Daily Survival After Inheriting a Harem (GL) - Chapter 22

“It’s nothing, My Lord. Are you tired after painting all day?”

“You’re lying,” Qiu Qi frowned. “You always avoid looking into my eyes when you’re unhappy.”

Pei Yuqing’s motion of tidying the desk paused for half a second. She hadn’t even noticed these details herself, but Qiu Qi had observed them meticulously.

“Madam, these are all just for making a living, you see…” Qiu Qi tugged on her sleeve and shook it slightly, her soft, drawn-out ending sound making her plea even harder to refuse.

Pei Yuqing sighed, a helpless feeling bubbling up from deep within her. “My Lord doesn’t need to explain. As long as it’s something you like, I will always support it.”

Qiu Qi’s ears drooped, turning into pitiful airplane ears again. “Really? But Madam, your expression looks strange.”

“My Lord is overthinking things,” Pei Yuqing said faintly, putting away the painting for her. Then she raised a hand and ruffled Qiu Qi’s head. “It’s late. My Lord, come back to the room with me to rest.”

Being touched by Pei Yuqing voluntarily felt quite nice. Qiu Qi tiptoed and rubbed against her palm again, then let out a sigh of relief. “Okay, early to bed and early to rise. We still have to go to Ruyi Workshop tomorrow.”

••••

The next morning, Qiu Qi sent a few of her drawings to Lu Ren via Butler Yan.

The Ruyi Workshop was named as such because anyone could buy anything they desired there. This was also the reason for the shop’s popularity: it sold everything.

Qiu Qi wanted to sell her paintings quickly and efficiently, and going through Lu Ren was definitely the best route.

In modern terms, it was like hitching a ride on an influencer’s live stream to gain exposure, establishing brand awareness, and then slowly recouping marketing costs.

Fortunately, Lu Ren was somewhat conscientious. Given that Qiu Qi was a valued customer who had spent over a thousand gold, his commission was only ten percent.

“I never imagined My Lord’s painting skills were so exquisite. Lu Ren prides herself on being well-traveled and knowledgeable, yet I’ve never seen such finely detailed works, and there are even many fresh poses here… I presume they’ll be snapped up the moment they’re put on sale,” Lu Ren said with a squinting smile, a cunning look that was hard to decipher. “However, My Lord also knows that I never do business at a loss.”

Qiu Qi, of course, knew there was no such thing as a free lunch. She cautiously confirmed, “Tell me about it.”

“First, your products can only be sold through my shop from now on. You cannot go to other shops, nor can you privately cut me out to poach customers.”

Qiu Qi nodded. She had somewhat anticipated this; Lu Ren would take a small loss now because she clearly saw greater profits in the future. If Qiu Qi became popular and took her customer base elsewhere, it would indeed be quite unfair.

“And the second?”

Lu Ren smiled, her finger tapping the protagonist’s face. “This face, you have to change it. Otherwise, it won’t sell.”

Qiu Qi was puzzled. “Do you people have a problem with aesthetics? It’s so beautiful, and it won’t sell?”

She’s practically insulting her painting!

“When I say ‘won’t sell,’ I mean it cannot be sold,” Lu Ren wagged a finger. “The current Saintess, with her immortal grace and beauty, certainly has many admirers. But such blatant lewd imagination… My Lord Beast God, aren’t you a bit too daring?”

If these drawings were mass-produced and printed into booklets, they would undoubtedly pass through many workshop laborers, not to mention the word-of-mouth among customers after they were sold. This matter would surely reach the Saintess’s ears within half a day.

If she then filed a complaint with the Emperor, let alone the business, even their heads might not be safe.

“What are you talking about? What does this have to do with the Saintess?”

Lu Ren narrowed her eyes. “My Lord Beast God, don’t you know? The woman in your drawing has the exact same appearance as the current Saintess, Yu Nankong.”

The news was too shocking. Qiu Qi’s lips parted, but she was speechless.

To call this a coincidence, she herself wouldn’t believe it. But the reality was this: the original owner’s memories contained no scenes of meeting the Saintess. Yan Wan had sent over a portrait, but the artist’s style was comparable to Picasso’s; it would be a miracle if she could recognize anyone from it!

“My Lord, have you thought it through?” Lu Ren patted the dazed Qiu Qi. “If you can agree to my two conditions, I’ll go to the workshop to place an order tonight.”

Qiu Qi came to her senses, stammered a “good,” and then pressed her finger imprint onto the contract.

Her mind was now completely focused on Pei Yuqing’s strange reaction last night. It turned out she wasn’t overthinking things. Pei Yuqing must have also misunderstood, just like Lu Ren, otherwise why would she have barely spoken to her all night!

