Chapter 36

When Hao Qi and Zhang Heng arrived at the capital of Bai Cao Kingdom, it was already around eight or nine in the evening. At this time, Zhang Heng mentioned that although the gates of the medical university were not yet closed, one needed a student ID, a faculty ID, or a government-issued entry permit to enter. Therefore, under Zhang Heng's recommendation, Hao Qi found the most famous "noble restaurant" in the capital (as Zhang Heng put it) and entered to order a meal with Zhang Heng.

Bai Cao Kingdom was a renowned country in the eastern region of the Blue Sea, and even throughout the entire Blue Sea, for its fame in medicine, herbal studies, and the production of natural treasures. Its specialty foods were naturally related to herbs, and most of the dishes here were medicinal dishes. The noble restaurant that Zhang Heng brought him to was, according to him, the most famous medicinal dish shop in the entire capital, but the prices were extremely high, and Zhang Heng had never come to eat here.

Hao Qi, however, did not care about the price. After sitting down with Zhang Heng, he took the menu and started ordering. Of course, he did not just look at the prices of the dishes but specifically chose those with peculiar names or that sounded excellent. Before long, a large table was filled with a variety of dishes.

Zhang Heng sat at the table, feeling very uneasy. In fact, before entering, he had already expressed his intention to return to the school, but he could not resist Hao Qi and was forcibly dragged into the restaurant. When the dishes were served, Hao Qi poured two glasses of wine and handed one to Zhang Heng, then raised his glass solemnly and said, "Brother Zhang, we met in a time of crisis. To be frank, that crisis was caused by me. I am very grateful that you do not blame me. Although I saved you, I still owe you something. Since then, you have not been insincere with me and have wholeheartedly introduced me to the underground situation, guiding me into Bai Cao Kingdom. In short, this glass of wine and this meal are my way of thanking you. From now on, we are friends." After saying this, Hao Qi did not wait for Zhang Heng to refuse and drank the wine in one gulp.

Zhang Heng hesitated for a moment, then drank it in one gulp as well, and said while clasping his hands, "Thank you, Brother Hao, for your frankness, but I do not have the qualifications to be your friend... I..."

Hao Qi laughed and said while eating the medicinal dishes, "Whether you have the qualifications to be friends is not up to you or me, but rather based on your words and actions. I feel that you are my friend. If you do not want to be my friend, you do not have to pay attention to me."

Zhang Heng immediately said anxiously, "No, how could I dare to, but... Brother Hao, you do not know about my father and my reputation, so..."

Hao Qi waved his hand indifferently and said, "What does your father have to do with you? What does your reputation have to do with me? Friendship is about understanding each other. Whether we will become good friends, comrades-in-arms, close friends, or brothers, that depends on the future. I do not like what you just said."

Zhang Heng immediately stopped speaking, feeling both moved and sad, and remained silent for a long time. At this moment, a man and a woman walked past the table, and the woman whispered, "Is this the child of the national fraudster you mentioned earlier? He doesn't look like it."

The man deliberately raised his voice but still seemed to be suppressing it, as if he wanted others to hear but was pretending to speak softly, and said, "Yes, he is the child of the biggest fraudster in Bai Cao Kingdom's history. He even dares to aspire to the title of honorary professor. He should look at himself; he's just a mere hunter, what is he? I'll tell you, this kid is no good. His father committed suicide, and he still has the nerve to live. Scholar Sid kindly adopted him and gave him a spot in the medical university's herbal department, but he doesn't properly repay the scholar. He often skips classes and frequently damages school equipment. He is a failure, and I think he is not just a failure, he is trash."

The woman laughed softly, and the man laughed loudly as they walked to the private room at the end of the corridor. After they entered, the laughter of many young men and women soon echoed from the private room.

Zhang Heng's face turned red, and he barely managed to clasp his hands and say, "I'm sorry, Brother Hao, I have something to return to the school. We... see you later." With that, he stumbled out of the restaurant.

Hao Qi did not stop Zhang Heng, nor did he ask the two young people who had just passed by. When Zhang Heng left, Hao Qi drank a glass of wine and clapped his hands in Zhang Heng's direction. Then he drank several more glasses of wine and ate most of the dishes on the table before slowly walking towards the private room where the two young people had entered.

