Chapter 29: Chapter 29

“One solid wood desk, one long dining table, one kitchen counter, five high-backed chairs, a standing bookshelf, a double-door wardrobe, a double bed, a small round table, six sets of double-layered gauze curtains, and a pink floral single sofa—30 silver coins in total,” Aisha calculated quickly. That was this month’s rent earned back.

“We have all these in stock. I can deliver them right away. Business was slow today anyway, so I’ll close up and deliver them myself, okay?”

Having made a sale, Aisha was naturally enthusiastic.

Muyu nodded, but Aisha didn’t go to fetch any goods—she just left the shop with her.

A bit curious, with all sorts of guesses in her mind, Muyu didn’t ask. She’d find out soon enough.

When they got to her house, Aisha asked where each piece should go.

Muyu walked to a window. “Put the desk here, and a chair too.”

Aisha pointed at those two spots, and the furniture she’d chosen appeared out of thin air.

A storage space? Muyu had seen a lot—Grandpa Shaum’s demi-plane, and her own backpack and chests in the block world all had storage functions.

The rest went quickly. After a lap around the house, everything was in its place.

“All done. Want to go to the tavern for a drink?” Aisha counted her new silver coins, in a great mood. The new world had so much potential, but for now, things were a bit boring.

“Huh?” Muyu hadn’t expected Aisha to invite her for a drink. She’d thought shopkeepers couldn’t leave their stores so easily!

Aisha looked at Muyu’s round eyes and her fair, slightly chubby baby face, and raised an eyebrow. “Don’t tell me you’re not of age yet?”

“No, I am. Don’t you need to get back to your shop? You can shop at other stores too?”

After meeting Grandpa Shaum and Wu Yaya, Muyu no longer thought of these people as NPCs. But as the lord, she knew they were bound by the territory and wouldn’t pose a threat, and their shops were the foundation of their presence here.

“We’re still in the newbie phase. Who else do you think can afford my stuff? And I can’t cook, so what’s wrong with going to the tavern for food and a drink?” Aisha asked, a bit baffled.

Seeing Aisha’s expression, Muyu realized she’d asked a silly question. But these shopkeepers, who’d appeared from who-knows-where, clearly knew something about the truth of the apocalypse—like that word Aisha had just let slip.

Thinking of this, Muyu shook her head quickly. “No problem, I was overthinking it. But as you can see, the new bed doesn’t even have a decent blanket. I need to go to the textile shop first, then I’ll join you at the tavern. Dinner’s on me.”

“Sure, I’ll go with you to the textile shop first.” With someone treating her, Aisha’s mood improved even more, and she found this generous young lady even more likable."

"Unlike the quiet furniture store, the textile shop was bustling with business.

The products here were much more affordable—the upper price limit rivaled that of the furniture store, but the lower end was much cheaper.

The hottest sellers were the coarse cotton clothes that only cost a few copper coins each.

In the apocalypse, frequent battles meant clothes wore out quickly. For some reason, clothing had become especially prone to damage—many items from mall clothing stores would fall apart at a touch. Only pure cotton garments lasted any length of time.

Most people had already come to terms with the changes since the apocalypse. Pre-apocalypse items were vanishing at an alarming rate, as if the whole world was being reset. But the new things that appeared after the apocalypse—especially the goods sold in these shops—didn’t seem to be affected.

The shop was crowded, with multiple copies of the product catalog available, and many sample garments and bolts of cloth hanging around the store.

Mu Ying noticed that most of the girls in the shop were absorbed in flipping through the catalogs, while the even larger number of men seemed distracted, crowding near the counter and sneaking glances at the figure behind it.

That was a woman completely different from Aisha—voluptuous and full of mature charm, the very embodiment of allure.

She clearly knew how to make the most of her figure, and how to use the right clothes to accentuate her assets.

Even Mu Ying couldn’t help but take a few extra looks.

“Aisha? What a coincidence! You’ve settled in this territory too? Did you come with your big sister?”

The beauty’s every move was captivating, her voice like a hook, making people’s hearts flutter.

“???” Mu Ying looked at Aisha suspiciously. An acquaintance?

“I regret coming with you now. I regret even more not making ‘not being in the same territory as Penny’ a condition,” Aisha took a deep breath, trying to calm her irritation, and turned away, ignoring the beauty’s flirtatious glances.

The woman clearly knew Aisha well, but didn’t mind being ignored. Instead, she turned her attention to Mu Ying. “What a cute girl! I’m Penny, the owner of this shop. Looking to buy some clothes?”

“Uh, yes, I need to buy some bedding,” Mu Ying nodded.

“Here, this is our catalog. You can use it to choose what you want. Mind if I borrow little Aisha for a bit?”

“?” Mu Ying caught the catalog Penny handed over, feeling awkwardly caught in the middle. What did Aisha have to do with her? Why should she care if Penny “borrowed” her?

She decisively buried herself in the catalog, trying to stay out of the crossfire. To her surprise, the catalog also functioned as a shopping device—she could select items, put the payment into the catalog, and the goods would appear directly.

She picked out several thick quilts, two sets of plain bed sheets and covers, two cashmere rugs, and three sets of plain clothes—each set including underwear, base layers, outer robes, and shoes.

The clothes in this shop were all rather old-fashioned, reminiscent of Western medieval styles. There were elaborate gowns as well as casual, practical outfits for everyday wear.

Mu Ying chose three classic, comfortable sets—simple, easy to move in, made of durable, breathable fabric. She picked one each in pale green, grass green, and dark green. All this together cost just ten silver coins.

“Little Aisha, how about going to the tavern for a drink tonight? My treat!”

“Sorry, someone else already invited me tonight.”

Mu Ying quickly paid, gathered up her purchases—only to feel her arms suddenly lighten. The things had vanished.

“I’ll help you carry them,” Aisha said shortly, then dashed out as if being chased.

“Haha, little Aisha is still so cute!” Penny laughed, bending over with mirth.

What kind of people have moved into my territory? Mu Ying shook her head, pushing aside the messy thoughts, and hurried after her.

Aisha helped her carry the things home. “I’ve got something to do, so I won’t go to the tavern. Next time, dinner’s on me.”

Mu Ying had a feeling Aisha was just trying to avoid running into Penny at the tavern. Considering Aisha had helped her carry her things—and that this woman, who owned a beautiful kitchen, couldn’t even cook—would she go hungry after going home?

Mu Ying also had something she wanted to ask, so she decided to invite her to stay. “If you don’t mind, why not eat here? I don’t have much, so it won’t be anything fancy.”

“Hm?” Aisha was startled, but quickly understood and agreed. “I don’t mind, as long as there’s food.”

“Have a seat, I’ll put these things away and start cooking.” Mu Ying opened her bag, spread the rose-patterned rug in front of the fireplace, invited Aisha to sit, then carried the rest of the items upstairs.

She laid the grass-patterned rug in the bedroom, put the bedding on the bed, and stuffed the clothes into the wardrobe. In just a few minutes, everything was in place.

When she came downstairs, she saw Aisha playing with Yuan Gun Gun.

Yuan Gun Gun clearly loved the new rug, rolling around on it. But whenever Aisha reached out, it would quickly turn away, baring its teeth, a tiny peach appearing in its paw.

“No!”

Mu Ying was startled, rushing down the stairs and quickly stuffing the peach back.

“Gun Gun, she’s a guest!”

Yuan Gun Gun pouted in grievance. Fine, no throwing.