Chapter 153: A Perfect Idea

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Sand and dust filled the air. Even though the farm lay within a forested region, it could not escape the blowing grit.

A howling gale was far more exhilarating than a torrential downpour—at least in the northwest. The sand-laden wind could make you question your entire existence.

At that moment, Zhong Di was inside the guesthouse, watching the grown men chat and joke around. He felt increasingly restless.

The farm was growing larger and larger, even though he had deliberately kept its expansion under control. Once it reached a certain scale, it would gradually slip beyond his grasp.

This only strengthened his resolve to reduce his workload and shift toward a more hands-off approach later on.

Some were smoking, while others picked their noses or dug out boogers...

The Pallas’s cat seemed to need checking on. Hmm... there was the perfect excuse to leave for a while.

Among all the chickens, ducks, geese, and other livestock on the farm, none required Zhong Di’s attention. The only exception was the Pallas’s cat, whose condition he had to monitor constantly.

After checking on it, Zhong Di joined his father in entertaining the uncles.

His older sister and mother were in the guesthouse next door. These were all rough, hard-bitten men, and it would not be appropriate for the two women to remain there.

The wind and sand continued to batter the farm. From time to time, small stones were swept up and struck against something with sharp, popping sounds. If not for the dusty smell permeating the air, it might almost have passed for a natural melody.

His father looked deeply troubled and was nowhere near as talkative or cheerful as the uncles.

Their positions were different, so naturally, their thoughts were different as well.

“Dad, let’s go over to Mom’s side. I have something to discuss.”

Seeing the unpleasant expression on his father’s face, Zhong Di could imagine that his mother probably wore the same look.

It was easy to understand. With winds and sand this severe, not only was the day’s income gone, but there would also be countless hidden losses.

Even the losses that could be calculated amounted to quite a lot.

Take the jujubes alone. No one knew how many would be blown away. Losing just one or two tons would already mean a considerable loss.

After all, these were premium jujubes, not ordinary bulk produce.

Given the success of the vegetables, anyone could see the potential value of the jujubes. There was no need to think about it—they were bound to become another sensation.

Under such circumstances, how could anyone be happy?

“Mm, all right. We should talk about it.” Zhong Tian nodded.

At a glance, Zhong Di knew what his father meant. His own “something to discuss” and the matter his father had in mind were completely different.

“Shao Hong, entertain the uncles for now. If necessary, see whether you can arrange a meal. Hot pot would be fine.”

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At this point, merely thinking about it would not make the sandstorm end. With so many people crowded together, they could not just sit around chatting. They might as well have something to eat and drink.

A strong wind was blowing outside, the sky was overcast, and September had just begun. The temperature was rather cool. A hot pot meal would warm everyone up and feel quite pleasant.

“All right. I’ll arrange something.” Shao Hong nodded and went to make preparations.

...

“Mom, Sis, what are you two talking about?”

As soon as he entered the house, he saw his mother and older sister speaking quietly about something. Their voices were too soft for him to make out.

“Zhong Di, this strong wind today is going to cost us quite a bit. Your sister just helped me estimate the losses.” Di Chunhua’s brow was furrowed, and her expression was grim.

“Well, the whole family is here now, so I’ll talk about it too. Actually, you don’t need to worry so much. Natural disasters and human misfortune are beyond our control. If we sit here fretting, will the wind stop blowing? What is going to happen will happen.”

Just as Zhong Di said, when faced with events beyond anyone’s control, no one could take any truly targeted precautions.

All they could do was minimize their losses as much as possible and face the problem positively.

“I know that’s true... but I’m still worried.”

“All right... Dad, we’ll go over the recent work in a moment, then we’ll all have hot pot together.”

Seeing his father’s expression, Zhong Di decided to end the subject. That had been his intention from the beginning. Sometimes, saying nothing was better; once you started talking, everyone only worried more.

People were like that. When something made you sad or angry, the more you discussed it, the sadder or angrier you became. It was better to skip the subject altogether.

Afterward, Zhong Di began discussing the recent construction work with his father.

The fishpond would take three days to process. As for the greenhouse, his father, who had been supervising the work, had already found the most suitable construction method. Later, they would only need to assign someone to keep an eye on things.

In other words, once the fishpond was taken care of, his father could step away and oversee the renovation of the guesthouse.

The greenhouse was already in its final stage. The rolling shutters had been installed, and only the wiring remained before the electricity could be connected.

Further construction on the greenhouse would have to wait until the jujubes ripened or were nearly ripe in the middle of the month. They had to be picked before construction could continue.

Zhong Di had inspected the overall situation. There were very few jujube trees in the area where the greenhouse was being built; most were concentrated farther ahead, so the work would not be too troublesome.

The idea of renovating the guesthouse had only occurred to him that day.

Previously, Zhong Di had planned to wait until the end of September before deciding what to do. But the strong wind had shown him that certain facilities had to exist.

If the guesthouse had already been renovated, neither the customers nor the uncles working there would have been in such a miserable state today.

And he was not planning to renovate only the guesthouse. He also intended to build and decorate a kitchen, a storage room, and a dining hall.

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The rest was merely a matter of specific details, which could be discussed later.

Aside from the farm, there was also the reforestation project. He planned to find someone trustworthy to watch over it. Once the work progressed, the trees would need watering and monitoring.

In the long run, someone would definitely have to stay there permanently.

His father, mother, and Shao Hong were all unsuitable. He would have to find someone else. The only requirements were watering the plants and keeping an eye on the fruit trees. As for the remaining work, his father could bring some people over to handle it.

Once the fruit trees had taken root, he would put someone capable in charge and become a hands-off manager.

The same applied to the seasoning distribution business. He could actually monopolize it, but doing so would only give him more work to worry about and make the whole operation increasingly difficult to control. Aside from that, there seemed to be nothing especially appealing about it.

It would simply mean earning more money. But how much more counted as “more”? He might as well leave the opportunity to someone else and let them make the money.

Hmm... a perfect idea.

After discussing a few more specific details, they returned to the room where everyone else had gathered.

Fortunately, when the first building had been constructed, they had made it spacious. Twenty people or so could squeeze inside, barely.

The hot pot had already been prepared, using ingredients readily available in the kitchen.

There was seafood, mutton, enoki mushrooms, and every kind of vegetable from the fields. Everything could be tossed into the pot.

As long as you were willing to eat it, you could cook it in hot pot.

Even glutinous corn could be boiled in it.

They ate seafood, swished food through the hot pot, and drank a little liquor. With such a large group, the atmosphere was lively, and before they knew it, the entire afternoon had passed.

With his mind on the Pallas’s cat, Zhong Di naturally did not drink much. He merely raised a few polite toasts before taking his leave and letting the uncles enjoy themselves.

His mother and older sister did the same. A gathering of rough men was no place for them.

It was not until the sky had grown completely dark and the wind had eased somewhat that everyone began leaving one after another. Those who lived farther away were driven home by Shao Hong.

Most of the uncles were villagers, and there were not many who lived far away. One trip was enough.

It was not until nightfall that Zhong Di finally lay down on his bed.

Whew! He was truly exhausted—more exhausted than after working an entire day by himself. Socializing really was not his strong suit.