About half an hour later, Hao Qi left the restaurant with a group of bruised and swollen young people bowing him out. He did not immediately look for a hotel but, after asking a passerby, went to the martial group reception office of Bai Cao Kingdom. There, he registered for the martial group and obtained a visitation permit for the medical university. After completing these tasks, Hao Qi went directly to the national library in the capital of Bai Cao Kingdom. Although it was already past eleven at night and the library had closed, when he showed the martial group leader's certificate issued by Bai Cao Kingdom, he was welcomed into the library.

Hao Qi spent almost the entire night in the library, searching through many books, especially those about the history of Bai Cao Kingdom since its founding, and then flipping through many herbal books. By the time Hao Qi left the library in the morning, he had a rough understanding of Zhang Heng's situation.

About twenty years ago, Zhang Heng's father, a hunter named Zhang Yusheng, claimed that he had discovered a method to cultivate a natural treasure. This caused a sensation throughout Bai Cao Kingdom, and even the president of the medical university, a famous inner strength realm expert known in multiple countries, personally visited him.

However, the situation took a sudden turn. The natural treasure that Zhang Yusheng claimed he could cultivate was a herb called Blue Grass. This herb was a common medicine, typically used to treat colds and wind-cold symptoms, but there was an extremely rare chance that Blue Grass would produce a red variant, which was the natural treasure. Zhang Yusheng claimed he could cultivate this red Blue Grass.

At this time, the National Medical University of Bai Cao Kingdom experienced its largest theft. The victim was Scholar Sid, a faculty member of the herbal department and an inner strength realm expert. His research notes were stolen, and these notes contained research on the artificial cultivation of red Blue Grass. According to Scholar Sid, this research was only in its early stages and had not yet reached the point of artificial cultivation.

Later, Scholar Sid's research notes were found in Zhang Yusheng's home, and Zhang Yusheng could not prove how to perfectly cultivate red Blue Grass. The information he could provide was only what was written in Scholar Sid's research notes.

After that, Zhang Yusheng committed suicide out of fear of punishment, leaving behind an orphan, Zhang Heng. Zhang Heng's mother had died when he was born, so he was an orphan. In this situation, Professor Sid adopted Zhang Heng and placed him in the affiliated school of the medical university. After Zhang Heng graduated from high school, it was also due to Professor Sid's strong recommendation that he entered the herbal department of the medical university.

These were the things Hao Qi found in the history of Bai Cao Kingdom, the school newspaper of the National Medical University of Bai Cao Kingdom, and various newspapers of Bai Cao Kingdom. As for the cultivation of red Blue Grass, due to Zhang Yusheng's theft, Scholar Sid had disclosed the cultivation principle. According to his research, Blue Grass has a symbiotic characteristic. When multiple Blue Grass plants are grown in an area no larger than one acre, they exchange nutrients. When the number of Blue Grass plants in one acre exceeds one hundred, there is a high probability of producing red Blue Grass, with a success rate of over 70%.

However, Blue Grass is a plant that consumes a large amount of soil nutrients. Under normal circumstances, the number of Blue Grass plants in one acre should not exceed twenty. Even with high-nutrient soil and high-nutrient fertilizers, and meticulous cultivation, the number of Blue Grass plants in one acre should not exceed thirty. This is determined by the extensive root system of Blue Grass. Once the number exceeds thirty, most of the Blue Grass plants will wither. Therefore, this symbiotic cultivation method is inherently flawed.

Hao Qi deeply understood the wickedness of human nature, just like those young people who mocked Zhang Heng. In his previous life, he had seen this too often. People always like to belittle and mock those who are not as good as themselves, even if they say nice things, these words are often laced with hidden barbs, causing great pain. In his previous life, even relatives would do this to poorer relatives, saying things like, "How is your family doing recently? What are you planning to do?" This way of speaking is essentially a way of belittling others. This is even more true among strangers.

Belittling those weaker than oneself to feel satisfied, defaming those stronger than oneself to feel comforted, and taking pleasure in others' misfortune as if it brings good luck to oneself. As the saying goes, "colleagues belittle each other," but it is not just colleagues; it should be said that "people of the same kind belittle each other." There are too many such people, and this is the mentality of most people, even if they are not consciously doing it, it is in their subconscious.

Zhang Heng must have had a very difficult life over the past twenty years...

Hao Qi's first stop after leaving the library was the National Medical University of Bai Cao Kingdom!