Stella Sora

To find rare ingredients and create exciting new dishes.

Job Title Manager at Huaijing Restaurant Duties include reception, handling payment, waitressing, singing birthday songs for guests...

Career Highlights After I became the manager, Huaijing Restaurant made it to Philae's "Top 10 Must-Try Restaurants" list and even won the "Outstanding Business of the Year" award. That said, this success wouldn't have been possible without the whole team!

Career Objectives To make Huaijing Restaurant bigger and better, so everyone can enjoy great food and have a blast! Also... I want to grow up and become a truly remarkable person!

Hobbies Playing Mahjong and chatting with customers.

About Me Taste the warmth of home, right here at Huaijing... Oops, I just quoted the restaurant's slogan! Anyway, whether I'm managing the restaurant or working as a Trekker, you can count on me to deliver!

While gathering feedback for "Cangwu Residents" Dining Experience Survey," I noticed many locals mentioned Jing's Bistro in Philae. I hope that Cangwu's restaurants will take a page from Huajing's playbook and focus on their food quality and customer service. Despite her young age, Jinglin has already earned so much praise for her eatery. It must have taken a lot of effort on her part. I am very proud of her as a friend. —Shimiao, Office Secretary, Baize Bureau

Fairly accurate. Interestingly, Jinglin broke two of my stereotypes about Loong people: number one, they have an insatiable love for spicy food, and number two, they're all Mahjong pros... The sweet dishes at Huaijing are absolutely delicious, and playing Mahjong with Jinglin can be quite enjoyable. After an eight-round losing streak, Jinglin tried her best to wear a smiling face, but her tail? It was twisted into a knot. Still a kid after all. —Willow

Great News! Jing's Bistro is celebrating its anniversary!!! All customers will receive a complimentary seasonal dessert: Plum Rolls. We invite both new and returning guests to join us for a delightful dining experience! We can't wait to see you. —Jinglin, Manager of Jing's Bistro

Year 994 of the Monolith Calendar, Sonus Month, 2nd Today is my first day as acting manager of Huaijing! Mom gave me this beautiful new notebook, and from now on, I'm the one keeping the shift logs. She told me, "The first step is always the hardest." and asked me to make the first page look extra neat... Oops, I made a small mistake there. I hope it won't be a problem. I'm sure we'll have plenty of customers today! Here's to a great start! Year 994 of the Monolith Calendar, Sonus Month, 10th Miaomiao left yesterday. She said she was heading home to care for her parents, but I know the real reason—she found a new job at the restaurant down the street. I didn't want her to go, but business has been so slow lately, and I barely managed to scrape together enough to pay her wages for last month... I feel terrible about it. There are several new chain restaurants opening around town, all under the "United Harvest" brand. I sneaked over to check them out, and the lines outside were huge! I saw Aunty Lan and her family there. I can't believe it! She's always been a fan of our sweet lotus root, but now she's heading to those places instead... I can't tell Mom though, or she'll insist on leaving the hospital. The doctor says she needs to rest and recover. The weather's great, but we're still not getting any customers... Year 994 of the Monolith Calendar, Floris Month, 2nd Customer Feedback for Today: From two young women (Philae residents, never tried Loong cuisine before): The Sweet and Sour Ribs are overdone and mushy. The Braised Seitan has a strong soy sauce flavor. The homemade yogurt is good—sweet and refreshing. From a couple in their 50s (Philae residents, fans of Loong cuisine): The Velvety Fish Broth is good, but has a slight fishy odor. Could use some improvement. The dishes here are sweeter than what they're used to at other Loong restaurants. The promotion events on the shopping street nearby drew quite a large crowd. I took the opportunity to invite some of the shoppers to stop by and share their thoughts on our food. Now I see where we went wrong... Most people aren't used to traditional Loong flavors! Looks like the Restaurant Survival Guide is spot on: gathering feedback really helps us improve our dishes. Next up: convincing Grandpa Qin to tweak his recipes. Ugh, just thinking about it gives me a headache. This is going to be harder than taking the toughest math worksheets... I might need to talk to Mom first...

