Daily Life of Running a Street Stall in Bianjing

[A cozy, short, cheerful story that's perfect with a meal!]

[The author's other story, "The Pretty Little Couple from the Farm," is currently updating.]

Xu Guoguo transmigrates to Bianjing overnight, only to find herself in a bizarre, awful family. There are five mouths to feed, young and old, and they're so poor they can hear their coins rattle.

Fortunately, the guiding principle of the Great Song Dynasty is: money comes first.

Xu Guoguo returns to her old line of work. Fast-food shop owner Xu is open for business today!

Xu Guoguo rolls up her sleeves and gets to work. From having nothing to owning her own food stall, buying good farmland, and opening shops, her life with a golden finger is simply too sweet.

Her golden finger is this: every time she touches the neighboring hunter's hand, she gets some sweet dew. The dew has all sorts of uses. One drop leaves a lovely fragrance on your lips and teeth, two drops make you glow with health, and three drops make you...

The only downside is that this golden finger has a little bug that often embarrasses her in front of that man.

But the man is tall, sturdy, and dependable, and a touch of his finger produces sweet dew. It doesn't get much more cost-effective than that.

The nth time Xu Guoguo uses the same old trick and "falls" into hunter Shan San's arms, the normally easygoing man finally gives in to his animal instincts and corners her against the wall, eyes blazing red.

"Once or twice is one thing, but this is the third time. Are you trying to become my wife?"

Xu Guoguo waves her hands so fast they blur. "No..."

The man's gaze suddenly turns icy. Xu Guoguo shrinks her neck, losing her nerve. "Yes...?"

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★ The golden finger is an old trope, and this is a self-indulgent story. It won't get too powerful; it's mainly here to move the romance along. Guaranteed sweetness.

★ This story is set in a semi-fictional world. Please don't overthink the details.

★ Eat and drink well, and enjoy the story. If you're not enjoying it, don't force yourself.

·, ·

Coming soon: "The Lovely Cook at the Frontier," listed on my profile.

Tian Gu had a hard life. On her wedding day, before she'd even lifted her veil, word came that her husband was dead.

She spent three years as a widow, caring for her parents-in-law, before heading to the frontier.

She was lucky enough to find work as a cook in the frontier army camp. The pay was good and the work relaxed, so Tian Gu accepted at once.

-

Conditions at the frontier camp were harsh and the environment was poor, but that wasn't the worst of it.

The food was practically inedible. The vegetables were old, the meat was tough, and not even pigs would eat the endless pots of pitch-black gruel!

That is, until Tian Gu arrived.

Hot and sour noodles, minced meat noodles, braised pork, egg pancakes, and even eight-treasure glutinous rice, iced pumpkin milk. The soldiers ate and cried as if this were their last meal.

They also ate until they were full of energy and stronger than ever!

One day, they went to battle.

The enemy forces were dumbfounded. Why had the other army become so aggressive lately?!

They sent a soldier to investigate, but when he returned, he was dumbfounded, too.

"They said... they said they want to finish work early so they can go back and eat the fried chicken the little cook just made...?"

The enemy general: ?

--

A little cook joined the army. Though she was a widow with a child, she had fair skin, a pretty face, and a sweet voice.

A bunch of rough men who usually talked dirty couldn't tear themselves away from her.

They walked quietly, stopped making dirty jokes, and even quit smacking their lips at meals.

Except for Gu Xiancheng, the Great General of Dingguo, who stayed as rough and unconcerned as ever.

One soldier sighed: No wonder the general is still single at twenty-five. That's rough.

But one day, an eagle-eyed soldier spotted the general sneaking into the little cook's tent.

Then one day, the little cook's belly started to swell...

The soldiers: ???

Theme: Life is beautiful when you work hard with your own hands