Chapter 29: New Lord of Land No. 1

Chapter 29: Chapter 29: New Lord of Land No. 1

Although 60% was a far cry from the pre-Natural Disaster germination rate of over 97%, the number was enough to make Xiaqing ecstatic.

But soon, Xiaqing, who had been tempered by ten years of the Natural Disaster, regained her composure.

Not counting the spring on her territory, there were four other publicly known, uncontaminated springs within Hui San Base. Such a simple method as soaking seeds in spring water to increase the germination rate must have been discovered long ago.

The reason it wasn’t publicized was likely that the spring water was too scarce, or perhaps because crops whose seeds were soaked in spring water didn’t perform well against the Harmful Rain later on.

As a new farmer who couldn’t even be considered a half-baked amateur, she still had to be low-key and calm. Xiaqing took a deep breath but couldn’t suppress the upward curl of her lips. She ran home with a light spring in her step to check on her little potatoes.

For some reason, the potatoes she had set aside according to the method described on the broadcast had yet to sprout eyes. It made Xiaqing want to soak them all in spring water overnight to make them sprout quickly so she could plant them right away.

That evening, Xiaqing opened the Lords’ private chat channel, wanting to hear about their seed germination rates. Instead, she heard a familiar voice on the channel.

"I’m Luo Pei, the new Lord of Land No. 1. I look forward to working with you all."

Xiaqing shot upright. ’Luo Pei?!’

THUD!

In her surprise, Xiaqing had been petting the sheep too forcefully and was kicked off the tatami mat by Sheep Leader’s two hooves. Now she was not only shocked, but her thigh ached too. Forgetting about settling the score with Sheep Leader, Xiaqing immediately pressed the walkie-talkie button. "Captain Luo, this is Xiaqing, the Strength Evolver and Lord of Land No. 3. I’ve been on many missions with your team before."

Hearing Xiaqing call Luo Pei "Captain," the Lords of lands four, five, and six also snapped out of their shock, each introducing themselves and offering greetings.

Just a moment ago, they had been thinking it must be someone with the same name. They would never have guessed that Luo Pei—the third-strongest member of the Green Dragon Team, a Level 10 Visual Evolution Sharpshooter—would actually be here farming!

Luo Pei’s calm voice sounded again. "Hello, you three. Xiaqing, long time no see. My vision is damaged, and I’m no longer the captain of the Green Dragon Team. You can just call me by my name from now on."

Luo Pei was thirty-four, nine years older than Xiaqing, so calling him by his name was out of the question. Xiaqing switched to calling him "Brother Luo," and Kuang Qingwei and the other two followed suit, also calling him "Brother."

In this era, strength commanded respect. It didn’t matter if they were older or younger than Luo Pei; if Xiaqing had called him "Uncle Luo," they would have followed without hesitation.

Zhang San spoke slowly, "I’m Zhang San, Land No. 7."

"Tang Huai, Land No. 2," Tang Huai said last.

Luo Pei’s voice held a hint of a smile. "A pleasure to meet you all. Has everyone planted their seeds? Have they sprouted? Is there anything I should pay special attention to?"

Xiaqing could tell Luo Pei didn’t want the attention on him, so she immediately pressed the button and shared her experience in detail. "Land No. 3 is fully planted and the seeds have sprouted. The germination rate is around 40%. You need to guard against birds and rats. In my experience, a one-to-nine solution of scent-evolved camphor leaf juice and water works best as a bird repellent without harming the seedlings. The rats need to be hunted down and completely exterminated."

With Luo Pei’s arrival, Xiaqing spoke more in that single moment than she had in the entire past week. The other Lords keenly felt her deep respect for him.

Qi Fu from Land No. 5 also spoke up. "My germination rate is about the same as Xiaqing’s. If we can protect these sprouts, this year’s harvest is assured." ℯℯ𝑙.

"There’s still the Harmful Rain in two months. We can only talk about a harvest after we get through that." Zhao Ze’s voice sounded troubled. This was followed by Kuang Qingwei’s various complaints, to which Luo Pei would respond from time to time.

