The Outcast Writer of a Martial Arts Visual Novel-Chapter 225: Normal Operations - 4

If you're hungry, you feel wretched.

That’s what I’ve come to understand after living like a beggar in this world for a year, branded a barbarian.

One meal skipped, then another. One meal for every two, then one for every three. I can’t even remember the last time I ate. I’m starving. So damn hungry. I’d shove anything into my mouth right now.

Hunger rots your brain from the inside out.

If I hadn’t learned the Tohnap Technique when I landed in this world—if I couldn’t use it to strengthen my body and focus my mind—I probably would’ve fallen down the wrong path long ago.

“Has everyone eaten lunch today?”

Cleanup time after closing. I stood in front of the staff I’d gathered together.

“......”

No answer. Some of the workers struggling financially won’t even meet my eyes.

“I’m aware some of you have been skipping lunch. Even though I’ve already set aside a designated lunch break for that very reason.”

Straight to the point. I lowered my gaze with deliberate disappointment in my voice.

“Wait—are we all here because the people skipping meals are gonna lose their lunch break?”

“No way, right? I mean... it’s not like we don’t want to eat.”

Tension was thick among the staff. Well, can’t blame them. In this world, there’s no such thing as a structured lunch break during work hours.

Even the noodle shop workers who get fed three times a day are still chewing on raw onions come lunchtime.

I get their anxiety, but this isn’t a lunch break confiscation rally.

“I know why you’ve been skipping lunch.”

Even anxiety is a kind of attention. I showed them I understood the problem, and just like that, everyone’s focus zeroed in on me.

Payday’s still far off. And even when they do get paid, it’s not like they’ll have money to eat out.

I understand your situation. Now you’re all wondering—what’s the manager gonna say next?

What will come out of my mouth?

“I’ve signed a lunch contract with a nearby inn. Just tell them you’re from Daseogak and give your name—they’ll serve you.”

Of course it’s good news.

“They’ll... serve us lunch...?”

“Are you serious?!”

“Even the hotshot escort bureau staff have to buy their own meals!”

“Is this part of the work-study perks or something?”

Wide-eyed disbelief spread among the staff.

“It’s all out of my own pocket. We need to work hard, and you can’t do that on an empty stomach. Go eat lunch at the inn.”

I’d already been covering Im Ha-yeon’s meals—this is nothing new.

— “Tonight’s dinner. Take it.”

— “I said I don’t need help.”

— “It’s a boss’s duty to look after their staff.”

— “Ugh!”

She hates receiving help as a sworn daughter, but she’ll take it as a staff benefit? She’s the type who finds a thousand excuses even though she’s gonna take it anyway.

Why can’t she just be happy like the others?

“A job that pays and feeds us lunch, huh.”

Yeah. The pay’s coming from the Literary Society. And I got a discount on the meals since we’re eating as a group. 𝕗𝕣𝐞𝐞𝘄𝐞𝚋𝚗𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗹.𝚌𝕠𝚖

“Are you sure the manager isn’t just clueless because he’s from another country?”

“Lunch during lunch break? Are we in Daseogak or in a government office?”

“You fool. Even government officials skip meals for work or have to buy them.”

“Unbelievable...”

They all smiled like they’d seen heaven.

Too soon for that.

“There’s one more thing I’ll be providing.”

I cut through their joy with a loud voice to announce another staff benefit.

“One more?!”

“What the hell is it this time?!”

Now we’re getting to the main course.

I glanced at the startled faces, then reached behind me and pulled something from a bundle of gear.

“From now on, you’ll all be issued work uniforms.”

If you’re a Daseogak employee, you should wear the uniform.

“You’re even giving us clothes?”

“When I first said to dress neatly, I didn’t expect this to become such a problem.”

I was dressed decently, but I looked around at the dirtied outfits of my staff, stained from the past few days of work, and sighed.

I’d been fooled by the clean outfits they’d shown up in on the first day, thinking they could at least afford lunch. But in reality, just like back in my storytelling days, they’d simply shown up in their best clothes.

“Haha...”

“Male staff will be given comfortable and tidy uniforms. You’ll wear them during work hours.”

“Do the female staff wear something different?”

Good question.

In fact, this is why I gathered everyone here today. I’ve got a major announcement to make.

“From now on, female staff working on the second floor will wear this.”

I held up a garment made of fine black fabric for them all to see.

“What’s that?”

The identity of the black garment I raised...

A treasure of the Central Plains.

The pinnacle of Chinese civilization.

A single dress that contains the essence of this entire world.

Its name—

“The Chinese dress.”

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Chinese dress.

Also known as the qipao.

In pretty much every genre, if a Chinese character appears, she’s wearing this, usually paired with those iconic bun hairdos.

