Ruan Qiao took the remaining half box of strawberries out of the refrigerator.
Although she already knew that people in this world survived on nutrition liquids and that fresh fruit might be hard to come by, she never intended to keep it all for herself.
After all, who could bear to refuse these little cuties?
Even though Ruan Qiao was afraid of fur, it didn’t mean she didn’t love them.
Since the strawberries had been washed beforehand, she set them aside and went to the bathroom sink to clean the peaches.
The little ones sat obediently on the cushions in the living room, just as they had in the morning.
Even though the strawberries were placed on the table right beside them and their eyes were filled with longing, they were extremely polite and didn’t reach out to take any.
Although Ruan Qiao stayed in the bedroom, she could still hear 001’s wheels rolling into the room through the sound of running water.
Before she could go out, she heard its exasperated voice calling again.
“You may not disturb the director’s rest. Please leave!”
“You may not disturb the director’s rest. Please leave immediately!”
Ruan Qiao was speechless. She didn’t understand how a robot could convey such strong emotion.
She didn’t know who had programmed this command for 001, but it was clearly intended for a severely ill Ella.
At that time, Ella must have needed complete rest.
Ruan Qiao carried the washed peaches out, patted 001’s small white head, and said, “Alright, no more nagging. That command is canceled from today. From now on, they can come to me directly if they need anything. You are not allowed to stop them.”
Then, jokingly, she held out a dripping peach in front of the robot and asked, “Do you want to try it?”
It was just a playful comment to lighten the mood.
Although this little one was just a robot, she still wasn’t used to giving orders casually.
It made her feel a little awkward.
What Ruan Qiao didn’t expect, however, was that when 001 saw the peach, it didn’t refuse. Instead, a bright red light suddenly appeared on its facial screen.
It was clearly scanning the peach she held from every angle.
Ruan Qiao was momentarily stunned, not quite understanding what was happening.
Before she could even ask, 001 had finished scanning.
Then she heard the familiar mechanical voice report a string of data.
“Peach, Rosaceae family, Prunus genus, spherical edible fruit. Flesh is soft and juicy, easy to peel when ripe, taste is sweet…”
Ruan Qiao was completely confused, not understanding what it was doing.
Then 001 continued, “Ranked seventh on the government’s fruit and vegetable procurement list, today’s procurement price is 120 Star Credits each…”
“W-wait!” Ruan Qiao’s heart skipped a beat. She immediately interrupted, instinctively ordering, “Repeat what you just said.”
“Today’s procurement price is 120 Star Credits each.”
Ruan Qiao quickly withdrew her hand from the peach. Excited, she almost squeezed the juice out of it.
She rushed to the table and picked up the half box of strawberries, holding it out to 001. “Scan this next.”
001 obediently directed its red scanning light toward the box.
“Strawberry, perennial herbaceous plant, fruit mostly bright red, strong antioxidant properties…”
Ruan Qiao patiently listened through the encyclopedic description, finally waiting for the most important line: “Ranked fourth on the government’s fruit and vegetable procurement list, today’s procurement price is 80 Star Credits each.”
Bang!
Ruan Qiao’s legs went weak, and she collapsed onto the cushion.
Even though she had been mentally prepared, she still didn’t expect the fruits to be so valuable.
One strawberry at 80 Star Credits, a box of twelve would be 960 Star Credits.
The annual food tax was only 5,000 Star Credits, meaning just over sixty fruits could cover it.
So if she could grow them, this huge problem could be solved quickly!
Ruan Qiao was so excited she almost laughed out loud.
Forcing herself to calm down, she immediately got up and ran to the refrigerator, taking out two cucumbers.
Earlier, she had seen cucumber-flavored nutritional liquid in the “One-Day Menu.” Cucumber was just cucumber, after all, so this must also be something originally from Planet 0813.
Maybe it would be bought as well.
Sure enough, after 001 scanned it, it reported the purchase price: “…Today’s procurement price is 60 Star Credits per kilogram.”
Oh, so they even use kilograms here. Ruan Qiao had assumed all the fruits and vegetables were priced per piece.
She clicked her tongue with a hint of regret, but even so, her heart was bursting with joy, as if she had seen a brilliant ray of hope.
At noon, she had been too tired and went to sleep after drinking that nutritional liquid, without looking at the pile of data 001 had sent her.
Now, she was determined to go through all of it as soon as possible, and also check where there might be agricultural supply markets to buy tools and materials for planting.