After the private chat ended and she turned off the walkie-talkie, Xiaqing lay on her bamboo bed, staring at the smoke-blackened ceiling without saying a word for a long time.

Her unusual quietness caught the attention of Sheep Leader, who was chewing its cud. Sheep Leader squinted at her for a moment, then got up, walked around the fire, and hopped onto Xiaqing’s bamboo bed. Before Xiaqing could figure out what it was doing, her bed let out a piercing creak of protest and collapsed under Sheep Leader’s weight.

Sheep Leader quickly leaped aside. Xiaqing, who had now fallen on the floor for the second time tonight, sighed and thanked it earnestly. "Boss, thank you for coming to comfort me."

Sheep Leader, with its eyes narrowed, was very satisfied with Xiaqing’s attitude. It shook its fleece and returned to the straw tatami mat to sleep. Xiaqing picked herself up, dismantled the bed frame, and laid the bed planks directly on the floor. Then, she picked up the phone from her bedside table.

Since Luo Pei’s vision was damaged, Xiaqing chose to call him directly. Having gone on missions with Luo Pei’s team for years, Xiaqing of course knew his contact information and was also sure he used a satellite phone.

The call connected quickly. Xiaqing introduced herself and stated her purpose. "Brother Luo, it’s Xiaqing. This is the number I’m using now. I have some safe, Evolved Perilla and Asparagus Chrysanthemum on my land. Should I have the patrol team bring some over to you tomorrow morning?"

Luo Pei’s voice was tinged with a smile, a stark contrast to his old stern and proper demeanor. It was as if he were a different person. "Thank you. If I manage to grow anything good on my land, I’ll send some over for you to try. I never expected we’d be so close to each other outside the Safe Zone. Once I’m settled, I’ll invite you over."

Although Xiaqing often went on missions with his team, she was responsible for logistics and transport, so she rarely had the chance to speak with Luo Pei, and they didn’t have much to talk about. After a few polite exchanges, Xiaqing hung up, snuggled under her covers, and started chatting idly with Sheep Leader. "Boss, we’ve got a good neighbor. I feel much more at ease now. But how did Captain Luo’s eyes get injured? How serious must the injury be to force him to leave the Safe Zone? How could Yang Jin and the others agree to it?"

Of course, Sheep Leader didn’t answer. After muttering to herself for a while, Xiaqing yawned, closed her eyes, and fell asleep to the rhythmic sound of Sheep Leader chewing its cud.

The next morning, Xiaqing waited early at the quarantine line north of the new territory. After first reporting to Captain Tan that all was normal on her land, she handed a basket to Su Ming, the social butterfly of their squad. "Please deliver this to Land No. 1."

Su Ming took the basket with a wide grin. "Sister Qing, your basket weaving is getting better and better. It even has a lid now."

Xiaqing smiled. "Practice makes perfect."

After they had walked some distance, Xiaqing overheard the Smell Evolver, Yuan Rui, say in a low voice, "This basket smells of Asparagus Chrysanthemum."

"No kidding, it’s so strong, who couldn’t smell it?" Su Ming’s mouth watered. "Sister Qing and Brother Luo seem to be on good terms. She doesn’t have a crush on him, does she?!"

"Idiot," Cao Xianyun cursed. "Sister Qing said she cleared Land No. 3 with a team. Think carefully—which team took the clearing mission for the Evolution Forest near here last year?"

"Brother Luo’s team," Hu Zi answered for Su Ming. "Sister Qing went on missions with Brother Luo’s team, so it’s normal for them to know each other."

"You bunch of pig brains!" Su Ming said, exasperated by their denseness. "Why don’t you think? Out of all the teams, why did Sister Qing choose Brother Luo’s? It must be because she’s interested in him! Sure, Brother Luo is a few years older, but he’s not bad-looking, right? He’s powerful, right? He’s not married, right? He’s not..."

"Su Ming," Tan Junjie said in a stern voice.

"Sir."

"When we get back, you’re running fifty laps and doing two sets of basic training as punishment."

Then, Xiaqing heard Su Ming’s miserable cry, much to her satisfaction.