001 The first guest is very cute_1

Lin Ge stood behind the black marble bar, dressed in a clean white shirt, calmly wiping the glass wineglasses while waiting for his first customer of the day, who was also the first in his career.

Today was his first day on the job, and he was filled with anticipation for his career.

Soft music played in the bar, with a subtle scent of perfume lingering in the air, creating a comfortable and cozy atmosphere.

The bar was small, but warm and elegant, which pleased him.

However, at the moment, he could feel a piercing gaze upon him, emanating from a table not far from the bar; it belonged to a woman dressed as a waitress.

The woman looked very young, probably no more than twenty, with a beautiful face and her blonde hair tied back in a ponytail.

Staring at Lin Ge inside the bar, her pretty sky-blue eyes seemed to shoot flames, as if she had some deep-seated grudge against him.

Her name was Iris. Before Lin Ge was hired, she was the one behind the bar, but now she had been demoted to an apprentice and naturally bore no good will towards Lin Ge.

The bar owner had replaced her because there weren't many customers.

Having tasted the terrible drinks she mixed, Lin Ge fully understood the feelings of the boss and the previous customers.

This woman had no clue about bartending and had a bad attitude—to say she was good for nothing except her looks would not be an overstatement.

Such a bartender could only retain lechers, no one else.

"Before the customers arrive, you should cross your hands below your navel, right hand over left, ready to serve at any time, not sitting there staring at me like a frog," Lin Ge said with an offhand remark, immediately igniting the keg of powder.

Bang!

"Who did you just call a frog?"

Iris slammed the table, standing up quickly, her chest jiggling with the fierce movement—a point in her favor, Lin Ge thought, eyes sweeping indifferently across her front.

"If a customer were to come in right now, you, behaving like this, would definitely scare them away," Lin Ge remarked, still calm.

"You, you jerk, just because you make drinks that taste slightly better, what's so great about that? Sooner or later, I'll surpass you and get you thrown out of this bar," Iris exclaimed like an enraged little lioness.

"No, no, no," Lin Ge shook his head slightly, "Just making good drinks isn't enough to become an excellent bartender. A truly excellent bartender uses the drinks he crafts as a bridge to reach the hearts of his customers."

Lin Ge's gaze swept lightly over Iris.

"With your temperament, I'm afraid that will be quite difficult for you to achieve."

His tone remained measured, yet it caused Iris's face to heat up until she was flushed with anger.

The most infuriating part was, she couldn't refute it.

The frustration made her nearly go mad; if possible, she would have loved to hang this outrageously arrogant man up and whip him mercilessly.

At that moment, a noise came from the bar's entrance, drawing both their attention to the door.

Had a customer arrived?

Lin Ge straightened his collar and cleared his throat, putting on a smile, ready to offer the most heartfelt service to his first customer.

Seeing him like this made Iris even more unhappy.

Hmph, such a pretentious act, I don't believe you can keep up this charade forever.

But the person entering was not a customer, but a woman dressed in loose casual wear—previously the sole waitress of the bar, which now had two.

"It's Nilu, I thought it was a customer."

"Haha, it looks like you're really looking forward to it, little brother Lin Ge," she said.

Lin Ge didn't know Nilu's exact age; she looked young, but judging from the mature aura she emitted, she was most likely older than him; thus, he had no objections to the moniker "little brother."

When Nilu changed into her work clothes, Lin Ge couldn't help but be dazzled.

Her brown, shoulder-length hair gleamed like silk, her complexion was as pale as milk, and her work outfit—a white V-neck shirt paired with a pure black work skirt—was both neat and professional while also being sexy and enticing.

Was this also a tactic to retain customers? Lin Ge wondered.

"Nilu, this guy was eyeing you lecherously," Iris, who had been observing every move of Lin Ge, immediately tattled.

Nilu just smiled gently, "Iris, don't talk nonsense, little brother Lin Ge isn't that kind of person."

Lin Ge found himself deeply agreeing and nodded in silence.

"Alright, let's officially open for business!"

Nilu pressed a button on the wall, and the "Open for Business" sign above the door lit up.

"Ah, Iris, you forgot to press that, no wonder we haven't had any customers," Lin Ge said.

"You really talk too much, it wasn't time to open just yet," Iris retorted.

Lin Ge had no interest in arguing with her and picked up another glass, wiping it diligently.

Half an hour passed, and still, not a single customer had come in.

Iris had been glaring at Lin Ge so much her eyes had dried up, and she began to doze off, rubbing them, while Nilu went to the rest area.

Just when Lin Ge was beginning to feel disheartened, the wind chime at the door finally rang, signaling the arrival of a customer.

His spirits lifted as he looked toward the entrance.

The door was pushed open by a girl wearing a purple Mage's robe and a broad-brimmed Wizard's hat. She walked in with her head down, the wide brim of her hat obscuring her face, making it difficult to discern her features.

He hadn't expected the first customer to be so unique.

Seeing the girl's attire, Lin Ge was slightly surprised but immediately greeted her with a warm smile, "Welcome to Emerald Bar, what can I get for you?"

The girl with the Wizard's hat sat down on the high stool in front of the bar, propping up her chin with her delicate arm, allowing Lin Ge to finally see her face clearly.

It was a pale and slender face that made her eyes appear larger and brighter, filled with a melancholic expression that was irresistible and stirred a sense of pity.

"Do you have any recommendations?" the girl's voice was soft, complementing her petite stature and delicate features, and making her even more tear-jerkingly adorable.

Seeing her youthful face, Lin Ge asked, "Are you of age to drink?"

The girl, displeased, pouted and said, "Quit the chatter, just give me a drink."

Iris was also glaring at him from the side, as if to say, we finally have a customer, do you want to drive her away? She signaled with her eyes for him to serve the drink.

With no other option, Lin Ge smiled and said, "If it's the guest's first time here, I recommend our signature cocktail, the Emerald."

"I'll have one of those."

"Very well, please wait a moment."

Lin Ge took out a cocktail glass and, after placing two ice cubes in it, set it aside.

Next, he grabbed a mixing glass and bar spoon, added several ice cubes to the mixing glass, measured 0.5 ounces of dry vermouth and lemon juice respectively, followed by 0.5 ounces of gin. He stirred it 13 times with the bar spoon until the fingers pressing at the bottom of the glass felt cold, stopping as condensation formed at the top of the glass.

With that, the preparation of the Emerald cocktail was completed.

He placed a strainer on top of the glass and poured the well-mixed drink into the cocktail glass, then gently pushed it towards the girl.

"Here you go."

During the preparation of the drink, the girl curiously watched him, and now her gaze shifted to the crystal-clear, emerald-colored cocktail before her. She blinked, lifted the glass to her lips, and drained it in one gulp. Then—

She burst into tears with a loud "Wah."

"Wah, I've been rejected again," she sobbed.

Faced with the girl's sudden emotional outburst, Lin Ge remained calm. As a bartender, dealing with such situations was an inevitable part of the job.

A good bartender, at times like these, needed to listen to the patron's heart and soothe their emotions.

He said in as gentle a voice as possible:

"If the other person doesn't like you, why not try setting your sights on someone else?"

"But nobody wants me."

"That... how's that possible? You look very cute," he replied earnestly.

The girl's cheeks, already flushed from the alcohol, turned an even deeper shade of red. She lowered her head and said in a small voice:

"You really are... why would you suddenly say, say someone's cute out of the blue..."