Chapter 20

Though it was gourmet food and not sold in the form of nutrient liquid, many commenters still dismissed Ye Chengxing as a scammer—a claim that didn’t seem very believable. Even so, plenty of people boldly made purchases because of the affordable prices. Numerous buyers even posted screenshots of their orders on Star Net, eager to share their reviews.

Those who realized they were near Ye Chengxing’s gourmet store simply fired up their live streams and headed straight over.

After Ye Chengxing uploaded the pictures and videos of her dishes to Star Net, she paid little attention to the comments flooding in below them. Orders had started rolling in on Star Net within two seconds of her posts going live, and they arrived nonstop.

—Even though plenty of people under those videos continued calling her a scammer and ripping into how unappetizing her food looked, it clearly wasn’t hurting sales.

Ye Chengxing glanced at the comments to satisfy her curiosity, then ignored them. No matter how much those critics jumped up and down, the order volume never dipped. Some customers had even come into the shop to order directly, so the comments were utterly irrelevant. Besides, whether the food was delicious or not would be clear after one taste.

Her original intent had simply been to drum up some buzz for the gourmet store. As for pricing, she could adjust it once the foot traffic picked up. Even then, Ye Chengxing had no plans to jack up prices on ordinary dishes too high.

After all, the gourmet industry in this world wasn’t incapable of thriving—it had simply been monopolized by the elite. Ambitious chefs were poached with lavish offers, their creations sold exclusively to the upper crust or auctioned off. A few renowned Gourmet Chefs did open their own stores, but those catered to exclusive clientele: the ultra-wealthy. Their dishes remained priceless rarities, leaving most people to subsist on nutrient liquid.

Because a steaming hot meal was simply unaffordable.

If she could help it, Ye Chengxing wanted to bring this market back to the masses.

Her pictures and videos were already gaining traction on Star Net. At first, customers entering the Risheng Gourmet Shop eyed the offerings with skepticism. But once the first brave soul took a bite and let out an exclamation of delight, more and more people dared to try. Live streamers posting their glowing reviews only fueled the fire.

【I never imagined it’d taste this good… Wuwuwu, is the shop owner some kind of immortal?】

【Honestly, when I first saw people raving about it, I thought they were faking it. Turns out I was the fool! De! Li! Cious! And the prices are so reasonable! Everyone, charge!】

【Aaaah, I was so suspicious because this shop isn’t backed by any big company, but now I just want to beg the owner not to join one. At this quality level, corporate prices would skyrocket.】

【It smelled so good I ordered seconds right after finishing the first. And who was it that said those eggs tasted bad? Come out so I can throw hands!】

……

Comments like these flooded in, and with Star Net’s lightning-fast information spread, Ye Chengxing was stunned to see her entire stock of dishes and tea eggs sell out completely.

And it wasn’t even noon yet.

Staring at the now-empty Smart Storage Compartment, Ye Chengxing blinked in disbelief. She had figured it’d take a full day at least, but her entire inventory had vanished in a single morning.

She turned to the customers lining up to order and apologized, explaining the situation.

To her surprise, the customer didn’t leave. Instead, they gazed at her eagerly and asked when the next sale would be. The other customers perked up at the question, freezing in place.

Ye Chengxing pondered for two seconds. Cooking gourmet food had been an experiment on her part—if it hadn’t panned out, she would have let it go. After all, before entering this book, her profession had been medicine, not professional chef work. She never imagined her dishes would be this popular.

Even so, she couldn’t commit to a firm schedule. Li Jia’s entrance exam was coming up soon, and Ye Chengxing couldn’t hover over the shop all day. “I can’t pin down an exact time,” she said, “but there should be at least one sale every day. If you’re interested, follow my Star Net account. I’ll post tomorrow’s menu in advance so you can preorder what you want.”

As she spoke, Ye Chengxing reflected on her own words—they sounded so casual, almost like she didn’t care if the shop succeeded or flopped. Hardly professional.

But to her astonishment, the customers visibly brightened, their excited murmurs rising in waves.

“Oh my god, at least one sale a day? Some Gourmet Chefs who make inferior stuff only auction once a month!”

“What a charitable shop owner. I’m in love.”

Amid the chorus of praise from her customers, Ye Chengxing nearly choked on a cough.

…She had almost forgotten what gourmet stores were like in this world.

Though, this crowd sure knew how to lay it on thick.

Suppressing a twinge of embarrassment, she calmly directed the shop’s AI to switch to closed status. Her Star Net profile updated to “Temporarily Closed,” signaling that today’s stock was sold out.

Those who had finally mustered the courage to buy arrived too late, only to see the out-of-stock notices and the flood of rave reviews. Regret hit them one after another.

It really did look delicious.

Why hadn’t they come sooner?

