Chapter 399: Orange Tree

Chapter 399: Chapter 399: Orange Tree

Amber Hale was the first to discover it, so she was pleasantly surprised. She didn’t mind when a few people got bold and sneakily picked one.

After all, a new one would just appear after one was picked.

She had never seen such a magical plant—a single tree with so many different varieties of oranges.

And after one was picked, a new, identical one would appear in its place immediately, as if it had never been touched.

She had been worried about what to do when all the oranges were eaten, or if she couldn’t keep the tree alive.

Lily Hart led Amber Hale into the RV, and Amber was surprised by how spacious it was inside.

After sitting down, she cut right to the chase. "Boss Hart, has anyone ever won a similar prize before?"

Lily Hart shook her head honestly. As far as she knew, no one had.

Amber Hale was a little disappointed and mumbled, "I was hoping to ask how to care for this tree, how to plant it. What if I end up killing it?"

Lily Hart didn’t know anything about planting trees either, but based on her understanding of the lottery shop...

"Don’t worry, this tree can’t die. Just find a patch of dirt and plant it. As long as you don’t do something crazy to hurt it, it should be fine," Lily Hart said confidently, offering her advice.

Hearing this, Amber Hale relaxed a little. "That’s good to hear."

"Can I ask what you were thinking before you scratched the ticket?" Lily Hart asked curiously.

Amber Hale was taken aback, but she answered truthfully. "I was just chanting in my head, ’I have to win, I have to win, I have to win. I absolutely have to win!’"

’Such a simple and unadorned wish.’

’The lottery gods must have seen it and decided to grant her a special blessing.’

After the small talk, Amber Hale started talking about the various shops under Lily Hart’s name. She had clearly done her homework.

She praised everything from the convenience store to the new Zhengxin Chicken Steak prize that had been won today.

She didn’t miss a single one. Finally, Amber Hale sighed with feeling, "It would be so wonderful if the base could have these shops every day..."

Lily Hart couldn’t help but nod in agreement, feeling a secret thrill. ’This Base Commander really knows how to talk.’

She felt the same way about Amber’s final sigh. She was also working toward that goal...

’I hope that after the next upgrade, there’ll be a function to copy all shops with one click, instead of only being able to copy one per day!!’

Lily Hart screamed at the system in her mind, [’Hey, did you hear me? You guys need to fix this! I’ve got all the money in the world; it’s your stupid rules that are holding me back!’]

The system remained silent.

Once she had that function, she would copy everything for every base. CLICK CLICK CLICK, just like that.

’That’s how it should be. One a day? Who are you looking down on?’

Just thinking about it felt amazing. After yelling at the system, Lily Hart went back to chatting with Amber Hale.

The two of them got along surprisingly well. On a whim, Lily Hart invited Amber Hale to stay for dinner.

Amber Hale gladly accepted. She had seen posts online about how incredible the food at Boss Hart’s place was, so good that you could die without regrets after eating it once.

When platter after platter of substantial dishes was brought to the table, Amber Hale couldn’t help but gape.

Dinner was beef hot pot. It was just something Lily Hart had casually mentioned last night, but someone had taken it to heart.

As dinnertime approached, they had come clamoring to prepare the ingredients.

Because there were a lot of people, Lily Hart had bought over ten pounds of freshly sliced beef, as well as tripe, beef meatballs, vegetables, and more...

In any case, the table was laden with food, definitely enough for everyone.

Amber Hale was dumbfounded, but as the Base Commander, she tried her best to hide it, wanting to maintain an appearance of someone who had seen the world.

But as people kept bringing out more dishes from the kitchen, Amber Hale finally couldn’t hold back anymore.

She quietly asked Cynthia Whittaker, who ran the hot pot restaurant, "Do you guys always eat like this?"

Having been around Lily Hart for a while, Cynthia Whittaker was used to it. She replied matter-of-factly, "Yeah, always. We’re all adults, and we work hard all day, so we have big appetites."

