Recaps

Qing Mengzhu confirmed that his first batch of fermented fertilizer was ready and tested it on part of his water spinach, which grew noticeably taller and tasted better. Convinced the fertilizer worked, he began using it on his crops and hired Feng Ningxiang, Qing Yuqin, and Miao Lan to help fertilize the chili peppers.

• The mall assistant identified Qing Mengzhu's fermented fertilizer as basic fermented fertilizer, premium-, and he mixed it with water to test on some of his water spinach.
• Tan Wenlei noticed the next morning that the fertilized water spinach stood about two centimeters taller than the rest, and Qing Mengzhu agreed the fertilizer had worked.
• Qing Mengzhu harvested and ate the water spinach, found it crisper and sweeter, and decided to fertilize his other vegetables, chili peppers, and lotus plants.
• Qing Mengzhu hired Feng Ningxiang, Qing Yuqin, and Miao Lan to help bury fertilizer beside the chili pepper seedlings.
• Qing Mengzhu explained the fertilizer and how to use it, then the group carried it to the chili pepper field.

Qing Mengzhu finished fertilizing his crops and learned to pickle water spinach from Tan Wenlei. After enjoying the first batch, he welcomed Tan Wenlei and Di Caiyong, who had come to discuss his vegetables.

• Qing Mengzhu and the aunties finished fertilizing his pepper fields and lotus pond, and he thanked them with fresh vegetables.
• Qing Mengzhu saw Tan Wenlei harvesting vegetables and learned two ways to pickle water spinach stems.
• Qing Mengzhu prepared both kinds of pickles and sold the leftover water spinach leaves to the Interstellar Mall.
• Qing Mengzhu stir-fried his rice-washing-water pickles with pork, garlic, chili, and fermented black beans and enjoyed them with congee.
• Tan Wenlei brought Di Caiyong to meet Qing Mengzhu and discuss his vegetables, and Qing Mengzhu invited them to share breakfast.

Qing Mengzhu gave Di Caiyong samples of his organic vegetables, and Di’s family praised their flavor and urged him to secure a supply. After negotiating a trial partnership, Di began buying the vegetables, and customers soon returned to the restaurants specifically for them.

• Di Caiyong praised Qing Mengzhu’s pickled water spinach and discussed buying vegetables, so Qing gave him samples to take home.
• Di Caiyong’s family tasted the vegetables at their restaurant and encouraged him to negotiate a supply deal despite the higher price.
• Di Caiyong and Qing Mengzhu agreed that Di would pay 3.8 yuan per jin above Hongda Supermarket’s purchase price, with daily payment.
• Qing Mengzhu planted another half mu of vegetables after the arrangement went well.
• Di Caiyong told Qing Mengzhu that customers liked the vegetables and were already returning to order them.

Di Caiyong’s organic vegetables drew the attention of Qing Guozhi, a distant relative of Qing Mengzhu, who visited the village to meet the grower and buy vegetables. After tasting the produce and picking more than a hundred jin, Qing Guozhi left, and Tan Wenlei asked Qing Mengzhu why he had come.

• Di Caiyong reassured Qing Mengzhu that the restaurants could sell more of his vegetables, but Qing Mengzhu declined to expand his harvest for now.
• Qing Guozhi praised the vegetables at Di Caiyong’s restaurant and learned they came from Qing Mengzhu’s family plot in Pingkou Village.
• Qing Guozhi visited Qing Mengzhu, introduced himself as a distant relative, and asked to share a meal of vegetables reminiscent of his childhood.
• Qing Guozhi enjoyed Qing Mengzhu’s cooking and asked to buy vegetables, so Qing Mengzhu took him to the plot to pick them.
• Qing Guozhi and Qing Mengzhu picked over a hundred jin of vegetables, and Qing Guozhi’s son drove him home.
• Tan Wenlei visited after Qing Guozhi left, and Qing Mengzhu explained the reason for the visit.

Qing Mengzhu cooked Chinese grouse soup with wild mushrooms for Qing Guozhi, who was so impressed that he offered to help him raise the birds. The chapter left Qing Mengzhu considering the offer.

