Shopping Mall

Early in the morning, Chen Miemie stepped out through the [Crack in the Door]. The moment he set foot on Fairy-Tale Road, he immediately sensed that something was off.

There were far more people on the street than usual, and every shop had hung enormous discount banners outside.

More foot traffic meant better business for the shops.

“What’s going on? Is today some kind of special day?”

Every shop had customers coming and going—except one.

No. 17 Fairy-Tale Road, Old Man Yu’s funeral shop.

Chen Miemie walked in. “Old Man Yu, why is a shop like yours joining in the festivities? ‘Buy one stele, get the second half off’—who’d want your half-price stele?”

Old Man Yu really did have nothing else to do.

“Of course I know that. But it’s a tradition of our Book-Sealing Hall. Every shop puts on some kind of discount promotion on this day each year. I can’t exactly go against the tide.”

“Why do you have to run a sale today?”

“Not just today. It lasts three days. The day after tomorrow is when the city selects the outstanding figures in every profession. According to custom, all the businesses in the city offer discounts for three days.”

The cowlick on Chen Miemie’s head immediately curled into a question mark.

“I don’t get it. What does selecting outstanding professionals have to do with a citywide sale?”

Seeing the curious look in Chen Miemie’s eyes, Old Man Yu felt rather pleased with himself.

“At first, before the outstanding figures were selected, the few people who might win would make one final push. They’d boost their performance, negotiate orders, and so on. Strictly speaking, that was perfectly legitimate. But once this rat race began, it snowballed, and more and more people joined in.

“In the end, nearly every business in the city had gotten involved.

“Some merchants weren’t outstanding enough to begin with, so no amount of last-minute effort would help them win. But everyone suddenly discovered that business was especially good during those few days, and people were unusually willing to spend. Naturally, that made the whole thing profitable.

“And so, little by little, these three days became known as the city’s annual sale period.”

Chen Miemie nodded repeatedly, then drew an inference of his own. “Then why only three days? Why not seven, or even longer?”

“There’s a limit to everything. We can’t keep competing endlessly. Three days was the duration merchants arrived at through trial and error. The Scholars’ Institute even has regulations against starting early—anyone who does gets fined.”

Chen Miemie was hardly the sort to let himself fall behind. He hurried back to his own shop and stuck a small note on the door:

For the next three days, all commissions accepted by this shop will be charged at 88% of the usual price.

At the very bottom of the note, in minuscule writing, were the words:

The shop owner reserves the right of final interpretation regarding this promotion.

He had barely sat down in the shop when he received a message from Yi Zhu.

The siblings had invited him to go shopping at the mall.

Chen Miemie had never even known that the Book-Sealing Hall had such a fashionable place, so he hurried off to meet them, full of excitement.

After teleporting, Chen Miemie appeared near No. 50 Warm Jade Road.

Yi Zhu was surprised to see him. “Brother Miemie, you got here so fast. Little Sister, hurry up and get ready. We’re heading out.”

Chen Miemie’s eyes were sharp. “Yi Zhu, what’s that little slip of paper in your hand?”

“Oh, this? It’s our shopping list. It has everything we’re buying today.”

Chen Miemie took a quick glance. The paper was densely covered in writing.

“You’re buying that much?”

“Of course. This is the cheapest time of year. There are some things we don’t urgently need but have wanted for a long time, or things we know we’ll need eventually. We buy everything at once during this period.”

“I’m here. Let’s go.”

Yi Xian slowly approached. She was blind and couldn’t walk very quickly.

Chen Miemie looked at the siblings. “What are your mystery levels at now?”

Yi Zhu said, “1.8.”

Yi Xian said, “1.9.”

“Yi Zhu, are you even trying? How did you end up behind?” Chen Miemie looked at him as though he had failed to live up to expectations.

“Uh, my progress is actually pretty good compared to others my age. My sister’s just a little more talented than I am.”

“Don’t make excuses. You’ve been slacking off. Listen to me, you don’t have much time left. Hurry up and put some effort into it.”

Yi Zhu and Yi Xian: ???

The siblings had no idea why they supposedly didn’t have much time left, or what exactly they were supposed to hurry up and do.

Yi Zhu actually owned a small car.

He drove his sister and Chen Miemie to the shopping center.

