Chapter 142: How About Planting Five Hundred Mu?

Tang Huai spoke first, "Mountain 49 has no large quantities of edible flora or fauna, and no pollution-free water source. The Azure Dragon Squad most likely discovered a precious mineral up there—could it be yi-stone?"

"Doesn't seem like it." The seasoned businessman Tang Zhengpo shook his head. "If they'd found a yi-stone mine, the Azure Dragon Squad's guard wouldn't be this lax. I venture to say there's nothing special about Mountain 49. After the Luo Pei poisoning incident, the Azure Dragon Squad became thoroughly disillusioned with the base management team led by Tang Zhengrong, so they started shifting the squad's focus."

Tang Huai couldn't help cursing, "Tang Zhengsu's been brainwashed by Xu Pin—bored out of his mind, why would he poison Luo Pei! Luckily Luo Pei's fine, otherwise Yang Jin and Xie Yu, those two lunatics, would've surely blown the Sufeng Squad to kingdom come."

Tang Zhengpo didn't speak again, seemingly listening intently to Da Jiang explaining how to use a hoe to weed around the corn seedlings without hurting them.

Tang Huai kept grumbling. After listening for a while, Tang Heng asked his father, "The Azure Dragon Squad has cultivated over a thousand mu of farmland, and Zhang San's territory also has a lot planted. The people on these two territories definitely won't move easily. With them around, when beast tides or insect plagues come in the future, this territory should be able to hold. Dad, should we also invest more in Territory 12 and plant a few dozen mu of overwintering vegetables and wheat?"

Seeing both his sons staring at him, Tang Zhengpo nodded. "How about planting five hundred mu?"

How much?

Tang Huai was so startled he dropped the gun-cleaning rag in his hand. Tang Heng was both surprised and excited. "Dad, really?"

"When you spot an opportunity, seize it with everything you've got. Even if a disaster strikes and there's no harvest, we won't lose much." Tang Zhengpo was calm and composed, unhurried. "If by some chance it works out, we'll have the capital to survive in high quality."

"Dad..." Tang Heng's eyes glistened with tears of emotion, because his father's bearing seemed to take him back to before the catastrophe.

Back then, his father was one of the province's top entrepreneurs. Back then, Tang Zhengsu was nothing but a street loafer—without his father's support, how could Tang Zhengrong have smoothly climbed his way to the position of mayor?!

After the catastrophe, however much Tang Zhengsu used to fawn over them, that's how much he now trampled them.

Pfft, a petty person flushed with success!

"What are we all eating tonight?" From the lord channel came Zhang San's listless voice.

Tang Huai, who had been cursing with great fervor, immediately shut his mouth and began silently counting how many green-light worms he had dug up—enough for a dish? Good enough to catch Zhang San's eye?

On the lord channel, Zhao Ze was the first to answer, "I'm eating flatbread tonight. My mom makes amazing leavened flatbread—want to try some, Third Brother?"

Xia Qing also pressed the button. "Third Brother, I'm pinching off sweet potato leaves—shall I bring you some?"

Qi Fu said, "We're having porridge tonight—peeled wheat, mung beans, and beans shelled from old cowpeas."

Tang Zhengpo's voice was gentle. "We're having deep-fried yellow-light evolved mantises and green-light worm pupae tonight."

Luo Pei also spoke up. "My brother came over today, so we're having grilled meat tonight. Caught a red muntjac—too bad it's yellow-light—otherwise I'd send you a few jin, Third Brother."

Zhang San listened to them all and chose the venison. "Luo Pei, can you trade me two jin of tenderloin?"

Tang Huai muttered under his breath, "Zhang San sure knows how to eat."

Deer tenderloin is tender, low in fat, easy to digest—the best meat on a deer.

"Of course." Luo Pei agreed readily. "I've broken some ground to plant grain, but there are a lot of insect larvae and eggs in the soil. Can you trade me some good insecticide, Third Brother?"

Hearing there were lots of bugs in Plot One, Tang Huai grew restless, wanting to dig...

Zhang San named his price. "One jin of venison for one jin of insecticide."

"Deal, thanks a lot, Third Brother." Luo Pei agreed immediately.

Tang Heng said quietly, "Dad, Zhang San's insecticide is definitely good stuff—should we trade for some too?"

Tang Huai immediately objected. "You've got me—why would we need insecticide?"

