My Own Farmland (Bonus Chapter for Alliance Leader Boundless Mountain Dormitory's Fifth Brother)

Li Wei had long since chosen the location for clearing farmland. It was right beside their original shack camp, a hundred paces from the creek and thirty paces from the newly built house. The ground lay slightly higher than the creek and was relatively flat overall, which would make irrigation and harvesting easier in the future.

Of course, Li Wei did not immediately act like he was clearing farmland. Instead, following Penny's suggestion, he dug a half-meter-deep pit every three paces.

He did not actually dig them half a meter deep. He first removed the turf from the surface, pretending to accidentally widen each pit a little, then a little more.

Once he had dug ten pits across and ten pits lengthwise, then connected them all, the outline of a field roughly thirty meters on each side emerged.

Next, Li Wei could push toward the center in one go, and a field of around one and a half mu would take shape.

Naturally, things did not go that quickly. In fact, before noon, Phila noticed something was off. She walked over and watched Li Wei sweat profusely as he turned over the earth and dug soil. Her expression grew solemn and thoughtful. Then, without saying anything, she went back to cook her Barley Porridge.

When Penny returned for lunch, it was obvious that she had gone straight into a rage. Her furious gaze seemed ready to tear Li Wei apart.

But in the end, she restrained herself and asked in a calm tone.

"George, didn't we agree to build the wall first?"

"That was what I thought too. But while digging the pits this morning, I felt that I could clear out a field along the way and use it to plant wheat. It's summer now. The sooner we plant it, the better the harvest will be in autumn. What do you think, Mother?"

Li Wei asked with an innocent look on his face.

Phila remained expressionless. Penny looked back at her, murder in her eyes, and Phila immediately spoke up with a deeply affectionate smile.

"That makes sense. Farming brings much steadier and greater returns than hunting. George, my good baby, you've really grown up."

But almost at the same moment, Li Wei received a trade notification.

[Apprentice Chef*** wishes to sell you three kilograms of wheat as seeds. You need to pay 20 Experience Points.]

Although he did not know whether the price was fair, Li Wei agreed without hesitation. He paid all nineteen of his current Logging Experience and one point of Gathering Experience to complete the trade.

Once the farmland had been cleared, he could retrieve the wheat from the Ox Cart.

Penny said nothing more. Under this plot, if she voiced opposition, she would be breaking the rules. Li Wei's decision to develop a farming plot was reasonable and logical, just as her decision to develop the house-building plot had been.

The matter appeared calm on the surface, but Li Wei guessed that Penny might use a Plot Kill on him at any moment, assuming Phila also wanted to eliminate him.

After lunch and a short rest, Li Wei stopped hiding what he was doing. He dug up turf, turned over soil, and cleared the farmland with broad, powerful movements.

The work was no easier than chopping trees. It would take Li Wei some time to clear all of it.

The good news was that as the area he turned over increased, Farming Experience began to come in. He received roughly one point of Farming Experience for every five square meters of soil he turned.

The bad news was that there were too many weeds, their roots spread everywhere, and his tools were unsuitable. At most, he could turn over a little more than a hundred square meters in a day, which barely earned him around twenty Farming Experience daily.

Well, it was still more worthwhile than logging.

By evening, Li Wei sat dejectedly in the dirt. Before him lay the completely ruined shovel, split down the middle into two pieces of iron.

He had used too much force. This shovel's durability was clearly nowhere near that of the axe.

And because the shovel had broken, he lost another point of Family Contribution Points, leaving him with only six.

The reason given was that he had damaged a tool.

"Sure enough, imagination is wonderful, but reality is cruel. Nothing is ever that simple."

He had desperately turned over soil all day, yet by now he had only cleared around a hundred and fifty square meters, nowhere close to what he had imagined.

His current resources were even worse: six Family Contribution Points, thirty Farming Experience, and two Construction Experience. If he could not keep earning Experience, he would not even be able to afford food expenses.

"Oh, my dear little brother, it's only a tool. Don't be too upset. In fact, I'm not doing much better than you. The axe Father left us also had its wooden handle accidentally damaged by me. It wobbles like a little duck now."

Penny walked over, sat beside Li Wei, and wrapped an arm around his shoulder as she comforted him with apparent sincerity. Who knew whether she was doing it on purpose or on purpose.

Li Wei turned to look at her. He could clearly see her brows wriggling like two caterpillars. She looked like some great Storm Queen; even an idiot could tell she was gloating.

A nameless fury surged up within him. Li Wei wanted to slap this bitch to death, but he ultimately endured it. He even put on a grief-stricken expression. He could not let himself be provoked, nor could he say anything unrelated to what was currently happening. The words "bear the consequences yourself" were deadly.

If he truly lost his temper, he would be taking the bait.

After dinner, having paid two Construction Experience for food expenses, Li Wei made a decision. He spoke sincerely to Phila.

"Mother, I want to plant wheat in the farmland."

"Oh, is my little George ready to become a farmer? That's wonderful."

In the firelight, Phila's smile was kindly. Then she rose, carefully lifted the tarpaulin on the Ox Cart, and took a small sack from a wooden box. Using a square wooden scoop, she ladled wheat from a bag three times, giving it a vigorous shake each time. Forget heaping it full—the contents were even sunken in.

She could skim off even this much?

Were you a landlord's wife in your previous life?

Li Wei watched speechlessly, but there was nothing he could do.

Then he carried the small sack, which held at most five jin, to his simple field. Under the starlight, he first used a hoe to pull out furrows around five centimeters deep, then planted the wheat and finally covered it by hand with a layer of loose soil around three centimeters thick.

He had never farmed back on Earth, but he still understood the basic logic.

Especially since the soil in this plot was very moist, and his Farmer Card came with Professional Talent, it should be fine.

In any case, he was truly gambling this time.

He had no choice. This task looked simple and easy, but it was far too difficult.

He worked until midnight before planting all the wheat. Yet he did not dare go to sleep. Ignoring the mosquitoes biting him, he stood guard beside the Wheat Field with a stick. It was not that he feared Penny would sabotage it; the plot logic would not allow that.

He was merely worried that rats, Wild Boar, or something similar might come and steal the seeds he had earned through blood and sweat.

He held on until the sky was fully bright. Just when he felt utterly drained, several lines of information silently floated past.

[You have successfully cleared a small farmland plot and successfully sown it. Due to your Professional Talent, this Wheat Field's fertility has increased by an additional 30%. Due to suitable temperatures, suitable humidity, and well-preserved seeds, your Wheat Field has a foreseeable germination rate of 98%. You have received the first-stage reward. Reward settlement in progress...]

[You have obtained 15 Farming Experience.]

[Friendly reminder: You may contribute this Wheat Field to the family. You will receive five Family Contribution Points.]

[Friendly reminder: This Wheat Field requires continuous investment. You will only gain a harvest after passing through the four stages of germination, growth, heading, and harvesting. The entire process is expected to take three months. During this time, any external factor may lead to reduced yields or total crop failure!]