Chapter 101: The Marijuana Cultivation Base (Part One)

“Hemp, what exactly is hemp?” a student asked.

Ye Fei glanced around at everyone, then thought for a moment and said, “Hemp is the common name, also called marijuana. It’s a drug, and if ingested by mistake, it causes hallucinations. Their vegetable soup contained this substance, so everyone who drank it experienced hallucinations.”

“Marijuana—”

“A drug—”

“How could such a thing get into our food? Do those leaves even look like vegetables? That’s impossible,” one student questioned, bewildered.

Ye Fei frowned and said seriously, “Marijuana leaves don’t look like vegetables at all, so it’s unlikely that they picked it themselves. I think the hotel staff accidentally mixed marijuana into the greens when preparing the barbecue ingredients, and then they unknowingly cooked it into the soup.”

“Marijuana mixed in by the hotel—”

“That’s outrageous! We have to confront them. How dare they pass off marijuana as vegetables,” a student shouted indignantly.

Most of the students agreed with this suggestion.

“Everyone, quiet down. Let’s hear what Ye Fei has to say,” Zhang Xiaoxiao said, and Liu Yiyi and the others nodded in agreement.

“Ye Fei, you go ahead! You were the one who discovered this; we’ll listen to you,” the boys said, showing deference to the girls.

“I think we can’t confront the hotel right now. In fact, it’s better if the hotel doesn’t even know we’ve discovered this. Otherwise, everyone could be in danger,” Ye Fei said.

“Ye Fei, don’t exaggerate!” Liu Lei and the others chimed in from the side. Seeing Ye Fei getting all the attention made them uneasy, so they took the opportunity to challenge him.

“Hmph,” Ye Fei sneered coldly, his eyes sweeping over everyone before he said coldly, “If you think I’m exaggerating, you’re free not to believe me. You can go confront the hotel yourselves, but if something goes wrong, don’t come crying to me—I can’t help you.”

At that moment, a beautiful girl, rivaling Zhang Xiaoxiao and the others in charm, stepped forward to mediate. “Ye Fei, Liu Lei and the others just want to understand the situation. Give us one reason to convince everyone, and I’ll be the first to support you.”

“Guan Yong’er actually supports Ye Fei? Could another school beauty be falling?” someone whispered.

This girl was another campus beauty, Guan Yong’er, nicknamed Guan Guan or Guan’er.

“My reason is that it’s very likely the hotel is secretly cultivating marijuana. If we rashly confront them and they realize we’ve uncovered their secret, I can’t guarantee what will happen next. This island is surrounded by the sea, and we’re all trapped here. If danger arises, we’ll be like birds in a cage or fish in a trap,” Ye Fei explained.

The idea that the hotel was growing marijuana on the island shocked the students. To them, marijuana was linked to drugs, drugs to criminals, and criminals to mortal danger.

If this were true, they were truly at risk.

“I’m quite certain the hotel is cultivating marijuana. Otherwise, there’s no way marijuana would have accidentally been mixed into our food,” Ye Fei said firmly.

“What should we do now?” Guan Yong’er asked, having just voiced her support for Ye Fei.

“Yeah, Ye Fei, what now?” Zhang Xiaoxiao and the others eagerly chimed in.

“Call the police!” “Call the police!” “Arrest them all!” the other students quickly voiced.

Ye Fei shook his head silently. These students lacked the mental resilience and strategic thinking necessary for the bigger picture. If they were sent out into the world unprepared, officials would only create wrongful cases, and businessmen would ruin everyone’s livelihoods.

This incident was a valuable trial for them.

“No, calling the police now—have you thought about the consequences?” Ye Fei questioned.

“What if the police come and find no marijuana?” Ye Fei pressed on.

One student frowned, annoyed: “Didn't you say there was marijuana?”

Ye Fei looked at that student and said, “Marijuana is just my current hypothesis. Yes, I am pretty sure, but what if I’m wrong?”

“Then what do you suggest?” a student asked.

“We need to boldly hypothesize but verify carefully. First, we investigate whether the hotel is truly cultivating marijuana. Only then should we consider involving the police,” Ye Fei said.

The students exchanged uneasy glances.

“Isn’t it dangerous if we get caught investigating the hotel?” some students admitted, feeling frightened.

“Investigating the hotel? Cool! This is so exciting!” others said, youthful and rebellious, craving a thrilling experience.

“All right, everyone, let’s camp here by the beach tonight. It’s not convenient to stay in the hotel with all the surveillance and staff around,” Ye Fei suggested.

Many students cheered; they were the thrill-seekers. The more timid minority had no choice but to follow the majority, and they dared not return to the hotel alone.

Soon, they sat by the sea, discussing their plans.

“Everyone must be careful tonight! If anything happens, notify everyone immediately.”

“We could pretend to be lost…”

“Pretend to be a couple on a date…”

“Pretend to be tourists…”

The group eagerly brainstormed all sorts of plans, splitting into numerous small teams and devising various quirky missions. Some of the plans Ye Fei heard sounded downright comical.

...

Splash—splash—

Night fell, and waves crashed rhythmically on the shore, the wind blending with the sound of the surf.

Tents were pitched along the beachfront, and Ye Fei’s group’s tents were clustered together.

Some students stayed behind to guard the tents and to serve another purpose: to mislead any observers.

The rest quietly slipped away into the night, spreading out in all directions across the island to investigate the location of the marijuana plantation.

Hotel staff patrolled near the tents but left after observing some students sitting by the tents or playing on the beach, while others appeared to be asleep inside.

In the darkness, several heads emerged from the bushes.

One looked around and quietly called out, “Ye Fei, where are you?”

“Zi Xuan, what’s up?” Ye Fei walked over to Liu Zi Xuan.

“Nothing, it’s just hard to spot you all in the dark,” Liu Zi Xuan stuck out her tongue playfully.

“...”

“All right, let me count heads to see if anyone got lost.” Ye Fei counted: one, two, three. All accounted for.

Together were Ye Fei, Guan Yong’er, and Liu Zi Xuan—three in total.

Xiao Yue stayed behind at the tents. If Xing Gang showed up and didn’t see Xiao Yue, it might alert the hotel staff.

Zhong Yuhan, Zhang Xiaoxiao, and Liu Yiyi were also left at the tents. Although the three wanted to follow Ye Fei, they prioritized the greater good and stayed behind.

Lu Sicheng, Liu Lei, Cao Bing, Lei Jiahao, and others weren’t keen on investigating the marijuana plantation—they had nothing to do with it. Now that Zhang Xiaoxiao and the others were staying back, these boys definitely wouldn’t go either; they remained at the campsite.

However, having them there had the advantage of reassuring other students who saw them.

...