Ch 30: Guide to Running a Shop in Another World II

Bai Lu sent Lu Yao several messages, including award-winning paintings from her school days, handmade crafts, and records of her personal social media achievements.

Compared to her first interview, she was much more earnest this time.

After sending her portfolio, Bai Lu candidly expressed her desire to work on the shopping street.

Lu Yao scrolled through Bai Lu’s materials carefully, her fingers moving across the screen.

She truly admired her—so young, yet so courageous.

Bai Lu’s skills were indeed well-suited for the inn. After some thought, Lu Yao reiterated her earlier point: working on the shopping street might seem fresh and exciting at first, but, like most jobs in the world, it eventually became monotonous and full of trivial tasks.

A few minutes later, Bai Lu replied:
[Bai Lu: I understand. Honestly, I hesitated for a long time before mustering the courage to reach out to you. Ever since I got back this afternoon, the thought of the shopping street has been consuming my mind. If I don’t give it a try, I’ll always regret it and feel restless.]

She wasn’t lying—few people could be so decisive.

Seeing her determination, Lu Yao decided there was no point in saying more.

[Lu Yao: Alright, come over tomorrow. You’ll start at the reception desk in the inn. There’s a seven-day trial period. After that, we’ll decide if it’s a mutual fit.]

Both Ji Qingyan and Zheng Ziyang had also been given a seven-day trial period when they first signed their contracts. Both had chosen to stay.

Exiting the chat window, Bai Lu sat in stunned silence for several minutes before realizing what had happened—she had actually messaged Lu Yao, and she hadn’t been rejected.

Her heartbeat quickened as she flopped backward onto her bed, covering her face and rolling around before springing upright to message Bai Jin:
[Bai Lu: Sis! I just contacted Lu Yao, and she agreed to let me join her team!]
[Bai Jin: No way!!!]

…

After handling her messages, Lu Yao still had work to do.

In another two days, she estimated she’d have the hot spring water fully redirected to the inn.

Aside from the hot spring bathhouse for smallfolk, she also wanted to build a relaxation pool for humans.

With the Dream Fulfillment System no longer around, Lu Yao had to handle tasks like upgrading dimensional spaces herself.

The new inn had been open for nearly a month now, and there had been no sign of the system. Whenever she thought about it, a vague sense of worry crept up.

Focusing back on her work, Lu Yao blurred the wall to the right of the inn’s entrance, creating a spacious dimensional space.

Because the process mimicked the abilities of the Dream Fulfillment System, it required 24/7 maintenance.

Thinking of Budu, Lu Yao also added a room next to the staff lounge in the kitchen corridor. She built this dimensional space as an icehouse—a personal, exclusive room for Budu within the inn.

…

The next morning, Ji Qingyan and Xiao Zheng arrived earlier than usual.

Lu Yao had posted a video in the staff group chat before bed: twenty-something smallfolk guests dining in the restaurant. The off-duty staff who saw it couldn’t stop replaying it, their smiles full of indulgence.

Not long after Ji Qingyan and Xiao Zheng arrived, Bai Lu also showed up for her first day of work.

Bai Zheng had driven her over, promising that she could catch a ride back with Bai Yi in the afternoon.

When Bai Lu saw Ji Qingyan and Zheng Ziyang again, she candidly shared how she had actively sought the opportunity to work at the shopping street.

Contrary to her expectations, neither of them reacted strangely. Instead, they were both very understanding.

Especially Zheng Ziyang, who lightly patted Bai Lu’s shoulder with a knowing look as if to say, “I get it.”

Bai Lu secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

…

By the time Lu Yao woke up, Xiao Zheng had already prepared breakfast.

The guests, too, began waking up. Seeing several human figures suddenly bustling about the inn, they did their best to remain composed, hiding any signs of nervousness.

After breakfast, the smallfolk noticed that the humans didn’t seem particularly interested in them, and they gradually became more at ease.

It seemed they intended to stay in Thorn Valley for a while, as none of them mentioned checking out.

