Chapter 205
He knew this, but it didn’t resolve Zheng Fa’s confusion: “Our nursing home doesn’t lack nitrogen fertilizer.”
If it were merely a matter of nitrogen, Zheng Fa and the others would have cultivated the spirit plants long ago.
“Yes, there’s also a well-known experiment called the Miller-Urey experiment,” Teacher Tian continued. “They simulated the early atmospheric conditions and used electric arcs to mimic lightning, producing several amino acids.”
“Amino acids? The origin of life?”
“Just a hypothesis, but it does suggest that lightning might be related to the emergence of life.”
Zheng Fa couldn’t help but recall the descriptions of thunder techniques in the Xuanwei classics—forces of creation and destruction.
In this experiment, it seemed particularly accurate.
“Are you saying, Teacher Tian, that lightning in a spiritual energy environment might produce some special substances that could influence the growth of spirit plants?”
“Yes, that’s one hypothesis,” Teacher Tian nodded slowly, then shifted to another angle. “Another possibility I can think of is the magnetic field effects of lightning.”
“Magnetic field?”
“This is also a relatively new area of research. Just a moment.”
Teacher Tian walked back to her room and returned a moment later with a tablet.
“Take a look at these papers.”
She pointed to several documents on the tablet and explained one by one:
“This paper uses cancer cells as material, placing them in different magnetic fields. It found that low-intensity magnetic fields promote the development of cancer cells, while high-intensity fields inhibit it.”
“This one studies Arabidopsis and the effects of static magnetic fields on its growth. It found that a magnetic field of 6000 gauss significantly promotes the growth of the main root. Further research indicated that the magnetic field enhances the transport of auxins in root tip cells, accelerating cell division in the meristem and increasing cell numbers.”
“And this one examines the impact of magnetic fields on the growth of enoki mushroom mycelium. This suggests that magnetic fields not only affect plant growth but may also influence the growth of fungi and other organisms.”
Zheng Fa flipped through the papers Teacher Tian provided, gradually understanding her point.
“So, you’re saying it might be the magnetic field generated by lightning that affects the growth of plants, even leading to evolution?”
“Yes, that’s what I believe is most likely,” Teacher Tian nodded.
Zheng Fa knew that at this point, they were merely discussing two hypotheses.
To truly understand whether lightning could produce spirit plants, more experiments and data were needed.
He suddenly realized he hadn’t seen the old man Bai around.
That old man had been sticking to Teacher Tian lately.
“What about Teacher Bai and Tang Lingwu?”
“They’re up ahead,” Teacher Tian explained. “They said Tang Lingwu’s father introduced them to a chef from a high-end restaurant in the capital, and he’s cooking for us now. Apparently, it’s quite a sum.”
“Cooking?”
“Yes, he’s quite professional, bringing all his own pots and pans. We just need to provide the ingredients.”
Zheng Fa was taken aback.
Weren’t they supposed to be selling vegetables?
Why were they hiring someone to cook?
He walked toward the main building of the nursing home and, sure enough, found several unfamiliar men bustling in the kitchen of the first-floor dining area.
Old Bai and Tang Lingwu were gathered in the dining room, chatting about something.
“Teacher Bai?” He approached them, and Tang Lingwu waved him over, saying, “Come on, we’ll be eating soon.”
“What’s this about hiring someone to cook?”
“Oh, that’s… it’s all Lingwu’s clever idea,” Old Bai chuckled, whispering, “If we want to sell vegetables, just talking won’t cut it—we’d owe people favors. This way, we’re not just giving things away.”
Zheng Fa began to understand.
He glanced at Tang Lingwu, who was smiling brightly, showing no signs of being a schemer.
In the kitchen, Zheng Fa watched as a middle-aged man, presumably the head chef, finished stir-frying a plate of vegetables, looking a bit dissatisfied—probably thinking the ingredients were too simple.
He instinctively popped a piece into his mouth.
…And just like that, he was hooked!
The chef looked at his hands, then around at the pots and pans he had brought, seemingly puzzled by the sudden surge in his culinary prowess.
After frying a few more dishes, he finally understood.
