Chapter 1174: The Gap… Twenty Million

Xia Qing drove back to her territory, rinsed the salt off the green-light peanut vines with clean water and spread them out to dry in the yard, while the yellow-light peanut vines that didn't need rinsing were placed directly in the yard for Sheep Boss to eat his fill, and whatever Sheep Boss left over was given to the little yellow ox.

Then, according to the trade terms she had set last year, she delivered the two terraced fields and half of the green-light black-skinned peanuts harvested from the hidden valley to Territory Seven.

"Third Brother, this one bag is harvested from the two terraced fields, the quality is a bit better; these three bags are harvested from the hidden valley, all green-light quality too. Are you planning to promote the cultivation of this kind of peanut? Do you want me to send you some more?"

Seeing the peanuts in the bag still giving off the fragrance of earth, Zhang San, who had been irritable all morning, immediately became gentle. He took freshly squeezed green-light pear juice from the fridge and poured Xia Qing a glass, asking, "I do have that plan. How was the yield of this crop of peanuts?"

Xia Qing immediately answered, "The germination rate of the green-light peanuts in both places was about the same, but the climate in the valley is more suitable for peanut growth than our territory, so the green-light peanut yield there is a bit higher than in the valley. Counting only the green-light peanuts, the 2,700 peanuts planted on the terraced fields yielded 160 jin, and the 7,000 peanuts planted in the hidden valley yielded 476 jin. If toxic spores hadn't spread into the valley during the second Harmful Rain, the yield would have been even higher…"

Zhang San peeled open peanuts from both places and looked at them. "Send me the planting data from both places. For the valley, did you hire someone to manage the peanuts?"

Xia Qing explained, "It's not exactly a dedicated hire. The wounded recuperating in the valley at Mountain Territory Fifteen are in charge of watering, Tenth Sister and Little Shiyi help me catch bugs to feed the green-light peanuts, and I do the weeding and fertilizing myself."

Mentioning Zhang Shi, Zhang San immediately thought of the child she had brought back. "How is that child doing?"

"I think she's a bit better, at least she's not getting worse. A child of only six, who last year watched her mother collapse and die in the Harmful Rain, and this year watched helplessly as her father was infected with the evolution fungus and slowly walked toward death — it'd be strange if her mind didn't have problems."

If Ye Yuliang hadn't taken isolation measures and strictly forbidden his daughter from entering his room, this child definitely wouldn't have survived until the day Zhang Shi opened the door.

Seeing her idol holding fruit juice in a daze, Xia Qing changed the subject. "Third Brother, how is Wang Shunkang doing?"

Zhang San's spirits indeed lifted. "He's a Class C dual-system Evolver with magnetic sense and brain domain. Not only does his mental state need adjustment, his physical condition is also very poor. He urgently needs recuperation and nutritional supplements."

Hearing that Wang Shunkang was a dual-system Evolver, Xia Qing immediately became more spirited than Zhang San. "Whatever medicine he needs, Third Brother, just go ahead and prescribe. I can pay the points for him in advance."

Once Wang Shunkang's abilities improve, he'll do missions to repay the debt. So these points are a long-term investment for Xia Qing. She has plenty of experience in this area.

Zhang San glared at Xia Qing. "You have a lot of points?"

Xia Qing chuckled twice and, for the first time, raised the question of Territory Seven's expenses. "Third Brother, how many points does it take each year to keep your lab running?"

Zhang San sank into the soft chair back, answering listlessly, "My place is a mid-sized lab engaged in new drug R&D, cultivating new job varieties, evolution fungi and viruses, and other multi-field research. If you don't pursue efficiency and scrape by to maintain operations, fifty million points is enough; if you do cutting-edge research and want breakthroughs, you need at least eighty million a year."

I… fuck…

Xia Qing knew the lab burned through points, but she hadn't expected a number countless times higher than the Pyramid.

She straightened her back and asked, "How many points did Red Eleven and Hui Three promise to give you?"

Since he'd chosen to ally with Xia Qing, Zhang San had long wanted to tell her all this. It was only because every time they met something bizarre came up that it dragged on until now. "Besides two special security squads and fire support, Hui Three promised me forty million a year, and Red Eleven gives me twenty million a year. If I develop new drugs or new medical methods, the state will give certain rewards and subsidies, at most a few million."

