Chapter Twenty: Fertile Fields

“By the way, Susu, here, take this and keep it safe.”

Seeing Wang Susu shyly lower her head to her chest, Chen Ling stopped teasing her. He then took a stack of money from his pocket and handed it to her.

“Huh?”

“This money…”

Wang Susu’s eyes widened in shock at the sight of so much money. It wasn’t the amount that astonished her, but the very gesture of Chen Ling giving her money. It was almost unbelievable. In the past, Chen Ling only ever asked her for money, and if she didn’t give it, he would even resort to violence. She had never seen a single cent from him willingly.

“This money is from Er Zhu, who exchanged land with our family to help out. Two hundred yuan per mu, and we have ten mu, so that’s exactly two thousand yuan here,” Chen Ling explained the source and pushed the money closer to her.

“Here, you keep it.”

“Huh?”

Wang Susu was still stunned, then asked, “You’re giving it all to me? Aling, won’t you spend any? Aren’t you going to the county town tomorrow…”

Chen Ling smiled and waved his hand, “I still have a little on me. Don’t worry about me.”

Half of this two thousand yuan came from Chen Ling’s peanut sales, and the other half was leftover from before. When Chen Ling checked, there was just over one thousand left. In other words, that two thousand yuan from Er Zhu was wasted by this rascal in less than half a month. It should be noted that in 1995, a thousand yuan was more than enough for an ordinary mountain villager to live a year. Generally, land lease fees were only sixty to seventy yuan per mu per year. Calling him a prodigal son was not an exaggeration.

“Put the money away quickly. I’m going to cook now,” Chen Ling told his young wife as he went outside to start the fire.

Wang Susu pinched the thick stack of money, glanced at Chen Ling’s back, and felt reassured. For some reason, she recalled how Chen Ling had just pinched her nose and called her the little housekeeper. She couldn’t help but smile, took the money, and went inside to put it away.

Her heart, as a young wife, finally settled.

…

At dawn, the red sun rose.

Chen Ling got up, washed, and stepped outside. A fresh breeze immediately greeted him.

The morning air in the mountains was much colder than outside. The sudden chill inhaled deep into his lungs made Chen Ling shiver involuntarily.

Once his respiratory system adjusted, his whole body felt refreshed.

This kind of cool and pure air was rare to experience in later times.

Chen Ling greedily took deep breaths, stretched his limbs, and walked outside the courtyard.

Outside, on the Chinese toon tree, two or three magpies had flown in unnoticed, chirping continuously.

The crisp birdcalls, the clear blue morning sky, and the warm red sun in the east lifted one’s spirits.

Chen Ling walked toward the village outskirts, planning to take a stroll through the fields in the morning light. He didn’t have to rush to the agricultural market today; he only needed to send the peanuts to the oil mill.

So he felt quite relaxed.

“Hey? Fugui, what are you doing?”

“Going to the fields so early?”

As he reached the edge of the village, a man in his thirties wearing a police uniform and a wide-brimmed hat rode up on a big-frame bicycle from nearby. Surprised, he greeted Chen Ling.

“Yeah, just going to the fields for a walk.”

“Just got back, huh, Brother Jusheng…”

Chen Ling nodded and passed by Wang Jusheng.

Wang Jusheng was Wang Laishun’s eldest son and a local police officer who often worked night shifts. It was common to see him cycling home early in the morning, a familiar sight to all villagers in Chen Wangzhuang.

Chen Ling strolled leisurely along the narrow path between fields, looking around and enjoying the scenery at the foot of the mountain in the fresh morning.

Wang Jusheng, after cycling past, turned back several times to glance at Chen Ling, muttering something with a strange expression.

After a while, Chen Ling reached the wasteland at the mountain’s base.

Looking around, he suddenly noticed that the five-plus mu of land where he had planted peanuts two days ago using the cave spring water had sprouted tender green shoots.

They were just barely emerging, very small.

If not for Chen Ling’s improved health and sharpened eyesight, he surely wouldn’t have noticed immediately.

“This guy… good thing I was cautious enough!”

“Every peanut seed got just a little bit of spring water…”

“Otherwise, these sprouts wouldn’t be tiny now; the grass would be half a person tall by now.”

Chen Ling pulled out a small sprout, pinched it, and a fresh grassy scent wafted out.

Though the sprout was delicate, the fact it grew in the cold mountain foothills showed it contained strong vitality.

Chen Ling secretly felt relieved.

Luckily, he had been cautious back then.

He recalled how just half a bowl of spring water had made the morning glories in the courtyard grow as tall as little trees.

So he hadn’t overused the spring water when planting peanuts.

Otherwise, if tall grass had sprouted all over the field, it would have been a big problem if anyone saw it.

“I’ve still underestimated the effect of the cave spring water.”

“Looks like next time I irrigate with this spring water, I’ll have to dilute it with ordinary water.”

Chen Ling thought to himself.

The Sun and Moon Cave was a great blessing, and to preserve it, he had to develop quietly.

He didn’t yet have the capital to act recklessly.

Then, Chen Ling steadied himself, took out a stone hoe from the cave, and dug a deep hole in the ground.

“The hard, compacted soil underneath has loosened. Now it’s possible to plow.”

“I believe after plowing twice, turning the soil, and irrigating a few more times with spring water, these thirty mu of wasteland will turn into fertile fields.”

Chen Ling estimated it might be done within the month.

“Let’s get started!”

He spat on his hands, rubbed them hard, and carried the hoe to the uncultivated land, digging hole after hole.

He took a bucket of spring water from the cave, reduced the amount by two-thirds compared to last time, and began planting peanuts in the holes.

Before long, one mu of peanuts had grown well and been harvested.

“Now, plant one mu of vegetables.”

There were still nearly three thousand jin of peanuts unsold in the cave, so Chen Ling wasn’t in a rush to plant more peanuts.

He planned to grow some vegetables.

Because the vegetables grown inside the cave had overproduced seriously.

Green beans, eggplants, cucumbers, spinach, tomatoes…

Their growth was too vigorous. Most seeds had been bought from the county town and had borne abundant fruit. The vines and branches were bent over from the weight.

The spinach had grown into a large patch, but it was all mature, flowering and seeding, no longer edible.

Chen Ling picked a thick, long cucumber, brushed off the spines, and bit into it.

The crisp, refreshing taste filled his mouth.

Swallowing slowly, a cool sensation spread deep into his lungs, as if his taste buds were dancing.

“What a great cucumber! Truly delicious!”

Chen Ling closed his eyes in admiration. Then he collected the spinach seeds and picked some mature green beans for seed.

He took them outside, dug holes, and planted the beans.

Spinach didn’t need to be replanted by seed; after turning the soil, he just scattered the seeds evenly on the ground.

Otherwise, they would grow too densely, crowding together into clumps.

Half an hour later, one mu of spinach and green beans was harvested and stored in the cave.

“That’s enough for now!”

“Finished for the day. Time to go home for breakfast!”

Chen Ling put away the stone hoe in the cave, stretched, and headed home.