Chapter 567: Blue Star's Premium Trading Partner

Yuan Yan spoke excitedly, "We can ask Territory Twelve if we can still trade for purple sweet potatoes—purple sweet potatoes fetch a higher price. If Director Tang is willing to trade with us, we'll sprout the purple sweet potatoes together with the rice seedlings during cultivation, and we'll use Yi Stones to protect the valley during the second and third Blight Rains too. We'll definitely make a profit."

Zhu Li, who had been trading supplies alongside her husband, had her eyes gleaming with greed. "Sister-in-law, you're wrong—it's not just 'some profit,' it's definitely a huge profit! Purple sweet potatoes are a Blight-sensitive plant, so they can't be widely cultivated. That's why they're valuable for their rarity—the price won't drop. In other words, when we harvest, purple sweet potatoes will still be 300 points per jin! One purple sweet potato seedling will grow at least two or three jin of purple sweet potatoes, right?"

That's worth way more than grain and vegetables at ten or several dozen points per jin! Zhao Ze's eyes were gleaming too. "This isn't a purple sweet potato—this is a money-shaking tuber!"

Last year, when Tang Huai was slashed by refugees within the territory, Tang Zhengpo used a trade condition of twenty jin of purple sweet potatoes to ask Zhang San to stitch up Tang Huai's wounds. At that time, Territories One, Eight, and Nine each traded three jin with Territory Twelve. The members of the territory alliance didn't have the conditions for cultivation back then, so they didn't propose a trade.

Now, they have the conditions!

Shi Zhong was afraid they wouldn't be able to trade. "I remember Director Tang saying he doesn't have many purple sweet potatoes either. We might not be able to get any."

Yue Haiying immediately said, "The military's planting base also has purple sweet potatoes. I'll see what I can do, try to get a few jin back."

Xia Qing spoke up too. "I'll ask Tang Huai as well."

Xia Qing hadn't proposed trading purple sweet potatoes with Territory Twelve at the time either, but afterward she made a deal with Yang Jin—forty stalks of Green Lantern red potato seedlings in exchange for ten stalks of purple sweet potato seedlings.

In complete contrast to Yang Jin, who haggles over every penny, Tang Huai is a rare high-quality trading partner on Blue Star. As long as Xia Qing lets Tang Huai take a look at Old Sheep and Sick Wolf, getting three jin back is definitely no problem.

After leaving Territory Five, Xia Qing headed straight for Territory Seven, reported the selected candidates for entering Territory Seven to study to her idol, and set the time slots for the two people to enter Territory Seven to study.

"I tested the severed limbs of those two self-detonating high-level Evolvers." Zhang San placed a test report in front of Xia Qing, his expression very grim. "One hour before they died, they had taken Yi Liquid. Based on the blood sample test data, there's a ninety percent chance the Yi Liquid they took was made by me. The remaining ten percent might have been made by someone who learned to make Yi Liquid from me at Hui One Research Institute, after their skills improved."

Taking Yi Element Stimulant made by Zhang San, or made using Zhang San's techniques, to invade the territory and kill Zhang San's ally and the manager of Mountain Fifty, and to destroy this territory—these people are truly despicable!

Xia Qing asked, "Third Brother, I remember you said Yi Liquid has a shelf life of one year. In the past year, have you traded Yi Liquid with any suspicious people?"

Zhang San's thin, pale face with a hint of green had a world-weary irritability. "Besides the fixed monthly quota I supply to the Hui One military, I've only given it to three people—you, Yang Jin, and Hui Three's Dongyang Squad."

Dongyang Squad? Xia Qing pressed, "The time you had Dongyang Squad go dig Green Lantern bamboo shoots for you?"

Zhang San let out a feeble hum.

Having them dig some bamboo, and you gave them Yi Element Stimulant?! Xia Qing's face was full of heartache—idol, if there was such a good deal, why did you let them have it so cheap!

