Planting Crops

[An extra chapter for Alliance Leader Snoopy]

"Roar, roar, roar..."

When Xiao Hei saw outsiders arriving, he immediately became cocky.

Ever since his body had grown larger, he hadn't gone out to show off. Now that outsiders had arrived, of course he had to flash his fangs first!

When the pockmarked man and several of his subordinates saw the sharp fangs in Xiao Hei's mouth, their faces went pale with fright, and their feet instinctively backed away.

Xiao Hei, meanwhile, slowly advanced one step at a time. His gaze was fiercer than a wild wolf's, and he looked as if he intended to eat them.

This made their hearts rise straight into their throats.

"Boss, boss..." The pockmarked man stared fearfully at Xiao Hei and called softly to Zhang Han.

"X-Xiao Hei..."

Just then, a childish voice rang out. It came from Little Princess, who had just finished drinking her Nutritional Express in Zhang Han's arms.

Mengmeng stretched out her little hand toward Xiao Hei.

Xiao Hei's expression changed in an instant. He put on a kind and amiable look, his big tail immediately wagging from side to side. He stuck out his tongue, panting heavily, and slowly lowered his head to Mengmeng's palm.

That vivid expression looked just like the internet meme of the "Chief of the Nine Gates" smoking.

"Phew..."

The pockmarked man and his subordinates let out a deep, lingering breath.

"B-Boss, what kind of dog is this?" the pockmarked man asked carefully. "Does it bite people?"

"Just an ordinary dog. It doesn't bite," Zhang Han said with a slight shake of his head.

"Then I'm relieved. By the way, Boss, did you plant all of this?" The pockmarked man moved farther away from Xiao Hei and came to Zhang Han's other side, admiring the surroundings.

"Mm." Zhang Han nodded.

"What kind of grass is this? You can't even see the soil," the pockmarked man asked curiously.

"Ordinary grass."

"Then did you cultivate those flowers? Why do they feel different from the ones outside?"

"There's nothing different about them. They're ordinary flowers too."

"What kind of tree is this? It's really beautiful. I'd like to plant one like it myself."

"A normal tree."

The corner of the pockmarked man's mouth twitched slightly. He felt that Zhang Han's answers were far too simple.

Leaving everything else aside, if this grass were put up for sale, every landscaping venue would probably fight over it. Anyone who saw those flowers would likely love them, and that awe-inspiring tree was so intimidating that people couldn't help feeling awed at the sight of it.

He had never imagined that a thing like this truly existed in the world, like the World Tree from a game.

"This is simply too magnificent!"

After walking beneath the tree, the pockmarked man looked up at the Thunder Sun Tree and praised it sincerely.

The view from here was even more breathtaking.

Mengmeng and Xiao Hei were playing, Zhang Han watched Little Princess with a gentle gaze, and the other men set down the seeds, seedlings, and various farming tools before looking around a few times.

"This place is far too beautiful. It's like a world from mythology!" one middle-aged man said, shaking his head repeatedly.

"Yeah, I've never seen such a beautiful place either."

"Could I have come to some paradise secluded from the world?"

"Yeah, yeah!" Mengmeng happily raised her little arm and said proudly, "This is a paradise! Daddy built this paradise for Mengmeng!"

"Built a paradise..." The pockmarked man sighed softly. Looking at Mengmeng enviously, he said, "Little girl, I'm really envious that you have such an amazing father. To build a place like this is truly incredible."

"Heeheehee... My daddy is the best! Heeheehee..." Mengmeng was overjoyed to hear someone praise her father. She waved her little arms and bounced around.

Seeing how happy she was, Xiao Hei bounced a few times as well, wearing an expression that seemed to say, "I'm a professional playmate."

"I don't even want to leave this place." The pockmarked man shook his head bitterly and looked at Zhang Han. "Boss, could I take a few pictures here? This place is so beautiful. If I don't take a picture, I'll truly regret it for the rest of my life."

"Is it really that serious?"

Zhang Han couldn't help laughing. This guy had even dragged out "regret it for the rest of my life." He then waved his hand and said, "Go ahead, but don't tell anyone where this place is. Without me leading them, anyone else who comes up will get bitten."

As Zhang Han spoke, Xiao Hei turned his head toward the pockmarked man. His gaze became fierce once again, and he bared his sharp fangs.

It was as if he were saying: These fine teeth of mine aren't for biting people. They're for... eating people!

"Hiss..."

The pockmarked man's body trembled, and he nodded repeatedly. "All right, all right. I definitely won't tell anyone."

"Mm, go ahead," Zhang Han said with a nod.

"Thank you, Boss." The pockmarked man's face lit up with delight. He took out his phone, stood beneath the Thunder Sun Tree, and had his men take pictures from every angle.

He took pictures among the grass and in front of the flower beds. He even wanted to take a picture with adorable Mengmeng, but he was too embarrassed to say so.

It wasn't only the pockmarked man. His subordinates also took quite a few pictures there. In the end, they warmly bade farewell to Zhang Han and Mengmeng before walking down the mountain, looking back every few steps.

"This place... really is a paradise! This boss is truly a divine man. Under normal circumstances, I never would have imagined that anyone could create such a wonderful place."

The pockmarked man stood at the edge of the woods and took one last look at the beautiful scenery before leaving reluctantly.

On New Moon Mountain, beneath the Thunder Sun Tree.