“Then it’s settled.” Lu Ren contentedly looked at the red handprint, carefully folded the contract, and tucked it into her bosom. “The workshops I use are trustworthy, easy to deal with, and quick. Once your drafts are out, five hundred copies can be on sale in less than three days.”

Qiu Qi nodded distractedly, now only wanting to rush home and thoroughly explain everything to Pei Yuqing.

••••

Rushing home, pulling Yan Wan along, their path was blocked at the entrance.

A young girl with a blue hairpin on her head wore an expression as cold as Pei Yuqing’s. She blocked Qiu Qi’s path with an outstretched arm, stating firmly, “Master is sleeping. No disturbing her allowed.”

Qiu Qi’s gaze shifted to the young girl’s face. “You look unfamiliar. Where are you from?”

“I am Lan Tang,” she said, enunciating each word.

“Oh,” Qiu Qi suddenly understood. “Looking at you now, there’s a resemblance. That chubby baby face is exactly like the little chubby bird’s.”

Since Pei Yuqing had been unchained, it was natural that Lan Tang, who was born from her spiritual power, could now resume human form.

“Go back. You are not allowed to disturb my Master,” the little girl said, quite protective of her mistress, glaring at Qiu Qi through gritted teeth.

“Alright, then if Madam wakes up, please call for me.”

“We’ll see,” Lan Tang replied with a cold look, crossing her arms.

Qiu Qi knew she wasn’t favored by her. After speaking, she turned to leave, but just as her foot was about to step down the stairs, she felt someone gently tugging at her sleeve from behind.

She turned back to see the little girl, half a head shorter than her, with her head lowered, subtly shifting her gaze to the right, her lips moving to utter a few words, “Um, about the popsicle last time… do you have any more?”

Qiu Qi smiled, like a child trafficker trying to lure a child with candy. “You want to eat it?”

“Mm…”

“Then come with me,” Qiu Qi beckoned to her. “Not only popsicles, but something even better than popsicles.”

Lan Tang’s eyes lit up, but she pressed her lips together, trying to suppress her excitement. “Really?”

“Really, I’m not lying to you.”

••••

Qiu Qi led the little girl to her secret hideout—which was actually just a small, perpetually abandoned room next to the ice storage.

When Qiu Qi had come across it before and found it uninhabited, she simply moved all the things she had been tinkering with there. It was close to the ice storage, so anything she made could be quickly preserved at a low temperature, preventing spoilage.

“Wait here, I’ll go get it.” Lan Tang, like Pei Yuqing, feared the cold and preferred warmth, so Qiu Qi didn’t take her into the ice storage.

The ice storage was where ice blocks transported from the human race were kept. Because of its excellent sealing and insulation, it functioned much like a refrigerator. Qiu Qi had specifically carved out a section to store her own little creations.

She first took out two popsicles wrapped in oil paper, carefully choosing Lan Tang’s favorite osmanthus flavor. Then, she stretched her arm to the right and rummaged around.

There was a row of glass bottles she had recently put in. She took one out, shook the dark brown liquid inside, and her eyes showed a hint of anticipation.

She carried the items to Lan Tang, and as expected, the other party instantly switched from a highly guarded state to one of innocent delight.

“What is this?” Lan Tang licked the popsicle in her hand, curiously watching Qiu Qi tinker with the glass bottle. “Is it medicine?”

Qiu Qi mysteriously waved her hand. “This is cola, also known as fat-otaku happy water.”

“Fat-otaku… happy water?” Lan Tang was puzzled. “Who is a fat-otaku?”

“That’s not important. You just need to remember the last three words: ‘happy water.’ As the name suggests, drinking it will make you exceptionally happy.”

This bottle had cost Qiu Qi quite a bit of money. She had specifically entrusted Lu Ren to procure it from another continent. Qiu Qi impatiently opened the wooden stopper of the glass bottle with a “pop,” and tiny, dense bubbles rose from the brown liquid.

Qiu Qi stared at the bubbles, a great sense of accomplishment swelling in her heart. Heaven knew how much pain she had gone through making carbonated water. First, she had to extract that tiny bit of carbon dioxide from limestone, and then, using water-element spiritual art, rapidly spin water around the carbon dioxide to thoroughly fuse them. The first step was fine, but the second step severely tested her control ability; she only succeeded three times out of ten attempts on average.

But a good result was all that mattered.

“You have to drink this quickly while it’s still fizzy,” Qiu Qi poured a cup for Lan Tang. “Try it.”

Lan Tang wrinkled her face. “Why is this thing bubbling? And the color is strange. It’s not poisonous, is it?”

Qiu Qi demonstrated, tilting her head back and taking a big gulp in front of her. “I’m drinking it. If it’s poisonous, it’ll poison me first.”

