Therefore, the prices of nutritious ingredients remained stubbornly high.
There were reasons why nutritious ingredients were difficult to cultivate. Luo Bi didn't know the exact reasons, but she guessed it likely had something to do with the soil or perhaps the climate. She couldn't change the climate, but she could certainly try to change the soil; no one was managing her, so she could tinker with it however she pleased.
Luo Bi had no intention of following conventional seed cultivation methods. Regardless of whether it would work or not, she hadn't spent any Interstellar Credits on the seeds anyway. She was just planting them for fun, so she would plant them however she liked.
She hadn't thrown away the medicinal dregs and ash from every furnace explosion; she had collected them all. Luo Bi searched through a corner and pulled them out. She had never purchased planting pots and didn't have any at home, so after searching around, she couldn't find anything suitable for cultivating seeds.
As the rain gradually grew heavier, Luo Bi poked her head out to look at the planting fields through the curtain of rain and decisively gave up. After thinking it over carefully, she ran along the eaves to the warehouse and found a small cardboard box. Following the vine trellis to the planting fields, she realized she didn't have a shovel, so she used her hands to dig some soil into the box.
Returning to the glass hall, Luo Bi poured the medicinal dregs and ash in bit by bit and mixed them with her hands. Suddenly, she felt something the size of a cherry. Luo Bi found it strange—there shouldn't be any stones in the medicinal ash. When she pulled it out, it was covered in ash and dirt, making it impossible to tell what it was.
She wiped it with her dirty hands, and it was bright red. Was it a Crimson Jade Stone?
To see it clearly, Luo Bi went to the sink to wash it clean. Holding it up to her eyes for a close inspection, the color looked like a Crimson Jade Stone, yet she felt it wasn't quite right. Where did this thing come from? Luo Bi pondered for a long time. Since it came out of the medicinal ash, it must be related to her medicine refining. Although it was quite strange, that was the only conclusion she could reach.
Regardless, it was quite beautiful, so she put it away.
As Luo Bi continued to mix the soil, she remained vigilant, and sure enough, she found another identical one.
The soil was wet and the medicinal ash was dry. Once they were mixed evenly, Luo Bi felt the moisture level was acceptable. She carefully buried the red fruit seeds one by one and moved them to a corner at the entrance of the glass hall, where they wouldn't be hit by the rain.
With that, Luo Bi had nothing left to do. She washed her hands, pulled up a chair, and sat at the entrance of the glass hall to watch the rain. Although she desperately wanted to go home, she didn't plan to head back early. She knew from her past life that she had an impatient temperament; it was a flaw that needed to be cured.
At nine o'clock, Guan Zhuting called: "Your father and eldest brother are coming home today. They should arrive around noon. Do you have time to come back?"
Luo Bi was feeling irritated by the rain. While on the phone, she paced back and forth at the entrance of the glass hall. "I know they're coming back. I called Father last night, but the rain is getting heavier and Feng Ling isn't home. How am I supposed to get back?"
"Don't worry," Guan Zhuting said after a moment of thought. "I'll contact your father first to see exactly what time they'll be back, and then I'll have him borrow a hovercar to pick you up."
"Okay!" Luo Bi felt relieved. "Mom, what delicious food are you making for lunch?"
"Your father and the others will bring back exotic beast meat, so I didn't buy any. I did buy two nutrient-rich Phoenix-tail fish." Seeing her daughter acting spoiled made Guan Zhuting happy. Knowing that Luo Bi loved fish, she added, "I plan to braise one in red sauce and stew the other."
Luo Bi couldn't wait. "Tell Father to come pick me up as early as possible."
Guan Zhuting smiled. "I know."
Luo Bi was so preoccupied with going home that she hoped the rain would stop quickly. Little did she know that by the end, the rain would eventually turn into a torrential downpour, with the wind driving the rain relentlessly into the glass hall.
(End of Chapter)