Guga Milk Tea Shop

Nuoding Academy's cafeteria stood east of the dormitories.

It was lunchtime.

Lin Yuan found a seat in a corner. Two Gugas jumped out of his clothes and stood on the table, one on each side, like little door guardians waiting for a meal.

Xiao Wu came over carrying three plates, each piled high. Both Gugas reached out their stubby little hands.

"Eat slowly." Lin Yuan held the plates down.

Guga lifted her chin.

"No Guga."

Dark Gold Guga had already grabbed a piece of meat and stuffed it into her mouth.

"...Tasty Guga."

Xiao Wu went back for more. Two plates, four plates, ten plates, twenty plates.

The stack of empty plates on the table grew higher and higher.

Wang Sheng passed by with a bowl. He took one look, his mouth fell open, and the flatbread in his hand dropped.

"...How many plates?"

"Twenty-five."

"They can still eat?"

"Yeah. They can still eat."

Wang Sheng silently picked up his flatbread and took another route.

Xiao Wu brought over the thirtieth plate, set it on the table, and sat across from Lin Yuan with her chin in her hands. Guga held a piece of meat in her stubby little hands, her cheeks bulging like a squirrel's; Dark Gold Guga clutched a piece in each hand and ate with both hands at once, her dark-gold eyes focused as though she were in battle.

"Lin Yuan."

"Mm."

"Do they eat this much every day?"

The corner of Lin Yuan's mouth twitched.

"...After absorbing her First Soul Ring, Guga got stronger. Her appetite grew too."

"What if you get another one later?"

At that, Lin Yuan fell silent.

Guga licked the meat juices from her stubby little hands and burped.

"More Guga."

Dark Gold Guga licked her hands too.

"...More for me too Guga."

Xiao Wu's eyes widened.

"They're still hungry?!"

Lin Yuan stood up and fetched another ten plates. The two Gugas kept their heads down and ate. He sat beside them, looked at them, then glanced at the price list posted on the wall.

One Silver Soul Coin for a plate of meat.

Forty plates.

Four Gold Soul Coins.

Lin Yuan looked down at his money pouch. The stipend he received from Spirit Hall was only one Gold Soul Coin a month.

Lin Yuan leaned back in his chair. The two Gugas had finally finished eating and lay on the table, their little bellies round. Guga patted hers with her stubby little hands, and Dark Gold Guga copied her.

"...Full Guga."

"Full Guga."

Xiao Wu reached out and poked Guga's belly, then Dark Gold Guga's. Both little creatures let out satisfied hums.

Lin Yuan looked down at the two Gugas. Guga rolled over and rested a stubby little hand on Dark Gold Guga's belly. Dark Gold Guga frowned and moved Guga's hand onto her own belly.

"...Heavy Guga."

"You're the heavy one Guga."

The two little creatures bickered, then fell quiet again.

Lin Yuan smiled.

"Let's go find Brother Su."

Su Yuntao's home stood in eastern Nuoding City, a two-story house with its own courtyard. It had blue bricks and dark roof tiles, two Osmanthus Trees grew in the courtyard, and a tea set sat on the stone table.

As a level twenty-six Soul Grandmaster, he was already a person of standing in a place like Nuoding City.

When Lin Yuan and Xiao Wu knocked, Su Yuntao was drinking tea in the courtyard. Sisi sat beside him, peeling an orange.

"Lin Yuan?" Su Yuntao set down his teacup. "What brings you here?"

Lin Yuan took the two Gugas out of his clothes and placed them on the stone table. Their bellies were still round, and they rolled over and went on sleeping.

"Brother Su, I want to go into business with you."

"Business?"

"Selling milk tea."

"Milk tea? What's that?"

Lin Yuan nodded. In his previous life, he had worked at a milk tea shop over summer vacation and still remembered most of the recipes and combinations. This world had tea, milk, and sugar. All it lacked was someone to mix the three together.

"A drink made by mixing tea, milk, and sugar. Low cost, high profit."

Su Yuntao scratched his head. "You're a Soul Master. Why go into business?"

"I can't afford to feed them." Lin Yuan pointed at the two Gugas on the ground. "They ate forty plates in one meal. Four Gold Soul Coins."

The corner of Su Yuntao's mouth twitched.

An orange segment fell from Sisi's hand onto the table.

"...Forty plates?"

"Mm."

Su Yuntao was silent for three seconds, then stood up. "The tea leaves are in the cupboard. Get the milk from the back kitchen. Tell me what to do."

Lin Yuan went into the kitchen.

He boiled the tea leaves and strained out the tea. He warmed the milk and mixed it in at the right ratio. Then he added sugar and stirred. His movements were deft, every step as practiced as if he had done it hundreds of times. Su Yuntao watched from the doorway, and the longer he watched, the more convinced he became.

When Lin Yuan brought out the first cup of milk tea, the mingled scents of tea and milk drifted through the courtyard.

Xiao Wu came over, took the cup, and had a sip.

