Farming Games are All About Grinding-Chapter 72: Making a Fortune!

At this moment, Han Qiwu sent over a meticulously formatted text message.

Tang Qingying glanced at it and smiled lightly.

Using honey as hotpot payment—it’s a fitting idea.

"What did he say?" Jing Yijia asked with a nosy expression.

"He said these items were picked up on the beach, that they’re not worth much, and told me to keep them as payment for yesterday’s meal," Tang Qingying said with a smile. Internally, she believed him a little; she’d also picked up coral on the beach when she was a child. But even so, she couldn’t accept it for free—she’d have to find a chance to return the favor.

"Using it as meal payment—that’s a clever excuse, I’m taking notes!" Jing Yijia nodded in approval. "If he can pick up stuff worth tens of thousands on the beach, is he the Prince of the Sea?"

Tang Qingying held her phone with both hands and replied: "I’ll keep it for now. Next time I visit, I’ll bring you a gift. Focus on writing your paper."

Han "the playboy" Qiwu blushed after seeing the message.

He wished time could fast-forward to the next time Mr. Tang visited.

After calming himself down for a bit, Han Qiwu adjusted his mood and got ready for some fishing.

What if this time some rare treasure came out of the chest?

Then he could gift something again!

Just before casting his rod, Han Qiwu suddenly realized—it had been days since he last went to fish for the Golden Star Mandarin Fish.

Might as well head to the river first—sharpening the axe before chopping wood. If he could catch one, he’d easily make an extra thousand gold this afternoon.

Ten minutes later, Han Qiwu was sitting by the river, fishing.

As he fished, Han Qiwu unexpectedly spotted the Prince.

Although the Prince was invisible to others, it was still visible in Han Qiwu’s own field of vision.

Thankfully, the system was powerful enough to simulate water trails wherever the Prince passed.

Otherwise, Water Buffalo Town would surely start circulating rumors about a rainy-day invisible bear monster.

"Weird. Why did it wander all the way here? There’s neither raspberries nor wild herbs, and its route doesn’t even lead this way." Han Qiwu was about to go check it out when suddenly, he got a bite.

Forget it; let me reel in this fish first, then I’ll come find you!

Entering the fishing mini-game, Han Qiwu chuckled at the interface—could today’s horoscope be "lucky for fishing"?

Right on the first cast, he encountered a Mandarin Fish.

Five minutes later, Han Qiwu lifted his rod with an ecstatic expression.

[Congratulations, you successfully completed a perfect catch!]

[Peach Blossom Mandarin Fish (Golden Star Quality)⭐⭐]

[Stamina +40]

[HP +25]

[Remark: This is a rare Peach Blossom Mandarin Fish, with only one chance to obtain it each week.]

Success!

This Mandarin Fish was even better than the last one—the previous one only had ⭐, but this one had ⭐⭐.

More stars mean more power!

Opening the map, Han Qiwu discovered he could see the Prince’s movement trajectory. He watched as the little bear wandered in a massive circle from its home toward its destination.

Wait, it can take such a route?

A disciple of Mr. Ma, perhaps?

Dragging its feet like this, all brute force?

The map showed the Prince had already run two kilometers away and was now ambling around the raspberry patch.

Forget it; he could understand the Prince wanting to get some fresh air—let the bear enjoy itself.

Back at the seaside, Han Qiwu fished for half an hour first before cooking and eating the Mandarin Fish.

No stamina wasting allowed!

Unfortunately, this time during fish cleaning, there was no [Fish Belly Peach Blossom].

Quickly finishing the food, Han Qiwu, boosted by his +1 fishing level buff, went back to casting his rod.

Five hours later, Han Qiwu stood by the trading point, grinning as he waited for the system to calculate his earnings.

[Through transactions, you earned 3668 gold]

In addition to the money, Han Qiwu opened up a treasure chest and obtained six small crystals, one huge crystal, one dried starfish, and one green gemstone.

Fishing in the rain is the best!

The biting speed and treasure chest chances were significantly higher than usual!

If not for concerns about the rock cave being dangerous during high tide, Han Qiwu would have gone fishing for Black Sea Bream.

Next time.

He glanced at the clock—14:36.

Time to head to the blacksmith’s shop to rest for a bit, then decide what to do next.

On his way to the blacksmith’s, Han Qiwu was lost in thought. From the current situation, mining profits weren’t far behind fishing. As the mine layers went deeper, mining income would continue to increase. Plus, mining provided materials, making overall cost-efficiency pretty favorable.

But fishing gave treasure chests and supplies, so a balance was necessary.

It’s tough.

If he could learn Sun Wukong’s cloning technique from TV, that’d be perfect.

"From now on, fish on rainy days; otherwise, mine. Sell items and take missions during the commute," Han Qiwu temporarily finalized his development strategy.

Arriving at the blacksmith’s shop, Han Qiwu walked in and respectfully placed all the crystals on the counter.

"You here to buy a feed box?"

"Yep! You’re as wise and insightful as ever, sir—sharp-eyed and vigorous as a young man!"

For crucial moments like cracking open crystals, he had to keep Gongsu’s mood upbeat.

"Cut it out. My bones are all worn out; where’s the sharp-eyed vigor? After I crack the crystals, I’ll make you a feed box. Watch closely, and see how much you can learn." Gongsu seemed to be in a good mood.

"Awesome! Thank you so much!" Han Qiwu was thrilled. Once his development picked up, a single feed box wouldn’t be enough. If he could craft them himself, he’d save 2000 gold in fees.

With Gongsu in a good mood, Han Qiwu only spent 150 gold to crack seven crystals.

The first six ordinary crystals yielded typical results—a lump of clay, two pieces of coal, two iron ores, and one empty crystal.

After collecting his gains, Han Qiwu carefully watched Gongsu work on the final crystal—a huge crystal.

The huge crystal, true to its name, was several times larger than ordinary ones.

"Come on, give me something good."

[You obtained a Red Cat’s Eye Stone]

[Red Cat’s Eye Stone: An exceptionally rare gemstone named for the red speck on its surface]

[You obtained a Gold Ore]

[Gold Ore: A precious ore that can be smelted in a furnace into gold]

Double hit!

Two great items from one huge crystal!

To determine their value, he’d still need to check their selling price.

At the counter, Han Qiwu placed down his amethyst, citrine, and earth crystal.

[Would you like to sell Amethyst ×11, unit price 150 gold?]

"Yes."

Likewise, Citrine also sold for 150 gold per piece, while Earth Crystals were pricier at 180 gold each.

Total earnings: 4080 gold.

Jackpot!

Han Qiwu suppressed his newfound wealth-induced excitement and placed the Red Cat’s Eye Stone on the counter.

He decided to gauge its worth through the selling price.

[Would you like to sell Red Cat’s Eye Stone, unit price 450 gold?]

"No."

A price three times higher than Amethyst—it meant this stone was far rarer.

He’d keep it.

[Would you like to sell Gold Ore, unit price 300 gold?]

"No."

Gold Ore only fetched 300 gold. Based on this comparison, the Red Cat’s Eye Stone was indeed exceptional.

He’d keep it all—it’d come in handy for his own alchemy later!