Chapter 540: Bargains and Boundaries: The Wolf’s Share

The clever Brain-Evolved Wolf realized the magnifying glass was made of the same material as the windowpane. Now it was curious, studying the difference between glass and the magnifying lens.

But honestly, figuring out that difference would be tough for even a smart wolf.

Xia Qing set the seed-soaking basin beside the fireplace to keep its water from freezing, wiped her hands clean, then picked up the magnifying glass from the short table and moved to the window. She wanted the Crippled Wolf to see the difference up close. “The magnifying glass and the window glass look similar, but they’re not the same. The lens bulges outward—see, it’s curved—while the window glass is flat.”

Xia Qing took hold of Crippled Wolf’s front paw, guiding it to feel the flat, smooth surface of the glass, then the convex curve of the magnifying lens. Once the wolf started exploring the textures with its own paw, Xia Qing went to check on the rabbit—no point letting the Queen’s takeout get burned.

Once the rabbit was roasted perfectly—crispy outside, juicy inside—Xia Qing quickly wrapped it up with practiced hands. The ever-curious Crippled Wolf noticed the rabbit was ready and, losing interest in glass vs. lens, bared its little fangs at Xia Qing in a cheeky grin, signaling it was time to leave.

Xia Qing held up the magnifying glass, trying to strike a deal. “Handsome Crippled Wolf, this magnifying glass is pretty nice, right? For one Yi Stone, it’s yours. But listen—it’s dangerous. If you use it wrong, you could accidentally start a fire. So if you want to trade, you’ll still have to leave it here in my territory, just like you do with your laptop.”

After a little back and forth, Xia Qing made sure Crippled Wolf understood the offer, but judging from the wolf’s expression, it clearly wasn’t interested in trading for the magnifying glass.

Life isn’t easy, and being a middleman’s even harder. Xia Qing sighed, leading Crippled Wolf down to the toolshed on the first floor. She pointed to the generator bike inside. “Crippled Wolf, this is the generator bike you traded for. Want to take it with you this time? Or should I deliver it? For a Yi Stone this size, I’ll even set it up at your place.”

But to her surprise, Crippled Wolf wanted her to haul the bike upstairs and leave it next to the cabinet by the laptop.

Xia Qing understood what the wolf meant. That cabinet belonged to Crippled Wolf, so putting the generator bike beside it was a way of saying the bike was its property, too.

Although, Xia Qing couldn’t see much point in that.

She asked, “So, Crippled Wolf, you traded for a generator bike but you’re not installing it in the Section Three Wolf Den, and you’re not taking it back to Hill Sixty? You just want it here?”

Crippled Wolf squatted by its personal cabinet, rabbit in tow, and flashed an adorable grin, showing off its little pointed fangs.

It was so cute Xia Qing couldn’t help but laugh, too. “Fine, you’re the buyer—you get to say where it goes.”

After Crippled Wolf left, Xia Qing switched on the lord communicator, keeping tabs on the construction crew and the inspection teams.

Today, the crew started with the signal tower on the southern end of the territory, so no one would be near Section Three. While the crops in Territory Four, Five, Six, and Ten far outnumbered Xia Qing’s own, the inspection teams spent barely half as much time in those territories as they did in Section Three.

It was obvious Zhou Qianpeng and his group were here for Xia Qing’s land. More specifically, they were after the Green Light Spinach growing inside her territory.

After lunch, Xia Qing double-checked that Zhou Qianpeng’s team and the others had already driven back to the Safe Zone. Then she set out for Hill Forty-Nine to join the training session.

She waited near the Northern Gate for Hu Zifeng’s Squad to show up and guard the territory. Just then, the Inspection Team’s Cao Xianyun and Su Ming drove past Section Three’s northern entrance in their patrol car.

Su Ming hopped out and hurried over, grumbling, “Zhou Qianpeng’s team checked a total of six territories. Unlike your place, all they did in the others was sample a veggie or two—barely any real inspection. Qing, I think they’re targeting you.”

Xia Qing nodded. “I trade with Territory Seven a lot, so Territory Two and Territory Nine have always been suspicious. They think the produce here is better quality. They’ve tried to poke around a bunch of times, and now that they finally got inside legally, of course they went all-out checking everything.”

Cao Xianyun, who was driving, nodded. “It’s not the thief you should worry about, but the thief who won’t stop eyeing your stuff. Let’s hope they’ll give it a rest after this check.”

Xia Qing asked, “Do you know anything about that Chai Shuling who’s with Zhou Qianpeng’s team?”

According to the credentials, Chai Shuling is supposed to be an assistant researcher with Hui Three’s Territory Management Department. But from what Xia Qing had observed, there absolutely had to be more to her—otherwise the ever-snobbish Zhou Qianpeng wouldn’t be taking her lead.

Su Ming shook his head. “She’s a recent transfer, far as I know. Never heard of her before.”

Cao Xianyun did remember something. “That Li Chang, I’ve seen her in the Safe Zone before. She had a yellow badge on her then.”

For someone that young to land an internship at the Research Institute, she’d either need an inside connection, or she worked so hard she’s already established herself in her field.

Looks like Xia Qing needed to dig deeper into the backgrounds of both Chai Shuling and Li Chang.

Su Ming hesitated before blurting out, “Qing, that Zhou Qianpeng might look the part but he’s no good. If he tries to set you up with anyone, trust me, he’s got an ulterior motive.”

Xia Qing, these days, had more than just her lord title. She had three powerful identities stacked on top: Advanced Strength-Based Evolution, Sniper, and the administrator of the Hill Fifty test zone.

As far as Su Ming knew, plenty of people were scheming to get close to Xia Qing.

Xia Qing nodded. “Yeah. I’ve run into him a few times in the Safe Zone before.”

Su Ming visibly relaxed, then winked at her and whispered, “Qing, if you ever dump Hu Zifeng and want someone else, just let me know. Whatever type you want, I’ll find one that fits—guaranteed satisfaction!”

Xia Qing just smiled, not taking Su Ming’s words to heart.

Why bother dating anyone? She already had allies and food. Instead of wasting time on romance, she’d rather use it to train and get stronger.

With a higher combat power, she could protect what she had and hunt for more.

Chen Cheng from Hu Zifeng’s Squad came over to take guard duty, grinning as he spoke to Xia Qing. “Qing, Er Yong’s training with you at Hill Forty-Nine today. He wanted me to ask you a favor—if luck isn’t on his side and you two end up in different groups, could you let him last a bit longer out there?”

Er Yong was a Speed Evolver—a primary target whenever Xia Qing joined sniper drills at Hill Forty-Nine. According to Azure Dragon Squad’s training rules, the first few eliminated in the losing group got the heaviest punishments. Er Yong’s workload was already brutal; if they piled on more, he’d probably end up rolling down the mountain.

Xia Qing agreed and made her way through Section Three on Hill Forty-Nine, cleared security, and slung her sniper rifle as she stepped into the training zone for today’s live exercise.