Chapter 80

Chapter 81: Qian Qi is kind and generous, and doesn’t hold grudges

Li Hong Sheng asked Qian Qi to wait in the same conference room as before. With her good memory, she found it quickly and sat down.

A researcher burst in. Seeing Qian Qi, he ran up, face full of hope: “Classmate! You actually came! Please help me!”

Qian Qi looked him over: “Who are you?”

Her memory was “not very good,” and she did not want to help a stranger.

“I’m Wei Zhen,” he said, pointing to the front seat of the big table. “Remember me? The one who presented on Silverwood Fruit? I even said a student like you knew nothing.”

“Oh,” said Qian Qi, slapping her thigh as if she’d realized something. “I don’t remember.”

Wei Zhen: [Huh?]

He did not get angry. He had a big problem to solve. “That’s not important. What matters is this: you said Silverwood Fruit can make a Contract Beast go blind. If the beast is already blind, is there any way to fix it?”

After the institute approved the sales plan, the Silverwood Fruit sold out fast. Many Beast Tamers fed them to their Contract Beasts and gave five-star reviews.

But one Contract Beast had an accident. It went blind after eating the fruit. Worse, its owner was a powerful person. He gave them three days. If the eyes were not cured, he would go public and stop the institute from selling Silverwood Fruit.

If such a serious mistake came out, Wei Zhen might lose his job. The institute’s name would be ruined. Selling Magiplants and their byproducts later would get much harder. Funding from above would drop again. All their effort would be wasted.

He reported this to the Dean and wanted to ask Qian Qi for help. But the Dean looked troubled and said getting an answer from Qian Qi would be hard. Wei Zhen did not know why. The moment he heard she had come, he ran over first.

He took a breath and bowed his head: “Classmate Qian Qi, I was wrong before. My research was not careful enough. I really want to know how to fix this, and where my study went wrong. If you’ll tell me, I’ll do anything.”

Everyone who chose to work at the Magiplant Research Institute and kept going until now had the same wish: to study Magiplants that help Humans and Contract Beasts, so the institute would stop being criticized and the job title “Magiplant Researcher” could be something to be proud of. It was their private wish and their faith. They could not watch the institute fall.

“Classmate Qian Qi, please tell me,” Wei Zhen begged, eyes full of urgency.

Qian Qi rubbed her chin: “Okay.”

“If you’re still mad, I can call all the researchers to apologize in person… wait, what?” Wei Zhen froze, staring in surprise. “You said okay? You’ll tell me?”

“Yes,” said Qian Qi, nodding. She had a soft heart when people asked nicely. “Silverwood Fruit from spring and autumn are different. The batch you grew last April and used for testing was fine. But the batch from November, you only started using it after the April batch ran out, right?”

She thought for a second. “If I remember right, you started testing the November batch this March. Autumn fruit produces a toxin after one month of fermenting, and then after another month the toxin breaks down on its own. You just happened to miss the toxin window.”

“Since trouble showed up this fast, your luck is bad,” she said with a shrug. “The new fruit was produced in April, right? And the blind Contract Beast just happens to be Fire Affinity?”

The Silverwood toxin affects different Contract Beasts in different ways. Some only get blurry vision for a few days, then recover. But Fire Affinity beasts are unlucky. They get poisoned and go blind.

“How do we cure the toxin?” Wei Zhen asked, writing quickly.

“The cure is easy,” said Qian Qi. “Grind Silverwood roots into powder. Mix it with leaves of Yunqi Herb and the fruit of Flowing Water Lotus. Feed it together. The toxin will be gone in two days.”

“Two days?” said Wei Zhen, shocked. “That fast?”

Qian Qi gave him a look: “What do you mean fast? That’s already slow. I gave you the budget version because of the institute’s funds. If you want it cured in minutes, you need a C-class Magiplant. Can you grow that?”

Wei Zhen flushed with shame. “R-right. The budget version is good. We can afford that.” He thanked her again and again and was about to try it when Li Hong Sheng pushed open the door.

With deep wrinkles and a face like a funeral, he rushed to Qian Qi and started to wail: “Qian Qi! Have mercy and save this old man!”

Tears and snot everywhere, he performed his plea: “There’s a problem with my Silverwood Fruit! I made someone’s Contract Beast go blind. He said if I can’t fix it, he’ll kill me! You have to save me! I can’t die yet! I still want to make more money to buy your potion recipes! Can you bear to see me die?”

Qian Qi: […]

Wei Zhen: [Huh?]

Wei Zhen was confused. Why did the Dean say someone would kill him? That was not true at all.

He reminded softly: “Dean, Classmate Qian Qi already told me the cure.”

“Qian Qi, I was wrong before, I swear I will…” Li Hong Sheng’s howl cut off. He turned stiffly to Wei Zhen. “What did you say?”

“I said Classmate Qian Qi already told me the cure,” said Wei Zhen, smiling. Honestly, he had not expected Qian Qi to be so kind and generous. She set aside the past and gave them the answer, solving a huge problem for him and the institute. He had to admit she had a wide heart and did not hold grudges. He respected her and felt ashamed.

Li Hong Sheng looked from Wei Zhen to Qian Qi, dazed. He asked carefully, “She didn’t charge you?”

“What money?” said Wei Zhen, baffled.

Li Hong Sheng was stunned. He had thought, judging by Qian Qi’s temper, that she would open her lion’s mouth and ask for tens of thousands before telling them. The moment he heard Silverwood Fruit had caused blindness, he racked his brain to borrow money from friends. He even prepared the lines and expressions for a few rounds of bargaining.

But Qian Qi had just told Wei Zhen the answer. She did not want a single coin.

Since when was she this generous?

For some reason, learning that Qian Qi helped them for free made Li Hong Sheng feel a little empty inside.