bookbashuk Chapter 48: Hatching at any time
Chapter 48: Hatching at any time
early morning.
The brother and sister went out in the sunshine and followed the navigation on their phones for two blocks before arriving at the nearest nursery—"Morning Light Nursery".
Lin Chong looked up at the signboard and still remembered that it belonged to Chen Xi's family and that he even had a black card with it.
As I pushed open the door, the receptionist greeted me with a smile and said, "Welcome."
Lin Chong placed the insulated box containing the elf eggs on the table, took out the black card Chen Xi had given him from his pocket, and said simply.
"I have your card, can I get a discount?"
There happened to be a customer nearby, who glanced over instinctively and was immediately shocked when he saw the black card in Lin Chong's hand.
This is the highest-level VIP card issued only when you spend 20 RMB annually at Chenguang Nursery. Although the conditions are not strict, all holders are from the middle class or above.
This young man came up with his black card and immediately asked if there were any discounts. He's really unconventional...
Lin Chong was completely unaware that he had been treated with awe. He saw the receptionist's expression momentarily surprised, then her smile deepened.
She bowed respectfully and said, "Yes, sir. Holders of black cards enjoy a 20% discount on all items and are entitled to view or purchase our highest-spec elves."
Lin Chong nodded: "I need to have a Pokémon egg appraised. Please arrange it for me."
"Please wait a moment."
The young lady bowed again, and the next moment, two handsome young men came over and steadily carried the egg down.
While waiting for the identification, Lin Chong accompanied Xiao Xi to browse the Pokémon section.
Morning Light Breeding is a large-scale facility. Walking along the corridor, you can see "Elf Huts" with different environments. In almost every hut, you can see several guests planning to buy famous elves.
Xiaoxi's eyes lit up as she went back and forth between the different areas, teaching as if she were visiting a zoo, occasionally letting out exclamations of surprise.
Lin Chong followed behind her and looked at the price list of several Pokémon—none of them were less than 10,000. Compared to the Federation Trading Platform, the Pokémon in the Breeding House were of higher quality and more expensive.
Although he currently has 200,000, he is not in a hurry to find more Pokémon and there is no need for him to force a purchase.
Nearly twenty minutes had passed, and the identification should have been completed by now, but Lin Chong decided to accompany Xiao Xi for another stroll.
The two walked through the last ordinary area in the corridor and were just about to go up to the "VIP" area on the second floor when Lin Chong inadvertently caught a glimpse of a somewhat familiar figure in that area.
"That's... Zou Xiaoyun?"
Lin Chong hadn't intended to greet her, but unexpectedly, Xiao Yun turned around and met his gaze.
Lin Chong smiled and waved his hand, immediately noticing Xiao Yun's red and swollen eyes, as if she had been crying all night.
Strangely, despite the hot weather today, Zou Xiaoyun was still wearing long sleeves and trousers, just like Lin Chong saw her in the gymnasium yesterday.
Xiaoyun was also taken aback when she saw Lin Chong. She forced a smile and waved, "What a coincidence!"
Xiaoxi peeked out from behind Lin Chong, looking curiously at Zou Xiaoyun, but her heart was inexplicably fluttering. She subconsciously thought—when this older sister smiles, the corners of her eyes turn down.
She was very familiar with this expression—it was the same smile she had when her father had called her a "beast" and she had forced herself to tell Lin Chong that everything was alright.
At that moment, a thought inexplicably surfaced in Xiaoxi's mind—this older sister in front of her might be the same as she and her brother in the past.
"That's quite a coincidence."
Lin Chong nodded, not intending to meddle, but unexpectedly Xiao Xi took the initiative to go in and greet Xiao Yun.
"Hello, sister, are you my brother's friend? You're so pretty! I'm his sister, Lin Xiaoxi!"
Seeing Xiaoxi approach, Xiaoyun hurriedly wiped her eyes, forcing a smile as if to hide her embarrassment: "Hello, hello..."
