Chapter 43: The Map of Atlantis Needs an Upgrade!

Since he still needed to drive back to Min City, Chu Lin refrained from drinking alcohol, opting instead to toast the villagers who had come to help with a glass of soft drink. The villagers, however, made short work of the two bottles of Maotai he had brought, and the thirty jin of Atlantis king prawns he brought along were devoured in no time as well. The prawns were so delicious that no one could stop eating.

His uncle was clearly delighted today, his face flushed from drink, and he spoke with extra confidence as he chatted with the villagers. That afternoon, he also signed the contract with Liu Yan and transferred the deposit. With a 20% down payment on the project, another four hundred thousand was gone. After handling a few more trivial matters, Chu Lin decided it was time to head back to Min City.

Just before he got into the car, the two dogs, Da Huang and Er Huang, came running after him, tongues lolling, barking at his side. He was used to this by now. Every time he returned home, the two dogs would chase after him for a long distance when he left.

Chu Song came out and called, “Xiao Lin, in a few days your Uncle Ergen needs to go to Min City; I’ll go with him and bring the dogs along as well.”

“I’ll get ready with some dog beds when I get back, and check if I need to handle any paperwork!” Chu Lin crouched down to give Da Huang and Er Huang a good pat. Though they were mongrels, in his eyes they were far more precious than any pampered pet dog. After all, he had brought them home himself when they were just tiny puppies.

Chu Song nodded, reminding him, “Xiao Lin, when you have time, go visit your sister and your younger sister more often. These days, they don’t like to tell us about their affairs, especially your younger sister—she’s only a freshman and a bit lively.”

Chu Lin smiled, “Don’t worry, Uncle, I do check in on them when I have time.” His eldest sister, Chu Yan, was older than him and always treated him well. When he had just graduated high school, she had often invited him over for good meals. As for his little sister, Chu Ling, she had always been his shadow growing up—their bond was naturally close.

Chu Lin and Li Qian didn’t return to Min City until after dark. He took Li Qian out for dinner before heading back to her apartment. After a long day, he didn’t feel like returning to the fish farm that night and decided to stay over at Li Qian’s, seizing the chance to explore a little intimacy.

As soon as he closed the door, he slipped his arms around Li Qian’s soft waist. “Of the ten sets of those *fun* outfits you bought, there are still nine left, right?”

“I’ll put one on after I shower,” Li Qian replied in a playful, teasing tone, a natural, captivating allure blooming on her face as she hurried into the bathroom.

“Well, you can skip it after your shower, if you want!” Chu Lin called after her, drawing only a flirtatious protest from the bathroom.

He took off his clothes, retrieved his phone from his pocket, and saw new messages from his elder and younger sisters.

“You rascal, you’ve made something of yourself!” wrote his eldest sister.

Clearly, word had reached her about his plans to build a villa back home. Chu Lin replied to her and then checked his younger sister’s message:

“Bro, Mom says you’re building a villa in the old hometown. Did you strike it rich?”

“Yes, I did.”

Chu Lin answered her as well. To his surprise, his little sister replied instantly:

“That’s great! Doesn’t that mean I can live in a villa from now on? Bro, you’re amazing! I totally worship you!”

He welcomed her admiration with a smile: “So, if I let you live in the villa, how will you thank your brother?”

“Bro, how about I introduce my roommate to you?”

Before Chu Lin could reply, she sent a photo of a pretty girl—her roommate—dressed in a pink camisole with fox-ear earrings, looking every bit the fresh, youthful college freshman.

Well, not bad at all.

Good looks, a nice figure, and that vibrant aura unique to young women—definitely a plus.

As he admired the picture, another message popped up: “Bro, I’m telling you, that Lin Fei is super aloof—so cold and proud, always sizing people up. Now that you’re rich, and with your looks, you could totally win her over. Then she’d have to treat me, her little sister-in-law, with respect. Let’s see if she’d still be so haughty!”

Chu Lin could practically imagine the palace intrigue of college girls sharing a dorm, and he replied with interest: “Little sis, talk is cheap—you should take action. How about sending me her WeChat?”

“Bro, on second thought, better not. I won’t let a scoundrel like you ruin her. Lin Fei is just a bit proud and unfriendly—not enough to deserve your wickedness!”

Chu Lin was speechless at her reply.

Is she messing with me?

He glanced again at the photo of the beautiful roommate and could only sigh that fate offered no opening.

So he decided to look for an opening elsewhere—putting down his phone, he headed for the *room.

“What are you doing in here?”

“You were taking too long.”

“It’s only been a moment... ah…”

...

The next morning, Chu Lin woke early to find Li Qian already up and breakfast ready. Without the aid of Atlantis oysters, he had no chance of slipping away quietly the next morning; once again, he’d been worn out like a plough-ox.

“You’re awake—breakfast is ready!” Li Qian greeted him with a radiant smile. She quite enjoyed mornings like this after a night of passion, preparing breakfast for her man. In the past, she’d always woken to find Guo Lin had already left, leaving her feeling empty and lost.

Chu Lin had to admit, there was something truly heartwarming about a woman making breakfast for her man. More importantly, Li Qian was a good cook—the porridge was light and smooth, the side dishes flavorful. She really did have many fine qualities.

After breakfast, Chu Lin returned first thing to the fish farm and entered the game to collect the newly refreshed Atlantis king prawns. As for the Atlantis oysters, he checked each one and found none of quality level 2. Apart from the 300 reserved for Zhenzhen, he kept the rest to wait for Dr. Li the veterinarian to perform artificial insemination.

She had said she would come today, with the equipment only available for one day, so she had taken special leave to help.

Sure enough, after Liu Fa had delivered the king prawns and oysters to Zhenzhen, Chu Lin received a call from Dr. Li: “Mr. Chu, I’ve borrowed the equipment you requested. When would be a good time for me to come to the farm?”

“Dr. Li, come over now if you can—I’m at the farm,” Chu Lin replied with a smile.

“Alright, Mr. Chu.” Dr. Li hung up and set out immediately.

Chu Lin quickly logged into the game and took out the oysters he had set aside. Before long, Dr. Li arrived, unloading the equipment from her car. “Mr. Chu, I brought the equipment. You can bring out the oysters you’ve prepared.”

Chu Lin nodded and fetched the oysters—over forty in all. That number was more than sufficient for artificial insemination at his farm.

Oyster reproduction comes in two forms. One is hermaphroditic—these oysters can fertilize themselves, but the yield is low. The other is cross-fertilization between male and female, which can produce tens of millions of eggs in a single spawning.

Of course, survival rates are crucial here. This is one of the greatest challenges in oyster farming, but for Chu Lin, with the blessing stone of Atlantis, it was no issue at all.

Artificial insemination of oysters is a complex process. He watched as Dr. Li handled the oysters, dividing them into four groups before taking out the instruments.

Seeing this, Chu Lin left her to her work and walked straight toward the 500-acre coastal bay.

Thanks to the blessing stone of Atlantis, the water in this 500-acre stretch was startlingly clear. Even at the very edges of the area, the water quality was far superior to the average sea. After all, water is connected and the effect spreads. The stone’s influence radiated out from the center, gradually diminishing until the water returned to normal clarity.

But this wasn’t the most significant part. The real benefit was that the water was so clear, wild fish were drawn in large numbers and could be seen swimming about freely. Truly, when the water is too clear, fish are abundant!

He immediately messaged Liu Fa to buy a fishing net.

Wild fish and prawns are far superior in quality to farmed ones. Now that so many have been drawn in, it’s time to see if the Atlantis map can be leveled up once again.