• Qing Guozhi visited Qing Mengzhu with three Chinese grouse and offered them for a meal.
• Qing Mengzhu checked that the birds were legally farmed before agreeing to cook them.
• Qing Mengzhu made soup with the grouse and his dried wild mushrooms, and Qing Guozhi eagerly waited for it to finish.
• Qing Guozhi praised the soup and asked Qing Mengzhu whether he wanted to raise Chinese grouse, offering to arrange permits and breeding stock.

Qing Mengzhu settled into raising hazel grouse and tended his flowering chili crop, arranging drone pollination after weeks of rain. After selling vegetables and building up his Interstellar Mall balance, he noticed a lucrative prize draw and considered spending ten star coins on it.

• An old man secured permits and brought Qing Mengzhu thirty-five hen and fifteen cock hazel grouse, along with a contact who could advise him on raising them.
• Qing Mengzhu posted a video of the grouse to Moments, where Ming Chunxi liked and commented; Zhao Hexi speculated that Ming Chunxi had feelings for him.
• Qing Mengzhu worried rain would prevent his chili flowers from pollinating, and Tan Wenlei suggested using drones to create wind over the plants.
• After the rain eased, Qing Mengzhu hired two agricultural drones to fly over his five mu of chili fields, then harvested and sold vegetables to the Interstellar Mall.
• Qing Mengzhu saw that his balance had risen to 305.24 star coins and considered entering the new ten-consecutive-draw event.

Qing Mengzhu discovered signs of otters near his backyard and protected his grouse, then asked Ming Chunxi about installing security cameras. When Ming Chunxi offered to bring zongzi for the Dragon Boat Festival, Qing Mengzhu invited him over and began preparing for his visit.

• Qing Mengzhu drew hay from the Interstellar Mall and continued tending his crops and livestock.
• Qing Mengzhu found large paw prints near the backyard, and Tan Wenlei identified them as likely otter tracks and warned him to protect his grouse.
• Qing Mengzhu caged the grouse and built a fence, but found a fresh hole beneath it the next day; all fifty grouse were still safe, and he found shed fur nearby.
• Zhao Hexi suggested that Qing Mengzhu ask Ming Chunxi about security cameras, so Qing Mengzhu contacted him and learned he could arrange a camera network.
• Ming Chunxi offered to bring Qing Mengzhu zongzi for the Dragon Boat Festival, and Qing Mengzhu invited him to come over for a meal.
• Qing Mengzhu chopped sweet potato leaves and fed the grouse and ducks while preparing for Ming Chunxi's visit.

Qing Mengzhu welcomed Ming Chunxi, who installed five cameras around the house, and the two spent the evening eating and talking together. The next morning, the cameras revealed an otter and a fox fighting by the backyard fence.

• Qing Mengzhu gathered food for Ming Chunxi's visit, and Ming Chunxi arrived with cameras and helped carry the bags inside.
• Ming Chunxi planned and installed five cameras around Qing Mengzhu's house, then the two shared a meal and talked about their lives.
• Qing Mengzhu prepared the guest room, and Ming Chunxi stayed overnight while Qing Mengzhu fell asleep quickly.
• Qing Mengzhu went to pick vegetables for Di Caiyong and learned from Tan Wenlei that his family had returned for the Dragon Boat Festival.
• Ming Chunxi showed Qing Mengzhu the camera footage, which showed a fox digging beneath the backyard fence before an otter dropped onto it and the animals began fighting.

Qing Mengzhu and Ming Chunxi discovered that a red fox and an otter had been fighting near the yard, then spent the holiday hiking and picking mushrooms before repairing the fence. As they finished, the otter and fox reappeared nearby, watching them.

• Qing Mengzhu and Ming Chunxi watched surveillance footage of a red fox and a protected otter fighting, then found a hole beneath the backyard fence.
• Qing Mengzhu and Ming Chunxi went mushroom picking in the mountains, where Qing Mengzhu showed him the fields and identified safe mushrooms.
• Qing Mengzhu and Ming Chunxi carried bamboo home and used it to repair the fence, with Qing Mengzhu rejecting wire mesh because it looked ugly.
• Ming Chunxi spotted the otter watching them beneath a tree, and then pointed out the red fox as it flashed past.

