In the horticulture industry, flowers are generally classified into three grades: premium, medium, and low-grade.
Typically, the higher the grade of the plant, the greater the probability of cultivating higher-grade flowers.
Premium-grade plants can easily produce B-grade flowers.
Low-grade plants, on the other hand, rarely yield valuable grades.
Take these sunflowers, for example, a well-known low-grade material that can’t produce high-quality blooms.
But there are exceptions.
The same type of flower can yield different results when cultivated by different people.
Like right now.
The manager of Store 506 was utterly stunned by the overwhelming natural energy radiating from the plants.
The vitality emanating from a thousand sunflowers made him instinctively close his eyes to savor it. Though he was a Beta, he could still benefit from this natural energy.
Immersed in this aura, his mind felt sharper than ever.
Just then, a voice remarked from behind, “Seems like they turned out alright.”
Just alright?!
The manager was about to protest when he turned and saw their boss, Xia Ze.
Ahhh!
Boss!
You’re absolutely incredible!
Though the manager didn’t voice it, his expression said it all.
He was certain that no one in the entire horticulture mall could cultivate low-grade flowers to this level.
This wasn’t just “alright” it was extraordinary!
When the cultivation chamber opened, rows of vibrant sunflowers greeted them, neatly arranged.
Nearly every bloom boasted plump, full petals.
Not only that, even the leaves were perfectly shaped.
The dazzling array of colors made it feel like standing in a sea of flowers.
Upon closer inspection, the manager noticed something unusual, sunflowers were typically single-petaled, but many here had developed double petals, some even appearing to grow larger as they bloomed.
Xia Ze nodded in satisfaction. “Good. Once everyone arrives, sort them onto different shelves based on quality.”
While the manager trembled with excitement, Xia Ze remained completely composed. He even brought over some narcissus seeds, the last three from the batch Qi Jing had bought for him.
With the tools here, it was the perfect opportunity to plant them.
As the staff of Store 506 arrived one by one, their reactions mirrored the manager’s.
Sunflowers, achieving this level?!
Among them, junior horticulturist Mu Ming kept muttering in awe, “This one, the color is so vivid! And this one has double petals!”
“How can sunflowers be cultivated this well? Even the leaves are flawless.”
“Not even textbook examples look this perfect.”
“Low-grade seeds producing flowers of this caliber?”
This completely overturned conventional horticultural wisdom.
Mu Ming had known their boss was skilled, but never imagined he was this extraordinary.
Meanwhile, the horticulture mall’s group chat buzzed with activity as people speculated about which store had produced so many A-grade flowers.
[Stop hiding! Hurry, I need to place an order! A client wants bulk A-grade flowers, and I’d rather source them from you!]
It was common for stores to transfer stock among themselves, so this request wasn’t unusual.
Others lamented:
[Why are all the talented horticulturists taken?]
[Seriously, I’m tempted to camp out at the testing center to recruit one.]
[Heh, mine’s already amazing.]
[Speaking of which has anyone uncovered the true identity of that Gabriel expert yet?]
[“No idea, it’s too mysterious.”]
Until the employees and botanists from the 50th floor appeared.
504: [“I think I know where those Grade A plants came from…”]
503: [“Same here…. Terrifying.. As a botanist, I already want to apprentice under them.”]
502: [“Seems exaggerated, let’s wait and see.”]
501: [“…….”]
505: [“He definitely didn’t plant sunflowers, right? Maybe they’re premium flowers transferred from the Natural Science Academy. After all, it’s Qi Jing’s wife.”]
Employees from the 50th floor, especially the botanists, rarely spoke in this group chat.
They were the elite of the botanical mall, yet today, they couldn’t resist chiming in.
Being closest to Xia Ze’s Shop 506, they were the first to notice its transformation.
While other shops wanted to investigate, Shop 505 remained stubborn.
The rest of the mall was well aware of their feud and silently decided to enjoy the drama.
Shop 505’s recent business boom had made them the envy of many.
Still, some saw reason.
305: [“Some people profit off others yet still look down on them. Hilarious.”]
403: [“Exactly. Have they even checked where their skyrocketing orders are coming from?”]
[“Any proof that those plants were borrowed from the Natural Science Research Institute?”]
Of course, Shop 505 had its supporters too.
[“Hard to say. The institute’s director seems close to Xia Ze.”]
[“And Qi Jing too. Rumor has it the institute even has desert roses, brought back by General Qi.”]
[“Wow, if that’s the case, borrowing plants makes perfect sense.”]
[“Given that, it’s more likely they borrowed them. Who knew they only bought sunflowers? Since when do sunflowers emit so much natural energy?”]
Most speculation leaned in this direction.
Even those defending Xia Ze began to waver.
This defied all common sense.
Everyone in this group was industry-savvy, they knew exactly what sunflowers were supposed to be like.
Someone from the lowest floor finally spoke up.
014: [“Check my floor first level. I grow sunflowers too, and mine don’t emit anywhere near that much energy. If anyone can grow sunflowers like that, I’ll wash my hair standing on my hands.”]
0132: [“Same here, first floor. Same bet, handstand hair wash.”]