Shanxian’s team, having heard Zhu Zhou mention the tracks and train outside last night, became excited. After breakfast, they begged Zhu Zhou to take them to see the train.

Gan Bing’s group originally planned to have tea on the rooftop, but upon hearing about the train, they noisily decided to tag along.

The remaining guests, all couples, sat in pairs in the corners of the inn, rarely interacting with others.

Lu Yao pulled open the curtain of the mini cinema and placed a phone inside, playing a film voiced by Yingtong and Jianlan.

Sure enough, the guests were drawn in, slowly gathering around the mini cinema, their eyes glued to the screen.

After settling the guests, Lu Yao called Bai Lu over.

During the days when the inn had no visitors, Lu Yao hadn’t been idle. Together with Ji Qingyan, she had built the guest room next to the mini cinema.

The new guest room area had a completely different style from the adjacent rooms. Lu Yao envisioned this section as a Rose Garden Inn. The building was a single European-style structure, with space behind each room reserved for a glass greenhouse and open-air garden.

The intricate details required more than just assembling parts; they would need significant interior design work.

Ji Qingyan had already expressed her frustrations to Lu Yao—her straightforward aesthetic worked for block assembly but not for soft furnishings.

Lu Yao didn’t push her and initially planned to handle it herself. However, with her hands full building the hot spring bathhouse across the way, she found herself short on time.

Then Bai Lu arrived, just in time to step up.

After reviewing Lu Yao’s blueprints and listening to her detailed description of the desired outcome, Bai Lu showed no hesitation. She confirmed the specifics with Lu Yao and immediately got to work with a soft brush.

Having loved arts and crafts since childhood, Bai Lu had tried her hand at everything from origami and clay sculpting to doll clothing and glass beadmaking. Anything involving hands-on creativity was her forte.

Painting walls and creating relief murals were second nature to her.

Lu Yao stood by for a while, watching Bai Lu work. Feeling reassured, she picked up her tools and headed outside. “I’ll leave the inn to you all. I need to get back to burying water pipes.”

…

The main roads surrounding the inn in all four directions had already been paved, with only part of the train tracks yet to be connected.

Even so, the half-completed tracks circling Thorn Valley were enough for the train conductor to take guests on scenic rides.

Walking along the middle of the road, Lu Yao saw Zhu Zhou driving the little green train with ten carriages, chugging past the fence with a cheerful woo-woo-woo.

The passengers inside were brimming with excitement, waving enthusiastically at her.

Below the fence, patches of grass had sprouted small clusters of blue flowers, swaying gently in the breeze.

Lu Yao crouched down, pulled out her phone, and lowered the angle to snap a photo.

The image captured the wild grass, blue flowers, train, and passengers, framed against the clear, cloudless sky and the massive wooden fence. It looked as though she had stumbled into a hidden fairytale world.

…

Returning to the inn at noon, Lu Yao posted the photo online, and the comment section immediately exploded with activity.

[Hot Spring Inn Ji Qingyan: So this is what it looks like outside the gate.]
[Hot Spring Inn Bai Lu: Ahhh! That little train is way too adorable!]
[Interdimensional Cinema Kuba: Why do they get a train?!]
[Interdimensional Cinema Zhu Zhu: @Interdimensional Cinema Kuba Doesn’t that train and its passengers seem a little… off? Where is this place? [Face-palm horror.JPG]]
[Blind Box Shop Lilly: Such round, plump little ones—perfect bite-sized pieces!]
[Blind Box Shop Luo Huian: Ahhh!!! The phone really works!]
[Little Pet Cafe Leilei: Waaahhh!!!]
[Childhood Tutoring Center Hu Jiao: Wow, I want to go there too!]
[Snack Shop Xingzi: So this is what the boss does when she’s not at the shop!]
[Snack Shop Ning Yun: Such beautiful weather!]
[Nail Salon Mumu: Squee!]

…

Lu Yao smiled as she carefully read through all the comments.

Honestly, the feeling was even more extraordinary than she had anticipated.

Through a single intranet connection, she had truly managed to bring together fascinating souls from different worlds.

🛍️🛍️🛍️🛍️🛍️