Chapter 317: Old Lady Yu
Su Tao never expected Minister Xu to take care of things for them.
She and Qian Lin followed the address left by Minister Xu. The location was incredibly remote—it took them two hours by car to reach it, and by then, it was already dark.
Qian Lin got out of the car, checked her watch—it was already 10 p.m.—and hesitated.
“Would it be too late? Maybe we’re disturbing them?”
Su Tao said, “Let’s check first. We’ve come all this way, and if Ma Dapao can’t fix the generator, our sales tomorrow will take a huge hit.”
They walked a short distance where the car couldn’t go and finally saw two small houses with lights on.
Qian Lin was relieved. “Since the lights are on, they’re still awake. I’ll knock.”
The door was opened by a young man in his twenties—tall, thin, and with sharp, well-defined features. He would have been incredibly handsome if not for the large red birthmark covering half of his right cheek, which diminished his looks significantly. At night, it even looked a bit eerie.
Qian Lin composed herself, keeping her expression neutral and maintaining a polite, respectful tone. “Hello, we were sent by Minister Xu. We’d like to buy a generator from Granny Yu.”
Su Tao also greeted him with a friendly smile. “Hello, sorry to disturb you so late. Is Granny Yu available?”
The young man nodded indifferently and stepped aside to let them in. As they entered, his gaze landed on the black bracelet on Su Tao’s wrist, and his cold expression softened slightly.
He called into the house, “Grandma, Uncle Xu’s guests are here.”
A raspy, sharp voice responded from inside, “I’m busy! Wait a bit!”
Su Tao immediately understood what Minister Xu meant when he said Granny Yu had a temper. She obediently sat down and waited patiently.
But the moment she sat, the couch beneath her suddenly moved! Startled, she jumped to her feet.
Qian Lin, who was just about to sit down, froze mid-air in her movement.
The young man spoke nonchalantly, “My grandma’s custom-made massage couch. It won’t eat you. Sit down.”
Su Tao and Qian Lin laughed awkwardly and sat back down.
But honestly, the massage was quite nice.
The coffee table in front of them was equally impressive—it automatically adjusted its height whenever they reached for something, making sure they never had to bend down or stretch.
Su Tao was surprised. This small, ordinary-looking house was filled with custom-built smart furniture. They weren’t particularly aesthetically pleasing, but they were incredibly functional—better than the ones she’d seen in system home appliance stores.
Granny Yu was truly impressive.
The young man gave a brief self-introduction.
“My surname is Yu. You can call me Xiao Yu. The house’s water supply reached its daily limit, so we won’t be serving you water. If you’re thirsty, bear with it.”
Su Tao couldn’t help but ask, “You live in such a remote place—where do you get your water from?”
They were practically at the outskirts of Xindu, where there were no water or electricity pipelines.
Xiao Yu looked at her in confusion. “You don’t know? The person who gave you that bracelet didn’t explain?”
Su Tao: “???”
Why did it feel like she was missing a lot of information lately?
Xiao Yu saw her confusion and explained, “You know Shi Zijin, right? He once paid my grandma with a water-element ability user’s crystal core to have this bracelet made. That crystal core was turned into a water storage unit by my grandma. As long as we use it sparingly, it lasts for about a year. Today’s limit has already been reached.”
That was a lot to take in.
So this bracelet was actually made by Granny Yu, commissioned by Shi Zijin. No wonder Minister Xu had recognized it instantly.
Also, in an environment where water was scarce, a water-element crystal core was far more valuable than any other type.
Shi Zijin’s payment was incredibly generous.
Su Tao felt a warm feeling in her heart.
More importantly, she realized something crucial—Granny Yu had the ability to maximize the efficiency of ability users’ crystal cores.
Unlike others, who would burn through a crystal’s energy in three days, she could extend its usefulness significantly.
That was… an incredibly powerful skill.
Su Tao couldn’t help but glance toward Granny Yu’s room, her eyes practically glowing with interest.
Xiao Yu’s voice softened slightly when talking about Shi Zijin. He added, “Thanks to his water-element crystal, we were able to move here.”
Qian Lin was puzzled. “This place is so remote—why move here?”
At that moment, the door suddenly swung open, and an old woman stepped out, slamming the door behind her. She let out a cold snort.
“Where we live is none of your business. Just tell me what you need. I owed Xu Chang a favor, so I won’t charge you. Take your stuff and leave.”
Xiao Yu reminded her, “Grandma, they’re also Shi Zijin’s people.”
Granny Yu’s attitude softened—just a little—but she still wasn’t friendly.
Su Tao observed the old woman. Her silver-white hair was neatly combed, and though her clothes were old, they were clean and well-kept.
The only notable thing was her hands—each missing a finger…
Granny Yu lowered her gaze, her presence radiating an oppressive aura.
Su Tao immediately looked away and answered honestly, “We need a generator, something small and portable.”
Qian Lin had already shrunk into herself like a frightened quail.
Without a word, Granny Yu turned back into her room, rummaged around, and threw a small metallic cube—no bigger than a Rubik’s Cube—at Su Tao.
Su Tao caught it, utterly bewildered, and waited for an explanation.
A written manual? She didn’t dare expect one.
Granny Yu spoke rapidly, “I’ll only say this once. Before use, find the darkest side and press the center button. It will unfold into a 2×2 solar panel. Leave it in the sun to charge. Once charged, retract it. The brightest side…”
She went on with a long explanation.
In summary, this device converted solar energy into electricity, but it could also directly absorb energy from ordinary crystal cores and convert that into power.
It was… insanely powerful.
Granny Yu, however, was done. “Take it and go. I’m going to bed.”
Xiao Yu walked them out.
Su Tao found him easier to talk to and asked, “You and Granny Yu live here to avoid people?”
Because she trusted both Minister Xu and Shi Zijin, Xiao Yu wasn’t overly guarded and nodded.
“Otherwise, too many people would come knocking. My grandma doesn’t want to make things for just anyone.”
That made sense. But looking around at the desolate landscape, Su Tao couldn’t help but worry.
“You have drinking water, but what about food?”
Xiao Yu said he made regular trips to the market to buy artificial bread, which they soaked in water to eat. It kept them full.
The reason they didn’t have much savings was simple—Granny Yu refused to sell her work for money. If she did, people would try to manipulate her for profit.
Su Tao glanced at Xiao Yu from head to toe. No wonder he was so thin—poor kid.
Granny Yu was thin, too—poor old lady.
She couldn’t help herself. From Fang Zhi’s storage space, she pulled out two large bags of food and daily necessities, shoving them into Xiao Yu’s hands.
“Don’t refuse. Granny Yu didn’t take our money, and I already feel guilty. These aren’t worth much—just take them and eat properly. Don’t just survive on dry bread and water; it’s not nutritious enough.”
