Mysterious Bookstore

Ma Feifei had a dream. In it, he held the Son of Heaven's Sword, full of ambition, unifying the entire Azure Dragon Continent. The five great empires of Canglong, the seven great academies, all bowed at his feet. The top one hundred on the Canglong Fairy Ranking were all taken into his harem. Of course, he probably had many more dreams later, with many details he couldn't recall, but those weren't important. All that mattered was power and women.

Ma Feifei felt that if his transmigration life could be like his dream, it would truly be perfect.

Yes, Ma Feifei had transmigrated.

He arrived in a truly, truly magical place. Why magical? Because it seemed like the ancient times of his own world, no, it was even more magical than the ancient times of his world. People here could cultivate! Just yesterday, he saw someone flying over Dubian Town.

Of course, there was more magic. Look at that girl on the street, she had furry ears growing from her head. And those stone golems that came with their own fiery special effects, are you sure your fire won't hurt innocent bystanders?

For Ma Feifei, who had transmigrated, all of this was very magical. But the most magical thing was the 'Mysterious Bookstore' in his mind.

It appeared naturally after he transmigrated, and could also be called the golden finger that all transmigrators brought with them.

Well, let's call it the 'Bookstore System' for now.

Mysterious Bookstore (System)

Introduction: This is a magical system that can benefit you greatly.

A simple introduction, and that was it.

Oh, and it came with a quest.

Congratulations to the host on your grand opening. Please hand-copy Andersen's Fairy Tales and place them on the bookshelf, and gain one readership.

Completion Reward: Half a Mu of Flower Fields, host's cultivation rank increased by several levels.

Tell me, isn't it amazing? Isn't it awesome? Others who transmigrate either cultivate immortality or open gourmet restaurants, but he ends up with a bookstore! The key point is that he has to hand-copy these books himself! What a joke, he hadn't written more than a hundred words with a pen since graduation.

However, as the protagonist's golden finger, Ma Feifei naturally proceeded to copy Andersen's Fairy Tales according to the system's instructions.

The paper was magical, very comfortable to the touch, he didn't know what material it was made of.

The pen provided by the system was a ballpoint pen, not the legendary brush.

So, Ma Feifei had transmigrated for three days. Apart from spacing out for the entire morning on the first day, he spent the rest of his time copying books.

By the third day, he finally finished copying this volume of Andersen's Fairy Tales.

Finishing this masterpiece in less than two days was truly magical.

Strangely enough, after Ma Feifei finished copying, the book turned into a golden light and flew onto the bookshelf in the store. The paper became a book, complete with a cover!

Then, Ma Feifei's 'Mysterious Bookstore' officially opened.

One morning passed. Ma Feifei moved a small stool and sat at the entrance of the bookstore, watching the crowds on the street, feeling a little dejected.

No customers.

That was the most painful part.

This was a border town, and especially with the recent discord between Great Qin and Great Chu, there were frequent skirmishes. People didn't have the leisure to read.

This was a world that valued martial arts, no, this was a world of cultivation.

Reading? What was that? It didn't exist.

At noon, Ma Feifei was hungry.

He felt his pocket, which contained two copper coins, and sighed.

He might be the poorest transmigrator in history.

Apart from this bookstore, he was truly penniless.

Well, plus ten copper coins, Ma Feifei had eaten steamed buns for three days.

The cost of living in this world was quite low. One copper coin bought two steamed buns, and they were meat-filled, about the size of his palm.

However, looking at the 'Steamed Bun Shop' diagonally opposite, Ma Feifei felt a little nauseous. He'd rather not eat steamed buns anymore.

"Should I find some work? Otherwise, won't I starve to death if this continues?" Ma Feifei sat back on his stool, propping his chin with one hand, while the other toyed with a copper coin, rubbing it back and forth as he pondered.

He was confident in his bookstore. Everything takes time. He believed that the 'Mysterious Bookstore' would allow him to become someone of importance, but before that, he had to ensure he didn't starve to death, right?

After all, heaven knows when the first reader for this Andersen's Fairy Tales would arrive! It's possible he'd starve to death before any readers showed up.

Of course, the most, most important thing was that the system said the first book was free to read to celebrate the grand opening of the 'Mysterious Bookstore'! Do you know what free means? It means no money!

Well, so Ma Feifei would have to wait for the second reader to come before he could earn any income. Relying on the two copper coins in the meantime was clearly unrealistic.

However, upon careful consideration, Ma Feifei realized he didn't know how to do anything!

No, he could do manual labor.

That didn't require much brainpower, just some strength. Ma Feifei could do that without a problem.

He could do manual labor, but he needed connections.

Ma Feifei had been in this world for three days, and apart from the owner of the steamed bun shop across the street, he truly didn't know anyone else.

But the steamed bun shop probably needed some help, right? The owner looked quite tired. He should be able to get hired if he applied!

Right?

"What? Young Ma, you want to come help me out here? Just for some food?" The steamed bun shop owner looked at Ma Feifei, surprised.

Who was Ma Feifei? He was nobility. He inherited the title of Baron from his father. Although there were many nobles in Great Chu, a noble was still a noble, superior to a commoner.

