Chapter 69: Down the Sprout

Chapter 69: Chapter 69: Down the Sprout

Everyone knew the Original Host had always been engrossed in work and was a shy person around others. When had she learned all of this?

Learned it from books? Who would believe that?

It would have been more convincing to say she had been possessed by a ghost.

Firstly, Ms. Wu’s family certainly didn’t believe it.

Ah, what a headache!

Seeing her looking preoccupied, Xiao Yunjing asked, “Is something worrying you, Li’er?”

Yes, there are many things, but can I tell him?

Gu Qingli shook her head and said, “No.”

Xiao Yunjing frowned.

Something must be bothering Li’er. This is the first time I’ve seen her like this. Even during her most difficult days, I never saw her frown with worry. Yes, I need to keep an eye on things. I can’t let Li’er worry herself into looking like a little old lady.

The next day, the weather warmed, and everyone exchanged their heavy cotton-padded clothes for lighter quilted jackets.

After breakfast, Gu Qingli also went up the mountain with them. The hundred acres of wasteland they had obtained needed to be tilled immediately.

As soon as their group arrived, the six men they had met in town the previous day were already weeding.

“Sir, Madam.” The six men greeted them when they saw them.

Eldest Brother Xiao, Second Brother Xiao, Ms. Yang, and Ms. Wang were quite calm, not at all surprised to see these six men helping.

It seems they also know about the Secret Sect,

Gu Qingli thought.

“No need for formalities; let’s get to work,” Xiao Yunjing said with a casual wave.

“Yes, Young Master.” The six men returned to their weeding.

Gu Qingli pursed her lips. The six men pulled weeds with strength, yet their movements were clumsy, albeit rhythmic, as if they were practicing martial arts techniques one by one.

With twelve people weeding together, the progress was rapid. After all, no one present was weak, and they all worked without slacking.

In two days, they had completely cleared the land of weeds and unwanted saplings.

They gathered the weeds and set them on fire. When that wasn’t enough ash for fertilizer, they went into the forest and raked up many leaves to supplement it for the hundred-acre land.

Next was tilling the land. With twelve hoes working in unison, the speed was incredible.

In a word: fast!

Only Gu Qingli occasionally snuck off for a break. While she strolled over the newly tilled soil, her fingers would now and then drip a few drops of water.

Only Xiao Yunjing, who was constantly watching her, noticed. Seeing that Eldest Brother Xiao and the others were oblivious, he breathed a sigh of relief.

Li’er is being too careless. Even though they are brothers, the fewer people who are aware of this heaven-defying ability, the safer it will be. I must give her a hint tonight.

It wasn’t that Gu Qingli was being deliberately conspicuous. It was just that sprinkling a few drops of spiritual spring water on the freshly tilled and fertilized land could rapidly improve the soil quality.

Little did she know that Xiao Yunjing had already noticed her subtle actions.

At noon, the six men ate the lunches they had brought themselves and then continued working.

This weeding and digging, it’s not bad at all. It can even train our hand speed, and we get to eat Wuyou’s delicious cooking. It seems our new master treats us quite well. We get to work, practice our skills, and enjoy good food,

they thought.

Xiao Yunjing thought,

You’re all overthinking it. I purely brought you here to work.

While they were having their midday meal, Gu Chang’an arrived. He had come to ask Gu Qingli about cultivating medicinal materials.

“Village Chief, have you eaten?” Ms. Jiang immediately put down her bowl to ask.

“You all go on and eat; I’ve eaten already. I just came to ask Xiaoli a few things,” Gu Chang’an said, waving his hand dismissively. He then found himself a stool and sat outside to wait.

How could Gu Qingli let him wait? She put down her bowl and carefully explained to Gu Chang’an how to plant them. She also suggested that those who couldn’t afford to buy seeds for the medicinal materials could dig up young saplings from the mountains and transplant those.

Gu Chang’an nodded, thinking Xiaoli’s method was indeed excellent.

