Chapter 107 The candy wrappers are so cute!

Ning Jia gently carried Tuan Tuan and the others into the box one by one. Seeing that everyone was seated inside, she said:

"Beep beep beep, we're leaving soon!"

"Little passengers, please sit still and refrain from whispering to each other."

She picked up the cardboard box crammed with tiny dumplings—oh, it was quite heavy!—and immediately quickened her pace, running to deliver the little ones to their destination.

"We have reached our final stop. Please disembark in an orderly manner."

Ning Jia slowly tilted the cardboard box to prevent the shortest little Luo Luo from jumping out of the box because her legs were too short.

After the little passengers got off the bus one by one, Gan Cao had already placed all the newly made clothes on a cardboard box.

The colorful little dresses were laid out neatly, one after another. Because they were made for tiny people, each one was a size too small, making them small and cute.

Because the little ones wanted clothes that were sparkly like "stars," Gancao and Sumu put a lot of thought into it, embroidering some silver circles and dots on the hem of the skirts. At first glance, it really did have a dazzling effect.

If the sun were out right now, these little dresses would be sparkly and adorable under the sunlight!

Ning Jia squatted down, looking at these exquisite and cute little clothes, and suddenly remembered the pretty candy wrappers she collected when she was a child.

Soon, the "candy wrappers" were claimed by the little owners one by one.

In a makeshift dressing room made from milk cartons and a small piece of fabric, the tiny figures lined up to change into their freshly made clothes amidst laughter.

Mengmeng carefully placed the grass skirt she had changed out of on the cardboard box, gently smoothed down a small, sticking-up piece of dry grass with her little hands, and then whispered comfortingly to the little grass skirt:

"Don't be sad, I'll wear your clothes again when the weather gets warmer."

Ning Jia overheard these adorable words and patted Mengmeng's head in a comforting manner:

"Don't be sad, this grass skirt can actually be used in winter too."

Huh—

Mengmeng looked at her with surprise, tilting her head. "It's so cold in winter, can you still wear a grass skirt?"

Ning Jia smiled slightly, "Yes, you can. You'll see when the time comes."

With Ning Jia's assurance, Mengmeng was no longer sad at all. She put down her grass skirt with peace of mind and happily admired the new dress she had just changed into.

Guoguo, Xingxing, Tuantuan, Luoluo, Mengmeng... The little ones who received new clothes happily twirled around in place, showing off their beautiful dresses to the adults.

Hehe, they picked out the colors of this dress themselves. They liked it even before wearing it, and they like it even more after putting it on. The more they look at it, the more they love it!

The little figures twirled happily back and forth, their skirts swirling lightly.

Dark blue, light green, orange-yellow, pale pink, light purple...

Each dress, like a blooming flower, suddenly blossomed on the bare floor, creating a vibrant and festive scene.

This vibrant, colorful scene, like blooming flowers in spring, instantly dispelled the gloomy atmosphere brought by the typhoon, serving as a beautiful omen foreshadowing the arrival of sunny days.

Everyone put down their work and happily joined in, dancing, singing, and laughing to their hearts' content. The small fitting room instantly turned into a lively group dance party!

...

Ning Jia watched the little people's revelry with a smile for a while, then declined He Meng and the other little people's "dance invitations" and stood aside obediently as a front-row audience member of the ball.

After all, with her large size, if she jumps too high and accidentally steps on a little person, it could turn a comedy into a horror movie.

Oh, what a pity...

Ning Jia thought to herself as she watched.

Lively little figures, joyful dances, heartwarming smiles...

Such beautiful scenes, it's a shame we can't capture them on camera and preserve them; we can only cherish them while we can.

Forget it, I'd better not tell Zhou Chi about this, lest he get jealous.

When Ning Jia was at Zhou Chi's house, she discussed with him why the little people could appear in videos, but would disappear into thin air when a photo was taken.

Zhou Chi said that if the screen is recorded during a video session, the little people will also disappear from the frame. In other words, the little people will not appear in any footage that can be preserved in this world.

This is probably their natural self-protection mechanism in this unfamiliar world.

