Fishing Peaches

That evening, ten young men followed Li Banfeng and Ma Wu to Xindi.

Along the way, ten people carried ten sacks of rotten fish.

These are dead fish that Li Banfeng bought from the market last night. They were tied in a bag and left in the sun. After a whole day of being exposed to the wind, they could smell for miles around.

The ten young men had a tough journey. One of them, a tall, dark-skinned man, had his face turn pale from the smoke after walking less than two miles.

"Are these two going to Xindi to fish for peaches? Otherwise, why would they bring such smelly fish?"

Another handsome young man in blue nodded and said, "Judging by the season, they should be out fishing for peaches, but they can't do that kind of work, so they won't earn any money!"

A thin young man wearing a yellow shirt said, "Why do you care if they make money or not? As long as we make money, that's all that matters. We'll agree on a price with them later. Picking peaches has to be at the market price, otherwise we won't do it."

Earth Jade Peach is one of the most common prey in Xindi, Blue Poplar Village.

Ma Wu was indeed going to take them peach fishing on this trip.

The group walked to the southernmost part of the village, where there were no more houses, and only a few tents could be seen occasionally.

Many people didn't even have tents and just slept on the ground.

On the edge of the new land, who knows what might emerge? You might be sleeping soundly tonight, but by the next morning, there might not even be a corpse left.

These people had basically lost all hope of survival. They were lucky to have anything to eat. They lived next to the new land because they had nowhere else to sleep. They couldn't even find a place to sleep under the bridge.

The group left the village and entered a grove of trees.

The grove of trees didn't seem particularly special, except that the branches and leaves were quite lush. When the group walked to the center of the grove, the five young men, under Ma Wu's direction, opened the ten sacks of rotten fish and placed them on the ground.

The twelve people took their positions: ten young men guarded the upwind slope, Li Banfeng and Ma Wu guarded the downwind slope.

Ma Wu kept reassuring Li Banfeng: "Brother Li, these peach trees must have come from the downwind slope. We need to keep an eye on them here so we can give them orders later."

Li Banfeng, his face pale, said, "Don't talk, or I'll throw up."

"Brother Li, it can't be that bad, it smells alright to me!"

"Say one more word and I'll spit on you."

It wasn't that Li Banfeng was being fussy; he had a special sense of smell. Being in a downwind position, the smell of rotten fish was so strong that it almost killed Li Banfeng.

At 4:30 a. m., as dawn was breaking, the woods finally began to stir.

Squeak~ Caw caw caw~

Something is moving between the trees.

Li Banfeng secretly put on the Thread-Pulling Earring and activated his Discern Spiritual Sounds Technique, wanting to hear the other person's voice.

Squeak~

A sharp screech made Li Banfeng's eardrums ache. After the pain subsided, Li Banfeng heard a roar that followed the screech.

"It smells so good!"

Fragrant?

Li Banfeng really wanted to have a proper discussion with the other party.

Swish~

The leaves rustled.

Ma Wu reminded everyone to be prepared.

An Earth Jade Peach was approaching them, and Li Banfeng could vaguely smell the fragrance of peach blossoms amidst the stench.

Hehehe~

The sound of tree bark rubbing against each other was incessant as a giant python, over a meter in diameter, slowly slithered beneath the tree.

If it were your first time visiting Blue Poplar Village and you saw such a thick python, you'd definitely be terrified.

However, many of these young men had run a business fishing for peaches, and they knew that this was not a python, but the root of Earth Jade Peach.

This tree root seems to be the peach tree's nose, searching for flavors everywhere.

When passing Li Banfeng, the tree roots did not react at all, House Cultivator was automatically ignored.

When we passed Ma Wu, the tree roots reacted.

It climbed up the branch and came to Ma Wu's side, its fine roots slowly growing on Ma Wu's body.

Ma Wu's face was covered in sweat.

He was very scared. Although he had experience fishing for peaches, experience did not mean that accidents would not happen.

