Chapter 36: Boss Tang’s Resentment

Chapter 36: Chapter 36: Boss Tang’s Resentment

Lin Xuefeng had already left. Huai Yu’s inexplicable melancholy lasted for only a moment before being swiftly tossed to the back of her mind.

Right now, the most important thing was, of course, the beans she had soaked yesterday!

Sprouting beans required a breathable, permeable container. Huai Yu had originally planned to make do by laying a straw mat over a basin. However, seeing the small woven vine basket Lin Xuefeng had made, she realized it couldn’t be more perfect!

To guarantee the germination rate, the soybeans distributed by the Bureau of Statistics weren’t aged, but their quality was still truly worrisome. They were absolutely inedible, anyway. Yet the soybeans currently soaking in the basin were plump, smooth, and a creamy yellow. If she were to just fry them straight in a pan...

Huai Yu sighed. She poured the soybeans into the basket to drain the water, then washed them one more time. After draining and spreading out the soybeans again, she propped the basket up inside the basin. Then, she took the clean towel she had used yesterday to filter water, soaked it, draped it over the beans, and watered them once more.

Since the temperature was still a bit low, Huai Yu thought for a moment before moving the setup closer to the fire pit. Finally, she inverted another basin over the top as a lid.

Outside, the rain had eased. The pattering showers had dwindled into a fine drizzle, but the sky remained a gloomy gray, showing no signs of clearing up.

She sighed and checked her wristband. Counting her two hundred-plus points, she couldn’t help but feel a twinge of guilt.

"If I had known he was so capable, I absolutely wouldn’t have accepted these points," she thought.

But glancing around now, she truly had nothing else to do. Huai Yu had no choice but to retreat back into the house and pull out the pile of yam beans. Since Lin Xuefeng had said her ability was unique, maybe using it more would help her train and improve it?

Then there were her origins. When she had awakened from the tree cocoon, she had wandered around the mountain in a daze for a long time. All she knew was that there were cold brick-and-stone buildings and towering ancient trees.

"Where was that?" she wondered. "Could it be the Daoist Palace on Sanqing Mountain? Am I actually a Daoist? Wow, that sounds kind of cool!

"Maybe I’m even the kind of hermit Daoist who cooks on an earthen stove and practices martial arts by chopping wood and felling trees?"

But looking down at her own slight, fragile physique, she didn’t seem the part at all!

She figured that if she got the chance in the future, she would go up the mountain to search. At the very least, that tree cocoon had been far more spacious and comfortable than a sleeping bag, and it hadn’t dug into her back at all... Okay, she hadn’t been conscious at the time, so she actually had no idea if it dug into her back or not.

While letting her imagination run wild, Huai Yu picked up the yam beans one by one and placed them in her palm. A faint power surged forth. This time, she closed her eyes to carefully feel the process, discovering that different yam beans required different amounts of energy. The small, somewhat shriveled ones required more energy. Similarly, some large, plump ones that nonetheless radiated an "inedible" vibe also demanded a lot of energy.

However, those were only a small minority. The vast majority required a relatively uniform amount of energy.

By the time she had finished purifying nearly a kilogram of yam beans, Huai Yu lifted her arms and found that she still had some strength left. She wasn’t nearly as exhausted as when she had purified the soybeans and water.

She checked the time. Great, it was already noon!

"Purifying a kilogram of yam beans took over two hours. This efficiency is way too low!" she thought.

She put the yam beans back into the basket, only to see Little Tian looking shifty-eyed as it let out a SQUEAK, attempting to inch closer.

"That’s a no-go." Huai Yu lifted the basket out of reach. "These belong to me. You can only take them if I give them to you."

Her tone was like she was coaxing a precious little pet mouse, yet her actions were utterly ruthless. Little Tian watched helplessly as she hung the basket up on a sturdy vine. Enraged, it began to SQUEAK furiously, before wisely scurrying away before Huai Yu could glare at it.

Meanwhile, Huai Yu bit open a pouch of nutrient fluid. Seeing that there were only a few pouches left, she couldn’t help but feel even more dejected.

"If I had known, I wouldn’t have hesitated to forage a few more handfuls of wild vegetables so I could buy some lard first! If those fried beans from last night had been deep-fried in oil beforehand, I can’t even imagine how fragrant and crispy they would have been!"

The bizarre texture of the nutrient fluid was sickening to drink. Staring out at the increasingly dense drizzle, she grabbed her peanuts once again.

At this moment, the sole winner in this torrential rain was likely Tang Hongji, also known as Boss Tang.

A full day had passed since he sent out the notice yesterday afternoon about the arrival of fresh wild vegetables, yet his phone was still ringing off the hook. Plastering on a smile, he continuously answered the calls:

"...They’re gone, truly all gone... With your status, if I had good stuff here, wouldn’t I send it over to you immediately?

"Oh man! You’re a step too late! There’s genuinely not a single scrap left. Next time! Next time, I promise I’ll notify you the moment they arrive...

"Sigh, they’re really gone. Come on, look at our relationship! Would I ever lie to you about this? ...How was it? A Mutant Value of 9! It’s been years since you tasted something like that, right?

"...Hahaha, as long as it’s good! That’s all that matters! I was so worried you wouldn’t be satisfied. I didn’t even have time to clean them up after receiving the goods before I rushed them straight to you... Yes, yes, yes. Thank you, thank you..."

The calls and messages were relentless. He was exploiting every last feature of his rudimentary phone. Taking a stroll in the courtyard, his grandfather shot him a sidelong glance, looking quite disdainful.

"If you’re selling things, just sell them. Look at that fawning expression on your face. Who would ever believe you’re my grandson?"

"You don’t understand," Boss Tang said triumphantly. "In business, amiability breeds wealth. Dropping a few pleasantries so everyone’s happy doesn’t cost a thing."

"I just think your father hasn’t climbed high enough. Just look at you..."

Tang Hongji didn’t get angry. "Grandpa, you and my dad have your own paths. You’re too serious. I’m just dealing with trivial matters over here. You can’t expect me to use a sledgehammer to crack a nut every single time!

"I’m just running a small business in my free time, so don’t you worry about it. Oh, right—was the chicken soup we stewed last night fragrant or what?"

The little old man was instantly diverted by the change in topic, his face filled with wistful longing. "It was fragrant! So fragrant! Those were genuine wild shiitake mushrooms. Once they soaked up the oil from the chicken broth, the flavor was just..."

He smacked his lips, a hint of regret in his voice. "We shouldn’t have made both the shepherd’s purse dumplings and the hot-and-sour bracken fern all in one go. If we had saved some, we could’ve enjoyed two more meals today."

Speaking of that, the entire family was filled with regret.

Tang Hongji was even more frustrated. "Since this was our first collaboration and it opened up a new avenue, I thought we’d have a stable relationship moving forward. I figured we might as well eat our fill and finally have a real feast."

Who knew this torrential rain would pour down without warning? The perfectly fine spring rain was now contaminated with pollution... Who could they even complain to?

The scope of this storm was massive, with continuous overcast and rainy skies covering practically more than half the country. As a result, even if he scoured three to five cities, he probably wouldn’t be able to get his hands on such fresh and clean wild vegetables anymore.

Then there were the low-mutation chicken and pork he had won at high prices from the Animal Husbandry Bureau’s auction...

Sigh! He had barely satisfied his craving, and now the prices were going to skyrocket again.

The grandfather and grandson looked at each other in silence, able only to sigh. Tang Hongji pondered for a long time. "Once the rain stops, I still need to go keep watch at the store. This new partner has quite the extensive network; her family background must be quite formidable... I have to go stake out the place. I absolutely cannot let anyone poach her."