Before Chen Hao could even properly place the beehive in his hands, the drop of honey on his knee had already solidified into a translucent sugar shell. Just as he was about to lift his leg and walk towards the workshop, Nana's voice rang out from behind him.

"The chlorophyll content of cucumber seedlings in Zone B has decreased by 47 percent."

He stopped and turned to look at her. The sunlight shone on her silvery-white exterior, reflecting a matte finish.

What did you say?

“The crops are malnourished,” she said. “They need to be supplemented with nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium.”

Chen Hao leaned the beehive against the edge of the field and limped to the cucumber patch. The leaves drooped, their edges yellowed, as if scorched by fire. He squatted down, his fingers digging into the soil; the roots were withered and lifeless.

"I water it every day and kill the bugs, so why is it still like this?" He grabbed a handful of soil and squeezed it in his hand; it was as loose as ash.

Nana slid a thin, tubular instrument from her side and inserted it into the mud beside her. A few seconds later, several lines of text appeared on the screen.

"The soil organic matter content is below the standard value for cultivation, and the soil fertility is depleted."

What is soil depletion?

“The land is exhausted,” she said. “If you keep planting things without replenishing it, it won’t grow good crops.”

Chen Hao grinned: "Then shouldn't we ask for leave and let the land rest for a couple of days?"

“This won’t work.” Nana put away the equipment. “We must replenish the humus as soon as possible.”

"Rotten... what?"

"It's fat."

Chen Hao's eyes lit up: "You mean, we can make our own fertilizer? Leftovers from the kitchen, rotten vegetable leaves, plus the animal manure piled up over there, mix them all together and let it decompose?"

"The principle holds true."

He suddenly stood up, slapped his thigh, and exclaimed, "Turning waste into treasure, I am the undisputed champion of environmental protection!"

Nana didn't move, the camera focused on the dried honey stain on his trouser leg.

"It is recommended to remove the attached materials first before carrying out agricultural operations."

"We'll talk about it later." He waved his hand. "We have to start now, or all these seedlings will turn yellow and die."

He turned and walked towards a corner of the base, with Nana following behind. The two marked out a space, laid down a plastic sheet to prevent leakage. Chen Hao first poured in the kitchen waste—moldy rice, swollen soybean dregs, and half-rotten potato peels. Then came straw and cut withered vines, layering them on top of each other.

"The smell is starting to get strong." He covered his nose.

“It hasn’t reached its peak yet,” Nana said calmly. “The smell will be stronger once the real fermentation begins.”

Why didn't you say so earlier?

"You didn't ask."

The last cartload brought in was filled with sheep dung. Actually, it was just the droppings left by three wild goats passing by, which had accumulated for almost half a month, dried, and clump together, turning black in color.

Chen Hao used a shovel to shovel into the pile, but accidentally overturned the bucket. The manure sludge slid down the slope and rubbed against his shoes.

"Ouch!" He jumped back, almost stepping into the wet mud. "Why is this stuff so slippery?"

"The moisture content is quite high." Nana handed over a new shovel. "I suggest stirring it well to speed up the decomposition."

After they finished stacking the layers, Nana sprinkled a small pinch of dark brown powder into it.

What is this?

"The natural bacteria isolated from the rotten melon rind the day before yesterday" she said, "can speed up the fermentation process."

Chen Hao nodded: "I understand, it's like adding yeast to the garbage."

"The analogy is appropriate."

They covered it with a layer of straw and weighed it down with several stones to keep out the wind. The first night, everything was quiet.

The next morning, as soon as Chen Hao opened the door, a pungent smell hit him.

"Holy crap!" He took a half step back, instinctively using his elbow to close the door a crack. "Who blew up the toilet?"

Nana stood beside the manure pile, the infrared scanner flashing red.

"The ammonia concentration is six times higher than the standard," she said. "It has already attracted insects from the surrounding area."

Chen Hao went closer to take a look and saw a swarm of flies densely packed in the air, their wings glistening with oil, and a few blackened beetles crawling on the tips of the grass.

"This isn't fertilizing, it's raising insects!" He tore off an old cloth from the wall and covered his mouth and nose. "If this continues, we won't be able to grow vegetables anymore, we'll just switch to raising flies."

“We can use sound waves to drive them away.” Nana removed the modified speaker from outside the workshop, connected the power, and set the frequency to 1800 Hz, continuous pulse.

She pressed the switch, and a low-frequency vibration was emitted. The flies' flight paths became erratic; some collided and fell, while others spun in place. The beetle also stopped moving, its antennae twitched a few times, and it slowly retreated back into the grass.

Chen Hao took the opportunity to compact the straw and then cover it with a layer of dry soil.

