Chapter 12: Driving Away Snakes, Rats, Insects, and Ants

Unexpectedly, Yang Fan said, "I'll rent it. I'll continue to rent it."

Li Wenlin was stunned for a moment. "Are you sure you want to rent it?"

Grandma Xu disapproved. "Why keep renting? Nothing grown in the village's soil can be eaten anymore."

The fact that the produce couldn't be eaten was something she could easily solve. There were ready-made fruit trees in those vast fields, and she could also find plenty of free labor.

Moreover, the fruit grown in this village was infused with spiritual energy, making it far more valuable than ordinary fruit.

She could easily achieve her dream of being a wealthy second-generation heir.

How could she not rent it? Rent! She would continue to rent it!

Yang Fan stood by her decision. "I'll rent it. Uncle Li, I'll continue to rent it!"

"Yang Fan, the fruit that grows on those trees really doesn't taste good!" Grandma Xu urged earnestly. "Your uncle lost so much money over all these years. If you keep renting, you're just going to keep losing money."

Li Wenlin added, "That's right, Yang Fan. You need to think this through. Your uncle didn't earn a single cent from those fruit trees."

"Grandma Xu, Uncle Li, I understand what you're saying, and I thank you for looking out for me."

That’s more like it!

Just as Grandma Xu and Li Wenlin thought they had persuaded Yang Fan, she followed up with a very firm tone.

"I learned some planting techniques in the city, and I believe I can definitely cultivate delicious fruit!"

Grandma Xu: "..."

Li Wenlin: "..."

He really wanted to ask her: when even the country's top soil scientists and agricultural experts couldn't solve the problem, where did she get the confidence to guarantee she could grow edible fruit?

But fearing he might dampen the young woman's enthusiasm, Li Wenlin took a roundabout approach. "The lease expires in a month. Take some time to think it over during this period."

"Come to the village committee to find me the day after tomorrow. I'll let you look at the reports those experts wrote."

Yang Fan nodded. "Okay, thank you, Uncle Li..."

"Why wait until the day after tomorrow? Go today," Grandma Xu was an impatient person. "Why wait? You young people love to procrastinate."

Li Wenlin smiled helplessly. "Auntie, it's not that I don't want to show Yang Fan today, but I have to go to the city for something and won't be back until tomorrow afternoon."

"What are you going to the city for?"

Li Wenlin: "I have some business to attend to."

He had to keep the specific details confidential and couldn't just tell anyone.

Seeing that he wouldn't say, Grandma Xu understood and didn't press further. "Alright then, go do your business. I'll accompany Yang Fan to find you the day after tomorrow."

Li Wenlin: "Fine."

The two of them settled it just like that, and Yang Fan couldn't get a word in.

After Li Wenlin left, Yang Fan said she wanted to walk around the village alone to look at the trees her uncle had left behind, and she sent Grandma Xu home first.

She went to the fields across the way first. With no one to tend them, the weeds in these plots were nearly as high as her thighs.

She picked up a stick from the side of the road and pushed aside the grass. Suddenly, a cobra darted out from the brush, mouth agape, and lunged to bite her.

Yang Fan reacted quickly. She swung the stick, the sound of it cutting through the air like a blade, and the stick shimmered with a cold light. In an instant, the cobra was split in two and fell into the grass.

Listening to the rustling sounds coming from the grass, she let out a cold snort and spoke to the empty brush in a chilling voice.

"These places are not where you should be. Be smart—go stay in the mountains and don't appear in front of people. Otherwise, don't blame me for turning you all into snake wine!"

As she finished speaking, she slammed the stick into the ground. A powerful surge of spiritual energy rippled outward like a wave, covering the entire village's land.

Before long, the rustling sounds in the grass grew even louder.

If anyone were walking through the village right now, they would surely see countless snakes, rats, insects, pheasants, weasels, and foxes—rarely seen animals—all fleeing toward the mountains.

"Ah! A snake!"

Auntie Zhang walked out of her house carrying a basin of water. She looked up and saw a snake as thick as her forearm slither over her courtyard wall and head outside.

She was so startled she dropped the basin, which hit the ground with a loud crash, splashing water all over her.

Her husband heard the commotion and came out. "Xiumei, where's the snake?"

Auntie Zhang's full name was Zhang Xiumei. Her face had turned pale with fright. She pointed at the wall where the snake had crawled out. "There! I saw a huge snake crawl out from there."

Damn it! How long had that snake been in her yard? She had no idea how long it had been lurking there.

Thinking about how a snake had been in her yard without her knowing, Zhang Xiumei felt goosebumps all over.

Her husband, Fu Yonghui, went over, picked up a hoe, and walked around the wall. In a corner inside, he found a pit—round and large—clearly where something had been nesting.

"Good grief, it made a nest in my house!"

Fu Yonghui vented his frustration by stabbing the pit several times with his hoe. He then checked inside and outside the house to ensure there were no more snakes before he felt at ease.

Auntie Zhang was still worried. "You should go to the street and buy some realgar powder, and get some insecticide and mosquito coils, too."

With fewer people in the village, mosquitoes and insects had become rampant.

She was the type who attracted mosquitoes, and every summer was a miserable experience.

"Remember to buy the good mosquito coils; the ones you got last year weren't very useful."

"Also, also, Yangyang's package arrived. Remember to go pick it up for him."

Fu Yonghui agreed to everything, though he was a bit puzzled. "Why was Yangyang's luggage mailed back?"

Yangyang was their eldest daughter's son, five years old this year.

Usually, when he visited, he stayed for a few days and went back, just bringing a small suitcase. Why was his luggage being mailed back this time?

Zhang Xiumei: "Cancan's mother-in-law and father-in-law are sick and hospitalized, and Jiahao is away on a business trip. There's no one to look after Yangyang, so they sent him over for us to watch for a few days."

She hadn't seen her grandson in so long, and she missed him dearly.

Fu Yonghui gasped in surprise. "Why didn't you tell me about such an important thing?!"

"Would it have been useful to tell you? Their place is so far away. It's not like you were going to go over and take care of her in-laws."

Zhang Xiumei impatiently pushed him toward the door. "Hurry up and go buy the things."

He couldn't believe he was only finding out about such an important matter now.

Fu Yonghui rode his tricycle toward town, looking dejected.

After he left, Zhang Xiumei still felt uneasy. She took the hoe and checked every room again, terrified that there might be a snake hiding inside.

The elderly people in other houses were sitting in their courtyards, sunning themselves and chatting, completely unaware of what had happened around them.

Grandpa Li had been driving his tricycle all morning and was only just now eating breakfast. He asked Grandma Xu, "Has Yang Fan eaten breakfast yet?"

"She has," Grandma Xu said. "After breakfast, I'm going with her to see Xiuwen's place."

As she spoke, she told Grandpa Li about meeting Li Wenlin. Finally, she added with a worried expression, "Those fields are just a money pit if she keeps renting them. You should go persuade Yang Fan later not to keep renting that land."