Chapter 76: They’re Going to Sleep in Separate Rooms?
Fu Cheng glanced at Shen Lu, who was sleeping on her side with her back to him, and felt a pang of frustration.
’Are we going to sleep like this again today?’
’It’s not good to always sleep on one side. Her face might become asymmetrical.’
Fu Cheng moved his left hand and gave Shen Lu a gentle tug. Perhaps because her sleeping position was already unstable, half of her body rolled with the force and leaned against him.
The corners of Fu Cheng’s lips curved into a satisfied smile. ’I was just worried she wouldn’t sleep well on her side, that’s all. Her leaning on me is a trivial matter.’
With that, the man finally drifted off to sleep, his mind at ease.
...
At six in the morning, right on the dot, Shen Lu’s eyes snapped open.
’A new day is here. Another day to make some serious money!’
Wriggling like a caterpillar, Shen Lu suddenly stretched. Then her eyes flew wide. ’Am I... pressing down on Fu Cheng with half my body???’
’Did I aggravate his wound?!’
Terrified, Shen Lu bolted upright and immediately checked Fu Cheng’s condition.
’Thank goodness, thank goodness. The gauze hasn’t turned red, so it’s not a huge problem.’
Shen Lu clasped her hands together. "Sorry, sorry, I didn’t do it on purpose. I’ll be extra careful when we sleep tonight. Just bear with it for two more days. We’ll move as soon as the new place is ready. Then we can each have our own room, and I won’t bother your rest anymore."
’Separate rooms?’
Fu Cheng opened his eyes, staring at Shen Lu in disbelief.
’They were going to sleep in separate rooms from now on?’
Fu Cheng clenched his jaw, suppressing the surge of displeasure.
’Technically, their engagement had been called off a long time ago. Shen Lu was just kind enough to take him in, and she hadn’t bothered to deny their old relationship to anyone.’
’Plus, with their limited living space, the two of them had no choice but to squeeze onto one small bed.’
’Once they had the means for separate rooms, it was only natural that they would sleep separately.’
’The logic was sound, but why did he feel so unhappy about it?’
Shen Lu didn’t pay much mind to Fu Cheng’s reaction; she had to start her busy routine.
After quickly washing up and eating, and after feeding Fu Cheng, Shen Lu grabbed her tools and set off for the landfill with Cai Su.
"Boss Shen, Xiao Lang was able to open his eyes today!" Cai Su couldn’t help but share the good news about her son. "I think if he keeps getting shots from Doctor Xiao for a while longer, he might slowly get better!"
"That’s really great news. When you take him there later, ask Doctor Xiao what he thinks." Shen Lu smiled. "It would be wonderful if he could recover just like that."
Cai Su nodded earnestly. "Mhm, that’s what I was thinking too."
Her spirits high, Cai Su was especially motivated today. Shen Lu had the distinct impression that she was going to pick through the entirety of No. 3 Landfill.
The detector beeped, indicating something good under a scrap metal sculpture. The sculpture was massive, roughly estimated to weigh three tons.
Shen Lu felt it was a great pity. Unless a Superpower User or someone wearing a powered exoskeleton showed up, it was impossible to move.
Cai Su rolled up her sleeves. "Boss Shen, let me try!"
Shen Lu quickly stopped her. "Don’t. You definitely can’t move it. Let’s not force it. It wouldn’t be worth it if you got hurt."
Cai Su struggled for a moment, saying she didn’t need to lift the whole thing, just pry up one side to get the stuff underneath.
Shen Lu was exasperated. ’Forget whether we could even pry up one side, I don’t have the guts to reach underneath. What if Cai Su loses her grip and the sculpture comes crashing down? Would I still have a hand left?’
At Shen Lu’s insistence, Cai Su had no choice but to give up.
When it was about time, the two returned to the rented apartment to prepare things for the food stall.
Cai Su could now completely handle all the vegetable chopping, though for now, it was limited to the less complicated prep work.
If any ingredients needed to be julienned or thinly sliced—techniques that required high-level knife skills—Shen Lu still had to do it herself.
[DING! New task issued: Please sell 75 cups of mint water, 65 egg waffles, 65 servings of malatang, 65 servings of fried rice, 65 servings of fried noodles, and 35 servings of braised goods.]
Before starting business for the day, Shen Lu turned on her Light Brain’s recording mode, setting it to a third-person perspective.
First, she did a panoramic shot of her small stall, then zoomed in, letting the macro lens glide over each of the steaming hot dishes.
Then she put on a mask and, imitating the bloggers she had seen before, gave a simple introduction.
"Hey everyone, welcome to Little Deer Cuisine! We’ve got delicious food that’s easy on your wallet and a flavor you won’t forget. Come on down and give it a try!"
Next up was filming the process of making egg-fried rice.
Shen Lu didn’t use any exaggerated techniques. She just set up a fixed camera angle and filmed it straightforwardly.
’It was mainly because she didn’t have the right setup. It’s not like she could do fancy wok-flipping on a griddle, after all.’
After filming the fried rice, she filmed customers buying food and sitting down to enjoy it. Some of the more extroverted customers even asked Shen Lu to film them.
"Boss Shen’s fried rice is top-notch!" a customer said, giving a thumbs-up. "Super delicious, and cheap too!"
"It’s not just the fried rice that’s good. The malatang, braised goods, egg waffles, and mint water are all delicious. I love the braised chicken legs the most. Heh heh, who doesn’t love a big, fragrant chicken leg!"
"I’m definitely not a shill! If you don’t believe me, come and try it yourself. If it’s not good, I’ll let you twist my head off and kick it like a ball!"
Shen Lu: ’...There’s no need to be so gory.’
After filming, Shen Lu went back to her spot and continued making fried rice. A curious customer asked her what she was filming for.
"I’m filming it to post online for promotion."
"Oh, look at my memory! I can’t believe I forgot something so important." Shen Lu slapped her forehead. "Everyone, I’ve taken over a new shop. It’s in that abandoned building at the very end of Gold Street. I’ll be moving over in a couple of days, so remember to come by if you want to eat!"
"Congratulations, congratulations!"
"Boss Shen is already renting a storefront? That’s amazing!"
"Why did you pick such a bad location? It’s at the very end of the street."
"Yeah, now we’ll have to walk an extra ten-plus minutes to eat."
...
Shen Lu selectively answered some of the innocuous comments: "The rent is cheapest there. If I didn’t choose that spot, my costs would go up, and my prices would have to go up too."
As soon as she said that, those who had been complaining about her choice of location all shut their mouths.
Shen Lu added, "There will be some special offers for the grand opening. Everyone can come by to show support and join in the fun."
"Are you having a sale?"
Shen Lu said, "The specific promotions are still in the works. I’m keeping it a little mysterious for now. You’ll have to wait for the grand opening day for the surprise!"
"Okay, okay! I’ll definitely be there to support you on opening day. I’ll bring my whole family!"
"Me too, me too!"
"You’ll have to prepare a lot of extra food then, Boss Shen. Don’t let us go hungry."
Shen Lu smiled and nodded. "Of course."
The news that Shen Lu was opening a shop spread quickly, and her food sold out exceptionally fast today.
Some customers, perhaps afraid that Shen Lu’s prices would go up after she opened the shop, were quick to eat more now, ordering more than they usually did.
As a result, her ingredients were used up quickly, and the task was completed exceptionally early. Before it was even three o’clock, the system’s notification sound went off.
[DING! Detected sales: Mint Water 75/75, Egg Waffles 65/65, Malatang 65/65, Fried Rice 65/65, Fried Noodles 65/65, Braised Goods 35/35. Task complete. Reward: one Lottery Ticket.]