lerbook Chapter 182 Shops in Little Key Town, Neighbors?
Chapter 182 Shops in Little Key Town, Neighbors?
Chapter 182 Shops in Little Key Town, Neighbors?
"Peony, do you have a question in your mind: your identity as the true leader of the Tianxing Team has never been exposed, so how would I know?"
Seeing that Mudan's expression was frozen like a stunned penguin, her pupils suddenly shrinking, Ze Shu gave her a moment to recover before speaking again:
"Want to know why?"
Peony's bewildered pupils widened slightly, and after a moment, she pursed her lips and said:
"think."
As Ze Shu said, her true identity as the leader was never exposed, and she never showed her true face. Even the five leaders of the Tianxing team did not know that their true leader was Mudan. She had always contacted them online under the pseudonym "Fairy Queen".
Now Ze Shu has said it so directly to her face.
It truly made Peony feel like she was being "unboxed offline"!
Therefore, Peony really couldn't imagine how her identity could be known. While stunned, she couldn't help but look at Ze Shu with curious eyes like a Slowpoke, looking forward to his 'reasoning process' to reveal her identity.
However...
Ze Shu gave a wicked smile: "Want to know? But I'm not telling you."
peony:"?!"
She blinked, and upon hearing the answer, her mind went blank again.
"But, Peony, you're the real leader of Team Celestial: Cassiopeia, we might need to talk." Ze Shu thoughtfully stroked Peony's cute face, then said with a smile, "Let's talk about how to prevent this team from getting expelled."
"And how to motivate them—to make them… 'model students'."
When Zeki returned after "letting a word with Mudan".
From Xiao Lan and Xi Jiana's perspective, they saw that Ze Shu had a new little follower behind him—a little follower with his head down, who looked uneasy.
Higana's eyes widened suddenly, and she exclaimed, "I get it!"
Ze Shu couldn't understand what was going on in Xi Jiana's head: "What did you realize?"
"Kidnapping!" Higana stroked her fair chin with feigned profundity, carefully considering her words. "I thought I was good enough at kidnapping, but after meeting you, Zeshu, I realized just how rudimentary my kidnapping skills are."
"That quote written on the wall of the Orange Academy corridor, which I just read, makes a lot of sense. It's from the East—well, getting someone to surrender without a fight, that's the ultimate level of kidnapping!"
"That's what Higana said, looking at Zeki with admiration."
Xiao Lan blinked, not understanding why Xi Jiana suddenly fell ill.
Following closely behind Ze Shu, Mu Dan looked completely bewildered. Was the "ticket" in the kidnapping he was referring to talking about her?
Ze Shu:
What Higana meant was "to subdue the enemy without fighting," right?
This famous quote from "The Art of War" is indeed printed on the corridor of Orange Academy.
Even the Orange Academy, no, the entire Pardia region, has a lot of "Eastern" elements. It seems that during the Pardia Empire a thousand years ago, merchants from the East opened up roads and brought many things from the East, such as books, daily necessities, and dishes.
At the same time, the "secondary god" of Parthia was also transmitted.
The four treasures that bring disaster: the tripod, the sword, the bamboo slip, and the jade.
"Hmph, although you, Ze Shu, have already surpassed me, Xi Jiana, in the matter of kidnapping, I, Xi Jiana, will not acknowledge it..."
But then a loud "bang" was heard, and the words stopped abruptly.
"Ouch!"
Higana covered her head, looking at Zeshu who had flicked her on the head with a strange sense of grievance.
"What are you doing!"
Ze Shu: "Stop acting crazy."
Higana said, feeling wronged, "Aren't all the 'friend' characters in those scripts just flattering you and giving you challenges like this?! I'm praising you, Zeshu, why aren't you happy?! Or are you saying you don't acknowledge me as your friend?!"
Ze Shu:
"......
"Alright, alright, I'm happy to accept your challenge, Lady Higana." He gave a slight smirk and said in a monotone tone, "Are you satisfied now, Lady Higana?"
Higana raised her head and laughed heartily, "We're satisfied!"
Ze Shu: "If you're satisfied, let's leave quickly and not block other people's door."
Little Key Town.
This habitable area circled by the little blue circle is the "starting point" of Padiya and also the smallest town in Padiya.
