Chapter 12

The dry-pot mixed little fish should taste pretty good. As he thought about it, he planned to make two more nice dishes to go with it.

Before the food was ready, someone knocked on the door.

Qing Mengzhu went to answer it with his spatula in hand. Outside were three students from the agricultural university—the same ones he had met while picking mushrooms. He had later asked them to recommend a testing agency and inquire about chili seeds, and they had become fairly well acquainted by now.

As soon as the students saw Qing Mengzhu, they said, "Brother Mengzhu, we came to ask about your lotus plants-huh, what smells so good?"

Qing Mengzhu said, "I'm cooking. Come on in."

The students said, "Brother Mengzhu, do you eat this early? We were planning to treat you to a meal in town."

It wasn't even eleven yet, so it was indeed early to make lunch. Qing Mengzhu had simply been too curious about what the expensive little fish tasted like, so he had started cooking ahead of time.

Qing Mengzhu said, "I'm eating early today. Wait a moment, my food's about to burn."

Chapter 12

Since the students were already there, Qing Mengzhu made two extra dishes and invited them to eat at his place.

He had asked them for plenty of help before and would probably have to trouble them again. He actually felt a little bad about it.

His three university-student friends were more straightforward than most. Their mouths had started watering as soon as they smelled the food at Qing Mengzhu's house, so when he invited them to stay, they accepted without hesitation.

Jin Chongshan said, "I've been craving it ever since I got here. I was just wondering how to ask for a free meal. Thanks, Brother Mengzhu!"

Niu Jinhao was a little more perceptive. "Brother Mengzhu, why don't we go to the convenience store and get some beer and drinks? We can have some with lunch."

Cen Zhiming, who hadn't said a word until then, nodded repeatedly in agreement.

Seeing them milling around the kitchen, Qing Mengzhu said, "Would cola be okay? There's some in the fridge."

Jin Chongshan and the others rummaged through the fridge and found the cola. After checking the brand, they said happily, "That's more than okay. It's cold, too."

Qing Mengzhu smiled. "Then wash your hands and let's eat."

Qing Mengzhu had returned to the countryside alone to farm, and his home was rather quiet. Because he kept it so tidy, it seemed even quieter.

Now that he finally had visitors, the house had come alive.

Jin Chongshan and the others helped carry out the dishes. Qing Mengzhu had made five in all, taking the young men's appetites into account.

It wasn't a formal meal for guests, and there was no soup, just four meat dishes and one vegetable dish, plus a big pot of rice.

The dishes were arranged neatly on the table. Niu Jinhao couldn't help saying, "This smells amazing. It looks, smells, and tastes great."

Qing Mengzhu smiled. "Let's eat while it's hot."

After serving the rice and sitting down, Qing Mengzhu reached straight for the dry-pot little fish with his chopsticks.

He had pan-fried the little fish before stir-frying them until they were dry, their flesh coming apart in strands. When he took a bite, the savory aroma of the fish mingled with the fresh fragrance of the accompanying vegetables and the spicy aroma of the chilies, bringing out the fish's flavor even more.

The savory, fragrant, spicy little fish seemed to awaken every taste bud, making it impossible to stop eating.

After just one bite, Qing Mengzhu had a pretty good idea why the Interstellar Mall had offered such a high price—they really were extraordinary.

They were so delicious that he somewhat regretted selling all the remaining little fish to the Interstellar Mall.

Even Qing Mengzhu, who had been prepared for it, couldn't stop reaching for more, let alone Jin Chongshan and the other two, who were used to eating in the cafeteria.

The three students wielded their chopsticks faster than the next, yet somehow still managed to maintain a degree of table manners.

Qing Mengzhu had originally planned to ask what they had come for over the meal, but seeing them now, he decided not to say anything.

Everyone quietly concentrated on eating first.

Only after the five dishes and the big pot of rice had been polished off did everyone put down their chopsticks and slowly sip their cola, finally in the mood to talk.

After the meal, Jin Chongshan and the other two hurried to wash the dishes.

Qing Mengzhu didn't stand on ceremony with them. He washed some fruit, set it on the table, and asked, "What did you come to see me about?"

Cen Zhiming cautiously raised a hand. "Brother Mengzhu, it's me. I'm growing lotus too, and recently there have been a lot of bugs on the leaves, mostly tobacco cutworms. I heard you had a lot of tobacco cutworms on your lotus leaves too, so I asked Chongshan and the others to come with me and ask you about it."

