As the contractor of the third-floor cafeteria in Third Academy, Fang Mingtang rarely showed up—only about once every half month—unless there were important guests to accompany.
Since the beginning of the contract, the cafeteria had been running at a loss. But Fang Mingtang didn’t care. He took over the cafeteria not to make money, but to build connections and expand his network. Losing a bit of money didn’t matter.
Because of this positioning, he had tacitly allowed the dispute over ingredients between Liang Quan and Manager Fang. There were things he couldn’t say directly—having Liang Quan step in ensured food quality while preserving family ties.
Originally, Fang Mingtang had planned to come tomorrow for a dinner with the academy’s principal.
That dinner was extremely important—there was no room for error.
So after receiving a message from Sister Chen, he decided to come in person to take a look.
He calmly sat in Liang Quan’s previous seat and turned to Boss Zhao on his left, extending his hand.
“Hello, Boss Zhao. I’m Fang Mingtang, the cafeteria contractor. I came without informing you in advance—hope you don’t mind?”
In the Jiangnan Base’s catering industry, Fang Mingtang was among the very best.
Boss Zhao had just arrived and needed his cooperation. Even if he felt displeased, he suppressed it and smiled.
“Not at all. Perfect timing, actually. Why don’t you judge—how does my company’s produce compare to this young lady’s?”
Hearing this, Manager Fang finally steadied himself. Looking at the lettuce in his hand, the last trace of guilt vanished.
Boss Zhao’s produce had all the proper certifications—no real issues there. On the other hand, this student’s vegetables had clearly changed in taste. Their instability was undeniable.
“Boss, it’s not that I didn’t call you—it just wasn’t necessary,” Manager Fang said helplessly, gesturing at the lettuce. “Take a look. This is what Chef Liang recommended.”
He sighed and added righteously, “Students are still just students. The crops they grow are unstable. I can’t possibly serve something like this at a formal banquet.”
His words were full of disdain for Jiang Luokui. She remained calm—but Liang Quan couldn’t tolerate someone attacking a kid like that.
He stepped forward angrily. “Boss, I happened to see this at Sister Chen’s place! When I tasted it yesterday, it was perfectly fine!”
He had never heard of vegetables mutating after being harvested!
Why this lettuce had gone bad—someone here clearly knew the answer.
Manager Fang shrugged lightly. “What’s the point of glaring at me, Chef Liang? Who knows if you’re just lying?”
That nearly made Liang Quan want to slap him.
Before things escalated, Fang Mingtang spoke up.
“Enough. Whether the ingredients are good or not—I’ll judge after tasting them.”
He pinched off a tender leaf, intending to taste the student’s produce.
At that moment, Jiang Luokui, who had been quietly observing, suddenly spoke:
“Boss Fang, if you want to taste it, try the one in Uncle Liang’s hand instead. I can say with certainty—the lettuce in your hand is not mine.”
“Not yours?” Fang Mingtang looked at his two employees in surprise.
Even Aunt Chen and Liang Quan were confused—they had both handled that lettuce. It was hers, wasn’t it?
But Jiang Luokui knew very well what she had grown.
Since Manager Fang was so eager to pin the blame of “instability” on her, she might as well throw it back.
The moment she saw the grains of sand on the lettuce, she understood his trick.
He himself was probably shocked that the lettuce’s appearance hadn’t changed.
Otherwise, he wouldn’t have forced himself to taste something taken from a trash bin.
Jiang Luokui smiled meaningfully. “Yes. It’s not mine.”
She glanced at everyone present and said calmly:
“Everyone here knows the experimental field of Third Academy, right? The soil there is black loam—sticky in nature. But the lettuce in your hand has sand on its leaves.”
Students could only grow crops in that experimental field.
Fang Mingtang examined it carefully and nodded. “That’s true.”
Manager Fang’s heart sank instantly.
He hadn’t expected things to turn out like this.
“I don’t know what happened to that lettuce,” Jiang Luokui continued, “but you might as well try the one I just harvested. Boss Zhao’s vegetables are fresh too—you can compare them together.”
Everyone present was sharp. Even without her stating it outright, they understood what was going on.
Manager Fang’s situation instantly became awkward.
Boss Zhao stepped in to ease the tension, tossing the old lettuce into the trash.
