Chapter 26

Large agricultural companies did have their advantages. Before Qing Mengzhu formally went into farming, he heard Qing Yukai say that they could partner with both supermarkets and community associations here, and assumed making money would be fairly easy. At the very least, he thought he wouldn't have to worry about sales.

Only when he actually started farming did he learn that agriculture depended on the weather, local conditions, and the market. The waters ran deep, and ordinary people who jumped in really did earn little and lose plenty.

Seeing everyone grow dejected, Tan Wenlei said, "No line of work is easy these days. At least we know this one and have more avenues open to us. If we switched industries, we'd be even more lost."

Huang Kebao said, "That's true. Better to stick with what you know than start something new. I can't do anything about selling in volume, so I'm wondering if I can focus on quality instead, and take a different path from those big companies."

Tan Wenlei reassured him, "Your okra is already very high quality. You've made some headway."

Huang Kebao said, "Okra alone isn't enough, though. Speaking of which, Mengzhu, could you sell me some of your tomato seeds? Your tomatoes are much better than the ones on the market."

Qing Mengzhu didn't mind sharing seeds with others. His tomatoes grew well mainly because of the fertilizer, not the variety, for now. "Sure. Come back with me later and pick some out. You can save the seeds yourself."

Qing Changhong hurriedly said, "Can I have some too? I'll buy them from you."

Qing Mengzhu readily agreed. "Sure, come over together later."

Chapter 26

That morning, after Qing Mengzhu finished selling his vegetables and watering them with the pump, he carried a watering can over to check the tomatoes planted in the seedling cups.

The tomato shoots hadn't emerged yet. Qing Mengzhu brushed aside the thin layer of soil with his hand to look at the seeds underneath.

Only after making sure the seeds hadn't gone bad did he cover them with soil again and carefully water the seedling cups with the watering can.

Before the tomato shoots emerged, the soil had to be kept moist every day to prevent a lack of water from affecting their growth.

Summer was too hot, and a single day was enough to dry out the soil, so he had to check on them daily. If the sun was too fierce, he also had to put up a shade canopy.

While Qing Mengzhu was busy with the tomatoes, Tan Wenlei, who had just finished selling his vegetables, squatted on the embankment of Qing Mengzhu's pond, smoking and resting.

Suddenly, Tan Wenlei called out, "Mengzhu, have you picked any of your lotus flowers these past two days?"

Qing Mengzhu said, "No. Why?"

Tan Wenlei said, "I think I can see signs that some of your lotus flowers have been picked. Come take a look?"

Qing Mengzhu put down the watering can and walked over, thoroughly puzzled.

Tan Wenlei pointed out a spot where he suspected a lotus flower had been picked. "Wasn't there a flower there before? Now there's only the flower stalk left."

Qing Mengzhu took a look with his excellent eyesight and, sure enough, saw a bare lotus stalk.

He frowned. "Maybe someone picked one of my flowers on a whim."

Tan Wenlei said, "I don't think it was on a whim. I can see several bare lotus stalks."

Qing Mengzhu said, "Really?"

Tan Wenlei pointed them out one by one. "Over there, there, and there too. Just from what I can see, there are three or four flowers missing. I reckon someone came here specifically to steal them. I was wondering if you'd picked them yourself to sell. Otherwise, why would so many be gone?"

Qing Mengzhu untied the little boat and climbed in, intending to take a look around the pond. "I'm leaving them to grow seed pods. I'm not selling the flowers."

Tan Wenlei said, "That's what I thought. I work nearby every day, and I've never seen you picking lotus flowers."

Qing Mengzhu rowed the boat deep among the lotus leaves. The stalks scraped against his skin, hurting a little.

He looked through the lotuses one by one and, sure enough, saw quite a few stalks that no longer had buds.

Tan Wenlei called from the bank, "About how many flowers were stolen?"

Qing Mengzhu took a deep breath. "I'm not sure yet, but at least thirty were stolen from this pond alone."

Tan Wenlei said, "That many?! Then whoever stole them definitely came prepared."

Qing Mengzhu rowed the boat to the other side of the pond. "I'll go check the other pond. I wonder if any of my ducks were stolen?"

Tan Wenlei hurriedly said, "Then count them quickly. If there's no other way, bring the ducks home and raise them there."