To Lin Chong's surprise, the two of them started chatting about the sprites in the area, and the atmosphere seemed quite harmonious.
Is this what they mean by "female friends who hit it off instantly become besties"?
Lin Chong found it somewhat amusing. He guessed that Xiao Xi had been staying at the Xianzhong Martial Arts Hall for the past month and hadn't spoken to any girls her age for a long time, so he tactfully said something.
"Xiaoxi, you play here for a while, I'll go check if the appraisal is done yet."
Xiaoxi responded, and Lin Chong left.
After he left, the two girls chatted more pleasantly and naturally. Xiaoyun never expected that she would have such a pleasant conversation with a high school girl, and even the sorrow in her heart was lessened a bit.
Just as she was enthusiastically explaining some knowledge about elves to Xiaoxi, the latter suddenly grabbed her hands and said seriously.
"Sister Xiaoyun, are you very unhappy right now?"
Xiaoyun froze, staring at Xiaoxi, her lips moving but no sound coming out.
All that could be heard was Lin Xiaoxi's gentle yet inexplicably soothing voice.
"It's okay, Sister Xiaoyun. You can tell me what's bothering you. Talking about your unhappiness will make you feel much better."
-
VIP meeting room
Lin Chong looked at the identification personnel from Chenguang Cultivation with a puzzled expression and asked.
"You mean, this egg can't be identified as a specific species?"
"How could this happen? Aren't you professionals?"
Across the luxuriously decorated guest table, the appraiser looked somewhat embarrassed as he explained.
"Rest assured, we are absolutely professional."
"I just don't know why, this egg is a bit special..."
"We have never seen its color and texture on the market before. It may contain a dangerous spirit that cannot be controlled by humans."
"Right now, we can only judge based on the patterns and experience; this egg might be a Ghost or Dragon type..."
The term "dangerous Pokémon" refers to special Pokémon that humans have not yet found a way to tame.
Most of them are Ghost and Illusion types. They are not friendly to humans and are rare in number, so their eggs are even rarer.
Lin Chong stroked his chin, thought for a moment, and asked, "Then can you give a rough estimate of when this egg will hatch?"
"This is acceptable," the appraiser nodded. "This egg is very viable and could hatch at any time within the next two weeks."
Within half a month? That's pretty fast. I should be able to get through the awkward freshman period before school starts.
Lin Chong temporarily placed the egg on the front desk and then walked along the corridor looking for the stream.
Upon reaching the innermost area, Xiaoxi and Xiaoyun remained inside, but for some reason, they were embracing each other, and faint sobs could be heard.
Lin Chong's mind went blank for a moment, thinking he had misread it. When he walked into the area and approached the two people, he couldn't help but ask in astonishment.
"What's going on with you guys? Talking about Pokémon... and you're crying?"
Hearing the commotion, the two quickly separated. Xiaoyun's eyes were even more swollen, and even Xiaoxi's eyes were full of tears, clearly indicating that she had just had a good cry.
Xiao Yun wiped her eyes, too embarrassed to look at Lin Chong, and squeezed her way out, saying, "I'll go look somewhere else."
The brother and sister left behind looked at each other. Lin Chong took out a tissue and handed it to them, asking curiously, "What's wrong? What were you talking about?"
The little stream sobbed, refusing to tell Lin Chong, but instead pleading while holding his hand.
"Brother, can you help Sister Xiaoyun?"
Lin Chong asked, puzzled, "How can I help?"
"It's like what you did at the dojo, helping Sister Yun train her Pokémon as a sparring partner..."
"She wants to be a key player on the college team, but her skills are still a little lacking, which is very important to her..."
Lin Chong looked at the stream and pondered for a long time. Combining the various traits he had previously discovered in Xiao Yun, he vaguely made a guess.
He looked at the stream and said, "Okay, I promise you, I'll try my best to help her."
Being a sparring partner is time-consuming and thankless, but Lin Chong happens to know a shortcut for Zou Xiaoyun that can help her improve her skills easily.