"Next, show me all the eggs you bought. I'll help you pick out the good ones. Keep those for hatching and selling later—you might be able to slowly make your money back. As for the rest, just sell them as normal Bellsprout eggs. Don't get any funny ideas."
"Yes, yes! Of course!"
Ah Zu's face couldn't hide his excitement.
At this point, he wasn't hoping for a big win anymore—just breaking even would already be a miracle.
"Bro, what about this one in my hand?"
"The one in your hand? Can't say it's ordinary, just downright garbage. Set it aside."
"Ah… okay…"
Ah Zu rubbed his bald head, looking a little embarrassed.
This was the egg he had carefully selected based on online guides, convinced it had to be a high-quality Charmander egg. And yet… it turned out to be trash?
His eye for eggs was worse than he thought.
[Hahaha, absolute trash.]
[Why does Ah Zu still look hopeful?]
"Big bro, let's check the others."
Ah Zu held up his phone, showing a storage room.
The moment he opened the door, the camera revealed an entire room filled with Pokémon eggs.
All of them were the same faint orange color, identical in shape, looking just like the one he was holding.
[Whoa, so many bald heads.]
[My eyes! The glare is blinding!]
[They all look the same—how do you even tell the difference?]
"All of them are here?"
"There's still half of them on the balcony. They wouldn't all fit."
"Uh… be careful with storage. If they go bad, you'll be losing more than just money."
Ye Yinchuan wasn't just making idle remarks.
There were cases every year where improperly stored Pokémon eggs spoiled in large numbers, leading to serious consequences.
If it got bad enough, the Dream Protection Bureau would step in and take legal action.
"Got it, got it. I'll be careful!"
Ah Zu now followed Ye Yinchuan's words like they were law.
Sixty-eight thousand might not be everything, but for an average household, it was a significant loss.
"Alright, one by one. Hold the camera steady and follow my instructions."
Ye Yinchuan was all business now.
Fifty-five eggs might seem like a lot, but for him, it was just a matter of minutes.
"This one looks decent—keep it."
"This one's got terrible individual values—pass."
"This one's bad too—it's already dead. Toss it far away."
Hearing that some eggs were outright spoiled, Ah Zu's heart was bleeding.
Each one cost over a thousand, and they were just gone.
And looking at the ongoing appraisal, it seemed like there weren't many good ones left.
"If there's barely anything good, won't I still be losing big time?"
"I already told you—I can only help you lose less. If you can't handle it, you can stop now."
Getting interrupted mid-appraisal, Ye Yinchuan was a little annoyed.
Not necessarily at Ah Zu, but at people who gambled recklessly and then cried when they lost.
"No, no! Keep going, bro. I won't say another word!"
Ah Zu immediately shut up, looking completely docile.
[Haha, he's been tamed.]
[Watching Ah Zu lose money is more satisfying than winning myself.]
[Streamer, please don't find anything valuable!]
Ye Yinchuan continued.
"This Bellsprout egg is decent—a small jackpot. Keep it, you might make some of your money back."
Hearing this, Ah Zu's spirits lifted. "By 'some money back,' you mean…?"
Ye Yinchuan held up two fingers.
"Two hundred?"
Seeing Ye Yinchuan shake his head, Ah Zu's excitement grew. "Wait, you mean two thousand?"
Ye Yinchuan nodded.
This particular Bellsprout had an A-rank individual value and a rare Gluttony ability.
Unlike in the games, Gluttony in this world meant an increased appetite, which led to faster growth.
[Ah Zu, sell this one to me for 1,100!]
[Of course the moment we start, he finds something good…]
[Please, let the streamer make a mistake for once!]
Ignoring the chat, Ye Yinchuan kept going.
"Hold on… this egg…"
He paused for a moment, eyes narrowing.
"What is it?"
Ah Zu tensed up—this was rare. The streamer usually gave quick judgments, but now he was hesitating.
Was it really bad? Or… did he just strike gold?
[Just tuned in—why did the streamer freeze?]
[Reminder: This is not a static image.]
"This is… a Chikorita egg."
That explained everything.
Chikorita was also a Grass-type, and its egg's color wasn't too far off from Bellsprout's.
Most likely, someone had fed a Chikorita the same diet, and its egg ended up mixed in with this batch.
Otherwise, the similarity was just too uncanny.
"Wait, isn't Chikorita one of the starter Pokémon? Streamer, how's the quality?"
Ah Zu was overjoyed.
Eggs from starter Pokémon always had higher demand.
If the quality was good, the price could skyrocket. If it turned out to be a hidden gem, he might actually make a huge comeback.
[Damn, did he actually buy a real jackpot?]
[Chikorita's not as good as Charmander, but it's still decent.]
"The quality's… average."
[Oh thank god.]
[He doesn't deserve to make it back.]
"Hold it up again, let me take another look."
Ye Yinchuan decided to act a bit.
As Ah Zu lifted the egg, he leaned in, squinting slightly, then suddenly gasped.
"If I'm not mistaken… this Chikorita egg carries an egg move. I don't know which one, though."
Hearing this, Ah Zu's eyes lit up.
"An egg move?! That means this is a rare variant! Hahaha, I heard eggs with inherited moves sell for two to four times their usual price! If it's a strong move, it could go even higher!"
[Wait, what's an egg move?]
[You've got to be kidding me. Is he really breaking even?]
[Streamer, stop the appraisal! I can't watch this!]
Ye Yinchuan was actually downplaying it.
His Appraisal Eye could even identify what the move was.
This Chikorita egg carried Double-Edge, a high-powered move with 90 base damage—far better than the usual Tackle.
Sure, it had recoil damage, but still… 90 base power for a baby Pokémon? That was a huge advantage.
This single egg move alone meant the egg's value was at least five times higher than normal.
If Ah Zu hatched and raised it properly, it could be worth 30,000 to 50,000 in the right market.
Too bad it only had B-rank individual values—otherwise, the price could go even higher.
The factors influencing Pokémon prices were endless.
Ye Yinchuan wasn't telling the full truth for two reasons.
First, casually identifying an exact egg move would be too unbelievable.
Second, he didn't want to encourage Ah Zu to go back to egg gambling.
If he got lucky once, he might bet even bigger next time.
"I'm just saying it might have an egg move. You should get it properly checked at an official center. Whether you hatch and sell it or just sell the egg as-is, that's up to you."
"No problem! I'll handle it!"
Ah Zu's mood had completely flipped.
With this one high-value Chikorita egg, his chances of making back his money were now very real.
Hell, he might even turn a profit.
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