Chapter 20 The Benefactor of the Fruit Tree

20. Benefactor of Fruit Trees

In his previous life, when Jiang Rong returned to his hometown, it was deserted. Not only was his place deserted, but the towns downstream from the reservoir were also empty. In this life, after returning to his hometown to build a house, he hasn't encountered any locals except for construction crews.

He never expected to run into locals here, much less that he would be caught red-handed by the orchard owner while climbing a tree to pick fruit. If there had been a crack in the ground, he would have crawled into it.

The orchard owner's surname is Li, and the couple has been contracting the hillside to grow fruit trees for over twenty years. In this small town, most people are related by marriage. Their family lives in the same village as Chu Qiang's family, and by seniority, they are Chu Qiang's cousins.

To make it easier to manage the orchard, they spend most of their time living on the mountain, only occasionally going to the town at the foot of the mountain to buy some daily necessities.

Living in the mountains, access to water and electricity is inconvenient, so like Jiang Rong's family, they use solar panels to maintain their electricity supply, and they also draw water from a well. Because of this, even though the village below has lost its water and electricity, the couple's lives remain largely unchanged.

This couple didn't awaken any supernatural abilities; like Jiang Rong in her previous life, they were ordinary people who survived a major crisis. However, their wolfhound, Tiger, had mutated, and according to Jiang Rong's observation, Tiger's supernatural abilities were much stronger than his dog, Lele's.

Uncle Li's house is built halfway up the mountain. Standing under the eaves, you can overlook most of the orchard. There are many vegetables planted in front of and behind his house, and poultry resting under the fruit trees.

Under the eaves of Uncle Li's house were more than a dozen large buckets, each about half a person's height, filled with cool water. Seeing Jiang Xiaoheng looking at the buckets curiously, Uncle Li explained, "This is well water that has been pumped out. We'll use it to water the trees after sunset."

Well water is too cold; pouring it directly onto the tree roots would damage the tree. Therefore, the two elders of the Li family would draw water from the well beforehand to warm it up. Only after the sun went down and the temperature on the mountain cooled down would they carry the water to water the tree.

This job has been repeated every day for the past few months, but after months of suffering, all they've seen is that the elderly couple have become more haggard, and they see no results whatsoever.

Aunt Li brought out the electric fan from her house and blew it towards them: "The house is a bit messy, please don't mind."

The couple didn't take Jiang Rong's fruit theft to heart. The mountains were remote, and apart from fruit vendors and greedy children, few people ever came up there. With the recent heatwave, it was rare to see even a bird on the mountain, let alone after the major crisis; the town below was practically deserted.

They were quite happy to see Jiang Rong and his son. They hadn't expected there to be another family beyond the stream west of the orchard; they weren't alone.

At this moment, Uncle Li placed a small basin of dark red bayberries in front of Jiang Rong. "Eat up, Xiao Rong. These were just picked this morning, they're very fresh. Come on, baby, have some too."

As he spoke, Uncle Li grabbed a handful of bayberries from the basin and placed them in Jiang Xiaoheng's hand. Jiang Xiaoheng looked down at the bayberries, then at Uncle Li and Aunt Li, who were all smiles, and finally his gaze fell on Jiang Rong.

Jiang Rong nodded slowly, while Jiang Xiaoheng smiled brightly at Uncle Li and the others, saying loudly, "Thank you, Grandpa! Thank you, Grandma!"

His father taught him that he shouldn't take things given to him by others, and if he couldn't refuse, he must get his parents' permission.

Xiao Heng's words of thanks made Uncle Li and Aunt Li beam with joy. "What a good baby!" "Yes, he's cute and has a sweet tongue. He'll definitely grow up to be a handsome young man."

Jiang Xiaoheng placed the bayberries he was holding on the table and popped one into his mouth. The bayberries had been chilled with well water, making them sweet, sour, and juicy—a fresh delicacy that could fetch a high price elsewhere.

Uncle Li pushed the bowl of bayberries towards Jiang Rong, "Eat up, Xiao Rong, don't be shy. This year it's been dry with little rain, so the bayberries are smaller than usual, but they taste great. No more fruit vendors will be coming, so we'll have to eat them ourselves."

Unexpectedly, Uncle Li told a lame joke. Jiang Rong laughed and said, "That's not necessarily true. Maybe in a couple of years when things stabilize, more fruit vendors will come to our door."

Uncle Li chuckled twice, "Alright~ I appreciate your kind words~ By the way, Xiao Rong, when did you go back to your hometown? Are you and your son settling in well? If there's anything we can help you with, just let us know."

Jiang Rong felt a surge of comfort; he hadn't felt such genuine care in a long time. "We came back a couple of days ago, and everything is fine."

Jiang Xiaoheng's attention wasn't on the bayberries. He was munching on them when his dark, round eyes glanced at the imposing wolfhound lying to one side. "Doggy."