Qing Mengzhu won a premium Luring Grass seed, discovered it was a single clove of purple garlic, and planted it. He continued tending his farm while the fox and otter watched his hazel grouse from outside the fence, and Zhao Hexi called to thank him for the vegetables.

• Qing Mengzhu and Ming Chunxi repaired the fence, shared a festive dinner, and Ming Chunxi returned to Vine City.
• Qing Mengzhu used Ming Chunxi’s help with a prize draw and won a premium Luring Grass seed worth 1,666 star coins.
• Qing Mengzhu learned the prize was a single clove of purple garlic and planted it in a flowerpot.
• Qing Mengzhu found the fox and otter peering at his hazel grouse, then reported them to the forest police, who said they could not force the animals to move.
• The fox and otter kept visiting the fence without harming the hazel grouse, while Qing Mengzhu sold vegetables and sent some to his friends.
• Zhao Hexi called Qing Mengzhu to thank him for the vegetables he had sent before the Dragon Boat Festival.

Qing Mengzhu learned about sun-dried tomatoes from Di Caiyong and prepared a batch to use in seafood soup with Qing Guozhi. He invited Zhao Hexi and Ming Chunxi to join him, and the chapter ended with Ming Chunxi arriving for the weekend visit.

• Zhao Hexi praised Qing Mengzhu’s tomatoes and told him how much his family enjoyed them in hot pot.
• Di Caiyong described sun-dried tomatoes and recommended pairing them with seafood soup, prompting Qing Mengzhu to dry some.
• Qing Guozhi proposed making sun-dried tomato and seafood soup together, and Qing Mengzhu invited Zhao Hexi and another friend.
• Qing Mengzhu arranged for Zhao Hexi to come Saturday and Ming Chunxi to arrive Friday night.
• Ming Chunxi arrived at Qing Mengzhu’s home with a fruit basket, and Qing Mengzhu told him that neighbors had also seen the otters and foxes in the backyard.

Qing Mengzhu and Ming Chunxi went to town with Zhao Hexi, then returned home with Qing Guozhi to prepare a meal from fresh garden produce and seafood. The chapter ended as everyone tasted Qing Mengzhu’s seafood soup and savored its rich flavor.

• Qing Mengzhu and Ming Chunxi picked vegetables, and Qing Mengzhu gave Di Caiyong sun-dried tomatoes in exchange for advice on seafood soup.
• Zhao Hexi arrived at Qing Mengzhu’s home, joined him and Ming Chunxi on a trip to town for wontons, and later returned with them to prepare lunch.
• Qing Guozhi arrived, and he, Zhao Hexi, Ming Chunxi, and Qing Mengzhu prepared ingredients for a meal.
• Qing Mengzhu cooked seafood soup, tomato fish, eggplant with ground pork, stir-fried beef with lotus shoots, and water spinach with minced garlic.
• Zhao Hexi and the others tasted Qing Mengzhu’s seafood soup, and Qing Mengzhu found that the seafood had no fishy taste.

Qing Mengzhu's seafood meal delighted his guests, and afterward he considered planting autumn tomatoes. After consulting Cen Zhiming, local farmers, and an expert, he decided to save seeds from his successful spring crop.

• Qing Mengzhu served seafood soup and fish in tomato sauce, which Zhao Hexi, the old man, and Ming Chunxi all enjoyed.
• After the meal, Qing Mengzhu told Ming Chunxi he was considering planting more tomatoes for the autumn crop, and Ming Chunxi offered to help find buyers.
• Qing Mengzhu asked Cen Zhiming, Tan Wenlei, and Di Caiyong about tomato varieties, and they confirmed that local farmers used the same varieties for spring and autumn crops.
• Cen Zhiming suggested Qing Mengzhu save seeds from his spring tomatoes, and an expert told him that he could do so, though professional seeds might be more consistent.
• Qing Mengzhu checked the Interstellar Mall, found no tomato seeds or seedlings, and decided to save seeds from his own spring tomatoes.

