Chapter 85 - 84: Ruthless

Chapter 85: Chapter 84: Ruthless

Kuang Biao had run his mouth earlier, so he had to bow his head and submit as Huai Yu gritted her teeth and harvested a whole basket of bamboo hearts from him.

It was a heavy basket of premium, tender bamboo hearts, completely untouched by bugs or dust! Once roasted into tea, its Mutant Value might not match the very first batch, but judging by the aroma alone, it certainly wouldn’t be much worse.

She spread out a few plastic bags on the floor inside the house, poured the bamboo hearts onto them to dry evenly, and then headed straight back to the bamboo grove. With a single swing of her hoe, she dug up a massive, plump bamboo shoot.

This time, she didn’t even bother offering a polite warning. Kuang Biao didn’t dare utter a single sound, forced to pretend he hadn’t seen a thing.

Huai Yu had been working tirelessly since yesterday and hadn’t eaten a single proper meal.

Now that she had this premium, fresh bamboo shoot, she easily purified it—its Mutant Value was already low to begin with—then shredded and blanched it, prioritizing health and safety above all else.

She figured there was nothing to fear from the trace amounts of cyanide in the bamboo shoot; right now, she would gladly eat pufferfish if it were available!

And next... she was going to stir-fry it with pork cracklings, of course!

Since she was finally wealthy enough, there was no need to hold back when looking at that basin of lard—which usually only suffered superficial scrapes whenever she cooked!

At this moment, the ruthless Huai Yu scooped out a massive spoonful, bringing plenty of pork cracklings along with it!

She heated the wok and melted the lard. On the neighboring stove, the rice was releasing a rich, mouthwatering aroma.

Looking at the stir-fry pan, Huai Yu felt, for the very first time, that she was finally eating a proper meat dish!

However, she stared awkwardly at the now-bottomless container of lard. Just one moment of culinary extravagance meant she would have to visit the trading market again tomorrow.

Early the next morning, Huai Yu headed into the city again, carrying a full basket of bamboo shoots on her back.

For some reason, she felt the distinct, eager anticipation of a country bumpkin going to the market. In addition to the shoots, her basket contained neatly divided packets of Bamboo Heart Tea.

Thinking about it, carrying Kuang Biao all the way down the mountain overnight had actually been quite worth it. However, the one she truly needed to thank the most was the Rose Corridor...

How should she express her gratitude? Buy the Roses a bag of fertilizer?

Or should she use her own ability?

She hesitated, wondering if the Rose Corridor would become overly excited again if she fed it her power.

By now, Huai Yu was thoroughly familiar with navigating the trading market. Seeing the long queue at the inspection counter, she boldly stepped to the side and called out in a crisp voice, "Sir!"

The busy staff members looked up. "Oh, it’s Little Yu! You haven’t been here in a few days. You’re looking much healthier than before."

Huai Yu nodded. "Yeah, my house was being renovated recently, so it held me up for a few days."

As they spoke, someone led her into the inner room.

This time, Huai Yu didn’t decline the special treatment and obediently followed along.

The moment she stepped inside, she quickly pulled four bamboo shoots from her basket. "Here, gentlemen, one for each of you.

"And here’s some Bamboo Heart Tea. There isn’t much, but each of you can have a small packet to try."

It truly was a small packet—barely enough to brew a tiny pot, just enough for their families to get a taste.

But at this moment, the inspector only stared blankly at the bamboo shoot in his hands. Though smaller compared to the others in the basket, it was still remarkably large in their eyes.

"Fresh bamboo shoots... oh my god..."

He looked around, somewhat flustered. He clearly wanted it, but overwhelmingly felt that he shouldn’t accept such a gift.

"This... this isn’t appropriate, is it? It’s so expensive."

"It’s fine!" Huai Yu laughed. "Everyone here has always taken such good care of me, and I remember that! Look, I have a whole basket right here. Take it."