He didn’t consider this a redundant effort; it was a sustainable, long-term plan. It just meant spending a bit more time and labor to turn unowned things from the mountains into their own property. Once the cultivated medicinal materials mature, if everyone just rushes up the mountain to dig wild ones, how many could they actually get? Thinking about it, cultivating medicinal materials truly is the path to long-term livelihood. Unfortunately, those idiots in the village don’t understand a thing! They only care about immediate gains. Yes, Azure Dragon Mountain has plenty of medicinal materials, but do you have the ability to go dig in the deep mountains? Besides, in the past, people didn’t know that most plants on the mountain were life-saving medicinal materials. Now that they know, people from other villages will definitely come up the mountain this year. No matter how abundant the medicinal materials are, they won’t be enough for everyone to dig. There might even come a day when they’re dug to extinction.

But then he thought of the villagers who were planting, and an image appeared in his mind: the entire village covered in lush, green medicinal materials, everyone enjoying a bountiful harvest.

At that time, would Qinghe Village still be the poorest? No, no, no! It would be the richest village in Qinghe Town, maybe even in all of Qinghe County!

After indulging in these delightful prospects, the gloom in Gu Chang’an’s heart was swept away. Having clarified what he didn’t know, he left in high spirits.

Three days later, they finally finished tilling the hundred acres of land. It was only completed because Xiao Yunjing had called in more people to help.

Afterward, they spent a day helping Gu Dalin till his twenty acres.

Next came planting the seedlings.

Gu Qingli had already sprouted the seeds they bought for their family; the seedlings were now about as long as a little finger.

So, the family divided the labor: she and her two sisters-in-law went up the mountain to transplant seedlings, while the three brothers went to till the paddy fields, preparing to sow rice seeds.

As for Gu Dalin, his leg had finally recovered enough for him to walk and stand. As long as he didn’t use too much force, he could manage some light digging.

He also got some seedlings from Gu Qingli’s family, and the couple began planting.

Among the dozen or so households in the village, apart from Gu Chang’an who had the silver to buy seeds, the others all dug up young saplings from the mountains to transplant.

For a while, the village was bustling with activity, presenting a scene of thriving prosperity.

This pleased Gu Chang’an immensely. He spent his days with his hands behind his back, humming little tunes as he went around the various fields offering guidance.

Of course, with many people in his own family, he wasn’t needed for the actual labor.

While Gu Qingli and her sisters-in-law transplanted seedlings, Xiao Yunjing’s men naturally helped.

In three days, they finished planting all one hundred and twenty acres. When seedlings ran short towards the end, they dug up some more from the mountains. Gu Qingli didn’t mind what kind of medicinal materials they were; as long as they were valuable, she had them dug up.

The men from the Secret Sect, with their martial arts skills, accompanied Gu Qingli deep into the mountains. They found quite a number of precious medicinal materials, and she took the opportunity to toss some into her space.

Of course, she had also taken out the original saplings from her space and mixed them in with the ones planted outside.

Otherwise, there wouldn’t have been nearly enough.

The initial batch of seeds should have been sufficient, but many of them turned out to be bad, so only about two-thirds actually sprouted. Fortunately, she was the one managing it all, so only she knew exactly how many had sprouted.

To help with germination, Ms. Jiang had even specially cleared out a utility room—the one right next to their own room—for Gu Qingli’s convenience.

It had to be said, Ms. Jiang was a meticulous and considerate old lady.

“Tired?” Xiao Yunjing asked at night, massaging Gu Qingli’s lower back.

“A little.” Unlike Xiao Yunjing and the others who possessed internal energy, she and her two sisters-in-law were genuinely exhausted, their waists sore and backs aching.

Xiao Yunjing gently pinched her small face, saying with heartfelt concern, “Next year, you won’t have to work so hard. We’ll just buy a few servants.”

Gu Qingli, resting on his lap, pointed to her lower back. “You’re right. This year, it’s just over a hundred acres, which isn’t considered a lot.”

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