Chapter 506: Poor Zhang San

The needle marks and bruises on Shi Jiaran's arms and hands struck and shocked Xia Qing even more than seeing the video of Shi Jiayi's self-harm.

Because Shi Jiayi had been invaded by an overdose of Qiang elements in the brain and lost control to self-harm, whereas Shi Jiaran's wretched state was man-made. No, wait—those participants in the underground experimental projects could no longer be counted as human.

Xia Qing drew a deep breath. "Third Brother, I'll remember that. Do you think she's still alive?"

Zhang San nodded with absolute certainty. "She's a Recovery-type Evolver. Her survival ability and will to live are both very strong."

Xia Qing fell silent. "If she's a Recovery-type Evolver, then how come her arms and the backs of her hands have so many bruises and needle marks?"

"She violently resisted the experiments, so they injected her with neural sedatives. Her body was in a weakened state, and her recovery ability diminished." Zhang San paused, then decided to tell Xia Qing anyway. "She was four months pregnant at the time. If the child survived, it should be four years old now."

Xia Qing was stunned. "The fetus was also…"

Zhang San nodded. "An experimental subject. Once you walk out this door, pretend you know nothing and go about your business as usual. But if one day you run into her, on the condition that your own safety is ensured, help her if you can. The existence of Shi Jiaran and her child holds extremely important value for all of humanity, no matter how you assess it."

Xia Qing's feelings were indescribably complicated. "Third Brother, Recovery-type Evolvers should be very rare, right?"

Since Zhang San had chosen to ally with Xia Qing, he no longer hid things from her. "This is considered classified even within the scientific research circle. In the ten years since the Catastrophe, only four have been discovered: one is already dead, one became a Poison-person, one went missing, and one is at Red One Base. If Shi Jiaran's child is still alive, there might be one more now. Of course, there must be Recovery-type Evolvers who haven't been discovered or announced, but the number is definitely not large."

"Then… why didn't you keep Shi Jiaran and let her cooperate with your research project? You're not like those beasts running the underground experimental projects—you could definitely study her abilities without hurting her."

Zhang San shot her a look. "You should know my background by now, shouldn't you?"

When she had heard Yang Jin talk about the Huiyi underground experiment incident earlier, Xia Qing had already had a guess; now she was absolutely certain. "You're the top surgeon at Hui City Base, the botanist and pharmaceutical expert, the Vice President of the Huiyi Base Research Institute—the great Professor Fu Tianfeng!"

Professor Fu's name appeared from time to time in the news broadcasts of Hui City Base.

He was one of the earliest technical personnel in the country engaged in research on the Qiang and Yi elements, a core member of the protective mask filter cartridge research team, and the developer of multiple anti-Evolved Bacteria agents…

Now, he had another halo: one of the exposers of the monstrous underground experimental projects at Huiyi, and also the person in charge of the recovery treatment project for the projects' victims.

To have an idol like this, I'm proud!

To be able to ally with my idol, I'm honored!

If the allies knew Zhang San's identity, they'd probably be howling and running three laps around this territory.

"You said it yourself too—I'm just a minor vice director. I can't control the Research Institute, much less shake the Base's decisions, and I can't win Shi Jiaran's trust, so I could only let her go." Zhang San yawned, clearly not wanting to continue this topic.

Xia Qing suddenly thought of something. "Third Brother, in early July, when Zhong Tao and Zheng Kui were passing through the town ruins south of our territory, a woman holding a child robbed them of some supplies. In mid-July at the agricultural products trade fair, when Tang Huai and I passed through the ruins, we both heard a child crying."

Zhang San was instantly no longer sleepy. "Who is Zhong Tao?"

Xia Qing…

"He's the squad leader of the patrol convoy that drives over every so often, honking to get us to come out and trade supplies—the Captain Zhong we often mention on the Lord Channel."

Zhang San reasoned, "He probably didn't report the robbery, otherwise the Base would definitely have sent people to search the ruins."

Although Xia Qing hadn't asked Zhong Tao, she was sure he wouldn't have reported it. "Zhong Tao and Zheng Kui are both ordinary people. They definitely wouldn't report it, otherwise they'd lose their jobs."

Zhang San nodded. "Don't worry about this matter. Your main task now is to recover your health as soon as possible, raise your strength, and farm steadily. Following the cultivation guide I gave you, use Yi stones to set up a small experimental plot, and within three years raise the quality of your spinach. Your water quality is better than Liehuo's; what they can do, you can do. What they can't do, you can also do."

Xia Qing, who had only been farming for a year, didn't think she could surpass Shan Ying's professional planting team's cultivation results within three years. But since her idol said she could, then she had to be able to:

"I have the cultivation guide you personally wrote, and water of better quality than theirs. I will definitely grow better-quality spinach within three years!"

After making this passionate pledge, Xia Qing then sweetly discussed with her idol, "But this winter, because I was afraid of being discovered by Liehuo's people, I didn't grow Gao Yi-element spinach. Can the three-year deadline start from next year? Our alliance isn't strong enough yet; at this stage we can't afford to clash head-on with the Liehuo Squad."

Zhang San nodded and said amiably, "You did the right thing. Order is chaotic now; before you have strength, you must keep a low profile. Once the alliance is strong enough, we'll build standardized planting greenhouses by the hot springs and specialize in researching high-stability grain seeds." "From now on, test the soil of your experimental plot once every half month, and send the test results along with one from Mountain No. 50. Your storage room should have Yi stones in it, right? Are they enough? If not, you can trade supplies with me for them."

No, no, no. Trading Yi stones with the beauty-loving, tasteful Broken-Waist Wolf was far more cost-effective than trading with her idol. "I don't have a lot, but I do have enough Yi stones to build a small experimental plot. Don't worry, Third Brother. Do the planting greenhouses on your territory also use Yi stones?"

The greenhouses on Territory No. 7 were the same as the standardized planting greenhouses at the Safe Zone Planting Center—all steel structures and new-material glass. These greenhouses were all equipped with ventilation and air filtration systems to reduce the Qiang-element content in the air. Such a large greenhouse—

Zhang San's expression turned weary as he told Xia Qing another little-known secret. "The greenhouses don't 【use Yi stones】. I'm allergic to Qiang elements. Until I develop an anti-allergy medication, I must wear Yi stones."

Ah?!!!

Xia Qing couldn't imagine how painful it was to be allergic to the omnipresent Qiang elements. No wonder her idol, guarding seven standardized greenhouses, was so thin he was only skin and bones.

Die-hard, deep-pit fan Xia Qing swallowed all her shock and sympathy, and solemnly pledged—more seriously than when she'd promised her idol to cultivate spinach superior to Liehuo's within three years—"Third Brother, I'll raise chickens and grow vegetables well, so you can eat more comfortably."