I Will Never Submit to Miss Grim Reaper - Chapter 126

Chapter 126: The Ideal of Life and the Life of an Ideal

Xiongxiong only stayed in the café for less than an hour and then left, eating a serving of the restaurant’s oven-roasted chicken and sandworm porridge.

“Before we go, let’s take a group photo, while Nuo’er is not busy yet.”

Fortunately, before Xiongxiong prepared to leave, at the request of the “Physics Duck,” he took many photos with us.

“Come on, Maid Nuo’er… oh no, our group leader stands in front, just under the hanging of the ‘No Game No Life’ painting, this magic array is really cool.”

“I think Nuo’er is just like Shiro, a cute little loli.”

“Who are you calling a cute little loli!”

“Hahaha… the little loli is angry, just kidding, come on, stand well, one photo for one yuan, ten yuan for a set, right?”

The center of the first floor of the café, the “magic array” that was just set up last night, seems to be a very good photo spot. When we stood on it, it felt like we were chosen children preparing to go to another world.

The only thing that made me a little dissatisfied is that I am the shortest among this group of people. Those two guys, not to mention, Yin Xiamo is taller than me, Xiongxiong is taller than me, Tongtong is taller than me, even Maple, who has always been a soft sister in the group, is taller than me…

“And this Nuo’er’s… girlfriend? Your name is Xiamo, right? Come over here.”

“Head Maid, come over quickly and help take a picture!”

“Wait, I haven’t positioned myself yet… I want to stand here, at the edge of this five-pointed star… Okay!”

“Click!”

This group photo made me experience what it’s like to be treated like a real child. It felt like going back in time more than ten or twenty years ago when I was still a kid in the orphanage. Every group photo, due to being too short, I would stand in the front, almost at the same height as the director sitting in the front row on a chair.

I wonder how things are at the orphanage now…

“Shall we take a few more over there? Since it’s a cat café, we have maids, so we should take some pictures with the cats, right?”

After finishing the photos in the lobby on the first floor, Maple suggested going to the cat living area to take a couple more shots. So, we enthusiastically arrived at the cat living area.

“Why don’t you try to hold a rabbit on your head like Chino in the anime? There are no rabbits here, so we can use a cat instead.”

“Wouldn’t that be a problem? The cats here are quite large, weighing over twenty pounds, I heard.”

“Just find a smaller cat. Look, that calico cat over there seems nice.”

“All right, that’s it! Come on, Xiongxiong, this time you stand in the front… Haha, Nuo’er’s fan group, the first offline gathering, group photo!”

“Is there going to be a second time…”

Finally, we, this group of people, went outside the café. With the giant mushroom house and the still-under-construction commercial street in the background, we completed the final shoot.

“Well, I’ll head off first. Have fun, everyone!”

“Safe travels, big boss!”

“Xiongxiong, are you really going out dressed in a bear costume?”

“Yes! Hehe, this Shenzhen City is so beautiful. Of course, I have to enjoy it for a few days!”

“Um… Xiongxiong, on behalf of the cafe manager… thank you for the coconuts.”

“Haha, no problem, just a small favor. Anyway, my ship is coming this way, so it’s convenient! You and Xiamo, be happy!”

After taking the photos, before leaving, I helped Tongtong, Physics Duck, and others pay for the bills. Xiongxiong, as if in a hurry to go somewhere exciting, swiftly left the café. She got into a stylish little car parked outside the café, the arrival time of which I wasn’t aware of, and drove away.

While her expression seemed carefree, it was a bit comical seeing her in the bear costume, looking at the back of that bear. Of course, this might be the lifestyle preferred by the “upper class”—with money at home, having a dedicated car for transportation, or being the only princess at home, they can do whatever they want. So, when going out, they can wear whatever they like.

Perhaps the reason Xiongxiong likes the anime “Kuma Kuma Kuma Bear” is because the main character’s setting is somewhat similar to hers. Both are privileged, with mysterious backgrounds, and have endless wealth. After finishing their studies, they naturally want to enjoy life as they please.

Don’t blame her, if I found out right after graduating from college that I was actually a child stolen from a wealthy family, with biological parents having assets in the billions, I wouldn’t worry about food and clothing for ten lifetimes. After acknowledging my parents, I would probably give up work, travel the world every day, do whatever I wanted, and go wherever I wanted.

Shenzhen City is also considered a tourist city, located by the sea. It boasts attractions like the Blue Sea Silver Beach, The Old Man and the Sea, Pearl Square, Shenzhen Lake, and the Nanqi Wanghai Park in the Nanqi District, among many others. Assuming Xiongxiong saw the café’s promotional video online or came across discussions about the café in my reader group, then casually looked up rumors about Shenzhen City, she might have discovered that it’s a great tourist city. So, she decided to come.

Attending the offline reader meetup at the café and meeting me, the author, is probably just a side note for her. She might have actually wanted to visit various attractions in Shenzhen City.

Then, thinking about coming to the Shangjing Cat Café empty-handed, not knowing what to give to me as the author, I noticed from the promotional video that the area outside the café seemed quite barren. I got an idea—why not gift a few coconut trees?

The key point is that these coconut trees are not the small kind, they have already grown into large trees, estimated to weigh several tons each. Coconut trees are a species that bears fruit throughout the year. If we excavate the soil, plant them, and they survive, by this time next year, we should be able to harvest fresh coconuts directly.

