Insect Farm

After leaving the warehouse district, Su Jie had a big meal.

Full and satisfied, he took a taxi to the outskirts based on information found online, heading to a farm that specialized in raising scorpions.

The farm covered a considerable area, with several single-story factory buildings inside. A guard dog was tied at the entrance, and it immediately started barking ferociously as Su Jie approached.

Hiss!

From Su Jie's sleeve, the Thousand-Hand Centipede poked out half its head and let out a threatening sound.

The terrifying appearance of the Thousand-Hand Centipede scared the guard dog half to death. It tucked its tail and retreated into its doghouse, not daring to come out again.

Su Jie glanced at the sign hanging by the entrance, "Yaogang Scorpion Farm," noting there wasn't even a security guard to watch the place.

Just as he was thinking about calling the factory number posted on the adjacent wall, footsteps could be heard from inside.

Perhaps alerted by the dog's barking earlier, a dark-skinned, square-faced middle-aged man ran out.

"Hello boss, are you here to buy scorpions? My name is Chen Yaoguang, and I run this farm. The dog's barking didn't startle you, did it? This darn dog, I'll slaughter it one of these days."

The man was extremely enthusiastic from the moment they met, his gaze towards Su Jie practically glowing.

Su Jie eyed him warily, wondering if the man had some peculiar hobbies.

"Something like that. I'd like to come in and take a look around, see how your scorpions are doing."

Su Jie patted the Thousand-Hand Centipede hidden in his sleeve, feeling reassured. He walked into the scorpion farm accompanied by Chen Yaoguang.

It was evident that Chen Yaoguang was a clean person. Although he raised scorpions, which weren't particularly picky about their environment, the inside and outside of the factory were kept spotlessly clean.

"Boss, this is our breeding facility. Each building, with a ceiling height of three meters, uses large-scale honeycomb-style breeding. We can house up to 200,000 scorpions."

Chen Yaoguang explained enthusiastically and then personally led Su Jie into the factory building.

The scorpion enclosures here were constructed from wooden boards, arranged like rows of bookshelves.

Large numbers of grayish-brown scorpions crawled in and out, their sheer quantity enough to make one's scalp tingle at first glance.

Upon entering, the Thousand-Hand Centipede in Su Jie's arms became restless, eager to crawl out of his sleeve.

"Manager Chen, what species of scorpions do you mainly raise here?"

Su Jie soothed the Thousand-Hand Centipede and continued to ask.

"We mainly raise East Asian Scorpions for sale to pharmacies for medicinal purposes. Male scorpions cost 0.8 yuan each, and females are a bit more expensive at 1.1 yuan. We also raise some Rainforest Scorpions and Emperor Scorpions for insect pet shops. These are more expensive. Which type were you looking to buy, boss?"

Chen Yaoguang answered immediately, watching Su Jie carefully, afraid he would be dissatisfied with the price and leave.

His scorpion farm had recently faced a survival crisis. The long-term, stable traditional Chinese medicine channels had canceled their supply relationship with him.

Scorpion sales like these couldn't be done by shouting on the street.

Without downstream channels to purchase from, his farm was immediately struggling.

The daily costs for water, electricity, and feeding the yellow mealworms were a huge expense.

The immense pressure had almost crushed him. He had even sold his ancestral home to invest in the farm and had been stubbornly holding on, which was why he was so enthusiastic when Su Jie showed up.

"How many scorpions do you have in your farm?"

"There are five factory buildings in total, with about one million scorpions being raised. Boss, I've been in the insect farming business for over ten years. You can absolutely rest assured about the quality of the scorpions I raise."

Hearing this, Chen Yaoguang became even more excited. This person in front of him was likely a major customer!

However, Su Jie's appetite was even bigger than he imagined. He nodded with satisfaction and said, "Is your farm for sale? I'll offer two million."

"Buy the farm?"

Chen Yaoguang was completely stunned by this statement.

He thought Su Jie was a major customer, but it turned out he wasn't just interested in the scorpions, but the entire farm as well.

"I'm truly sorry, boss, but that's probably not possible. I've poured too much of my heart and soul into this farm. I started in my twenties and I'm now in my forties. This is not for sale."

Chen Yaoguang hesitated for a moment before refusing Su Jie's request. He had spent over a decade at this farm and had deep feelings for it.

"2.5 million. Are you selling?"

Su Jie didn't even blink, casually quoting a higher price.

Now holding over sixty million in cash, Su Jie was incredibly wealthy. The money had come easily, so he didn't hesitate to spend it.

Gulp!

Swallowing hard, Chen Yaoguang's breathing became heavier, and he said with difficulty, "Boss, I know you have money, but raising insects is my dream. It's not something that can be insulted by money. Please respect my dream."

Although he was tempted by the offer, he had a dream of insect farming. Otherwise, he wouldn't have sold his house to invest in the farm and persist.

"3 million. I'm a person who respects others' dreams. How about this, Manager Chen, I'll buy the farm, and you can continue to manage it with a monthly salary of fifty thousand. I won't interfere with any production matters myself, but the sale and transaction of scorpions will be handled by me."

Su Jie smiled and incrementally increased the price, finally breaking through Chen Yaoguang's psychological defenses.

"Well... Hahaha, boss, you really know how to read people. I accept. But it's not for the money, it's so I can continue managing this farm."

Chen Yaoguang succumbed to the staggering figure of 3 million. Dreams were important, but so was having food on the table.

Moreover, Su Jie respected his dream and would let him continue managing the farm. He couldn't think of any reason to refuse.

After all, a salary of fifty thousand a month was truly enticing.

"Then it's decided. We'll go sign the contract later, and once it's done, I'll transfer the money to you."

Su Jie was also very satisfied looking at Chen Yaoguang, whose face was split into a wide, chrysanthemum-like grin.

Su Jie didn't have the energy to personally manage this farm after buying it; having Chen Yaoguang around made things much more convenient.

Moreover, the man had been in insect farming for over a decade and was a talented individual. Su Jie needed such talent to work for him.

As for the small amount of money he was paying, he could just chop down a couple more trees in the Tianyuan World; it was that simple.

"Director Chen, please pack a box of scorpions for me first. Catch about ten thousand, I want to take them with me."

"Understood, understood. I'll get right on it."

Chen Yaoguang immediately got into character, treating Su Jie like his god, wishing he could bare his heart to show his loyalty.

After obtaining the scorpions, Su Jie signed the farm's purchase contract with Chen Yaoguang. With a payment of 3 million, the Yaogang Scorpion Farm would now bear the surname Su.

With this farm as a cover, Su Jie could now procure various venomous insects in large quantities without anyone suspecting anything.