I Can Add Passives to Plants

Lin Yue raised his eyes and swept his gaze across every face before him, his eyes passing over them evenly like a cold ruler measuring their faces. Those he looked at unconsciously averted their eyes.

"Let me make this clear today..."

Lin Yue raised the iron shovel in his hand high, its blade facing the crowd. The movement was crisp and decisive, without a trace of unnecessary flourish.

It hung heavily in midair like a silent period.

"These two plants are personal property I dug out of the dirt myself. I won't sell a single one, and I won't yield an inch. If anyone takes another step forward... when this shovel comes down, I won't give you advance notice."

His voice was not loud, yet every word was like a chisel carving stone, driving itself into the ears of everyone present.

"I, Lin Yue, have always conducted myself openly and honestly. I don't cause trouble, but I've never been afraid of it either."

He took a step forward.

He did not exert any force or stomp his foot. He merely stepped forward evenly, the sound of his sole landing on the stone pavement light and steady.

Yet the three people who had been advancing all retreated in unison.

I don't even know why I backed up?

The other guy just seems kind of fierce. It's three against one in my favor, but I just feel like I can't beat him.

Zhao Lei clutched his head and stayed where he was. The arrogance had vanished from his face, leaving only shock and the resentment of having to swallow broken teeth.

He opened his mouth as if to say something, but when he met Lin Yue's calm eyes, he swallowed the words again.

Lin Yue lowered the shovel and hooked it over the cart handle, then turned his head to glance at Bai Qingfeng behind him.

Bai Qingfeng was clutching the hem of his shirt behind his back, hiding tightly behind him. She tilted her head up to look at him, her almond-shaped eyes sparkling. The speck of mud still rested on the tip of her nose, and her lips were slightly parted, as if she were praising herself.

Actually... mm! This guy is really good at putting on an act!

"Let's go."

Lin Yue pushed the cart through the middle of the crowd. This time, at least no one stood in his way.

"Creak, creak~"

As the wooden wheels creaked across the ground, the crowd and Zhao Lei, who was sprawled on the ground, could only watch them go.

Bai Qingfeng hurried along beside him. A corner of her school uniform skirt fluttered up in the breeze, revealing her soft pink knees underneath.

She walked with her head lowered for several steps before mumbling softly. Her voice was barely louder than a mosquito's buzz, yet it drifted clearly into Lin Yue's ears on the quiet street.

"Just... now... you were pretty cool."

Lin Yue did not turn around. But the corner of his mouth genuinely curled upward.

Bai Qingfeng's Courtyard

"We're here~"

Bai Qingfeng suddenly stopped, her short little legs making a soft series of taps against the stone path.

She turned around and nodded her chin toward a courtyard by the roadside.

Lin Yue followed her gaze and looked up.

Dusk had already descended, bathing the entire street in a faint red glow. Every household's courtyard was shrouded in that distinctive mist, as though covered by frosted glass. Only the outlines of fences and wooden houses could be vaguely seen.

Bai Qingfeng's courtyard was no exception.

The arrangement inside could not be seen clearly. He could only vaguely make out the shape of the fence and the crooked eaves of the wooden house.

Yet the words on the crooked wooden sign at the entrance were perfectly clear—"Breeze-Kissed Home." The four characters were written in round, plump strokes, with a tiny tilde at the end, just like Bai Qingfeng herself: soft and squishy, yet putting on a fierce front.

That name really did suit her.

Lin Yue looked at the wooden sign, then at the familiar little courtyard across the street from this one...

The words "Jiahao's Home" faced this way, the two courtyards gazing at each other from opposite sides of the street.

"Hehehe..."

He could not help but laugh.

This little girl's courtyard was right across from his.

Only a street separated them. All he had to do was poke his head out from his own front door, and he could see her courtyard wall.

"What are you looking at?"

Bai Qingfeng noticed that he was looking in the wrong direction and turned back to glare at Lin Yue. The fierce, claw-baring look from earlier was gone, replaced by the everyday disdain of, Why are you always staring at weird things? "Are you looking at my house, or something else?"

"The scenery." Lin Yue kept a straight face.

