Chapter 20 – Delivering Chicken
There had been little rain in April, and the sun was blazing.
The water Xia Lu Nong had poured in the morning evaporated completely by noon, leaving the soil bleached by the sun. Eggplant leaves, chili peppers, and other fragile plants in the field were wilting from the heat.
Worried that his crops would die from the heat, Xia Lu Nong adjusted his watering schedule to twice a day—once in the early morning and again in the evening.
Liao Cheng, who had more experience, suggested, “You could flood the field with some water. That way, the soil won’t dry out so quickly.”
Xia Lu Nong had considered this before but was worried the plants might drown.
Hearing Liao Cheng’s advice reassured him, so he decided to try irrigating the field by diverting some water into the channels.
Afterward, Liao Cheng brought up another matter. “Old Liu managed to get a few bags of peanuts. The quality is good, and he says they can be used as seeds. You’ve got half a field that’s sitting empty—why not plant some peanuts?”
Xia Lu Nong had never thought about growing peanuts before. Scratching his head, he asked, “For eating?”
Neither he nor his brother was particularly fond of peanuts.
“For making oil,” Liao Cheng explained, shaking his head. “How much can you eat, really? If you’re planning to cook for yourselves at home, you’re going to need oil, aren’t you?”
Xia Lu Nong had actually forgotten about that.
They’d been using lard for cooking recently, and there was still enough to last another ten days or so. But once it was gone, they’d have to go to the market to trade for more.
Thinking back, he realized there hadn’t been anyone trading oil at the market.
Liao Cheng’s reminder made him realize how serious the situation was. “I really hadn’t thought of that. I’ll discuss it with my brother.”
“You’d better act quickly. Old Liu doesn’t have much peanut seed left. If you hesitate, it’ll all be traded away, and you won’t be able to get any.”
Xia Lu Nong quickly agreed.
When he mentioned it to his brother at home, Xia Huo Qu didn’t have any objections, saying that if Xia Lu Nong wanted to trade for the peanut seeds, he could. It might just mean a little extra work planting them.
“Just plant two or three mu. It’ll be good exercise,” Xia Lu Nong said while thinking about their supplies. “Brother, what should we use to trade for the seeds?”
They didn’t have much left in terms of supplies. The most tempting items were probably the sausages and cured meat hanging outside to dry.
That might be the only thing they could trade with, but he wasn’t sure how much they’d need.
Xia Huo Qu thought for a moment. “Use the meal tickets. If we’re not eating at the cafeteria, there’s no point in keeping them. We can trade them for the seeds.”
“Alright, I’ll ask Brother Liu how many meal tickets he wants for a pound of seeds.”
“Take Xi Nian’s meal tickets with you too. He doesn’t need them anymore.”
Xia Lu Nong took the meal tickets and went to see Old Liu, who brought out the seeds to show him. “There’s just over four pounds left. If you want it all, it’s yours.”
Xia Lu Nong smiled. “Let me take a look.”
“Go ahead, these are good seeds,” Old Liu said, puffing on his cigarette. “It took me a lot of effort to get these. If you miss this batch, there probably won’t be any more this year.”
Xia Lu Nong smiled back and bent down to inspect the seeds.
They were in a shallow layer inside a basket. The peanut shells were pinkish, and each peanut was about the size of a finger—full and beautiful.
When he sniffed them, there was only a faint smell of raw peanuts, with no other unpleasant odors. They smelled very fresh.
He scooped up a handful. They felt heavy in his hand.
They really were good seeds.
Old Liu noticed the satisfied look in his eyes and said proudly, “Good seeds, right? Take care of them properly after planting, and I guarantee you’ll have a great harvest in the fall.”
Xia Lu Nong didn’t hesitate for long and pulled out the meal tickets. “I’ll take them all. Brother Liu, I’ll trade meal tickets. How many meal tickets for a pound?”
These were basic meal tickets.
Old Liu examined the tickets carefully, then smiled.
