Chapter 1360: Kill a Chicken to Scare the Monkeys

Seeing her idol looking exhausted and a bit irritated, Xia Qing kept it brief, giving a concise account of the morning's mission, emphasizing that she had brought back over three hundred jin of Yellow Lantern Mountain walnuts and had met the Eastern Jackal King.

Zhang San's expression softened. "Cross-species brain-evolved animals forming alliances isn't an isolated case in the Evolution Forest anymore. Xiao Si is very smart, so it's perfectly normal for her to know the Eastern Jackal King. When does it plan to enter your territory for treatment?"

"After the Snow Wolf, I just gave it a check-up today. Tenth Sister said it still needs three more days of anti-inflammatory medicine." Then Xia Qing brought up the check-up Zhang Shi had given the old wolf today, starting to discuss a topic her idol was interested in. "Third Brother, how do you think Duan Yao recognized that it wasn't a wolf-tooth model? Because a wolf's canines are sharper?"

Zhang San let out a feeble snort. "Why don't you just ask Xiao Duan directly?"

Xia Qing explained, "Little Wolf Sister got bored staying put and wanted to go back to the wolves' territory, so Duan Yao took her back."

If it weren't for Little Wolf Sister getting bored, given Duan Yao's drive, after taking the dental X-ray he very likely would have brought Little Wolf Sister down to the basement, pushed her into the dental chair, and done a full oral exam himself with his own paws.

Zhang San, sunk into the soft chair, sighed. "I didn't expect little Duan to be such a patient father."

Xia Qing……

Is your focus... slightly off?

"It could tell at a glance that the canine model wasn't Xiao Si's, which means it carefully looked at Xiao Si's dental X-ray and memorized the basic features of her teeth." After saying that, Zhang San also shot Xia Qing a look.

Xia Qing, who had also seen the dental X-ray……

This conversation cannot continue!

Zhang San handed Xia Qing a piece of paper. "Tomorrow morning I'll head over to your place to do a minor surgery on that child, changing her appearance and aura. Give this paper to Zhang Shi and have her prepare in advance."

Xia Qing took the paper and agreed.

Zhang San brought up another headache. "The juvenile Yi Snake you brought back from Hot Spring Lake has been in my care for ten days. Its progesterone levels have dropped by about 23%, and at this rate they might keep dropping."

Xia Qing's first reaction was: "Good thing I caught a lot of them. If I kill some and store them, won't the levels stop dropping? Kill 200 and store them to eat slowly."

Zhang San couldn't tell whether to be touched or angry for a moment, so he got irritated, handed over a second piece of paper, and chased her out. "After the Snow Wolf, find time to go to the basin again. Try to bring back the plant and animal samples listed above in the specified quantities. Don't take extra."

The last time Xia Qing went to team up with Xiong Qun to catch Yi Snakes for his sake, Zhang San had worried about her getting hurt. This time he wasn't worried at all. Because this oddball newbie who hung out with the wolf pack had already built a rapport with Xiong Qun.

Xia Qing had only walked a short distance from the lab building with the two pieces of paper when Zhang Song hurried out after her, looking at her eagerly. "Sister Qing, you're heading back to the territory?"

Xia Qing, expressionless, completely ignored Zhang Song's look, gave a brief reply, and strode out of the lab building. She took the packed meal from Da Ya and left Territory Seven directly.

Seeing Xia Qing's attitude, Zhang Song couldn't laugh anymore. He turned around and trudged back to the lab dejectedly. Zheng Chen, who was patrolling the territory, also sighed.

Zhang Han—no, she should be called Han Yanqian now. Han Yanqian stole the high-Yi-element spinach being cultivated inside Territory Three. Xia Qing didn't do anything about it for Zhang San's sake, but she was truly angry.

