Chapter 116: Planting the Second Crop of Vegetables

Chapter 116: Chapter 116: Planting the Second Crop of Vegetables

Wait!

Xiaqing stopped, gazing at the two large nests in the dawn redwood tree. "Sheep Leader, where are the White Egrets and Night Egrets from our territory?"

Sheep Leader ignored Xiaqing, continuing on its way with the water buckets on its back.

As Xiaqing followed Sheep Leader back, her eyes scanned the area for any sign of the birds. Nothing in the nearby trees. Nothing by the reservoir. Nothing by the two fishponds...

’So, did the White Egrets and Night Egrets move away with their chicks after the eggs hatched?’

’It’s good that they moved. Saves fish. I can put Red Light Smoke in the egret nests to attract pest-eating Magpies to move in. Two birds, one stone.’

Putting her thoughts into action, Xiaqing went home and grabbed the Red Light Smoke. She stuffed two bundles of it into the White Egret and Night Egret nests, then returned home to soak the roots of the rice seedlings, passion fruit saplings, and Sichuan pepper saplings in Pollution-free Spring Water. Soaking the seedlings for too long was bad for them, so after dinner, Xiaqing put on her Night Vision Goggles and went to the fields to transplant the rice and plant the trees while listening to the radio. Even though it was difficult to see clearly at night, Sheep Leader still followed behind her.

The rice paddy had been prepared beforehand, so Xiaqing swiftly transplanted the four hundred rice seedlings. Then, she carried the two types of saplings up the slope and planted them at the edge of her cultivation zone.

’Normally, Hui San Base isn’t suitable for growing passion fruit, which prefers a warm, humid climate. But some plants become highly adaptable after evolving. If it can grow in the territory of the Lord who traded it, then it can definitely grow in soil nourished by Pollution-free Spring Water.’

Once the trees were planted, Xiaqing hoisted the stumbling Sheep Leader onto her shoulders and carried it home. It had been tripping in the growing darkness.

Perhaps because it hadn’t seen Xiaqing for two days and one night, Sheep Leader was especially clingy. It even abandoned the comfortable tatami mat on the first floor to sleep on a straw mat beside Xiaqing’s bed.

Lying in her bed, Xiaqing listened to the sound of Sheep Leader’s breathing and slept especially soundly.

The next day, Sheep Leader woke up and shook its head. Hearing the movement, Xiaqing opened her eyes and greeted it enthusiastically, "Morning, Sheep Leader."

Sheep Leader squinted at Xiaqing for two seconds before getting up and clattering downstairs. Even though Sheep Leader couldn’t talk, Xiaqing perfectly understood the meaning behind its facial expression:

’This sleeping spot is not comfortable!’

Xiaqing rolled over and buried her face in her pillow, muffling a laugh for a moment before getting up. After changing, she went downstairs to put on a pot of Green Light Rice porridge. Then, she patrolled her territory, picking some fresh vegetables along the way to make a simple salad and fry two large flatbreads. Even though she only had oil, salt, soy sauce, and vinegar, and her cooking skills were merely average, she firmly believed her own cooking tasted better than the food at the Safe Zone’s Evolver cafeteria. It was even on par with the restaurant she and Xu Juan had visited.

’If I used enough ingredients, my food would definitely be better than the restaurant’s. Since I have this ability, why would I need a chef? Having another person on the territory would be far more complicated than having one simple-minded sheep. I spent ten years scheming and struggling in the Safe Zone; now, I just want to live a comfortable life.’

After a satisfying meal, Xiaqing went to check on the seeds she had soaked in the Pollution-free Spring Water the previous night. According to the *Planting Guide*, corn seeds needed to be soaked for twenty-four hours. Since she had started soaking them yesterday afternoon, she wouldn’t be able to plant them until this afternoon. The radish and sunflower seeds, however, only needed a two-hour soak. Cabbage had to wait until next month, so for now, she stored those seeds carefully with the ones she had gotten in a trade from her idol.

Xiaqing grabbed her fertilizer and tools and headed out to prepare the terrace fields for the radishes and sunflowers.

Since she had plenty of terrace fields, Xiaqing didn’t bother pulling up the cucumber, eggplant, bean, and tomato plants that were past their peak. Instead, she cleared two other terraces that had been lying fallow. The fertilizers she had on hand included earthworm castings, crab shell meal, well-fermented leaf mold, plant ash, and sheep manure. The sheep manure was the scarcest and had to be saved for the Green Light Spinach. For the rest, Xiaqing followed the application ratios from the *Mung Bean Cultivation Guide* that Li Si had given her, making sure to apply a generous amount.

’After planting one season of crops, I’ve come to fully appreciate the importance of fertilizer. Only with enough fertilizer will the crops grow well. And only if they grow well will their resistance be strong enough to avoid widespread Qiang Evolution during the Harmful Rain, leading to a high yield.’

’What’s the point of farming, after all? To harvest more food, of course. So I have to be willing to invest the resources.’