"Pah."

[Breeze-Kissed Home. Entry permitted only with the owner's authorization.]

The system prompt appeared before them. Entry was granted almost instantly, as if Little Bai had nodded in agreement with her mind.

The gray mist surrounding the courtyard did not seem quite as dense in Lin Yue's eyes. It was as though someone had torn open a gap from within, exposing the entire courtyard. In the end, the mist faded like a pale veil, revealing everything inside.

Lin Yue pushed the cart into the small yard and swept his gaze around.

The layout was similar to his own... a crooked little wooden house, a neat lawn in front, and no particularly distinctive structures.

But Bai Qingfeng was clearly better at tidying up than he was. Her yard was spotless, unlike his, which he had not cleaned at all before going out to search for plants. The moss on the fence had been cleared away, exposing rows of pale wooden slats.

A ring of neat pebbles had also been laid along the edge of the lawn, as though they had been placed one by one. The border was so straight it could have been measured with a ruler.

"Pretty clean," Lin Yue casually praised.

"Of course." Bai Qingfeng walked past him, the tip of her nose lifting slightly. Like a kitten being scratched in just the right spot, she wanted to act reserved but could not suppress her pride.

"This is a model courtyard. Unlike yours, which is overgrown with weeds..."

"My place is clean too."

Bai Qingfeng turned and gave Lin Yue a look that said, Don't you know better than that?

Heh. A mere visitor login thinks it can compare to my ID verification.

The two passed through the wooden house and entered the backyard, whose layout made Lin Yue pause slightly.

Bai Qingfeng's backyard felt rather strange instead. It had six rows and nine columns, perfectly square, but the pool was in a different position.

The two rows of pools in her yard were placed at the bottom of the backyard—the fifth and sixth rows—right against the courtyard wall. The darkening sky reflected on the rippling water like two long, narrow mirrors.

"Your pool... is in a pretty unusual spot." Lin Yue crouched by the edge and examined it. Still, this arrangement resembled a heavily modified version of a game he had played in his previous life.

Bai Qingfeng walked over, planted her hands on her hips, and glanced toward the pool. She raised her chin as if it were only natural. "What's wrong with it? This pool is great!"

She crouched down and brushed aside the floating leaves with one hand, her round face wearing an expression that said, You don't understand anything. "Didn't they teach you this at school? Four rows of lawn and two rows of pool are the best combination."

"Some people even have gravestones and huge pits in their yards. A courtyard like mine is already considered extremely lucky."

"I can even plant special aquatic plants. Other people might want them and still not have them."

After saying that, she stood there with her hands on her hips, chest puffed out slightly, wearing a smug expression that clearly said, Hurry up and praise me. Her two braids swayed back and forth with her movements.

Lin Yue looked at her and could not help clicking his tongue.

"Tsk."

"What do you mean, 'tsk'?" Bai Qingfeng immediately bristled.

"Nothing. I just... tsked... a little." Lin Yue bent down and lifted the Garlic from the cart, changing the subject. "All right, all right. Where should I put this Garlic? I'll plant it for you, then I'm leaving."

Bai Qingfeng puffed out her cheeks and pointed to a marked spot. "First row, eighth column. I've already turned the soil. Just dig a hole."

Lin Yue picked up the shovel and walked over.

The soil was loose and soft, and the turned earth carried the dampness of deep brown dirt. Digging three or four inches down was enough.

He cradled the Garlic's flowerpot in his palm, lifted out the entire plant with its roots and soil intact, and carefully placed it into the hole. He adjusted the direction of the cloves, then refilled the soil handful by handful, pressing it down firmly.

The Garlic's purple cloves nestled in the brown earth, its tender green shoot standing upright. When the evening breeze blew, it swayed gently, as though formally greeting its new home.

At the same time, the Sunflower, Threepeater, and Peashooter in the yard also expressed their friendliness toward the Garlic.

Once he finished planting it, Lin Yue straightened up and brushed the soil from his hands, turning to get the cart. But just as he slid the shovel back into the strap behind him, Bai Qingfeng suddenly spoke.

"Oh, right."

