Completing the Transaction

At the same time, in another space-time, with her head wrapped in bandages and one arm hanging in a sling, Xu Xixi cried all the way from the hospital back home.

As soon as she entered the door, she kicked off her shoes and collapsed onto the sofa. Recalling the voice that echoed in her mind when she received the space, Xu Xixi couldn't help but shed tears again. Her best friend, her only friend, the girl who had had a rough life since childhood, had left forever just like that.

Did they think giving her this space was enough compensation? *Sob... Old Tree, you have no heart!*

The tears she had held back all the way finally burst out: "Sob... What do I need this space for? You wicked old man, give Hua Hua back to me... Sob, I don't want compensation... Sob, what is my Hua Hua going to do... Sob... Pop!"

Crying so bitterly, she popped a snot bubble, which also eased Xu Xixi's grief slightly. She grabbed the tissue box on the table, blew her nose hard, sat in a daze on the sofa for a long time, and then stumbled into the space.

Her best friend was gone, and her best friend's house had been occupied by those wolf-like relatives, while she didn't even have the right to kick them out. No matter how unwilling she was, she had to admit that the only connection left between her and her best friend now was this space.

In the next second, she was startled by the large screen that almost hit her face, causing her to plop onto the ground. She tried hard to rub her tear-blurred eyes; the large screen was still there, she wasn't seeing things.

But when she entered the space before, this wasn't here.

Furthermore, how did the space become so large? Could it be that seeing her cry so miserably, the old man who called himself "Mr. Tree" had compensated her further?

Or should she try crying again? Who knew, maybe the old man would get annoyed by her crying and return Hua Hua to her?

Just as the thought flashed, a voice that sounded more tired than last time echoed in her head: "Impossible! Don't even dream about it!"

Xu Xixi pouted and sniffled, finally stopping her loud crying.

She carefully observed the screen in front of her, which looked like a vending machine: six very large squares, with only the top right square labeled "Buy" lit up. Inside that square was a pile of something that looked like a bundle of grass?

Fumbling on the screen for a moment, she suddenly understood. This was a trading system, right? Should she place the item she wanted to sell in the left square now? But what did it mean to exchange a bundle of grass for her?

She looked down at the strawberry pot at her feet. It was a potted plant she had casually bought by the roadside on her way back from the hospital. The plant still had two bright red strawberries hanging from it, each as big as a chicken egg.

She picked it up and placed it directly into the first "Sell" square. Immediately, the plastic pot and the strawberry plant inside disappeared, appearing in the square, while the originally gray square also lit up.

Pressing the confirmation button, the screen didn't change. The bundle of grass in the other square couldn't be taken out, and the strawberry plant she put in couldn't be retrieved either. It seemed they had to wait for the other side to confirm before the transaction could be completed.

Having finished these tasks, Xu Xixi finally felt less like crying. She began to observe the space she had only entered once before: although it was ten times larger, it was barren with nothing in it. Did she really have to plant things herself?

Growing up in the city since childhood, let alone farming, she couldn't even distinguish what seeds looked like. Doing it herself was definitely out of the question.

Especially when she thought about how this space was compensated to her because Hua Hua had been struck and killed by lightning, she felt uncomfortable again: "Old Tree, take the space back and return Hua Hua to me, okay?"

Again, there was that damn silence. Just as Xu Xixi pouted, about to cry, the first square on the screen flashed. Then, the strawberry pot she had just put in disappeared, and the pile of grass-like plants fell at her feet.

It didn't look that big on the screen, but falling to the ground, it turned out to be a massive pile, reaching half her height. Looking closely at the heavy pods hanging on the plants, she peeled one open to find golden-yellow soybeans inside. This pile would probably yield several catties of soybeans once shelled, right? Xu Xixi suddenly felt guilty for taking advantage of the other party.

Maybe she should compensate the other party a bit more in the next transaction? She also didn't know if the next transaction would be with the same person.

But since the other party had agreed, they probably didn't have any objections to this transaction.

Her stomach rumbled. Only then did Xu Xixi remember that she had only eaten half a bowl of porridge at the hospital in the morning, and had cried for so long. No wonder she was hungry.

No matter how heartbroken she was, she had to fill her stomach. Otherwise, Hua Hua wouldn't be at peace looking down from heaven.

Exiting the space, she went into the kitchen to get a basin. She wanted to see if the soybeans traded from the space would make more delicious soy milk.

On the other side, after finishing her IV drip, using the excuse of going to the restroom to go out, Hua Jinyin had just thrown the man in her space onto a bench in the hospital corridor when she felt something unusual in her space.

She ran to a quiet corner of the secondary staircase and entered the space. Below the trading screen, which was originally empty, there was now an additional pot of strawberries. Not only did she have no objections, but she was also extremely delighted.

This pot of strawberries was clearly the Jiu Jiu strawberry variety that she loved to eat most in her previous life. Before being struck by lightning, she had just bought some, and they cost a whopping fifty-eight yuan per catty.

In this era, let alone planting them, this strawberry variety hadn't even been bred yet.

Could the person trading with her be from the same era? If so, could she ask the other party to pass a message to her best friend? Just to say she was living very well and tell her not to be sad!

*Sigh, I can imagine how heartbroken that girl Xu Xixi would be upon learning I was struck and killed by lightning.*

Having been at the hospital for nearly two hours, her special ability had recovered by seventy to eighty percent. She channeled her special ability into the strawberry pot, instantly causing the entire pot of strawberries to ripen.

She plucked one and popped it into her mouth, then plucked five more, wrapped them in bean leaves fallen on the ground, stuffed them into her cotton coat, and exited the space.

Coming out of the staircase, seeing a nurse in her thirties walking out of a ward holding a used IV set, Hua Jinyin quickly followed her all the way to the nurse's station.

Seeing no one inside, she casually closed the door.

The nurse turned around at the sound. Seeing Hua Jinyin, she asked: "Do you need something?"

Under the nurse's questioning gaze, Hua Jinyin took out the package of strawberries wrapped in leaves from her chest: "Sister, my family grew these. Take them home for the kids to try."

"There are already strawberries at this time of year? And so big?"

Seeing the nurse's eyes widen in surprise, Hua Jinyin quickly stuffed both the strawberries and the leaves into her hands: "The seeds were brought back by a family member from the capital. I just grew them indoors for fun, and didn't expect them to bear so much fruit. I want to exchange them for a glass bottle for my younger sister to carry water to school."

The nurse glanced at the empty IV bottle in her hand. Without thinking much, she handed it to Hua Jinyin: "Take it back for your sister to play with. Don't let others see it."

Perhaps fearing Hua Jinyin would find one too few, she took two more from the table next to her and stuffed them all into Hua Jinyin's arms.

"My surname is Liu, I live at No. 36 Baiyun Street. Just go there and ask for Head Nurse Liu, everyone knows me. In the future, if you have anything good at home, just bring it to my house. I won't let you lose out."

This was an invitation to do long-term business? Hua Jinyin quickly nodded repeatedly: "Yes, yes, in the future, if my family has anything delicious, I will definitely think of Sister Liu first."

Although there were many treasure chests in her space, she didn't want to sell them cheaply. To live well in this era, she really needed to have some extra income. Otherwise, wouldn't letting her space and special ability go unused be a waste?

Compared to the black market, this kind of transaction was much safer.