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“What’s troubling you?” Manager Meng, couldn’t help but ask as she saw Yun Shan frown in contemplation.
Yun Shan raised her eyes and slowly replied, “It’s too much trouble.”
“What?” Manager Meng was taken aback.
Yun Shan repeated, “Running a business is too much trouble.”
Selling goods directly at the trading market, where people would bid for them, was more in line with her usual style.
Manager Meng was left speechless for a while. She had never thought that Yun Shan’s dilemma was due to this.
“How about making battle pet food and hanging it at the trading market?” She suggested, following Yun Shan’s line of thought.
“I can’t do much alone.” Yun Shan paused for a moment and then lightly chuckled, “If all the new products are hung at the trading market, the person in charge will cry.”
Manager Meng thought, “So you knew.”
“What are your plans now?” Manager Meng asked.
Yun Shan pondered for a moment and suddenly said, “Do you want to buy the formulas from me?”
Manager Meng was astonished, “Are you serious?”
“I am.” Yun Shan affirmed, “Fish bone pills, beef cubes, pork jerky, ham sausages, dried chicken and duck, calming soup, medicine pouches for better sleep, and herbal bath sachets for soothing the mind, I can give you all the formulas.”
“The condition is that they must be sold in official stores. Additionally, I want a 50% profit share, and automatic monthly payment at the beginning of each month.”
Manager Meng’s expression turned serious, “Do you realize what you’re saying?”
“I do. I am well aware of the value of these formulas, and I understand how many people would be watching and coveting them if I were to open my own store.” Yun Shan’s tone was indifferent, as if discussing an ordinary matter. “Handing them over to the base, receiving monthly dividends, is both convenient and safe.”
This was the end of days.
When the benefits were substantial, even NPC forces couldn’t resist taking action against her.
Handing over the formulas to the base changed everything. By inviting trouble, it greatly reduced her visibility.
Although there might be some subsequent minor troubles, at least 80% would be blocked.
“If you agree, it can’t get any better.” Manager Meng forcefully suppressed her excitement and calmly asked, “Apart from the 50% profit, what else do you want?”
“Wait a moment,” Yun Shan made a list.
It included crops such as flour, rice, corn, sorghum, potatoes, as well as calming herbs, red cloud mushrooms, silver needle grass, and other herbs, all in massive quantities.
In addition, she requested the removal of the estate’s outer fence and the construction of a stone wall, along with strengthened guards.
Furthermore, she asked for an additional fifty thousand points.
Manager Meng looked through the list with a complex expression. “Are you planning to build a shelter?”
Solid defense structures (stone walls), enough supplies for years (food and medicinal herbs), and a powerful force (beast legion) – this clearly indicated an awareness of an impending disaster, thus the early establishment of a refuge.
“Is something wrong?” Manager Meng’s heart skipped a beat. She had heard that Yun Shan was the first to notice when the rodent plague occurred.
“No,” Yun Shan denied, “It’s just a personal interest.”
“A divine doctor prefers to live in a shelter?” Head Hall Manager’s expression was peculiar.
Yun Shan calmly stated, “After all, it’s the end of days, better safe than sorry.”
The reasoning was tenuous, but it just about held up.
Manager Meng didn’t press further, instead delving into the details for further discussion. “We have the food warehouse, but it’s not generally for external sale, it’s only used for relief during special periods.”
“No need to use the warehouse’s food,” Yun Shan said. “Isn’t there an official rice store? If I remember correctly, it’s called ‘Red Maple Grain Store’. Just get the supplies from there.”
Manager Meng: “…We don’t have that much stock.”
Yun Shan didn’t believe it. “The base has a year-round harvest. It just finished in late September, so the stock is at its peak now.”
Manager Meng patiently explained, “Just like the Pharmacy, a fixed portion is taken out each season as strategic resources and sent to the warehouse, not for general use. The rest is kept in the store for sale, and marketing strategies are devised as needed.”
“The rice sent to the grain store is only a part. Besides trading, it’s also sold to the residents within the base.”
“We can’t sell out all the stock. The grain store can’t just shut down until the next harvest day.”
“Alright.”
In the context of the end of days, situations with points but no means to purchase goods were not uncommon. Yun Shan understood and was willing to compromise.
After repeated discussions, they finally decided to significantly reduce the amount of food and greatly increase the points, while the medicinal herbs remained largely untouched.
Looking at the final version with a hundred thousand points, Yun Shan felt somewhat helpless – she had hoped to save trouble, but it turned out she still had to figure out how to use the points.
Fortunately, the medicinal herbs were successfully acquired, the stone wall would be built soon, and the basic goal had been achieved.
After thorough deliberation, Yun Shan quickly transcribed the formulas and handed them to Manager Meng.
Manager Meng carefully went through them, somewhat surprised. “When seasoning beef, pork, chicken, and duck, you need to simmer them with special medicinal pouches? Is this a form of medicinal cuisine?”
“Yes,” Yun Shan nodded. “So the snacks have a calming effect, greatly favored by battle pets.”
Cooking medicinal herbs together with food? Medicinal cuisine… this direction seemed to have not been carefully researched by anyone so far.
If it truly worked, perhaps diseases currently deemed incurable could be treated in the future. At the very least, there would be more treatment options available.
Manager Meng looked deeply at Yun Shan, her expression solemn. “Thank you for your contributions to the base. I will fulfill your requests as soon as possible.”
“That’s good.”
As she walked away from the estate, Manager Meng turned back, her gaze carrying a hint of doubt and deep contemplation.