Lin Yue turned around.

"That 'special effect' I mentioned in my intelligence..." Bai Qingfeng crouched beside the Garlic and poked the top of the freshly planted clove with a finger. Her tone held the faint surprise of someone who had just discovered something. "I can see the status panel now. My Garlic... has doubled health."

"It can even release irritating gas when Zombies bite it, dealing poison gas damage to Zombies."

Lin Yue's fingers froze.

"It's only Tier One and hasn't even matured yet, but the panel says it already has a full one thousand health."

Bai Qingfeng lifted her head to look at him, her almond eyes round. Clearly, she had been startled by the number as well. "I remember a normal Tier One Garlic only has around six hundred health at maturity. Mine... once it grows up, it'll probably have at least twelve hundred."

"Not to mention it has gained some offensive capabilities. It looks like Dave really did experiment on these two plants."

Lin Yue lowered his head and looked at his cart.

The round, chubby Wall-nut sapling sat quietly in the Lawn Mower, its thick leaves making it look simple and silly as it gazed at him.

A Promising Future... Wall-nut

Lin Yue silently and slowly, without showing a hint of emotion, placed a hand on the Wall-nut and hid the Lawn Mower slightly farther behind himself.

"What does that look in your eyes mean?" Bai Qingfeng stood up, narrowing her eyes as she stared at him.

"Nothing." Lin Yue hid the Wall-nut farther behind his back, tucking in his chin slightly. His entire posture became that of someone protectively guarding food. "I just think... since your talent is intelligence, there are probably some things you haven't told me yet?"

"But I'm magnanimous enough to forgive you. Now I'm going home happily with my little Wall-nut."

Seeing Lin Yue like this, Bai Qingfeng made a guess.

"A normal Wall-nut has four thousand health at Tier One when mature. Once yours matures... it'll probably have eight thousand health, comparable to a Tall-nut."

"Shh!" Lin Yue raised a hand in a silencing gesture. "Don't say it out loud. Hearing you say it makes me nervous."

"You... I think I get it now..." Bai Qingfeng suddenly burst out laughing. Her sharp little canine showed for an instant, then she immediately held herself back and waved at him with feigned disdain.

"All right, all right. Keep your precious Wall-nut and plant it yourself. Go on, get going. It's getting dark, and I need to clean up the yard."

Though she spoke as if she were chasing him away, she did not move. She simply stood there and watched Lin Yue.

Just watched him...

Her almond eyes followed the movements of his hands in silence for a second or two. Then she turned away and deliberately looked toward the Sunflower in the corner, which was swaying its head at her.

When Lin Yue pushed the cart to the entrance, a soft voice, nearly scattered by the wind, came from behind him.

"See you next time."

Lin Yue did not turn back and simply left.

"Yeah. Bye-bye."

After taking two steps, Lin Yue added, "If Zombies come in the middle of the night and you can't handle them, shout as loud as you can. I'll climb over the wall with my shovel and help you."

"Who needs you to come?"

Bai Qingfeng's voice chased after him from the yard, carrying laughter and the stubbornness of someone who clearly wanted to say thank you but refused to.

But that soft, sweet voice did not match her tough words in the slightest.

Lin Yue did not reply. He pushed the cart across the street and entered his own Plant Garden.

The last streak of orange-red on the horizon was still sinking below the edge of the world. Chomper spotted him returning from afar, and its leaves trembled slightly, as though saying it had missed him.

He parked the cart by the wall, crouched down, and lifted out the Wall-nut. Then he looked around at the layout of his backyard.

Six rows and nine columns. At the moment, only Chomper was planted in the bottommost square of the sixth row. Everywhere else was an empty plot of turned soil, like a chessboard that had yet to be filled.

After thinking it over, he decided to plant the Wall-nut directly in front of Chomper.

No matter how big or fierce Chomper's mouth was, it could not fend off other attacks while swallowing a Zombie.

As long as it could keep living, his Chomper would surely become the pride of the Chomper family in the future.

If the Wall-nut could hold the front and withstand the first wave of impact, Chomper could calmly swallow the enemies one bite at a time.