“This young lady grows good lettuce! It may be an old variety, but it looks fresh. Let me try a piece too.”
Liang Quan instinctively looked at Jiang Luokui.
She smiled. “Uncle Liang, give everyone a piece. Oh, and I’m curious about Boss Zhao’s produce too—mind if I try some?”
“Of course not! We’re同行—this is just exchanging experience,” Zhao said confidently, handing out leaves to everyone. “Fair is fair.”
He was very confident in his company’s products.
Fang Mingtang tried Zhao’s lettuce first.
Crisp. Fresh. Slightly sweeter than older varieties.
Jiang Luokui also tasted it.
It was good—but…
Was it really grown in a radiation-free environment?
Vegetables exposed to radiation usually develop subtle off-flavors—bitterness, astringency, even a metallic note.
But this one had none of that.
Instead… it lacked something. A kind of “vegetable essence.”
Only Liang Quan seemed to notice it as well. The others thought it was excellent.
Fang Mingtang nodded. “Very good. Boss Zhao, where is your base? I’d like to visit.”
Zhao smiled. “It’s in the outer-wall zone. Radiation is a bit higher, but our equipment is top-notch.”
Seeing them about to settle the deal, Liang Quan grew anxious.
After tasting something extraordinary, how could he settle for less?
Jiang Luokui gave him a look to calm down.
Then it was time to taste her lettuce.
Freshly harvested less than an hour ago—it was even better than yesterday’s.
Aunt Chen and Liang Quan ate entire leaves without hesitation.
Fang Mingtang, Zhao, and Manager Fang each took a bite.
“…!”
Fang Mingtang froze, then quickly rinsed his mouth—and ate the rest.
The flavor was unbelievably fresh and sweet.
His eyes lit up.
He had doubted Liang Quan’s judgment—but he was wrong.
Boss Zhao was even more shocked.
“Give me another piece!”
Even Liang Quan and Aunt Chen were surprised—it tasted even better than yesterday.
Manager Fang was stunned.
If he had known it tasted like this, none of today’s events would have happened.
He had humiliated himself.
Jiang Luokui, however, was thoughtful.
Why didn’t she sense any special effect?
Was this batch purely about taste?
After a second bite, Boss Zhao was practically losing his mind.
In all his years, across multiple bases, he had never tasted vegetables of this quality.
This wasn’t just better—it was on another level.
A talent!
He looked at Jiang Luokui excitedly.
“You’re an agriculture student, right? Want to work for my company? I’ll double your待遇!”
Jiang Luokui was startled.
He was her competitor—and yet he wanted to recruit her?
She refused without hesitation.
“Sorry, I’m not interested.”
Zhao sighed but didn’t give up.
“At least sell me that half piece—I’ll take it back for my team to study.”
She agreed.
Then Fang Mingtang spoke eagerly:
“How much do you have? I’ll take it all. And future batches too—we can sign a contract.”
Jiang Luokui hesitated.
“My land is small, and I still have classes. I can’t guarantee stable supply.”
Fang Mingtang felt a bit disappointed—but quickly adjusted.
“Fine. I’ll take this batch. And as long as your produce maintains this quality, I’ll keep buying.”
He shot Manager Fang a warning look.
“Learn from Liang Quan. He knows how to spot talent.”
Manager Fang forced a smile.
“I’ll transfer the deposit shortly.”
After the two bosses left, Jiang Luokui looked into the trash can.
“Where did you get that sandy soil? Radiation level—almost level four, right?”
Manager Fang froze.
She had guessed it exactly.
She smiled.
“You already gave a quote, right?”
Then she stood up.
“Originally, I was told three times market price. But now…”
She pointed at the ruined lettuce.
“Five times. Take it or leave it.”
Moments later, she received a transfer—5,000.
Message: Thank you for not making things difficult.
As she walked out, Aunt Chen gave her a thumbs-up.
“That was satisfying!”
Meanwhile, Boss Zhao sat in his office, staring at the lettuce.
“How could a student grow something like this?”
“Boss, we’ve arrived.”
“Call Director Zhou from the tech department.”
Minutes later, a masked woman in a lab coat entered.
“Boss, you wanted to see me?”
Zhao handed her the lettuce, eyes gleaming with greed.
“You should be able to replicate this… right?”
Her eyes darkened.
“I’ll have to try.”