Once the meal was ready, the chef didn’t leave; instead, he cheerfully blocked Old Bai, who had eaten his fill, probably thinking the oldest man was in charge of the nursing home.
Their banter could be heard.
“This isn’t something I can just talk about; it’s a secret of our nursing home.”
“I understand, I’ll pay more!” the chef insisted firmly. “This meal is on me!”
“…”
(End of this chapter)
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**Chapter 199: Measurement**
In the nursing home.
As night fell, the chef and his team had left, and the four of them moved a few lounge chairs to lie side by side in the courtyard.
The ecological environment here was excellent.
Today’s weather was clear, the night sky glittering with stars, and the grass and trees exuded a fragrant aroma.
A gentle breeze wafted from the mountainside, and the four of them chatted aimlessly, yet joyfully.
“Their condition is to come buy from us every day, and I’ve sent you the prices,” Old Bai said, turning to Zheng Fa.
Zheng Fa nodded; he had also looked over the other party’s offer.
He had some understanding of market prices—during his three years in high school, he often visited the vegetable market on weekends to buy some roasted chicken or the like.
But the other party’s offer was quite generous.
For the same tomatoes, the market price might be just a few yuan per jin (about half a kilogram), while the quoted price was several hundred, a hundredfold increase.
And that was on the lower end of the scale.
Some vegetables had even more outrageous price hikes.
Seeing Zheng Fa silent, Old Bai seemed to think he found the offer low and explained, “This should be their most sincere offer.”
“Really? They were this sincere from the start?”
That seemed a bit against the usual business practices…
“Not really…” Old Bai gestured toward Zheng Fa, indicating Tang Lingwu.
Tang Lingwu smiled shyly, “I asked my dad about the restaurant’s revenue and ingredient costs, and I checked their supply channels. It seems they haven’t been undercutting.”
“Isn’t that… a commercial secret?”
Zheng Fa was taken aback.
That was practically stripping the other party bare.
“Many times, the term ‘secret’…” Old Bai sighed, “is just another way of saying you’re not qualified to know.”
Zheng Fa was speechless at this, and Old Bai continued, “But they have more demands.”
“What kind?”
“Exclusive supply, and they even want to place orders with us—meaning they’ll tell us what they want, and we’ll grow it. They said they could pay more.”
This wasn’t surprising; for a restaurant of this caliber, exclusivity might be more important than taste.
As for placing orders, it was naturally about gaining more control.
“A lot more money,” Old Bai clicked his tongue. “The extra money in a week might be more than I used to earn in a year.”
That was quite a bit.
While math might not be the most lucrative field, Old Bai, as a professor at a university in the capital, could still earn a six-figure income annually from his salary and side ventures.
Zheng Fa thought for a moment and said, “If we don’t agree, how much do you think we’d make in a month?”
Old Bai glanced at him and replied, “Lingwu calculated it. Their prices are high, but the demand isn’t that great—about five to six hundred thousand a week.”
Zheng Fa understood why Old Bai’s tone was a bit tempted.
If they agreed to the other party’s conditions, the nursing home’s income would at least double.
“Teacher Bai, I’ve mentioned the three principles of the nursing home before,” Zheng Fa said after a moment of silence. “This business… is just a byproduct of our research—we shouldn’t let it distract us too much.”
Old Bai clicked his tongue, already understanding Zheng Fa’s thoughts, but he sighed, “At my age, seeing this kind of money can be blinding… but you…”
Tang Lingwu beside them nodded gently, smiling in agreement with Zheng Fa’s stance.
“You girl, you always have that expression when Zheng Fa speaks. This business was clearly your idea…” Old Bai muttered, seemingly disapproving.
“It was my idea, but… Zheng Fa is Zheng Fa,” she replied.
Zheng Fa was taken aback, looking at Tang Lingwu, unsure why she said that.
Tang Lingwu lay back in her rocking chair, gazing at the starry sky, softly saying, “He knows what he wants, always moving in one direction, just wanting to see what cultivation is really like. Isn’t that why we came together?”
Old Bai was momentarily stunned, then suddenly burst into laughter.
Teacher Tian beside him gave him a light tap and said with a smile, “I think you’re not as clear-headed as these two kids.”
…
After discussing this matter, the next issue left the four of them pondering.
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