A Mealworm Pupates, and a Fortune Is Invested

"Mealworm? What's wrong with the mealworm..."

Yu Yuan heard Dai Le's voice and was puzzled for a moment. Then he realized what Dai Le meant.

"The big one!!!"

Yu Yuan sprang to his feet as Dai Le rushed into the room.

"Boss, hurry! That mealworm suddenly started thrashing around..."

"Let's go. Tell me downstairs!"

Yu Yuan was already at the stairs. He bounded down them two steps at a time.

In the Insect Breeding Room, Yu Yuan saw the mealworm in the breeding box Dai Le had set aside for it. It had grown as large as his palm, and its plump body was thrashing wildly. Faint gray markings had appeared on its skin.

Those hadn't been there before.

Yu Yuan had only checked on it that morning!

Dai Le arrived moments later, panting from running up and down the stairs.

"What happened?" Yu Yuan asked.

"I was checking on the adult mealworms' breeding when I heard a noise over here. I came straight over, saw it thrashing, and ran upstairs to get you."

Yu Yuan asked another question.

"When did you feed it Hundred-Flower Honeydew today?"

"First thing this morning. That's always the first thing I do." Dai Le thought for a moment, then said with certainty, "At 6:17 a.m., give or take no more than a minute."

Yu Yuan checked his watch. It was 9:12 a.m. Not even three hours had passed.

He understood. The Hundred-Flower Honeydew had most likely taken effect, and the mealworm was about to evolve.

"It's all right. Let's wait and see what happens," Yu Yuan said, trying to calm the old man.

As time passed, the gray markings spread across nearly half the mealworm's body.

But Yu Yuan noticed that they were spreading more and more slowly. Their color was fading, too.

The