Ch 33: Guide to Running a Shop in Another World II

Ever since Lu Yao brought hot spring water to the inn and started working on the hot spring pavilion, she hadn’t gone up the mountain in days.

On the hot spring flowering tree, Jiexiang woke up and immediately ran outside, leaning on a branch to look down below.

Ziye rubbed his eyes as he walked out. “She’s been at the stone forest lately. Maybe she won’t come up the mountain anymore.”

After becoming partners, they had traveled to many places before finding this haven.

Thanks to the hot spring, this area remained warmer than others even during the Twilight Season.

The Jiexiang couple had lived here for three years without encountering another of their kind. It often felt like they were the last two left in the world.

This year, their peaceful lives had been abruptly disrupted.

Ziye noticed how eagerly Jiexiang awaited the return of the big human and felt a faint pang of jealousy.

Jiexiang had always enjoyed lively places.

Ziye seemed to come to a major decision and walked over to Jiexiang. “Why don’t we… go find her?”

Jiexiang looked up, eyes wide with surprise, as though seeing him for the first time.

“You don’t dislike her anymore?”

Ziye lowered his head, fiddling with the corner of his shirt. “It’s not that I dislike her, just… just…”

Before he could finish, Jiexiang had already perked up, rolling up her sleeves. “Then let’s get ready!”

They went out to pick wild vegetables and flowers, carefully preparing a gift for their visit.

Jiexiang wanted to make fresh wild vegetable pancakes garnished with flowers. She was sure Lu Yao would be surprised.

From sunrise to noon, the two finally finished their preparations.

Carrying their meticulously wrapped gifts in leaf bundles, they slid down the tree and began their descent.

…

In the afternoon, thick clouds blanketed the sky.

The Hudie couple and A’dai couple each led a red pig, hauling the materials they had gathered for their homes under the inn’s eaves.

Jiegeng tucked his hands into his fur cloak, looking up. “It’s going to rain hard.”

Jinjin wore a troubled expression. “Why doesn’t Lu Yao let us build our houses directly under the inn?”

He disliked rainy weather; everything got damp, and it was easy to get soaked if you weren’t careful.

If their houses were under the inn’s eaves, there’d be no need to worry about rain or wind.

The smallfolk sighed like little elders, stacking their materials in a sheltered corner. They covered them with large, dried leaves and weighed them down with stones.

…

After traveling through mountains and streams from noon to late afternoon, Jiexiang and Ziye finally arrived at Thorn Valley.

The sight of the massive inn came into view. Wiping the sweat from their brows, they prepared for the final stretch.

Just as they reached the eaves, raindrops the size of beans began to pour down.

The two exhaled, looked at each other, and couldn’t help but laugh.

Carrying their gifts, they circled the inn’s base until they found the door, just as Zhu Zhou, returning early from the rain, arrived.

Jiexiang recognized Zhu Zhou. “We’re here to see Lu Yao.”

Zhu Zhou gave them a once-over. Not guests of the inn, he thought. Slowly, he walked over and pushed open the door, the bell above jingling softly.

Jiexiang and Ziye had observed the inn from afar but had never been this close. Everything seemed so new and fascinating.

The rain fell in streams, tapping rapidly on the ground like scattered beans.

Zhu Zhou led them inside and stood at the door, shouting, “Lu Yao! Lu Yao! Someone’s here to see you!”

Lu Yao emerged from the hot spring room next door. Looking down, she seemed surprised. “Did you get caught in the rain?”

Jiexiang and Ziye were still taking in their surroundings, snapping back to reality only when they heard her voice.

Ziye was still a little fearful of Lu Yao.

Jiexiang tilted her head up and nodded vigorously. “Almost got caught in the rain. We brought you some wild vegetable pancakes.”

The pancakes were neatly wrapped in leaves tied with dry grass and adorned with a thoughtful touch—a small purple flower.

Lu Yao couldn’t help but recall scenes from childhood cartoons. She squatted down and extended her hand. “Thank you.”

The rain outside grew heavier. Lu Yao invited the two onto the lift to go upstairs.

In the tea hall on the fourth floor, guests enjoying tea and snacks heard the commotion and leaned over the railing to look down.

Lu Yao introduced, “These are guests staying here. They’re upstairs having tea. Would you like to join them?”

The Jiexiang couple hadn’t expected so many other smallfolk to be at Lu Yao’s place. It had been ages since they’d seen their kind, so they eagerly agreed.

Lu Yao called for Zhu Zhou to take them upstairs. By then, Yuanwei was already brewing tea.

…

Upstairs, Jiexiang immediately spotted Jinjin with his cat-like ears, and Jinjin noticed her too.

Even though Xiaguang, Black Rock, and Red Pig were all large tribes, it wasn’t guaranteed that members of the same tribe knew each other.

Still, in this setting, even strangers from the same tribe felt a sense of kinship.

