The van stopped in front of the food testing center. Lin You carried a large bundle of food and ran in quickly.

The two security guards reacted swiftly, swinging their batons and blocked her with quick hands, “Hey, what are you doing?”

Lin You raised the bundle in her hands and said, “I came for testing.”

The security guards stood their ground, their faces serious, “You need an appointment. Did you make one?”

Lin You shook her head and said, “No, but can I make one now?”

The guard refused, “Appointments must be made two days in advance.”

Lin You asked in confusion, “Are all the testing jobs already scheduled two days ahead? Besides, there shouldn’t be so many people coming here to test food now, right? Hasn’t all the food in Ancheng already been snatched up?”

The security guard cleared his throat and said, “Ah, this is a long-standing rule.”

Lin You took a deep breath and said, “It’s alright. I’ll go in directly and find someone. Just say I forced my way in.”

The guard quickly stopped her and said, “I already said it’s not allowed. It’s just not allowed.”

Just as he finished speaking, a man in a white lab coat walked out from around the corner of the hallway.

He looked quite young but had a stern face and low, heavy brows, appearing more composed than most people his age.

He glanced at Lin You and gently opened his mouth to say, “Let her in. I’ve finished my work.”

After speaking, the man turned and walked back.

Lin You was momentarily stunned, then hurriedly followed with her bundle.

The two security guards looked at each other and sighed that Lin You had really good luck.

This researcher, who usually had a cold face and only had eyes for laboratory instruments, stayed in the lab all day and rarely went out. He only came out expressionless at the end of the day.

Today, by some coincidence, Lin You happened to catch him.

Pushing open the lab door, Lin You placed the bundle on the table and said to the stern-faced man in front of her,

“Hello, these are the items that need to be tested. For each kind of food, I selected one sample.”

The man looked at the variety of food, raised his eyebrows slightly and then quickly returned to his neutral expression, saying, “What specifically do you want to test?”

Lin You explained, “I want to test if these food items contain harmful substances.”

The man nodded slightly, “Got it. These are new breeds you cultivated.”

Lin You neither confirmed nor denied it. She did not explain the ‘supernatural incident’ in her breakfast shop in detail.

The man did not ask further. He stepped forward, opened the bundle and took out each item, examining them carefully in his hands.

The necessary procedures still had to be followed, so he said, “Go pay the testing fee outside. Come back in an hour to get the results.”

Lin You replied, “Alright,” and walked out of the lab.

After completing the testing procedure, she sat in the hall waiting.

During this time, she started pondering a question. These food items appeared out of nowhere, and their quantity was unknown.

If all of them were taken out, would another batch emerge? If so, would this spontaneous generation continue endlessly?

If these vegetables were truly inexhaustible, then another problem would arise: how should they be used?

If the quantity was too large, she would not be able to process them all into breakfast food in time. In that case, it would be better to supply them to supermarkets.

This way, she could add a wholesale vegetable business, while also easing the shortage of food and allowing the citizens of Ancheng to buy as many fresh vegetables as possible.

During that one hour, Lin You repeatedly thought through this matter.

For example, should she turn over the equipment in her shop to the city government?

While she was deep in thought, her former colleague Tong Lan sent her a WeChat message:

“Lin You, I’ve resigned. I accidentally injured my leg again today. Just got back from the hospital. It’ll take quite a while to recover… sigh, why is my luck always this bad…”

Tong Lan was Lin You’s closest colleague at her previous company.

In addition to work interactions, the two would often go shopping or have meals together in private.

Lin You was somewhat surprised by her sudden resignation and also worried about her health, so she replied, “I’ll come find you once I finish my work this afternoon.”

Not long after she sent the message, the man walked out of the laboratory with his hands in his pockets and said in a serious tone, “Lin You, right? Come over here.”

Lin You felt nervous. All the concerns she had been mulling over ultimately depended on whether the test results came back normal.

If the food was toxic or turned out to be one of the mutated plants related to the current wave of biological mutations, then the problem would be far more serious.

With some apprehension, she stood up and slowly followed the man into the lab.

He stopped in front of a row of lab instruments, took out a test tube filled with transparent liquid, and said expressionlessly, “None of these food samples contain harmful substances, but I did detect something strange.”

