Survival in the Ruins: I can make everything evolve infinitely

Chapter  43: The Price Needs to Be Multiplied by Ten to Sell

After a bout of amusing commotion.

Mu Liang placed the heated stones into the large wooden tub, warming the water to just the right temperature for bathing. Then, he shooed the two girls inside to take their bath.

After a busy day, their entire bodies were filthy, covered in either sweat or dust.

“Habits need to be changed gradually,” Mu Liang muttered, shaking his head.

If one has the ability, one should live a little better. Without ability, even thinking about it would be futile, wouldn’t it?

“Since I have the time now, I might as well process the tea leaves.”

Mu Liang glanced towards the bathroom, ignoring the loud cries and exclamations from the bunny-eared girl inside.

He hung the clean steel pot over the fire pit and placed the tender leaves and buds that Mino had plucked into it.

“Activate Mimicry: Harden Scales.”

Using his ability, Mu Liang expertly stirred the tea leaves, skipping several traditional steps. In technical terms, this process was called “green tea frying.”

“The leaves also need to be kneaded a bit.” Mu Liang recalled the tea-processing methods described by a tea-loving comrade back in the military.

Ever since his enhancements, his memory had become sharper, allowing him to recall past events and knowledge effortlessly.

“All right, this should do.” Mu Liang shook the steel pot, observing the drastically transformed tea leaves.

He poured the tea leaves onto a wooden platter, leaving them to cool before brewing.

At that moment, the bathroom door creaked open, and the two girls emerged, completely transformed.

Mino wore a long white dress. Although the style was slightly odd, it gave her the appearance of a lively, youthful girl.

Li Yue, with her snowy-white skin and hair, exuded an icy, elegant beauty akin to a flower blooming in the snow.

Dressed in a long robe, the white-haired girl carried an air of classical elegance, like a cool and refined lady from ancient times.

“You both look great,” Mu Liang praised, giving them a thumbs up.

“I’m going back to my room,” Li Yue murmured shyly, lowering her head.

The white-haired girl clutched her old clothes, shuffling her feet as she headed towards the room they had built during the day.

“Wait…”

Mu Liang called out to her, his tone gentle. “Your room doesn’t have a bed yet. You should sleep in my room tonight.”

“No need. I can manage,” Li Yue stubbornly shook her head.

She was used to sleeping anywhere in the wild, so having a roof over her head was already more than enough.

“Then have a cup of tea first.” Mu Liang didn’t insist. He brewed two bowls of tea and handed them to the girls.

Whoosh~~

To his surprise, the tea leaves unfolded in the wooden bowls, and the tiny green spots on the leaves glowed softly.

The water’s refraction made the light resemble twinkling stars in the night sky.

“So beautiful,” Mino’s blue eyes sparkled with fascination.

“It’s stunning,” Li Yue added, captivated.

No one could resist something so beautiful.

“Go on, try it,” Mu Liang urged.

“All right.” Mino snapped out of her daze, carefully lifted the bowl, blew on the tea, and took a sip.

The next second.

“Wow!”

The bunny-eared girl swallowed the tea, grimaced, and stuck out her tongue. “It’s so bitter!”

“Huh?”

Mino’s blue eyes widened, and she exclaimed in surprise, “But now it’s sweet! My head feels so refreshed!”

“Tea starts off bitter but ends sweet,” Mu Liang chuckled, amused by Mino’s expressive reaction, akin to a performance in a Peking Opera.@@novelbin@@

“Really? Hehe…” Mino laughed awkwardly, a little embarrassed.

“It’s very good,” Li Yue said softly after taking a small sip. She closed her eyes to savour it.

The white-haired girl commented in a gentle tone, “The sweetness lingers for a long time, and it’s refreshing. This must be top-quality tea.”

“How many ferocious beast crystals do you think a bowl of this tea could be exchanged for?” Mu Liang asked curiously.

