Ch 207: Guide to Running a Shop in Another World II

[Lu Yao]: “The Little People are naturally contented, and the current harsh weather makes long journeys impractical. How about this: for the Mid-Autumn Festival, clear the corridor under the windows and host a two-day bartering market. Not all Little People are skilled at sewing, drying meat, or pickling vegetables. With their basic survival needs met, they must have other ideas.

Since it’s too cold outside, hosting the event in the inn ensures safety. On the evening of the last day, we can hold a hot spring and hotpot feast at the inn for participants and also play a mooncake hunt game.”

The Little People pondered this idea for a few minutes, then began to grasp the concept after the surrounding humans explained further. They even started to get excited.

Jiexiang clapped her hands. “I love Yuanwei’s pickled vegetables! Mine never taste the same. Can I trade for some?”
Yuanwei responded, “I’ve always liked the feather pillows Jiexiang makes.”
Heici chimed in, “Both Beef Cube and I are fans of the smoked meat from Yuanwei’s family!”

The idea of a Little People marketplace was heartwarming just to imagine. Pairing it with hot spring hotpot and a mooncake hunt added to the charm. Soon, other employees were equally engrossed.

[Creative DIY Workshop Ji Linkai]: “How big are the mooncakes? They’re so small—can they even eat one?”

[Interdimensional Cinema Die Qi]: “With so many of them, even a demon bull was shared! Mooncakes should be no problem at all!”

[Little Pet Cafe Ji Zhixin]: “Given their size and appetite, even a single konjac thread might take three of them to finish!”

[Interdimensional Internet Café Little Ginseng]: “They’re too adorable! Even cuter than newborn spirit beast cubs on Ten Thousand Beasts Peak! I want to eat hotpot with them!!!”

Lu Yao: “Stay on topic. Let’s keep going!”

The discussion grew lively, with slimes, fairies, vampires, and Little People chiming in one after another. The scene gradually spiraled out of control, while employees seated below the meeting screen whispered among themselves.

Lu Yao noticed but didn’t intervene. It was their first online meeting; the staff needed time to process what they were learning.

An employee from the Childhood Tutoring Center raised their hand, and Lu Yao nodded to let them speak.

[Childhood Tutoring Center Xu Xiaoxiao]: “The situation at the Tutoring Center is similar to the Little Pet Cafe—we don’t lack visitors. However, after working as a tutor for so long, I’ve started to have doubts.

All this time, I thought superpowers and the research institute were the main reasons so many people failed to achieve happy lives. But now that superpowers are under the boss’s control, the institute has largely fallen, and the test subjects have been freed, yet the number of clients seeking childhood tutoring hasn’t decreased.”

Employees hearing about superpowers for the first time were visibly shocked.

Many staff members who joined after the sixth store was established had assumed the Tutoring Center was just a typical tutoring service.

Few had thought deeply about the phrase “tutoring childhood,” nor had they considered that the center connected to a world of superpowers.

[Courier Shop Ding Qing]: “What does ‘superpowers are under the boss’s control’ mean? Are the couriers so powerful because of superpowers?”

Most employees had their own questions but were too cautious to ask so directly.

Ding Qing, however, couldn’t wrap her head around why the boss and the couriers were so incredibly capable. Even after seeing non-human shop employees, the pieces hadn’t clicked for her.

Hearing “superpowers” finally gave her a framework she could understand, and suddenly, everything seemed to make sense.

[Blind Box Shop Ji Feiming]: “Don’t ask too many questions about the boss.”

Ji Feiming believed that ordinary humans should not know too much about the existence of gods or the ever-deepening abilities of the boss.

After working at the shopping street for over a year, Ji Feiming was officially just a delivery worker. But in his heart, his primary duty was to protect the boss.

Even Budu came second to Lu Yao in his priorities.

No matter what truths about the boss emerged—whether she was a fragment of some supreme deity—his loyalty would never waver.

[Lu Yao]: “The city where the Tutoring Center is located, Sanhua City, has a high number of superpowered individuals due to genetic mutations. However, human happiness and superpowers aren’t directly correlated.”

Lu Yao’s reply seemed to address Xu Xiaoxiao, yet also subtly responded to Ding Qing’s concerns.

[Lu Yao]: “Human happiness cannot be measured by a single standard. Even in peaceful eras without superpowers, there are still plenty of unhappy people. Life is an unending journey, and there’s no such thing as constant happiness.

Even if someone achieves a goal in the short term, they will inevitably seek new ones. Don’t burden yourself with assigning excessive value to your work. We’re businesspeople—running stores is about value exchange. Through our time, effort, and labor, we exchange for the wealth our customers hold.”

[Childhood Tutoring Center Hu Jiao]: “Straightforward. I like it.”

[Childhood Tutorinf Center 444]: “Boss, have you been going through something lately? You seem stricter compared to when I first met you.”

Hearing this, the employees couldn’t help but glance at Lu Yao.

Stricter?

They didn’t feel that way at all.

[Lu Yao]: “It’s a misunderstanding. I just sensed Xiaoxiao was overburdened emotionally and rambled a bit. Don’t worry about me.”

[Dream Fulfillment System]: “The observation is sharp—I also think you’ve become colder than before.”

Lu Yao: “That’s just clarity of purpose. Sometimes I look back and think if I’d acted more decisively, things could have been different. But looking back only causes stagnation; what matters is moving forward.”