On the way, Yi Xian introduced the shopping center to Chen Miemie.

“It’s the only large-scale commercial complex in the entire city. The whole building is filled with shops, from the first floor all the way to the top—more than a dozen floors in total. It has everything. During these few days, the discounts are especially huge.”

“That sounds impressive. My previous city didn’t have anywhere like this.”

Twenty minutes later, Yi Zhu said, “Brother Miemie, we’re about five hundred meters away, but we’re stuck in traffic. Too many people are coming to the shopping center today.”

“Pull over and park by the road. We’ll walk the rest of the way.”

“Uh... Everyone else had the same idea. The roadside is already completely full.”

“No need to rush. If we keep inching forward, we’ll get there eventually.”

It took them more than half an hour to cover those five hundred meters, but they finally arrived.

“Good thing the parking lot was planned on a large scale. Otherwise, we wouldn’t have been able to get in even for this short visit,” Yi Zhu praised.

“The owner clearly had excellent long-term vision. They’ve thought through every detail,” Yi Xian agreed.

The shopping center itself was shaped like a stack of enormous books. Apart from its eye-catching sign, it looked no different from any other building.

However, the moment Chen Miemie stepped through the entrance, his eyes widened.

For a moment, he thought he had somehow traveled back to his old world.

“T-This is the shopping center? It’s just a huge mall!”

The vast atrium was spacious and airy. Beneath their feet stretched a floor of tiles polished to a mirror shine, while both sides were lined with dazzling storefronts and display windows.

Looking up, Chen Miemie saw more than a dozen floors stacked one above another around the central space. The glass railings on every level were spotless, reflecting the endless stream of people below.

The air carried a faint, pleasant fragrance of perfume.

There was a clothing section, a food section, an arts and crafts section, a household-goods section...

And on the top floor was even a mysterious-persons’ area that could only be entered after presenting proper identification.

Before long, Yi Zhu and Yi Xian were carrying bags in both hands.

“Brother Miemie, aren’t you going to buy anything?”

“I’ll look around first. There isn’t anything I particularly need. I’ll only buy something if I find something I really like.”

Chen Miemie studied the lavishly decorated shops, the steady stream of shoppers, and the people carrying bags full of merchandise.

The décor, the layout, the scale, the crowds, the sales volume—this place was unquestionably a money-devouring beast.

“Yi Zhu, you said this is the only shopping center here?”

“That’s right. Before this place appeared, nobody knew you could shop in one place for everything. Clothes, food, daily necessities, entertainment—you can eat, drink, play, and take care of all your everyday needs without ever leaving the building.”

The three of them chatted as they walked. When they passed a service counter, they noticed a large crowd gathered in front of it.

Yi Zhu went over to ask around.

“There’s a lucky draw up ahead. We’ve spent enough to qualify for one draw.”

Yi Xian represented them and stepped forward. She reached her hand into a sealed box and pulled out a small ball.

The employee at the counter opened the ball, took out a tiny slip of paper, and read the prize aloud.

“Congratulations, customer! You have won—your entire purchase is free!”

“Ah!” Yi Xian cried out in delight.

Yi Zhu burst out laughing as well.

Everyone around them immediately looked on with envy.

The staff member wasted no time and immediately refunded Yi Zhu and Yi Xian the full amount they had spent.

The crowd erupted into even more chatter, and the atmosphere grew livelier.

Once they had squeezed their way out of the crowd, the smiles on the siblings’ faces were impossible to hide.

Chen Miemie was envious. “The owner of this shopping center is really generous. They’re not just putting on a show with this promotion.”

“Shopping center?”

“That’s what I call this place for short.”

“Oh, I see. Of course—it’s managed by Master Cicada, after all. They’ve always been known for their integrity.”

“Master Cicada? Great Scholar, does that mean this place is directly operated by the Scholars’ Hall?”

Yi Zhu shook his head. “This isn’t a public property of the Sealed Library. It belongs to Master Cicada’s private merchant guild.”

“A private business can actually be this massive?” Chen Miemie said somewhat absentmindedly. “What kind of merchant guild is so overbearing?”

Yi Zhu and Yi Xian answered in unison, “The number-one merchant guild in the entire Sealed Library—the Everlasting As the Moon Guild.”