The man hadn't expected Shen Lu to refuse and immediately grew displeased.
"Who you sell to makes no difference, does it? In this weather, you think you'll have a lot of customers?" The man's tone was aggressive. "Hurry up and pack it for me."
Shen Lu gnawed on her back teeth. 'Should I try to reason with him, or just go straight to using the stun baton?'
'Ever since I got this stun baton, has my temper been getting... shorter?'
"Hey, hey, hey." Leaning languidly against the cart, Zeng Xiaodao spoke up. "Mister, can't you be a little more polite? She already said she's not selling. Are you deaf?"
The man glared at him. "You little punk, was I talking to you?"
"Alright, alright, stop fighting." Shen Lu didn't want them arguing at her stall and hurting her business. "Mister, if you really like it that much, I can sell you one more portion, at most. But that's it."
"I don't want it anymore!" the man shouted, furiously slamming the plastic bowl down. "It's just a street stall. What's so high and mighty about it? Who knows if you're putting some kind of illegal substance in your food!"
With that, he turned and walked away without a backward glance.
Shen Lu called after him, "Hey! Mister, you haven't paid yet!"
'Forget it,' she thought. 'There's no way I'm getting his approval now. But he still has to pay, right? Otherwise, I'd be taking a huge loss.'
The man pulled two Star Coin bills from his wallet and threw them on the ground.
He didn't even break his stride, tossing the Star Coins as if he were throwing away trash. The insult was palpable.
Without a moment's hesitation, Shen Lu dashed over, scooped up the money, and ran back under her umbrella.
She wiped the dirty water off the Star Coins with the hem of her skirt before tucking them into her pocket.
Zeng Xiaodao folded his arms, eyeing her with some surprise. "I thought you didn't care about a little bit of money."
He'd seen shops with purchase limits before, but they were usually big establishments using it as a gimmick to seem more exclusive.
But this was just a street stall. A purchase limit seemed a bit ridiculous.
Unless she didn't care about making money at all.
But that contradicted Shen Lu's current situation.
All sorts of thoughts spun through Zeng Xiaodao's mind, but none of them seemed to add up.
"Of course I care." Shen Lu dusted off her hands. "Who doesn't care about money?"
'Money is the only way to live a good life.'
She took the egg waffle from the iron, placed it in a bowl, and handed it to Zeng Xiaodao. "This is the last item in the set meal: the egg waffle."
Zeng Xiaodao ignored the bowl, grabbing the egg waffle directly and stuffing it into his mouth.
It was just as he'd imagined—utterly delicious.
"Now that you've had a taste, can you give me that mechanical arm?" Shen Lu asked.
Zeng Xiaodao rubbed his stomach. "I'm not full."
He'd never felt this hungry before. He felt like he could eat a whole cow.
"I think it's best not to push your luck," Shen Lu said with a faint smile. "If you really don't want to give it to me, then I don't want it anymore. You can leave now."
"You can't be serious. You think this little bit of food repays me for saving your life?"
"So what? Your attitude sucks, and I don't like it." Shen Lu lifted her chin, looking quite haughty. "Besides, I never asked you to save me. You did that on your own. Whether or not I choose to repay you is my business. I'll do it if I feel like it, and I won't if I don't. What are you going to do about it?"
Zeng Xiaodao laughed in exasperation.
He'd always thought he was pretty shameless and infuriating himself, but seeing her today, he realized there was always a bigger fish.
The young man couldn't resist reaching out and flicking her on the forehead. "Then let me 'save' you again right now. Don't be so arrogant next time. You'll get yourself beaten to death."
Just the other day, Zeng Xiaodao had seen someone else who talked like they were asking for a beating. He'd watched them get killed, and they were probably fertilizer by now.
Shen Lu clutched her head, her almond-shaped eyes wide with anger as she glared at him. "Don't hit me on the head!"
Their relationship wasn't nearly close enough for that. Shen Lu hated the way he'd rapped her on the head.