Sleeveless to boldly emphasize elegance, revealing side slits that flash dangerous thighs, and form-fitting cuts that hug every seductive curve—it’s an outfit designed to make hearts race.

One First Lady of the United States once said that after seeing the Chinese dress, she finally understood why China’s birthrate was so high. That’s the kind of impact we’re talking about here.

Daseogak is in the Central Plains.

So what should the Daseogak uniform be?

Naturally, if it’s a uniform, it has to be the Chinese dress.

My logic rocketed up on a triple-stage booster and blasted through the stratosphere.

‘Who knew it’d be this ridiculously expensive.’

Making it out of premium silk practically made my eyes roll back in shock.

And I’d ordered a modernized version, too. A special custom order, of course that raised the price even more.

My logic booster nearly exploded mid-air.

If the second-floor staff weren’t all good-looking, I’d have dropped the idea entirely.

But this outfit was worth the investment. The impact it would have? Massive. I decided to take the plunge and signed the contract. I even brought back a sample.

“Chinese dress?”

“Never seen that before.”

“Isn’t that barbarian clothing?”

It’s a Manchu dress. And I did customize it, so yeah, it’s gonna look exotic.

“It’s a foreign outfit, yes—but also worn in the northern regions.”

I preempted the judgment and clarified things. It might look unfamiliar because it’s made from silk, but in a martial arts visual novel world, rich families wear this kind of thing all the time.

“That’s a barbarian’s outfit?”

“A barbarian outfit?!”

Yeah, here come the disgusted looks.

Anytime the word “barbarian” comes up, they instantly frown. The prejudice in this world is something else.

Maybe in the past I would’ve said, “Sorry for being a barbarian,” and backed down.

But not now.

“You’re saying you won’t wear it because it’s barbarian clothing?”

I fixed my gaze on them, openly disappointed.

Well then. Here comes the bait—let’s see which fish bites first.

“Of course. How could a woman of the Central Plains wear barbarian—”

“You idiot!”

Too late. I’m already yanking the line.

“So you refuse to wear barbarian clothing? Then I assume you’d hate taking orders from one even more.”

Where do you think the manager of Daseogak is from?

If you despise barbarians, then you’re basically saying you despise me, aren’t you?

“That’s not what I meant...”

Too late. I was already in overdrive. I started delivering my rebuttal with just a dash of pent-up resentment for all the barbarian hate I’ve endured.

“I hired you to give hope to those in need—regardless of your hair color or status! I’m providing lunch! I’m providing clothing! And you’re throwing a fit just because it’s something a barbarian would wear?! I don’t need people like that. Leave. I’ll make sure you get paid for the work you’ve done.”

I pointed firmly at Daseogak’s front door.

“I’m sorry!!! That’s absolutely not what I # Nоvеlight # meant!!!”

The staff member who’d insulted the outfit freaked out and nearly kissed the floor apologizing.

The rest of the staff, realizing they’d narrowly avoided disaster, just stood stiff and silent.

Good. That was the warning shot.

“This is your one and only chance. If I hear any more anti-barbarian comments, I will take action.”

I don’t care what other places do. Refusing to wear something just because it’s from a “barbarian” culture? That doesn’t fly here. Got it?

“I won’t say anything like that again!”

“Anyone else have something to say?”

I scanned the rest of them with a warning glare.

“Yes, sir.”

One of the second-floor female staff raised her hand.

“Speak.”

No way... You’re not saying, even after I gave that warning, “Ugh, barbarian scum, I don’t wanna wear that,” right? I’ll be hurt, you know.

Thankfully, the second-floor female staff member said something I didn’t expect.

“With the sleeveless cut and the slit down the leg, doesn’t that outfit show off too much? That’s the kind of thing cheap courtesans wear to seduce men.”

She scrunched her nose and pointed at the Chinese dress.

She’s not wrong. It is meant to attract customers. How do I counter that? I paused to think when I heard a quiet murmur, just loud enough for me to catch.

“That’s not true... You don’t know anything about courtesans.”

Im Ha-yeon clearly didn’t appreciate the “cheap courtesan” remark. She was glaring daggers at the woman, mumbling under her breath where the other couldn’t hear.

The staff member didn’t seem to catch it, and just kept talking.

“I’m a cultured woman, not some vulgar courtesan. Besides, wearing something like that would only draw excessive attention to staff with unflattering figures.”

She cast a side-eye at Im Ha-yeon as she said that. “Unflattering,” my ass. “Voluptuous” is what you mean.

So, you’re saying that because you’re a formally educated scholar, the outfit makes you uncomfortable? Then I’ve got something to say.

