The Domineering Cultivator Farmer

Chapter 15: The First Visitor

“What kind of people are these?” Somewhere in MX City, a middle-aged man in his thirties cursed bitterly. “Niuniu, get up here quick! Is your little butt itching? You’re such a bold little girl.” By the pond, Feng Xiu’er was anxiously calling out to Niuniu, who was straddling a carp. Last night, Niuniu had watched a cartoon where the main character rode a big fish for a while, and the little girl was absolutely envious. The next day, Niuniu went to the pond to play with Dahonghong—a name she’d given the fish herself, which the whole family had unanimously approved the moment she suggested it. Looking at Dahonghong, who was two meters long, Niuniu had a sudden whim: she actually called out to Dahonghong to swim to the shore and then hopped right on. Luckily, Dahonghong was only a little startled at first and quickly settled down; now she was carrying Niuniu around the pond. But Feng Xiu’er was terrified, afraid her daughter would fall into the water. “Wow… Mom and Dad, look! What an amazing big sister!” Niuniu, who was having a blast, looked up to see the family of three staring at her in utter astonishment, with the chubby little girl in the middle—who was even younger than her—screaming her head off. “Wow, a strange uncle! Honghong, swim faster!” The little girl didn’t know who had told her that strange uncles would kidnap children to sell them, so she was a little scared and directed Big Honghong to swim toward the other side of the pond. Early that morning, Zhang Lei drove his wife and daughter into town. With directions from passersby, they finally made it to Qiaotou Village. After asking villagers for the location of the reservoir, he parked the car and led his family toward it. As they passed by Fang Yun’s house, they happened to witness a shocking scene: a chubby little girl was actually riding a two-meter-long red carp, having the time of her life. Zhang Lei was the very person known online as “Wandering the World.” After being harshly ridiculed by others on the forum, he decided to follow the address in the video to visit the location in person and see for himself if it was true. “She’s the little girl from the video,” Zhang Lei suddenly realized that Niuniu looked familiar. Upon closer inspection, sure enough, it was the little girl from the video. Zhang Lei felt a surge of excitement—if the person in the video was real, didn’t that mean the video itself was real too? That said, the scenery in this village really was just like in the photos—and it felt even more beautiful in person. After all, the photos didn’t capture the crisp, fresh air, the melodious birdsong, or even the soothing rustle of leaves as the wind swept through the trees. The air in the village was already fresh, but on the very night Fang Yun returned from the provincial capital, he set up a spirit-gathering formation that enveloped the entire village, taking the air quality to a whole new level. Living in such an environment was truly invigorating. “Who are you?” Fang Yun, who had come out upon hearing the commotion, approached the family of three and asked. “My name is Zhang Lei. This is my wife, Wang Qian, and my daughter, Zhang Qian. I saw the video on ‘Travel Buddies’ last night and came here specifically to check it out.” Zhang Lei hurriedly introduced himself. “Welcome, welcome! My name is Fang Yun. You haven’t had lunch yet, have you? Come on in and have something with us.” Fang Yun was overjoyed—he hadn’t expected that just one day after uploading the video, someone would actually show up. Still, this family was pretty lazy; they’d actually named their daughter by combining both of their names. Thinking of this, Fang Yun couldn’t help but glance at Zhang Qian—poor kid. Zhang Lei and his wife were completely baffled; if they’d known what Fang Yun was thinking, who knows how they would’ve reacted. “All right, then we’ll impose on you.” Zhang Lei had gotten up early that morning to drive out, and now that it was already noon, he was starving. Zhang Qian had originally planned to play with the girl riding the big fish, but as soon as Niuniu got out of the water, Feng Xiu’er—who’d been waiting for ages—dragged her off to take a bath. At the dinner table, Zhang Lei wolfed down his food; Wang Qian kicked him several times from the side, but he didn’t even notice. That said, Wang Qian wasn’t exactly holding back herself. She’d certainly had her share of delicious dishes before, but the food here tasted exceptionally fragrant. Pigs raised purely on pig grass and grain had tender meat—with every bite, the fat melted in your mouth. It was nothing like the feedlot-raised pigs in the city, which not only lacked any real meat flavor but also felt dry and tough when you chewed them. Even the vegetables tasted infinitely better than so-called “organic” produce, Zhang Lei mused to himself as he ate. During mealtime, Zhang Qian became Niu Niu’s shadow, holding her bowl of rice and mimicking Niu Niu by eating big mouthfuls. Zhang Lei and his wife watched with beaming smiles; at home, the little girl was a real princess who was very picky about her food. Suddenly having a younger sister of her own, Niuniu—who had just been promoted to “big sister”—was thrilled. She chattered away about how she helped her grandparents with chores at home, went fishing, and fed wild ducks and foxes. Seeing the look of admiration on Xiao Qianqian’s face, Niuniu puffed out her little chest with pride. Realizing why Zhang Lei’s family had come, Fang Yun patted her chest and took full responsibility. After dinner, Fang Yun took Zhang Lei’s family to the reservoir. To their surprise, the spot where they’d fished the day before was now filled with wild ducks waiting for their free meal. Niuniu quickly wriggled free from Fang Yun’s hand and rushed over. “Wow, Niuniu’s here!” “Sister Niuniu, wait for Qianqian,” said Qianqian, Niuniu’s new little sidekick, hurrying to keep up with her. Qianqian’s arrival caused the flock of wild ducks to panic for a moment, but they calmed down under Niuniu’s soothing presence. “It’s just unbelievable—these wild ducks actually get along so harmoniously with humans,” Zhang Lei said, staring in amazement, while still making sure to capture the scene on camera. After watching Niuniu and the wild ducks’ performance, Fang Yun invited Zhang Lei’s family to climb up to Sanfeng Village to enjoy a medicinal bath together. “Ah, that feels great!” After soaking for a while, Zhang Lei felt all his fatigue vanish into thin air; even the discomfort in his joints seemed to ease considerably, and he couldn’t help but let out a shout. He found himself thinking about bringing his elderly relatives here for a herbal bath next time. This was precisely the little plan Fang Yun had in mind. He always felt that relying solely on tourists for income wasn’t very profitable, and no matter how beautiful the scenery was, people would eventually grow tired of it. But herbal baths were different. As long as they could effectively treat people’s ailments, Fang Yun believed that wealthy individuals would definitely come here in a steady stream for recuperation. By then, Fang Yun would be able to buy medicinal herbs from the villagers at high prices, allowing them to earn a little more money and live a better life. Fang Yun also hoped that as more people came in the future, those who had gone out to work would return, bringing more vitality to the village. Seeing the village so quiet and desolate, with only the elderly and children at home, left a bitter taste in Fang Yun’s heart. If they could earn money right at home, he was sure everyone would choose to stay in the village. Life away from home was never easy; having to put up with mistreatment was inevitable. Back at Fang Yun’s house, Zhang Lei couldn’t wait to pull out his laptop and upload the village scenery he’d filmed to the forum—especially the scene of Niuniu dancing with the wild ducks. The normally quiet forum suddenly went wild. Since Zhang Lei’s video was a bit shaky—anyone with a keen eye could tell he’d filmed it while walking—it proved the footage was genuine. Such beautiful scenery, the unique little girl Niuniu, and the spectacular flock of wild ducks—how could this not drive travel enthusiasts wild? One after another, they clamored to head there immediately.