Qing Mengzhu prepared to plant two mu of fall tomatoes, hired help to fill seedling cups, and gave Tan Wenlei leftover seeds so he could raise his own seedlings. As he worked, Qing Mengzhu tended his vegetables and animals, then went to admire the lotus ponds, where the lotuses had filled the water with leaves and begun to bud.

• Qing Mengzhu collected and prepared tomato seeds, arranged to have two mu of field plowed, and spread fermented fertilizer for the plowing.
• Qing Mengzhu told Tan Wenlei that his tomato seeds were nearly ready, and Tan Wenlei asked for seedlings for one mu of tomatoes; Qing Mengzhu offered him leftover seeds instead.
• Qing Mengzhu mixed soil for the seedling cups while Feng Ningxiang and two other workers filled the cups for the tomato seeds.
• Qing Mengzhu weeded his vegetable plot and fed the fresh weeds to his ducks and hazel grouse while the workers chatted about his thriving ducks.
• Qing Mengzhu went to inspect his lotus ponds and saw that the leaves nearly covered both ponds and small buds had appeared.

Qing Mengzhu tried to buy Savage Marsh Shrimp eggs from the Interstellar Mall, but they disappeared before he could purchase them. He accepted a seed-hatching task that might let him exchange its reward for shrimp eggs, and began preparing to grow the seed.

• Qing Mengzhu sold his vegetables to save enough star coins for Savage Marsh Shrimp eggs, but discovered that all shrimp and shrimp products had vanished from the Interstellar Mall.
• Qing Mengzhu asked Tan Wenlei's friend about marsh shrimp fry, but Ming Chunxi's advice to wait for another opportunity encouraged him to keep searching the mall instead.
• Qing Mengzhu found a paid task to hatch a Dragon Rosy Cloud Fruit seed and accepted it, hoping to exchange the premium seed reward for Savage Marsh Shrimp eggs.
• Qing Mengzhu received the black seed and read that it needed warmth and moisture but could not tolerate frost.
• Qing Mengzhu pinched off a tender leaf from the Luring Grass to help him start growing the Dragon Rosy Cloud Fruit seed.

Qing Mengzhu planted a Dragon Glow Fruit seed and attended a village class on pepper cultivation before agreeing to buy okra seedlings with Tan Wenlei and Qing Changhong. At Huang Kebao’s house, they discussed the seedlings and the villagers’ difficulties selling their surplus vegetables.

• Qing Mengzhu soaked a Dragon Glow Fruit seed in ground induction grass, planted it in a flowerpot, and waited to see whether it would sprout.
• Qing Mengzhu took careful notes at a village class on managing pepper diseases and heat, while Tan Wenlei tried to talk with him.
• Tan Wenlei invited Qing Mengzhu to grow okra, and Qing Changhong joined them in buying seedlings from Huang Kebao’s family.
• Qing Mengzhu ordered 120 okra seedlings, Tan Wenlei ordered 60, and Qing Changhong ordered 20; Huang Kebao offered to take them to the fields at dusk.
• As they waited at Huang Kebao’s house, Qing Mengzhu and the others discussed low vegetable prices, unsold produce, and the challenges small farmers faced competing with large companies.

Qing Mengzhu discovered that dozens of lotus flowers had been stolen from his ponds and began patrolling them at night. After a thief fled on a motorcycle, Qing Mengzhu found two furry animals beside the damaged lotuses.

• Qing Mengzhu agreed to give Huang Kebao and Qing Changhong tomato seeds so they could grow his tomatoes.
• Tan Wenlei pointed out missing lotus flowers, and Qing Mengzhu found at least thirty gone from one pond and another thirty or forty missing from the other.
• Qing Changhong suggested that Qing Mengzhu get dogs to guard his ponds, but Qing Mengzhu could not find suitable puppies and instead patrolled with a powerful flashlight.
• After several quiet nights, Qing Mengzhu heard a scream, rode to the ponds, and saw a thief escape on a motorcycle.
• Qing Mengzhu inspected the damaged lotus plants and spotted two furry animals in his flashlight beam.