The Earth Jade Peach is a tree with little intelligence, but its combat power is not low. If its roots entangle Ma Wu, a Joy Cultivator who has not yet reached a higher level, he would be nothing more than an appetizer for the peach tree.

After waiting a moment, the roots stopped entangled with Ma Wu and ran towards the pile of stinking fish under the tree.

The peach tree knew there was someone nearby, but that person's allure couldn't compare to that of the rotten fish.

Thick roots plunged into the pile of rotten fish, frantically sucking them up.

From the Thread-Pulling Earring, the peach tree's voice kept calling out, "It smells so good, so fragrant!"

Before long, several more roots took hold of the rotten fish pile, which visibly shrank in size.

Seeing that the time was right, Ma Wu led the group to follow the roots and found the peach tree hidden nearby.

This peach tree is so large that it takes three people to hug it, and a wooden house can easily be built on its huge canopy.

Beneath the tree lies an exposed root system, its dense roots extending beyond the normal range of vision.

This tree has only just arrived in this forest.

Li Banfeng was very curious: how could such a large tree move around in such a lush forest?

Now is not the time to think about these things; everyone's time is of the essence.

Twelve people, each carrying a cloth bag, jumped onto the peach tree as fast as they could while it was eating rotten fish.

Above the tree canopy, beneath the peach leaves, the fist-sized Earth Jade Peach were their target.

The peach tree trembled violently a few times, as if a person had suddenly been infested with fleas, feeling somewhat uncomfortable.

Two young men nearly fell off the tree, but were pulled back up by Li Banfeng and Ma Wu.

When fishing for peaches, the more people the better, not only because it increases the efficiency of picking peaches, but also because they can look out for each other.

You must not fall down, or you'll end up among the roots. A living person will be devoured in the blink of an eye, leaving not even bones behind.

The peach tree quickly calmed down, ignoring the fleas on its body and focusing on eating the rotten fish.

Now is the best time to pick peaches. They need to be quick. How many peaches they can pick before the peach trees eat all the rotten fish depends on their skill.

Li Banfeng was the fastest, not only with quick hands but also with quick feet. Travel Cultivator could move freely among the branches and soon picked two full bags of peaches.

The others were not so quick. They had to be careful when picking each peach, and those who were unsteady on their feet had to rely on the people around them for support and a helping hand.

Each person managed to pick enough to fill a bag, and the peach tree had already consumed more than 70% of the rotten fish.

Ma Wu glanced at the stinky fish and shouted, "Retreat!"

Everyone packed up their bags and quickly left the peach tree.

It will be too late if we don't leave now.

The Earth Jade Peach has a very varied diet. It loves rotten fish, but it doesn't mind eating other things as well.

The group left the woods at a very fast pace. Halfway there, Li Banfeng stood on a treetop and glanced at the location of the peach tree.

The peach tree disappeared, and no one knows how it disappeared, as if it had never been there at all.

Did this peach tree grow through Farming Cultivator, or did it cultivate itself?

This matter is unknown.

After their hunt tonight, they were lucky enough to encounter Earth Jade Peach.

What if we don't meet?

Then this trip will be a waste. The wages for the hired workers still need to be paid, and the rotten fish can barely be kept until tomorrow night. This business deal will be a loss.

The group returned to Blue Poplar Village. On the way, they encountered a breakfast vendor, and Ma Wu bought some fried dough sticks and fried pancakes to share with everyone.

Seeing Ma Wu and the others leave, the breakfast vendor quickly packed up and sent a message to Tang Tianjin, the head steward of the Song family.

Upon receiving the news, Tang Tianjin immediately informed Song Jia Sen, the head of the Song family.

Why do I have to tell the head of the household about something as trivial as buying breakfast?

Breakfast isn't a big deal, the important thing is the peaches.

"Master, the Fifth Young Master of the Ma family has taken his men hunting in Xindi."

In Blue Poplar Village, hunting is one of the most important sources of income for the villagers.