Even if nobles fall on hard times, making them work for commoners is something they absolutely cannot do.

Ma Feifei didn't mind. What use were nobles? In his memories, his deceased father was a noble, right? Yes, and a Viscount at that. But besides that shop, what else was there? Nothing. The Viscount title was too low, and the country didn't provide any salary subsidies. Not to mention, Ma Feifei was now just a Baron. Besides tax exemption, he had to rely on himself for everything else.

"Heh heh, I'm practically starving to death. Old Man Wang, look, I still have some strength. Helping you knead dough is absolutely no problem." Ma Feifei felt no shame. His past life experiences were too rich; he had looked for so many jobs, and being looked down upon was the norm, let alone job hunting.

"Then what about your bookstore?" Old Man Wang asked.

A few days ago, Ma Feifei converting his family's shop into a bookstore had stirred up the neighbors on this street. This shop used to be a medical clinic opened by Ma Feifei's father. Anyone on this street who suffered a minor injury or fall would go to Ma Feifei's father for treatment. The sudden change from a medical clinic to a bookstore left the neighbors without a place to seek medical help, inevitably leading to gossip. Moreover, what even was a bookstore? They couldn't understand it.

"I can help after 5 PM," Ma Feifei said.

Ma Feifei naturally knew the importance of the bookstore and wouldn't abandon the fundamental for the trivial. At this time of year, it got dark by 5 PM, and fewer people were on the streets of Dubian Town, so closing at five was a relatively suitable time.

Old Man Wang looked at Ma Feifei's thin, small body and finally said, "Why don't you come over tonight and try it first?"

Try it? Ma Feifei saw Old Man Wang sizing him up and felt a little indignant. Was he looking down on him?

"Fine, I'll try it."

"Good. If you still want this job after trying it out, then I'll hire you. The daily wage is two wen, how about that?"

Two wen could buy four steamed buns, or a bowl of plain noodles, or two taels of beef.

Seemed not bad?

"It's a deal."

A day passed quickly. The 'Mysterious Bookstore' remained unvisited. Ma Feifei, with an empty stomach, closed the bookstore and went to help at Old Man Wang's steamed bun shop.

Old Man Wang was busy selling buns at the front and didn't have time to attend to him. He called his wife to bring Ma Feifei to the backyard.

Old Man Wang's wife, Wang Liu Shi, although large and strong, had a gentle nature. Even though Ma Feifei was there to do odd jobs, Wang Liu Shi's attitude was very good; it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say she was respectful. This was the difference between nobles and commoners.

The so-called backyard was actually where Old Man Wang's family lived, similar to a courtyard house, where they ate, drank, and handled all their daily needs. Like Ma Feifei's home, it had a shop in the front and a small courtyard in the back.

In a corner of the yard, there was a shed. Inside the shed was a round stone mill, and the young Mrs. Wang was using it to grind wheat.

As soon as Ma Feifei saw this, he quickly went to help. Ignoring the young Mrs. Wang's blushing face, he pushed her aside and took over himself.

"Ugh..." Ma Feifei couldn't move it at all!

He tried harder, still couldn't move it.

His face turned red, but he still couldn't move it.

"Pfft." The young Mrs. Wang, who had been watching Ma Feifei the whole time, finally couldn't help but laugh. She seemed to realize it was a bit inappropriate, quickly covered her mouth, her small face flushed red, and she ran out, seemingly shy, covering her face.

"Cough cough." Now it was Ma Feifei's turn to feel awkward.

Why was this thing so heavy? A young lady could push it, so why couldn't he? Ma Feifei felt a little hurt.

Doing physical labor seemed difficult too.

Finally, Wang Liu Shi had Ma Feifei go and knead dough.

He thought kneading dough would be an easy task, but after starting, Ma Feifei felt even more hurt.

It was just a lump of flour, estimated to be no more than ten jin, but when Ma Feifei picked it up, he realized it weighed at least thirty jin.

How could he knead this?

Beside him, Wang Liu Shi's hands moved as swiftly as flying. A lump of dough in her hands was like cotton, stretching and shortening, stretching and shrinking freely.

She was showing Ma Feifei with her actions how dough should be kneaded.

Ma Feifei felt he couldn't eat this meal.

However, Ma Feifei was quite persistent. He managed to knead the lump of flour in his hands, earning the praise of Wang Liu Shi and her daughter. Not only did he receive two wen, but he was also invited to a rather sumptuous dinner.

Of course, Ma Feifei didn't take the wages; he could still eat dinner.

There was meat, vegetables, and rice.

It was delicious.

But looking at his hands, which were trembling even as he held the chopsticks, Ma Feifei finally understood Old Man Wang's gaze at noon.

This job, he really couldn't handle it.

Ma Feifei ultimately gave up on the job.

When he slept that night, Ma Feifei's mind was filled with images of Wang Liu Shi kneading dough and the young Mrs. Wang pushing the mill. He thought about it for a long, long time.

Looking at his hands, which he couldn't lift, Ma Feifei sighed, "This world is truly magical."