“Since we’re friends, I’ll give you a deal—twenty meal tickets for the whole lot. How does that sound?”
Twenty meal tickets were fewer than Xia Lu Nong had expected, so he beamed. “I’ll take them. Thanks, Brother Liu!”
“You’re welcome. Wait a moment, I’ll grab a cloth bag for you. The seeds are delicate, so be careful not to damage the shells.”
Xia Lu Nong waited while Old Liu fetched the bag.
Old Liu’s home had been rebuilt from ruins. The floor was tiled, and the lower half of the walls was also tiled, while the upper half was exposed red brick.
The wooden table and chairs in the living room looked fairly new, probably recently made.
In no time, Old Liu came out of the room, carrying a cloth bag in one hand and holding his cigarette in the other. He quickly helped Xia Lu Nong pack the seeds and asked, “What’s your brother been up to lately?”
Xia Lu Nong quickly caught on. “Do you have something you need help with, Brother Liu?”
“I’m thinking of asking your brother to do a job,” Old Liu said after another drag of his cigarette. He didn’t beat around the bush. “We’ve scouted the route and are planning to head to Zhangshu County soon. We need someone reliable to back us up. Ask your brother if he’s interested—we’re willing to offer twenty pounds of rice for the trip.”
Xia Lu Nong didn’t know where Zhangshu County was or if the trip would be dangerous, so he replied cautiously, “I’ll ask my brother. But he and Brother Xi Nian might be busy looking for a generator. I’m not sure if they’ll have time.”
Old Liu laughed as he saw Xia Lu Nong off. “No problem, just ask. If your brother has other conditions, we can discuss them.”
Xia Lu Nong returned home with the peanut seeds and explained everything to his brother.
Xia Huo Qu asked, “How long would the trip take?”
Xia Lu Nong scratched his head, realizing he’d forgotten to ask.
Seeing his expression, Xia Huo Qu sighed. “Never mind. I’ll go talk to him later. If I have time, I’ll make the trip.”
Xia Lu Nong, curious, asked, “Is Zhangshu County far?”
“It’s not that far,” Xia Huo Qu replied. “At Liao Cheng’s pace, we could leave the base in the morning and reach the county by evening. The only issue is that there are a lot of mutated creatures.”
“Huh? Wouldn’t that be really dangerous?”
“The risk is definitely higher. Anyone going to the county needs to be able to shapeshift into a beast, and they need to be either really fast or have strong self-defense abilities after transforming.”
Xia Lu Nong was about to ask if his brother could take him along, but his brother’s words shut him down.
Frustrated, he scratched his face. “So I’ll have to stay home alone again?”
Xia Huo Qu’s eyes twinkled with amusement. “Let’s talk about it after you can shapeshift.”
That night, as Xia Lu Nong lay in bed, he quietly focused on his efforts. He’d been imagining himself transforming into a beast every day now.
His brother was a giant wolf, and since he wasn’t as big as his brother, his beast form probably wouldn’t be either. Maybe he’d transform into a normal-sized white wolf?
It didn’t have to be huge—if he could just be as big as Brother Liao Cheng in his beast form, that would be perfect.
With this secret hope in his heart, Xia Lu Nong drifted off to sleep.
The next morning, he was up bright and early.
The peanut seeds had been traded, and Xia Lu Nong and his brother had to grab their hoes and plant them.
They were already late in the season, and he didn’t want to miss it.
When they arrived at the field, Xia Lu Nong did his usual round of inspections, pulling weeds and picking insects.
He quickly noticed that the tomato plants had tiny buds on them.
“Brother!” Xia Lu Nong shouted with delight, waving his brother over. “Come look! Are the tomatoes about to bear fruit?”
Xia Huo Qu walked over.
They had planted just one row of tomatoes, ten plants in total.
After over a month of growth, the tomato plants had reached their knees, with thick stems and a shape resembling open umbrellas.
