Chapter 55: Visitors from the Small Island Country

It was almost eleven at night. Zhou Yu was having a sweet dream when his mobile phone suddenly rang. In his daze, he turned on the light and looked. It was a call from Chen Zilong. “Zilong, why are you calling so late?”

“…I actually forgot about the time difference. Sorry, Brother Universe.” Chen Zilong fell silent for a moment, then said with a bitter laugh. The time difference between the United States and Huaxia was twelve hours.

“It’s fine. I forgot about the time difference too,” Zhou Yu said casually. After dinner, he had also been wondering why Chen Zilong hadn’t contacted him.

Chen Zilong chuckled. “Well, this morning, I showed the photos to some classmates who were interested in the Jade Dews. They were amazed. Some said such beautiful plants must have been created by God.”

“Some rich kids were willing to pay high prices. For that one Kuroji Haworthia Cooperi Variegata, someone even offered twelve thousand dollars, which should be about eighty thousand in Renminbi. But they insisted on seeing the actual plants before finalizing the deal.”

Zhou Yu thought about it. Eighty thousand. For the quality of his Kuroji Haworthia Cooperi Variegata, it was a bit lower than domestic offers. But after seeing the actual plants, these people would likely start bidding against each other. He agreed immediately. “No problem. Give me an address, I’ll mail it to the United States tomorrow.”

“Oh, right. The United States is very strict about checking plants in international shipments now. It’s best to get a quarantine report.” Chen Zilong remembered something and quickly reminded him.

Zhou Yu nodded. “Okay, that’s a small matter.”

Most of the succulent plants seized by Huaxia customs from overseas mail, as reported in the news, weren’t very expensive. Conducting quarantine for each one would not only waste time but also increase costs, making it not worth the effort.

Additionally, some foreign succulent plants themselves contained things that could harm Huaxia’s ecological environment, so they couldn’t pass quarantine at all.

Now, the value of his two Jade Dews was very high. Spending a little money on quarantine was still worthwhile.

After hanging up, he decided to go to Jing City the next day for the quarantine and shipping, and also to visit the succulent exhibition. As for picking up that Large Black Muscle Dew Variegated, one or two days later was fine; he felt completely at ease leaving it at Qi Jinxuan’s place.

Last night, the radio had activated and brought ten Immortal Flavor Fruit seeds. Tonight, Zhou Yu naturally did not wait for any light to appear.

The next day, after feeding the three dogs and the Little White Fox, he borrowed Li Tianbiao’s car. With the two pots of Jade Dew, he headed for Jing City.

Upon arriving in Jing City, Zhou Yu went straight to the plant quarantine bureau in Canghai Province. He had looked up some information about quarantine reports last night and knew the bureau’s location.

Canghai Province bordered the sea, so both air and sea transport were very busy. The quarantine bureau was also bustling with activity.

At the bureau, he paid extra for expedited quarantine and soon received a quarantine certificate.

However, the two people in the quarantine lab couldn’t hide their surprise when they saw the two perfect Jade Dews and asked a few curious questions.

Zhou Yu’s answers were a mix of truth and lies, not revealing any useful information.

After getting the quarantine report and other necessary documents, he went to the fastest international courier company. He shipped the packaged Kuroji Haworthia Cooperi Variegata and the Pan Deng Yulu Variegata.

When bringing the two Jade Dews to Jing City, Zhou Yu had already taken them out of their pots. Shipping them with pots and soil would not only be more expensive but could also cause damage. Besides, the soil in the pots would also need quarantine.

With the two Jade Dews shipped, he finally felt relieved. Including the quarantine and shipping costs, he spent nearly three hundred. The plants were protected by multiple layers of safety measures. Given that they had been treated with Spirit Stabilizing Liquid and had strong adaptability, they likely wouldn’t have any issues during shipping.

After that, Zhou Yu drove to the location of the succulent exhibition. It was held in a small-to-medium-sized exhibition hall at the Jing City Exhibition Center.

A banner was posted outside the hall: “The Second Succulent Exhibition Hall of Jing City.” He remembered there was one last year, but he was busy with work at the time and didn’t pay attention.

He didn’t notify Qi Jinxuan. This time, he was just passing by to see the exhibition; there was no need for anyone to accompany him.

The ticket for the succulent exhibition was 30 yuan, not too expensive. He believed many people would feel the trip was worth it just by seeing the Large Black Muscle Dew Variegated.

Zhou Yu bought a ticket and slowly walked into the exhibition hall. As far as he could see, it was like an ocean of succulent plants. The hall was about 400 square meters, filled with all kinds of succulents.

The ticket also had a text introduction about the exhibition. Besides the succulents cultivated by domestic experts, famous hobbyists, and professional institutions, the organizers had also invited high-end succulent varieties from some foreign professional organizations.

As Zhou Yu walked through, he saw succulents placed alone in pots, as well as pots combining many different types of succulent plants. They came in heart shapes, flower shapes, and various other forms—very beautiful. Some succulents were even arranged on sections of dried wood, which was quite surprising.

On one display stand, he even saw a wedding-themed succulent exhibit. There were mannequins and models set up to create a wedding scene, with many succulent plants incorporated.

A whole flower boat made of succulents, a bouquet composed of succulents in the bride’s hand, vibrant and colorful, even the wedding parasol was adorned with succulents, and so was the bride’s wedding dress.

Seeing this display, Zhou Yu couldn’t help but shake his head and smile. Only people who loved succulents intensely would hold such a wedding, just like those who loved World of Warcraft would have a Warcraft-themed wedding.

As he walked along, he saw many high-end succulent varieties, rare “twelve volumes,” various old stumps, tuberous roots, and more.

Gradually, Zhou Yu reached the rear hall. Not many succulents were displayed here. The most eye-catching was undoubtedly a three-tiered flower stand, surrounded by a crowd. Camera flashes kept going off, and many exclamations of amazement could be heard.

Several staff members were there to maintain order. Each person could only take a few photos in front of the flower stand, but thankfully, they could walk around it to see the succulents on the stand in their entirety.

Looking at this familiar flower stand, a smile appeared on Zhou Yu’s face. The most dazzling one placed at the very top, the Large Black Muscle Dew Variegated, was his Treasure of the Garden.

He stood at a distance watching and didn’t immediately join the flow of people. Glancing around, he suddenly noticed Qi Jinxuan and Wei Kai sitting and chatting in the rest area to the left of the flower stand.

Seeing these two, Zhou Yu thought for a moment and was about to go over and greet them when a commotion came from behind. He turned and saw several men in suits walking over, accompanied by a few staff members.

When they got closer, he noticed that behind these men was an old man wearing glasses and a young man who looked rather frivolous.

Staff in the hall quickly separated the crowd, making a path for this group leading directly to the flower stand. Zhou Yu also moved aside.

He looked toward the rest area on the left. Qi Jinxuan and Wei Kai stood up unhurriedly and walked over to the flower stand. Wei Kai sneered and said, “It’s just a few people from the Small Island Country coming to see our Jade Dew. Was it necessary to make such a big deal out of it? They even disturbed our own people’s visit. Believe it or not, I’ll take the Jade Dew home right now, so they can’t see it.”

Wei Kai’s words received applause and cheers from many people nearby. They hadn’t expected the old man to be from the Small Island Country.