Chapter 250: Rice Heading

Xia Qing's Level-3 field protective suit and helmet had now completely changed appearance, looking much like the clothes everyone wore when fleeing during the first few years of the Catastrophe, before protective suits had been invented.

Since Zhang San was interested in the sticky pumpkin vines after evolution, he might also be interested in sticky chestnut tree leaves. So Xia Qing told Zhang San the most important characteristic of the evolved chestnut trees. As long as her idol was interested, things would be easy.

Zhang San was indeed interested. "Does the chestnut tree belong to you or to the Azure Dragon Squad?"

Xia Qing answered crisply, "It's been mine for the past few years. We signed a contract at the time."

Zhang San took the bait immediately. "Give me one green-light chestnut sapling, and that counts as twenty jin of green-light chestnuts. Keep the roots as intact as possible, and bring plenty of soil."

"Sure, Brother San, I'll go dig it up for you tomorrow." Xia Qing smiled exactly like Boss Sheep.

Zhang San continued laying out the deal terms. "For this year and the next four years, you give me 400 jin of green-light chestnuts each year. Make up any shortfall with yellow-light chestnuts—four jin of yellow-light counts as one jin of green-light. If the harvest is bad, you can push it to the fifth or sixth year, until you reach a total of 2,000 jin. How about it?"

Her idol was truly generous! Xia Qing's heart immediately settled. "Of course, thank you so much, Brother San. This year's green-light sapling counts as 20 jin, so that leaves 380 jin…"

Zhang San, in a cheerful mood, said, "It's not 380. You also traded 80 jin of grain seeds. However, your chestnuts are good quality, so trading for the pest-control spray only takes 16 jin. You sent over 32 jin, so that's 16 jin extra. In total, you now owe me 384 jin. You can give me 260 jin of green-light chestnuts, and make up the rest with yellow-light chestnuts."

An idol is an idol for a reason—not only are his pharmaceutical skills outstanding, but he can even keep accounts this clearly, and he can look after his fans' needs without taking all her green-light chestnuts away.

Xia Qing agreed readily. "Got it, Brother San. 260 jin of green-light, 496 jin of yellow-light. I'll bring them over to you tomorrow."

"No need to wait until tomorrow. I'll send someone over to carry them now. Daya will go too, to check your muscle and bone condition with equipment." Zhang San's voice was still lazy, but Xia Qing heard clear solemnity and warning in it. "This time I'm giving you medicine specially supplied to the military for advanced Evolvers. If you leak this, you're finished."

Although she didn't know exactly what kind of "finished" her idol meant, Xia Qing, who didn't want to be finished, immediately gave a solemn promise. "Don't worry, Brother San. I won't tell anyone, not even Boss Sheep or the wolf pack. Thank you so much, Brother San."

Zhang San was very satisfied with Xia Qing's attitude and replied lazily, "No need for thanks. It's a fair trade. Just take good care of your chestnut grove."

After hanging up the phone, Xia Qing rubbed her face and broke into a silly grin. A small lord with no powerful background, blessed by the green-light chestnuts she'd gathered, was about to use medicine specially supplied to the military for advanced Evolvers—how could she not be happy?

When Xia Qing arrived at the North Barrier, carrying over seven hundred jin of chestnuts on her back and shoulders, Ji Li and Daya had already gotten there, each carrying a large box.

"Brother Ji, Brother Ya, it took me a while to pack the chestnuts, so I'm late." Xia Qing greeted them first, set the chestnuts on the ground, and said, "Two bags of yellow-light, one bag of green-light. They're already labeled."

While Ji Li inspected the chestnuts, Daya patted the box beside him, blinked quickly, and signaled to Xia Qing. "These are the small interior wall panels and brackets you wanted. I was out of them, but yesterday while rummaging through the warehouse I found some again, so I brought them along to show you how to install them."

From what Daya's words implied, this exchange of medicine between her and Zhang San was being kept secret even from Ji Li. Xia Qing never showed much expression in front of outsiders, so nothing could be read from her face. She simply hoisted a box onto her shoulder. "Then I'll trouble you, Brother Ya."

Ji Li discussed with Daya, "Brother Ya goes to install things for Xia Qing, and I'll call someone over to carry the chestnuts?"

Daya nodded cheerfully. "Sure. Have Xia Qing give me a ride back later."

"Of course." Xia Qing lit the way with a flashlight. "Brother Ya, watch your step."

When Daya arrived at Xia Qing's home, he found not a single wolf in the yard. His slight disappointment instantly turned to delight once he entered the room, because lying inside were a wolf and a sheep. "This the one with the waist injury? Looks really clean, fur's nice and smooth too."

How could it not be smooth? It had just been washed. Xia Qing nodded. "That's the one. The one infected with parasites is also much better—it's out patrolling the territory right now."

Daya……

Nothing to say about it, he had just two words: envy!

After greeting the wolf and sheep on his own initiative, Daya carefully opened the boxes. "This box has the interior wall panels and brackets—assemble them and you can use it as a safe. This box has the ultrasound testing equipment. Brother San asked me to check your arms, legs, and lumbar spine."

Using only ultrasound to check the limbs and lumbar spine wouldn't reveal her other Evolved abilities. Xia Qing's anxious heart immediately settled back into her stomach. She assisted Daya, helped set up the ultrasound equipment, and took the opportunity to pull out the wheat seeds from the box and set them aside.

The rice seeds would have to wait until November, after the rice was harvested.

Assemble a safe? She didn't need Daya to teach her that. After helping him put together one storage room, Xia Qing already knew exactly how to use the brackets and interior wall panels.

After finishing the examination of Xia Qing's physical condition, Daya exported the results and put the equipment back in the box. "Brother San said to leave this box at your place for now. You'll need more checks during the medication process. Store it in the basement, don't let anyone see it."

The medicine for treating physical injuries wouldn't show results after just one use—it required six consecutive months of use, one dose every ten days, taken as a bath. Xia Qing immediately thanked him. "Don't worry, Brother Ya. My yard is guarded by the wolf pack, it's absolutely safe. Thank you for your trouble, Brother Ya."

Zhang San kept it secret even from Ji Li, yet sent Daya over to examine her. What did this mean? It meant Xia Qing's earlier guess had been correct: Daya was Zhang San's man, and a trusted one at that!

Daya was easy to talk to. "It's what I should do. If you find anything tasty later on, remember to save a bit for the three places."

After Daya left, Xia Qing carried the equipment down to the underground storage room. Looking at the chestnut shelves that had only been filled that afternoon and were now half empty again, she grinned from ear to ear.

She had fewer chestnuts, but she had gained eighty jin of premium grain seeds and military-supplied medicine for repairing physical injuries!

With this trade, Zhang San was satisfied, and Xia Qing was even more satisfied. During her nightly routine training, the corners of her mouth stayed turned up.

Early the next morning, when Xia Qing was patrolling her territory, she discovered that the green-light rice in the fields had begun to head.

Her hundred green-light rice seedlings had been traded from Zhang San in June. Although Xia Qing had guarded them like the apple of her eye, five had still died, leaving ninety-five. Because the green-light rice had been planted more than half a month earlier than the yellow-light rice obtained from the Safe Zone, it naturally headed earlier than the yellow-light rice.