this chapter is brought to you by mio
as translator, proofreader and editor!
Jiang Ci didn’t pay attention to the update going on outside. Instead, she went to freshen up first, especially her hands, which she washed several times until they were spotless. Only then did she sit cross-legged on her bed, ready to draw the lucky wheel.
The big wheel soon appeared before Jiang Ci. The orange section for an employee was still there, not having been refreshed yet. Jiang Ci closed her eyes, silently praying three times in her heart before cautiously reaching out her finger to tap the center of the wheel.
The wheel spun from slow to fast and then gradually came to a stop. Throughout the process, Jiang Ci didn’t dare to look, covering her eyes with her hand. It wasn’t until the wheel stopped that she moved her hand away from her eyes.
To her great surprise, the pointer stopped at the edge of the orange section. By sheer luck, Jiang Ci had won the reward she had been longing for. She was so happy she almost jumped up.
The next second, a white light flashed, and a figure slowly appeared before Jiang Ci.
From blurry to gradually clear, Jiang Ci watched with anticipation, only to find that the person appearing before her was actually someone she knew.
“Captain Song?!” Jiang Ci’s eyes widened in disbelief. How could the store’s employee be him?
“Boss…?” Song Jinchuan’s eyes were bloodshot, and everything he saw was just a blur in front of him. He only felt that the light here was warm, and there was an indescribable fragrance.
Then, he fainted.
Jiang Ci was startled by this sudden turn of events and shrank back. “He… isn’t dead, is he?”
[He just fainted. This is the employee the system has found for the host, a dual-elemental ability user with level seven fire and wind abilities. He can not only help the host with the store’s work but also protect the host,] the system explained.
“You just brought him over like that, aren’t you afraid he isn’t willing? We’re a legitimate hotpot restaurant, not some human trafficking operation,” Jiang Ci said earnestly.
[Don’t worry, host. This ability user had already been infected with the zombie virus. I brought him over when he was on the verge of death,] the system said. [After the system repaired his body, he no longer belongs to this world but to the host and the hotpot restaurant.]
Hearing that this person now belonged to her, Jiang Ci pursed her lips in slight embarrassment. The novels she had read about forced possession flashed through her mind, but she quickly shook her head, dispelling all those inappropriate thoughts.
“Is he really okay? He seems seriously injured. What if he doesn’t want to stay in the hotpot restaurant after he wakes up?” Jiang Ci frowned as she looked at the man lying on the floor.
[If the survivor refuses to stay in the store, his body will be restored to his previous state and returned to his original location,] the system’s voice was devoid of emotion. [If that happens, the system will select a new employee for the host.]
Jiang Ci turned her head to look. Song Jinchuan lay on the floor of her bedroom with his eyes closed. There were clear bite marks on his arm, which were slowly healing due to the system’s intervention.
[Considering the addition of an employee to the store, the host’s living quarters will now include a small bedroom for the employee to live in,] the system added.
Jiang Ci nodded. Having a place to stay was good. Although there was a foldable bed in the warehouse, it was still too small for a tall and burly adult man like Song Jinchuan.
But for tonight, Jiang Ci had no choice but to let Song Jinchuan sleep on the floor. After all, he was too heavy for her to move alone, so she kindly placed a pillow under his head.
With an unfamiliar man in the room, Jiang Ci didn’t sleep well all night. The next morning, she noticed obvious dark circles under her eyes when she was washing up.
Song Jinchuan was still asleep, so Jiang Ci didn’t wait for him. Instead, she went to the main hall to see how the upgrade had turned out.
As soon as she stepped out of the bedroom, Jiang Ci paused. The once modest hotpot restaurant, which only had two wooden tables, had been completely transformed. The hall had widened significantly, with the number of tables increasing from eight to twelve, and the private rooms doubling from two to four.
The brick-and-tile house had been upgraded to a modern bungalow. The floor was now covered with clean, shiny anti-slip tiles, and the walls were no longer plain white. Upon closer inspection, there were subtle patterns, making the place much more refined.
Standing in the center of the hall, Jiang Ci thought to herself that it finally looked like a proper hotpot restaurant.
[Next task: sell one hundred portions of lamb rolls to unlock the pot helmet stall,] the system’s voice suddenly rang out.
At these words, Jiang Ci couldn’t help but swallow. She couldn’t help it—she thought of the crispy, flaky pot helmet, steaming hot and flaky with every bite.
In her hometown, pot helmet was a popular street food, representing the bustling and lively atmosphere of the local markets.
She remembered that outside her elementary school, there was a pot helmet stall that had been around for over a decade. The dark, flat griddle sizzled with oil, and the pot helmet, stuffed with meat, was placed on it. The sizzling sound was like a signal, triggering the aroma to immediately spread.
When she was young, it only cost one yuan each. The last time Jiang Ci went back, the price had risen to five yuan, but the taste remained largely unchanged. The person making the pot helmet had changed from an older man to a young man.
As she thought about it, she started drooling again, as if she could still recall that delicious flavor.
Soon, the sound of voices outside broke through her memories and brought her back to reality.
The survivors outside had already started lining up. Jiang Ci opened the door and began handing out number tags.