Tang Zhengpo ignored his elder son and instructed his younger one. "Call your sister later and have her send over four green-light hairy crabs."

August—the proper time to eat hairy crabs.

While lords three, four, five, six, and ten were racking their brains for foods that might interest Zhang San in exchange for insecticide, Assistant Xiao Liu of Territory Nine unexpectedly spoke up. "Can Territory Nine trade for insecticide? With green-light spinach."

Just when everyone thought Zhang San would refuse, he actually agreed. "Sure—two jin of green-light for one jin of insecticide."

"Deal, thank you, Lord Zhang." Xiao Liu agreed immediately.

Zhang San agreeing to trade with Territory Nine was probably because he wanted to figure out the yi-element content of their green-light spinach.

Xia Qing had pinched off enough sweet potato leaves, picked up her basket, held her breath, and walked through the stinking alfalfa and perilla fields, exiting Gao Po's planting greenhouse.

Xia Qing wasn't at all surprised that Territory Nine was growing green-light spinach. Because green-light spinach is the main vegetable variety used to make special nutrient solution and yi-element stimulant, Li Si, as someone well-versed in cultivation techniques, would certainly try growing spinach under different soil conditions.

Territory Nine's green-light spinach seeds must have come from the Blazing Fire Squad.

Xia Qing remembered Luo Pei saying the Blazing Fire Squad had crops with yi-element content as high as nine ten-thousandths—could it be spinach?

Was Territory Nine proactively offering spinach to curry favor with Zhang San? And by accepting the spinach, had Zhang San agreed to let Territory Nine off the hook?

Xia Qing was pondering as she entered the greenhouse of the low-slope planting zone. She took out the water bucket from the spring cave, already filled with water, screwed the lid tight, stuffed it into her backpack, and was just about to go pick some old cowpeas to take home and shell out the beans to make bean porridge like Qi Fu's family, when she got a call from Zhang San.

Zhang San's voice was still listless, as if he'd suffered some serious blow. "Xia Qing, those two wolves are still recuperating in your territory, right?"

Xia Qing answered immediately, "Yes. The wolf with the injured lumbar spine already has feeling in its hind legs—Third Brother, you're amazing, you can even heal a broken spine."

"That's because its spinal nerves weren't completely severed—otherwise it wouldn't have responded so quickly." Zhang San continued asking, "How are you handling the wolves' feeding?"

Xia Qing understood why her idol had sought her out, and answered with some reservation. "The wolf pack brings them food every day—sometimes birds, sometimes rabbits or little wild boar."

Hearing about food, Zhang San's mood finally improved a lot. "They're recuperating in your territory—hasn't the wolf pack shared any of their prey with you?"

Xia Qing, who had already been eating meat until she got heat in her mouth, answered righteously, "No, they've already given me herbs."

She'd already paid Zhang San's surgical fee, and the green-light meat was what she'd earned through her diligent care of the wolves—even her idol couldn't have a share of her meat.

Zhang San snorted—whether he was displeased with Xia Qing, or with the wolf pack, or with both, was unclear.

Xia Qing of course cared about her idol's health and asked carefully, "Are you feeling unwell, Third Brother?"

"Hungry enough that my stomach hurts." Zhang San sounded genuinely very uncomfortable.

Zhang San, who had several greenhouses, raised green-light chickens and green-light dairy cows, and possessed countless high-value supplies—how could he be so hungry his stomach hurt?

Xia Qing didn't disbelieve him, she just found it incredible, and asked, "Territory Nine's spinach not to your liking?"

Zhang San snorted and continued asking, "Is it that the wolf pack didn't share with you, or that they brought food and you just never went to collect it?"

She was eating meat until she got heat in her mouth, yet her idol was so hungry his stomach hurt—was that reasonable? Tomorrow she'd share some meat with her idol! And while she was at it, Xia Qing would also get some insecticide.

Xia Qing answered, "Third Brother, can I really go take the wolves' food?"

Zhang San's spirits lifted a little. "From what I know of the wolf pack, since they let wolves recuperate in your territory, they don't consider you an outsider—you can go take the prey they bring. Next time, put on protective gear and try it. If you get some, test it—if it's green-light, save me some."

Xia Qing responded with fervent enthusiasm, "Yes, Third Brother—when the wolf pack comes to deliver food tomorrow, I'll go try."