[Dream Fulfillment System]: “He once said the same thing.”

Lu Yao: “Who?”

[Dream Fulfillment System]: “Lu Mingxiao.”

Lu Yao: “Huh?”

[Dream Fulfillment System]: “…Never mind. Let’s continue the meeting.”

Lu Yao felt suspicious—what kind of connection existed between the Dream Fulfillment System and Lu Mingxiao?

[Childhood Tutoring Center Xie Molin]: “We’ve discussed many Mid-Autumn Festival stories with Teacher Bai. To me, this is a deeply meaningful holiday. Although our enrichment center isn’t a traditional tutoring facility, it’s like a life enrichment class.

For the Mid-Autumn Festival, we plan to offer a unique and precious memory experience centered around Alfred for visitors learning about the center. We also want to invite past clients to receive an experience connected to cherished memories of their childhood.”

[Childhood Tutoring Center Bai Yi]: “The most treasured childhood experiences often relate to ‘family,’ ‘parents,’ and ‘reunion.’ This aligns perfectly with the Mid-Autumn Festival’s theme of togetherness.”

[Lu Yao]: “Brilliant idea, though Alfred might have to work extra hard.”

[Creative DIY Workshop Gan Qing]: “Who’s Alfred?”

[Childhood Tutoring Center Hu Jiao]: “In simple terms, he’s a living time machine created by the boss.”

[Creative DIY Workshop Liu Jing]: “What kind of person is the boss? Why do we know nothing about this?”

[Courier Shop Harold]: “Lu Yao? She’s just a fragile yet incredibly stubborn human who keeps pushing herself and worrying others.”

[Courier Shop Tina]: “With her current physique, she might live a bit longer than the average human.”

[Courier Shop Mo Bao]: “If she doesn’t continue cultivating, she’ll still last a few hundred years with her current Golden Core stage.”

[Nail Salon Clarissa]: “The boss can live for hundreds of years? Then Si Jin, Tina, and Harold have a long wait ahead!”

Edward covered his eyes with his hand. “Mumu said he’d only return to the castle with me once the boss passed away.”

The employees of the snack shop, who had remained silent, couldn’t hold back anymore.

[Snack Shop Xiao Qie]: “You might as well start looking at cemeteries now.”

[Snack Shop Xingzi]: “The boss… might live far longer than you imagine.”

[Snack Shop Chi]: “I’ve heard many of you have soul contracts with the boss. Maybe you’ll get a few extra years with her.”

When Lu Yao set up the internal network, she paid the demon god 100,000 years as the price. Not even six months had passed, yet the boss had already gathered enough time from the snack shop and Qingshan Noodle House to last until she might tire of life itself.

[Creative DIY Workshop Chen You]: “Sounds like the boss is more like a living deity than Venus.”

[Lu Yao]: “Alright, enough of that. Nail Salon, Little Pet Cafe, Hot Spring Inn, and Childhood Tutoring Center are done. We’ve still got eight stores left—let’s keep this moving.”

[Creative DIY Workshop Liu Jing]: “Like the others, our DIY shop faces no competition in Ghost Street. However, the influx of players from other virtual worlds has brought over creatures that don’t belong here, significantly worsening the street’s security.”

[Creative DIY Workshop Chen You]: “We don’t have much experience in event planning, so we thought about running a three-day handcrafted mooncake workshop. In addition, we’d organize two daily hunting events targeting the stray creatures invading from other dimensions.”

[Creative DIY Workshop Ji Linkai]: “As for the mooncake gift sets the boss mentioned… we’re at a complete loss. Honestly, living in Ghost Street and eating employee meals every day has spoiled us. The one day we order takeout at home, it feels like eating pig slop.”

Other employees: “…”

That’s laying it on a bit thick, isn’t it?

They didn’t know Mingshi City was a hyper-technological world where manual labor had been nearly eradicated. Most takeout was prepackaged and lacked flavor or creativity, leading to existential dread when eaten regularly.

[Lu Yao]: “Your general idea is solid—adapting to local circumstances is great. As for mooncakes, I can give you a suggestion.”

The shop House employees leaned forward, their eyes sparkling with anticipation.

[Lu Yao]: “Golden octopuses or little ghosts best represent Ghost Street’s image…”

Before she could finish, the employees frantically waved their hands in refusal.

Lu Yao: “Then you’ll have to figure it out yourselves. For flavors, consult the staff who can make desserts. Qi Chen from the snack shop, Zhou Su from pet cafe, or even the authentic traditional-style mooncakes from the cinema can help. If needed, you can ask Xiao Ji to bring supplies. I’ll get you connected after the meeting.”

The DIY workshop employees’ expressions shifted from despair to sheer delight in an instant.

They could go online now!!!

Without needing further prompting, the remaining stores’ employees actively joined in.

[Snack Shop Xingzi]: “Boss, should we and Qingshan Noodle House host separate events or combine them?”

Qingshan Noodle House was technically a branch of the snack shop, but it specialized exclusively in noodles, offering a variety of seasonal flavors and rotating menus. While it was nominally a branch, its operational style differed significantly from the snack shop.

[Lu Yao]: “You can design the mooncakes separately, but I recommend combining the events for ease of organization and execution.”

🛍️🛍️🛍️🛍️🛍️

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