The numbers 001 reported clearly shocked the little creatures.
They all sat up straight, looking utterly stunned.
The big tails that had wagged wildly when Ruan Qiao brought out the peaches now froze in midair. Even with the scanned fruits right in front of them, not a single one dared to approach for a taste.
Seeing that Ruan Qiao didn’t give further instructions, 001 asked, “Master, do you need me to contact a courier to pick up the goods? The fresher these fruits and vegetables, the higher the selling price.”
“Besides courier pickup, are there fixed procurement points? I want to see them myself,” Ruan Qiao asked, not answering 001’s question but turning it around.
“There are. Each list includes the procurement addresses.”
“Good,” Ruan Qiao nodded.
She glanced at the strawberries on the table and then at 001. “Can you get me something sharp, like a needle?”
“One moment.”
001 didn’t ask what she needed it for. It simply agreed and turned to leave.
“Also get some clean paper towels and an empty plate,” Ruan Qiao added.
After 001 left, she took out the fruit knife she had brought with her, planning to cut the peaches into smaller pieces for the little ones.
But before the knife even touched the peaches, the little creatures all gasped sharply, then started squeaking and chirping frantically.
The big cat closest to Ruan Qiao, seeing she didn’t understand, let out a meow and leapt straight onto her, its posture—
It was almost as if it was trying to snatch the knife from her hand.
The Maine Coon was already huge, and this one was definitely at the top of the bunch.
On all fours, it nearly reached Ruan Qiao’s waist. When it stood up, it was easily taller than her!
Completely unprepared, Ruan Qiao was pinned to the ground by the little creature, her entire head pressed under its soft, fluffy belly.
The long, soft fur covered her nose and face, making it hard to breathe and almost suffocating her.
Fuming, Ruan Qiao slapped the big cat’s rear hard. With a startled meow, it quickly jumped aside, then crouched in the corner, licking its fur while giving her the most pitiful, aggrieved look imaginable.
Ruan Qiao sat up, quickly brushed her face to remove all the fur stuck everywhere, then spat out the hair she had accidentally eaten and let out a long sigh.
Seeing the big cat’s behavior, she was so exasperated she almost rolled her eyes right out of her head.
Finally, unable to resist, she got up, went over, and gave that big head another firm pat, scolding, “Do you have any idea how heavy you are? Pressing down like that, were you trying to crush me to death?”
“Meow? Meow meow!”
The big cat clearly hadn’t considered that, and upon hearing Ruan Qiao’s words, it frantically meowed in panic.
The other little ones, having heard her scolding, seemed to suddenly understand what this big one had done, and they all swarmed over, launching a full-on group attack on the Maine Coon.
The lop-eared rabbit, taking advantage of being about the same size as the big cat, jumped onto its back and started punching and kicking it, while the little squirrel leapt onto its head, tugging relentlessly at the soft pointed ears.
The little quail pecked and scrambled over the big cat like it was a pile of grain, and even the hedgehog curled into a ball and rolled onto its feet.
The Maine Coon let out a string of pleading meows but obediently stayed put, not daring to move a muscle, letting its tiny companions attack. It was as if it understood it had done something wrong and accepted the punishment.
Ruan Qiao didn’t expect the little ones to act like this; it was both frustrating and amusing to watch.
She stood up, pulled the lop-eared rabbit off the big cat’s back, and then commanded the others to return to their spots before going back to the bedroom to wash her face.
When she came out again, she sat opposite the little ones, gathered them around, and said, “I understand what you’re thinking. I know you don’t want to eat it all, you want to save it to trade for money.”
She paused for a moment, looking at the little group in front of her, feeling a mix of tenderness and affection.
Her voice softened as she continued, “Earning money is for the adults to worry about. You little ones don’t need to think about that. Your job is to eat well, drink well, and take care of your bodies.”
She hadn’t forgotten Ella’s instructions.
Even though she hadn’t yet figured out exactly how secondary transformations worked, it was clear that this was extremely important for the little ones.
So, the money could be earned later, but the little ones’ health had to come first. Ruan Qiao wasn’t about to risk the bigger picture for minor concerns.
After saying this, she cut the peaches into pieces and distributed them to everyone.
Each little one ate quietly, savoring every small bite of their portion.
It wasn’t as noisy as it had been in the morning, and no one made a deliberate effort to come up to Ruan Qiao to seek attention.
Yet everyone could feel that the atmosphere among them had changed, there was a new sense of closeness and harmony that hadn’t been there before.