After a red fox and an otter helped drive off thieves stealing Qing Mengzhu’s lotus flowers, the police caught the culprits, and Qing Mengzhu rewarded the animals with fish and shrimp. Qing Guozhi visited, brought lotus tea made from Qing Mengzhu’s flowers, and offered to find him two dogs to guard the house.

• Qing Mengzhu reported the attempted theft, sold the damaged lotus leaves and flowers, and learned that the red fox and otter had helped the police identify the thieves through their vaccination records.
• Qing Mengzhu left fish and shrimp near the animals’ dens, and the red fox and otter ate them after he stepped away.
• Qing Guozhi visited Qing Mengzhu, identified the thief as Little Mouse from Lianpei Village, and regretted not recognizing the theft sooner.
• Qing Guozhi brought lotus tea made from Qing Mengzhu’s flowers, brewed it with mountain-spring water, and offered to provide Baihao Yinzhen for Qing Mengzhu to make more.
• Qing Guozhi asked what kind of puppy Qing Mengzhu wanted, and Qing Mengzhu requested two smart local yellow dogs or wolfdogs to guard the house.

Qing Mengzhu made lotus tea and shared it with friends and Professor Nian Xinfei, then adopted two local wolfdog puppies from Qing Guozhi and named them Dharma Protector and Guard. Nearly ten days after planting tomato seeds, he found the seedlings sprouting and brought the puppies to the field to get used to their territory.

• Qing Mengzhu picked lotus buds, stuffed them with tea leaves, roasted them, and packed the finished lotus tea into decorative boxes.
• Qing Mengzhu sent tea to Qing Guozhi, Ming Chunxi and Ming Lexin, Zhao Hexi, and Professor Nian Xinfei, who thanked him for it.
• Qing Guozhi brought Qing Mengzhu two female local wolfdog puppies, and Qing Mengzhu bought them for a thousand each and named them Dharma Protector and Guard.
• After selling vegetables, Qing Mengzhu checked the tomato seedlings and gently watered them with a spray bottle.
• Qing Mengzhu let Dharma Protector and Guard explore the vegetable field, and the puppies stayed close to his legs as he worked.

Qing Mengzhu prepared his crops and animals for a forecast rainstorm, then brought an otter and a red fox into his courtyard for shelter. After more than an hour of torrential rain flooded the courtyard, the storm eased to drizzle.

• Qing Mengzhu shared tomatoes with Qing Pingdun and the other young people swimming in the river, and warned them to be careful in the forecast rainstorm.
• Qing Mengzhu moved his potted plants indoors and secured his tomato seedlings and other crops as dark clouds spread.
• Qing Mengzhu herded the ducks out of the pond and moved the hazel grouse under the eaves before the downpour began.
• Qing Mengzhu beckoned the otter and red fox to follow him to his home, where they sheltered beside the entrance while the puppies barked at them.
• Qing Mengzhu cleared the courtyard drain as floodwater rose to his ankles, and the rain eased to drizzle sometime after three in the afternoon.

After a downpour damaged Qing Mengzhu’s vegetables, he worked to drain and salvage his fields, then sold what he could to the Interstellar Mall. The next day, Tan Wenlei asked him to examine Gong Quantiao’s badly split tomatoes, and Qing Mengzhu considered whether waterlogging in low-lying plots had caused the damage.

• Qing Mengzhu drained his flooded fields and gathered damaged produce while villagers worked to limit their losses.
• Qing Mengzhu sold most of his salvaged vegetables to the Interstellar Mall and discovered his green chilies commanded a high price.
• Di Caiyong bought Qing Mengzhu’s vegetables after Tan Wenlei explained that the storm had reduced his own harvest.
• Tan Wenlei asked Qing Mengzhu to help his friend Gong Quantiao diagnose tomatoes whose fruit had split.
• Qing Mengzhu suggested that waterlogging in lower plots might explain why only two mu of Gong Quantiao’s tomatoes had split.