The number tags were something she had come up with on a whim yesterday. She had written numbers on pieces of paper and handed them out one by one to prevent cutting in line or people having to stand for too long.
She had started using the number tags yesterday afternoon, and they had worked quite well.
When the survivors saw Jiang Ci come out, their faces visibly lit up with joy.
“Those here for meals, please stand on the left. Those here to buy water, please stand on the right,” Jiang Ci called out to the crowd in front of her.
Since the mineral water had gone on sale, the surrounding bases had quickly caught wind of it and came with their crystal cores to make bulk purchases. Jiang Ci had stocked hundreds of thousands of boxes in the warehouse specifically to sell to these bases.
The survivors obediently formed two lines. In their eyes, Jiang Ci, who held a vast amount of resources, was a mysterious and powerful figure. Naturally, no one dared to cause trouble. Even the most unruly individuals had to behave themselves here.
Jiang Ci noticed that there were more survivors from the base coming to buy water today, and that there were a few familiar faces among the crowd.
“Base Leader Zhou, didn’t you just buy some the day before yesterday?” Jiang Ci asked, recognizing the familiar face in the crowd. She remembered that this Base Leader Zhou had to bring three large trucks to haul away the mineral water.
“I brought people from the White Horse Base today. I thought I might as well buy some more while I’m here. After all, who would complain about having too many supplies?” Base Leader Zhou chuckled.
Now, the backyard of the hotpot restaurant was mostly used for parking by the survivors. As the shop upgraded, the open space outside grew larger, able to accommodate more and more vehicles, making it increasingly convenient for the survivors.
Gasoline had become an extremely scarce commodity, something that can’t be bought even with crystal cores. The base was now in the midst of developing a new energy source, primarily made from crystal cores, but it was very expensive. Therefore, apart from the large trucks representing a base, it was rare to see private any privately owned cars.
Jiang Ci started distributing the numbered tags to the survivors based on color—black tags for those eating, and blue tags for those buying water.
With the numbered tags, people didn’t have to wait at the door; they could find a seat and wait for their number to be called.
After settling the survivors, Jiang Ci got busy—chopping vegetables, washing them, cooking rice, exchanging points for hotpot bases, while also finding time to deal with the survivors buying water. She was so busy she wished she had a few more hands.
pls do not share this anywhere or u will always stub ur toe when u walk past a door frame !! this translation has been stolen from mioscorner.com, pls only read there i’m begging u :kneels:
It was almost noon when the system informed her that Song Jinchuan had woken up.
Only then did Jiang Ci remember there was a man in her room, a ready source of labor. Her eyes lit up as she thought of the spinning top she had become, and without even putting down the rag in her hand, she hurried into the bedroom.
Song Jinchuan had just woken up, his mind still in a haze. Gradually, his memories returned. He remembered being bitten by a zombie, then seemingly turning into one. In his final moments of life, he thought he saw the boss of the hotpot restaurant. So, was he in heaven now?
Song Jinchuan’s vision slowly cleared, revealing a clean and tidy room, with a faint and pleasant fragrance lingering in the air.
What astonished him was that the bite marks on his arm had completely disappeared, and the burning heat that had seemed to consume his insides was also gone, as if it had all just been an illusion.
Just then, the bedroom door opened from the outside. Song Jinchuan looked up and saw Jiang Ci peeking her head in.
“You’re awake?” Jiang Ci said with a smile. “How do you feel? Are you feeling better?”
Song Jinchuan stared blankly at Jiang Ci’s porcelain-white face. Was this heaven? But why would Boss Jiang be in heaven?
“This is my hotpot restaurant. You were… saved by me. Now you’re an employee of my shop. You can’t return to the outside world anymore. If you’re unwilling, you can only go back to where you were yesterday, and the zombie virus will return to your body.” As Jiang Ci spoke, her voice unconsciously softened, feeling a bit like a bully forcing a man into submission, those threatening words flowing out smoothly without a hint of a stutter.
She didn’t mention the existence of the system; explaining it would be too troublesome after all, and Jiang Ci hated bringing herself needless trouble the most.
Song Jinchuan still didn’t speak, seemingly still digesting Jiang Ci’s words.
The sound of voices outside made it impossible for Jiang Ci to stay here for long. She tossed the rag in her hand to Song Jinchuan. “Clean yourself up here. There’s a set of clothes next to you, and the bathroom is inside. Freshen up and then come out quickly to help. I’m swamped.”
With that, Jiang Ci got up and left the bedroom, leaving Song Jinchuan behind with a bombshell of information.
He had never known that one could survive after being infected with the zombie virus. He looked at his palm and then pinched himself hard. It wasn’t a dream. His supernatural abilities were still intact, and his body was healthy enough to crush the skull of the zombie that had bitten him.
Song Jinchuan, who had risen to the position of squad captain, naturally had a strong mindset. He quickly composed himself, cleaned up at an impressive speed, changed his clothes, and walked out of the bedroom.
DROOLING SO HARD RN i’ve never had such a craving for pot helmet so bad
i think if i could pick one food i can’t live without it would definitely be malatang — no joke i have it at least 3x a week i can’t get enough of it
