Chapter 113

Chapter 113

"Even if Berry Star is burned or blown up, reduced to ruins, wouldn't it still be Berry Star?" Mao Hao continued.

He was so consumed by anger that he didn’t care about others’ well-being, even openly revealing his malicious plans.

Unsurprisingly, his words drew widespread anger, but he didn’t care.

He glared at Yun Wan, hoping to see her flustered or lose her cool.

Contrary to his expectations, Yun Wan let out a couple of dismissive 'tsk tsk' noises, which, though not harmful, were highly insulting, as if she were watching a clown perform.

"Brother, what are you trying to do? There are still people on the planet!" Mao Ling's face turned grim.

The siblings were like night and day—the brother was cruel, while the sister was kind-hearted. Yun Wan had a soft spot for the sister, feeling sorry for her as she was constantly bullied by her family.

Despite her disappointment, Mao Ling still cared about her family’s welfare. However, she never expected her family to reveal such outright cruelty in just a few minutes.

Being stuck with such a family was just rotten luck!

Mao Hao thought that destroying Berry Star would hurt Yun Wan, but in reality, Berry Star was just a windfall for her. Getting it was a bonus; losing it wouldn’t faze her.

If he had approached her respectfully, it might have been possible to buy the planet back. But since Mao Hao tried to strong-arm her, she wasn’t about to back down.

"Why aren’t you saying anything?" Mao Hao snapped, losing patience.

He couldn’t figure out why Yun Wan was looking at him with pity after his threat.

Yun Wan rested her chin on her hand, eyeing the Berry Star group on the other side of the live stream. "Berry Star’s a big place. I can’t handle it all by myself. I was going to let your team keep running it, but since you’re talking about burning it down, forget it."

"What?!" Mao Hao’s face twisted with shock and lingering spite. "Are you serious?"

At first, he thought Yun Wan was messing with him, but then it dawned on him that she might be serious.

"That’s what I had in mind."

Yun Wan’s offhand tone set Mao Hao’s mind spinning.

Berry Star was as good as gone, but if he could stay on as acting lord, it’d be no skin off his back.

No harm, no foul!

Mao Hao’s resentment melted away as he turned on the charm, looking at Yun Wan with a sycophantic grin. "Lord, I was just blowing off steam earlier. With all the people and plants on Berry Star, I’d never do something so awful. Don’t worry about Berry Star. I promise to hand it over to you intact!"

"Is that so?" Mao Hao’s sycophancy almost made Yun Wan laugh.

"Yes, yes, Lord! About the planet’s management..." Mao Hao, sensing an opening, turned up the charm.

Seeing the situation take a turn, Mao’s mother chimed in, "Lord, my son has been managing Berry Star all along. He has experience and has done a great job. You can trust him with Berry Star!"

Hearing her words, the people of Berry Star looked as if they had eaten something sour.

Mao Ling watched her brother and mother's sudden change of attitude with a mix of amusement and disbelief. Their family truly were masters of changing faces.

She had a feeling that the Shennong Star Lord wouldn't be foolish enough to use Mao Hao, a useless person, and was merely toying with them.

"Hmph, old lady, I wouldn’t dream of handing Berry Star over to your son," Yun Wan said with a chuckle.

This was within Mao Ling's expectations.

"Then who else can you hand it over to if not my son?" Mrs. Mao asked anxiously.

"I want to hand it over to her," Yun Wan pointed with her slender hand.

Everyone followed her direction and saw that she was pointing directly at Mao Ling.

"Me?" Mao Ling was uncertain.

Before she could say anything, Mao Hao and his mother became anxious.

"How can you choose Lingling? She usually doesn't handle affairs and knows nothing about Berry Star. It's my son who manages everything; he's more familiar with it!"

Mao Hao added fuel to the fire: "Lord, my sister doesn’t know anything about this. It’s ridiculous to think she could manage the planet. She probably doesn’t even know where the lord’s residence is."

Mao Ling hadn’t planned on taking on any responsibilities. She had no interest in becoming the planet’s proxy. From the beginning, she only wanted to focus on research. Getting Berry Star was just a fluke. However, seeing how her mother and brother looked down on her, she felt defiant and decided to take the position to stop Mao Hao from causing trouble for others.

