Just One Drop, One Drop. Part 3

"Consider it a warm-up for joining the main company after the New Year." Yin Yan poured Yu Zhen a glass of soy milk and added, "And I can show Yu Zhen around B City while I'm at it."

The car stopped in front of the apartment building again. Yu Zhen was confused. "Aren't we going to the hospital to see the workers? Why are we here again?"

"We'll go this afternoon." Yin Yan unbuckled his seatbelt and gestured for him to get out of the car.

This time, the two of them were finally not carrying any ingredients. After entering the apartment, Yin Yan walked straight to the Qiankun Revolving Vessel by the floor-to-ceiling window and called out, "Xu Wu."

The white cat appeared and dove into the Qiankun Revolving Vessel.

"Xiao Wu!" Yu Zhen was startled and quickly took two steps to follow.

"It's fine." Yin Yan extended an arm to block him, preventing him from getting closer.

The Qiankun Revolving Vessel was bound to Yu Zhen's consciousness, so he could see the scene inside. He saw that after Xu Wu went in, it immediately started running gleefully in the fields inside, even digging at the soil a few times.

"What is it doing?" Yu Zhen was puzzled.

'Could it be that Xu Wu is treating the Xirang as cat litter and wants to use the toilet?'

"It's establishing a connection with the Revolving Vessel, so that in the future, even when you're outside, you can check on the situation inside the basin through Xu Wu," Yin Yan explained. With a gentle wave of his hand, Xu Wu stopped frolicking, turned around, and climbed out of the basin, jumping into Yin Yan's palm to sit down.

Yin Yan took out a silver, thread-like collar and put it on the cat, then attached a strangely shaped gemstone before handing the cat to Yu Zhen.

Yu Zhen quickly reached out and took it, reflexively stroking the cat's head.

"We'll eat out for lunch. You're free to do whatever you want this morning." Yin Yan handed him another pill, then turned and went upstairs.

In a blink of an eye, only one person and one cat were left in the living room. Yu Zhen met Xu Wu's gaze, couldn't help but rub its head, then rub it again, and again. Then he happily kissed it and said, "Xiao Wu, how about I teach you how to grow seeds?"

Xu Wu was stunned by the kiss. It turned to glance at the stairs, let out a trembling "Meow~", and leaped out of Yu Zhen's arms.

Taking out the containers he had bought yesterday and arranging them, Yu Zhen asked Xu Wu for the carved wooden box containing the lotus seeds. He took out the plump and delightful seeds, stroking them fondly. He then broke open the shells one by one, mixed warm water, and prepared to soak them.

A faint lotus fragrance filled the air. Yu Zhen stirred the lotus seeds in the water. Remembering the Boundless Water Yin Yan had given him that day, he felt an itch of curiosity. He asked Xu Wu for it and tried adding a single drop.

The water's surface rippled slightly. The lotus seeds in the basin, as if hit by some impact, suddenly began to roll. Then, almost immediately, the seeds changed color and opened, and tiny sprouts grew out, reaching above the water's surface to become tender green, round lotus leaves.

The lotus fragrance intensified. Yu Zhen stared dumbfounded at the crowded young lotus leaves in the basin. He glanced at the emerald green bottle in his hand, and with a tremble, he quickly had Xu Wu put the Boundless Water away.

This was too exaggerated. This wasn't something that could help plants grow; it was a potent ripening agent!

The sprouting of the lotus seeds was completely unexpected. Yu Zhen quickly took out ceramic pots and began to prepare the soil. However, soil preparation had a two-week cycle, which was definitely not enough time now. After some hesitation, he asked Xu Wu for the Boundless Water again.

Just one drop, one drop.

He carefully dripped one drop of Boundless Water into the water he had collected, then immediately stoppered the bottle and returned it to Xu Wu. He stirred the water in the bucket with his hand before continuing with the soil preparation.

He had only soaked five lotus seeds. He planted them one by one, poured water to lightly moisten the roots of the seedlings, and then moved all the ceramic pots into the Revolving Vessel.

With that, the initial planting was done. From now on, he just needed to pay attention to watering and prevent the lotus seedlings from drying out.

He clapped his hands and stood up. Looking at the empty land in the Revolving Vessel, he remembered the bag of seeds he had gotten yesterday. He asked Xu Wu for it and sat down by the coffee table to sort them.

Although they were just seeds to be used as a medium, there were so many that he probably wouldn't use them all. He remembered there were some flower seeds inside, so he decided to pick them out and classify them first.

Narcissus bulbs, lilies, roses, peonies, chrysanthemums... The villagers had given him common, easy-to-grow flower seeds, which were very easy to identify. But there were a few strange seeds that Yu Zhen was unsure about.

He picked up a tiny, withered thing that looked like a rotten root system. He frowned and examined it for a long time, finally making a vague guess as to what it was.

"Orchid seeds?" He carefully prodded the tiny things in his hand, not knowing whether to laugh or cry. "How did they rot this badly? Just how long have these been sitting around?"

Orchids were already difficult to propagate directly from seeds. Even healthy seeds, after a complex process of fungal cultivation, might not survive. These were so rotten they were almost unrecognizable; they probably had no cultivation value left.

"Most likely some kid picked them from the mountains."

