I rewrote the latter half of the previous chapter, so please go back and take a look.
Also, snakes definitely can't eat sweets, and pet snakes are generally only fed small mice. Everyone should remember that the male protagonist in the story is a Beastman, not an ordinary snake, so snake-related traits like snakes being blind don't apply to him. Please don't project reality onto the story - read it rationally!
The milk tea in the store was almost sold out, so they needed to make more quickly.
The condensed milk stored at the counter was running low, so Yuan Qing went to the storage room to get more.
She was startled to find someone crouching inside with their back to the door when she opened it.
Caught red-handed, Huang Youcai remained calm. He stood up and slowly backed out of the small storage room, facing Yuan Qing.
Meeting her suspicious gaze, he said calmly, "I'm sorry, I took a wrong turn. I thought this was the restroom."
The livestream audience was already in stitches.
"Hahaha, caught in the act!"
"Restroom? LOL, so you were squatting in the storage room to relieve yourself?"
"Boss: Do you think I'll believe that?"
"Boss: I think you're a thief."
"What to do now that you've been caught..."
"Don't worry, Cai-ge is experienced, he'll handle it no problem."
Yuan Qing stared at Huang Youcai, who was wearing a hat and wrapped in loose gray clothing, finding him increasingly suspicious.
Restroom? He had just walked right in without asking either of them.
There wasn't even a restroom in the dessert shop.
The public toilets were across the street diagonal from the shop.
Who knew what this person was up to, skulking around in there.
Could he be stealing something?
The thought made Yuan Qing nervous. She didn't know if there was anything valuable in the storage room. What if he had stolen something?
As Huang Youcai turned to leave, Yuan Qing grabbed his hat: "Don't go! Were you stealing something in there?!"
Huang Youcai: ...
He knew this would happen.
Yuan Qing's voice drew the attention of Yun Manman and some of the customers in the shop.
Yun Manman walked over, puzzled: "What's going on?"
Yuan Qing unceremoniously pulled off Huang Youcai's hat: "This person was sneaking around in our storage room doing who knows what."
Yun Manman was alarmed but relaxed a bit remembering there wasn't anything valuable in the storage room.
She looked at the thin, short male Beastman with brown round flat ears on his head and asked, "Sir, what were you doing in there?"
As soon as Huang Youcai's hat was removed, exposing his face to public view, several Beastmen recognized him.
He overheard nearby Beastmen discussing in low voices: "Isn't that Youcai..."
"I think so..."
"He came all this way to check out the shop."
"If he's here, does that mean there's something wrong with this place..."
Hearing this, Huang Youcai couldn't help feeling smug.
See, he was quite famous after all, with millions of followers online.
But clearly Yun Manman hadn't recognized him, and was still saying, "That's our storage room, and it's off-limits to outsiders. You're not allowed in there, sir..."
Huang Youcai was getting annoyed.
The long-standing adulation from online fans had made Huang Youcai increasingly arrogant, believing himself to be a born "judge" whom everyone should respect and treat with caution.
In the past, shop owners would do a complete 180 in attitude as soon as they saw him.
These Beastmen from a remote town clearly didn't know better. He might as well enlighten them, despite condescending to come here.
He didn't want to beat around the bush anymore, so he raised his voice and said, "Boss, can your desserts really alleviate Spirit Force Disorder?"
Huang Youcai's voice was loud enough to ensure everyone in the shop could hear.
The livestream audience got excited hearing his question.
"Here it comes! The most important question!"
"Cai-ge is awesome!"
"Cai-ge is so brave, asking directly like that."
"I'm worried the boss will kick him out."
"LOL, Cai-ge looks like he's here to cause trouble."
"Isn't this a bit much? It's affecting the shop's business..."
"Who cares about her? Those two videos from the other day might have been paid advertisements."
"Exactly, Cai-ge is here to expose the truth."
Clearly, the netizens most enjoyed watching the conflicts between Huang Youcai and shop owners during his "truth-seeking" missions.
They were all excited, like civet cats jumping up and down in a melon field.
The customers in the shop also fell silent for a moment when they heard his question, each pricking up their fluffy ears to make sure they didn't miss a word.