As she spoke, she handed the basket over, watching as the inspector pushed it into the testing machine.

With a loud BEEP, the machine went BZZZ and spat out an inspection card.

He looked down at the reading.

[Mutant Value: 13]

Only thirteen!

Good heavens! Bamboo shoots were highly sought-after seasonal delicacies right now, and they hadn’t seen a single one come through the market for inspection yet!

If sold to the right buyer, just one shoot could easily fetch a few hundred credits!

The inspector gritted his teeth. The bamboo shoot by his hand suddenly felt like a hot potato. He gently pushed it back toward her and said weakly, "Little Yu, you should take this and sell it."

"No." Huai Yu smiled with utmost sincerity. "These few are on the smaller side. I brought them specifically for you all, so please don’t turn them down!"

She pushed the shoots back to him and hoisted the basket onto her back again. "I’ll be going now!"

"Wait a moment!" The inspector hurriedly stopped her. He glanced left and right before lowering his voice.

"The police confiscated some goods from a scalper at the inspection station entrance today, and there’s a mutated goose egg among them... But when it was brought into the market for inspection this morning, it felt warm, and I could sense movement inside.

"Little Yu, my family used to run a breeding farm. If you trust my judgment, head over to the police station in a bit to take a look.

"That mutated goose egg shouldn’t be cheap. I heard people in the Imperial Capital have started keeping mutated pets. Your background probably isn’t simple either, so maybe you have the right connections to sell it for a good price.

"You can go check it out and just treat it like buying a balut egg. If the price gets pushed too high, don’t risk it. It wouldn’t be worth it if the gosling suffocates before hatching.

"After all, it’s a mutated animal, which makes it hard to handle.

"They usually auction off confiscated items on the spot to cover the fines, typically starting around twelve o’clock. Remember, don’t buy it if it’s too expensive!"

After hastily giving his advice, he quickly hid the bamboo shoots like a thief and turned to head outside.

Through the window, Huai Yu could see him whispering to a colleague. Seeing the colleague’s expression morph into one of surprise and wild ecstasy, he then sidled over to another person...

Meanwhile, Huai Yu stumbled out the door in a daze and headed straight for the police station!

Thank goodness she had scoped the place out—PAH PAH PAH—visited the place before; otherwise, it really would have been hard to find.

She had spent the entire morning digging up bamboo shoots, and it was already past eleven o’clock. She had almost missed it. ℯℯ𝘭.𝘤ℴ𝘮

She thought a goose egg was a fantastic find; once it hatched, it would grow into a fine goose that could eventually guard her house.

Geese were loud and alert, so if anyone approached from afar, it would crane its neck and honk...

It was exactly what she needed!

She jogged the whole way, the heavy basket of bamboo shoots leaving her completely out of breath. When she finally arrived, she saw a sign hanging at the entrance just as expected: [Today’s Auction].

Just as she was about to pull out her ID for verification, a pudgy, penguin-like man arrived at the exact same moment.

"Boss Tang?"

"Little Yu?!"

They exchanged a glance, both quite pleasantly surprised.

"Perfect timing!" Boss Tang led her inside, whispering softly along the way. "Little Yu, tell me what catches your eye later, and I’ll get it for you under the table. You must absolutely not bid the price up!

"To tell you the truth, the person whose goods were confiscated is an acquaintance of mine. If the auction prices go too high, it proves his stuff is highly valuable, and he’ll be slapped with a massive fine!"

Huai Yu paused, then told the truth. "I heard from my family that there’s a goose egg at today’s auction. I wanted to see if I could buy it and try to hatch it... There are just too few live cattle, sheep, chickens, or ducks sold at the market!"

Boss Tang breathed a sigh of relief, realizing it was just a goose egg. "I know about that one. Its Mutant Value is thirty-one. No one wants that thing, so it’ll most likely go unsold.

"Little Yu, if no one bids on it, just keep quiet. I’ll get it back for you after the auction."