They Told Me to Build Good Karma by Selling Side Dishes - Chapter 110

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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110. Preparation for Preparation for Preparation (3)

The vegetables had lost all their vibrant color. It was too early to call them wilted, yet they lacked the vitality of something truly fresh.

I immediately opened the box right next to it. Then the next one, and one more after that.

“This shouldn’t be happening.”

Items packaged at the same time but wrapped differently showed varying conditions. Only the vegetables were in noticeably poor shape.

‘It’s not like someone sabotaged me out of jealousy.’

“Mine looks strange too.”
“May I take a look?”
“Go ahead.”

The Chinese restaurant owner’s box of bok choy was also wet.

“Your box is wet too?”
“Yeah. The vegetables got moisture on them.”

I paused and looked down at the box.

“What about the others!?”

At my question, the Korean restaurant owner and That Couple’s Side Dish Shop raised their hands. They had the same problem.

“…We… all of ours are wet too.”
“This… this is….”

The Kimbap Shop Owner had the same issue….

“Wait! Over here!”

Everyone fell silent at the sudden interjection. It was the Kimbap Shop Owner’s daughter.

“How can you say that two days before the Festival! Especially! Yes! There are shop owners who only use vegetables!”
“Daaang!! You’re right, but how can you say that here! You have to read the room!”
“Read the room or whatever! You have to speak your mind and live! Mom, are you a pushover!?”
“A pushover!?”

The Kimbap Shop Owner quickly grabbed her daughter’s shoulder and stopped her. First, I needed to calm her down.

“I….”
“That unnie is the same!”

Me? Suddenly the topic shifted in my direction.

“That unnie is so pitiful! She’s on the same team as Jung Song-i and the Simple Chef!”

Same team? What was she talking about? All eyes turned in one direction at once. Toward Jung Song-i.

The Kimbap Shop Owner’s daughter’s voice grew even louder with momentum.

“Who wouldn’t know! I pretend not to know and sit here indifferently! But everyone knows! The Simple Chef team brought Jung Song-i here with their power!”

An invisible ripple seemed to spread through the room.

“Only Grandmother Hyang-suk is pitiful. We all know she came here after conspiring with Chef Cha Beom-seok!”
“My name is Ji-gu though….”
“Isn’t it? Isn’t it true! Refute what I’m saying!”

My words scattered weakly into the air.

“That’s the truth, meow.”

Hae-tae spoke up.

‘I’m grateful that Hae-tae is on my side, but….’

That was a problem for later. Right now, that wasn’t the issue.

‘I should check on the vegetable boxes.’

“Then Simple Cooking Chef must have a vegetable box too, right?”
“…Yes.”

I needed to check whether the vegetables in Seo Jin-hyeok and Lim Yun-jeong’s boxes had gotten wet as well.

“We don’t need to check ours.”

Lim Yun-jeong immediately shot back. Why? I lifted my head to look at them.

“We’re the same. There’s no need to check, right?”
“…Huh? Why. Is something bothering you?”

They were clearly trying to weasel out of it. And not even subtly. Jung Song-i’s mouth fell open.

“We have to check. Everyone else did. If we don’t check this, it’ll hurt the festival.”
“No… if she checks our vegetable box, she’ll figure out what food we’re making, won’t she? That’s unreasonable.”

I’d been holding back my temper all this time.

“Hey!”

Lim Yun-jeong flinched.

“Where does ‘unreasonable’ come from here? Then am I being unreasonable? I peeled everything!”

Now they were getting my temper up.

“You opened yours yourself.”
“Exactly! If you opened it yourself, that’s your fault!”

Seo Jin-hyeok even stepped forward to back up Lim Yun-jeong. These two were something else.

“Really? If you do whatever you want and end up damaging the festival, are you two going to compensate for the damages?”
“What?”

I smiled wickedly for effect.

“What do you mean by that?”
“Just figure it out and do it. I’m looking out for your convenience.”
“Convenience….”

Even when someone tries to help, there’s always something. I turned my head sharply with a smile in my eyes. The possible scenarios organized themselves rapidly in my mind.

The reason the vegetables were wet.

Transport time, humidity, and….