A few million can be ignored — her idol is a big shot standing at the top of the Pyramid, of course he can't scrape by. So, the gap in the lab's operating funds is… twenty million!

Not counting the Yishi, Xia Qing had worked herself to the bone in her territory for nearly two years and only managed to save a little over eight million points…

However, her ways of earning points now aren't limited to the territory — there's also Hui Three Pharmaceutical Factory.

Hui Three Pharmaceutical Factory has five shareholders in total: Chief Researcher Zhang San contributed technology and patents for 40%; Hui Three Official, which provided the land and official protection, holds 25%; the 28 members of the factory's core management and technical team hold 20%; the Qinglong Squad, which provides production and drug transport security, holds 10%; and Xin Yu, who provided the equipment, holds 5%.

That's the division on the surface. In reality, of the 40% shares belonging to Zhang San, 10% actually belongs to Xia Qing.

It was Xia Qing who proposed opening the pharmaceutical factory. Zhang San found it troublesome, so he gave her 10% of the shares and let her act as an agent to deal with all parties. Besides that, Xia Qing is also responsible for finding scarce medicinal materials and plants.

For example, among Hui Three Pharmaceutical Factory's three flagship drugs, the special agent that kills advanced evolution Aspergillus was developed from an antibiotic Xia Qing discovered on an evolution wolf.

Besides that, the evolution Viola philippica Xia Qing discovered from a blind tiger's mouth, which has excellent anti-inflammatory and bactericidal effects; the evolution Tofieldia containing Yi-12 that she discovered in the green-light water system of Mountain Area Twenty-Two; and the white Yi Snake containing Yi-7 that she discovered in the lake north of Mountain Sixty — all are now main research projects for Zhang San's team.

So this 10%, Xia Qing has earned it as a matter of course.

But knowing her idol's research funding wasn't enough, Xia Qing decided not to take this portion of points.

She took out her phone and forwarded the financial report Zhou Zhaoping had sent to her idol. "Third Brother, look, our pharmaceutical factory's half-year revenue is 45.3 million, profit 9.06 million, profit margin 20%. Based on this data, the annual profit would be 18.12 million, and the two of us can get…"

"7.24 million."

"Right! 7.24 million! You're truly a brain-domain Evolver standing at the top of the Pyramid — your calculation ability is amazing!" After praising her idol, Xia Qing began arranging the use of this portion of points. "I don't lack points right now. All the pharmaceutical factory dividends go straight to your account, use them directly. Then, the rate at which the pharmaceutical factory allocates research funding will be raised from the current 8% to 18%."

Zhang San reminded her, "When I was given the 40% shares, my research funding was already factored in."

Xia Qing was very decisive. "Times change. The factory is ours, your funding is short so it has to be raised. I'll handle the negotiations, you just wait to collect the money. If we don't raise the research funding ratio, then we raise drug prices — which do you choose?"

Compared to pharmaceutical factories in other bases, Hui Three Pharmaceutical Factory sells at fair prices — this was Zhang San's proposal. He still sticks to this original intention. "Let's raise the research funding allocation ratio then. Once my funding here is enough, we'll lower it back down."

With Zhang San's research team in place, the pharmaceutical factory's revenue will keep growing, and the research funding allocated from the revenue at a certain rate will of course also keep growing.

But Xia Qing disagreed with lowering it. "No need to lower it. Once your funding here is sufficient, just hire a few more researchers you find pleasing to share your research load. You should eat, drink, and sleep as you please. Any extra points will serve as a special fund — part of it to boost the combat power of the Ninth Center and our alliance, the other part as a reserve fund. In the future, if you have a serious disagreement with Red Eleven or Hui Three Official, terminate the cooperation and use the reserve fund to fill the research funding gap."

"Good." Zhang San took a big gulp of pear juice, feeling refreshed. He put on gloves and began enthusiastically sorting through the tender peanuts, planning to boil them for dinner.

Xia Qing downed her fruit branch in one go, and while helping her idol sort peanuts, proposed an exchange. "This pear juice tastes pretty good. Third Brother, did you save the seeds?"

"Saved them. I'll give you four saplings next year."

"Thank you, Third Brother! You're really…"

"Shut up, or I'll crack your skull open right now and cut out this useless brain domain of yours."

"…"