Editor: Sparrow Translations
In Xiao Shiyu’s eyes, all Zhao Yao ever did was laze around and play computer gas.
It irked her.
She could not help but march up to him and asked, "Boss, can you please help out a little and clean the café?"
Zhao Yao slamd one hand on the table dramatically.
"Hey! Why do you make it sound like I do nothing around here?" he cried, outraged, "Didn’t you see that I just secured a big deal for us? It’s hard work. I deserve a break."
Xiaoyu pointed at Mango, whom was a short distance away.
"Unfortunately, Mango’s business has not taken a break," she said glumly.
The silly cat had pooped himself again. There was a large s**t stain that covered his bum and soaked through his long fur. He was like a huge, saturated paintbrush that sared poop all over the floor when he sat down. Custors were fleeing from him and his golden trail.
"Oh my God!" Yan Xiao Qing yelled, running to Zhao Yao with Elizabeth in her arms, "Boss, you have to do sothing about Mango!"
"Yuck!" Coco Sun stuck out her tongue.
She pulled her roommate, Leigh Zhao, towards the furthest corner in the café.
"It stinks!" she shrunk against the wall.
Mango eventually beca the sole inhabitant of the café’s center. He looked around curiously at the dispersed crowd, completely unaware that it was him everyone was avoiding. He did not even notice that the lower half of his body was stained with brown.
Zhao Yao’s head was starting to hurt. He looked at Mango, then at his hands, then back to Mango again.
"Matcha," he called out telepathically, "Take Mango to the bathroom."
"Why ? Ask Roly Poly to do it," Matcha retorted.
He had escaped to the highest platform on a kitty tower to get away from Mango and his s**t.
Roly Poly was currently holed up beneath a table.
"I can’t catch Mango! I’m too fat to outrun him," he said.
He chuckled deviously to himself.
"There’s no better ti to use my invisibility than now!" he thought triumphantly.
Zhao Yao looked from one cat to another.
"Elizabeth’s mind control has never worked on Mango. As for Dust Ball..."
The mont he turned to the tiny cat, she shook her head violently.
"No way am I cleaning that up," she declared.
"Horrible cats. I can’t rely on any of you!"
Zhao Yao narrowed his eyes at Mango, whom was still roaming around carefreely, dripping s**t wherever he went. He sighed, then headed for the cat, whom he carried into the bathroom.
After he bathed Mango and thoroughly disinfected the café, he slumped back into his usual seat.
"Today was pretty tough. Ti for a break!"
The next afternoon, Ah Wei arrived at the café bearing plate after plate of exquisite dishes. These were the food that Old Man Zhuang and his friends wanted to have tonight.
It was going to be a seafood fiesta as planned. The grilled scallops, shrimp-filled tofu, stead sea bass, spicy tiger prawns, and squirrel mandarin fish were all in attendance.
Zhao Yao had a great ti tasting each delicacy with Nanako, Xiaoyu, and Bai Quan.
The mont Xiaoyu bit into the mandarin fish, she was blown away by how the at remained crispy even though it was bathed in a zingy, hot sauce. She looked pleasantly surprised.
"This is so good! I’ve never had squirrel mandarin fish like that!" she exclaid.
Nanako was enjoying herself as well. Her eyes were closed in contentnt like a cat’s would. She took another bite of the tofu.
"This is the best al I’ve had in China."
Bai Quan gave no comnts. His strict training torched calories, so he constantly needed to consu a lot of food to maintain his energy levels. He quietly wolfed down most of the food with a smile on his face.
When the café closed for the day, Bai Quan, Xiaoyu, and Nanako busied themselves with cleaning up. Zhao Yao, on the other hand, had so overti duties to complete.
He greeted Old Man Zhuang at the door. Tonight, he was accompanied by one man in black and two elderly gentlen. Zhao Yao had no clue who they were.
It was obvious that they were plagued with maladies like Zhuang did. When they were within reach of the Calming Heart Garden, their faces lit up visibly. A look of relaxation and relief then took over.
Bowls and plates brimming with delicious-looking food magically appeared on the table when Zhao Yao waved a hand. The n gawked at him, eyes round as marbles.
Surprise morphed into satisfaction as they tasted each and every one of the dishes.
"I finally... I finally have a chance to eat these again!"
"My dear boy, could you conjure so wine for us?"
"Co, Zhuang, have another one."
"We’ve not got together in too long."
"We’re all that remains of our gang now."
Perhaps Zhao Yao’s illusions were overly realistic, or perhaps the n have not felt so relaxed in ages. Whatever it was, they were getting tipsy within 10 minutes.
"Ah Song was only 14 years old. 14. He attacked first because I hesitated. It’s all my fault."
"Zhuang, look at my grandson. Just look at him! Ridiculous little thing. He’s this ruthless capitalist. When I die, how can I explain this to our leader?"
As the n got more intoxicated and started divulging more private information, Zhao Yao decided to leave.
"Don’t you dare vomit," he mumbled.
As he settled back into his seat downstairs, he could hear muffled sobs and shouts coming from the drunk n. Zhao Yao threw a dirty look at the stairs.
"Boss, do you need to ask them to turn it down?" Bai Quan offered.
"It’s alright. I doubt they’ve had a chance to be like this in a long ti," Zhao Yao said, putting on his earphones.
"Alcohol’s the perfect excuse for being who you truly are unapologetically," he mused.
After all, his illusions were rely realistic, not real. There was no alcohol served tonight. The n just needed a catalyst for release.
An hour later, both of Old Man Zhuang’s guests were sleeping soundly on the couch. Zhuang himself was laughing cheerily as he approached Zhao Yao.
"I’m sorry about this. They’ve not had a drink in a while, so they got drunk rather quickly."
The old man continued to invite his friends to the café on the following nights. They brought with them a steady stream of extra revenue and experience points.
Combined with Zhao Yao’s diligence at fulfilling his daily missions, the Book soon reached Level 5 (4,828 / 10,000).
However, even though every one of the cats’ requests had been fulfilled, the main mission to raise the happiness index in the cat nation remained incomplete.
This inspired Zhao Yao to conduct a happiness survey that night.
*
A few minutes later, Zhao Yao was in the carton-filled no man’s land of the extradinsional belly. He was seated behind a desk. Airplane was opposite him, eyes squinting from the flashlight that was pointed directly at him.
"I need you to be honest with , boy. Are you unhappy with ?" Zhao Yao demanded.
Airplane was shaking with fright. "No... no, of course not."
"Then, what do you think of the Village of Dreams?"
"It’s the best place ever!" he responded a little too quickly, "Everyone gets along and we have enough to eat and so much to do. I love it there!"
"Is that so?" Zhao Yao narrowed his eyes.
He brought the light closer to Airplane’s face.
"Why are you nervous, Airplane? Are you hiding sothing? You better co clean right now and tell what’s wrong with the Village of Dreams."
"Sir, everything I’ve said is true. The Village of Dreams is a wonderful strategy. We’re all thankful for your leadership and King George’s foresight. Under you, even strays like myself can lead a beautiful life full of gas, food, and even catmint. Long live the Village of Dreams!"
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