After lunch, Rex began planning the cultivation of Revival Herbs and Energy Roots. He had previously considered that large-scale cultivation of these plants would require the construction of well-sealed glass greenhouses.
These glass greenhouses would prevent the dispersion of life energy, maintaining a concentration of life energy inside the greenhouse sufficient to support more Revival Herbs and Energy Roots.
Additionally, the greenhouses could prevent many weed seeds from falling onto the planting area, which would otherwise cause an increase in workload every time the Grassy Terrain skill was used, as it would stimulate the growth of many weeds.
However, unlike the inexpensive shelters built for the Miltanks, glass greenhouses would require a significant investment of coins.
Moreover, the cost of the glass greenhouse would depend on the size of the planting area, making it a considerable expense for Rex, whose resources were not abundant.
Therefore, Rex needed to consult with Uncle Henry to understand the specific costs involved. Additionally, building an incubator to store Taillow eggs would also be a significant expense.
Fortunately, this was not an urgent matter. Rex planned to wait until Officer Jenny helped him obtain the operating license for the Pokémon breeding house before contacting Uncle Henry for a detailed discussion.
With some free time, Rex took Chimchar to the Combee hive. Along the way, Chimchar stood on his shoulder, curiously looking around.
This wasn't surprising, as monkeys are inherently curious creatures, and Chimchar, being a Pokémon, was no exception.
Upon reaching the hive, Rex noticed that the hive had expanded significantly. The hive's primary component, beeswax, was produced by Combee chewing on plants and mixing them with saliva. Once solidified, this beeswax was very sturdy.
The Combee hive was constructed in a densely packed grid pattern, with each cell just large enough to accommodate a Combee. This was where they rested at night, while the hive's interior housed the Queen Bee and the larvae.
The Combee's lives revolved around protecting their queen. Whenever an intruder appeared, the Combee would immediately defend the hive, ensuring the safety of their colony.
Chimchar became exceptionally excited upon arriving at the hive, continuously hopping on Rex's shoulder and sniffing around, evidently attracted by the sweet honey scent.
When they reached the small pool storing honey, Chimchar grew even more excited, trying to jump from Rex's shoulder into the pool to start eating.
However, Rex caught Chimchar, preventing it from diving into the pool of honey, which only had a thin layer.
This honey had been recently collected by the Combee, with most of the previous batches having been harvested by Rex.
Held in Rex's hands, Chimchar squirmed, trying to break free and reach the honey. It finally gave Rex a pitiful look, as if to say it would cry if it didn't get some honey.
Unable to resist, Rex scooped some honey into a small dish and handed it to Chimchar.
Chimchar, now forgetting its previous distress, hugged the dish and licked the honey with its tongue, savoring every bit.
After finishing the honey in the dish, Chimchar looked at Rex with a pleading expression, pointing to the now-empty dish.
This time, Rex didn't give in. He couldn't allow Chimchar to develop a lazy and demanding attitude, so he just shrugged, indicating that was all it would get.
Seeing that Rex wasn't going to give it more honey, Chimchar obediently climbed back onto his shoulder.
Rex was pleased with Chimchar's behavior, glad it didn't throw a tantrum.
After patting Chimchar's head, Rex left the hive and toured the farm, familiarizing Chimchar with the environment and other Pokémon.
When he returned home, he found Yuli and Yui already back, discussing something on the sofa.
"Wow, what a cute little monkey!" Yui exclaimed upon seeing Rex and noticing Chimchar on his shoulder.
"This is Chimchar, just born yesterday!" Rex introduced, taking Chimchar off his shoulder.
"Boss, let me hold it!" Yui's eyes sparkled with excitement.
"Chimchar, play with Yui for a bit," Rex said, handing Chimchar to her.
Chimchar looked at Rex, then at Yui, before calmly settling into Yui's arms.
"Yuli, what were you discussing?" Rex asked curiously.
"When I visited Grandma Nieno, she mentioned that Yuta had left the Trainer School and gone traveling," Yuli said with some frustration.
"Actually, that might be good for him. Yuta didn't seem to enjoy the Trainer School much. Traveling could broaden his horizons and help him grow," Rex comforted.
"I hope so. I'm just worried about his safety. But since we don't know his whereabouts, worrying is pointless. Hopefully, he'll contact us soon," Yuli sighed.
Rex then shared his recent trip to Lavaridge Town, where he had acquired many Revival Herb and Energy Root seeds. He also explained his plan to build glass greenhouses.
The team had no objections to Rex's plan. Hearing about the lucrative purchase prices for Revival Herbs and Energy Roots, they were highly motivated.
Yuli and the others were satisfied with their jobs at Rex Farm and hoped for greater productivity, confident that Rex wouldn't let them down.
A few days later, Officer Jenny delivered the Pokémon breeding house operating license to Rex. With this license, Rex Farm could officially sell Taillow eggs.
Rex then invited Uncle Henry over to discuss his needs.
According to Uncle Henry's calculations, constructing an incubator for Pokémon eggs with interior decoration would cost about 150,000 coins. Building a greenhouse to meet Rex's desired planting area would cost around 400,000 coins.
Rex had about 320,000 coins, with a shortfall of about 230,000. He also needed to reserve funds for daily expenses and wages for Yuli and the others.
Rex decided to prioritize building the incubator and delay the greenhouse construction. Once they made profits from selling Taillow eggs, they could consider building the greenhouse.
Having made this decision, Rex authorized Uncle Henry to start building the incubator. Unlike the simple shelters for Pokémon, constructing the incubator required hiring additional help and would take about three days to complete.
(End of Chapter)