Year 994 of the Monolith Calendar, Floris Month, 13th As expected, Grandpa Qin was furious about my idea—he almost turned purple! He kept shouting, "These recipes have been passed down for generations; there's no need to change them!" Mom says he's been a chef for decades, so it's hard for him to change his ways. We'll need to take a more subtle approach. Sigh... Mom figured out. I promised her that the business would be back on track by the time she gets out of the hospital. To help, I've been handing out flyers around the neighborhood to bring in a few customers. I'm also considering running a special promotion. I noticed that those "United Harvest" restaurants have membership cards. Maybe we could try something like that too... Can't believe how fast time is flying by. Before I know it, it's already evening. But honestly, I don't mind the busyness at all. Year 994 of the Monolith Calendar, Floris Month, 27th Grandpa Qin finally agreed! After a lot of persistence on my part, he reluctantly agreed to help me gather customer feedback and hear what they had to say in person. Sometimes, he was really upset by the negative reviews—he nearly got into an argument with one of the customers! But when someone praised his cooking, he was so thrilled and wanted to share his secret recipes with everyone. Thankfully, Weiji stopped him before he could reveal too much. Mom was right: Grandpa Qin is a chef who takes his work seriously. What he always wants is for every customer to have a satisfying meal. Today, he came to me and said that he finally understood what the customers wanted and was ready to make some changes. I can tell he really wants more people to enjoy his cooking and fall in love with Loong cuisine. Once we close for the night, I'm going to share the good news with Mom! Business is picking up, and I know things are going to get better from here on out! Year 994 of the Monolith Calendar, Pluvia Month, 1st I'm too excited to sleep, so I thought I'd jot down a few thoughts to mark this moment. As I was going through the previous shift logs, I realized it's already been over six months since I started. This is supposed to be a notebook of "shift logs," but I turned it into a diary book with my bits and pieces. Mom finally came home from the hospital last week, and I kept my promise! Now she can stop worrying about the restaurant and get her well-deserved rest. I've also been busy with renovations. I put the money I'd saved to good use, getting a new signage and giving the dining hall a makeover. Plus, I even got Grandpa Qin the cooking tools he'd always wanted. All our tables are booked for tomorrow, and we'll be welcoming customers with a fresh new look! I'm so excited. I bet Mom felt the same way when she took over the restaurant. Today has been great. Tomorrow will be even better. And the day after that? Even better still!

I had seen the little girl for three days in a row now. As usual, she came during the hottest hours of the day, her patched-up crossbody bag swinging up and down as she bounced along. She lied down under my shade, pulled out a picture book from her bag, and started flipping through it happily. As a tree that had long stopped worrying the passing of time, I'd grown used to people spending time on their own beneath my branches. When the little girl began sharing her tiny little concern, she sounded really like a chirping birdling. "I really wish I could use spell now. Why can't I cast it?" "Mom said I have it in me, I'm just too young for this." "I just want to grow up already." As an experienced listener, I had an urge to tell her that adulthood only brought bigger problems. But from her furrowed brows, I could tell she was genuinely upset. Sometimes, people treat me, a majestic tree, as a substitute for God. They would come to me with their troubles or wishes, in exchange of a piece of comfort—we both know they are fooling themselves. Unlike true gods, I couldn't grant wishes, but thankfully, no one ever got angry at me when their wishes went unfulfilled. When this little girl laid out a bunch of colorful snacks at my roots and clasped her hands in prayer, I knew exactly what she was doing. "Please, grant me the ability to cast spell!" Boom! A loud thunderclap echoed in response. She picked the worst possible time—the storm was about to break. "Ah! Does that mean yes?" Strangely, she didn't cover her ears or flinch like the others. "I have to go! Mom's waiting for me at home! See you tomorrow!" She waved me goodbye and ran into the rain, her bag held tightly against her chest. I wanted to stop her, but I couldn't. Boom! A bolt of lightning struck right where she stood. "Ahhh!!!" If only I were a real god... "Wh-what's going on?" A golden beam of light descended from the sky, enveloping her. She wasn't hurt at all! Instead, the lightning spiraled around her like bees circling a flower. I have never seen anything like it in my lifetime! She raised her hand, a flash of lightning came from her fingertip, sending the startled birds away. "My wish...came true!" "I can't wait to tell Mom about this!" I watched her, crackling with thunder energy, disappearing into the rain. A year later, I saw her again. She seems to live in a very, very distant place, and her time here each year is only a brief couple of weeks. She still came to me sharing her worries, though the topics had changed. "I can't control my power. I keep shattering the lightbulbs at the restaurant." "My friends are avoiding me. Even the stray dogs on the street keep their distance. Everyone's scared of being zapped." Her brow was still furrowed, and her tail flicked nervously, crackling with tiny sparks. "With these gloves, I can control the lightning!" She held up a pair of black gloves that looked surprisingly ordinary. "Mom had them made by a skilled Xuan Shi. They're amazing, like a switch that lets me control the lightning." "I can make it stronger...or weaker..." "And they have this super cool name: 'Thunder God's Grasp.' The Xuan Shi came up with it himself!" ... She went on explaining the details, but I couldn't quite follow. I just swayed my leaves in response. For once, I believe I truly played the role of a god.