"Who says I’m not capable? Brother, don’t forget, I was the lord of Berry Star before."

Mao Hao’s expression hardened, "Are you really challenging me?"

"How can you challenge your brother, Lingling!" Mrs. Mao looked at Mao Ling with a reproachful gaze, as if she had committed an unforgivable sin. "Lingling, you’re more competent than your brother. You can find a better job. Listen to your mother and let your brother have the proxy position."

"The lord chose me, and she won’t change her mind easily. I don’t want to back out either!" Mao Ling shook off her mother’s hand. "Mom, Brother even lost Berry Star. Do you really think he’s fit to be the planet’s proxy? Do you really believe he’s reliable?"

"This..." Mrs. Mao hesitated, glancing at her husband. She understood her son, but she still felt that they would have to rely on him in the future. Good things should go to her son. Now that her daughter had pointed out her son’s unreliable nature, her cognition and reason conflicted, and she had no idea what to do, so she could only turn to her husband, who had been silent.

Mao Hao, sensing his parents’ hesitation, threatened Yun Wan, "If I’m not the planet proxy, I can’t guarantee what will happen to Berry Star!"

"Hmph, you’re in no position to make demands! I like your sister and want her to be the proxy lord of Berry Star. If there are no objections, come to Shennong Star tomorrow to finalize the contract." After saying this, Yun Wan didn’t care how the family resolved their conflicts and directly logged off.

Jiang Jiayu, seeing Yun Wan’s decisiveness, couldn’t help but worry: "Lord, that Mao Hao seems very jealous. If you make his sister the proxy lord, he might really cause trouble!"

The spoils of war, ideal for growing fruit, were perfect for cultivation and could definitely expand Shennong Star’s planting scale. If it were destroyed, Jiang Jiayu would be devastated.

Her seed trials had shown some progress. Previously, the lord’s planting area wasn’t enough, and she was worried the lord wouldn’t agree to trial planting, so she didn’t dare to bring it up. If they had another planet, her cultivated seeds could be grown on a larger scale!

"Don’t worry, the more inept a person is, the more afraid they are of losing," Yun Wan said.

Mao Hao was too inept and had no choice but to rely on his sister. Even if his sister became the planet proxy he coveted, he wouldn’t dare to do anything except be jealous.

After all, he still needed to rely on his sister. He feared that if he pushed his sister too far, no one would look after him later! On the other hand, his sister had other opportunities even if she didn’t become the planet proxy.

Moreover, Yun Wan saw clearly that the lord of Berry Star was kind-hearted. The restraint she showed when Mao Hao made ruthless threats without considering the planet’s inhabitants didn’t seem fake. Even if Yun Wan hadn’t used benefits to lure Mao Hao, that girl wouldn’t let her brother act recklessly.

Although comforted by Yun Wan, Jiang Jiayu remained uneasy and anxiously awaited Berry Star’s arrival to sign the contract the next day.

"Brother Hu, has anyone from Berry Star applied to land on the planet?" Jiang Jiayu asked Hu Yuanyang for what felt like the hundredth time.

"Yes, one person named Mao Ling. She must be the girl the lord has taken a liking to."

Jiang Jiayu quickly finished her work and went to report to Yun Wan.

Yun Wan was both amused and puzzled: "Why are you so nervous about Berry Star?"

Jiang Jiayu blushed slightly.

Since Hu Yuanyang handled personnel matters, her approaching Yun Wan was overstepping her bounds.

Since Yun Wan asked, Jiang Jiayu took the opportunity to bring up the seed matter.

"Shennong Star Lord, these days I have been observing the crop fields and took some seeds home to plant. I found that the third-generation seeds can stably inherit the advantages of the second generation, while the fourth generation undergoes some unfavorable mutations and cannot stably inherit the advantages of the second generation..." She spoke at length, worried that Yun Wan might get impatient, and quickly got to the point, "I think the future demand for vegetables will still be huge, and our current production is far from enough. In the future, we can outsource the planting and specialize in selling seeds..."

Afraid that Yun Wan might think her idea was too fanciful, she added, "This is just my random thought, feel free to take it with a grain of salt."

"That's a great idea."

Jiang Jiayu looked up and saw Yun Wan's encouragement.