Ziye was also surprised to see A’dai with her light blonde hair.

The Shenmu tribe was relatively small, and intermarriage with other tribes was rare. Ziye himself was likely the only Shenmu smallfolk in the last five years to have been “abducted” into another tribe.

Seeing A’dai, he initially thought he’d encountered a fellow tribesperson. But as his gaze lowered and spotted the beast-horn marking on her neck, he realized she was a mixed-blood smallfolk.

…

In the kitchen, Lu Yao was contemplating what to serve her guests. She thought of Jiexiang and Ziye’s sweaty appearance when they arrived and glanced at a jar of canned yellow peaches in the cabinet.

Standing on her toes, she took down the large jar, opened it, cut a large peach slice into smaller pieces, and brought the fruit platter to the tea hall.

“I’ve prepared some canned yellow peaches. Give them a try.” Lu Yao placed the fruit platter in the middle of the table and pulled up a chair to sit.

The moment the fruit platter was set down, the sweet aroma of peaches instantly captivated all the smallfolk.

Jiexiang began salivating just from the sight of it. She was the first to grab a piece, taking a bite. The soft, sweet fruit made her eyes squint in delight.

Lu Yao hadn’t cut the pieces too small—they were about the size of mandarin orange wedges.

Each smallfolk grabbed a piece, hugged it close, and perched on the edge of the table, nibbling at it bit by bit.

The three human staff members paused their work, silently took out their phones, and started documenting the adorable scene of the smallfolk.

Qingyan passed by and gave Lu Yao a thumbs-up. The boss seemed to have an uncanny ability to discover new ways to entertain her guests.

…

Jiegeng, nibbling on his piece of peach, grew increasingly puzzled and couldn’t help but ask, “It’s still the Twilight Moon season—where did you get these fruits?”

In the world of Nitean, the seasons were clear-cut. Fruits as large and sweet as these were usually only found in the Harvest season of Sunshine.

Lu Yao explained, “These were picked last season. We peeled and cleaned them, cooked them in sugar syrup, and then sealed them for storage in a cool place. During Twilight and Breeze, they’re still good to eat.”

She tried to keep her explanation simple, skipping the complex theory, and concluded with, “It’s a secret technique of my people.” The smallfolk were fascinated.

Jiegeng, with wide eyes, took another bite of his fruit, savoring its soft sweetness without a hint of an odd taste.

The way bigfolk stored food was far more advanced than anything the Xiaguang tribe could manage.

If his tribe could preserve fruits like this, they wouldn’t have to worry about food shortages during the Twilight season.

Jiegeng began to entertain some ideas. He wanted to learn how to make canned food.

…

Jiexiang, munching on her peach, occasionally glanced at Jiegeng, who was lost in thought, her expression inquisitive.

Ziye squinted as he ate, and his peach slipped from his hands and rolled under the table.

Jiexiang turned to him, stunned, and stared for a while before saying, “Your fruit fell.”

Ziye slowly jumped down from his chair and bent over to pick it up.

Lu Yao saw him about to take a bite of the fallen piece and quickly stopped him. “There’s more on the table. Don’t eat that one.”

Ziye, unfazed, shook his head and took a bite anyway. “It’s fine. Still sweet.”

Lu Yao: “…”

She had clearly seen Ziye deliberately drop the fruit but couldn’t figure out why he would do such a thing.

Much, much later, Lu Yao unintentionally heard a little story from the cheerful and lively Jiexiang—

Jiexiang had grown up hearing tales of how the Xiaguang tribe excelled at crafting delicious food. She didn’t have many hobbies, but she loved eating, and the thought had stuck with her.

When she came of age, Jiexiang decided to join a trading caravan on an adventure.

Her plan was simple: to sneakily “abduct” a young, kind, and skilled cook from the Xiaguang tribe to be her partner.

However, that year, several newlywed couples from her group needed to visit the Shenmu tribe to seek blessings for a child. The caravan decided to head to the Shenmu tribe first, then detour to Xiaguang.

It was during this journey that Jiexiang met Ziye, who was serving at the Shenmu temple.

In the end, Jiexiang never made it to the Xiaguang tribe. Instead, she formed a bond with the golden-haired, handsome, and slightly clueless Ziye at the Shenmu tribe.

Ziye couldn’t cook, which initially annoyed Jiexiang.

But after gazing a bit longer at Ziye’s strikingly beautiful face and silky blonde hair, she would always find herself calming down.

…

Outside, the rain subsided intermittently. Jinjin and Jiexiang suddenly perked their ears and looked up at Lu Yao.

Lu Yao: “What is it?”

Jinjin and Jiexiang exchanged glances. “Someone’s coming. A lot of people.”

Lu Yao got up and walked outside. Standing under the eaves, she looked out into the distance.

Her eyes gradually widened.

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