After spreading the fertilizer, Xiaqing picked up a shovel to turn the soil, but Sheep Leader charged over.

"Baa."

Xiaqing stopped. "Sheep Leader, what’s wrong?"

"Baa." Sheep Leader stood in front of Xiaqing, squinting at her.

’Sheep Leader shouldn’t be thirsty or hungry right now. What’s gotten into it?’ Xiaqing was momentarily baffled. "Is that wolf friend of yours here?"

When Sheep Leader didn’t react, Xiaqing knew she was wrong. The seeds were almost done soaking, and she didn’t have time to play guessing games with it. She turned to resume tilling, but Sheep Leader gave her a shove, nearly sending her face-first into the dirt.

"Why you..." Xiaqing staggered two steps forward before stopping. She rolled up her sleeves, about to smack the sheep, but then she saw Sheep Leader nudge the shovel aside and look up at her. Suddenly, it clicked. "Don’t tell me you want to pull the plow?"

"Baaa~"

That cutesy bleat left Xiaqing speechless. "Sheep Leader, this terrace is only five meters wide and ten meters long. You really won’t have room to work with the plow attached. This little bit of work doesn’t require you; I can handle it myself."

Xiaqing tried to persuade it in a gentle voice, but Sheep Leader was in a stubborn mood. Left with no choice, she went back to the house, brought out the three-share plow, and hitched it to the sheep.

But even after being hitched to the plow, Sheep Leader still refused to move. Xiaqing was exasperated. She went to the High Slope, picked some tender Asparagus Chrysanthemum sprouts, and dangled them in front of the sheep. Only then did Sheep Leader start pulling the plow with gusto.

With the Asparagus Chrysanthemum leading the way, Sheep Leader managed not to crash into the insect netting and helped Xiaqing quickly plow both terraces. Once unhitched, Sheep Leader lay down to rest while Xiaqing began sowing.

One terrace was about fifty square meters. Factoring in a sixty-percent germination rate for the Yellow Light Seeds after their soak in Pollution-free Spring Water, planting one hundred fifty sunflower seeds would result in about two plants per square meter—a perfect density. The sparse planting was intentional; it would allow her to promptly and completely remove any plant that underwent Qiang Evolution during the Harmful Rain, preventing it from affecting the plants around it.

Xiaqing planted the one hundred fifty green radish and white radish seeds together in the other terrace.

After finishing, Xiaqing hitched Sheep Leader to the plow again to turn the soil for planting Green Light cucumber, eggplant, and tomato seeds. These were all seeds she had harvested from her own vegetables.

’Even though Qi Fu said it wasn’t the right time for eggplants and tomatoes, and the *Planting Guide* didn’t mention it, the technical data Luo Pei gave me says it’s possible. That’s why I decided to soak the seeds and plant a batch. Evolved seeds are highly adaptable, my fields are nourished by the Pollution-free Spring Water, and the soil is fertile enough. If the Green Dragon Team can grow them successfully, I’m sure I can too. If I succeed, I won’t have to worry about fresh vegetables for the next few months.’

’If they don’t flower and fruit, all I’ll lose is some Green Light Seeds and fertilizer. I’ve saved up plenty of Green Light Seeds for these vegetables, so I can definitely afford to use some for an experiment.’

Xiaqing didn’t have Green Light Seeds for chili peppers, long beans, or scallions, so she had to stick with planting the Yellow Light varieties. She also planted the forty onion seeds she had traded for.

To protect her secret, Xiaqing cleared a new vegetable garden near the Yellow Light Pumpkin trellises, not far from the reservoir. The plot was four meters wide and one hundred sixty meters long, and she planted a little of each vegetable variety there. These vegetables were intended for trade with other Lords and would not be watered with her spring water.

Once everything was planted, Xiaqing sat down on a bamboo chair in the shade to rest. Even for a High Level Strength Evolver, planting vegetables across more than two mu of land in a single morning was a bit tiring. But more than exhaustion, she felt a deep sense of satisfaction.

Munching on a large, misshapen, brilliantly red Green Light tomato, Xiaqing leaned back in her chair. She gazed at the two empty egret nests in the dawn redwood and chatted idly with Sheep Leader, who was lying beside her gnawing on an old cucumber. "It’s a good thing those four fish-thieving birds moved out. Our ponds are full of either Yellow Light Fish or Green Light fish. We can’t work our butts off just to give them a free meal. Insect-eating birds are much better."

Sheep Leader, which didn’t eat fish, merely squinted and chewed its cud, ignoring her.

Xiaqing didn’t mind and kept eating her tomato. Suddenly, she spotted a fiery Red Squirrel with a big, fluffy tail climbing the dawn redwood and darting into the White Egret’s nest.

’Isn’t that the same evolved squirrel that stole my wheat grains last time? What’s it doing in the White Egret’s nest? Aren’t squirrels supposed to live in tree hollows?’