The Star Radiance Tea Tree produced abundant leaves, making it perfect as a specialty item for trading beast crystals.

“I don’t know how much it would fetch,” Li Yue admitted, shaking her head.

She had only heard about tea before but had never encountered anything of such high quality.

If not for Mu Liang, she might never have had the chance to taste tea in her entire life.

“It seems we’ll need to find someone knowledgeable about tea to test it out.”

Mu Liang figured he would need to entice someone with plenty of beast crystals who also valued tea.

Li Yue, understanding his intentions, said softly, “Some influential people will definitely like it. But don’t trade too much at once.”

“I understand. I won’t trade these for now,” Mu Liang replied, glancing at the small amount of tea left on the platter.

Mino also noticed the few remaining tea leaves and timidly asked, “Did we drink too much?”

“No, this is premium stuff. It deserves a high price,” Mu Liang said with a smile, shaking his head.

Or perhaps, it would be better kept for themselves.

“Premium stuff?” Li Yue furrowed her snowy-white brows, puzzled by his words.

“Tea isn’t limited to tender leaves and buds,” Mu Liang explained, his lips curling into a smile.

Regular leaves could also be used to make tea, though the flavour wouldn’t be as refined.

“Do we need to pick more tea leaves?” Mino’s blue eyes gleamed with eagerness.

“Yes, that task is yours,” Mu Liang said softly.

“I can go pick them now!” Mino exclaimed, jumping up and rushing towards the door.

“Aren’t you going to stop her? It’s night-time,” Li Yue asked, watching the bunny-eared girl disappear out the door.

“She’ll be back soon,” Mu Liang replied with a faint smile, raising his eyebrows.

He lifted Mino’s wooden bowl and took a sip of the tea.

Hmm, it was indeed exceptional—better than any tea he’d ever had on Earth.

Mu Liang decided that the tea’s price should be multiplied by ten; anything less would be a loss.

“…” Li Yue blinked her silver-white eyes, unsure of what he meant.

Within ten seconds.

“Wow, wow, wow! Mu Liang, come quickly!”

Mino’s excited voice echoed before she even reached the doorway.

The bunny-eared girl dashed inside, shouting gleefully, “The tea tree is glowing! It’s so beautiful!”

“I know,” Mu Liang said with a soft laugh.

“How could you possibly know? Come and see for yourself!” Mino pouted, tugging Mu Liang’s arm.

“All right, all right, I’ll take a look.” Mu Liang’s dark eyes shimmered with indulgence.

He stood up and headed for the door, patting the white-haired girl’s shoulder as he passed.

“…” Li Yue blinked her silver eyes in confusion before hesitating and following him outside.

When she stepped out, she saw Mu Liang and Mino standing still, mesmerised.

“What’s going on?” Li Yue asked, furrowing her white brows as she approached them.

Her gaze followed theirs, and she was instantly entranced.

The Star Radiance Tea Tree was glowing with a green luminescence, its leaves sparkling like countless stars.

“It’s so beautiful,” Li Yue murmured in admiration.

“It’s like the night sky full of stars,” Mu Liang said warmly.

“I can’t bear to pick the tea leaves,” Mino said, reluctant to destroy such a stunning sight.

“All right, let’s leave the tea picking for tomorrow,” Mu Liang said, tugging on Mino’s bunny ears.

“Ah! I was just trying to make use of my free time!” Mino pouted, covering her ears protectively.

“The glow will fade soon. The Star Radiance Tea Tree only shines twice a day.”

Mu Liang turned towards the house, his tone playful. “Besides, it’s pitch black. How do you plan to see the leaves to pick them?”

The Star Radiance Field could only be activated twice a day—once during the day and once at night.

“Hehe… I just forgot,” Mino mumbled, scratching her ears in embarrassment.

“Hurry inside. It’s cold out here,” Mu Liang urged as he headed back. He still needed to take his bath.

“Mu Liang, where’s the map I wanted?”

“Go get it yourself.”