Although the cafeteria’s daily revenue was quite high now, how could the unscrupulous owner be satisfied with that?

Every day when Luo Huai’an went to the cafeteria, she would notice many food delivery drivers shuttling along the various paths of Aero U, which showed that the food delivery market was very strong.

After all, the seven cafeterias of the university have achieved remarkable results, leaving students with only one option if they don’t want to eat out: get food delivered.

Luo Huai’an had long wanted to launch a food delivery business to make some extra money, but the lack of delivery drivers had prevented her from implementing the plan smoothly. The arrival of Qing Niao was exactly what she needed, and her dormant food delivery plan could finally begin.

However, starting a food delivery business was not simple. After solving the problem of delivery personnel, the problem of how to order food also needed to be solved.

Luo Huai’an observed the ordering methods in the surrounding area and found that almost all delivery orders from the food streets nearby used two major food delivery apps. She searched for these two apps online and was surprised to find that they had poor reputations and charged merchants high commissions.

The Pixiu was said to only take in money and never give it out. Luo Huai’an didn’t want her hard-earned money to end up in someone else’s pocket, so she posted online asking for advice. Someone suggested that she find someone to make a WeChat app so that she didn’t need to pay commission per order made.

Luo Huai’an has never studied computers and didn’t know how to make an app, so she had no choice but to ask people around her for help.

She opened her social media app and sent a message: [The Eighth Cafeteria is planning to launch a delivery service, but we need to make an app for ordering beforehand. Does anyone know a reliable person who could do it?]”

This community was mostly comprised of freshman students, but it also included many upper class students, representing almost every major in the university.

Xu Changle happened to be eating shaved ice at the Eighth Cafeteria when his phone rang. He checked his messages and saw this one.

He was immediately invigorated. He put down the spoon in his hand, and excitedly patted his roommate on the shoulder, “Our day has come!”

His roommate, Chu Kai, was interrupted from eating shaved ice and looked bewildered. “What are you talking about?”

Xu Changle chuckled and showed his three roommates his phone. “The boss is going to make an app for food delivery.”

Upon hearing this, Chu Kai’s eyes flashed with surprise.

This was indeed their field of expertise, software engineering.

As Xu Changle said, it was their day to shine.

The four roommates were in a state of great excitement. They quickly finished their refreshing shaved ice and headed to the food window to find Luo Huai’an.

Xu Changle patted his chest and said confidently, “I am the reliable person you are looking for.”

Luo Huai’an was skeptical, unsure whether to believe him. “Really?”

His roommate Chu Kai immediately testified for him, “Although he is a bit of a scoundrel, his professional skills are indeed strong. He is considered a genius in our computer science department. His code has won several national awards, and an algorithm he designed has been named after him. He will be working for the government next year.”

Having an algorithm named after you in the computer world was like an astronomer naming a discovered planet after themselves—it was a supreme honor.

“Ahem, keep it low-key.” Although he said this, there was a hint of pride on his face, clearly not speaking what was in his mind. “It’s just a simple scanning algorithm, nothing special.”

Luo Huai’an didn’t know what this meant, but she still inexplicably felt that it was impressive. She searched Xu Changle’s name online and was surprised to find that he already had his own Baidu Baike¹ entry.

Xu Changle was good-looking and usually acted in a joking manner, making it hard to believe he was academically brilliant.

However, this had nothing to do with Luo Huai’an. After glancing at the praise this guy received from netizens, Luo Huai’an put away her phone and became a little more enthusiastic than before. “You are really amazing.”

Chu Kai smiled and said, “The ordering app you want is very simple to make. It was a course project he did in his junior year. If you want it, we can modify some underlying code and UI design and launch it directly in just two days.”

Luo Huai’an was pleasantly surprised, but there’s no such thing as a free lunch, and she was worried that the price they would ask would be too high.

If it was too expensive, then she wouldn’t commission it.

She asked cautiously, “How much?”

Xu Changle smiled, took out his phone, and handed it over. “We want the same shaved ice that’s trending online, but not Mount Everest, we want this.”

Luo Huai’an looked down and saw a robot on it. If she remembered correctly, this robot was called a Transformer.

Xu Changle said, “If you can’t make a Transformer standing up, it’s okay to make it lying down.”

As long as Big Fish was around, he could make any kind of shaved ice design.

Luo Huai’an smiled and nodded, “Okay, I agree.”

Big Fish, who was sweeping up trash nearby, muttered, “… Damn it.”

… … translated by Maela @ whitemoonlighttranslations.com

After receiving Luo Huai’an’s reply, Xu Changle and his three roommates happily returned to their dorm room and immediately found the source code to begin developing the app. None of the four were academically weak; they were all ranked quite high in their major.

Since the source code was already available, secondary development was very simple, and the app was completed in two days.

Considering that Luo Huai’an lacked knowledge in this matter, Xu Changle and his team thoughtfully took charge of the launch and subsequent maintenance.

Since the app needed a name, Xu Changle asked Luo Huai’an what she wanted to name it.

Luo Huai’an pondered for a long time and came up with some names, but she was never satisfied. She wanted a name that truly reflected the current state of the Eighth Canteen. After much thought, a sudden inspiration struck her, and the words ‘Mountains and Seas’ appeared in her mind.

After all, all the supernatural beasts in their cafeteria could be found in the Classic of Mountains and Seas.

Thus, the Mountains and Seas Little Cafeteria app was launched.

Mythical Beast Cafeteria translated by Maela @ whitemoonlighttranslations.com

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T/N: Classic of the Mountains and Seas (also known as Shanhai jing or Shanhai ching)  is a Chinese classic text featuring a compilation of mythic geography and beasts. The earliest versions can be traced as early as 400 BCE, but the present form was not reached until early Han period (206 BCE-9 CE).  It is largely a fantastical geographical and cultural account of ancient China as well as a collection of Chinese mythology.  

If you’re enjoying my translations, do consider buying me ko-fi and get access to advance chapters as reward. Thank you for your support! ☺️
Chapter 24.2 — Cantonese Crispy Chicken
Chapter 25.1 — Cantonese-style, Big, Crispy Chicken Leg Rice Meal
Chapter 25.2 — Cantonese-style, Big, Crispy Chicken Leg Rice Meal
Chapter 26.1 — Your Lunch Box Is Delicious!
Chapter 26.2 — Your Lunch Box Is Delicious!
Chapter 27.1 — Rich Lady, I’m Hungry
Chapter 27.2 — Rich Lady, I’m Hungry
Chapter 27.3 — Rich Lady, I’m Hungry
Chapter 28.1 — Shaved Ice School Beauty
Chapter 28.2 — Shaved Ice School Beauty

FOOTNOTE:

1. Baidu Baike is basically the Chinese Wikipedia. I use it a CRAZY amount of time when translating c-novels. Very useful. ↩︎