Chapter 44

After hesitating for a while, Zhao Hexi said, "Next time you make me wear rain boots to the fields, I definitely won't slack off."

Qing Mengzhu laughed from the side.

Zhao Hexi turned to Ming Chunxi: "Academic genius, aren't you afraid?"

Ming Chunxi: "I spent some time in Country N before. Besides giant snakes, they also have giant spiders, giant lizards, and giant kangaroos. I'm used to it."

Zhao Hexi rubbed his arms violently. "I can't take it anymore, I guess I'm just meant to stay quietly in the city."

While they were chatting, the otter and the red fox had almost finished eating the snake.

The otters returned to the water, while the red foxes burrowed back into the grass to wait—they seemed poised to hunt their next prey.

Zhao Hexi, who had previously expressed fear, couldn't help but take another look. "Aren't they full yet?"

Qing Mengzhu: "I doubt it. It's still early, they might want to hunt some more prey. Of course, they could also be clearing out their territory."

Otters and red foxes are the kind of animals that can't tolerate other animals running wild in their territory. Qing Mengzhu fed them dried meat every day and guided them to the pond to hunt, precisely because she liked this kind of personality.

With them around, water snakes, water birds, water rats, and the like won't survive, and the safety of the shrimp in the pond can be guaranteed to the greatest extent.

In a sense, they are the shrimp's bodyguards.

Chapter 44

Zhao Hexi had to go to work, so she left after the weekend.

Qing Mengzhu and Ming Chunxi remained at home.

They used to live in the same room when they were stepbrothers, so they don't feel awkward spending long periods of time alone together now.

In fact, Qing Mengzhu was quite happy that Ming Chunxi could stay at her home, and she even had more energy to do farm work.

The two of them picked and sold vegetables, managed the fields, and in their spare time went up the mountain to pick mushrooms and dig wild bamboo shoots. During their rest time, they would also do their own work at the dinner table.

Even though it was already the hottest and most humid day of summer, which could make people irritable, Qing Mengzhu always felt peaceful and serene whenever she saw Ming Chunxi.

He hoped that Ming Chunxi could stay here for a longer period of time, but unfortunately Ming Chunxi could only work from home this week, and had to go back to work next week.

In the morning, after selling their vegetables Qing Mengzhu went to inspect the pond.

There were thunderstorms today. The sun was shining brightly this morning, but it was muggy and hot, and there wasn't a breath of wind.

Qing Mengzhu, wearing a straw hat, parted the lotus leaves to examine the shrimp underneath.

I don't know if it's because the otters and red foxes protect the shrimp so well, but every time they come to the pond, they can see the shrimp swimming around underneath just by slightly parting the lotus leaves.

These prawns, gathered in small groups, looked plump and delicious, even though they were still quite small.

The translucent body looked especially tempting. Qing Mengzhu stared at the shrimp through the water, and even had the urge to scoop it up and taste it.

Ming Chunxi was also watching the shrimp. "They don't seem to be eating the lotus leaves much."

Qing Mengzhu: "Yes, you see, the gap in that lotus leaf was made by shrimp. But there are too many lotus leaves, and there's also black algae underneath, so they can't eat them all."

As a plant, the lotus has extremely vigorous vitality and grows very quickly. Now both ponds are covered with flowers and leaves, and the shrimp can do nothing to them.

Looking at the pond full of lotus leaves, lotus pods, and a few lotus flowers that hadn't yet withered, Qing Mengzhu, "Anyway, we don't need to worry about the shrimp this year. We'll deal with it next year when there are more shrimp."

As she spoke, Qing Mengzhu reached out and picked a large lotus seedpod.

After the lotus flowers wither, the lotus pods gradually swell, and the lotus pods of all sizes sway in the pond, each one different in shades of dark green, light green, and tender green, making for a delightful sight.

When Qing Mengzhu comes to the pond, she likes to pick lotus pods to eat. She picks one and shares it with Ming Chunxi. They enjoy it very much, but they don't get tired of it.

As the seasons change, the flavor compounds in the lotus seeds settle, making their lotus seeds even more fragrant and sweet, and extremely refreshing to eat.

Qing Mengzhu said to Ming Chunxi, "Luckily you reminded me to install surveillance cameras before, otherwise I would have been heartbroken if these lotus pods had been picked."