Her eyes lit up.

"It's delicious!"

Sisi took the cup and sipped from it, then blinked.

"What is this? It's so much better than the sweet drinks they sell on the street."

Su Yuntao took a sip and fell silent.

"...We can sell this."

The moment he spoke, both Gugas sprang up from the stone table.

"Tasty Guga?"

"Tasty Guga?"

The two little creatures jumped down and rushed to Lin Yuan's feet. They tipped their heads back, their black-bean eyes and dark-gold eyes fixed on the cup.

"Want some Guga!"

"...Want some Guga!"

Lin Yuan poured two small cups. The Gugas picked them up and downed them in one gulp. Guga's black-bean eyes narrowed to slits, while Dark Gold Guga's eyes shone like lightbulbs.

"More Guga!"

"...More Guga!"

Su Yuntao watched the two Gugas drink half a pot of milk tea. The corner of his mouth twitched.

"Your own people have drunk your milk tea before you've even started selling it."

Lin Yuan said helplessly,

"...Then we'll make more. It's fine. It doesn't cost much anyway, so let them drink as much as they want."

"All right." Su Yuntao set down his cup. "How do you want to sell it?"

Lin Yuan put his cup on the stone table.

"Two versions. One made with the best tea leaves and fresh milk, served in a porcelain cup and sold only to noble students for one Gold Soul Coin a cup. The other made with ordinary tea leaves, served in a bamboo tube and sold to commoner students for one Silver Soul Coin a cup."

Su Yuntao's eyes lit up.

"Noble students care about appearances. The pricier it is, the more they'll buy. Commoner students can afford it, so we can sell a lot."

"Exactly."

Sisi counted on her fingers. "One Gold Soul Coin equals ten Silver Soul Coins... Sell fifty noble cups and a hundred commoner cups a day, and that's sixty Gold Soul Coins. Eighteen hundred a month."

Su Yuntao drew in a sharp breath.

"That's more than I make as a Spirit Hall deacon."

Lin Yuan looked at him. "I'll provide the recipes and teach the preparation. You provide the premises, ingredients, and staff. We split it fifty-fifty."

Su Yuntao held out his hand.

"Deal."

They shook hands.

Sisi laughed beside them. "The two of you, one six and one twenty-six, going into business together."

Lin Yuan glanced at Su Yuntao, then at Sisi.

"Brother Su, Sisi comes to your house every day. Why not bring her in to help?"

Su Yuntao's face flushed scarlet.

"She... She just brings me meals!"

Sisi blushed too, an orange segment pinched between her fingers, unsure whether to peel it or put it down. "Who... Who comes every day? I just happened to stop by today!"

Xiao Wu covered her mouth and laughed.

Sisi glanced at Xiao Wu, then at Lin Yuan, and raised an eyebrow.

"Little Lin Yuan, you're one to talk. Who's this little girl following you around?"

This time, it was Xiao Wu's turn to blush.

"I... I'm his classmate!"

"Classmate?" Sisi smiled. "A classmate who follows him everywhere?"

Lin Yuan gave her a speechless look.

"We're only six."

The courtyard fell silent for a second.

"All right, all right." Su Yuntao waved a hand. "We'll start tomorrow. I'll hire people, and you'll teach them how to make it. We'll open the shop on the street in the city center. I know a landlord who can give us a cheaper rent."

"Okay."

By the time they left Su Yuntao's house, it was almost dark.

Xiao Wu skipped along ahead, still clutching an empty cup she couldn't bear to throw away.

"Lin Yuan."

"Mm."

"What are you going to call the milk tea?"

Lin Yuan thought for a moment.

"Guga Milk Tea."

Both Gugas poked their heads out of his clothes at once.

"Guga?"

"Guga?"

Xiao Wu burst out laughing, her scorpion braid swinging behind her.

"Good name. Cute and easy to remember."

The two Gugas tucked their heads back into his clothes, shifted a little, and went on sleeping. Guga smacked her lips in her sleep and scratched Dark Gold Guga's ear with a stubby little hand. Dark Gold Guga stirred but did not wake. Instead, she laid a stubby little hand over Guga's arm and hugged it tighter.

The setting sun stretched the two people's shadows long.

Xiao Wu suddenly stopped, turned around, and walked backward.

"Lin Yuan, you'll become a really powerful Soul Master someday, won't you?"

Lin Yuan kept walking. "I don't know."

"I think you will." Xiao Wu tilted her head. "Guga's so strong that Tang San couldn't even break through her defense."

Lin Yuan glanced at her.

Xiao Wu tilted her head. "Anyway, I don't care. When you get powerful, remember to look out for me."

"Sure. Call me big brother, and let's hear it."

Xiao Wu snorted.

"No way."

She quickened her pace, deliberately making her footsteps thud against the stone road.

Lin Yuan smiled and followed her.

The two Gugas were fast asleep in his clothes.

Tomorrow, Guga Milk Tea would open for business.