Blue Poplar Village is Song family territory. To go hunting in Xindi, one must inform Song family in advance, and the hunted goods must be sold through Song family.

Ma Wu went hunting without informing the Song family, which was considered an offense to the Song family.

Song Jia Sen took a sip of tea, ate a snack, and asked, "What did he hunt?"

"Earth Jade Peach, we hired ten people and they caught more than a dozen bags of fish."

Song Jia Sen pondered for a moment, then shook his head slightly and said, "Why would he hunt peaches? This is not a business he can do; he won't make any money from it."

The butler said, "Master, we don't care whether he makes money or not, but what he did was against the rules. He went to pick peaches without informing us. He doesn't respect us at all."

Song Jia Sen chuckled and said, "A few days ago, Ma Junyang couldn't pay his rent and was living in a shack. These past few days, he somehow managed to get some money and moved back into the small building."

This rich young master can't handle hardship. He lives in a nice place, but after paying the rent, he'll probably be struggling to make ends meet.

Let him take these peaches. When he comes back to us to sell them, we'll pay him the market price. He'll know he can't make money this way, so he won't do it again.

"Master, the Ma family has many connections in the city. Although Ma Wu has been driven out of his home, his roots haven't been completely severed. What should we do if they don't use us to ship their goods?"

Song Jia Sen picked up his teacup, took another sip, and said calmly, "Then we can't let him get away with it. If he doesn't ask us to ship his goods, he won't be able to take a single peach out of Blue Poplar Village."

Ma Wu led everyone back to their lodgings, and each person carried a bag, which was then weighed one by one.

Ma Wu pays 100 yuan for a pound of peaches. That's the going rate for peaches picked in Blue Poplar Village.

Someone was quick and picked fifty kilograms, earning five thousand yuan.

Someone was slow and picked ten pounds, earning a thousand yuan.

More than a dozen bags of peaches, weighing a total of over 380 jin, were given out for a total of over 30,000 yuan, excluding those from Li Banfeng and Ma Wu.

What are these peaches for?

The flesh of the Earth Jade Peach is used as an auxiliary ingredient in Pill Refining, while the peach pit is a high-quality medicinal material.

How much can these peaches sell for?

According to the price the Song family paid, it was 100 yuan per jin.

This is ridiculous. He bought it for 100 yuan per kilogram and sold it for 100 yuan per kilogram. Ma Wu didn't make any money on this deal.

Not only did they not make any money, they actually lost money.

Buying rotten fish costs money!

In Blue Poplar Village, only the Song family makes money by picking peaches, because they sell their peaches in the city for 500 yuan per kilogram, a fivefold profit.

Can Ma Wu take the peaches out?

Cannot.

The Song family couldn't just stand by and watch Ma Wu carry more than a dozen bags of peaches out of the village; that would cut off the Song family's source of income and embarrass them.

What was Ma Wu after in doing this business deal?

The handsome young man in blue asked, "Bosses, you're not planning to resell the peaches to the Song family, are you? Let me warn you, you won't make any money that way."

Ma Wu laughed and said, "Boss Song is my friend. You guys might not make money from him, but I'm different."

The young man didn't dare ask any more questions, and everyone took the money and left.

Only two people remained in the wooden house: Li Banfeng was fetching water, Ma Wu was soaking peaches.

After soaking for more than an hour, seven or eight hundred worms floated to the surface of the water.

The high sugar content of the Earth Jade Peach makes it very attractive to insects.

Ma Wu picked out more than fifty spotted caterpillars from among the seven or eight hundred insects and handed them over to Li Banfeng.

"This insect is called Tiger Head Louse, Brother Li, please keep it safe."

Li Banfeng collected the caterpillars and went to the market to buy fish.

Ma Wu took the peaches and went to the Song family to ship the goods.

PS: Ban Feng has Hundred Flavors Exquisite skills, and the stinky fish is really deadly.

Lord of Pro has successfully advanced to level 2. Thank you to all the readers for your continued support.