Li Family Main Residence
Li Hongyao swept the table clean with one hand. Bai You was so frightened that he dared not breathe, but since the patriarch did not stop him, he could only grit his teeth and continue.
"Currently, retail sales of mental energy stabilizers and repair agents have dropped by 71.8%, and most of the large orders that were under negotiation have been shelved; everyone is waiting and seeing..."
"Hmph, trash!"
After calming down, Li Hongyao realized that the Li family's glorious era was probably over, unless...
How is the new product research progressing?
Bai You respectfully replied, "There has been a breakthrough. We have currently developed a mental energy stabilizer with a 90% beneficial substance content, but..."
"Hmm?" Li Hongyao looked up and glanced over. Bai You quickly added, "The cost is extremely high, the production cycle is long, and the quantity is scarce..." They simply cannot compete with Hope Fruit and Vegetable Store.
Bai You didn't say what he was going to say, but Li Hongyao knew it. His eyebrows furrowed almost to one side, and after a moment he said, "I heard that the 'companion robot' is back."
Bai You: "Yes, patriarch, but she has amnesia and her fertility is 100%, so she is a key protected person and we can't touch her."
They've found out that the first magical fruit to circulate was from her, and she seems to have appeared out of nowhere, with no trace of her in the world.
Li Hongyao narrowed his eyes, his expression disdainful. "She's just a woman. Compared to our Li family, she's nothing. Even if she's gone, there will be countless other women. But our Li family must continue its glorious legacy."
"Yes, Master!"
Li Hongyao straightened his clothes. "Let's go to the palace."
Inside the palace, Feng Jingming, who had just finished eating and was about to take a nap, was awakened by a commotion.
My good mood from the beautiful scenery was instantly dampened.
"Who is it? In the middle of the day, can't a person get a rest?"
The attendant glanced at the monitor and said, "Your Majesty, it's the head of the Li family, who's come crying to us."
Fengjingming: ...
Li Hongyao flung open the door and, with tears streaming down his face, rushed to Feng Jingming's side. "Your Majesty, you must do me justice! Our Li family has worked hard all these years, even if we haven't achieved anything great. You can't just stand by and watch our family be bullied! Your Majesty, my heart is breaking! Back in the day, our Li family..."
Li Hongyao kept rambling on and on, looking exactly like a pitiful old man who had suffered all kinds of grievances, and there was no trace of his previous high and mighty demeanor.
Every time something happens, this old guy comes running over crying, recounting how much the Li family has sacrificed for the empire and how difficult it was. I'm tired of hearing it.
Feng Jingming's temples throbbed, and he helped Li Hongyao sit up straight. "Patriarch Li, what happened? Tell me about it."
That was exactly what he was waiting for. Li Hongyao stopped crying and asked, "Your Majesty, are you aware of the matter of the fruit and vegetable store owner organizing a group purchase of the magical fruit?"
Feng Jingming nodded. He knew all too well how could there be such a wonderful person in the world. When he heard the specific quantity and unit price being reported from below, he was so happy that he ate two extra bowls of rice.
"The shopkeeper is truly a genius. It is a blessing for our empire to have such a selfless and dedicated person."
Li Hongyao: ...Wouldn't you like to see my liver-colored face first?!
The attendant coughed at the opportune moment, and Feng Jingming realized his lapse in composure and regained his usual demeanor.
Seeing this, Li Hongyao continued, "He's pushing all of us to the brink of despair."
"We've worked so hard on this research, investing so much time, manpower, and resources, and finally developed a drug that's beneficial to mental strength. Over the years, it's been thanks to these drugs that we've been able to fight the Zerg, and mass production has supported countless people. But first, he sold it to the public at an impossiblely low price, and now he's even doing large-scale group purchases. How are we supposed to survive? How are all the people under our command supposed to survive?"
“Your Majesty, 200! What can you buy with 200 star coins? You might not even be able to afford the worst quality fruit, and it might not even cover the cost of a single fruit. But what about this? It's delicious, it can heal, and it can enhance mental strength. It's completely disrupting the market and putting us all to death.”
Feng Jingming: ...Now that humanity is at a critical juncture of life and death, who cares about these things anymore?
But facing the Li family, Feng Jingming still patiently asked, "So, what do you want to do?"
"I don't know what his purpose is, but I think that since we have such good technology, we should share it. Many hands make light work. This way, we can reduce our costs and produce more magical fruits for everyone to use, so that we can improve our mental strength and drive out the insectoids as soon as possible."
"And this is how we can feed more people. His magical fruit affects not only my Li family, but also many other fruit and vegetable merchants scattered throughout the stars..."
Feng Jingming: "What you said makes sense. Then find the owner of Hope Fruit and Vegetable Store and ask him if he is willing. But I must warn you in advance that he is a great benefactor and hero of our empire. You cannot coerce or entice him."
Li Hongyao: ...
"Your Majesty, I will try my best to appeal to your emotions and reason with you, but... I simply cannot find that person."
Feng Jingming glanced at Li Hongyao, his face full of helplessness, and said, "Then this is difficult to handle. I am powerless, I am powerless."
Li Hongyao quickly shook his head in denial, "No, Your Majesty, you have a way. We have already investigated and found that this matter is closely related to that woman named Leng Erya. We hope Your Majesty can authorize us to question her properly."
Feng Jingming knew about this; Qi Xiuyuan had told him before. However, he only knew that she had a magical fruit that was related to the fate of mankind, but he did not know that she was the one who created it.
“This…” Feng Jingming looked troubled. “Both the Empire and the Federation have regulations that require women to be treated with the utmost kindness. Moreover, she is a woman with 100% fertility. If you interrogate a rare woman like this, it will anger the public, and it will be difficult to explain to all women.”
Li Hongyao repeatedly assured, "Your Majesty, rest assured, it's not that exaggerated. We were just asking."
The scenic spot's name: "She has amnesia."
“We will take care of this, so you don’t need to worry.”
After a moment of contemplation, Feng Jingming agreed, but still reminded them, "You must be careful to do things properly."
Upon hearing this, Li Hongyao respectfully replied, "Your Majesty, rest assured, for the sake of the empire and for the sake of humanity, I will do my utmost to extract her secrets."
Feng Jingming: ...There's no need to escalate things to this extent.
Feng Jingming coughed lightly. "Then it's up to Patriarch Li. Remember, know your limits."
...
"Dad, the Li family has already entered the palace and persuaded His Majesty to investigate the background of the owner of the Hope Fruit and Vegetable Store and to bring in Leng Erya again."
Huang Tairong nodded. "Very good. Give the order to cooperate fully with the Li family and find the shop owner."
“Okay,” Huang Hexu said with some concern, “Can it really be found out? What if it can’t be found out?”
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