Qing Mengzhu went to the other pond to count the ducks. None had been stolen, but another thirty or forty lotus flowers were missing.

Qing Mengzhu was speechless. "What, would someone really come all the way out to a deep pond just to steal lotus flowers?"

Tan Wenlei said, "Lotus flowers sell for a lot in the city. Last time I saw someone selling them, I asked, and they wanted ten yuan for a single flower. Yours are beautiful, so someone might have had their eye on them for a while."

Qing Mengzhu stared at the lotus flowers in the pond. "I'll think of something."

Qing Mengzhu had previously thought his vegetables would be stolen first. He hadn't expected the lotus flowers to be the first to go instead.

Perhaps vegetables were heavier and harder to sell off once stolen, while lotus flowers were easier to sell.

Many people in the area grew lotuses, and news that Qing Mengzhu's flowers had been stolen soon spread throughout the village.

That afternoon, Qing Changhong, who had come to deliver grain to Qing Mengzhu, specifically asked about it. "Mengzhu, were your lotus flowers stolen?"

Qing Mengzhu opened the backyard's fence gate and asked Qing Changhong to help put one of the bags of grain on a rack in the yard. "Yeah. I don't know which scoundrel did it."

Qing Changhong said, "Did you report it to the police?"

"No," Qing Mengzhu said glumly. "I found out too late. I doubt they'd catch anyone even if I reported it."

At that, Qing Changhong could sympathize. "The roads around here are good. Some thieves used to ride motorcycles over to steal my chickens. They'd grab a chicken, hit the gas, and take off. Even the police couldn't catch them. It was infuriating."

Qing Mengzhu figured that, since Qing Changhong raised chickens, thieves must have paid him plenty of visits. He asked, "What did you do afterward? You don't get many thieves now, do you?"

Qing Changhong said, "I got dogs. I put five big dogs at the chicken farm, and after that the thieves didn't dare come anymore."

At that point, Qing Changhong also suggested, "Why don't you get a few dogs too? Surveillance cameras alone aren't much use; they're for tracking people down afterward. Get a few dogs to watch your vegetable plots and ponds. If a thief comes, let the dogs loose to bite them."

Qing Mengzhu thought it over and decided it made sense. "I'll look for some puppies in a couple of days."

Qing Changhong said regretfully, "Too bad mine are all big males. Otherwise, if they'd had puppies, I could have given you a couple. My dogs are wonderful."

They didn't notice that while they were talking, the red fox and the otter were standing outside the fence, one on each side, stretching their necks to listen.

When Qing Mengzhu headed toward the fields, the two little creatures followed him from a distance.

Qing Mengzhu went to town to look at puppies, but didn't find any suitable ones for the time being.

To stop the thief from continuing to steal lotus flowers, he bought a powerful flashlight and used it to patrol the ponds every night.

Whether it was because the thief saw someone patrolling and became more restrained, Qing Mengzhu didn't know. He patrolled for several nights in a row without seeing anyone come to steal lotuses again.

On the fourth day, Qing Mengzhu finished patrolling the ponds as usual and went back to sleep.

In the middle of the night, he was suddenly jolted awake by a scream: "Aah!"

He opened his eyes, instinctively sensing that the scream had come from a thief—his lotus flowers might have been stolen again.

Qing Mengzhu scrambled up, grabbed his flashlight and a hoe, and rode his electric scooter toward the ponds.

On the way, he saw lights come on in quite a few village homes, and the village dogs began barking. They might have been awakened by the scream.

When Qing Mengzhu reached the ponds, he happened to see someone fleeing on a motorcycle, the beam of its headlight swinging wildly.

"Who goes there? Stop running if you've got the guts!" Qing Mengzhu shone his powerful flashlight in that direction and charged after the rider on his electric scooter. "Catch the thief!!!"

The motorcycle swerved away even more frantically. Qing Mengzhu tried to pursue it, but his electric scooter couldn't keep up, and the motorcycle quickly disappeared from sight.

Qing Mengzhu turned around and rode toward the pond.

As soon as he reached it, he saw that the lotus leaves and flowers near the embankment were in a mess. Folded leaves and broken stalks were clearly visible, though he couldn't really tell how many flowers had been stolen.

He shone his powerful flashlight over them, intending to inspect the damage. Then, in its beam, he saw two furry animals, their coats bleached white by the light.