"Really?" Getting the Shennong Star Lord's approval, Jiang Jiayu was very excited.

These days, she had been leaving early and returning late, observing crops and recording data. The idea of selling seeds had evolved from a blueprint in her mind to something more concrete, and with the lord's approval, it finally came to life.

She had questioned herself countless times. No one across the galaxy had proposed selling seeds as a commercial activity. Things that haven't been done were likely not because others couldn't think of it, but because selling seeds itself had no value.

But Yun Wan's firm approval made her even more confident in her idea. Selling seeds could work. If the galaxy didn't have it, then she would be the pioneer to propose seed commerce.

The Shennong Star Lord also approved of her! She could definitely help the lord earn a lot of money and also let people across the galaxy eat natural food!

Before she could discuss the seed commerce in detail with Jiang Jiayu, Mao Ling had already arrived at the lord's estate. The first thing Mao Ling said was to decline the invitation to be the planet's agent.

"Shennong Star Lord, as you can see, I barely managed Berry Star when I was the lord myself. How could I be a good planet agent? I'm sorry, but I can't take on this role. You should find someone better suited."

Yun Wan saw deep lack of confidence in her eyes.

She didn't push her and addressed her concerns: "Was it because you didn't have the opportunity to manage it before, or you didn't want to? I think you should understand that a key reason I chose you is because you have feelings for Berry Star. A more professional person might not necessarily be better than you."

Mao Ling shook her head, "Favoritism was her biggest mistake, I am also a selfish person."

Favoritism was her biggest mistake, she had committed the biggest taboo of the planet's inhabitants.

"Aren't you curious about the offer?" Yun Wan said.

Mao Ling didn't expect the Shennong Star Lord to be so persistent in wanting her to be the lord. She thought this trip would easily resolve the matter, and it was really surprising that the other party started offering incentives.

"It's not because of money..." Mao Ling paused.

"The offer isn't just about money!" Yun Wan winked at her and took out a pre-written contract card.

Mao Ling was momentarily stunned by Yun Wan's words, automatically took the contract, and grew more puzzled as she read: "An equal partnership contract? The offer includes a base salary plus tax commission, and also a master-servant contract card for managing troublesome family members?"

Looking up from the contract, Mao Ling's eyes were blank.

"The first part is normal, but what does this master-servant contract card mean?" she asked.

"It's just what it sounds like. After signing the contract, you can command the other party to do things," Yun Wan said.

"Like a master and servant?"

"Exactly."

Mao Ling was silent for a while before processing this information. Seeing the serious look of the Shennong Star Lord, it didn't seem like she was joking. But even if the master-servant contract card was real, it shouldn't be handed out so easily!

She and the Shennong Star Lord had only met twice in total, including today!

"Shennong Star Lord, such an important thing, aren't you afraid I might misuse it?"

Yun Wan pointed to the last clause of the contract, "It outlines the usage!"

Mao Ling then noticed that the contract card was designated for use with relatives.

Finally, Mao Ling, in a confused state, signed the contract with Yun Wan and remained bewildered throughout her journey back to Berry Star aboard the spaceship.

She felt deceived!

If there really was something so extraordinary, why wouldn't the lord use it herself, to contract with royalty or something, and directly soar to the top?! To control the stars with a flip of her hand?!

The more she thought about it, the more she felt it was fake! It's just that the lord had such a convincing face!

But it couldn't be called outright deception; the terms offered by the lord were quite favorable, and she was actually quite tempted. Now that Berry Star wasn't hers, she could legitimately manage the planet.

It was quite sad to think that when she was the lord, her position wasn't legitimate.

Returning to Berry Star, Mao Ling initially wanted to put the matter of the contract card behind her, but then she thought, since she had already brought it back, she might as well try it—what if it actually worked?

After all, Mao Ling couldn't completely sever ties with her family. Although she said she wouldn't care now, if they really couldn't afford to eat and came begging to her in the future, she couldn't just ignore them. At most, she would offer limited help, without the trust she once had.

Deep down, she still longed for her relatives. Even if they were trash, she couldn't help but fool herself into seeing their better qualities.

If the contract card really worked, she didn't expect it to bring any major changes; she just hoped they could stand on their own and not drag her down with their absurdities anymore!