It is located in the southernmost part of the Padia region, but it is not far from the city of Tabletop where Orange Academy is located. Sawaki and the others observed the scenery of Padia and slowly made their way here, which took only an hour.
I smelled the slightly refreshing sea breeze blowing in.
Ze Shu walked on the town's narrow path in Xiao Chi Town, with two angry parrots chasing and flying around overhead, leaving behind a trail of "cawing" sounds. In the distance, he could see a finely decorated villa in Xiao Chi Town belonging to Nie Li, definitely a wealthy family.
Because the terrain is not flat, the houses here are not as uniformly planned as in other towns. Instead, they are scattered in different places, at varying heights, and connected only by winding paths, like the dynamic lines drawn by an artist, giving the whole town a unique beauty.
"How wonderful..." Little Blue exclaimed, looking around at the scenery.
"I'm so glad we chose Little Key as our settlement in Padiya!"
Higana blinked in confusion, then exclaimed "Wow!" in response to Xiao Lan's words.
Peony followed silently behind Ze Shu, puzzled: Why did Ze Shu bring her here? Was he going to lock her in a dark and gloomy basement?
immediately.
She followed Ze Shu to a coffee shop.
This is the only coffee shop in Little Key Town. It is also the only shop that is still open in Little Key Town besides a department store. The shop was opened by the owner four or five years ago with great enthusiasm.
But as mentioned before, Little Key is the least populated town in Padia—even if the entire town came to the shop every day, it wouldn't seem to meet the minimum operating revenue of a coffee shop.
Therefore, this coffee shop has been losing money for years. The manager persisted for four or five years, but it seemed that he could no longer support it, so he posted the shop for sale on the Padiya website long ago.
Coincidentally, when Xiao Lan decided to settle in Little Key Town in Padiya, she also saw this transfer information that had been listed online for seven or eight months without any inquiries.
"Are you really willing to buy this shop outright?!"
The shop manager was a middle-aged man with stubble. Upon hearing that Ze Shu and the others had arrived, he came out wearing an apron and his tone was quite excited. After all, the transfer information had been posted online for a long time. Because it was a coffee shop for sale, the price was more expensive than that of ordinary houses, so it was not the first choice... no, rather, it was the least cost-effective choice.
The store manager was initially filled with despair, imagining his savings of many years being spent and having no choice but to close the store.
Unexpectedly, he actually found a kind person willing to buy the shop that was destined to lose money!
Ze Shu nodded: "Could you show us around the shop?"
Store Manager: "Of course!"
He led Ze Shu and the others into the store and began to introduce the business:
"Everything here is very clean; I clean it myself every day. Look, even the crevices and corners of these coffee machines are spotless. I bought these coffee machines four or five years ago, but they are very well maintained and work perfectly..."
The store manager stroked the coffee machine as if caressing a child, speaking slowly and deliberately, word by word.
Ze Shu and Xiao Lan listened silently.
It's clear the store manager has a deep affection for this shop. No wonder he persists in keeping it open despite consistently operating at a loss, instead of taking steps to cut his losses.
The coffee shop features natural wood decor and is filled with greenery, creating a warm and inviting atmosphere. In the evening, the dim lighting further enhances the ambiance.
That will create a lot of stories.
The coffee shop wasn't very spacious, but it wasn't small either—after all, Xiaochi Town isn't like those bustling cities where every inch of land is precious. Following the shopkeeper's slow explanation and introduction, it took a good ten minutes to walk around.
Ze Shu was fairly satisfied and was about to propose paying in full.
The store manager suddenly looked hesitant.
"Well... before you acquire it, I... I want to ask you for something, and this is also a condition of the acquisition."
Ze Shu: "What is it?"
He was wondering if the store manager wanted to back out.
Suddenly, the store manager called out from the coffee shop's attic:
"Come here..."
Ze Shu heard a "tap tap tap tap" sound, and then four gray and white furry mice held hands and poked their heads out, looking nervously at the shopkeeper.
"This is..."
Little Blue blinked and asked with interest.
"They're a family of rats," the shop manager said hesitantly. "They're Pokémon I rescued three years ago, and they've been helping out at the coffee shop ever since."
"And what I just asked was: please leave them here! Leave them in the coffee shop."
