Ch 50: Guide to Running a Shop in Another World II

Lu Yao gave a gentle push, and Yingtong ended up sitting on the ground, still refusing to let go of her finger.

“My hand is dirty,” Lu Yao reminded him.

Yingtong released his bite, his crimson eyes brimming with faint grievance.

Lu Yao set Heici down and told him to head back first.

She made her way to the vegetable garden to set up a shade canopy and called Yingtong to join her.

“Come along,” she said, but there was no movement behind her.

After taking a few steps, she turned to look back.

Yingtong was struggling to get up.

Lu Yao stopped and waited. When he reached her, she bent down, scooped him up, and placed him on her shoulder.

As they walked toward the garden, Lu Yao rambled on about the things she’d been working on around the inn.

There was no particular theme—she spoke whatever came to mind.

Yingtong clung tightly to her clothing, silent as always, just like the memory Lu Yao once glimpsed of him: quiet and withdrawn.

But he was listening intently.

This kind of Lu Yao gave Yingtong a sense of calm. All he wanted was these simple, uneventful moments.

The sun was merciless, and the soapberry, wild bean sprouts, and sesame plants in the garden had all wilted.

Lu Yao quickly fetched the grass canopy she had prepared the previous night and set it up over the garden.

The perimeter was enclosed by a low fence made of branches, and the grass canopy, woven from wild weeds, provided ventilation and shade.

Once the grass stacks dried, they could be burned into fertilizer, making the process sustainable.

The garden wasn’t large, so the task of setting up the canopy was quickly done.

Lu Yao decided to head back to the inn. With so many people from the Shenmu tribe visiting, there was likely something important going on.

Yingtong, however, hid under the shade of the grass canopy near a soapberry plant and waved at her.

“What is it?” Lu Yao asked.

Yingtong pursed his lips, looking slightly conflicted.

Lu Yao smiled encouragingly. “What’s on your mind?”

Yingtong sat with his feet together and knees bent, resting his arms on his knees. “This time, I plan to execute the god of this world.”

Lu Yao blinked. “???”

The god of this world had already appeared?

She hadn’t even noticed. Without the system around, she was definitely missing critical sources of information.

Yingtong lowered his head, a faint blush spreading from his neck to the tips of his ears. “You seem to dislike it when I do those kinds of things.”

Lu Yao stared at the shrinking figure under the soapberry seedlings, who seemed to be curling up smaller and smaller. “You’re so considerate, worrying so much about someone who dislikes you.”

Yingtong: “…”

He puffed up his cheeks in frustration, turned his back to her, and stopped talking.

Lu Yao knew she shouldn’t laugh, but it seemed she had indeed awakened some peculiar tendencies.

Lowering her gaze to stifle her amusement, she spoke seriously. “Why are the god of this world neglecting their duties?”

Yingtong: “…”

It seemed he was truly upset now.

Lu Yao casually broke off a small twig and poked Yingtong’s shoulder with it. “Alright, alright, I’m sorry. I’m listening now. Could you say it again?”

Yingtong stood up, threw a quick “I hate you” over his shoulder, and marched off on his short legs without looking back.

Lu Yao: “…”

The sun grew harsher as Lu Yao twirled the twig in her hand and followed after him.

When she returned to the inn, Lu Yao resumed building the unfinished miniature house.

The guests from the Shenmu tribe, weary from their long journey, finally began to feel tired after their initial excitement wore off.

After lunch, the guests gradually retreated to their rooms to rest.

The inn became quiet, with only the occasional soft sounds from the staff at work.

Thanks to soundproof barriers, the guests were undisturbed.

The elder chieftain and the elder, unlike the younger guests, took their time. After arriving at their room, they bathed, ate, and napped until late afternoon.

Emerging from their room, they spotted Lu Yao sitting by the windowsill. Exchanging a glance, they slowly approached her.

Hearing the movement, Lu Yao didn’t look up, continuing her work.