‘Storage temperature….’

“Um… Grandfather from the Chinese restaurant.”
“Yes.”
“It’s that wet one, right?”
“That’s right.”

All the ingredients had been ruined due to improper storage. There was no other explanation. I immediately turned to Jung Song-i, who stood with her arms crossed and her lower lip clenched between her teeth, and asked.

“You put this in the refrigerator, didn’t you?”
“I did put it in… Oh.”

Jung Song-i made a phone call as if she’d just realized something. Then she spoke with a furrowed brow.

“They said they put it in the freezer first and then moved it here….”

The vegetables had become wet from the moisture that formed during the thawing process from freezing. This couldn’t be used.

“What a waste.”

Only the vegetables had ended up like this. Poor things. At least I’d hoped they would end up in people’s bodies as delicious dishes.

“Everyone, I’m… sorry.”

Jung Song-i bowed deeply. Her head descended slowly.

“It’s my negligence.”

No one spoke until the apology reached the ground. Now the apology had been received.

‘All that’s left is deciding what to do.’

“That works.”

The Chinese restaurant owner waved his hand dismissively.

“Since we’re already in this situation, what else can we do!”
“We need to solve the problem first. That’s right!”

The Grilled Pork Belly Owner and the Kimbap Shop Owner chimed in as well.

“I had filming yesterday, so I checked everything and even verified the refrigeration….”

I smiled while looking at Jung Song-i’s face.

“Isn’t it good that we found out now? Right now, solving the vegetable problem takes priority over apologies, doesn’t it?”
“Yes…, I’m already contacting people to retrieve them.”

Jung Song-i bit her lip. I scanned through the pile of boxes and scratched my temple.

“Let’s reannounce the distinction between refrigerated and frozen items and double-check with whoever’s in charge of storage. See if we can source different vegetables.”
“By tomorrow, we could find good vegetables….”
“We couldn’t, right?”

Jung Song-i said nothing.

Even a glance at the boxes made it clear. These were quality vegetables. The color, the texture, the preparation—Jung Song-i must have spent days searching to source these.

“…I’m sorry. I’m not thinking straight right now.”
“I understand. It’s a shame, especially since you worked so hard to find them, Jung Song-i.”

Who could stay composed in a situation like this? Hae-tae, perched on my head, wagged his tail slightly.

‘Will it work?’

Could I use vegetables from the Pocket Dimension Garden somewhere other than the shop….

“Wait, let me make a call too.”

It was the right moment to ask Hae-tae.

“…Yes.”

I retreated to a corner where no one’s eyes could reach and lifted Hae-tae off my head.

“Hae-tae.”
“Meow?”

Hae-tae’s eyes were already narrowed as if he already knew what I was about to ask.

“I’m only going to ask you one question. Listen carefully.”
“What is it, meow?”

The moment Hae-tae sat down, he neatly aligned his front paws in front of him.

“Can I use the vegetables from the Pocket Dimension Garden here?”
“Hmm, meow.”
“Ah, Hae-tae.”

You know exactly what I mean.

“Didn’t you say my conscience would be stripped bare if I did, meow?”
“…That was only when I used them alone.”

This situation is different from what I said before. It’s not just about saving my booth. If I harvest from the garden and share with the others, wouldn’t that make a difference?

“Can I or can’t I?”

I looked directly at Hae-tae and asked.

“Just tell me that much. Otherwise, I’ll have to contact someone else and bring vegetables from elsewhere.”

I could reach out to Cha Beom-seok or make a request to the Merchants Association. Of course, there were other options. But that path would require far more time and effort than this.

‘It’s better to use my hands.’

Using my head wasn’t working out at all.

“It’s fine, meow.”
“Huh? Really?”
“I mean, if I’m sharing the ingredients with everyone anyway, it doesn’t matter, meow. It’s not like I’m selling them, right, meow?”

Hae-tae swished his tail as he added his thoughts.

“You’re going to have a hard time, meow.”
“Me? Well, I suppose so….”

I had to go into the Dimensional Space myself and harvest five hundred servings of vegetables. And not just one ingredient—multiple varieties.

‘Well….’