Han Yanqian was removed from the roster by Zhang San and expelled from the lab, permanently barred from participating in any research projects at Territory Seven. As Han Yanqian's team leader who had brought her in and out of Territory Three, Zhang Song lost his qualification to enter Territory Three to research the monkeys. Red Eleven Base approached Yang Jin and asked him to help mediate. Yang Jin didn't refuse, but the conditions he set made the Red Eleven Base leader's heart ache.

Seeing Xia Qing's attitude, Zheng Chen felt that if this matter wasn't settled quickly, what would hurt Red Eleven wouldn't just be their hearts……

"Captain, the lord has left the lab." Zheng Chen's earpiece walkie-talkie crackled with a team member's report.

"Copy that."

Zheng Chen pushed his speed to the maximum and rushed to the lab. By the time Zhang San stepped out into the corridor, Zheng Chen was already standing outside the door.

Zhang Song sidled up to Zhang San and said pitifully, "Third Brother, Sister Qing's ignoring me."

Zhang San ignored him too, drifting leisurely toward the cafeteria.

"Third Brother, please put in a few good words for me with Sister Qing..." Even if Xia Qing wanted to use this chance to punish one to warn a hundred, to kill a chicken to scare the monkeys, he, Zhang Song, wasn't a monkey.

Xia Qing's reason for giving Zhang Song the cold shoulder was crystal clear to Zhang San. Because Zhang Shi had moved into Territory Three with the child, Xia Qing no longer needed Zhang Song's medical skills, so naturally she wanted to keep this dual-evolution observation-and-vision criminal investigation and interrogation specialist as far from the door as possible.

Putting in good words for him was absolutely out of the question. Zhang San, behind his protective mask, didn't even lift his eyelids. "Get lost. Don't block my sun."

Not only did Zhang Song circle around to Zhang San's other side, but Zheng Chen, who was protecting him, also stepped back half a pace to avoid blocking the sunlight falling on Zhang San.

This big shot who spent all year in the lab was as thin as a skeleton, his skin tone like a specimen soaked in formalin for ages. Zheng Chen sincerely hoped he could soak up a bit more sun every day to get some yang energy and look more like a living person.

With his ability to keep researching the White-faced Saki monkeys and participate in Evolution Forest rule research projects at stake, how could Zhang Song possibly get lost? He knew that just saying nice things wouldn't work, so he volunteered for work Zhang San disliked. "Third Brother, let me go to the Snow Wolf seminar in your place?"

Getting Zhang Song out of the way for a while would be best, but Zhang San couldn't agree directly and let this guy pick up on any clues. "Go in my place?"

Zhang Song immediately pressed his advantage. "My wording was off. Third Brother, look at how I've performed these two years since entering the territory—pretty decent, right?"

This seminar required every lab to attend. The attendee could be the director or the deputy director. Zhang San's research room currently had one director and no deputy director.

"Passable, I suppose. Not as outstanding as Zhang He."

After saying that, Zhang San passed through the cafeteria's disinfection channel and entered his private dining room to eat. Zhang Song passed through the disinfection channel, took off his protective mask and gloves and hung them on the rack, washed his hands, picked up a tray and got food, then sat in the main hall eating in silence while his brain worked furiously.

Zhang San, sitting in his private room drinking snake soup, also had unfocused eyes—clearly his brain was running at high speed too.

Unlike the two brain-evolved individuals, Xia Qing, who had been busy all morning, leaned back in the car seat, her gloved hand dangling by the window, letting her mind go blank to rest.

"... How about it? Potatoes may taste better, but corn keeps you full longer." Tang Huai, who had opened the south gate for her, stood by the car chattering for over two minutes before finally stopping, gazing at Xia Qing eagerly.

Xia Qing took the key. "We can trade some. The exact amount depends on when we finish harvesting the potatoes."

"No problem. Whatever amount Sister Qing puts out, we'll take that much." Tang Huai beamed as he watched Xia Qing enter Territory Three, locked the big gate for her, and hummed a little tune back to Territory Two.

Seeing Xia Qing's car appear on the monitor, little Ye Yiyi in the basement, who had been staring at her phone, showed an expectant look on her face.