Chapter 24
Lin Zhen was not moved by the immediate benefits that could be obtained, but instead looked to the longer-term future.
If the egg the boy took out could really hatch a hen, and this hen could lay eggs continuously, then it would sound much more tempting than this bag of candy!
Lin Zhen's eyes were as sharp as a torch, but Tang Yu'an's look at her became a little strange.
It would take at least half a year from now until the chicks hatched and grew into hens to lay eggs.
The farms could shorten the time to three or four months, but they do not have the conditions or the relevant knowledge, so they naturally cannot do it.
With such a long period, Sister Lin really dares to take the gamble!
and……
"Sister, you want 10 eggs... Do you want to use these eggs to continue hatching chicks?" Tang Yu'an asked.
Lin Zhen saw the child's strange look, but she didn't understand why for a moment. After hesitating for a moment, she nodded: "Yes."
She did have such plans.
Eggs are very nutritious. If you could lay one egg every day for several months each year, what a fortune it would be! Whether you eat it yourself or trade it, it is enough to make you excited.
If the mutant chickens weren't so powerful, she would have wanted to get a female mutant chicken to try.
"But Sister Lin, without a rooster, the hens won't be able to hatch chicks from their eggs."
"ah?"
Lin Zhen was stunned for a moment, staring blankly at Tang Yu'an, "Is that so?"
"That's right." Tang Yu'an said very confidently, "A hen that doesn't live with a rooster can still lay eggs, but these eggs can only be eaten and cannot hatch chicks."
Lin Zhen's expression suddenly fell.
Yes, in nature, only a male and a female can produce offspring. If the hen can reproduce on her own, then what is the use of the rooster?
Then she wants these 10 eggs, but they have no other use except eating them...
Although eggs are very nutritious, she can go to the bird's nest and there is no need to wait so long for 10 eggs. In comparison, sugar is more scarce and precious.
But she quickly thought of something and said, "How big can this hen usually grow? If that doesn't work, I'll try to catch a mutant rooster!"
Tang Yu'an once again felt the toughness of Sister Lin.
He swallowed, gestured with his hands, and said truthfully: "It should be as high as my calf, if it is well maintained."
"That won't work." Lin Zhen shook his head and sighed, "The mutant rooster is at least one meter tall. This little hen can't bear it."
"really."
Tang Yu'an nodded, thought for a moment, and then pretended to take out two fertilized eggs from his backpack.
"Sister Lin, do you think this is okay?"
Tang Yu'an said, "These three eggs are given to you and Amu. If chicks can be successfully hatched, and there is more than one hen among these chicks, then I will give one to you."
Apart from these three, Tang Yu'an still had 20 fertilized eggs in his personal warehouse. He only paid with three, so the loss was not big for him.
But if he can get two chicks in the end, he will make a fortune!
And it is conceivable that this will greatly motivate Lin Zhen. As long as everything goes well, she will be able to get a hen in a month at most.
With such a big carrot hanging in front of her, she will definitely treat these three eggs with all her heart!
Sure enough, as soon as he said this, Lin Zhen's eyes lit up.
"Are you serious?"
Lin Zhen looked at Tang Yu'an, then looked at the older Zhou Qi worriedly. Obviously, she thought that Zhou Qi, who was more mature in both appearance and figure, would have more weight in his words.
Zhou Qi stood behind Tang Yu'an without thinking, "An'an has the final say on this matter."
"Okay! Sure! It's settled!"
Lin Zhen was so excited that she couldn't contain herself. She didn't expect that the child actually had extra eggs with him, and was so generous that he was willing to share a hen with her.
Of course, the premise of all this is that Amu can successfully hatch the eggs.
She glanced at Old Li next to her and saw that he frowned slightly. In the end, she didn't feel comfortable taking such a big advantage.
"After all, this matter is still risky. The eggs may not hatch in the end, so I won't waste your eggs in vain!" She said, taking out a paper bag from her pocket.
"This is a special medicinal powder I made. It can be used to treat mosquito bites. Mix it with water and apply it on the wound. It will heal quickly."