Qing Mengzhu nodded. "Haven't you sprayed them?"

Cen Zhiming grimaced. "I did. I switched from lambda-cyhalothrin to tetrachlorantraniliprole and then to emamectin benzoate. They worked reasonably well, but I couldn't kill them all off. I sprayed so much that the lotus leaves started rotting too. I'm afraid I might fail the course this year."

Qing Mengzhu thought for a moment but couldn't figure out the cause, so he asked, "Haven't you asked your teacher?"

Cen Zhiming grimaced. "If I ask, I definitely won't get a high grade in this course. Brother Mengzhu, how did you deal with the bugs on your lotus leaves? I wanted to ask you first, and if that doesn't work, I'll ask our teacher."

Qing Mengzhu said, "I used a virus. Do you know about the tobacco cutworm nucleopolyhedrovirus?"

Cen Zhiming shook his head. "It sounds a little familiar. Let me look it up first."

Beside him, Jin Chongshan promptly pulled out his phone. "Let me see. Is it a virus specifically for tobacco cutworms?"

Qing Mengzhu said, "Yes. It worked pretty well for me."

The lotus leaves at Qing Mengzhu's place were especially attractive to bugs. Whenever one batch died, another would come along.

A certain concentration of the virus remained on his lotus leaves, so each new batch of tobacco cutworms was infected as it arrived. It turned out to be quite effective at killing them.

It also happened to be a specialized virus that didn't infect other organisms, making it relatively safe. He could catch fish and raise ducks without worrying.

After wiping, Cen Zhiming's eyes lit up. "Brother Mengzhu, what brand and formulation did you use?"

Even with the same virus, there were suspension concentrates, water-dispersible granules, and wettable powders. Cen Zhiming simply wanted to follow Qing Mengzhu's example and use the same treatment.

Qing Mengzhu said, "Just an ordinary suspension concentrate. I'll send you the brand."

Cen Zhiming happily accepted. "Thanks, Brother Mengzhu!"

Cen Zhiming and the others had mainly come to ask about the pests on his lotus plants. Now that they had their answer, the three went home happily.

Qing Mengzhu was glad he could help too.

Unexpectedly, two days later, Cen Zhiming contacted Qing Mengzhu again on WeChat, sending a sobbing emoji. [Brother Mengzhu, something seems to have gone wrong here. The lotus plants are in even worse shape after I used the virus.]

Qing Mengzhu thought it couldn't be that bad and replied, [How are they worse?]

Cen Zhiming: [The lotus leaves are rotting pretty badly.]

Cen Zhiming: [Brother Mengzhu, is there anything else I can try?]

Qing Mengzhu thought for a moment. [If you don't mind, send me your location and I'll come take a look.]

Cen Zhiming immediately sent his location, along with an emoji of someone obediently kowtowing. [I'll be in the field all day today. Brother Mengzhu, just let me know when you're coming.]

Qing Mengzhu had watered the chili plants early that morning, inspected the lotus, and fed the ducks. With nothing much to do, he checked the location and decided to ride his electric scooter over.

Tengcheng Agricultural University was in the neighboring county. Its campus was enormous, encompassing part of a mountain range and some townships.

As a result, quite a few villages lay within the university grounds, and it was easy to get there without registering or anything.

After letting Cen Zhiming know, Qing Mengzhu followed the navigation and arrived at the edge of Cen Zhiming's lotus field a little over half an hour later.

Unlike Qing Mengzhu, Cen Zhiming was growing a shallow-water lotus variety. The leaves had grown quite tall, and a few small flower buds had appeared.

But there were quite a few pests and diseases. The lotus leaves were mottled and didn't look very good.

Qing Mengzhu stood in front of the lotus field and fell into thought.

Seeing his expression, Cen Zhiming's heart sank. "Brother Mengzhu, what's wrong?"

Looking at his lotus leaves, Qing Mengzhu said, "Your lotus plants seem to have more than one problem. Look at that leaf—it looks like brown spot disease. And that one might have leaf blight. Also, that little patch of lotus in the middle looks a bit like it has rot disease."

As Cen Zhiming watched Qing Mengzhu point out the problems one by one, his heart went cold.