Chapter 422: A Hint and a Favor

[Vanassa: Yes, we’re preparing to study whether they can be raised and bred in captivity.]

[Vanassa: Professor Walsh’s previous research found that these prawns have high medicinal value. Several research institutions and aquaculture companies are very interested in them.]

After reading the message, Melody Summers popped another piece of prawn into her mouth and continued typing her reply:

[Summertime: Did all those research institutions and companies buy the prawns too?]

[Vanassa: Not exactly. They’re very hard to get. We had someone constantly monitoring the shop’s updates just to successfully buy them.]

[Summertime: So you’re the only ones who got them?]

[Vanassa: I heard Professor Walsh’s group managed to buy a set, and The Nimbus Hotel also got one.]

[Vanassa: The other research institutions and companies didn’t manage to buy any, so they’re trying to purchase them from The Nimbus Hotel at a high price. The hotel plans to auction off the prawns tonight to the highest bidder.]

Melody Summers: "..."

’The Nimbus Hotel sure knows how to make a profit on the markup!’

Whether it was the diamonds before or the Blue Scale Prawns this time, The Nimbus Hotel had made a killing. For every hundred million Melody Summers earned, The Nimbus Hotel would trail behind her and make three hundred million.

’Is there any justice in this world?!’

Melody Summers shook her head with a sense of helplessness, pushing the chaotic thoughts from her mind.

In any case, knowing that Paige Walsh’s team had also managed to get some prawns, Melody Summers felt a little more at ease.

[Summertime: I see. It seems they really are hard to buy. It would be great if they could be artificially bred soon.]

[Summertime: Do you have any leads on artificial breeding yet?]

[Vanassa: None.]

[Vanassa: The Rhodes corporation’s research team tried to contact the owner of The Arcadia Store to ask about the creature’s living environment and breeding conditions, but the owner ignored them.]

[Vanassa: Right now, all we know is that they live in a deep-sea environment. Beyond that, we know nothing.]

After reading the messages from Sophie Thorne, Melody Summers scratched her head in embarrassment.

’It wasn’t that she was deliberately ignoring people; she just didn’t know the prawns’ breeding conditions either.’

Even though she’d been eating steamed Blue Scale Prawns for several days straight, she still couldn’t even tell the males from the females. All she knew was that they usually lived in groups inside conch shells.

Thinking of this, Melody Summers opened The Arcadia Store, pulled up her chat with Paige Walsh, and sent a message:

[The Blue Scale Prawns like pretty conch shells. Placing some in the incubator might help them breed.]

Melody Summers didn’t know if the conch shells were a necessary condition for the Blue Scale Prawns to breed, but she could only do her best to provide some potentially useful information.

A few seconds later, Paige Walsh’s reply came through:

[Thank you for the information! This is very important to us!]

Melody Summers replied:

[You’re welcome. Please share this information with the other research institutions as well.]

She thought for a moment, then sent two more messages:

[There’s one more thing. I’ve been hesitant to bring it up, but there’s a girl named Lucy White currently staying with you. I’m not sure if you remember her.]

[I only just learned about this from a friend recently. Lucy White is my friend’s student. She’s a very unfortunate girl, and if possible, I’d like to ask you to look after her a little. As a thank you, I can send you three more Blue Scale Prawns.]

Melody Summers had been quite worried about Lucy White lately. Even though Zane Simmons had promised not to make things difficult for her, Melody still couldn’t help but feel uneasy.

An apocalyptic world, deceased parents, living under someone else’s roof—her situation was bound to be awkward.

Melody Summers hadn’t wanted to meddle, but she truly felt for Lucy White. She thought Lucy’s situation was a bit like her own in her past life—struggling alone in an unfamiliar environment after losing her parents.

She had wanted to leave a message for Paige Walsh to put in a good word right after she returned from The Nimbus Hotel, but she had only just met Lucy White at the time. If she had spoken up then and Paige had asked Lucy about it, Lucy could have easily made the connection to her. Melody Summers was afraid of blowing her cover.

Some time had passed since they met. By claiming to be a friend of Lucy’s teacher, Lucy probably wouldn’t make the connection to her anymore.

As soon as Melody Summers sent the message, Paige Walsh’s reply came back almost instantly:

[Oh, so that’s how it is! Don’t you worry. Since you’ve asked, I’ll be sure to take good care of her!]

Seeing Paige Walsh’s response, Melody Summers finally felt relieved.

Given Paige Walsh’s character, Melody Summers believed she would be true to her word. With this, Lucy White’s days shouldn’t be too difficult.

******

Meanwhile, as soon as Paige Walsh finished chatting with Melody Summers, she immediately called her assistant and instructed them to find some conch shells and have them delivered.

Just as she put down her phone, she heard a soft knock on the door. She called out, "Come in."

The words had barely left her mouth when the door opened and Zane Simmons walked in.

He began, "Mom, Carter Jennings also managed to buy five Blue Scale Prawns. He’s planning to auction them off tonight. I can bid on all of them for you."

Paige Walsh shook her head at his words and replied, "That won’t be necessary for now. What we have is enough. But thank you for the thought."

’The few prawns I have now are sufficient,’ Paige Walsh thought to herself. ’I should leave some opportunity for the other research institutions.’

Then she looked at Zane Simmons and asked, "By the way, that girl, Lucy White. Have you investigated her before? What do you know about her?"

Hearing Paige Walsh mention her, Zane Simmons’s heart skipped a beat. ’Why would Mom suddenly ask me about Lucy White?’

’Could it be because of what Joanne White did before? Is she planning to take it out on Lucy?’

At this thought, Zane Simmons grew nervous.

After spending time with her recently, he had developed a bit of a fondness for Lucy White. He subconsciously defended her, "Mom, why are you suddenly asking about Lucy? ...I know her sister did something wrong before, but that has nothing to do with her."

After speaking, Zane Simmons thought of the Blue Scale Prawns and quickly added, "Oh, I forgot to tell you! The reason we were able to buy those blue prawns this time was all thanks to Lucy White! She created a plug-in that could instantly purchase items listed on The Arcadia Shop, which is how I managed to get them."

The implication of Zane Simmons’s words was that he hoped his mother, for the sake of those blue prawns, would not make things difficult for Lucy White.

Unexpectedly, Paige Walsh completely ignored his plea and simply asked, as if to herself, "I heard... her parents are no longer with us?"

Zane Simmons nodded at her words and answered nervously, "Yes. Her parents both passed away in the disasters. She had no one to rely on, so she sought refuge with her uncle—that is, Joanne White’s parents... If we kick her out now, she’ll really have nowhere else to go..."

Hearing him say this, Paige Walsh understood.

Then she stood up and said to Zane Simmons, "Where is she now? Take me to see her."