Chapter 319: Lin Yan Asks for Moonlight Grass Again

"Mark your calendar. The date is set for next Saturday. We’ll send the invitation to Minister Yan then."

They’d had the date picked out ever since getting the approval, but since it was still a ways off, Mei Lin hadn’t made any announcements.

But since Yan Shutang had come to ask, Yun Zijin didn’t mind explaining why they hadn’t broken ground yet.

"Okay, as long as there’s a firm date. That way, I’ll have something to tell Mr. Tang when I get back."

Otherwise, he’d be facing a barrage of frantic calls every day. No one could possibly put up with that.

Having gotten the answer he wanted, Yan Shutang left the Network Security Center shortly after.

Yun Zijin, however, was asked to stay by the Network Security Center’s minister, Ren Baisheng.

The last time Yun Zijin and Yan Shutang were at the Network Security Center testing the security system, he’d already set his sights on it.

It was just that Yan Shutang had been there at the time, so he had been too embarrassed to mention it.

Now that Yan Shutang was gone, Ren Baisheng decided to make his move.

"Minister Ren, is there something you need?"

"Miss Yun, that security system you tested here last time... I was wondering, are you thinking of selling it?"

’He wasn’t expecting to get his hands on the core data, but surely he could buy it and have it installed at the center, right?’

"I’m afraid that won’t work. That’s a security system Mei Lin custom-made specifically for Mr. Tang’s lab. My agreement with Mr. Tang already specifies that this system is to be provided exclusively for his lab’s use."

Of course, Yun Zijin wouldn’t turn down money, but she had offered Mr. Tang quite a few concessions to get permission to build her own manor.

Even though he had anticipated this outcome, Ren Baisheng was still very disappointed to hear Yun Zijin’s refusal.

"If you really want a security system, Minister Ren, you could contact Mei Lin. If you make her a good enough offer, she might be able to build a custom system for you."

’Of course, motivating Mei Lin with material offers was no easy task.’

"Really? Can you speak for Mei Lin?"

Ren Baisheng figured that if they just had an employer-employee relationship, Mei Lin wouldn’t necessarily listen to Yun Zijin.

"As long as it’s something I agree to, Mei Lin generally won’t refuse."

Respecting Yun Zijin was the most important part of Mei Lin’s programming. Mei Lin would almost unconditionally carry out any suggestion Yun Zijin proposed.

Ren Baisheng gave Yun Zijin a skeptical look. Though he suspected she was exaggerating, he ultimately decided to give it a try.

"Alright, could you please give me her contact information? I’ll get in touch with her."

Mei Lin hadn’t come along today, and Ren Baisheng didn’t have her contact information, so he could only ask Yun Zijin for it.

Yun Zijin took one of Mei Lin’s business cards from her purse and handed it to Ren Baisheng.

"This is her business card."

Once he had Mei Lin’s business card, Ren Baisheng immediately headed back to his office to make the call.

’So, I’m just the delivery girl for business cards, huh?’

But Yun Zijin didn’t dwell on it, leading Zero One and the others toward the entrance of the center.

On the way, however, she ran into Lin Yan—the man who had so earnestly recruited Zero One and the others for help.

Lin Yan was surprised to see Yun Zijin at first, but he quickly composed himself. Then, as if remembering something, he walked up to greet her.

"Miss Yun."

"Mr. Lin, long time no see."

Her and Lin Yan’s social circles were completely different. If Minister Yan hadn’t invited her over, they probably wouldn’t have had the chance to meet again.

"The relevant departments planted the Moonlight Grass Seeds I got from your neighborhood last time. They put them in the greenbelts along certain roads in Dijing, and they’ve had a remarkable effect on improving air quality.

The Imperial City Government learned of our experiment,

and now a lot of people have been coming to me for another batch of seeds. They want to plant Moonlight Grass in all of the Imperial City’s greenbelts. I was wondering... do you have any more?

And don’t worry, this won’t be for free. Just name your price."

’It wasn’t his money, after all. Lin Yan was just the messenger.’

’The reason they came to him was likely because the government officials preferred to stick with their original point of contact.’

After all, he was the one who had gotten the Moonlight Grass from Yun Zijin to begin with.

"You need Moonlight Grass Seeds?"

If Lin Yan hadn’t brought it up, Yun Zijin would have almost forgotten she’d ever gotten Moonlight Grass Seeds from her system.

"Yes, it’s not just the people from the City Government who want them; the people from the Agricultural Research Institute want them too."

"I don’t know if I have any more. I’ll have to check when I get back."

’Besides, she had given him ten packs for free last time because he’d given her an invitation to the conference and ultimately helped her with the permit issue.’

’This time, however, there was nothing she wanted from him. If Lin Yan wanted Moonlight Grass Seeds, he would have to pay for them.’

’Giving them away for free was out of the question. Yun Zijin might be rich, but she wasn’t a saint.’

"Sure. Please let me know what you find out, so I can get back to the people at the Agricultural Research Institute and the City Government."

Yun Zijin nodded. "Got it. I won’t keep you waiting."

’She could rummage through her system’s inventory as soon as she got in the car.’

Yun Zijin’s system inventory had just about everything; she herself had no idea how many strange and wonderful things were inside.

After finishing their talk about the Moonlight Grass, Yun Zijin didn’t delay and left the Network Security Center with Zero One and the others.

After getting into the car, Yun Zijin began rummaging through her system inventory. Sure enough, tucked away in some forgotten corner, she found a whole pile of Moonlight Grass Seeds.

Moreover, besides the Moonlight Grass Seeds, Yun Zijin also found many other types of plant seeds.

For example: Fire Tree Seeds, Ice Tree Seeds...

In any case, she had never seen any of them before.

There were a total of 50 packs of Moonlight Grass Seeds, each containing 2,000 seeds. Yun Zijin decided to give them all to Lin Yan tomorrow. Then, she took out one pack each of the Fire Tree Seeds and Ice Tree Seeds—the two she was most curious about. She planned to plant them as soon as she got back to Xingyu Mansion to see what they would grow into.

Only Yun Zijin and her bodyguards were in the car, so she didn’t bother being discreet when pulling things from her system inventory. As expected, neither Zero One nor Ling Qi reacted at all when the items materialized in her hands.

Upon finally returning to Xingyu Mansion, Yun Zijin, clutching the Fire Tree and Ice Tree seeds, went to the tool shed for a small trowel. She then headed to the garden behind the villa, picked two open spots on the lawn, and started digging.

The moment Yun Zijin went to the tool shed for a shovel, Wang Minli knew something was up.

She followed along beside Yun Zijin, watching her laboriously dig a hole.

"Miss, are you planting something?"

Thanks to the Moonlight Grass incident, Wang Minli was already used to Yun Zijin’s unusual activities.

"Yes, I got some new seeds. I thought I’d plant them and see what they do."

’I just have no idea what they’ll look like when they sprout.’

"Let me do that, Miss. You just get the seeds and a watering can ready."

The villa’s landscaping was professionally designed, and now Yun Zijin had dug a hole right in the middle of the lawn.

But it was the lady of the house’s decision, so Wang Minli had no objections. In fact, she was even "aiding and abetting" the endeavor.