When Ning Jia and Zhou Chi chatted, they would pay extra attention to this point, never mentioning any words related to the dwarf race, only using some euphemisms to gloss over it, to avoid being monitored by that thing.

Over time, they both got used to it. Sometimes, though, a quick glance at their chat history made it seem like they were sharing their daily lives with each other…

Ning Jia came to her senses and saw that many of the little figures were sweating profusely, exhausted from jumping and playing. She brought a blanket and spread it out to the side, and thoughtfully brought them warm water.

Soon, all the little people slowly stopped hopping around, lay on the blankets panting, gulping down water, and still looking a little unsatisfied.

Seeing this, Ning Jia immediately seized the opportunity to take out a bunch of hair clips of various colors:

"Everyone come and see, see if there's anything you like. Wearing it will make you even cuter!"

Upon hearing this, the little people all swarmed over.

"Let me see!" "Me too!" "I've got it all decided: the clothes have to be red, and the hair clip has to be green!" "Hmm, why does this hair clip look so familiar?"

"Star, which one are you going to choose? You've tried on each hair clip several times already."

Guoguo spent a long time helping Xingxing in the green dress choose, but seeing that she still hadn't made a decision, she simply squatted down to the side with her chin on her hand, looking utterly hopeless, and asked.

"Don't rush, um... I choose..."

Finally, after much deliberation, Xingxing chose the same red bow hair clip as Guoguo.

Ning Jia looked at the newly decorated little star.

Well... bright red paired with light green actually looks quite nice.

Especially with its tiny body and cute little face, it looks just like a little flower fairy in the forest.

The cuteness level has increased by NNN times!

...

After the little ones had all put on their carefully chosen pretty hair clips and happily "walked the runway" in front of everyone, it was almost time for afternoon tea.

"Sister Ningjia, am I pretty?"

Each of the little figures asked the same question.

Ning Jia treated them all the same, patiently nodding and smiling at each little figure, saying they were especially beautiful.

However, the observant star keenly noticed that although Ning Jia kept saying it looked good, she actually had her own personal preferences.

She seems to really like Guoguo's outfit, glancing at it every now and then.

Upon discovering this, Xingxing felt a pang of disappointment.

Although Guoguo is extremely cute, Guoguo just told her that she is also very cute.

Why is it that even though they're both equally adorable, Ningjia always steals glances at Guoguo but never looks at herself?

She blinked her big, sad eyes and inadvertently blurted out what was on her mind.

Guoguo looked completely bewildered. "Xingxing, what did you just say?"

Oh no, how could she have said that?!

Xingxing covered her red face tightly with her little hands, squatted in the corner in a withdrawn manner, feeling completely ashamed to face anyone.

Seeing that the star had turned into a small green mushroom in the corner, Guoguo didn't care at all, and even looked at Ning Jia sitting on the sofa with great suspicion.

Seeing Ning Jia bent over calculating accounts with a very serious expression, he immediately said to "Little Green Mushroom":

"Xingxing, are you seeing things? Sister Ningjia didn't even look at me!"

As soon as she finished speaking, she saw Ning Jia suddenly raise her head and quickly glance in her direction...

In an instant, the two people, one big and one small, looked at each other. Ning Jia quickly turned her gaze away and lowered her head again.

Guoguo: !!!

It turns out Xingxing was right, Ningjia really was spying on her...

She felt a mix of doubt and a subtle joy.

Is it really as Xingxing said, that Ningjia thinks she's the cutest?

Hmm... that can't be, right?

She always felt that everyone in the tribe was pretty much cute, although, well, sometimes she did feel that she was a tiny bit cuter.

But it's only a tiny bit!

Guoguo had been lost in thought for a while, but she couldn't stand it any longer and immediately ran to Ningjia like a gust of wind, wanting to find out the truth.

Faced with the little one's question, Ning Jia's eyes flickered subtly:

Ugh, she thought she was being pretty discreet, but she still got caught! So embarrassing…

"I'm sorry, Guoguo, I didn't mean to peek at you."

