about him that seemed… different.

She stood up and started walking toward him.

But Xiao Ze came forward first. “Xu Xiaoxiao, I have something to say.”

Xu Xiaoxiao stopped, a sense of anticipation rising in her heart.

In the next moment, Xiao Ze said, “I want to end this.”

Xu Xiaoxiao lowered her head, feeling something unusual within herself.

They had agreed early on—if either of them wanted to end things, they’d simply say so.

It was just companionship, so why did it feel so painful?

She had never felt this way before.

After a moment, she composed herself and calmly replied, “Alright, I understand.”

She turned and walked to the entryway to put on her shoes. As she did, she looked up suddenly. “Did you meet someone you like?”

Xiao Ze gave a slight smile and shook his head. “I just met Teacher Alfred.”

Xu Xiaoxiao couldn’t hold back. “Who is that?”

Xiao Ze lowered his head, scratching his ear awkwardly. “A tutor at the tutoring center. I’m sorry. I used to drift aimlessly, thinking anything was fine. I was just waiting without purpose… then you came along.”

“…Sorry.” Realizing he’d spoken poorly, Xiao Ze didn’t know how to make up for it.

They had shared moments of closeness yet had never tried to understand each other.

Perhaps, in the beginning, they had sought warmth from one another, only to quickly discover that each other’s bodies were just as cold.

“No need to say anything more.” Xu Xiaoxiao turned, opened the door, and quickly ran out.

…

At the Childhood Tutoring Center.

Seeing that there were no more customers, Lu Yao prepared to close up for the day.

Just then, Xu Xiaoxiao appeared, her cheeks flushed, holding the glass door of the center with one hand and clutching an empty bottle in the other. She called out loudly, “Shop owner, where’s Alfred? Get him out here. Don’t you dare keep him hidden.”

Lu Yao: “…”

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