He muttered, raising his hand to throw the seeds into the trash can. But when his gaze fell upon his own shadow on the floor, he silently retracted his hand. He stirred the seeds in his palm and stood up.

'I'll give it a try.'

If someone like him, who had lost most of his soul, could struggle to live on, maybe these seeds could too. Besides, he had so many treasures.

The seeds were rotten, so normal cultivation was out of the question. He soaked the seeds in the remaining diluted Boundless Water, found a small corner in the Revolving Vessel, and buried them all.

"Well... let's just leave it to fate. Good luck."

He patted the Xirang as if coaxing a child, then stood up. He stretched, looked at the city view outside the window, and basked comfortably in the sun, murmuring to himself, "Valentine's Day is coming. Maybe I should plant some roses."

He laughed at himself after saying it, shaking his head and patting his forehead.

Roses have a long growth cycle, needing both a summer and winter dormancy. It would take two or three years to see any results. What nonsense was he talking about?

However, Yin Yan, who was coming downstairs, paused. He looked at Yu Zhen standing by the floor-to-ceiling window and called out, "Yu Zhen."

The person by the window immediately turned to look at him. His body was bathed in sunlight, a faint smile still lingering on his face. At a glance, the baby fat on his face seemed to have lessened slightly.

"What's wrong?" Yu Zhen took a step forward, moving away from the overly bright sunlight by the window.

Yin Yan averted his gaze, walked to the sofa to pick up his coat, and said, "It's time to go out for lunch."

When in B City, how could one not eat roast duck? Yin Yan, who had inherited the original owner's memories, was somewhat fixated on this piece of information, so he had specifically chosen a location in advance to take Yu Zhen to try it.

There were only a few restaurants in all of B City that made good roast duck, and only one or two high-end ones. The one the original owner frequented was one of them. Since Yin Yan was still in the exploratory phase of this world, he naturally took Yu Zhen to the one the original owner always went to.

And at such a frequently visited place, there was a high probability of running into acquaintances.

"Yin Yan!"

A tall, sturdy man stood up from a table with the best street view by the window and waved at Yin Yan, who had just been led in by the waiter. He greeted him familiarly, "Over here, over here! I was just about to go to your place tomorrow, I can't believe I ran into you here."

Yin Yan paused his steps. He rummaged through his memory for the man's identity, then took Yu Zhen's hand and walked over, responding, "Bu Chen, what a coincidence."

The man called Bu Chen personally stood up to pull out a chair for him and called the waiter to add another set of utensils. "Tell me about it. I was abroad for a while and only heard you had some trouble after I got back. I mean, you, why didn't you say a word to your brother when you got into trouble? Your phone wouldn't connect either. If I hadn't heard it from that kid from the Tang family yesterday, I wouldn't have even known you were back in B City."

"My phone broke, and I need to change my number, so I haven't been using it much lately," Yin Yan explained casually. He didn't sit down. Instead, he put an arm partly around Yu Zhen and introduced him to Bu Chen, "My partner, Yu Zhen. Yu Zhen, this is Bu Chen, my childhood friend."

Childhood friend? That meant he was very close to the original owner?

Yu Zhen immediately became one hundred and twenty percent alert and greeted him politely, "Hello."

Bu Chen, however, was stunned. His gaze lingered on Yin Yan's hand, which was partially draped over Yu Zhen's shoulder. He raised a hand in greeting, then shot Yin Yan a look.

It was normal for brothers to bring a partner along when they hung out, but such a formal introduction, using the word "partner"... was this for real? But what about Han Ya... So what kind of attitude should he have toward this Yu Zhen?

"We've already registered our marriage. The wedding is in a year. You'll have to be my best man then." Yin Yan wiggled the hand with the ring on it, making sure he could see it more clearly.

Already registered?!

A comically stunned expression appeared on Bu Chen's face. He quickly collected himself, wiped his hands on his clothes, and showed Yu Zhen an almost simple-minded smile. He greeted him enthusiastically, "So you're my sister-in-law—no, my brother-in-law! Hello, hello, I'm Bu Chen. We should hang out more often. Bu Lian, why are you still sitting there? Get up and say hello to your Brother Yan and Brother Yu!"

Bu Lian, who had been sitting calmly opposite Bu Chen, rolled her eyes at his words. She put down her phone, stood up, and looked at Yin Yan and Yu Zhen. She called out lifelessly, "Good afternoon, Brother Yan. Good afternoon, Brother Yu. Your little sister pays her respects."

"What's with that dead attitude? Straighten your back!" Bu Chen shot her a look, then again invited Yin Yan and Yu Zhen to sit. "My sister's cat died a few days ago, so she's been looking miserable every day. Don't mind her."

"Brother! Why did you bring it up again!" Bu Lian suddenly exploded, slamming back into her seat. She buried her head in her arms and started to cry.

Yu Zhen looked shocked. W-why did she suddenly start crying?

Yin Yan's gaze swept over Bu Lian. He leaned in, and under the guise of helping Yu Zhen take off his scarf, he waved a hand in front of his eyes and said in a low voice, "It's a Cat Demon."

The air seemed to ripple slightly. The scarf briefly obstructed his vision, and when it was moved away, a translucent black cat had suddenly appeared next to Bu Lian. A faint black aura emanated from the cat's body.

As if sensing Yu Zhen's gaze, it suddenly looked up and stared straight at him, its red pupils like blood.