Finally, Lin Zhen added, "If you apply it on your body regularly, it will also have an insect repellent effect. However, if you're unlucky enough to encounter a mutant mosquito, you'd better run away quickly. The farther you run, the better!"
"Have the mutated mosquitoes also grown to giant size?"
"Yes."
Hearing the affirmative reply, Tang Yu'an and Zhou Qi both took a deep breath.
If the mosquito you encounter is as big as a palm - or even bigger than that, just thinking about it will make your scalp tingle.
"Okay, we got it." Tang Yu'an took the medicine powder from Lin Zhen, "Thank you, Sister Lin."
"You're welcome!"
Lin Zhen also put away the three eggs. She was very careful in her movements because the eggs looked too fragile and seemed like they would break if touched.
You completed a transaction with an old customer and made a profit, earning +20 points and +1 experience point.
It seems that this pack of medicine powder performs well in the system evaluation. After deducting the cost of three eggs, there is still a profit of 20 points!
Tang Yu'an looked at the system prompt and immediately smiled.
Lin Zhen held the eggs in her hands, but her expression was not relaxed. Next, she had to work hard to figure out how to hatch these eggs!
"Aren't you afraid I'll run off with the eggs? You're trusting others so easily, and you'll easily get hurt," she threatened. "This is a deserted city, not a fortress."
Hearing this, Tang Yu'an smiled and said, "Don't be afraid, I believe Sister Lin won't."
Even if they really trust the wrong person, the loss will be very small and well within their tolerance.
If that's the case, why not take a risk?
If his vision turns out to be correct, he will gain not only two chicks, but also a partner who is honest enough.
"And how can you be sure, sister, that we will be the ones to suffer?"
Lin Zhen was originally stunned by Tang Yu'an's smile. At that moment, she felt a little dazed and thought, "There really are such pure and kind fools in the world?"
As a result, Tang Yu'an said another sentence, which made her realize that she was the fool.
Yes, how could she be sure that they would be the ones who would suffer?
If she really ran away, the other party would lose the three eggs, but she would lose the opportunity to continue cooperating with them - even her relationship with Old Li might be damaged!
After all, Old Li had just been saved by them and was a witness to the incident. If she really ran away with the dirty goods, given Old Li's personality, he probably wouldn't stand on her side.
Moreover, even if she succeeded in hatching the chicks, she would be completely clueless about how to raise them and would need the guidance of these two teenagers.
The more Lin Zhen thought about it, the more he felt that he was at a disadvantage.
As expected, those who came out of the fortress might be simple and naive, but they are definitely not stupid.
"You've convinced me." Lin Zhen said sincerely, "So our cooperation is settled?"
"good."
Seeing that they had reached an agreement, Old Li smiled and said, "Everyone who sees it gets a share, so I'll do my part too."
He took out a straw basket from the corner and handed it to Lin Zhen, "Go collect some dry grass and put it inside. I saw that's how those mutant chickens build their nests."
Old Li had only seen it from a distance, but he vaguely remembered the chicken coop he saw on TV when he was young, which was also made of straw.
Now that we don't have straw, other dry grasses should be fine.
"Okay."
Lin Zhen didn't bother to be polite with him. He took the straw basket and put the eggs in it. He also used straw leaves to separate each egg to prevent them from being damaged.
"I'll come see you tomorrow. There's no rush for what we just talked about."
According to Old Li, under suitable conditions, it will take at least three or four months for the mutant lizard eggs to hatch, so they still have time to prepare.
"Let's go to my house."
Lin Zhen said hello to Tang Yu'an and Zhou Qi, then went out of the window holding the eggs.
Tang Yu'an was still wondering whether they were going to talk about clearing out the giant lizard's nest, but when she saw her running away, she had no choice but to climb onto Zhou Qi's back.
"Grandpa Li, we're leaving first. We'll come see you tomorrow!"
Tang Yu'an did not forget to say goodbye to Old Li, but Zhou Qi had already jumped out of the window carrying him on his back.