Qing Mengzhu diagnosed the cause of Gong Quantiao’s split tomatoes and agreed to install a field camera after Ming Chunxi visited to check on him. Ming Chunxi stayed through the weekend, and after he left, Qing Mengzhu felt the house was empty before returning to his usual routine on Monday.

• Qing Mengzhu suspected Gong Quantiao’s tomatoes had split because an overly concentrated growth hormone made them grow too quickly, and advised him to add water and fertilizer.
• After working in his fields, Qing Mengzhu found Ming Chunxi waiting at his gate; Ming Chunxi explained that he had come to discuss the recent lotus theft and a surveillance camera.
• Qing Mengzhu agreed to install a camera in his field, and Qing Changhong ordered several cameras for his mountain chicken farm.
• Ming Chunxi’s friend installed the cameras, and Ming Chunxi stayed with Qing Mengzhu for two days, helping with farm work.
• After Ming Chunxi left on Sunday night, Qing Mengzhu felt his home was empty and resumed his usual routine on Monday.

Qing Mengzhu celebrated the Dragon Rosy Cloud Fruit sprouting and received Superior Grade- Oriental river shrimp eggs as his Interstellar Mall reward. He arranged for the eggs to be tested and hatched, then returned to managing his productive vegetable farm.

• Qing Mengzhu submitted the sprouted Dragon Rosy Cloud Fruit seedling to the Interstellar Mall, which approved the task and awarded him 100 grams of Oriental river shrimp eggs.
• Qing Mengzhu bought local shrimp eggs, replaced them with the Interstellar Mall eggs, and asked Chen Yi to help hatch them and recommend a testing institution.
• Chen Yi helped set up an oxygenated hatching tank, and Qing Mengzhu sent shrimp eggs to an authoritative institution for testing.
• Qing Mengzhu considered expanding his compost pit because his summer vegetables produced more than Di Caiyong could buy and the Interstellar Mall only accepted certain fertilizer.
• Di Caiyong weighed and bought the vegetables he wanted, while Qing Mengzhu continued working in the pepper patch.

Di Caiyong sampled Qing Mengzhu’s peppers and praised their flavor, then joined Qing Mengzhu and Tan Wenlei for lunch at Qing Mengzhu’s home. The meal began with Di Caiyong’s farmhouse delight, and Qing Mengzhu discovered how well the peppers tasted cooked with it.

• Di Caiyong picked and tasted one of Qing Mengzhu’s red peppers, praising its heat and sweetness.
• Qing Mengzhu agreed to host lunch, and Tan Wenlei joined them after overhearing their plans.
• Qing Mengzhu welcomed Di Caiyong and Tan Wenlei into his tidy, plant-filled home, where they drank lotus tea and greeted the puppies Dharma Protector and Guard.
• The three prepared lunch together, and Di Caiyong cooked chicken giblets with pickled water spinach stems, stir-fried dried fish, farmhouse delight, and soup.
• Qing Mengzhu tasted a pepper from Di Caiyong’s farmhouse delight and enjoyed its fragrant spice, soft texture, and sweet aftertaste.

Qing Mengzhu’s peppers earned praise from Di Caiyong and Tan Wenlei, and Di Caiyong offered to buy them. After Ming Chunxi suggested contacting Professor Nian about finding buyers, Qing Mengzhu reconsidered selling the peppers to Di Caiyong and decided to wait for Tengcheng Agricultural University to set a price.

• Di Caiyong and Tan Wenlei praised Qing Mengzhu’s vegetables over a meal and reminisced about the food they ate when they were young.
• Di Caiyong offered to buy Qing Mengzhu’s peppers for ten yuan per jin, and Qing Mengzhu initially agreed to sell him a hundred jin a day.
• Qing Mengzhu sent vegetables to relatives and friends, and Ming Lexin invited Ming Chunxi home to try the peppers.
• Ming Chunxi praised the peppers and suggested Qing Mengzhu send some to Professor Nian, whose team had developed the variety, to seek buyer connections.
• The next day, Qing Mengzhu found that many peppers had turned red and told Di Caiyong he would give him peppers rather than sell them, since Tengcheng Agricultural University had not set a price for the variety.