Ch 38: My Multiverse Supermarket

Zhou Li snapped out of her thoughts and asked, “Aren’t you a doctor?”

Dr. Sophia Richter replied, “Can’t a doctor work at a supermarket?”

Zhou Li blinked. “…What about your clinic?”

“I have another job now,” Dr. Sophia Richter said calmly. “I won’t be a doctor anymore.”

Zhou Li was speechless.

Although all professions had their value, doctors and stock clerks were hardly on the same social level—whether on Earth or among the stars.

Who would willingly give up being a doctor to work at a supermarket?

She asked, “Are doctors here paid that poorly? Or is your clinic not doing well?”

“Not at all. The pay is about one hundred seventy to one hundred eighty thousand Orka a month.”

Zhou Li thought privately, Let’s hope the kids at Tzu Chi House who make one Orka a day never hear that—it’d crush their spirits.

“Then why work here?” she asked. “I can’t afford to pay you that kind of salary.”

“I don’t want wages. Just let me stay here.”

Something that suspicious was impossible for Zhou Li to agree to. She refused immediately.

Dr. Sophia Richter looked slightly disappointed, then said, “Then can I at least buy a few items? I saw a lot of things from Blue Star’s twenty-first century.”

Zhou Li had closed early mainly to reserve a few items so Lin Jianshan could enjoy some employee perks.

But Lin Jianshan wasn’t interested in nonessential goods that couldn’t be eaten or used for warmth.

So Zhou Li figured it wouldn’t hurt to let Dr. Sophia Richter pick a few.

Dr. Sophia Richter walked up to an old-fashioned kerosene lamp and exclaimed, “This is one of Blue Star’s twentieth-century lighting tools—an oil lamp, right?”

“More precisely, it’s called a kerosene lamp,” said Zhou Li.

“How do you light it?”

Zhou Li pointed at a shelf. “You can use kerosene or ghee.”

“What’s ghee?”

“Traditional ghee is made by refining fat from cows or sheep, but that’s too expensive. The common kind is plant ghee made from soybean oil mixed with wax.”

Dr. Sophia Richter smiled. “You’re awfully honest for a businesswoman.”

“You get what you pay for,” Zhou Li said matter-of-factly. “Because it’s cheap to make, it’s cheap to sell. Real ghee, I’d never sell to regular customers. I’d raise the price and sell it to rich temples.”

Dr. Sophia Richter laughed aloud. “That’s absolutely the right thing to do.”

She bought one kerosene lamp and one bottle of ghee, then spotted an electric fan—and couldn’t resist picking that up too.

Zhou Li asked, “…Are you sure you need a fan in Mia Star’s weather?”

“It’s not like I’ll be using it,” Dr. Sophia Richter said lightly.

Zhou Li shrugged. “Just so you know, that makes three items. You’ve hit the limit.”

Dr. Sophia Richter was still gazing at the remaining goods, eyes full of longing. Translated on Hololo novels. “Can’t you loosen the purchase limit a little?”

“I have to treat all customers equally,” Zhou Li said.

Regretfully, Dr. Sophia Richter pulled a card case from her coat.

That was when Zhou Li noticed the garment beneath her coat—a sleek, high-tech material.

Seeing her gaze, Dr. Sophia Richter explained, “It’s made of heat-insulating, cold-resistant material. We call it a fish suit.”

“Why a fish suit?”

“Probably because it feels slippery like fish skin. Under a magnifier, you can see it’s made of countless small scale-like plates.”

Zhou Li’s scalp tingled. Don’t describe things like that! That’s nightmare fuel for people with trypophobia!

She made a mental note to ban “fish suits” from her accepted trade list.

Just then, Dr. Sophia Richter opened her card case and frowned. “I came in such a hurry, I forgot—there’s no Orka in here.”

Lin Jianshan quickly said, “Doctor, I can pay for you.”

“No need,” said Dr. Sophia Richter firmly. “But can I exchange this fish suit for points? You said valuable items are accepted. It cost me seven hundred thousand Orka. Though I can’t take it off right now… maybe try these gloves instead? They’re made from the same material.”