Old Li watched their backs disappear among the ruins, silently withdrew his gaze, and looked down at the brand new bandage on his leg.
Were these two children really just out for training? Was their sudden appearance in the deserted city really just a coincidence?
He fell into deep thought, but in the end he could not come up with an answer, so he shook his head, sat down again, picked up the wood and the knife and started to carve.
-
After catching up with Lin Zhen, Tang Yu'an remembered that he had forgotten to ask Grandpa Li about the blue crystal.
However, with Sister Lin present, it seems inappropriate to ask, so I can only wait and see tomorrow.
The effect of Zhou Qi's light body technique had not yet ended. He jumped a few times and easily caught up with Lin Yu.
Seeing his skills with his own eyes, Lin Zhen couldn't help but curl his lips.
She was originally thinking of competing with him, but when she thought about how she even lost Amu yesterday, she calmed down and focused her attention on the eggs in the straw basket.
These three precious eggs must not be damaged.
Amu was flying in the sky, his pair of yellow-green eyes moving, always paying attention to the situation around him.
It is Lin Zhen's second pair of eyes. With its warnings and assistance, Lin Zhen can feel at home and live freely and unrestrainedly in the deserted city.
It took about ten minutes to reach where Lin Zhen lived.
This should have been a residential area before. Several residential buildings are crookedly lying in the same area. The area downstairs is lush and green with plants and flowers, like a small garden.
The place where Lin Zhen lives is not as closed as Granny Guo's house, nor as neat as Old Li's house, but it is also located on a high place and there is no ladder.
They struggled and finally crawled into her house.
As soon as I climbed into the house, I smelled a faint herbal scent, which was fresh and pleasant, making me feel refreshed.
In addition, bottles and jars can be seen filling the entire house. Thinking of her homemade insect repellent powder, Tang Yu'an had a guess about the skills she possessed.
Of course, when Tang Yu'an saw the colorful and uniquely shaped mushrooms planted in the corner of the wall, he felt that his guess might be a little wrong.
These mushrooms... maybe they are not meant to be eaten?
Sure enough, seeing his eyes lingering on those mushrooms, Lin Zhen warned him, "Those mushrooms are poisonous. You'd better not get too close."
Tang Yu'an nodded solemnly and asked, "Why does Sister grow so many poisonous mushrooms at home?"
"Of course it's for self-defense," Lin Zhen said, "and it can also be used to make medicine."
She glanced at Tang Yu'an, who looked naive, and Zhou Qi, who was a bit taciturn, and after thinking for a moment, she said, "Anyway, if you see these bright and beautiful mushrooms in the wild, you should never touch them."
"Also, there are some mutant mushrooms that run around everywhere. These mushrooms prefer shade and moisture, especially under rotten wood. Be careful when you come across such places."
"Okay, okay, thank you for telling us this." Tang Yu'an responded seriously.
He also didn't expect that in addition to animals, other creatures had mutated. If he went to the wild in the future, he would have to be extra careful.
After all, cat teasers and dog frisbees can only be used against animals, and they probably won't work against mushrooms and plants.
After taking a few glances at the mushrooms and memorizing their characteristics, Tang Yu'an's gaze shifted to the bottles and jars on the ground.
There are really a lot of them, it feels like entering a laboratory.
"Don't touch those bottles. I have collected them for a long time." Lin Zhen reminded again, then left the two teenagers behind, put the eggs away and ran out again.
After a while, she ran back from outside with a bunch of dry grass in her hands.
"Is there anything I need to pay attention to when hatching eggs?" She asked as she sat on the ground by the window, building a chicken coop in the sunlight.
Tang Yu'an also went over to help, while Zhou Qi recalled the information he knew and said, "Once the eggs start incubating, the temperature cannot be lowered."
Lin Zhen tilted his head. "So, Amu can't leave the chicken coop? He has to stay on the eggs?"
"Yeah! But you also have to turn the eggs over from time to time to ensure that they are heated evenly." Tang Yu'an added.
