The Domineering Cultivator Farmer

Chapter 13: Country Fun

After breakfast, Fang Yun took Xiu’er and Niuniu out for a walk, and Yeyue insisted on tagging along. As soon as they stepped outside, Feng Xiu’er was captivated by the lotus flowers in the pond. These lotuses had benefited greatly from the spring water Fang Yun had poured in to feed the red carp; the lotus leaves spread across the water’s surface like round tables, the smallest measuring over a meter in diameter and the largest exceeding two meters. Lotus flowers as big as plates bloomed densely across half the pond, and a gentle breeze carried their intoxicating fragrance. She hadn’t seen them yesterday because she’d arrived too late, but when she looked at them this morning, she was completely enchanted. “Wow, what beautiful flowers!” Niuniu exclaimed as she ran over, trying to pick a lotus flower. “Be careful!” Fang Yun called out hurriedly. There’s a two-meter-long carp in the pond. Although carp are generally harmless, the one in this pond has quite a temper—it’s not just me; even Dad gets splashed with pond water if he gets too close. Besides, anyone would be startled by a sudden encounter with such a big fish. “Wow, what a cute fish!” To Fang Yun’s astonishment, instead of being startled, Niuniu crouched down and reached her hand into the water to tease the carp. The carp, however, seemed to be acting all affectionate toward Niuniu—yes, affectionate—rubbing its big head against her little hand. Whenever Fang Yun visited, the big carp would just swim over and circle around a couple of times; it had never been this affectionate before. Yeye, seeing the carp—which had never paid him any attention—having such a good time with Niuniu, couldn’t help but run over to join in. At first, the big carp tried to swim away, but when Niuniu called out, “Fishy, don’t go!” the carp actually swam right back. “Geez, could this carp really understand what Niuniu is saying?” Fang Yun couldn’t help but wonder to himself. “Yun, what kind of fish is this? How come it’s so big?” Feng Xiu’er was startled at first. When she saw Niuniu reach her hand into the water, she almost rushed over to pull her back, but upon witnessing such a harmonious scene between the child and the fish, she hurriedly pulled out her phone and started snapping photos. “It’s a carp. I caught it in the reservoir behind the mountain,” Fang Yun said, giving Feng Xiu’er a puzzled look—he couldn’t believe there was actually someone who didn’t recognize a carp. “What’s with that look? This carp is so big—it’s no wonder I didn’t recognize it right away!” Feng Xiuer, feeling a mix of embarrassment and annoyance, gave Fang Yun a hard pinch. Fang Yun could only smile wryly. Women—you just can’t mess with them. “Grandpa, Grandma, where are you going? Niuniu wants to come too!” Just then, Niuniu, who had been playing with the carp, saw Grandpa Fang Changsheng and Grandma Wang Jiu heading out the door carrying baskets and hoes, and hurriedly called out. “Niuniu, stay home and play with Yeyue. Grandma’s going to dig up some sweet potatoes to roast for you, okay?” As soon as she heard “digging sweet potatoes,” Niuniu’s eyes lit up. “Niuniu wants to go too! Niuniu’s a big girl now—I need to help Grandpa and Grandma with their work.” She puffed out her little chest, acting as if she were a grown-up, which really made everyone laugh. “All right, all right. Our Niuniu is the most capable—she’s already helping Grandma.” “Grandma, Yeyue wants to help too!” Yeyue refused to go when he saw that Grandma had praised Niuniu but not him. “Hehe, Yeyue is a good boy too. Come on, let’s go together.” Fang Yun knew his parents were worried the kids would get tired or sunburned working in the fields, but he actually thought it was necessary for children to do some physical labor. Fang Yun’s family’s fields weren’t far away—they were right on the edge of the village. The sweet potatoes in the field were thriving, with lush green vines crawling everywhere. At first, Fang Changsheng had thought about trimming some of the vines—after all, overly dense growth wasn’t ideal, as it would compete with the sweet potatoes for nutrients. But when he accidentally pulled up a sweet potato, he discovered a dense cluster of them strung together right at the root—each one bigger than the last. He broke off one to taste, and it was infinitely better than in