Chapter 11: Yang Fan Worships Yang Xiuwen, Decides to Inherit the Leased Land

Grandma Xu didn't take Yang Fan's talk of fortune-telling to heart. Once she confirmed that Yang Fan intended to stay in the village and not return to the city for work, she took her to visit her uncle's grave and spoke to her about the situation regarding her family's land.

Yang Xiuwen’s grave was located halfway up the mountain behind the Yang residence, buried within their own plot of land.

Walking up the winding path behind the Yang house, Grandma Xu and Yang Fan each held a sickle, clearing away weeds along the roadside as they walked.

The weeds growing in the wasteland were nearly as tall as a person; they were dense and teeming with snakes, rats, insects, and ants.

Yang Fan walked in front, with Grandma Xu following behind, urging her, "Yang Fan, walk a bit slower. Watch out for snakes."

"There are fewer and fewer people in the village these years, so these fields have been left fallow. The snakes on the mountain have multiplied. You walk in front and be careful; your Grandpa Yang was bitten by a snake just last time."

Grandma Xu still felt uneasy as she spoke. "Let's switch places. I'll walk in front. You haven't been back in so many years and aren't familiar with the paths here; I'm afraid you'll take a wrong turn."

The path was so narrow that only one person could walk on it at a time, but Yang Fan did not step aside.

The village was filled with spiritual energy—even ghosts coveted the food grown here—so it naturally attracted many other creatures to the village as well.

"I'm being careful, Grandma Xu. Please don't worry, just take your time."

With one hand, she quickly traced a pattern in the air. A pest-repelling talisman took shape, and with a gentle flick of her wrist, the golden talisman dissipated. Immediately, rustling sounds emanated from the quiet weed patches.

Just then, a gust of wind swept down the mountain, causing the surrounding trees to rustle. Grandma Xu did not hear the movement in the weeds.

"You really should walk behind me. You haven't been back in so long and don't know the situation here. It would be bad if you got bitten by a snake."

She was insistent on switching with Yang Fan, determined to take the lead.

This time, Yang Fan did not refuse. She turned to the side to let Grandma Xu pass in front of her.

"You should also be careful when walking behind. Those snakes are very cunning; you never know where they might crawl out from."

"Alright, Grandma Xu."

As she walked behind, she held one hand suspended in the air, supporting Grandma Xu’s body; there were visible fluctuations in the air above her palm.

Soon, Grandma Xu led her to Yang Xiuwen’s grave. While the surrounding area was overgrown with weeds, the grass immediately around the grave was not very tall.

Grandma Xu bent down to pull at the weeds near the tombstone. "Your uncle was very kind to us old folks while he was alive. Whenever we had time, we would come up here to clear the weeds around his grave for him."

The young people in the village had all gone to the city, leaving Yang Xiuwen as the only young man left. He was warm-hearted, and whenever the village elders had trouble with something, they loved to ask him for help.

Yang Fan bent down to join in the weeding. Her movements were fast and efficient, and in no time, the weeds around the grave were cleared away.

Facing Yang Xiuwen’s tombstone, her expression was solemn, and even the howling wind around them seemed to soften.

She bowed her head and knelt to kowtow.

Though unintentional, she had occupied someone else's body, and it was only right that she fulfill the duties owed by this body.

Watching her slender back, Grandma Xu quietly turned away to wipe the tears from the corners of her eyes.

This child has suffered so much!

After the kowtowing was finished, Yang Fan lit the incense and candles she had brought, burned some paper money, and finally placed a mobile phone into the fire.

To prevent the phone from exploding, she quickly drew a talisman, and under its influence, the phone burned rapidly.

That phone was one the original owner had bought and mailed back last year; Yang Xiuwen had passed away suddenly before he could even bring himself to use it.

Seeing her burn a real phone, Grandma Xu couldn't help but feel a pang of heartache. "Silly child, burning this phone won't help your uncle use it. You should have just bought a paper phone to burn for him."

"My uncle will definitely be able to use it," Yang Fan stated firmly.

If the courier service was fast enough, he might even come to collect it tonight.

Grandma Xu was speechless, not knowing what to say, so she simply closed her mouth and remained silent.

Once all the paper money had burned away and they were certain there wasn't a single spark left, the two of them headed down the mountain together.

From halfway up the mountain, one could overlook the entire Shangyuan Village. From this angle, the scenery of the village was even more beautiful.

On their way down, they ran into the village chief, Li Wenlin, who was heading up.

"Wenlin, what are you doing coming up the mountain?" Grandma Xu asked.

Li Wenlin pointed to Yang Fan, who was supporting her, and said, "Auntie, I came to look for Yang Fan."

Li Wenlin’s father and Grandpa Li were brothers.

Yang Fan poked her head out and asked, "Uncle Li, is there something you need me for?"

Li Wenlin said, "I need to talk to you about your family's land."

"Let's talk as we walk."

Aside from the house, Yang Xiuwen had owned several plots of land and some forest area in the village.

There were two plots behind the house, as well as some land on the mountain behind the house, and the entire forest area belonged to the Yang family.

Li Wenlin pointed out all the land to Yang Fan. After finishing, he pointed toward the large white greenhouse across from the house and the vast open space next to it.

"Those fields across the way were all contracted by your uncle. He planted strawberries, watermelons, and some grapes there."

He then pointed to the surroundings and further afield, finally gesturing to the mountain they had just walked down. "And the land on those mountains, along with these fields, were all rented by your uncle. He used them entirely to plant fruit trees."

Yang Fan followed his finger, looking at each spot one by one, thinking to herself that the life of a "rich second generation" still held some promise—with so many trees bearing so much fruit, she could make quite a bit of money.

By the time they finished talking, the three of them had reached the foot of the mountain.

"I came to find you for two reasons: first, to have you go to the village office to handle the transfer procedures for your family's land," Li Wenlin said, stating the purpose of his visit. "Second, to ask you—these land leases are expiring in a month. Do you want to continue renting the land your uncle leased?"

Yang Fan:...It seems she had been happy too soon.

She asked tentatively, "Uncle Li, how much is the rent for these lands?"

Li Wenlin: "It's not very expensive. Adding all these plots together, the annual rent is fifty thousand yuan."

Yang Xiuwen had rented all the mountain land in the village. Since the mountain fields were far away and required climbing, and the village was mostly populated by the elderly, everyone had rented their mountain plots to him.

He had even rented several plots on the flat land from families who no longer lived in the village.

"Why would you keep renting them? Those fruits don't taste good at all; nobody buys them," Grandma Xu said without a second thought. "Why keep doing a business that doesn't make money and only loses it?"

Li Wenlin nodded. He felt the same way. For some reason, in the last few years, the produce grown on the village land had become as tasteless as chewing wax.

For this reason, he had even invited soil experts and agricultural specialists to the village to take a look. They all said the soil was fine, the planting methods were fine, and the seeds were fine.

Yet, the produce just tasted terrible, and they couldn't find the reason.

When Yang Xiuwen was still alive, he had tried to persuade him not to spend money on these fields, as there was zero profit and he had to subsidize so much money every year.

But the man wouldn't listen, insisting that if he planted enough fruit, someone would eventually eat it.

Who would eat it?

Even the pigs wouldn't eat that fruit!

Now that Yang Fan was the only one left of the Yang family, Li Wenlin felt he certainly couldn't let her waste her money like this.