“What is it?” Lin You’s heart skipped a beat.

“Fuliqing. It’s extremely rare. It’s a healing factor. A small number of clinical medications that help with wound healing contain it. However, these medications are usually very expensive. Those available on the market cost over 4000 yuan per box.”

“Healing factor…” Lin You widened her eyes in surprise.

She had never thought that these ingredients might have such an effect.

The man looked at her and said, “I’m really curious. How did you manage to grow this stuff?”

Lin You quickly made up an excuse. “I didn’t grow it. A relative from far away mailed it to me.”

The man seemed half convinced and retracted his gaze, saying, “I’m only responsible for testing. I’m not supposed to ask about the source of a customer’s sample. But judging by your reaction just now, I suspect you’re not sure about where these things came from either.”

Lin You couldn’t help but admire his powers of observation and nodded slowly. “That’s right…”

After a moment of silence, the man said, “You mentioned earlier that these were only a portion of your food samples, which means you have more. Let me give you a reminder. Given the current circumstances, these could be put to better use, such as for the soldiers and civilians fighting zombies on the front line…”

Lin You acknowledged that and asked two more questions.

“If these vegetables are cooked at high temperatures, will they still have the same healing effect? Also, for people who have already become zombies, is there any possibility of reversing the condition?”

The man replied, “Once I found that the food had healing properties, I already tested it with heat. The healing factor didn’t disappear. Its effect is identical to fresh vegetables.”

“But the healing power is still limited. It works well on regular scrapes, bruises, and lacerations. You could say its effects are nearly equivalent to some expensive healing medications on the market. However, it cannot reverse zombification. That kind of case is nearly impossible to resolve.”

Lin You lowered her gaze slightly, feeling a bit down.

She thought of the man who came to buy breakfast that morning and the zombie growls that came from his phone.

She guessed that his family had likely been infected and turned into zombies. If there were a way to reverse it, there might still be hope…

But soon, Lin You looked up again and said, “It’s already more than enough. If its effects are equivalent to expensive healing medicine, that’s an unexpected surprise.”

The man nodded. Seeing that Lin You said “thank you” and was about to leave with a bag full of fruits and vegetables, he quickly called out to her.

“What is it? Is there something else?” Lin You turned around.

The man said, “Leave me your phone number. I think you’ll need me again. Also, next time you come, no need to make an appointment. Just call me directly.”

Lin You looked at him steadily. After a moment of hesitation, she gave him her number.

She also learned the man’s name—Fu Qingze.

After leaving the testing center, Lin You got into the driver’s seat, sent a WeChat message to Tong Lan, and immediately headed to her house.

The testing center wasn’t far from where Tong Lan lived. She arrived downstairs in less than twenty minutes.

Lin You turned to the back seat, took out yam and pork ribs from the bag, then headed into the entrance of her building.

After knocking on the door and waiting for a long time, Tong Lan finally opened it.

She had difficulty moving, standing on one leg while holding onto the door frame. She looked at Lin You with a big smile. “You didn’t have to bring food. It’s too polite just for a visit.”

Lin You quickly supported her and helped her to the sofa.

Once she sat down, Lin You lifted the yam and pork ribs in her hands and said, “I’m going to make you some yam pork rib soup to warm you up.”

Tong Lan said, “Take a break first, no need to rush. Besides, I still have a lot of food at home. I’ve got yam and pork ribs too. Just use mine.”

Lin You smiled. “My ingredients are a little different…”

She paused for a moment, then continued, “After I started preparing to open the shop, you got busier and busier. You haven’t had time to stop by. I’ve developed a lot of new dishes, but you haven’t had a chance to try them. Today I’ll let you taste my cooking again.”

Seeing that she couldn’t dissuade her, Tong Lan said, “Alright then, just don’t make too much. As long as it’s edible, it’s fine.”

Lin You nodded. “Don’t worry. At a time like this, we do have to eat sparingly.”

As she spoke, she was already in the kitchen, washing the yam and pork ribs.

Actually, Lin You wasn’t just showing off her cooking skills by making this yam pork rib soup.

More importantly, after the test results confirmed that the food contained a healing factor, she wanted Tong Lan to eat some as soon as possible. Maybe the injury from her fall would heal quickly.