Zhou Li had just been thinking to herself that she didn’t take used clothes—but one scan of the gloves through the auction system made her change her mind.

[ Intelligent-Control Gloves ]
Age: 2 months
Manufacture Date: Star Era 234
Owner: Sophia Richter
Starting Price: 7,000,000 (suggested)
Buyout Price: 10,000,000 (suggested)

Zhou Li stared blankly.

That could buy a hundred Good Life Supermarkets!

She took a deep breath. “Do you have anything… cheaper to trade?”

Dr. Sophia Richter glanced down at herself, then handed over the card case.

Even though Zhou Li didn’t recognize local brands, the auction listing revealed that the card case was a top-tier designer item—originally from Blue Star, but made of genuine leather from a Mia Star animal species.

Apparently, the leather’s rarity gave it a high appraisal value of 190,000.

Zhou Li silently decided that from now on, she would only accept Orka.

The interstellar economy made anything from this era worth absurd prices at auction.

If her small supermarket kept attracting members who recharged hundreds of thousands—or even millions—of points at a time, even with fake identities, the upper authorities would notice eventually.

After receiving the new points, Dr. Sophia Richter showed no emotion.

To her, whether it was 100,000 Orka or 100,000 points, it made no difference.

Not because points were worthless—simply because she was too rich to care.

“Are you sure you won’t hire me?” she asked. “I want everything—those floor lamps, storage boxes, cutting boards, thermos mugs, hand warmers, and all the stationery too.”

At three items per day, she’d be shopping forever.

Suddenly, inspiration struck. “How about this: I’ll pay you 100,000 Orka a month. Let me be your in-store doctor.”

Zhou Li: ?

What kind of position is that supposed to be?

Lin Jianshan: …

She wanted to say, Give me that 100,000 Orka, and I’ll gladly give up my job!

Zhou Li couldn’t understand why Dr. Sophia Richter was so fixated on becoming an employee.

But refusing easy money would be foolish.

She extended her hand warmly. “Welcome aboard, our in-store doctor—Dr. Sophia Richter.”

*

At ten that night, Dr. Sophia Richter and Lin Jianshan left the supermarket.

Zhou Li turned off the lights.

Less than a hundred meters away, City Hall and the police had already cordoned off the area, ensuring no one could approach and disrupt their surveillance.

To avoid alerting Zhou Li, the operatives crouched in the freezing wind and snow, hiding in the shadows.

Invisible drones hovered all around, tracking every angle of the supermarket to make sure Zhou Li couldn’t slip away unseen.

Outside the Tzu Chi House, Lin Jianshan said goodbye to Dr. Sophia Richter.

The doctor got into her hover car—but it didn’t take off.

At the same time, her file appeared on the holo-screens of the operation’s command team.

“Sophia Richter—the Richter family’s eldest daughter. Known eccentric.”

“Can’t argue with that. Who else would abandon a family fortune and refuse to work at their own hospital, just to run a tiny clinic in Long City? Definitely not normal.”

“Why was she inside the supermarket so long?”

“What were they talking about?”

“Commander, should we bring her in for questioning?”

“Do not act rashly!” the commander snapped.

They couldn’t afford to drag the Richter family into this.

Time crept by. Midnight came.

Zhou Li still hadn’t left the supermarket or shown any sign of moving.

An officer disguised as a tree in the park shivered violently, sending snow tumbling from his branches.

Then—suddenly—the supermarket vanished.

The air itself seemed to freeze.

A fraction of a second later, a voice whispered through the comms: “It’s gone.”

That whisper hit like a detonator—everyone rushed toward where the supermarket had stood.

“It’s really gone! Not cloaked—not hidden by tech—it disappeared!”

“What about the radar?”

“No response!”

“How could a building just vanish?”

“Unless… it wasn’t a building. It was a starship disguised as one—and in that instant, it activated its drive system…”

The commander barked, “Track the signal—by any means necessary!”

…

Outside the Tzu Chi House, Dr. Sophia Richter stepped out of her car.

She ignored the frantic agents rushing past and gazed at the empty space where a building had been just moments ago.

Softly, she murmured to herself, “Could she really be from that place?”

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