After examining them carefully, Xia Huo Qu pointed at one plant. “It’s not about to bear fruit—it already has. Look at this one.”
Xia Lu Nong leaned closer and, sure enough, saw a tiny green bead beneath one of the leaves.
“It really has!” he exclaimed, carefully touching the little green bead with more caution than if he were handling soft tofu. “How long will it take to grow?”
“By next week, we should be able to eat them.”
Xia Lu Nong looked up at his brother. “Should we fertilize them now?”
“Go ask Liao Cheng. He has more experience.”
The discovery of the tomatoes bearing fruit filled Xia Lu Nong with immense joy.
After making a round of the field, he realized it wasn’t just the tomatoes—there were also buds on the beans, eggplants, and peppers. It looked like they would all bloom and bear fruit soon.
After his inspection, Xia Lu Nong felt an overwhelming sense of satisfaction.
Xia Huo Qu, without saying a word, picked up a cloth bag and went to plant the peanuts.
The soil had already been turned, making the surface soft and free of weeds. All that was left was to dig holes and plant the peanut seeds.
Using a small hoe, Xia Huo Qu dug a hole, dropped in two seeds, covered them with soil, and then moved on to dig another hole about ten centimeters away.
After making his round of the field, Xia Lu Nong came over to help plant the peanuts.
Planting peanuts wasn’t hard work, but bending over for long periods was tiring.
By mid-afternoon, the two brothers had finished planting all the peanuts.
With the warm weather, the seeds would sprout within two or three days after watering.
After they finished, Xia Lu Nong stretched his back and gathered his things to wash up in the canal. Xia Huo Qu joined him.
It was still early, so Xia Lu Nong suggested, “We’re running low on vegetables at home. Should I go to the cafeteria and trade for some?”
“Let’s just make do. We don’t need a big meal every time. Stir-fry some pickled radishes and call it a day.”
Xia Lu Nong chuckled awkwardly. “But we took Brother Xi Nian’s food money too. Isn’t it a bit stingy?”
“Don’t worry about it. We can’t afford to eat meat every day anyway.”
Despite what his brother said, Xia Lu Nong was still thinking about what kind of appetizing dish he could make for dinner.
When they reached their doorstep, they found Liao Cheng waiting outside with two chickens. Judging by his expression, he had been waiting for a while.
Xia Lu Nong’s eyes lit up. “Brother Liao Cheng, are we having chicken for dinner tonight?”
Liao Cheng, bored from waiting, looked up when he heard Xia Lu Nong’s voice and teased him with a laugh, “Are you crazy? Eating the chickens? These are for you to raise!”
“Huh?” Xia Lu Nong eyed the two chickens suspiciously, not quite believing it. “Raise them?”
“Yeah, just build a little pen in the corner of your yard. Or, if that’s too much trouble, get Old Shou from the base to make you a chicken coop,” Liao Cheng said as he handed over the chickens. “They’re both hens. Take good care of them, and they’ll start laying eggs in a few months.”
The two hens were about half-grown. One had an extra comb, and the other had an extra toe, but neither had mutated much.
Holding the heavy hens in his hands, Xia Lu Nong felt a growing fondness for them. But they seemed too valuable.
“No, Brother Liao Cheng. Hens are so rare these days—you should take them back.”
“Just keep them. Next time I come over, I’ll make sure to eat my share. Once they start laying eggs, eat a few to nourish yourself so you can shapeshift sooner,” Liao Cheng said with a smile. “Alright, I’ve delivered the chickens. I’ve got to get back to work. See you around.”
Xia Huo Qu came up behind him and patted Xia Lu Nong on the shoulder. “Liao Cheng is being generous. Just accept them.”
Only then did Xia Lu Nong keep the chickens and call out to Liao Cheng, “Thanks, Brother Liao Cheng!”
Liao Cheng waved without looking back.
As Xia Lu Nong held the chickens, he looked around the yard and muttered, “With two more chickens, this place is really starting to feel like a proper farm.”