In the early hours of January 1, 2200, the apocalypse began. Different degrees of mutations occurred in animals, plants, and humans. Residents fled in all directions, where a piece of bread was sometimes more precious than a life. In order to fill their stomachs, people stole, robbed, and killed, doing anything just to survive.
Recalling that dark period, Manager Meng felt a strong sense of discomfort deep in her heart.
“In July 2204, Red Maple Camp was established. On January 1, 2205, the Lord summoned travelers from other realms to help with the construction. Despite life getting better now, I still can’t forget that nightmarish memory…” Manager Meng reflected on herself.
Undeniably, during the conversation with Yun Shan, she had a faint intuition that before long, another disaster would be experienced.
Her emotions fluctuated, and an ominous premonition lingered in her mind. After a while, Manager Meng sighed softly, “Forget it, no matter what is discovered, it should be reported truthfully. The Lord will decide how to deal with it.”
After receiving the formulas, Manager Meng immediately arranged for testing by her staff.
Soon, she keenly realized that the products made by others were inferior to Yun Shan’s, but better than those available on the market.
Take the calming soup for example, when prepared by Yun Shan, patients with mild mental illnesses could recover in 7-10 days. However, if the same formula was prepared by someone else, it would take about 12-15 days for recovery.
Then there were the pet snacks. Faced with the meat snacks made by Yun Shan, battle pets were extremely enthusiastic. In comparison, the products made by others only received a favorable response from the battle pets.
Nevertheless, this was already sufficient.
Manager Meng arranged for her trusted aides to learn the formulas while discussing and improving them with Yun Shan.
On October 25, “Red Maple Pet Supplies Store” opened with great success.
***
After feeding seven pills of “Nourishing Essence Pill,” the Tricolor Squirrel successfully advanced. Not only did its agility improve, but its intelligence also notably increased.
Unfortunately, its appetite also increased…
Xiang Yeru looked at the battle pet food that was devoured in less than two days, feeling inexplicably depressed.
He tried to negotiate with the battle pet, “There are so many pet supply stores in the camp. How about we try a different one? You could try a different flavor, maybe it’s also delicious.”
Tricolor Squirrel: You’re trying to deceive me with nonsense!
Xiang Yeru: “…”
As the battle pet advanced, its intellect expanded, and it wasn’t as easily fooled as before. He was a tough nut to crack.
“We can’t always rely on Dr. Yun,” Xiang Yeru stated the facts and reasoned, “Battle pets that have received treatment all want to eat food made by her. Due to the high demand, the estate has issued new regulations, not allowing healthy battle pets to freeload on food.”
Tricolor Squirrel looked innocent: I can pretend to be sick! I can do it!
Xiang Yeru was speechless.
How did intelligence and cleverness manifest in lying? Kid, you weren’t like this before!
After much persuasion, Xiang Yeru finally managed to convince the battle pet. It agreed to visit other pet supply stores and try new food.
However, after visiting various stores, whether it was the “best-selling product of the store” or the “most favored pet food of the year,” none could captivate the Tricolor Squirrel.
Because the battle pet food didn’t meet its expectations, its daily food intake was directly reduced by half.
Xiang Yeru felt a mix of anger, frustration, and helplessness – Dr. Yun made it very clear, and the estate had no surplus food. It firmly prohibited healthy battle pets from freeloading.
Even if he was willing to turn a blind eye and let the battle pet be taken away and handled as others pleased, Dr. Yun wouldn’t agree to provide food.
When he was feeling particularly puzzled, “Red Maple Pet Supplies Store” opened.
“Battle pet expert Yun Shan personally designs the formulas!”
“Unique flavor, favored by a wide range of battle pets.”
“Taste surpasses 99% of similar products on the market, not only suitable for battle pets, but also for owners.”
“Multiple designs to meet different customer needs comprehensively.”
The slogans were deafening, immediately catching Xiang Yeru’s attention.
In his view, official stores guaranteed quality. Coupled with Dr. Yun’s personal designs, the products were bound to have unique qualities.
Though it was a bit of a shame that it wasn’t handmade by Dr. Yun, as if she did it herself, the battle pet would probably go wild, eating and drinking excessively at every meal.
The ideal situation would be excellent palatability, the battle pet being willing to eat, without overeating.
With this in mind, on the store’s opening day, Xiang Yeru hurried over to make a purchase.
Xiang Yeru arrived early and waited for nearly 10 minutes before it was his turn.
As soon as he entered the store, he saw neatly arranged products on the shelves.
Adult food (beef flavor), adult food (pork flavor), and adult food (chicken flavor).
In addition to adult food, there were also puppy food and senior food, all available in beef, pork, and chicken flavors.
Apart from the regular battle pet food, there were also training treats, such as fish bone balls, beef cubes, pork jerky, dried chicken, dried duck, and ham sausages.
For herbivorous animals, the store also specially offered grass cakes for the owners to choose from.
Since the Tricolor Squirrel’s taste had changed significantly after its mutation and now favored meat, Xiang Yeru first picked one of each training treat. Then he looked at the adult food and furrowed his brow. “Why is it in biscuit form?”
The clerk smiled and said, “Making it into biscuits prolongs its shelf life and makes it convenient to eat.”
Xiang Yeru stood still.
The clerk continued, “The adult food (beef flavor) is made from flour, beef cubes, and vegetables, all in a certain proportion. It not only considers balanced nutrition but also takes into account the texture. If you’re unsure, you can buy a bag to try it out first.”
After a moment of contemplation, Xiang Yeru took a bag of adult food (beef flavor) and a bag of adult food (chicken flavor), then proceeded to the checkout.
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