Chapter 63: A mere petty thief, and she'd deign to spend 200 yuan on him?

After the fleece-shearing incident, Qian Qi rejected all external conflicts and forcibly restored her normal life.

Every day, she fed the creatures, scooped up their waste, went up the mountain to analyze magical plants, and answered questions for her classmates.

During this period, she took the initiative to find the classmates whose magical plant assignments had been ruined by the original owner and who had also been beaten by her, offering a sincere apology.

Some classmates, harboring deep resentment from that incident, swore they would never forgive her. Yet, in the end, under the threat of Qian Qi's "arm-around-the-shoulder" coercion, they accepted her apologies with a mixture of delight and anger.

It was not because their willpower was weak; rather, it was simply because she actually promised to teach them everything until they fully understood!

Man-made magical plants had numerous ways to die, and even using the methods outlined in textbooks did not guarantee a cure, sometimes even giving rise to completely new ailments.

However, Qian Qi claimed she could explain all cultivation methods and case studies for those specific magical plants. How could they possibly resist such an offer?

[I honestly thought someone like you would never apologize.]

The system interface hovered before her. In its view, Qian Qi was utterly devoid of pretense and certainly not the type to clean up after someone else's mistakes. Therefore, seeing her shoulder the original owner's blunders to make amends genuinely surprised the system.

Qian Qi squatted before her experimental plot, casting a lazy glance at the system.

"You have a fundamental misconception about me," she pointed to her own face. "Did you forget? I am the kind of person who is both shameless and thick-skinned."

If the original owner's past caused damage to Qian Qi's reputation and consequently hindered her money-making opportunities, she would never allow it.

Therefore, she had to rectify her reputation and become even with her classmates so she could earn the trust of the magical plant department students, allowing them to...

Obediently become the hardworking laborers who "toiled away for her sweet, honey-pot-like retirement life"!

At this thought, Qian Qi could not help but chuckle, "Quack-quack-quack-quack-hehehe-quack-quack-quack—"

System: [...]

Hey, I clearly heard that villainous laugh in the middle, you know!

...

After producing the second batch of hemostatic magic potions, Qian Qi sold them to those who had originally provided the deposit.

During these days, she had finished analyzing all the magical plants on the back mountain.

She was no longer satisfied with merely analyzing E-grade magical plants.

"Human beings really are greedy creatures, aren't they?" Qian Qi sat at her desk, tapping lightly on her optical computer as she organized something. If anyone were to lean over for a look, they would be shocked to discover that it was entirely composed of cultivation reports on magical plants.

"Little System, what other magic potions do you have over there? Let me see what we should work on next."

The profits from the hemostatic magic potions were no longer sufficient to satisfy Qian Qi's steadily expanding ambitions. She wanted to make big money—super-duper big money.

For the sake of a sweet and wonderful retirement life, her absolute first wish was—a wheel-less luxury hover-car!

"Come on! Empty out my wallet to your heart's content, Lord System!" Qian Qi howled.

System: [...Shouldn't we pay off the installment payments we owe from the previous hemostatic magic potions first?]

Qian Qi: "..."

"Ah, the weather is simply lovely today, thoroughly ideal for a visit to the Magical Plant Research Institute~" Qian Qi dragged her chair back, glanced at the overcast sky outside the balcony, and laughed heartily.

System: [...]

Don't change the subject so blatantly, you hear me! Would it kill you to pay up front? Such a stingy miser, Qian Qi!

Humming a little tune, Qian Qi walked over to the wardrobe and rummaged through it for the access pass she had tossed in earlier. After searching through it three times without finding a trace, she leaned against the wardrobe door, clutched her messy hair, and laughed uproariously toward the ceiling.

"Hahahahaha—interesting, simply fascinating!"

The system looked at her: [Have you finally lost your mind?]

"Don't you think this is terribly interesting?" Qian Qi closed the wardrobe, the corners of her mouth curling up into a delighted arc.

Yet, due to her facial features, this curve looked exceptionally perverted.

System: [...I don't get it. However, if you want to know who stole your access pass, you can simply pay 200 yuan to reveal the answer~]

Qian Qi let out a soft hmph.

She slipped into her brown leather jacket and said with a tone of deep regret, "I gave you the chance to ask me for money just a moment ago, but you failed to seize it. And now you want to come and fish for my money? In your dreams!"