But that frustration faded when someone posted Ye Chengxing’s exact words. It morphed into eager anticipation—

The owner said there’d be at least one sale tomorrow!

Gotta snag some then!

After tidying up the shop, Ye Chengxing deactivated her Disguise Potion. For caution’s sake, she changed locations and outfits before boarding her ride. Now dressed in outrageously expensive attire, her every gesture screamed wealth and refinement. No one would peg her as the Risheng Gourmet Shop’s owner—she seemed like a completely different person.

Only once she was in the vehicle did Ye Chengxing check her earnings from that short morning.

The Star Coins total was beyond staggering.

The money hadn’t gone into the card the Ye Family had given the original owner. It sat in a new account she’d opened herself—one the family wouldn’t notice right away. By the time they did, she’d have everything squared away.

Ye Chengxing was thoroughly pleased with the morning’s haul. The earlier detractors had been loud, but now the comments had flip-flopped. Buzz around the shop exploded, with discussions proliferating across Star Net.

Browsing the latest comments, Ye Chengxing grew even more satisfied. She’d built the name recognition—now all that was left was smart management. The results would exceed her expectations, no doubt.

She organized the data, outlined her next steps and plans, then finally rubbed her aching neck.

Exhaustion aside, thoughts of what came next filled her with energy and drive.

With her plans saved, Ye Chengxing checked the time. The morning tutoring session was probably wrapping up. She pondered what nourishing lunch to make for Li Jia—not just for nutrition’s sake.

Lin Que had been dosing Li Jia with potent aphrodisiacs for years. The effects were brutally strong, yet Ye Chengxing hadn’t noticed any obvious signs yet. Maybe the Suppressant she’d administered was still holding?

Even so, she needed to plan carefully. In some ways, food therapy could help.

No visible side effects from the aphrodisiac yet, but a decade of constant dosing had surely taken a toll on Li Jia’s body.

As these thoughts swirled, Ye Chengxing couldn’t help sighing.

Back in the real world, she never would have pictured herself pivoting to chef after entering the book. Utterly unexpected.

That said, old professional habits died hard. She knew which ingredients paired for nutritional and therapeutic benefits. Soon enough, she settled on a lunch menu.

Lost in planning, she realized the car had pulled up to the villa.

The gourmet shop was quite a distance from the original owner’s villa.

Not by design—the villa was just that remote, practically in the middle of nowhere.

That remoteness struck Ye Chengxing as the strangest thing. The Ye Family didn’t dote on the original owner the way the book described, which was why she remained so wary of them.

With the book’s plot now real, she’d noticed discrepancies everywhere. The story’s surface plot was one thing, but as a fully realized world, countless unwritten details diverged sharply.

Ye Chengxing returned to the villa earlier than usual, so the tutor hadn’t left yet.

Seeing her arrive, the tutor—who had been about to depart—paused with a smile and chatted briefly. “Miss Ye,” she said with genuine admiration, “Li Jia learns so quickly and grasps everything on the first try. She’ll ace the entrance exam, no doubt.”

Her tone held none of the forced flattery so common among servants—just the heartfelt thrill of teaching a star pupil. Few educators could resist an exceptional student, especially one under their direct guidance.

Li Jia stood behind her, apparently seeing the tutor out. Hearing the praise, she curved her eyes into a smile. “No, it’s all thanks to the teacher’s guidance.”

The Omega wore a light yellow dress that swayed with her movements, her hair arcing softly through the air. She radiated vibrant energy and youth.

Hearing the tutor rave like that filled Ye Chengxing with vicarious pride—and a touch of smugness. “Of course she does,” she replied.

After seeing the tutor off, Ye Chengxing changed clothes. The modest smile she’d mustered in the tutor’s presence vanished, replaced by bright, unguarded glee in her eyes.

She turned to Li Jia, grinning as she ruffled the girl’s hair and showered her with praise.

The Omega’s locks felt wonderful—fluffy and soft, evoking a small animal rolling over to bare its belly. The familiar scent came from the shampoo Ye Chengxing herself preferred. Unable to resist after the compliments, she ruffled it once more.

After she ruffled her hair like that, Li Jia—who hadn’t betrayed the slightest change in expression despite the teacher’s lavish praises—suddenly took on a different look entirely. Her long lashes drooped slightly, casting delicate shadows across her cheeks like the reflection of dense branches in rippling water.

Ye Chengxing finished tousling her hair and lavished several more rounds of praise, then happily pulled her into a hug. There was nothing remotely sensual about the embrace; it was as innocent as could be.

Anyone else pulling this stunt repeatedly would probably be a corpse by now. But Li Jia realized that the Ye Chengxing in front of her seemed to constantly forget the boundaries between Alphas and Omegas. She didn’t appear to be faking it either—she genuinely had no clue. Her instinctive reactions made it clear that such distinctions simply didn’t exist in her world.