The elder chieftain and the elder didn’t speak immediately. Instead, they wandered around the newly constructed guest area for a while before sitting down to watch Lu Yao build her miniature house.

It was their first time seeing such a method of constructing a house, and they found it quite intriguing.

Occasionally, they picked up a piece from the scattered components on the table, feeling its texture.

As the sun slanted westward, Lu Yao set down her half-finished project and stood to pour some water, bringing tea and snacks for the two guests as well.

Seeing that Lu Yao was now free, the elder chieftain decided the time was ripe. He set down his snack and reintroduced himself formally.

Lu Yao thought to herself, Finally, we’re getting to the main issue.

The elder chieftain began with a story.

A long time ago, there was a sacred tree in the world. The mountains, rivers, sunlight, and all living things originated from it. Even the humans who lived on this continent were born of the sacred tree.

The sacred tree bore two types of seeds: the Heart Seed and the fetal Seed. The Heart Seed grew into a tree, while the Fetal Seed enabled reproduction.

For the Nitean little people to reproduce, they needed to seek a Fetal Seed from the sacred tree.

But the river of time is silent and erodes all things.

Even the sacred tree was no exception.

When the sacred tree withered and died, the Nitean little people lost their ability to reproduce.

The tribe guarding the sacred tree, known as the descendants of the Divine Messengers, had been trying to overcome this crisis but were now at a dead end.

It was then they heard rumors that one final Heart Seed might still exist. They were willing to sacrifice everything to retrieve it.

Lu Yao’s many questions were partially answered by the elder chieftain’s tale, though some details remained unclear.

She spoke directly. “The Heart Seed you’re looking for is indeed with me, but I have a few questions.”

The elder chieftain and elder, having toured the inn earlier, understood they were no match for the big human. Whether they could retrieve the Heart Seed depended entirely on her attitude.

Whatever Lu Yao wanted or asked, they would do their utmost to comply.

The elder chieftain responded calmly, “Please, ask.”

Lu Yao asked, “The little people were born of the sacred tree. What about the big people?”

The elder chieftain shook his head. “The big people perished many years ago, leaving little record behind. Each tribe only keeps stone carvings warning their people that the big humans were destroyed by their own greed and evil.”

Lu Yao found it odd. The big people had undoubtedly existed in this world, yet they left no traces behind—only a fearsome reputation used to scare the little people.

What had the world been like before the Nitean little people were born?

As she pondered this, Lu Yao’s gaze fell on the two pairs of pitiful black-bean-like eyes staring at her. Realizing she was straying too far from the topic, she reined in her thoughts. “I understand the matter of the Heart Seed. However, there’s a small problem.”

The elder chieftain and the elder were overjoyed at the first part of her response but grew solemn at the latter.

The elder cautiously asked, “Is there something you require? We will do everything we can to fulfill it.”

They assumed Lu Yao was asking for something in return. After all, the Heart Seed was invaluable, and the big human likely understood its significance to their tribe. Not taking advantage of the situation would go against the supposed greed and evil nature of the big humans.

The little people were straightforward. Their faces betrayed whatever they were thinking.

Even the two-hundred-year-old elders appeared a bit naive to Lu Yao.

Not bothering to explain, Lu Yao invited them, “Follow me outside, and you’ll understand.”

Outside the inn, on a large open area to the right, stood several colorful and beautifully crafted little houses.

Recently, three pairs of non-native little couples had arrived and asked Lu Yao for plots of land to build their homes.

Lu Yao led the two elders past the eaves and to a fenced area behind the residential district and the inn’s rear.

The brick-and-stone fence was rather high for the little people. Lu Yao bent down, picked up the two elders, and stepped over it.

In the center of the fenced area was a small tent made of fresh branches, encircled clumsily by a ring of stones.

Lu Yao set the elder chieftain and the elder down, led them over, and lifted one corner of the tent to reveal a delicate green sprout just beginning to unfurl its tender leaves.