"Finally, some peace and quiet." He breathed a sigh of relief. "But the smell will probably take several days to dissipate, won't it?"

"It is expected to gradually weaken over the next 72 hours," Nana said. "During this period, the pile will need to be turned over twice a day to maintain ventilation."

"Do we still need to translate it?"

"Otherwise, the internal oxygen deficiency will reduce the fermentation efficiency."

On the morning of the third day, Chen Hao stood in front of the manure pile with a shovel in hand. Steam rose from the cracks in the pile, like a boiling pot.

He tried to push the shovel in, but it got stuck and he couldn't pull it out.

"How come this pile of things has teeth?" He gritted his teeth and strained, his shoulders tensed, his foot slipped, and he fell backward, landing on his butt in a mud puddle.

Nana reached out and helped him up.

“The internal material is brittle,” she said. “Next time, we can loosen the edges first and then cut into the center.”

"You make it sound so easy," Chen Hao said, wiping the mud off his face. "This job is even more tiring than carrying bricks."

But he went back to work, turning over the pile little by little and piling it up again. By the fifth day, the smell was no longer pungent, but instead had a musty, earthy fragrance.

"Done?" He peeled back the surface and grabbed a handful of dark brown crumbs. "This stuff looks like coffee grounds."

"The composting is 85% complete," Nana confirmed after testing. "It can be used on a small scale."

They marked out two square meters in the yellowest part of the cucumber patch and mixed in fresh fertilizer. Seven days later, the leaves in that patch turned noticeably green, and new shoots sprouted tall.

Chen Hao squatted by the field, measuring the height of the plants with a wooden ruler, muttering, "So this pile of stinky stuff is actually useful."

“The data supports the conclusion.” Nana recorded the soil moisture and pH value. “The second batch of composting sites has been planned.”

"You're getting cocky, aren't you?" Chen Hao looked up. "Didn't we agree to turn the soil twice a day? I'm practically a professional soil turner now."

“Agricultural production relies on continuous input,” she said. “You consumed more calories than you burned yesterday, so you are suited for physically demanding tasks.”

So, it's only useful because I'm fat?

"Logically sound."

Chen Hao snorted, stood up, and stretched. In the distance, the rapeseed flowers were still blooming, their golden waves rippling in the wind. Suddenly, he smelled a strange odor.

Looking back, a wisp of white smoke was rising from the edge of the second pile of manure.

"Hey!" He strode over. "This isn't going to spontaneously combust, is it?"

Nana quickly focused her camera: "The internal temperature is 68 degrees Celsius, close to the critical point. I suggest turning the stack over immediately to dissipate heat."

Chen Hao grabbed a shovel and poked it in, but after flipping it a couple of times, the shovel got stuck again.

He pulled hard, his body leaned forward, and his forehead hit the handle of the shovel.

"Ouch!"

Nana reached out and put her hand on his shoulder.

"be safe."

"It's nothing." He rubbed his forehead and exerted force again.

This time, the shovel finally pulled it out. A burst of hot air shot out, carrying a strong, fermented smell.

He was panting, looking at the turned-up black soil, and suddenly smiled.

"Would you call this turning waste into treasure?"

Nana nodded: "The resource recycling rate has increased by 39 percent."

"So you're not going to throw away kitchen waste anymore?"

"All available."

"They even accept the packaging from the spicy snacks I ate yesterday?"

"Plastics are non-degradable and need to be classified separately."

"I thought you were going to say 'it can also be used as an energy supplement'."

"It is not feasible."

Chen Hao leaned the shovel against the edge of the field and scribbled a few lines in his notebook. The sun was setting, casting long shadows. His trouser legs were covered in mud, and his fingernails were full of black residue.

Nana retrieved the coordinates of the next work point.

"The third batch of composting is about to begin in Zone C."

"Can't you even let me rest for half a day?"

"According to the schedule, there are no free periods."

"You are truly impartial and incorruptible."

"I simply execute the optimal solution."

Chen Hao sighed and bent down to pick up the gloves.

"Fine, I can't stay idle anyway."

He walked towards the materials area, his steps a little dragging. Halfway there, he suddenly stopped.

Not far away on the ground, several ants were moving quickly along a thin line, all rushing towards the newly turned pile of fertilizer.

"Again?" He frowned. "You can attract attention with such a small commotion?"

Nana adjusts the lens focus.

“A new type of swarming behavior,” she said. “They carry microparticles, which appears to be transport behavior.”

Chen Hao took a few steps closer and squatted down.

An ant, carrying a small black substance twice the size of its body, struggles to move forward.

He reached out and brushed aside the grass beside him.

Below was a hole, surrounded by similar small particles.

“These aren’t ordinary ants,” he said. “Are they building a warehouse?”