Mountains and giant beasts, cabins in the woods

The restaurant was crowded and lively at dinner time.

The female shopkeeper held a calligraphy brush in one hand and an abacus in the other, recording the month's income and expenses in the ledger.

Since the store started selling Golden Water, it has been packed with customers every day.

The so-called "golden water" is a bubbly, golden liquid. One sip and all the day's fatigue vanishes.

Some people even became addicted to drinking, selling their possessions to drink every day, causing a lot of trouble.

Fortunately, the female shopkeeper was a local power, and her family had been rooted in this Falling Flower Alley for over a thousand years. She had connections everywhere and could easily resolve all kinds of troubles.

The female shopkeeper finished the last stroke of her pen, looked at the striking numbers, and nodded in satisfaction.

"Boss! Come and serve us men some wine!" A slightly frivolous voice came from the main hall.

"Sir, please wait a moment. I'm coming right now!" the female innkeeper called out in a high-pitched, sweet voice.

At the same time, a hint of disdain flashed through her mind: These hooligans, always taking advantage of being drunk to cause trouble, I'll teach them a lesson sooner or later!

Speaking of which, why are there so many good-for-nothings in this village? Where have all the good men gone? Have they all been seduced by foreign women?

"Hurry up, the brothers are getting impatient!" the lobby staff urged even more.

The female shopkeeper put down her brush, filled several jugs with wine, and placed them on a wooden tray.

She gracefully emerged from the back hall, her long, slender snake-like body gliding through the air.

She said in a sweet voice, "Gentlemen, you've come to patronize my business again today?"

"Hey, it's just that I missed your beautiful snake tail, boss, so I came here as soon as I got my wages!"

After the man finished speaking, he genuinely shifted his gaze from the female shopkeeper's graceful figure to her glistening black snake tail. His gaze seemed genuine; he even swallowed hard.

"Oh, hehehe..." The female shopkeeper covered her face and chuckled.

She had long since reached her breaking point with this disrespectful attitude!

Once I've stabilized my cultivation, and transformed my entire body into a black-scaled, venomous snake, let's see which rogue dares to lie!

Forget it, money talks. I'll squeeze every last drop out of you and turn all your wealth into money for alcohol.

The female shopkeeper put down the wine pot and chatted with the customer with a charming smile.

Just then, a calm and composed male voice came: "Shopkeeper, let's order."

The female shopkeeper turned her head and saw two young men sitting at a table in the corner of the hall.

One looked like a scholar, the other like a rogue soldier.

The female shopkeeper's heart skipped a beat, but her face remained expressionless; however, the tip of her wagging tail stiffened.

Oh my God!

Why did these two arrive at the same time?

Are you trying to give me a hard time?

This is terrible!

She wagged her tail and came to the corner table: "It is an honor for our humble establishment to have you two guests here. I will pay for the drinks."

The two young men did not refuse at all, sitting there calmly as if it were a matter of course.

The female shopkeeper smiled broadly: "Then I'll just serve some simple dishes. If you don't like the taste, please bear with me."

"I don't want appetizers, I want big fish and meat." The young man had a fierce look on his face, and his eyes were almost bloodshot.

"Absolutely, we'll serve whatever we have!" The female shopkeeper's smile almost froze.

This so-called number one genius of Black Dragon Village is exactly as rumored—a humanoid monster.

He has no morals whatsoever; he even captures unwanted children, feeds them to his contracted beasts, and activates evil secret techniques.

Mentioning his name would make even the most mischievous kid in Luohua Lane go to bed quietly.

Hopefully, my family's secret-recipe stir-fry will appease him.

Another frail young man, with a fake smile plastered on his face, said, "Two jugs of Golden Water, with the aroma of fruit and wheat, the purest Golden Water."

He emphasized the word "pure" very heavily, and his smile was devoid of any genuine joy.

"Sir, please wait a moment..." The female shopkeeper felt her voice was hoarse.

After saying that, she stiffly climbed into the back room.

Oh no! What should I do?

These two scoundrels are both difficult to deal with. The fierce one is alright, but the other one, the smiling tiger, is the real threat.

If that guy were to smack his little hand and write a few more lines in the newspaper, the ancient Jinli Restaurant, with its thousand-year history, might very well collapse today.

It's all my fault for being stupid. Besides accounting, I can't read many words, which has led to this situation.

In a moment of foolishness, I went to the author's house and stole the manuscript in order to see the serialized story ahead of time.

Who knew that the cultured shopkeeper Ma, after taking the manuscript, would not tell the story but instead produce the Golden Water.

It is indeed a wonderful beverage.

Some regular customers, seeing the novelty, clamored to drink it, and once they started, they couldn't stop. So, this wine became their new signature product.

That would be fine; as long as they go to apologize, offer money, and discuss business, the matter can be resolved peacefully.

As a result, a few clueless young people, upon hearing that Xizhen also sold this kind of wine, went to the wine stall there to cause trouble, completely ruining their business.

what--!

How did it turn out like this?

It's all the storyteller's fault for not doing his job properly! Can't he just stay home and write books? Why is he setting up a liquor stall?

Ah, I don't want to think anymore...

The female shopkeeper carried several jugs of wine on a tray and gracefully walked to a corner of the lobby.

-----

Liu Xingmo reached for the wine jug, put it directly to his lips, and drank half of it in one gulp: "Uh—! It tastes pretty good, even better than what I make."

"Sir, you're quite the joker." Liu San Niang's voice was so alluring that it made one's bones melt.

Liu Yizhu also downed half a pot in one gulp. He smacked his lips and said, "They all seem the same. They all taste very good."

He turned to look at Liu Xingmo: "Why did you choose such a remote shop to sell alcohol? Besides the locals living in shacks, who would bother coming to a place like this?"

"Ha! My wine didn't sell at Jinli Restaurant. The manager is really capable, he thought of the same thing as me." Liu Xingmo said with a forced smile.

"Well, she is indeed smart!" Liu Yizhu turned his head and looked the woman beside him up and down. "She just doesn't seem very bright."

Liu Xingmo was speechless for a moment.

I have no idea how this guy has managed to live all these years. The things that ordinary people do are completely foreign to him.

"Please continue your conversation, gentlemen. I'm going to serve the dishes." Liu San Niang, dragging her snake tail, disappeared into the back room.

Liu Xingmo watched her walk away.

This woman is still the same as ever, seemingly gentle yet cunning, difficult to manipulate. Relying on her connections with the local gang, she has done all sorts of despicable things.

The main purpose of this trip is to give her a warning. And incidentally, to probe the location of the "Record of Snakes and Pythons".

Knowing that the visitors were menacing, Liu San Niang remained calm and continued serving dish after dish, each one a feast for the eyes and the palate.

Liu Xingmo and Liu Yizhu ignored everything else and ate and drank heartily.

Liu San Niang first watched from a distance, her beautiful face shifting between light and shadow.

Then she came to the table, stretched out her long serpentine body, and looked down at the two young men: "Esteemed guests~ Did you enjoy your meal? Would you like me to perform another dance to entertain you?"

"It's alright, but the ingredients aren't very fresh. However, the dried goods are quite good," Liu Xingmo said indifferently.

"Oh, hehe... If you like it, that's wonderful." Liu San Niang's voice was extremely charming, as if she were coquettish.

Liu Xingmo frowned.

This woman is impervious to all persuasion and unreasonable.

This is really difficult.

He had planned to provoke her, cause trouble, and then use the media frenzy in the newspapers to force her to comply.

I didn't expect her to hold back.

What should we do next?