Chapter 257: Give You to Me

After having Jia Jian follow the Fierce Sand Escort Bureau to Leitingcheng, Lin Manzhi put the matter off her mind.

As for arranging the watermelon planting, Lin Manzhi doesn't have to worry; the planters are all experienced field workers, and she only needs to handle the seeds.

Regarding manpower, as the Planting Base expands, the number of planters keeps increasing; now the total is 2,000.

Over two thousand mu of land are tended by over two thousand people, still the mighty male Beastfolk, so most planters have little to do.

After quickly designating such a large planting area as Base No. 5, Xiang Sa, the planting team leader, was overjoyed; they told her that after finishing the work they wanted to bring people to tidy the neighboring desert, but Lin Manzhi refused.

Enough, enough; even the coins to buy seeds in the newly cleared space are insufficient.

Lin Manzhi was soaking in her own space; at this moment she was in the mountain medicinal herb planting area, squatting under a tree and looking down.

A ginseng seedling over fifty centimeters tall grew in the leaf litter, its stalk semi‑transparent violet‑red, very thin, bearing five serrated compound leaves; each leaflet was as large as a thumbnail, with a fringe of fuzz along the edge.

She carefully pressed the ginseng's branches aside, revealing the violet‑red stalk and its junction with the root on the ground; the rhizome head was already plump and strong.

The age of the ginseng can be read from the number of rhizome cups on the rhizome head; one head equals one year, and this ginseng had six tightly linked rings of cups.

In the space, one day at the mountain planting site equals one month; although the ginseng she planted during her stay at the Luosangya camp after returning to Kuangsha City had passed more than seventy days, she still professionally assessed its age.

Because the elite troops under Mo Lie needed to take it to boost their strength, she planted ginseng at all three hundred planting points; they have now grown for over six years, and as previously decided she will keep two to continue growing, while the other 298 ginseng plants can be harvested today.

The fresh ginseng allowed Huang Cai and her group to extract Ginseng Essence; each plant yields ten portions of the essence, so 298 plants produce 2,980 portions, enough to give one portion to each of over two thousand male Beastfolk warriors to strengthen them.

But something is better than nothing, right.

Lin Manzhi had the puppet machines harvest the ginseng, and she replanted them as a follow‑up.

Soon, over two hundred planting points had a new round of ginseng; the freshly dug ginseng, whole and undamaged, was placed in a grass basket lined with soft cloth.

She stepped forward, lifted the grass basket, and lowered her gaze over the ginseng's hair‑thin roots, looking very satisfied.

Fortunately there are work machines available in the space; otherwise I would have to dig up the over two hundred fresh ginseng myself, which would be arduous and would surely break the roots.

After finishing the tasks in the space, Lin Manzhi quickly carried a grass basket of fresh ginseng to find Huang Cai and the others.

When Huang Cai saw her, she again suddenly produced a medicinal plant she had never seen before; she used to be amazed, but after seeing so many things, the awe in her heart unintentionally faded.

She heard Lin Manzhi's request, immediately took the female extractors, extracted the Ginseng Essence from the 298 ginseng plants Lin brought, bottled and sealed them, and handed them to Lin Manzhi for inventory.

The whole room was filled with a faint bitter, fragrant ginseng scent, and Lin Manzhi's clothes were tinged with it.

Ginseng is no longer a rare herb in modern times; she occasionally cooks a small ginseng soup or brews a cup of ginseng tea for herself, so she is very familiar with its scent, which feels soothing.

Lin Manzhi had someone pack the Ginseng Essence into a cargo box, then turned to everyone and smiled:

"Not bad, thanks for everyone's hard work; in a bit I'll have someone bring over a dozen watermelons," Lin Manzhi said, turning to Huang Cai: "When they arrive, you slice them and share with everyone."

At her words, the calm females in the room burst into cheers; watermelons are tastier than Holy Maiden Fruit, and are considered the favorite food among the females.

Lin Manzhi said goodbye to the females in the alchemy room, sent the guards with three cargo boxes to follow, and returned to find Mo Lie.

Lord's Residence.

Mo Lie sat behind a desk in the side hall of the Administrative Hall, his eyes lowered as he looked at a Thin Skin Scroll unfurled in his hand.

He had been reading information sent from An Sen Da Lu when his gaze briefly paused; he lifted his eyes and swiftly turned toward the empty doorway where a scent originated.

The fragrant scent was ginseng...

Mo Lie knew Lin Manzhi was walking this way; looking at the doorway, his cyan eyes were filled with a broad smile.

He set aside the Thin Skin Scroll, rose from his seat, his steps silent on the reflective white‑stone floor, and hurried out the door.

A group of silhouettes emerged from behind the corridor pillars.

Four Beastfolk warriors behind Lin Manzhi abruptly halted, simultaneously bowing their heads in trained respect, their expressions very reverent: "Lord..."

Lin Manzhi lifted her gaze and saw Mo Lie slowly walking toward her.

His deep-set brows and eyes, when bathed in sunlight, were unbelievably beautiful; his blue eyes seemed to have melted and compressed an endless Cangqiong, with its deepest azure and all its radiance, into two perfect gems.

Mo Lie casually gave a slight nod to the four male Beastfolk, his gaze fixed on Lin Manzhi as he walked toward her, smiling: "Zhi Zhi, you're back; where did you go just now?"

The four Beastfolk warriors set down their wooden suitcases and silently turned away.

Lin Manzhi saw Mo Lie, her dark eyes sparkling as she ran to his side, saying: "Guess what, I prepared this for you~"

Mo Lie walked over from the opposite side to Lin Manzhi's side.

He extended his hand, grasped hers, his slender fingers slipping between Lin Manzhi's, the interlaced ten fingers gently lowering the Little Female's hand.

Mo Lie's mouth curled slightly, his drawn‑out voice carrying a lazy lilt that added a magnetic quality to his deep tone: "Oh? Let me guess..."

Lin Manzhi tilted her head slightly, eyes widening with excitement as she looked at Mo Lie.

Mo Lie certainly didn't know.

She hadn't told him about going into the space to harvest ginseng, wanting to give him a surprise.

Just then, as she waited for Mo Lie's answer, a male Beastfolk beside her suddenly leaned down, lightly sniffing the skin on the side of her neck.

Warm breath gently exhaled, stirring a faint shiver of ticklish sensation, as if

Mo Lie straightened, silently curled his mouth in a smile and said: "I know, it's Zhi Zhi."

Sending herself to him? Lin Manzhi's face, rarely flushed, warmed as she stopped the guessing game, saying: "It's Ginseng Essence, over two thousand portions, all for you."

Mo Lie had guessed it long ago.

He glanced at the wooden box behind Lin Manzhi, then lowered his gaze back to her, his voice rising with good spirits: "That's wonderful; the army in Kuangsha City is overall weaker than Beastfolk in other territories, but with the Ginseng Essence you gave me, all the warriors will gain a boost in strength."