Chapter 131: The Sheds

Translator: Lonelytree

After Wang Zhimin came to pick up his daily portion, Xiao Lingyu took the bus and left the county town. It was around 8 am when she reached Taoyuan Village.

“Eldest cousin!” Xiao Xiaohui was rushing to school when he bumped into Xiao Lingyu. “You’re back!”

“That’s right!” Xiao Lingyu smiled.

“Eldest cousin, your two friends came over the day before yesterday! They came from the big city and drove a very nice car.” Xiao Xiaohui said, “We got to crawl on the car. It was very fun.”

Xiao Lingyu asked in puzzlement, “My friends from the big city?” But she didn’t have any friends in a big city. She had friends in Xing Yin County, but she only knew them a few days ago. Plus, shouldn’t her friends call when they wanted to come to find her?

Xiao Lingyu frowned, “Xiaohui, did they say which city they came from?”

“City Z!” Xiao Xiaohui answered.

Xiao Lingyu’s heart skipped a beat. The only rich person she knew from City Z was Yan Siming. ‘Did he follow me here?’ Xiao Lingyu forced herself to calm down and asked again, “Xiaohui, where are the two now?”

“They left!” Xiao Xiaohui said, “Eldest cousin, I can’t talk to you anymore. Little Bun and the others are waiting for me. We need to go to school.” Not far away, Little Bun, Little Charcoal, and Little Moon were calling Xiao Xiaohui. “Little Loach, hurry up. If you’re late again, you’ll be punished by the teacher.”

“Okay, I’m coming!” Xiao Xiaohui replied loudly, “Eldest cousin, goodbye!”

“Be careful on the way!” Xiao Lingyu instructed.

“Okay!” Xiao Xiaohui ran to join his friends.

After the kids left, Xiao Lingyu’s heart finally settled down. She walked home.

When she arrived, she noticed the yard door was closed. Xiao Lingyu believed her parents had gone to the fields. It was seeding season. Furthermore, Xiao Lingyu had contracted 17 Mu of land, so everyone was very busy.

Xiao Lingyu took out her eyes, opened the door, and walked to the backyard. She pulled back the plastic flap, and the green shoots greeted her. They looked so cute. The soil was damp. Mother Xiao probably watered them not too long ago. Xiao Lingyu hadn’t grown strawberries before, and her only reliance was the spring water. Thankfully, the spring water was really effective. A single pour and the plant would grow. Xiao Lingyu noticed that even the weeds that grew between the seedlings were so strong.

Xiao Lingyu pulled back the tarp so that the seedlings could enjoy the sun. Then, she pulled out the weeds as she went down the rows. She passed the morning just like that.

At 11 am, Xiao Lingyu went to prepare lunch. She had hired around 30 villagers to help with the shed-building. However, she only needed to feed her family and her fourth uncle’s family. It was Friday, and Xiao Lingyu wondered if her little brother would come home.

When Mother Xiao returned and saw the yard door open and smelled the fragrance, she knew her daughter was home.

“Yu ‘Er, when did you get back?” Mother Xiao asked. She placed the hoe at the corner and went to wash her hands.

Xiao Lingyu was picking through a cabbage. “Mom, you’re home!”

Mother Xiao chuckled. “I didn’t think you’d be back so early, so I already cooked some dishes. Let me handle the rest. You should go and get your dad and third uncle!”

“Okay!” Xiao Lingyu said, “Mom, I’ve washed the cabbage and beans. You can stir-fry them.”

“Alright.” Mother Xiao put on the apron. “Get your father back for lunch!”

“Oh, right. Where is dad?”

“At the back mountain, building the sheds!”

“Okay, I’ll be going, Mom!”

When Xiao Lingyu arrived, she saw Father Xiao building a shed with the others.

“Dad, fourth uncle, it’s time to eat!”

“Lingyu is back!” Everyone was very happy to see Xiao Lingyu. “Lingyu, what do you think of these sheds?”

Xiao Lingyu smiled and said, “They should be okay, but you should ask my fourth uncle. He is the real expert here.”

Xiao Mingyang laughed, “Do you think this thing will be standing without my supervision? If the shed is not up to your standard, we’ll tear it down and build it again for free!” Of course, the last sentence was a joke.

“Haha, Mingyang, with you around, there is no way the sheds won’t work!”

“That’s right!”