Two hundred yuan! If she went to a street vendor and haggled a bit, she could buy ten leather jackets with that!

Did a mere petty thief deserve for her to spend 200 yuan?

Pfft! In your dreams!

Clacking her flip-flops against the floor, Qian Qi hurried downstairs, ready to unlock a brand-new map.

—

When the Magical Plant Research Institute was first established, it carried humanity's highest expectations. People hoped it would research new drugs beneficial to humanity, or perhaps gene therapies that could accelerate human evolution—in short, anything that could advance human medical development.

However, the greater the expectation, the greater the disappointment.

Accompanied by the institute's annual notices of apology, the public gradually grew disillusioned. More and more people came to believe that magical plants were of no benefit to humanity, and studying them was a complete waste of funds and time.

Thus, the Magical Plant Research Institute was gradually relocated from its prime location in the golden city center out to the suburbs, eventually ending up on the outskirts of Jiangcheng, right next to Yancheng.

Still, being a public research institution, it occupied a very expansive area. Several tall buildings towered within the spacious grounds; although the walls of some structures looked rather aged, all necessary security measures and facilities were fully in place.

At this moment, Qian Qi was standing right at the entrance of the research institute, locked in a staring contest with the security guard.

"Look here, Security Brother, I really was invited," Qian Qi widened her small eyes as much as possible, trying to make them look utterly sincere. "If you don't believe me, call the Director and ask him yourself."

The security guard waved his hand dismissively, performing his duties conscientiously. "What are you imagining? How could I possibly have the Director's phone number? You'd better hurry up and leave; outsiders are not permitted to enter here."

"You actually don't have the Director's number?" Qian Qi asked in astonishment. She slapped the desk at the guard station and exclaimed happily, "What a coincidence, I do!"

Security Guard: ???

Then, he watched as Qian Qi opened her optical computer and dialed the number of Li Hongsheng, the Director of the Research Institute.

"Director! It's me, Qian Qi. I'm here today to visit the Magical Plant Research Institute!" Qian Qi leaned against the desk, patted her optical computer to show it to the guard, her face beaming with smug satisfaction. "Oh, that's right, I was just passing by, so I came to take a look. I didn't bring my access pass, and now the security brother won't let me in."

From the optical computer, Director Li Hongsheng's voice came through clearly: "Is that so? Well then, I'll have the security guard let you in."

"Now how will that do!" Qian Qi gasped dramatically. Just as Li Hongsheng was left completely baffled, he heard Qian Qi say, "Why don't you come out and pick me up instead? Once I get inside, I won't even know the way!"

Li Hongsheng: ...

Security Guard: ...

You really have no sense of shame at all!

"Just wait there for a moment, I'll be right out." Li Hongsheng hung up the call and hurriedly left the conference room.

The magical plant researchers currently attending the meeting were left bewildered by this turn of events, wondering with great curiosity just who on earth could possibly cause the Director to suddenly walk out in the middle of such an important meeting.

Meanwhile, at the entrance, the security guard watched Qian Qi as she leaned over the desk to write down her registration details, and asked with lingering confusion, "Tell me, little brother, since you have the Director's number, why did you make me call the Director in the first place?"

Was she just trying to show off?

The security guard gazed at Qian Qi, who was dressed quite ordinarily yet exuded an arrogant aura. He frequently read stories about poor underdogs achieving dramatic counter-attacks, so he was thoroughly familiar with this kind of face-slapping trope.

He had never expected that in this lifetime, he would actually get to experience it himself.

He couldn't help feeling eager; later, if the Director came out and reprimanded him for failing to recognize a person of importance, he would declare that he had strictly adhered to his job responsibilities and refused to let anyone enter without a pass. And if the Director flew into a rage and tried to fire him, he would demand severance compensation equal to 2N+1!

Just as the security guard was growing excited, Qian Qi picked up the registration logbook, pointed at the name written on it, and then pointed at herself.

She stated: "What else could it be for? Naturally, to make sure you remember my face so you can let me walk right in without a pass next time!"

Security Guard: "..."

His dream of turning the tables and staging a counter-face-slap had shattered...

Special thanks to the patron [wan'ω'] for your generous support~