Lin Jue nodded to indicate that he had taken note, and then asked, "And then?"
Zhou Qi thought for a moment and said, "The chicken coop should be placed in a well-ventilated place to avoid rain."
"Oh, I see." Lin Zhen paused, looking as if she had a headache. She thought about it again and nodded, "Okay, I'll take note of it."
Then she looked at her parrot companion and said with a shy smile, "Amu, I'm going to have to work on you from now on."
Amu was standing on a wooden rack combing his feathers. Upon hearing this, he rolled his eyes again and turned his head away with some arrogance.
It was not until Lin Jue took out a nut and handed it to the parrot that the big parrot reluctantly turned around and took the nut to eat.
Tang Yu'an looked at the parrot and couldn't help but say, "Amu is so cute."
It is also relatively large in size, a bit like a macaw, and is more than enough to hatch three eggs.
Amu obviously didn't understand the treacherous nature of human nature. He puffed out his chest when he heard the compliment, "Amu is cute and smart!"
Tang Yu'an was amused by it and took out a handful of yellow rice grains from his backpack - this was shelled millet, which could only be eaten and not used as seeds.
"Sister Lin, can you let Amu fly to my hand? I can feed it this."
Lin Zhen blinked. She had never seen millet before, but she could tell that it was a kind of grain, and it was processed very finely.
As expected of someone who came out of the fortress...
She sighed, then greeted Amu, who flapped his wings and flew over, landing on Tang Yu'an's forearm.
[You completed a loss-making transaction with an old customer, experience point +1]
The last 1 point of experience is obtained!
Tang Yu'an looked at Zhou Qi happily and said with a smile: "Brother Xiaoqi, look, the parrot is so cute."
"Yeah." Zhou Qi touched his head.
Ah Mu leaned over to pick at the rice grains in Tang Yu'an's palm and said, "Delicious! So delicious!"
After eating the handful of rice grains, the parrot flapped its wings and rebelled on the spot.
"Amu, I'm going home with you! Amu is cute and smart!"
"It's delicious! Eat it every day!"
The feathers on its head moved, and it looked very happy, not caring about Lin Zhe who was laughing because of it.
Tang Yu'an also smiled. He looked at the parrot and nodded, saying, "Okay, go back and hatch eggs for me every day."
Amu widened his eyes and showed an incredible expression again.
“You’re bad!”
"Amu won't play with you!"
Then, it flew back to the wooden frame that Lin Zhen had built for it, looked down at the chicken coop that was gradually taking shape on the ground, revealing a melancholy and sad expression.
It was the first time Tang Yu'an had seen such a clever little animal, and she couldn't help but ask, "Sister Lin, is Amu a mutant parrot?"
"That should be it."
Lin Zhen wasn't too sure either. "Aside from being quite intelligent and able to accurately express its thoughts through language, it doesn't have any other abilities."
"That's great!" Tang Yu'an said.
"Aren't there such mutant creatures in the fortress?" Lin Zhen asked curiously.
Tang Yu'an couldn't help but choke. They didn't really come out of the fortress, so naturally they didn't know.
"At least I haven't seen it." He said vaguely.
"I see."
Lin Zhen showed a smile on his face, "Well, I think Amu is great too."
Hearing this, Amu puffed out his chest proudly again.
"It was only this small when I picked it up." Lin Zhen looked at it and gestured with his hands. It was probably a little bigger than an egg.
"It was abandoned by the flock of birds, curled up in the grass and looked so pitiful, so I picked it up."
"I didn't expect it to grow this big after being raised. Not only can it talk, but it also likes to talk back to me and makes me angry every day."
"But now I'm used to it, and it feels pretty good..."
The two teenagers listened quietly to her story about the parrot.
Even Amu flapped his wings and flew to her shoulders, gently rubbing her face. The man and the bird looked very close.
Tang Yu'an looked at them, then looked at the only golden light spot on the map - the other two lit green dots should be people Lin Zhen knew, but they were also some distance away from her home.