Finally, someone from Shop 503 cut in: [“Why speculate? Just go see for yourselves! I’m heading over now!”]
The manager of Shop 503 had already set off popping into neighboring shops was routine here.
Many waited eagerly for his update, but after half an hour, the group chat remained silent.
Meanwhile, the Shop 503 manager was rooted in place, staring at the sunflowers. His professional instincts kicked in: “I’ll take a hundred no, two hundred!”
Laymen might be confused, but an expert could instantly recognize the difference in these flowers.
Were these even sunflowers anymore?
Even unmutated ones could emit natural energy, this miraculous variety would sell for a fortune.
Why hadn’t he updated the group?
Simple.
Why invite competition?
By now, the Shop 506 staff had recovered from their shock and lifted their chins smugly: “Remember? Our boss said limited purchases only!”
The Shop 503 manager knew this, of course, he just hadn’t taken it seriously, like everyone else.
Purchase limits?
Unacceptable!
The feeling of seeing good things right in front of you but not being able to buy them all was truly agonizing.
Manager 503’s gaze immediately shifted to Xia Ze, who had just emerged from the cultivation room.
“Boss Xia, could you sell me a bit more of those sunflowers? I’m willing to pay a premium.”
“Is this real? Did you really cultivate these? Why do your sunflowers look so different?”
“What level of Green Thumb are you? Would you mind sharing?”
The barrage of questions made Xia Ze instinctively step back, even feeling a bit panicked.
He could handle hostility just fine, but this overwhelming goodwill and enthusiasm made him want to run away.
Manager 503’s eyes burned with fervor, yet also carried a hint of regret.
How could this person be General Qi’s spouse?!
If he weren’t General Qi’s partner, he could’ve poached him for his own store!
But how could he possibly do that now?!
The driver, who also served as a bodyguard, promptly snapped a photo of him. Manager 503 glanced over, puzzled. “What’s up?”
The driver smirked. “Sending this expression of yours to our General.”
Manager 503: ???
Staring at someone else’s Omega like this, am I asking for death?!
And it’s General Qi’s Omega at that! Even though we’re both Alphas, I’m no match for him!
Xia Ze: ???
What’s the point of sending that?
Fortunately, after that remark, the uncomfortable gazes disappeared.
Under the oppressive aura of General Qi, Manager 503 forcibly regained his composure.
But inwardly, he was still screaming, Aaaaaah! How did he grow sunflowers this well?! How?!
Is this even real?!
Meanwhile, others in the group chat began reacting.
Something’s off there must be a catch.
If it were bad, Manager 503 would’ve said so. He wouldn’t be making deals up there, would he?
With skepticism, many followed upstairs.
After all, it was still early morning, no customers would be around yet.
What followed was predictable, the entire Green Thumb Emporium descended into madness over these miraculous sunflowers.
The lowest-grade seeds had produced vast fields of A-grade blooms.
Even the worst were C-grade, with B-grade being overwhelmingly abundant.
A few double-petaled sunflowers even approached S-grade quality.
In this situation, anyone who knew their stuff would lose their minds.
The more knowledgeable they were, the crazier they became.
Thinking back to how they’d mocked Store 506 for buying sunflower seeds, they wished they could travel back in time and slap themselves twice.
Out of a thousand sunflowers, Xia Ze had reserved a hundred for seed preservation.
Of the remaining nine hundred, about two hundred were C-grade, six hundred B-grade, and a hundred A-grade.
The vitality radiating from these plants was astonishing.
Many claimed these were the finest sunflowers they’d ever seen.
Who knew sunflowers could be this breathtaking?
Only two people, who had vowed to wash their hair upside down, trembled in fear.
Looks like they had no choice but to follow through!
Amid the frenzy in the Green Thumb Emporium, only Store 505 felt awkward.
They wanted to join the excitement but were too embarrassed to show up.
Who could’ve imagined Xia Ze would actually grow sunflowers this well?
Why?
Not only did Store 505 have no clue, no one in the entire emporium had anticipated this.
Yet deep down, they sensed something.
Xia Ze and the emergence of these sunflowers was likely just the beginning.
By 10 a.m., the Green Thumb Emporium opened its doors to the public.
Customers began trickling in.
Many customers who knew about Qi Jing’s wife’s dispute with the neighboring flower shop came to the 50th floor out of curiosity.
They wanted to see if Qi Jing’s wife could actually grow impressive plants in her shop.
But when they entered, all they saw were still empty shelves.
Huh?
Isn’t this exactly the same as yesterday?
Yesterday there were at least some plants, but today it’s completely empty.
However, there were two people fighting over something at the counter.
The two argued while struggling:
“I saw it first!”
“No, I did!”
“You already bought one pot! Why are you buying more?”
“The rule is two plants per person, so of course I can buy more!”
“Don’t push me, I’m an Alpha.”
“So, am I?! Come on! Let’s fight! Winner takes all!”
???
Are they really fighting over plants grown by Qi Jing’s wife???
Wait a minute, could it be they’re too late?
The plant store just opened, and their stock is already sold out???
