A small plot of land in a mountain village

Chapter 6 The Shadow

It's been several days since I returned from the county town.

After several days of clearing, the task of clearing the fifty acres of wasteland was finally completed, and in the end, even Zhang Niu himself joined in the clearing work.

A few days later, in the afternoon, a Dongfang brand truck finally drove into the entrance of Zhangjia Village after a bumpy ride, attracting many villagers to gather around and watch. Zhang Niu still called his father back from the foot of the mountain.

The road up the mountain was too narrow for large vehicles to pass, so they had to pay five villagers to use their own tricycles to transport the fruit seedlings to the foot of the mountain. The owner who came with the tricycles also came to the wasteland with Zhang Niu.

"Young man, this wasteland of yours is in a really good location. Standing here, you can clearly see the whole village. The water source is also good. Buy a water pump for the pond over there, and irrigation won't be a problem in the future. If you plant fruit seedlings now, they should bear fruit next year." He said to Zhang Niu, who was busy working.

When Zhang Niu heard his boss say this, he realized that this piece of wasteland, which he had never paid much attention to, was actually a very good location in the other party's eyes.

"It's alright! When I contracted it out, I didn't really look at it in detail. I just thought that if I contracted it out, I could make money by growing some pesticide-free fruits and vegetables. I didn't know it was as good as you described until now. Now that I see it, it really is as you described." Zhang Niu paused and replied.

"I see there's still a large area of ​​uncultivated land over there. You'll need to plant fruit seedlings next time. Just give me a call and I'll deliver them to you. It's just that the road conditions are a bit poor, and the ride is quite bumpy." He took out a business card and handed it to Zhang Niu.

"Sure! No problem, but it would be best if you could give me a discount next time so I can save some money. Earning money isn't easy these days." He put the business card in his pocket.

After working for an hour or so, we finally managed to move all the seedlings to the open space in front of the house and line them up in rows.

After paying the final payment, the fruit seedling owner got into his car and drove back to the county town.

Dinner was eaten at home. After several days of busy work, Zhang Niu's skin, which used to be fair and tender, was now tanned into a healthy wheat color.

Seeing that Zhang Niu had been busy from early morning to late at night these past few days, his mother specially cooked a pot of winter melon and pig's trotter soup to help him recover.

"This was specially cooked, have a good taste."

I scooped a few pieces of winter melon and pig's trotters into a bowl with a large spoon. I've been leaving early and coming home late these past few days, and I feel like I've lost weight. I picked up a piece of pig's trotter and put it in my mouth to eat. "Delicious, Mom, your cooking is so fragrant."

One bowl wasn't enough, so I had another. I ate until I felt a little bloated, then put down my chopsticks, said goodbye to my family, and went back to the foot of the mountain. There were so many fruit seedlings in front of the house, and I was afraid that the village hooligans would try to steal them. I would have to guard them there at night to feel at ease.

The moon was very dark. Zhang Niu hummed a little tune as he walked towards his hut. The path, which was usually very long, took him less than half an hour to get back to his hut.

Standing in front of my house, looking at the hundreds of fruit seedlings, these are the things that will make me rich in the future. I will be busy for the next few days.

Upon entering the house, Zhang Niu discovered that Little Dot had disappeared. Since Little Dot ran outside a few days ago, it had been missing for several days and nights. Zhang Niu began to suspect that Little Dot might have been seduced by a female animal in the mountains, which would be a huge loss.

As soon as it was light, Zhang Niu went out to work with a hoe on his shoulder. He would have to plant the fruit seedlings himself for the next few days, and he didn't plan to hire anyone. His father was in poor health, so he didn't intend to call on him either.

At the fruit seedling company, I asked the technician how to plant the seedlings. The technician explained some issues in detail, saying that in mountainous areas like Zhangniu, a mixed planting method should be adopted to reduce the occurrence of pests, which would also make management easier.

After three days of hard work planting, when the last sapling was planted, all the hard work was finally worthwhile. Looking back at the rows of fruit trees standing behind me, I felt a sense of pride that I couldn't quite describe. "These past few days have been really tiring. Next time I'll hire someone to plant. Planting alone is too tiring. Luckily, I'm in good health, otherwise I wouldn't be able to handle it for long."

After planting the fruit seedlings, Zhang Niu had some free time. Standing by the pond, he wondered if he should put the fish fry he had caught last time back into the pond. If he was lucky, he could catch a net before the New Year and satisfy his cravings. He remembered that in winter, he would cook fish head soup with some dried plum vegetables. The taste was so delicious that it made his mouth water.

Back inside, they dug out the old, homemade fish trap and burrowed it into the space. Zhang Niu, who had been working like a dog these past few days planting fruit seedlings, hadn't come in much. The corn hadn't been planted either, and now it looked completely empty from afar.

Arriving at the pond, I couldn't help but exclaim, "Are you kidding me? In just over ten days, the fish fry that were once the length of a finger are now as big as an adult's palm!"

This surprised and shocked Zhang Niu.

Looking at the little fish swimming in the water, Zhang Niu recalled that the corn he planted last time also grew so big after being watered, and tasted much better than the corn outside. He slapped his head and thought, "I'm so stupid. I have a treasure trove of resources but I don't know how to use it. It turns out that the water in this space can make crops grow bigger, speed up their growth, and improve their taste. No wonder the tomatoes I planted last time are still blooming and bearing fruit, and the sweet potato vines are spreading all around. I can often step on the vines. It's clear how wildly these sweet potato vines are growing."

Zhang Niu, who wasn't usually very bright, suddenly remembered the fruit seedlings he had just planted outside. If he transplanted a few of them in, they should bear fruit soon next year, or even be harvested earlier, so he could taste them sooner.

Without catching the fish fry, he turned and ran out of the space, moving the cherry, peach, and chestnut trees near the house directly into the space and planting them by the pond, happily anticipating their flowering and fruiting.

After planting the fruit seedlings, I remembered that I had come to catch fish fry. Since the pond was not very wide and the water was crystal clear, I worked for a long time. Although I didn't catch a lot, only a few dozen kilograms, it was still quite a lot of fish fry. After all, there were quite a few of them. I can come back and catch them more often in the future.

There's no need to keep too many fish fry in the pond, actually because they're afraid the fry will grow into giants. Zhang Niu really doesn't know how to explain this to others. But then again, he himself wants to see just how big giant fish really are.

Carrying the bucket out of the space, Zhang Niu poured the fish fry into the pond. The fry immediately scattered. Soon, the pond would be ready for fishing, Zhang Niu thought to himself.

Just as I was about to go back inside to rest, several roars suddenly rang out from the mountains, startling the birds in the forest into a flurry of flight.

The distant roar actually startled the timid Zhang Niu. He didn't even notice the bucket of water he was carrying fall to the ground. Only after the roar stopped did he realize how unperturbed he was. Luckily, no one was nearby, or it would have been truly embarrassing. He muttered to himself, "What kind of animal was in heat just now?"

Just as he was mentally despising the animal that had embarrassed him, a dark shadow suddenly darted out of the forest and ran towards Zhang Niu.

"No way, I just gave him a piece of my mind and he came looking for me. Do I have such good luck? I should go buy some lottery tickets and win a lot of money." Without thinking twice, I decided to run first.

The dark figure stopped abruptly not far from Zhang Niu, panting heavily.

Zhang Niu turned around and saw what it was...

This is the first update. Can you guess what it is? Please recommend and favorite! Thank you!!!