Grandpa Li is also alone. Perhaps in such a doomsday world, people like Grandma Guo and Kang Kang who have blood relatives around them are actually a minority.
Thinking of this, Tang Yu'an couldn't help but look at Zhou Qi beside him.
He is also very lucky to have Brother Xiaoqi by his side!
Noticing his gaze, Zhou Qi turned his head to look at him with a puzzled, inquiring look.
Tang Yu'an quickly shook his head, then affectionately pulled his hand over, holding it in his hand and unconsciously playing with his fingers.
The doubt in Zhou Qi's eyes dissipated and turned into a barely perceptible smile.
Soon, the chicken coop was built and three eggs were properly placed inside.
"Do you know how long it takes for an egg to hatch?" Lin Zhen asked again.
"If everything goes well, it should take more than 20 days." Zhou Qi said.
"Okay, I'll get ready then."
If Amu couldn't leave the chicken coop for a moment, she had to prepare enough food and find a warm, comfortable and well-ventilated place.
"If you want to stay in the deserted city, you can come and see me anytime. I'll give you more pointers if I'm not doing well."
"OK."
Before leaving, Tang Yu'an left a bag of millet for Amu, which once again increased the favorability of the big parrot.
Of course, the system prompts that another loss-making transaction has been made.
Tang Yu'an didn't take it to heart. He had already earned 74 points today, and used all of them to exchange for brown rice and wheat, which was enough to exchange for more than ten kilograms. He didn't need a little millet.
Amu has not been able to leave the chicken coop for more than 20 days, and Lin Zhen has to prepare all the food. It is indeed a bit stressful.
They provide a little food and are a necessary investment.
"Do you need me to show you the way?" Lin Zhen sent them downstairs.
"No need, Sister Lin, we want to walk around."
"Okay, then be careful."
After Lin Zhen returned, Tang Yu'an climbed onto Zhou Qi's back and left.
There was still more than half an hour before the effect of the light body technique ended, so they decided to go find Granny Guo and Kang Kang first to get today's experience points.
Although the two green dots representing potential customers were closer, they decided to wait until tomorrow and find a chance to get to know them after the daily tasks were refreshed.
In this way, if there is a task to attract new customers, a refresh card can be saved.
-
The sun gradually rose higher and the weather became hotter.
When they arrived at Grandma Guo's house, it was almost 12 noon, but Grandma Guo had not returned yet, and only Kang Kang was at home.
"Kang Kang, we're here to see you!"
The two men climbed onto the platform outside the air vent, but did not rush to get closer. Instead, they stood outside, knocked on the wall, and then shouted.
There was obvious movement in the house.
After a while, a pair of small hands moved the stone slab blocking the air vent to the side with great effort, and Kang Kang pushed aside the vines that Granny Guo had used to cover the air vent and stuck his head out.
The child is really thin, and his skin looks particularly white because he has not been exposed to the sun for a long time.
However, his eyes were exceptionally bright, and he looked at Tang Yu'an and Zhou Qi with curved eyebrows, his eyes filled with joy.
"Brother...Brother Tang..." he called softly.
"Hey, Kang Kang is so good!" Tang Yu'an reached out and rubbed his head, then stuffed a small piece of rock candy into his mouth.
Kang Kang laughed sweetly, then suddenly turned around and jumped down the air vent, ran into the house happily, and quickly ran back, handing the things in his hands to Tang Yu'an.
"Brother... give..."
It was clearly a fruit emitting a faint blue light, like a small lantern, but when it came into the sunlight, the light suddenly dimmed.
Tang Yu'an had seen the glowing plant yesterday. It seemed to be a mutated lantern grass. He felt it was magical and liked it very much.
"Is this for me? Thank you, Kang Kang!"
Tang Yu'an didn't hesitate and reached out to take the lantern fruit, and then a system prompt popped up.
You completed a transaction with a regular customer and made a profit. Points +49, Experience +1.
Tang Yuan: 0.0
Is a mutant fruit actually worth so many points?
The author has something to say:
Kang Kang: Brother Tang, so sweet!
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