Over the past few days, Xiao Mingyang was strict in his supervision of the shed construction. If there were any spot that was not up to par, he would have the men rebuild it. The men grumbled, but since they were paid, they had to work.

Xiao Lingyu looked at the sturdy sheds and said, “Everyone has worked hard.”

“It’s what we’re paid to do!” Someone joked. “Lingyu, when the strawberries can be harvested, just remember to share them with the villagers!” Of course, that was a joke too… or at least half of it was.

Strawberries were expensive. They cost 40 RMB per catty. No rural farmers could afford them. So if Xiao Lingyu could really grow strawberries, it would be fantastic… if they could get a taste.

“Of course! If this venture is a success, I’ll definitely give everyone a try of the fruits.” Xiao Lingyu was not stingy. She knew how expensive strawberries were for a common farmer. If she succeeded, she would give some to the villagers as a sample, and then she would sell them at a low price. That was the way of business.

Xiao Lingyu walked around the farm and realized the shed was really well-built. 30 people built the shed to cover 10 Mu of land. They were already on the finishing details like removing the grass. Xiao Lingyu’s fourth aunt and the women had already dug up the ditches according to Xiao Lingyu’s request.

Now, she only needed to transplant the strawberry seedlings. Of course, she could also plant peanuts and soybeans.

“Huh? You plan to plant peanuts and soybeans?” Liu Chunjiao was surprised when she heard that. “Why build the sheds to plant peanuts and soybeans? That’s a waste of money.”

Peanuts and soybeans were not as delicate as strawberries. As long as they were fertilized and watered, they could blossom and bear fruit. It was a waste to build sheds for these hardy plants.

Xiao Lingyu blinked, “Fourth Aunt, I was going to farm them according to a scientific method taught by my friend. It’s still a secret, so it’s safer to use a shed!”

Her fourth aunt was suspicious. “For real?” Liu Chunjiao was a simple countrywoman. She only knew the old ways. On the other hand, Xiao Lingyu had gone to the university and worked in the big city. When it came to new technology, she trusted Xiao Lingyu.

They reached the Xiao Family home where Mother Xiao was waiting. Food was served, and they continued the conversation from before.

“In that case,” Liu Chunjiao nodded, “You need peanut and soybean seeds. I have around ten catties if you want them.”

“I think we have another ten catties at home.” Father Xiao said. “But even added, that barely covers one Mu of land.”

“Should we ask the other villagers to see if they have any extra?” Liu Chunjia offered.

Xiao Lingyu shook her head. “Fourth aunt, it’s fine. I’m going to the county town later. I’m going to buy some more seeds and try to find dragon fruit seeds.”

Mother Xiao frowned, “Yu ‘Er, but you just came back from the county town. Won’t it be tiring?”

Xiao Lingyu smiled, “No, it won’t!” Then, she remembered she hadn’t told them the news. “Mom, I just bought a car!”

“What?” The impact was like a bomb. “You bought a car?”

“Yes!” Xiao Lingyu explained, “Since I’ll need to travel from Taoyuan Village and the county town very often in the future, having a car is more convenient.”

“But Yu ‘Er, do you know how to drive?” Father Xiao asked.

“Yes, Dad,” Xiao Lingyu said, “I took a driving test in my spare time when I was working at City Z.”

“Did you buy a new car or a second-hand car?” Uncle Xiao asked.

“A new car!”

“How much is it?”

“70,000 RMB!”

“That is so expensive!” Aunt Xiao couldn’t believe this figure.

“70,000 RMB?” Mother Xiao asked, “Yu ‘Er, where did you get so much money?” Renting the land, building the sheds, hiring the villagers already cost 30,000 to 40,000 RMB. There shouldn’t be much money left to buy a car. As the person doing the account, Mother Xiao knew that very well.

“Yu ‘Er, do you have enough money?” Liu Chunjia said, “Yu ‘Er, how many more do you need? Your fourth uncle and I have some savings over the years, and we can lend it to you.”

“Yes, Yu ‘Er, how much more do you need?” Fourth Uncle Xiao echoed.

Xiao Lingyu shook her head and said with a smile, “Thank you, fourth uncle and fourth aunt. But that won’t be necessary. 2000 RMB per month is enough to buy a car.”

“2000 RMB?” They were confused. “But didn’t you say 70,000 RMB? How did it become 2000 RMB? Yu ‘Er, what is going on?”

They didn’t know that a car purchase could be paid in installments.. They thought it required full payment upfront.