Amber Hale swallowed hard. She could tell that everyone had huge appetites, but Lily Hart wasn’t stingy at all.

She always told everyone to eat their fill, to eat to their hearts’ content.

Finally, it was time to eat. Amber Hale’s stomach had already been growling for several rounds.

Freshly sliced beef had to be cooked and eaten right away; it couldn’t stay in the pot for too long.

There were three pots in total, each with a large strainer basket resting on top.

First, you’d place the beef in the large strainer, then lower the whole thing into the pot. After swishing it around for about ten seconds, you had to take it out.

It would then be left resting on the pot, where the billowing steam kept it from getting cold too quickly.

Piles of delicious beef were casually placed on the strainers.

Whoever wanted some could just help themselves.

Lily Hart didn’t hold back, picking up a piece with her chopsticks and dipping it into her special-blend sauce.

Then, with a big bite, she ate it. OM NOM. Delicious, so delicious! Every slice of beef was incredibly fresh. It was coated in sauce, but you could still taste a hint of milky flavor from the beef itself.

’Ah...’ Lily Hart sighed in contentment. She picked up another piece, dipped it, and popped it into her mouth, all in one smooth motion.

After eating the beef, she added some baby napa cabbage to the pot, which was also exceptionally sweet.

Amber Hale had heard Lily Hart’s "eat your fill, eat to your heart’s content" before the meal, so she didn’t stand on ceremony.

She ate without even wanting to lift her head, completely uninterested in the chatter around her. Her mind was filled with only one thought: EAT EAT EAT!

’This is a once-in-a-lifetime chance,’ she thought. ’It’s now or never.’

’I have to eat as much as I can!’

By the end of the meal, Amber Hale felt "full" for the first time in a long while.

Even when her body was sending warning signals, Amber Hale was reluctant to put down her chopsticks. She took a short break, and once she felt a little less stuffed, she started putting more beef into her mouth.

Her behavior wasn’t out of place; everyone else was also focused on eating, only chatting occasionally.

After the meal, Amber Hale sat in her chair, not wanting to move.

’Who understands this feeling? It’s been so, so, so long since I’ve felt this stuffed!’

Seeing everyone start to clear the table on their own, Amber Hale pushed herself up with the back of her chair, wanting to lend a hand.

Seeing her, Lily Hart couldn’t help but laugh. "What’s wrong? Ate too much?"

Amber Hale pursed her lips, thinking Lily Hart was about to laugh at her. She braced herself for it.

But unexpectedly, she said, "If you’re stuffed, just sit and rest for a bit. Don’t go wandering around. Wait until you’re not so full, then get up and walk it off."

Amber Hale was deeply moved. She sat right back down and started chatting about this and that with Lily Hart.

People came and went in front of them, and within a few minutes, the dining table was cleared and spotless.

Amber Hale glanced at the time, decided she should head back to the base, and exchanged contact information with Lily Hart.

She went to the orange tree, stroking its trunk with extreme care.

She said quietly in her heart: ’My treasure, let’s go home.’

Suddenly, two options appeared before her: Move, Shrink.

Amber Hale subconsciously chose Shrink, and the orange tree, as if by magic, shrank to the size of her palm.

She was delighted. ’I was just worrying about how to get this back. This is perfect. I’ll just put it in my pocket.’

Amber Hale returned to the base, completely satisfied, and enlarged the orange tree to plant it in her yard.

She watched it for a long while, afraid that it might wither from not being able to adapt. If that happened, she’d have to hurry and pick all the fruit.

Half an hour later, the orange tree was still perfectly fine. A breeze blew past, and its leaves swayed gently a couple of times.

It was as if it was responding to Amber Hale.

As if sensing it, Amber Hale laughed freely. She patted the trunk before heading back inside.

Back in the lottery shop, Lily Hart was also completely satisfied from the meal. She hadn’t managed to get up and walk around to aid her digestion as she’d planned, either.