Zhang San shot Xia Qing a sideways glance. Xia Qing immediately tucked away her heartache and put on a good-student expression. "I used one vial of my Yi Liquid, the other is in the territory; Yang Squad's side probably wouldn't lose such an important supply either. So, the Yi Liquid the invaders took could only have come from three sources: the Hui One military, Dongyang Squad, and Hui One Research Institute."

Zhang San shot Xia Qing another look—wasn't that stating the obvious?

Xia Qing said with a grin, "Third Brother, I'll go investigate the Dongyang Squad side…"

Zhang San yawned. "Investigate or not, it's up to you. I've already reported this to Red One Base. Red One will send people over to investigate thoroughly soon."

Xia Qing's eyes lit up at once. "Third Brother—"

"Stop." Zhang San told Xia Qing not to waste words, swiveled his chair, pulled a diagram from the filing cabinet behind him and placed it on the desk. "This is the installation area and quantities Dayan calculated. Take the cameras, arrange for people to install them. These monitors, along with the ones in the Third Peak high-danger zone, will be merged into the Territory Seven monitoring backend, with Ji Li sending people to keep an eye on them."

The one controlling the Evolved bats that invaded this territory during the Beast Tide is hiding in the area of Mountain Fifty's First Peak close to the territory. Xia Qing had discussed this matter with her idol over the phone yesterday; she hadn't expected him to have it sorted out today already.

That speed—as expected of the idol standing at the very top of Blue Star's pyramid!

Xia Qing immediately swallowed back the gushing, endless admiration about to spill out, and picked up the diagram with both hands. "Alright, I'll have the cameras installed and debugged within two days. Third Brother, when Red One Base's people come to investigate, should I hide Sick Wolf and Old Sheep?"

Zhang San shook his head. "Just an Evolved wolf that lost its combat ability after being infected by parasites—Red One's people won't be interested. Just keep the spring water hidden. They're coming this time for two reasons: one is the territory invasion, the other is the Gao Yi Element spinach seeds. How's the grass in your territory been growing lately?"

Xia Qing knew Zhang San was asking about Blight Witherweed. She immediately took out her phone and handed over photos taken that very morning. "Third Brother, look—it seems to be starting to set seed."

Zhang San took Xia Qing's phone, zoomed in on the picture to examine it carefully, and was pleased. "It is setting seed. The Blight Witherweed is growing on top of the Use Yishi you crushed?"

"Right. Besides the crushed Use Yishi, I also spray water into the hole twice a day." Xia Qing explained why she did this. "Otherwise there's no way to guarantee the air humidity."

The unpolluted spring water in Xia Qing's territory is still in its dry season.

After carefully examining the Blight Witherweed's growth, Zhang San praised her. "Looks like you really do have some talent and luck for farming."

Luck is something that can't be explained or predicted, with no规律 to follow. Logically speaking, Xia Qing has at most one year of farming experience; she shouldn't be able to keep alive such a delicate Evolved plant as Blight Witherweed. But she not only kept it alive, she raised it all the way to flowering and seeding.

The little fan was extremely happy being praised by her idol. "It's because you, Third Brother, gave me such detailed information that I could grow the Blight Witherweed so well."

The way she said it, it sounded as if the Blight Witherweed in Territory Three was only planted after he gave the information. Zhang San shot Xia Qing a look. "Next time bring some of the substrate you used to cultivate the grass. I need to run tests on it."

"Alright." Xia Qing agreed immediately. "When the grass seeds are ripe, I'll send you a few too."

"No need, just keep raising it yourself." Blight Witherweed is a rare Evolved plant; if grass seeds suddenly appeared in Territory Seven, it might expose Territory Three's unpolluted spring water. Xia Qing's spring water is the most important resource of the territory alliance; it absolutely cannot be exposed now.

Xia Qing nodded and asked, "Can I go see Qing-ge, Li Kai, and Yuan Rui?"

After their surgeries, these three people were all kept in Territory Seven's "observation room" to recover.

Zhang San yawned. "Go ahead. Li Kai and Kuang Qingwei can only be viewed through the glass—you can't go inside."

Xia Qing's heart skipped a beat. "Third Brother, is Qing-ge's injury also very serious?"