They hadn't just come all this way in the scorching heat for these delicious and novel desserts, but more for the rumored alleviation of Spirit Force Disorder.
Beastmen had been troubled by Spirit Force Disorder for too long; they were willing to try even if there was just a slight possibility.
Yun Manman was so busy she could barely keep up, and her mind was almost blank. When she heard Huang Youcai's question, she was stunned for a moment and didn't react.
"What?" She was still thinking about letting Huang Youcai go if he hadn't stolen anything.
Seeing her innocent and confused expression, Huang Youcai raised an eyebrow: "I heard your desserts can alleviate Spirit Force Disorder?"
Yun Manman frowned and looked at Huang Youcai seriously, saying, "Don't spread rumors. My desserts cannot alleviate Spirit Force Disorder."
Then she saw all the pricked-up ears around her droop simultaneously.
Yun Manman didn't know whether to laugh or cry: "No, where did you all hear this..."
Huang Youcai found that Yun Manman wasn't following the usual script, which also threw him off for a moment.
In the past, when he asked such questions, shop owners would eagerly agree, happily stating that their products indeed had such effects, almost falling over themselves to showcase their goods.
Then Huang Youcai could start denouncing and exposing their behind-the-scenes tactics.
This wouldn't do. There would be no highlight like this.
Huang Youcai's eyes darted around, and he asked again: "Then, since your desserts are so delicious, do you have any special recipes? Did you add anything unusual?"
Say yes! He was screaming internally.
Yun Manman blinked, counting on her fingers: "For this pudding, first heat a certain ratio of milk, condensed milk, and sugar together, then cool it and pour it into beaten eggs, mix well, strain it, and finally bake it in a water bath in the oven for fifty minutes..."
"Oh, and there's the caramel..."
Huang Youcai felt increasingly uneasy as he listened.
Who asked how to make it!
And is this the kind of recipe you can just casually reveal? Aren't you afraid someone will steal it?!
The quick-witted viewers in the livestream were already taking notes.
"Got it, got it!"
"I've screen-recorded it too! I'll try making it later!"
"This pudding doesn't seem too difficult. It looks so cute and chubby."
"Wonder how it'll taste when we make it."
"Doesn't seem like there are any special ingredients that would help with Spirit Force, right?"
"Even if there were, they wouldn't tell you..."
Huang Youcai hadn't expected Yun Manman to directly reveal the recipe either. Her sincerity left him momentarily speechless.
But he didn't want to know how she made it.
He impatiently waved his hand to interrupt Yun Manman: "Stop! Did you add any Spirit Force regulating drugs?"
Interrupted, Yun Manman looked confused: "Regulating drugs? What are you talking about? Who adds medicine to food?"
Huang Youcai put on a stern face, as if he had already figured everything out: "Stop pretending. I've seen through it all."
Yun Manman looked at him with his tail raised high, a huge question mark appearing above her head.
She turned to ask Yuan Qing beside her: "Sister Qing, what is he talking about? What has he seen through?"
Yuan Qing was quickly scrolling through her communicator, her expression grave: "The dessert shop seems to have gone viral. Some people suspect that your desserts can regulate Spirit Force, and this person is probably saying you've added regulating drugs to them."
Finally understanding the situation, Yun Manman was so angry her cheeks puffed up, her emerald cat eyes wide open: "What regulating drugs! I didn't add anything!"
Huang Youcai pointed at a nearby Beastman eating cake with a smile on their face: "Then why do they all say they feel happy and relaxed after eating your desserts?"
Yun Manman was at a loss for words, the fur on her tail bristling as she put her hands on her hips, fuming: "Don't you feel happy when you eat something delicious? Huh?"
"Desserts are supposed to make people feel better!"
Huang Youcai wore an "as I thought" expression: "So your desserts are indeed problematic, otherwise why would they make people feel better?"
Yun Manman didn't know what to say anymore, her face red with anger. Was this person incapable of understanding human speech?
Huang Youcai continued, "Then tell me, why do you have weapons like high-pressure jet machines in your warehouse?"
"And what about the carbon dioxide?"
"Are you manufacturing some kind of illicit material to add to food products?"