“This is the Heart Seed you’ve been looking for. It sprouted a few days ago. It seems a bit unaccustomed to the soil here. After carefully choosing this spot, I’m afraid transplanting it recklessly would kill it.”

The elder chieftain and the elder stood frozen, staring at the tender sprout for a full two minutes without saying a word.

It sprouted?

In the hands of a big human?

Why, why, why?

The elder chieftain’s emotions were complicated—both overjoyed and furious.

Back when the sacred tree was dying, they had held dozens of Heart Seeds in their hands, tending to them with utmost care and love, only to watch them rot one by one in the soil.

Now, an ancient Heart Seed, stored who knew how long, had sprouted in this desolate place, under nothing more than a flimsy leaf canopy.

Arghhhh!

He couldn’t dwell on it—thinking about it only made him angrier.

The elder felt much the same, though he adjusted quickly.

The sacred tree had sprouted, and their days of sleepless worry were finally over. Salvation was in sight!

The elder said, “Since the sacred tree has taken root here, it must not be transplanted. We will notify our people and migrate here to protect the sprout. We ask for your permission.”

Lu Yao was slightly surprised at how decisive the Shenmu tribe was, already preparing for a full migration.

She shook her head with a smile. “I’m not a landlord. It’s none of my business. But the open area up front is home to several non-native couples who are just looking for a place to settle down. Please don’t disturb them.”

Her words resolved the elder chieftain and elder’s doubts. If non-natives could form tribes here, nurturing future Fetal Seeds wouldn’t be an issue.

The elder chieftain then expressed his desire to thank Lu Yao, asking if there was anything she wanted.

Lu Yao thought for a moment before replying softly, “There is one thing, but it’s not urgent. Since everything is settled, and it’s time for dinner, why not return first?”

The two elders were anxious, unsure of what Lu Yao might want.

Lu Yao reassured them with a few words, telling them not to worry.

On the way back, the elder chieftain couldn’t hold back and asked, “How exactly did you get it to sprout?”

This, as it turned out, was quite the story.

When the Heart Seed, still in the form of a sun tangerine, first came into Lu Yao’s possession, it seemed immature. She nurtured it with the divine powers of the Deep Sea Goddess and the Goddess of Abundance, and it grew larger and more vibrant—but refused to sprout.

Lu Yao buried it in the soil again, but nothing happened for days.

After completing a previous mission, she received ten Yangju equipped with pearl cradles. She intentionally placed them alongside the uncradled Heart Seed.

The little seed began to act up, tossing and turning in the pearl cradle every day.

She buried it again, but still, it didn’t sprout.

A few days ago, on a whim, she brought it to the vegetable garden.

Perhaps it didn’t like the soil near the shopfront.

It seemed to respond a little, but it didn’t want to stay in the garden either, thrashing around in the pearl cradle.

Lu Yao dug holes all over the valley, and eventually, she chose the open area behind the inn.

Finally, it calmed down.

Lu Yao spent the night digging a hole and planted the “little ancestor” there. The very next day, it sprouted.

Fearing it might get sunburned, Lu Yao built a fresh branch canopy for it, just as she did for her seedlings.

The ring of stones around it? That was Heici’s contribution, a “protection circle.”

Hearing that the Heart Seed had been through so much in the hands of the big human before finally being planted, and that it sprouted the very next day, the elder chieftain and elder were too jealous to speak.

Back at the inn, ignoring the aroma of dinner, the two elders summoned the knight captain.

The knight captain rounded up the ecstatic knights, who had been playing around, and led them all to see the newly sprouted sacred tree.

Cheers erupted from the open field behind the inn, followed by a signal flare shooting straight into the sky—announcing to all tribes that the Shenmu tribe, guardians of the sacred tree for thousands of years, was preparing to migrate.

🛍️🛍️🛍️🛍️🛍️