Li Jia savored the hug without a word, afraid that if she spoke, Ye Chengxing might snap back to reality. Instead, she simply let herself be held, flashing a shy smile tinged with bashfulness from all the compliments.

The embrace drew them so close that Li Jia could almost hear the steady thump of Ye Chengxing’s heartbeat echoing alongside her own.

Regrettably, the hug lasted only a few brief seconds. Before she could fully immerse herself in the moment, Ye Chengxing pulled away and patted her shoulder with her fingertips. “Our Li Jia is truly amazing.”

She had repeated variations of this sentiment countless times by now, yet every instance made Li Jia’s heart race even faster.

Unable to help herself, Li Jia shook her head. “No… it’s all thanks to Sister.”

Ye Chengxing frowned in mild disagreement. “That’s not quite right. You’re exceptional in your own right—not just because of me. Even if it had been someone else, you would have shone just the same. Let me think… there’s a saying for it: good gold always glitters, no matter what. At most, I just uncovered a rough piece of jade, but you’ve been the real deal—a genuine fine jade—all along.”

She rattled it off in one go, pausing only for a second or two in the middle to recall the phrasing.

Li Jia met her gaze and realized that Ye Chengxing truly saw her that way: as fine jade, as exceptional… as the best.

Not the jinx or freak that others called her. No curses, no leering at her body.

And yet, that very realization filled her with even greater unease.

It made her feel like she had nothing at all to hold onto Ye Chengxing with. If Ye Chengxing were an ordinary person, she could at least offer her looks. But she wasn’t.

She just wasn’t.

With that, Ye Chengxing headed toward the kitchen. She had already planned out the nutrient-rich recipes on the drive home and was eager to put them into practice for Li Jia to try. But just before stepping in, she seemed to remember something. Casually, she pulled out a hair tie and sat down in front of Li Jia.

Ye Chengxing held it up, offering it with the loop facing outward.

It took Li Jia a couple of seconds to register the gesture before she took it.

Ye Chengxing’s long, wavy hair gleamed with luster, smooth as high-quality silk when gripped—cool to the touch, like a gentle, ceaseless stream.

Standing behind the Alpha, Li Jia inhaled the faint, clean fragrance of her hair. For a fleeting moment, she lost herself, her fingers tightening unconsciously around the hair tie. Then, abruptly, she spoke. “There won’t be anyone else—just Sister. If I’m truly fine jade, then once carved, I’ll belong to Sister alone.”

Ye Chengxing blinked at first, not quite following, but she caught on quickly enough. This was Li Jia responding to her earlier words.

“That’s pretty much what I meant. Anyway, you’re genuinely excellent…” As she spoke, Ye Chengxing remembered something else. “Oh, right—do you not like the scent of that shampoo I bought you?”

Li Jia kept her eyes fixed on the waves of hair, murmuring softly without looking up. “No.”

Hearing that, Ye Chengxing pressed on. “It’s fine if you don’t—we can switch to a new one. It looked like you were using my bottle. Do you prefer that scent? I’ll get you that kind next time.”

Li Jia’s lips parted as if to say something, but she held back, nodding vaguely instead. “Either one’s fine.”

There was so much more left unsaid beneath those words.

Like how it wasn’t that she disliked the original shampoo’s scent, or that she preferred the other one. Or… how she simply wanted to use the same bottle Ye Chengxing did—the one whose aroma she had caught on her, and which she craved to carry on herself too. Yet no matter how she used it, the smell never quite matched what she detected on Ye Chengxing, even though it was the exact same product.

With meticulous care, Li Jia gathered the long waves into a neat ponytail. Ye Chengxing narrowed her eyes slightly, her tone laced with a touch of wonder. “Forget the shampoo for now. If you tie it up for me a couple more times like this, I bet I’ll get completely used to it.”

She chuckled teasingly. “At that point, if you stop doing it for me, I’ll probably have to readjust.”

Li Jia’s hands didn’t falter, but her gaze paused for a beat. “That won’t happen. I’ll always stay by Sister’s side.”

Once the hair was secured, Ye Chengxing reached up to touch it, her eyes crinkling with even more amusement. “What do you mean, ‘won’t happen’? You won’t always… This is just the beginning for you here—your starting point. I promise, the future holds even brighter days ahead.”

She said it with such unwavering conviction that Li Jia found herself momentarily stunned.

Being around Ye Chengxing seemed to leave her in a daze more often than not.

Every word, every action from her was utterly unexpected, planting a tiny flower in the scorched ruins of Li Jia’s trust-starved heart—adding an extraordinary splash of color to her barren world.

Like a beam of light, unbidden, yanking her from endless darkness.

Suddenly, Li Jia itched to argue back.

She didn’t want “just for now.”

Someone this wonderful… she wanted to keep her by her side forever.