Cen Tianjiao was about to cry when he received the message. He forced a smile and said to Jiang Qingxiang:
"Sister Jiang, the flowers in your yard are so beautiful."
Jiang Qingxiang was looking at him intently with her chin in her hands. When she heard the words "Sister Jiang", she was so happy that she lost her mind and started to say everything:
"Of course, Shouan. No, I dare say none of the five major bases in Qingpengjiang has such a rich garden. Do you have any in Dongyang?"
Cen Tianjiao was frantically preparing himself mentally:
"Indeed not. I have seen the world since I came to your place."
Jiang Qingxiang showed a proud look on his face and pointed his fat finger around the courtyard:
"I have over forty varieties of flowers here, and countless green plants. Not only do I have wood-type psychics come to cultivate them regularly, but I also have four professional gardeners who take care of them every day. Do you like any of them? I'll bring you a pot. These flowers can last for two months without withering. It's so beautiful to put on your windowsill at home."
Cen Tianjiao secretly took a deep breath and raised a sunny and handsome smile:
"Thank you, Sister Jiang. I'll be more than welcome, but I like both blue and white roses. Can these two colors appear on the same flower?"
Jiang Qingxiang waved her hand and said, "Of course I can. Don't mention two colors. You can have as many colors as you want. Wait a minute, I'll let you see it with your own eyes."
As he said that, he took out his communicator and started making a call.
Twenty minutes later, Su Tao met the wood-type mutant named Wu Zhen. He was short and slightly fat, with dimples on his face even when he was not talking or smiling. He looked like a very friendly middle-aged man.
He was carrying a tool box filled with some small gardening tools.
Jiang Qingxiang saw him coming and waved him over from a distance. Without any polite greetings or introductions, she gave the order directly:
"The blue roses you made me last time, now the whole blue and white ones, the ones that bloom quickly, let's show them to everyone."
Wu Zhen seemed to be used to it. He nodded and used a small tool to pick two rose buds in the courtyard, one blue and one white.
Jiang Qingxiang patted Cen Tianjiao as if she was watching a show, saying, "Look!"
The two roses with broken roots seemed to suddenly come to life in Wu Zhen's hands, intertwined with each other, and in less than five seconds they merged into one flower.
The two-colored buds slowly open, alternating between blue and white, and are extremely beautiful.
But this beauty quickly withered the moment it fully bloomed, and the withered petals fell to the ground and were blown away by the wind.
After the performance, Jiang Qingxiang was even more proud: "Amazing, isn't it?"
Cen Tianjiao nodded sincerely this time.
Su Tao nodded with her mouth open, and her mind began to wander.
Flowers can bloom in a short time, so can vegetables and grains be harvested in a short time?
Doesn't that mean Wu Zhen alone can support a large number of people?
Jiang Qingxiang picked up a withered petal from the ground and said with regret:
"This kind of beauty is short-lived, Brother Cen. I'll have him grow some bi-color rose seeds for you. You can take them home and plant them yourself. The flowers you grow this way will last longer."
In this way, Cen Tianjiao got a small bag of bi-color rose seeds.
Jiang Qingxiang smiled and patted his hands:
"I can't believe you, such a man, actually like roses. You're so soft-hearted."
Cen Tianjiao stood there, wishing he could perform seppuku for her to show his masculinity.
While they were talking, Su Tao slipped over to Wu Zhen, who was packing his toolbox and preparing to leave, and played the emotional card:
"Hello, may I ask if your father's name is Wu Jianyi? Before the apocalypse, he was an outstanding architect and served as the director of the Environmental Research Center at Capital University."
Wu Zhen was stunned for a moment: "Who are you?"
"My last name is Su. Mr. Mei Hongyi asked me to come and look for your father. We came all the way from Dongyang. It took a long time to find out about your father, so I found you."