“Vulgar courtesan? In the northern provinces, only women of high status are allowed to wear this kind of attire. Do the rest of you feel the same?”

Do you even know how much this dress costs?

“I wanna wear the silk dress!”

Ha So-so’s eyes sparkled as she raised her voice with cheerful energy. Perfect. That’s exactly the reaction I wanted. One vote secured.

“What about you, Lady Ha-yeon? Do you think the Chinese dress is some vulgar barbarian’s outfit worn only by courtesans?”

Let’s subtly replace “vulgar courtesan” with “vulgar barbarian.” Make her associate the two. Group you and me together as social outcasts—then nudge her to vote my way.

I looked at Im Ha-yeon, who still had that sour look on her face while shooting glances at both me and the other staff member.

Come on, Ha-yeon. Choose your words wisely. After everything I’ve done for you.

She looked annoyed, switching her gaze between me and the woman before finally speaking up, like she’d made up her mind.

“If you’ve never met a real courtesan, don’t speak so carelessly about what they wear. If a courtesan wants to seduce someone, they’d wear something way more daring than this. This is just... a beautiful outfit, that’s all. Hmph. Of course, women with no confidence in their body wouldn’t dare wear it.”

Guess the courtesan-bashing really pissed her off. Im Ha-yeon spoke in a sharp, irritated voice, making sure the staff member could hear every word.

“Sigh... Fine. Since everyone else is okay with it, I’ll wear it. And Manager, for the record, I didn’t mean anything when I said ‘barbarian.’”

In the end, she lowered her head and admitted defeat.

Good. From now on, Daseogak’s uniform is officially the Chinese dress!

“But Manager, why are you going this far? Paying out of your own pocket and all?”

Just as I was silently cheering for myself, one of the employees raised his hand and asked.

Why?

“Because you’re my staff.”

Daseogak’s reputation is my reputation.

You’ll all be wearing your uniforms, eating lunch at the inn. Rumors will spread about how the Daseogak manager feeds his work-study students.

My fame will go beyond the Literary Society—all the way to Yichang.

Daseogak, and its employees, are all part of building my legacy. And hey, doing something nice isn’t a bad feeling either.

I looked at the dumbfounded staff and smiled as I wrapped things up.

“As much as I give, I expect results. Starting tomorrow, the second floor of Daseogak will have half-price entry and book discounts. Let’s work hard.”

“Yes, sir! We’ll do our best!”

------------

Barbarian clothing. The Chinese dress. But beauty knows no borders.

“Wha—! Is this... some kind of new world?!”

Even though I was the one who chose the uniform, the power of the Chinese dress was absolutely devastating.

“I don’t even know where to look!”

“Try the books, maybe?”

“How can you say something so cruel?!”

The female staff in their sleek black Chinese dresses were all like magnets, drawing customers in by the dozen.

“Manager Kang! I have a serious problem!”

“Scholar Hwang, if you’re about to ask me to play matchmaker again, I’m kicking you out.”

“No, no, that’s not it! I just... That Chinese dress is great on its own, but something about pairing it with a white apron—it just does something to me.”

The Chinese dress is made of expensive silk. Washing it costs a fortune. So after much consideration, I decided they’d wear frilly white aprons over it when doing messy tasks.

Black Chinese dress plus white apron? Yeah, that’s definitely appealing to certain tastes.

I chuckled and replied to Scholar Hwang.

“That style is called mei-yi-du.”

“Mei-yi-du?”

“It refers to the attire worn by foreign women when doing housework. They say true beauty isn’t just in appearance—but also in how a woman works at home. I get it.”

To be able to showcase both looks—the elegant dress and the domestic charm—through one outfit? Whoever came up with that idea was a business genius and deserves praise.

“Sniff... These foreigners have such good culture...”

With half-price entry, discounted books, improved employee morale thanks to the benefits, and now the Chinese dress—customers began flooding back into Daseogak.

------------

“Lady Ha-yeon? What brings you to the first floor? I left the ingredients for dinner in the tea shelf under the display stand.”

While I was giving instructions to the first-floor staff, Im Ha-yeon approached, dressed in her black Chinese dress.

“That’s not why I came. Here. You forgot this.”

She handed me a box. So that’s where it went.

“Ah... I meant to take it to the print room and forgot.”

“You look busy—I’ll take it there.”

“No. I’ll do it.”

I stopped her and took the box from her hands.

“It’s no big deal to drop something off in the print room.”

“No, it is a big deal. A very, very big one. So please return to your station.”

“And why exactly can’t I go to the print room?”

Why?

Oh, I have a very good reason.

Daseogak’s caught everyone’s attention—now it’s time to prepare for liftoff.

“Volume 3 of Storm of the Tang Clan is currently being printed.”