previous years. Fang Changsheng couldn’t stop muttering to himself about this, which made Fang Yun feel guilty for quite a while. In fact, the crops in the village’s fields were growing much better than in previous years. This was all thanks to Fang Yun, who had cast a rain spell a few days earlier, mixing river water with some spring water to drench the entire village and its surroundings. Many villagers were even murmuring that their ancestors must have intervened this year. With a “thud,” Niuniu saw her grandparents start digging up sweet potatoes. She decided to imitate her grandpa by grabbing one and yanking it up—but instead of pulling the sweet potato out, she ended up falling flat on her bottom. Luckily, the sweet potatoes were growing thick and lush, so the fall didn’t hurt. Fang Yun shook her head as she helped Niuniu up, brushed the dirt off her clothes, and turned around—only to nearly burst out laughing. Feng Xiu’er was pulling on a sweet potato with a red face and gritted teeth, but unfortunately, she hadn’t been able to budge it for ages. This year’s sweet potatoes were growing vigorously with deep root systems, so they weren’t that easy to pull up. “Look at how Mom and Dad are digging,” Fang Yun said, taking Feng Xiu’er by the hand and pointing to her parents. She saw that Fang Changsheng first used his hoe to loosen the soil around the sweet potato, then grabbed the vine and gave it a gentle tug to pull the sweet potato out. Feng Xiu’er couldn’t help but blush. “Never mind, let’s just help pick the sweet potatoes,” Fang Yun said. He led Xiu’er and the two little ones as they picked the sweet potatoes their parents had dug up one by one and placed them in the basket, tidying up the vines as well—the pigs and cows at home loved to eat them. “Niuniu, would you like Dad to roast some sweet potatoes for you?” Seeing the sweet potatoes in the basket, Fang Yun’s mouth watered. These sweet potatoes had white skin and red flesh; they were delicious whether eaten raw or made into sweet potato chips, but Fang Yun’s favorite was roasted sweet potatoes. As a child, he’d often sneak sweet potatoes from other people’s gardens. “Roasted sweet potatoes! I want roasted sweet potatoes!” The two little ones were overjoyed at the mention of it and started jumping up and down. Fang Yun picked out some half-dry pine branches from the edge of the field, dug a hole, placed a few sweet potatoes inside, covered them with a thin layer of soil, and then piled the pine branches on top to start a fire. Half an hour later, Fang Yun moved the now-extinguished fire away. As soon as he dug away the soil on top, the sweet, fragrant aroma of roasted sweet potatoes wafted up. “Daddy, I want some sweet potatoes!” Niuniu was practically drooling as she impatiently urged Fang Yun. “Eat slowly—be careful not to burn yourself.” Watching the group toss the hot sweet potatoes back and forth between their hands while still unable to stop eating, Fang Yun couldn’t help but chuckle. “Ouch!” Fang Yun was so caught up in the laughter that he didn’t pay attention to his own bite—and just as he took a big bite, his joy turned to pain. The scalding heat made him jump up. “This kid—he’s still so young…” His parents stood nearby, not knowing whether to laugh or cry. “Hahaha!” Feng Xiu’er and the two little ones, however, were rolling on the ground with laughter. “Daddy, can we come back this afternoon to dig up more sweet potatoes?” On the way home, Niuniu tugged at Fang Yun’s hand, shaking it back and forth. This chubby little girl had eaten two roasted sweet potatoes all by herself and still wasn’t full—Fang Yun found it quite amusing. Although Fang Yun had picked out the smallest sweet potatoes, the two of them still weighed nearly one jin. “No way! We’re going fishing at the reservoir this afternoon, and we can go swimming, too.” Yeyue was clearly not happy about it. “Fishing, swimming. Niuniu wants to go too,” the little girl changed her mind in a flash. “All right, all right. Daddy will take you fishing this afternoon.” “Daddy’s so nice—even nicer than Mommy,” the little girl said, buttering up Fang Yun. “Niuniu, your little bottom’s itching, isn’t it?” Feng Xiu’er wasn’t happy. “Whoa, Mom’s mad! Daddy, let’s run!” Niuniu grabbed Fang Yun’s hand and took off running. “Hahahaha!” The group walked toward home, leaving a trail of joyful laughter behind them.