Having lived in the village for a while, Ming Chunxi was quite familiar with the situation. "Is installing surveillance cameras even useful? I've seen people casually pick lotus pods from the pond by the roadside, and nobody seems to say anything."

Qing Mengzhu pointed to the pond dam. "Our pond is different. This dam is higher and wider. If anyone wants to pick lotus pods, they have to go down into the pond. That's not just picking, it's outright stealing."

Ming Chunxi glanced at it and nodded.

After Qing Mengzhu finished speaking, she muttered, "But it's better to guard against honest people than scoundrels. Some people are just shameless enough to come down and steal, and there's not much you can do about it."

If someone in the village picks one or two, it's not worthwhile to check the surveillance footage, and reporting it to the police would be a waste of time and energy.

Qing Mengzhu occasionally saw his lotus pods being picked, but unless several were picked at once, he usually didn't bother with it.

While Qing Mengzhu was chatting, Tan Wenlei, who had come over to chat after getting tired from work, overheard the second half of their sentence and said, "If you're worried about being robbed, why don't you raise a few more 'white dogs'?"

Qing Mengzhu looked up. "I already have a wolfhound; I can't manage another one."

Hearing this, Tan Wenlei was both amused and exasperated. "Who told you to keep a dog? I meant a goose. In the village, geese are called 'white dogs,' don't you remember?"

Qing Mengzhu then realized, "A goose?"

Tan Wenlei: "Yeah! It's a goose. Those things live in the water and are very protective of their territory. They're also fierce. If anyone comes down to pick lotus pods, they're guaranteed to get their butt pecked and bruised."

Qing Mengzhu: "Don't geese eat shrimp?"

Tan Wenlei: "No, that thing eats aquatic plants; it's a herbivore."

Ming Chunxi: "Isn't it said that all living things will choose to eat meat when given the opportunity?"

Ming Chunxi wasn't very talkative, so Tan Wenlei rarely chatted with him. When he did talk to him, he was much more patient. "No, geese are too big and clumsy to catch fish and shrimp. Over time, they'll stop liking to eat fish and shrimp."

As he spoke, Tan Wenlei chuckled twice, "If the geese catch up with and eat them, the fish and shrimp will be half-dead and probably eliminated."

Qing Mengzhu: "That makes sense."

After checking the information, Qing Mengzhu decided to raise a few more geese.

Ducks eat everything, so we definitely can't keep them in the pond. The pond is just sitting there empty anyway, so we might as well raise some small poultry, like geese, which would be perfect.

Duck meat is so delicious, goose meat must be just as good. If we start raising them now, we should be able to eat them around the Lunar New Year.

Furthermore, geese are Guard and can help drive away water birds, water snakes, and water rats—otters and red foxes are nocturnal and sleep soundly in their burrows during the day, neglecting this area.

Without hesitation, Qing Mengzhu inquired about goslings in the village, saying she wanted to buy a batch of good geese, and she didn't mind paying a higher price.

Upon hearing this, Qing Guozhi offered him advice. "Don't go to town to buy them. If you want to raise good geese, just go to a gosling farm. You can choose any breed you like."

Qing Mengzhu's mind suddenly opened up. "It's true what they say, having an elder in the family is like having a treasure. I never thought of this possibility until you mentioned it."

The old man was very pleased with the praise, "If you want information about the gosling farm, I'll inquire for you."

Qing Mengzhu: "Okay, thank you for your trouble. I'll check online myself."

The old man quickly found out information about several gosling farms and told Qing Mengzhu to go and choose one herself.

Qing Mengzhu drove over with Ming Chunxi.

He had high expectations for selecting goslings, but when he secretly scanned them with the Mall Assistant, he was somewhat disappointed.

The quality of goslings from several gosling farms was generally average, with the highest grade being only "Good Grade+". He had already started raising "Superior Grade- " grade shrimp, so he really looked down on the "Good Grade+" goslings.

Qing Mengzhu has been frantically browsing the Interstellar Mall these past two days, constantly searching for the keyword "goose".

There are definitely no live geese for sale in the Interstellar Mall, but if he's lucky, he might be able to buy fertilized goose eggs, which he can then extract and hatch.