Sometimes, I really can’t quite understand the mindset of these wealthy individuals. A super-sized coconut tree, imported directly, must have cost a significant amount to dig up, transport, even if it’s on their own ship, going through sea freight, quarantine, and building relationships, all of which must have incurred substantial expenses. Additionally, they rented excavators, transportation vehicles, and sent so many workers to help dig holes, plant trees, and install supports. In my personal understanding, it probably cost several hundred thousand at least.

Of course, perhaps this amount of money means little to Xiongxiong, and I am very grateful to her for willingly spending so much money to help plant coconut trees outside the café.

Xiongxiong didn’t reveal her real name or the country she’s from. When asked about her hometown by Ice Spirit and others, she vaguely replied, “I come from a distant, seaside country.”

There are many “seaside countries” in the world, so her statement didn’t provide much information. In response, both Ice Spirit and I expressed understanding. After all, some wealthy individuals do prefer to keep a low profile, or there might be personal reasons that make it inconvenient to disclose their nationality.

As for this girl who roams the world in a bear costume, my first impression of her is very much like Tokichi Mikuni from “Bakusou Kyoudai Let’s & Go“… I mean in terms of personality and preferences. Tokichi Mikuni is also a second-generation rich kid. Despite having enough money to buy out the entire organizers of the four-wheel drive car race, he actively collaborates with ordinary people to modify four-wheel drive cars, using the same components fairly in competitions. Xiongxiong gives me a similar vibe—a type of wealthy individual with a down-to-earth and approachable attitude.

Ice Spirit said, “I envy Xiongxiong… I knew she was extraordinary from our group chat before.”

After Xiongxiong left, the university student Ice Spirit looked at the café’s entrance with a somewhat distracted gaze, “Look at what she usually talks about in the group – trips to Antarctica, international affairs. Wow, you can tell she’s from the upper echelons of society. Such a person is actually in the same group as us… I really can’t believe it. Ah, she just took a glance at us and left. It seems she’s really not part of our circle.”

“You envy her, but others might envy you for being an ordinary person.”

Physics Duck on the side remained calm, “This is called the ‘siege effect’.”

After a brief interaction and small talk, I got to know quite a bit more about “Physics Duck” and “Ice Spirit”. First, there’s Ice Spirit, whose real name is Zhong Lezhou. Currently, he’s studying at a university in a city over 200 kilometers away from Shenzhen City. The university is an ordinary undergraduate institution, and he’s majoring in a minor language. He’s tall and slender, not exceptionally handsome but certainly not ugly. His voice is a standard youthful tone. His parents are working-class, summarizing him as an ordinary male college student with no obvious strengths, talents, or significant bad habits or disabilities.

Students like “Ice Spirit” are quite common in various universities, attending classes during the day and reading novels or playing games with friends in the evening.

As for “Physics Duck”, his family background is relatively better. His real name is Kuang Jinshuo. His dad runs a chain supermarket in a small city and owns two self-built houses in the county town. After graduating, Duck took over his dad’s supermarket, and his parents retired to the county town. He lives in one of the self-built houses and rents out the other. He waits to collect rent every month and spends the rest of his time either playing cards or playing mahjong and watching short videos.

As for Cai Jingtong and “Maple (Meipu Lu),” originally, I thought Meipu Lu had the same real name as Ai Luodi. However, that’s not the case. “Maple (Meipu Lu)” is actually named Zhou Lulu, and she and Tongtong are students at Shenzhen College.

I have a bit of understanding about Shenzhen College, it’s a vocational college. Its predecessor was probably called “Shenzhen Changhe University,” but later, for some unknown reason, it changed its name to Shenzhen College. Strictly speaking, it’s not actually located within Shenzhen City. Its position… in short, it’s quite remote, and you have to travel a long way even after leaving the urban area. I have a vivid memory of running a long distance when my university club had a joint event with this “Shenzhen College” during my college days.

“Why is it that when I wake up… they’ve already started planting trees outside.”

At around three or four in the morning, Ai Luodi from the second floor yawned and came down. She looked bewilderedly at the excavators and tree-planting workers outside the café. “Are they coconut trees?”

“In the future, this area feels like it could be transformed into a coastal garden.”

Outside the café, under the sun, Ouyang Xue, sweating profusely, looked at the workers working enthusiastically in front. Her voice was a bit hoarse, “Dig a small swimming pool here, and over there, a fountain… um, cough, cough.”

Realizing something was off, I quickly ran over from the shade under the mushroom house’s eaves. “Sister Ouyang, are you okay with your cold?”

“I feel a bit dizzy, probably because the sun is too strong…”

Ouyang Xue’s words gave me the impression that her entire being was unwell, and her lips seemed somewhat pale. “Now… what time is it?”

“It’s three fifty.”

I took out my phone from my pocket and glanced at the time. “Sister Ouyang, you must go back and rest in your current state.”

“No, the peak dining period is coming soon. I… I can’t be absent during this time…”

Ouyang Xue turned around, seemingly attempting to walk back into the house.

The next moment, her feet stumbled, and her body went limp—

“Swoosh—”

In the blink of an eye, Yin Xiamo from the café rushed forward, securely catching Ouyang Xue.

“Sister Ouyang?”

“Café manager!”

Ai Luodi and I hurried forward, looking at Ouyang Xue in Yin Xiamo’s arms.

“She fainted.”

Yin Xiamo looked at me. “Quick, call 120.”

“……”

……