Money-Coming Ice House

Fu You had loved spicy food since childhood.

When she was little, she had always thought being able to eat spicy food was cool.

Other people could not handle the bright red noodle broth, but she could. Chili oil that made people sneeze just from smelling it—she could eat it without changing expression.

It was still the same now. She still loved spicy food.

Back then, part of why she liked spicy food was because, as a child, she thought it was cool to do things others could not. But things were different now. She had long passed the age where she needed to prove her strength by eating spicy food. She simply still liked it.

And over the years, as her body changed, she had become increasingly unable to resist sweetness as well as spiciness.

Most Magical Girls liked desserts, and she was no exception.

She was not all that different from everyone else—two eyes, one nose, one mouth.

She had once resisted desserts fiercely, but later discovered that the more she resisted, the easier it was to fall deeply into them.

Back when she went to dessert shops with the other Magical Girls, the sickly sweet smell nearly stole her soul away, yet she still stubbornly claimed she did not eat girly things like that and only liked food so spicy that no one else could eat it...

Actually, it was not strange for boys to eat desserts, was it?

Like was like. It would not change just because she insisted otherwise.

Back then, she had gone against her conscience and claimed she did not like them, only to eat more than anyone else in private...

The key was that she had been caught.

Then she had been laughed at for quite a while.

Though the result had been that she was fed plenty of desserts...

Those memories were too embarrassing. Better not to mention them.

Once people got older, they tended to reminisce.

That dessert shop from back then had been renovated into the current ice cream shop, located right on the street corner. It was called "Money-Coming Ice House." The storefront was quite large, and its low prices made it very popular with students.

The owner was actually still the owner of the old dessert shop. The reason for the renovation was not complicated—she had learned a new craft and wanted to try it out.

The owner, Yuan Xiaofang, was a beautiful auntie. She was already forty, yet still radiant and showing no signs of age. She was particularly skilled at arranging food into attractive shapes. Compared to making bread, Fu You truly felt ice cream suited her better.

Ice cream was a kind of dessert too.

Things were different from before. If it had been back then, she absolutely could not have walked into a place like this alone. Now, she could buy desserts without changing expression.

There was not really anything shameful about boys buying desserts. Back then, she had simply been too immature.

She pushed open the little wooden door and entered Money-Coming Ice House.

There were indeed far more girls seated inside than boys.

Yuan Xiaofang was best at making parfaits, so most of the students who came here had glasses placed before them, scooping up bite after bite with their spoons.

Parfaits were made by piling common dessert elements—cream ice cream, fruit, cookies, jam, chocolate sauce, crushed pistachios, matcha, and more—into tall transparent stemmed glasses. Just looking at those colorful foods made one's appetite rise.

Catching the fragrance of cream, Fu You took a breath, then slowly exhaled.

She swept her gaze around. There were quite a few customers, but no one familiar.

"Oh? Little Sparrow, you're here?" Yuan Xiaofang spotted her at once.

"Mm." Seeing her, Fu You's voice softened considerably.

Little Sparrow—very few people called her that.

Her former codename had been Canary. Back when she had still been young, she had been tiny in every sense before the shop owner, so she had naturally ended up with that nickname.

Of course, these days, apart from the shop owner, hardly anyone still called her by that name.

She walked up to the counter and lowered her head to look at the menu, trying not to look at Yuan Xiaofang's face.

Yuan Xiaofang was one of the few people who knew her true circumstances.

Back when the other Magical Girls had forcibly dragged her here, she had performed the feat of eating eight strawberry mousses in one go right in front of the shop owner.

So whatever masculine pride she had was nothing but a joke before Yuan Xiaofang.

"I'll have a three-scoop ice cream. This flavor—strawberry—this one, yogurt, and this one, cream."

"Won't you try our newly introduced pistachio flavor?"

"Then make it four scoops."

"How about two double-scoop cones?"

"Mm. Fine."

Standing at the counter and watching Yuan Xiaofang bustle about inside, Fu You thought for a moment before asking, "How has Xiao Jue been lately?"

"Her? Everything's fine. Ever since she got into Huajiang University, she rarely comes back. The last time she returned, she was still talking about you. You hadn't come back then. The next time she comes back will probably be next month."

"As long as she's doing well."

"She's all grown up now, a proper young lady. The one you remember is still that tiny little girl, isn't she?"

"Yeah."

"It's been so long, yet you're still dressed like this. You're at the age to get married, aren't you? Do you have a boyfriend?"

"No." Fu You's gaze flicked slightly around the room. No one had gathered nearby to eavesdrop.

"You look quite pretty when you dress up. Dressed like this, you won't find a boyfriend."

"I don't want to find one," Fu You said.

"Being a Magical Girl is hard, but you cannot neglect your own life either. You're not that young anymore. You should start thinking about your own affairs. Hey, want me to recommend a few boys? There was one boy just now who looked pretty good to me."

"No, no need. It's not like I can't find one."

"Then go find one."

"I don't want to."

"Oh, you. Still as willful as ever."

If anyone else had said the same thing, she would already have started complaining.

But Yuan Xiaofang was not merely an ordinary beautiful shop owner.

A very, very long time ago, when Fu You had just become a Magical Girl, when she had truly been very young, Yuan Xiaofang had once saved her.

Yuan Xiaofang, codenamed Grey Magpie, had also been one of Jiangyang City's top Magical Girls at the time.

But by the time Fu You had grown enough to become an official Magical Girl, Yuan Xiaofang had already retired.

Two double-scoop ice cream cones were placed before her.

She accepted them with both hands.

"Come eat again next time," Yuan Xiaofang said with a smile. "I'll make you the biggest cone."

"Mm."

Holding the cones, she turned around.

The ice cream scoops were extremely large. Keeping them balanced steadily atop the cones was no easy task.

The moment she turned around, someone was standing right in front of her.

Her whole body trembled. She unconsciously took a step back, her expression turning somewhat unpleasant.

"Where did you come from?" Fu You's voice was obviously a little too shrill.

"Senior? It really is you?" Huali said in surprise.

Fu You hurriedly cleared her throat.

She had forgotten to keep up the act while talking to the shop owner.

Only then did a deep male voice emerge from her throat. "It's me."