When Wu Zhen heard Mr. Mei's name, his eyes suddenly sore:
"Did Uncle Mei ask you to come? No wonder. I was wondering why someone still remembered my dad. Two years ago, the night my dad passed away, he asked me to go find Uncle Mei. He told me that Uncle Mei's son was not a good person and would definitely not treat him well. How is he now?"
Su Tao smiled and said, "Maybe you can call him yourself and ask him."
As she spoke, she gave Wu Zhen Mr. Mei's contact information.
Wu Zhen was filled with emotion and blamed himself deeply:
"I didn't expect that Uncle Mei would come to us first. It's my fault. I always make excuses for not going to him. I'm sorry for my father's instructions."
Su Tao asked him: "What are your difficulties?"
Wu Zhen didn't know how to answer for a moment, and all his words turned into a sigh.
What other difficulties could there be? It was simply that his special abilities were too rare, and several warlords placed him under house arrest, preventing him from contacting the outside world.
Later, when the Jiang family gained power, he caught the eye of Jiang Qingxiang and finally gained freedom and a relatively good life.
Su Tao did not continue this topic and asked:
"What's the name of your ability? It's amazing."
After a round of "recognition", Wu Zhen trusted her very much and told her everything he knew:
"It's called 'Story.' People say I can communicate with plants, which is pretty much the same. Actually, I can sense what plants need and guide them to change, adapting them to their environment. You could think of my ability as plant domestication."
After saying this, he picked a wilted daisy from the ground:
"Look, right now, it's telling me it's very hot and thirsty. It just needs some guidance. You're strong and can adapt to high temperatures. Even without water, you can still bloom for a while."
Su Tao just watched him make this drooping daisy "hold its head high and puff out its chest"!
Awesome.
Wu Zhen handed her the daisy and said, "I'll give it to you to play with."
Su Tao took it and asked, "Can crops and other things be domesticated?"
Wu Zhen nodded: "Sure, I have a lot of vegetables and fruits planted on my balcony. They are not afraid of high temperatures or droughts, and they are growing well. I can take you to see them when I have the chance."
Su Tao wanted to kidnap him directly to Taoyang.
But she held herself back.
She couldn't bring it up, so she had to let Wu Zhen bring it up to her first.
Su Tao changed the subject and asked:
"Have you ever thought about running your own botanical garden or plantation? Instead of being confined to this small square courtyard, I imagine you don't really enjoy being a 'performer' for the rich, do you?"
Wu Zhen's hands trembled, trying to hide his true thoughts: "Ms. Su, I think my life is pretty good now, and I don't want to change it."
Su Tao smiled lightly: "Maybe."
After leaving Jiang Qingxiang's house, Cen Tianjiao threw the packet of rose seeds to Su Tao like a bomb:
"I don't like women's chirping flowers."
Su Tao liked it and happily collected it, planning to try to grow it when she returned to Taoyang.
On the way back to the guesthouse, Su Tao held up her chin and looked out the window.
Shi Zijin asked her, "What are you thinking about?"
Guan Zining answered for her: "Thinking about how to poach people respectfully."
Su Tao hit her: "I was wondering how many other people with special abilities like Wu Zhen are being kept by the warlords in Shou'an for their own selfish interests. It's such a waste of talent."
Guan Zining agrees:
"Wu Zhen could have made Shou'an a large base with abundant food and a prosperous people, but he's being used as a private gardener. It's quite funny, but also understandable. In this era of selfish desires, few are like our old leader and you. When you find a precious talent, you only think about how to benefit more people."
Shi Zijin said, "There should be quite a few. It's not just Shou'an, other bases have similar situations. If it weren't for the commander's pressure, there would be people in Dongyang who would have wanted to do the same. He worked hard to recruit medical talents with high salaries, and it took a full six years to build Dongyang Hospital. Now, of the five major bases in Qingpengjiang, only Dongyang has a public hospital."
Su Tao sighed and hoped that Taoyang and Dongyang would get better and better, build a reputation, and attract more talents to join them.
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