Chapter 469: Fruit Store Opening

Chapter 469: Chapter 469: Fruit Store Opening

’The thought of sitting and meditating all day was worse than death. She just couldn’t stay still!’

’So, they had strength and strong bodies. They deserved it!’

With that thought, Lily Hart rested with a clear conscience, acting as Stan Sterling’s "supervisor" on the side.

Stan Sterling was full of energy, bringing out all the fruit from the storeroom and arranging it in one go.

The fruit store looked large, but it couldn’t hold all the produce from the farm plot.

A fifth of it was still left over. Stan Sterling planned to get on a delivery platform.

The fruit from the plot would be sold in the shop, and the fruit from the System Store would be used for deliveries.

Perfect!

After finishing the arrangement, Stan Sterling clapped his hands in satisfaction and walked over to the cash register.

He wanted to show off a little to Lily Hart and ask for some praise, but when he looked, he was surprised to see she had fallen asleep...?

’The chair had a backrest and was very comfortable. She must have been sitting for a long time...’

’She must have dozed off accidentally.’

Stan Sterling chuckled softly, gazing at her sleeping face.

The longer he looked, the more he marveled. ’How can someone be so beautiful?’

The longer Stan Sterling looked, the closer he unconsciously leaned in. By the time he realized it, the tip of his nose could already touch hers.

Stan Sterling slowed his breathing. At such a close distance, he didn’t even have to try to smell the faint, sweet scent coming from her. Her eyelashes fluttered, and she slowly opened her eyes.

Before her was an enlarged, extremely close, and slightly distorted version of Stan Sterling’s face, but he was still handsome.

"Hm?" Lily Hart murmured in confusion.

His lips were just inches away. They were beautifully shaped, curved in a slight smile.

He must have just finished working and had a drink to quench his thirst; his lips were moist.

’They looked like one of these giant apples, tempting someone to take a bite.’

Lily Hart leaned forward slightly and kissed him. It was a peck as light as a dragonfly touching water, and she pulled away just as quickly.

Stan Sterling froze, his mind going completely blank.

’Logically, he should have remembered his training for this exact situation—how to react when a buyer kissed him.’

’How to comply with the buyer’s requests, how to cater to the buyer.’

’But right now, he couldn’t remember a thing. Only one thought filled his mind.’

’Did Lily Hart just kiss me? I didn’t imagine that, did I?!’

’No, he hadn’t imagined it.’

Because Lily Hart had already spun her chair around and stood up smoothly, leaving him frozen in place.

But Stan Sterling quickly came to his senses. He touched his wildly pounding heart and watched Lily Hart’s back.

She was leaning on the counter with both hands, surveying the brand-new look of the fruit store.

After a moment, Lily Hart slapped the counter and praised, "Not bad! Worthy of praise! It’s arranged exceptionally well! Everything is clear at a glance!"

As soon as he heard the praise, Stan Sterling couldn’t help but start smiling.

’Wasn’t this the whole reason he’d worked so hard? For a single word of praise from Lily Hart?!’

"So? Are we planning to open today?" Lily Hart asked.

The two of them weren’t far apart, about half a meter, both behind the cash register.

Stan Sterling nodded. "Huh? Open for business." In truth, his mind was still foggy, replaying that kiss.

"Alright, then let’s open right now!" Lily Hart, having recovered most of her energy from her short nap, was now full of motivation.

Stan Sterling went to open the main door. Outside were customers who were curious about the giant apple but still diligently scratching their lottery tickets.

Although the temperature had risen slightly, it was still freezing, about twenty degrees below zero.

There weren’t too many customers yet, but it was much better than during the early days of the extreme cold.

But it was still nothing compared to the customer traffic during peak times.

The moment the apple-shaped door opened, it instantly drew everyone’s attention. Someone immediately asked, "Are you open?!"

Stan Sterling nodded repeatedly. "We’re open! Everyone, come buy some fruit! It’s all fresh!"

Those who were closest rushed right in, and they were stunned the moment they stepped inside.

Fruit, packed to the brim, filled every display rack and cabinet.

Fruits they had seen before and fruits they had never seen were all here. There was even a corner with vegetables.

There were shopping baskets and carts at the entrance, and disposable plastic bags next to the display racks for customers to take as needed.

Customers flooded in at once, filling the aisles and starting to pick through the fruit.

Just as Lily Hart had thought, people only cared about the fruit itself. The design, the placement, the color coordination—none of it mattered at all.

Customers streamed in continuously until there was barely any room to stand, causing a jam.

Stan Sterling was ringing up customers at the register while Lily Hart hurried to the door. She had to control the flow of people.

Otherwise, chaos would definitely break out inside.

Just like what was happening now...

"What’s your hurry? Acting like you’ve never eaten fruit in your life. Stop pushing!"

"So what if I haven’t! You have, so you’re Mr. Big Shot? Then back off and let me buy first!"

"I was here first, why should I let you go first? You’ve got some nerve!"

And over here...

"Hey, hey, hey, I grabbed this last one first!"

"I saw it first, so it’s mine! It has to be mine!"

"Are you crazy? Believe it or not, I’m going to tell Boss Hart!"

"Ooh, gonna go tattle? Aren’t you ashamed!"

Thankfully, Lily Hart had anticipated this outcome and had made preparations in advance.

Whenever the fruit on the shelves was cleared out, more would be automatically retrieved from the storeroom and restocked.

If the storeroom also ran out, it would purchase more from the System Store. In short, the shelves must be restocked!

It was incredibly convenient and saved Stan Sterling a lot of trouble.

Meanwhile, Stan Sterling was feverishly busy behind the register. Fortunately, the checkout process was also simple.

First, you place all the fruit on the scale, then just scan them.

The computer would display the fruit’s name, weight, and price.

The customer then just pays the price shown. It was simple, intuitive, and very easy to learn!

Most importantly, it was fast!

Lily Hart waited until most of the current wave of customers had left before letting a few more in.

This was the only way to give customers a good shopping experience. Otherwise, what was the point of browsing if it was just a crush of people?

She saw that Stan Sterling was getting the hang of the register and couldn’t step away.

So, she had to act as a temporary doorman, controlling the flow of people for Stan. Thankfully, the customers were very obedient.

When told to wait outside, they would obediently line up, their eyes following the customers coming out of the store.

They were all carrying fresh fruit, and the rich, fruity aroma filled the air.

Everyone could smell it clearly. Real, actual fruit!

’The anticipation was palpable! A real fruit store actually exists!’

’God knows how hard the daily fruit rush was. Millions of people all competing with me!’

Time flew by. Lily Hart’s legs grew tired, so she grabbed a stool and sat down.

When it was dinner time again, Lily Hart turned off the "auto-restock" setting.

The plan was to sell off the current batch on the shelves and then close up for the day.

In the grand scheme of things, eating and sleeping were what mattered most. This had always been Lily Hart’s creed.

’What’s that? The sky is falling? Let me just have another bite to eat first...’

Then she stood up and stopped holding back the customers, since it was the last wave anyway.

She walked over to Stan Sterling’s side. "Go eat first. You can’t starve yourself."

Stan Sterling wiped the sweat from his brow and nodded. He glanced at the shelves and knew that Boss Hart had turned off the function.

A warmth spread through his heart. ’She’s always so thoughtful.’