"How about it?"
Sonoko, the young lady, tiptoed and twirled in place, her short hair tracing cheerful arcs in the sunlight. Pointing to the newly hung sign above, her eyes shone like two stars: "I designed the logo!"
Yuzuru looked up at the huge neon sign—next to the two artistic characters “Nanyuan”, a chibi version of him and Sonoko were grinning and giving a thumbs up, with a suspicious chocolate-colored unidentified object on their heads.
That exaggerated smile made Yuzuru doubt whether he had ever really had such a radiant expression.
"When have I ever made that expression?" he asked, half-laughing and half-crying, reaching out to pinch Sonoko's rosy cheeks.
"In my dream~" Sonoko cupped her face in her hands, swaying her body in bliss, "That night you were like this, feeding me chocolate dumplings while saying, 'Sonoko-sama is the best'..."
Xiaolan quickly covered her friend's mouth: "The second half was obviously added by Yuanzi herself! In fact, most of the decoration plan was decided by Xiao Ai, but the menu and logo were designed by Yuanzi after three sleepless nights."
As she spoke, she used her other hand to straighten her school uniform bow tie, which had been messed up by the garden.
“That is…” Yu Shengnan’s lips twitched slightly.
Aside from the garden, no one else could have come up with such an unusual combination of chocolate and dumplings.
He looked up at the smiling face on the sign, especially the blob of what looked like melted chocolate on his head: "So this... is my hair?"
"It's chocolate sauce!" Sonoko broke free from Ran's hand and excitedly gestured, her fingers drawing arcs in the air: "It means our signature chocolate dumplings will make you so happy you'll feel like bubbles are rising from your head!"
Yuzuru: "......"
He shook his head helplessly, thinking that this was probably what was called "garden-style logic"—completely illogical yet inexplicably irrefutable.
"Nan! What kind of expression is that! This is art! Do you even understand art?!" Sonoko stomped her foot angrily, her little leather shoes making a crisp sound on the ground. "You know, I rejected Ai's design and personally—"
"Alright, alright," Xiaolan pushed the two of them into the store. "Let's go in and take a look. We agreed to have a tasting."
Pushing open the glass door, the crisp sound of wind chimes accompanies the cool breeze from the air conditioner.
Akemi was standing by the bar instructing several new employees. She was wearing the same light pink apron as the other waitresses, except that she had a silver badge that read "Assistant Manager" pinned to her chest.
As part of the division of responsibilities when we jointly invested in the business, Mingmei, as the assistant store manager, usually took on the task of training employees while everyone else was at school.
"Young Master Yuzuru, Ran, Sonoko, you've arrived."
Akemi turned her head and smiled. She had changed from a maid outfit to a business suit, but her gentle temperament remained unchanged. She clapped her hands lightly, and several girls in uniform immediately stood in a row.
"Welcome to Nanyuan Creative Dumpling Shop!" Several girls in matching uniforms bowed in unison, the Q-version of Yuzuru Hanyu printed on their aprons bobbing up and down with their movements, as if they were giving a thumbs up collectively.
This scene left Yuzuru Hanyu speechless, unsure whether to vent or not.
Sonoko proudly puffed out her chest, her pink bow hair clip trembling slightly with her movement: "I designed the uniform too! What do you think? Isn't it super—"
"Shame on you." A cold voice came from behind.
Everyone turned around and saw Ai appear at the door at some point, with a small chef's hat clip in her short brown hair and a thick ledger in her hands.
She glanced at the patterns on the waiters' aprons and her lips twitched: "I suggest that a settlement be prepared before the defendant infringes on your portrait rights."
"Ai!" Sonoko pounced on her like a happy puppy, trying to pinch her cheek, but she nimbly dodged. "Why are you so late! Didn't we agree to try the food together?"
"I'm checking the purchase orders in the back." Ai waved the ledger, looking at the young lady in front of her with an expression that said, "Besides, you just got out of school, so of course I just got out of school too!"
As the store's financial director, Ai-chan is quite competent.
Of course, she also serves as the chief designer of the dumpling shop. After all, she is the smartest person in the family, and the capable should do more!
Yu Sheng Nan patted her little head, feeling the soft touch of her hair: "Thank you for your hard work, our little housekeeper."
Akemi interjected at the opportune moment: "The food is ready. Would you like to try it now? Chef Nakajima improved Sonoko's chocolate dumpling recipe today."
"Of course!" Sonoko's attention was immediately diverted, and she pulled Ran inside, almost knocking over a decorative potted plant. "I deliberately didn't eat the lunch that Momiji brought at noon, just waiting for this meal."
The group followed Akemi to a seat by the window.
Yuzuru noticed that the store's interior decoration was simple yet cozy, with wooden tables and chairs and several watercolor paintings on the walls featuring desserts—clearly reflecting Ai's aesthetic.
The only odd thing was that each table had a small, chibi-style bobblehead doll of Yuzuru Hanyu, which would make a recorded message, "Welcome to Yuzuru Hanyu Garden~", when touched.
"...What kind of evil god merchandise is this now?"
Yuzuru Nanami pinched the miniature version of himself. (The doll)
"Promotional event!" Sonoko's eyes lit up. "Spend 3000 yen and get a 'Nannan-kun' keychain! Spend 5000 yen and get a life-size body pillow! Spend—"
"Stop!" Yuzuru Nan covered her mouth abruptly. "I haven't agreed to change my image—"
“Article 17 of the Shareholders Agreement,” Ai calmly opened a folder, her finger precisely pointing to a certain line of text, “'Party A, Hanyu Nan [Honorary Store Manager], agrees that Party B, Suzuki Sonoko [Store Manager], may use her image for store promotion,' you signed on the third page.”
"...This is fraud." Hanyu Nan reluctantly let go of her hand, and Sonoko immediately made a face.
"Business strategy." The little girl pushed up glasses that weren't actually there.
"That's right, Ai is absolutely right!"
Sonoko and Ran nodded frantically in agreement.
This was a marketing strategy that the girls in the family came up with together. In order to prevent their investment from going down the drain, Xiaolan and the others did not hesitate to sell their "sex appeal".
The hue here refers to Hanyu Kusunoki.
With Nan's stunning looks, the merchandise they create will surely attract a large number of young ladies to come and spend money in the store. As for whether it will create potential rivals for them, they are not worried at all.
It's not that Nan can't find any kind of girl he likes.
To paraphrase Sonoko at the time: "Hmph, they can only dream, while we can touch them however we want, play with them however we want..."
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