“It’s not even until tomorrow, right?”
“What’s wrong with your head, meow?”
“It’s fine, really.”

I found comfort by touching Hae-tae’s cheeks.

“You were worried about me?”
“Extremely, meow.”

I’d have to manage the shop and harvest vegetables. My body wouldn’t hold up.

“I’ll just push through it, that’s all.”
“Meow-ow-ow-ow-ow?”

Hae-tae let out a sound of disbelief. Then he flicked my cheek. It was a warning.

In the old days, he would have scratched my cheek.

“What?”
“What do you mean ‘push through it’, meow?”

Hae-tae’s eyes narrowed.

“That’s the worst thing you could say, meow.”
“Sorry. Was it really that bad?”
“You don’t say things are unavoidable when you’re trying to shoulder everything yourself, meow.”

This is exactly why perceptive cats are problematic.

“Trust me.”
“You’re asking me to trust you again?”
“…Yes, trust me again? Have I ever let you down before?”

Hae-tae lowered the hand that had been touching her cheek as she spoke.

“Never. But you always break down first.”
“Don’t worry too much.”
“I already am.”
“I’m grat— ow.”

Hae-tae turned her head away.

“If you’re grateful, then don’t hurt yourself.”

She didn’t tell me to stop, at least. I cradled Hae-tae in my arms and rubbed my cheek against hers.

“I’ll try my best.”

Only then did she gently bump her forehead against my cheek. When a cat does this, it means she trusts her owner. Hae-tae climbed onto my head.

“Let’s go.”

I need to resolve this.

I hurriedly pretended to put my smartphone in my pocket and rushed toward where the shop owners were.

“If I’m able to help…?”
“Yes?”

Multiple gazes converged on me.

“Since I run a side dish shop, I contacted the owner of a good vegetable shop.”

Hae-tae made a small meow sound from atop my head.

“They said they can deliver it the morning after tomorrow.”

Everyone wore pleased expressions upon hearing the good news.

“So we can’t cook until then?”

The Chinese restaurant owner asked.

“Well, Chinese restaurant owner, you could try using different vegetables instead. Let’s help each other out.”
“Right, that makes sense.”

Fortunately, the Grilled Pork Belly Owner’s words noticeably eased the tension. The awkward silence that had lingered moments before began to dissipate.

This was my moment.

“Then please write down the vegetables you need and send me the list. I’ll provide exactly that amount for each of you.”

The owners returned to their booths and began organizing. Only then did things feel like they were moving forward. Now there was nothing left but the notes they’d left behind.

“Um, thank you.”
“Yes?”

Jung Song-i approached me and bowed.

“What’s going on? I was just coming back from cleaning up the stage.”

Yun Ga-rin, who had grasped the situation a moment too late, caught her breath as she came toward us.

“Ask Jung Song-i about it later. I need to head to the shop. I’ll call you soon.”
“No, wait!”

Seeing Jung Song-i show signs of wanting to come along, I waved my hand dismissively.

“I’m going!”

I quickly gathered my belongings and the notes, then climbed into my car. Phew… Through the window, I could see Jung Song-i still struggling to process what had just happened.

“She seems flustered, meow.”
“What can I do about it?”
“True enough, meow.”

I turned on the engine and nodded to myself.

“Let’s go, Hae-tae!”

Hae-tae hopped down from my head and settled into the passenger seat. With plump front paws, he pulled the seatbelt across and fastened it. Click—the sound of it locking into place.

“Let’s goooo!”

With that, I pressed the accelerator toward Hyang-suk’s Side Dish Shop.

***

I quickly exited the car and stepped into the Dimensional Space. The sounds of reality vanished abruptly, as if a switch had been flipped. Instead, when I opened my eyes, the chirping of birds filled the air.

‘Ah, the weather has cleared up considerably.’

Just like in reality, the weather in the Dimensional Space had warmed beautifully. There was no biting wind, so I didn’t need to wear my padded jacket.

I removed the padded jacket I’d been wearing and left it behind, then tied on my apron.

‘It’s a battle with myself.’

I pulled out my notepad from the jacket pocket.

“Let me start by checking the notes the shop owners gave me.”

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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