The store manager looked at Ze Shu with sincere eyes:
"They've been helping out in my shop for so long, they've come to consider it their home, and they don't want to leave. Believe me, they won't slack off; they work very hard, they won't hold us back, they don't need wages, and they don't eat much... Please take them in!"
"Ouch, ouch, ouch...:"
As the shopkeeper spoke, the rats all looked at Ze Shu with pleading eyes. Especially the two children in the middle, their innocent and naive eyes could melt anyone's heart and were irresistible.
Ichizawa suspected that the two of them used the "round eyes" or "acting cute" trick.
However, faced with the shop owner's earnest request and the pleading, bright eyes of the rats, Ze Shu smiled and said:
"This is hardly a request. I'm lucky that the whole family of mice was willing to stay and help."
"So—" the shopkeeper's pupils seemed to light up, "You agreed?!"
Ze Shu nodded and asked, "Can I pay now?"
Store manager: "Y-Yes, thank you!"
However, when it came time to make the payment, a small mishap occurred.
"Ze Shu and I will each have half!" Xiao Lan paid first, then laughed.
Ze Shu blinked: "Where did you get... the money?"
He originally intended to buy it outright himself, since with the 'supply' from the Shiruff Company and the operating income from the Saint-Annu, money was really nothing to him—after all, he had invested a million in the 'Evil Paradise' in Beishang Township, making him a big spender.
Unexpectedly, Xiao Lan insisted on splitting it in half, as the coffee shop was not cheap.
Little Blue chuckled mischievously, "It's a secret! Can't I have my own little treasure trove?"
"Heh heh, well then, this will be the coffee shop that Zeshu and I share! We'll make money together!"
Ze Shu pursed his lips: "Okay."
Even if they acquire this coffee shop, it's destined to lose money, no matter what methods they use, since the customer base is what it is.
Ze Shu took over this coffee shop with the idea of opening it as things would naturally come, hoping for as few customers as possible, so that it would be quiet and he could just come and drink coffee by himself.
Xiao Lan couldn't possibly be unaware of this principle.
But she persisted, and Ze Shu had no choice but to go along with her idea.
The original store manager glanced longingly at the store and finally told Ze Shu, "You must treat them well." It was unclear whether he meant the coffee shop or a rat, or perhaps both. He then left reluctantly.
in this way.
Ze Shu's "fixed assets" include the Saint-Tiannu ship, the Evil Paradise currently under construction in Kitakami Township, and now a coffee shop in Koshi Town.
And Zeki is the store manager.
A new appointment was immediately made. He patted Peony on the shoulder and said, "Peony, I'm hiring you and your six Eevee dogs as employees of my coffee shop. Do you agree?"
peony:"?!"
She looked completely bewildered and pointed to herself in disbelief.
"Me? Me? ::?"
Ze Shu: "Yeah, it's you. If you want to observe the Celestial Star Team, you have to stay here instead of leaving Padia and letting the Celestial Star Team become a complete thug organization."
"But—" Peony said hesitantly, "I promised, I promised the former principal, that only if I leave Orange Academy will Orange Academy not pursue... not pursue the responsibility of the Celestial Star Team..."
Ze Shu maintained his smile: "You've already left Orange Academy, it's not like I'm asking you to leave the Padia region."
"Huh!" Peony confirmed, "It seems...that's how it is."
"So you said yes?"
"I...I...I'm willing to agree." Peony subconsciously twisted her fingers. "But, but I don't know anything about running a coffee shop, and I don't know how to make coffee."
Ze Shu: "It's okay, I don't know how either."
His impression of coffee was simply that it's all about sugar, sugar, and more sugar (not really).
peony:"?!"
She looked up at Ze Shu, her face full of disbelief.
Isn't this just a makeshift operation?
Ze Shu laughed and said, "You can learn anything! Let's learn now!"
Peony hummed in agreement, said "okay," then hesitated and added:
"Then I need to tell Dad first...to tell him not to worry about me...otherwise, he'll have to..."
Zeshu then remembered: Mudan seems to have a father who is a former champion of Galar.
"Go."
Having taken over the café, Ze Shu was getting familiar with it when he placed Alcremie on the coffee bar, making it a mascot as well, since cream and coffee complement each other perfectly.
But it was at this very moment.
There was a commotion outside the coffee shop.
It seems... a guest has arrived?
"Rico, stop fooling around and come with me."
"Okay, Mommy!"