The Living World's Inflation Scares Away the Red-Clad Ghost・Cont.: Point Card Failure

This red-clad ghost had quite a reputation outside; everyone said she was a clingy vengeful spirit. In reality, her only obsession after years of being dead was sneaking into this convenience store at midnight to eat tea eggs. The underworld was full of ghost cakes and pastries, but none could replicate the savory flavor of these braised eggs. Tucked away in her red-clad pocket was a translucent point card, just two stamps away from a free tea egg. Her crimson skirt always hovered an inch above the ground, emitting a faint, withered osmanthus scent when she moved. Despite her fearsome appearance, she was actually a rule-abiding, money-saving ghost. This time, upon hearing that the tea eggs had increased in price again, she was so furious her hair stood on end. After painstakingly exchanging ghost currency for earthly change, it turned into wisps of smoke upon touch. She specifically returned to confront the owner. Deep in the night, the owner was hunched over his accounts in the back. A chilling wind suddenly swept into the store, and the light bulbs began to flicker wildly. Ah Jie quickly ducked behind the snack shelves. The ghost floated before the owner, striking a fearsome pose and channeling her ghostly energy to scare him. However, the spectral wind blew down a stack of point stickers. She instantly forgot her threat and rushed to pick them up, but her hands passed right through the paper. Frantically, she floated back and forth. Finally regaining a stern expression, she lowered her voice, "Owner, do you know--" Her words went completely off-topic. Filled with grievance and anger, she said, "I've been buying tea eggs here every year! They've gone from ten to now, and my point card is still two stamps short!" She gathered all her ghostly energy to flip the ledger as a demonstration, but her translucent hand passed straight through the paper, unable to even create a crease. She let out a ghostly wail with all her might, but the freezer's motor roared to life, perfectly drowning out her voice. The owner sighed deeply and spread out his ledger. "Inventory, rent, electricity – everything's gone up.