She carefully chose her words, starting with her love for cartoons since childhood, then moving on to the animated film "Kiki's Delivery Service," and finally to the film's protagonist, the thirteen-year-old little witch Kiki...

Skipping over Guoguo's occasional barrage of "why" questions, I finally explained the whole logic clearly.

"Because I really like Kiki the Little Witch, and your current look is so much like hers, I can't help but want to look at you..."

"I'm sorry, did I cause you any trouble? I promise I won't look at it again."

Guoguo listened for a long time without saying a word, seemingly processing this huge amount of information, and then breathed a sigh of relief:

"You should have said so earlier! I thought you were peeking because I was too cute!"

Ning Jia suppressed a laugh and said earnestly, "Guoguo, you are very cute, that's absolutely true!"

Guoguo was so happy that she spun around in a circle and said joyfully:

"Then I'll allow you to look at me, you can look as much as you want, I'm not afraid of being looked at, because I know I'm cute, hehe~"

Ning Jia laughed too; she liked Guo Guo's confident spirit.

Guoguo touched the big bow on her head and asked again:

"Is the story of Kiki the Witch, like Tom and Jerry, an animated cartoon?"

"Pretty much, except this is an animated movie, so it'll only take about two hours to watch."

Guoguo's eyes lit up, and she immediately blinked her big eyes, looking at Ning Jia with expectant eyes:

"Can we watch it now?"

Seeing Ning Jia hesitate, she immediately put on a mournful and pitiful expression and said:

"I haven't watched TV for days, it's so boring every day!"

"Besides, shouldn't we catch up on the TV shows we missed yesterday and the day before?"

Ning Jia was speechless for a moment after hearing this.

Recalling Xuecao and the others' logic of "making up for missing popcorn," Ning Jia couldn't help but sigh:

When it comes to food and toys, this little guy turns into a clever and quick-witted little devil.

Alright, since we're going to watch a movie anyway, why not share it with others? Let's have a group movie screening!

...

Ning Jia checked the time, immediately put down the ledger, and went to find Chief Canglan to request that a group entertainment activity be held in the living room of his home this afternoon.

"Chief, I think this batch of sachets is almost finished. How about I treat everyone to a movie this afternoon?"

Seeing that Canglan hesitated, Ningjia continued:

"The movie is about two hours long, which is only a little longer than a typical afternoon tea time, but it won't take up too much time."

Before Canglan could agree, a little voice beside her shouted:

"Two hours? That long? Won't it delay my sachets?"

"Exactly, exactly! This is the perfect time for inspiration!"

Immediately, everyone chimed in, with the little ones saying that watching that damn movie was worse than getting back to work, and that they could even skip afternoon tea if they weren't a bit hungry.

Ning Jia looked at them in surprise, feeling both amused and exasperated.

Lately, the little people have been particularly enthusiastic about the sachet business, and their work enthusiasm has remained high, even shortening their afternoon tea time on their own.

It really feels different to be doing the work you love.

It was Zelan who came out and offered some advice:

"A balance between work and rest is the right way; only by getting enough rest can you work better."

Canglan stroked her chin and nodded gently.

Since it's for better work, then... let's watch it.

The little people were all persuaded, and reluctantly put down their needles, threads, herbs, and cloth, and walked towards the coffee table in small groups.

Because the little people couldn't understand the subtitles, Ning Jia specially used her points to redeem a three-day membership to a certain video website, where she found a Chinese version of the video, and that solved the problem.

Once the movie was ready, Ning Jia rummaged through the remaining supplies, took the last bit of fruit, and then generously grabbed a whole bag of popcorn.

"There's plenty of popcorn today, everyone eat as much as you want!"

Upon hearing this, Canglan, who had just lain down against the sofa cushions, immediately stood up nimbly and emphasized:

"Don't eat too much popcorn. Four pieces per person, no more."

Ning Jia slapped his forehead and quickly changed his mind:

"Yes, yes, the chief is right. Popcorn is delicious, but you can't have too much."

She then offered an explanation for her earlier slip of the tongue:

"In the world of giants, the essential snacks for watching movies are usually popcorn and soda, so..."