Zeng Xiaodao's lips curled into a malicious smirk. He raised his hand again, feinting another tap on her head.
Shen Lu dodged back, not letting him touch her.
"You're so annoying!"
Shen Lu hadn't liked him much from the moment they met.
Zeng Xiaodao scoffed. "And you think you aren't?"
'She tripped me, got me caught by Wang Daguo, and then showed zero gratitude after I saved her.'
'A truly unlikable girl.'
Shen Lu's cheeks puffed out. Then, catching sight of a customer approaching with an umbrella, she quickly smoothed her expression and greeted them warmly.
Zeng Xiaodao's eyes narrowed slightly as he watched the girl with curiosity.
She was different from any girl he'd ever met. She was... special.
Shen Lu successfully sold another two orders of malatang, two cups of mint water, and one egg waffle.
As soon as one customer left, another took their place.
She no longer had time to argue with Zeng Xiaodao. She served order after order, and two hours later, everything was sold out.
[DING! Detected sales: Mint Water 25/25, Egg Waffles 15/15, Malatang 10/10. Mission complete. Reward: one Lottery Ticket.]
Shen Lu packed up her things in a slow, methodical manner, feeling quite emotional.
'Fu Cheng is such a good-luck charm!'
'Look at this money-making effect, it's absolutely top-notch.'
When she turned around, Shen Lu realized the young man who had been lounging on the cart was gone.
"Couldn't even say goodbye before leaving?" Shen Lu pouted. "And he didn't give me the mechanical arm..."
As she was grumbling, Shen Lu noticed something familiar next to Fu Cheng. She walked over to get a better look.
It was the mechanical arm.
The resentment on Shen Lu's face vanished instantly, and she happily picked up the mechanical arm.
"Guess you've got some sense after all."
Shen Lu suppressed the urge to start taking the mechanical arm apart, put it back down, and continued packing up her stall, humming a tune.
Just as she finished, Wang Daguo appeared, wearing a raincoat.
The man looked a little apprehensive.
He had arrived before four. The corpse-collecting job was off for the day anyway, and he'd been worried that if he came too late, Shen Lu would have already packed up and left, no longer needing his help to move her things.
It was just...
'Would she still be willing to pay 20 Star Coins to hire me?'
'Anyone can move things.'
'Sure, I'm a bit stronger than most, but she doesn't have that much stuff to move. A teenager could do it.'
"You're here!" Shen Lu's voice was full of pleasant surprise. "Perfect timing! I was just wondering how I was going to get all this back!"
Hearing her say that, Wang Daguo's expression relaxed, and he managed a simple, honest smile. "Your business is doing well."
'Selling out of all that stuff in just two or three hours... business really is good.'
'But it makes sense. Selling food is always a good business.'
'My next-door neighbor sells Insect Cakes, and they always sell out before dark.'
'I buy them often myself. Can't be helped. You can't live on nutrient liquid every day, and with no crops growing in the fields, Insect Cakes are a decent option.'
'Aside from tasting bad, scratching your throat, and making you constipated if you eat too many, they're perfect.'
With Wang Daguo's help, Shen Lu quickly finished packing. Together, they pushed the malatang machine back to her rented room.
After opening the door, Wang Daguo first carried Fu Cheng inside, then brought in the items from the cart one by one.
Shen Lu pushed the malatang machine into the room and set it against the wall.
Once Wang Daguo had moved everything inside, she took out 20 Star Coins.
"Brother, can you come by around 11 tomorrow?" Shen Lu asked.
"I can," Wang Daguo agreed readily. "I can come in the afternoon, too."
"Then I'll see you at the usual spot tomorrow. By the way, what's your name? I feel awkward just calling you 'brother' all the time."
"Wang Daguo."
Shen Lu was speechless. '...What a fitting and down-to-earth name.'
"I'm Shen Lu."
Wang Daguo took the Star Coins. "Boss Shen, see you tomorrow."