After several attempts at persuasion from Qiu Qi, Lan Tang finally raised the cup and tentatively touched it with her tongue. Upon discovering that it was sweet, she took a small sip.

The cool, sweet liquid slid across her tongue, leaving behind a subtle, almost imperceptible caramel scent in her throat. Her taste buds felt as if tiny needles were pricking them—not painful, but quite a peculiar sensation.

“What… what is this?” Lan Tang stuck out her tongue. “Is my tongue okay?”

“Don’t be afraid. That’s the feeling of the bubbles bursting. Isn’t it wonderful?” Qiu Qi refilled her cup. “You’ll get used to it after a few more sips. You might even get addicted.”

Qiu Qi took another gulp herself, then stretched her neck and let out a satisfying burp.

Creating the taste of cola wasn’t easy either. For the coffee beans, one of the raw materials, she had paid Lu Ren ten silver just for shipping—ten times more than the item itself.

The coffee beans were ground into powder and then brewed with hot water and filtered to obtain the original coffee extract. In addition, there was one most important flavoring agent: sour lime water. The ratio of the two had to be perfectly controlled to succeed. Qiu Qi spent most of a day just on this step alone.

Other auxiliary spices were added to the mixed extract, and finally, slow-cooked caramel was added as the finishing touch. Although the taste was somewhat different from what she used to drink, it was generally similar. Most importantly, this feeling of finding a spiritual connection moved Qiu Qi to tears.

“When I have time, I should make some milk tea too,” Qiu Qi planned her next happy endeavor in her mind.

When she came to her senses, Lan Tang had unknowingly finished an entire cup. The person who had been adamantly refusing just moments ago was now holding the empty cup with both hands, looking at Qiu Qi with a face full of anticipation.

“This is the last bit, it’ll be gone soon,” Qiu Qi couldn’t resist her endearing gaze and generously gave her the last bit from the bottle.

“Thank you!” Lan Tang’s tone became much livelier with the happy water. She even praised Qiu Qi for the first time, “Your cooking is great, you could sell this!”

“Yeah,” this gave Qiu Qi considerable inspiration.

She could sell drawings, so why couldn’t she sell food? Especially this group of beast-people, they seemed so unworldly; a bowl of egg fried rice made them so excited they wanted to kneel and beg for the recipe. So her “happy water”…

Qiu Qi chuckled to herself, her dreams already beginning to form even before she started working.

••••

Five days later, at the Saintess’s Pavilion.

A woman in yellow sat at a rosewood table covered with scrolls. Her ink-black hair was smooth and shiny, flowing like a waterfall behind her, adorned only with a simple pearl hairpin. Her oval face naturally exuded an elegant and serene aura.

Her finger rested on a letter, her gaze fixed on the messy, scrawled handwriting on the paper.

‘Hello, Saintess. I’m writing to inform you of something important. Due to unforeseen circumstances, the quarry, oil field, and mine will temporarily cease operations. I apologize for any inconvenience this may cause. However, if you have any other needs, please feel free to let me know. Wishing you good health, and you are welcome to visit me anytime. I will definitely treat you well ^-^’

Yu Nankong spun the ring on her left hand, a faint smile playing on her lips. She began to think that this legendary, reckless, and mentally weak Beast God was not entirely ignorant after all. Look at this letter: it didn’t mention tributes at all, yet it clearly conveyed her stance—if you are unjust, don’t blame me for being unkind. If the road tolls weren’t enough, then don’t blame me for cutting off your business.

At least fifty percent of human merchants relied on these three resources for their livelihoods. Qiu Qi had now simply cut off the supply chain with an “unforeseen circumstance.” If this continued, many people might starve on the streets.

Yu Nankong reread the letter, her gaze settling on the snarling smiley face at the bottom of the paper. A few simple strokes, seemingly comical and cute, yet filled with sarcasm.

Interesting.

“Saintess.” The dispatched secret agent flashed in, raising the rolled-up drawing in his hand and presenting it to the woman seated at the head. “This is what you asked for.”

Yu Nankong gave a faint “hmm,” extended her hand, her fair, slender fingers touching the drawing. As she slowly unrolled it, the casual smile on her lips widened significantly after she clearly saw what was depicted, and the expression in her eyes became profoundly meaningful.

“Did she really draw this herself?” She tapped her hand on the armrest, her tone neither light nor heavy, yet it made the person kneeling below tremble uncontrollably, showing no sign of relaxation.

“Yes, it has been confirmed with the owner of Ruyi Workshop. They are for sale, absolutely true.”

“Good.” Yu Nankong stood up, sweeping her sleeve. The golden hem of her robe billowed and then slowly settled. Half her face was veiled by a thin mask, revealing eyes filled with a captivating sharpness. “Since My Lord Beast God admires me so much, I shall go and see how infatuated she truly is.”