He Meng interjected at the opportune moment, "What is 'qi shui'? Is it water that's filled with anger?"

"No, it's a very unhealthy junk water. Drinking it will turn you into a fat rabbit."

Ning Jia quickly glossed over the topic and began serving afternoon tea to the little ones.

The packaging boxes on the coffee table were already packed and were now clean. The little figures were either sitting cross-legged, lying down with their legs crossed against small pillows, or sitting together in a circle.

Bai Su and Xue Cao, each holding a small corner of a handkerchief or blanket, spread the handkerchiefs on the coffee table as if on a picnic.

The glass tabletop of this coffee table looks a bit too hard; it doesn't really create a movie-watching atmosphere.

Ning Jia had a sudden inspiration. She took two cushions from the sofa, placed them flat on the coffee table, then spread some tissues on top of them, and called to the little ones:

"This cushion is softer, so you can sit on it or lie down."

After saying that, he took two large bowls, and with a fruit knife in one hand and bananas, apples, and pears in the other, he quickly put pieces of fruit into the bowls.

When Ning Jia was peeling a large, round pear, she knew something was wrong as soon as she made the upward cut with the knife:

Why is the flesh of this pear so soft?

Undeterred, Ning Jia continued peeling, revealing the white flesh inside. She cut off a piece with a knife, tasted it, and then put it down again with a speechless expression.

This pear has almost no water content; it's just cotton-like flesh left, and it's completely inedible.

The newly harvested Qiuyue pears cost several yuan each, and it's such a waste.

Ning Jia reluctantly cut off another piece, chewed it, and felt like she was chewing plastic. She reluctantly prepared to throw the pear away.

"Ning Jia, what are you doing?!"

Before the pear could even be thrown into the trash can, Xuecao jumped up from the coffee table in a panic and asked loudly.

"Why did you throw away such a big pear?!"

Xuecao looked heartbroken.

Ning Jia helplessly pulled back the hand that had thrown the pear, said nothing, and cut a small piece for Xue Cao, "Try it."

Holding the soft, white pear, Xuecao sensed something was amiss. Hesitantly, she opened her mouth and took a bite, then her whole face scrunched up:

My goodness, is this still a pear? This...

Ning Jia spread her hands at her, "See?"

Xuecao didn't stop her anymore, and Ningjia immediately threw away the big, round Qiuyue pear without any mercy.

Fortunately, although the appearance of other fruits has generally declined, their taste is still the same, so the losses from this stockpiling are relatively small.

Once Ning Jia had arranged all the snacks, the movie-watching preparations were almost complete.

Fruit, melon seeds, popcorn, and little figures lying in a row.

Everyone ate and waited, bored. As soon as the TV screen went dark, the movie started playing.

Although I still don't quite understand the plot, after only a few minutes of watching, the opening setting immediately captured the little people's attention.

He Meng, nestled on the sofa, couldn't help but exclaim:

"Huh, is Qiqi also going out to train?"

"Yes, yes, could she be one of our clans?"

Everyone else was also talking about it, and no one cared about watching the movie anymore.

Ning Jia had no choice but to pause the movie and listen to the little people's discussion, completely bewildered:

What do you mean? Isn't the Little Witch a fictional character? How did she become part of the same race as the Little People?

Zhelan smiled and explained, "I think everyone has misunderstood."

"You may not know this, but our clan has a long-standing tradition of sending our children out to gain experience. However, when Bai Su and the others came of age, they happened to be in this dangerous city, so the training was temporarily put on hold."

"When we saw the child in the movie, who was also going out to gain experience, everyone mistakenly thought that she was also one of my people."

"I see!"

Ning Jia was also hearing about this for the first time, and couldn't help but ask curiously:

"What happens if you can't gain experience? Does that mean you can't be considered an adult?"

Zelan nodded:

"Going out for training is an essential rite of passage for our clan to reach adulthood, and that's why I recently discussed it with the clan chief and the others..."

"Now that our clan has settled down here, we can start preparing for Bai Su and the others to go out and train."