After playing with Mengmeng for a while, Zhang Han stood up and said:

"Mengmeng, Daddy's going to work. You can play here with Xiao Hei!"

"Hmm?" Mengmeng froze and asked in her childish voice, "Daddy, where are you going to work?"

"Over there." Zhang Han pointed to the paddy field behind the mountain and said, "It's almost noon, and the sunlight is getting hot. You can play beneath the shade of this tree."

"Mhm, no! I want to play beside Daddy. Hmm... Mengmeng doesn't feel hot." Mengmeng pouted.

"All right, then."

Zhang Han smiled and shook his head. It was almost noon, and the temperature in Hong Kong was extremely high. After walking outside for a while, one would be drenched in sweat.

However, on New Moon Mountain, the temperature stayed around twenty-three degrees Celsius, while the relative humidity remained around fifty-five percent. It was the most comfortable temperature and climate for the human body.

Combined with the fresh air and beautiful surroundings, this place could already be considered an ordinary person's vacation paradise.

And naturally, all of this was thanks to the Thunder Sun Tree.

Zhang Han knew that the temperature was pleasant, but the sunlight was still intense. Staying beneath it for too long would still turn one's skin bronze, so he had instinctively wanted Mengmeng to play beneath the shade.

However, since Mengmeng was so attached to him and wanted to follow, Zhang Han nodded in agreement. It was past eleven now. Planting seedlings in this two-hundred-square-meter paddy field would take Zhang Han about two hours at his current speed.

An ordinary person would generally need three hours to plant two hundred square meters of rice seedlings. Of course, with Zhang Han's current physique, he could finish even faster and reduce the time to less than an hour. But he didn't want to do that. For one thing, he wanted to work seriously; for another, he wanted to enjoy the rural life.

"Ah."

When he reached the front of the paddy field, Zhang Han slapped his forehead and muttered, "I forgot to buy boots!"

Even the most thorough preparations could have an oversight. Despite Zhang Han's complete preparations, he still discovered that he had overlooked something when it was time to work.

"Forget it. I'll just go barefoot." Zhang Han took off his shoes and socks, rolled up his trouser legs, picked up the rice seedlings, and walked into the rice paddy.

"Daddy, Daddy, do you need Mengmeng to help?" Mengmeng called in her childish voice from the grass beside him.

"Hahahaha..." Seeing Mengmeng volunteer so eagerly, Zhang Han laughed several times before answering, "No need. Just play with Xiao Hei. Once Daddy finishes planting the seedlings, we'll go out and eat!"

"Oh."

Mengmeng obediently nodded, then turned and pounced on Xiao Hei, who was lying on the ground.

Mengmeng's little hands kept grabbing at Xiao Hei's head and body. Xiao Hei twisted around, and sometimes, when her grasp hurt, he didn't dare move either, afraid that using too much force would pull Little Princess down.

He could only endure the occasional pain and play with Mengmeng, who was becoming a little devil in his eyes. Every so often, he glanced at her, wondering when those torturous little hands would finally stop.

"Don't move. Xiao Hei, don't move," Mengmeng ordered.

Xiao Hei lay down flat and didn't move at all.

"Xiao Hei is so obedient." Mengmeng praised him in a very proper manner, then took a few short steps and plopped herself onto Xiao Hei's back.

"D-Departure..." Mengmeng raised her little arm and pointed ahead in her childish voice.

"Mm... mm-mm..." Xiao Hei imitated Mengmeng's tone and made a couple of sounds before standing up and walking forward.

However, Xiao Hei's fur was exceptionally smooth. The moment he moved, Mengmeng slipped sideways with a swish, and she was about to fall to the ground.

"Awooo..."

Xiao Hei was scared half to death. His eyes widened, and he hurriedly flipped his body three hundred and sixty degrees.

"Thump!"

A muffled sound rang out as Xiao Hei landed on the ground. His belly was facing upward, ready to catch Mengmeng, who had nearly fallen.

Fortunately, Xiao Hei was fast enough. Mengmeng landed on his soft belly and didn't fall.

A moment earlier, Xiao Hei's nerves had been taut, and he had even stopped breathing.

Only after seeing Mengmeng land safely on his belly did Xiao Hei relax.

"Phew... awooo... awooo..."

Xiao Hei exhaled several breaths in relief and stuck out his large tongue, his face full of helplessness.

With such a humanlike expression and his body doubled in size, Xiao Hei could truly be called an Iron-clad Golden Emperor Dog at this moment.

"You, you're so silly, Xiao Hei." Mengmeng gave a soft snort and patted Xiao Hei's belly with her little hand.

"Mm-mm..."

Xiao Hei let out two aggrieved whines.

At that moment, Zhang Han, who was planting rice seedlings in the paddy field, shook his head with a smile and said, "Mengmeng, Xiao Hei is your friend. You can't bully your friends."

"Ah, I know! I wasn't bullying Xiao Hei." Mengmeng rubbed the spot she had just patted and said in her childish voice, "We're good friends, right, Xiao Hei? Tell him. Tell him, isn't that right?"

"Awooo, awooo..." Xiao Hei nodded in an exaggeratedly serious manner.

"Xiao Hei, get, get up quickly. Let's try it again." Mengmeng climbed down from Xiao Hei's belly, stood in the grass, and began giving him orders.