Jiang Rong glanced in the direction of her son's gaze and felt even more embarrassed. Both were mutant dogs, but the other dogs were large, powerful, and calm, while her silly dog ​​just stuck out its tongue and wagged its tail. Right now, Lele was rolling around on its back in front of Uncle Li's big wolfhound, but the dog completely ignored it!

Looking at Lele's adorable appearance, Uncle Li couldn't help but praise, "Your dog is very well cared for, so shiny and healthy. I've seen this kind of dog on TV before, it's a purebred, what's it called again? A kiji?"

Jiang Rong couldn't help but chuckle, "It's a Corgi, a Corgi with very short legs."

Aunt Li glanced at Lele's four short legs as he fidgeted, "This puppy is cute."

Jiang Rong modestly replied, "Tiger is even better raised; he's tall and fierce, and his superpower level is also high."

Uncle Li nodded proudly, "Yes, it didn't eat or drink for those two days, and my wife and I thought it wouldn't make it. Later we found out that Tiger had mutated. Luckily we had it, otherwise my wife and I would have been eaten by ants."

Two evenings ago, he and his wife were cutting down dead fruit trees by the stream when suddenly Tiger rushed over, grabbed their sleeves, and ran up the mountain. After running for a while, the elderly couple looked back and saw several wild boars charging down the mountain, followed by a huge swarm of ants.

If it weren't for Tiger's reminder, they would have been swallowed whole by ants like those wild boars.

Jiang Rong exclaimed, "What a good dog! With it around, you can all feel more at ease."

Seeing Uncle Li and Aunt Li, he couldn't help but think of himself in his past life. In his past life, thanks to Lele, he and his son were able to survive for so long after the crisis. Tiger is much stronger than Lele; he'll definitely be able to protect them for even longer.

Hearing Jiang Rong say this, Aunt Li sighed heavily: "How can anyone feel at ease in this world? I heard the towns down below are in complete chaos, everyone is without water and electricity. I don't know what to do next..."

Aunt Li's words made Uncle Li feel dejected as well. The old man's eyes reddened and his face was full of worry. "Yes, if the weather gets any hotter, all these fruit trees in the yard won't survive..."

These fruit trees represent half a lifetime of hard work for them. From the moment they planted the saplings, they cared for them as if they were their own children. The fruit trees have lived up to their expectations; every type of fruit produced in their orchard is of excellent quality and taste, attracting a constant stream of fruit vendors to the orchard in previous years.

This year is no good. Since the weather started getting hot, he and his wife have been getting up early and working late every day to water the trees. However, the weather is too hot, and many fruit trees still withered right before their eyes. The old couple were anxious and worried, but there was nothing they could do.

After learning about Uncle Li's troubles, Jiang Rong pondered for a moment, then put down the bayberries in her hand. "Uncle Li, could you let me take a look at those fruit trees that are about to die?"

Uncle Li looked at Jiang Rong in confusion, "Huh?"

Jiang Rong explained, "I am also a superhuman, but I am a wood-type superhuman. My power may be of some help to the fruit trees." Uncle Li and Aunt Li were so warmly welcoming to him and Xiao Heng, so it was only right and proper for him to help them.

As soon as she finished speaking, Uncle Li and Aunt Li exchanged bewildered glances. They hadn't expected Jiang Rong to be a superhuman. After understanding what Jiang Rong had said, Uncle Li excitedly stood up from his stool, "Hey! Okay, okay! I'll take you there right away!"

However, Jiang Rong wanted to give a heads-up beforehand, "Uncle Li and Aunt Li, let me try to see if I can help. If I can't, you can't blame me."

Uncle Li exclaimed in surprise, "How could it be your fault? If anyone is to blame, it's God!"

The first fruit tree Jiang Rong faced was a plum tree. Although the elderly couple had tried to reduce the number of plums, the tree was still slowly losing its vitality under the high temperature. The plums on the tree were wrinkled and completely lacked the liveliness that fresh fruit should have.

Seeing this plum tree, Uncle Li was heartbroken. "This is a new variety that was introduced two years ago, and it just started bearing fruit this year. Little Rong, can you take a look and see if you can cure it?"

Jiang Rong reached out and gently touched the plum tree, and a touch of green vitality quickly seeped from his fingertips into the trunk.

Aunt Li stood by, asking with concern, "Xiao Rong, do you need any medicine? We have some pesticides at home..."

Aunt Li had seen experts treat fruit trees before. After examining the trees, they would mix various pesticide solutions. Aunt Li also had some basic pesticides at home, which might be helpful for the fruit trees.

At this moment, the withered plum tree leaves unfurled as if they had absorbed a lot of water, and the yellowed leaves turned dark green at a visible speed. The tired branches regained their elasticity and vitality, and the shriveled fruits became plump and juicy. In the blink of an eye, the dying plum tree transformed into a healthy fruit tree with lush branches and leaves, laden with fruit.

Seeing this, Uncle Li and Aunt Li were both stunned. Uncle Li tried to smile, but his reddened eyes and the glistening tears made his smile look like a cry.

Aunt Li was surprised for a moment, then lowered her head, large tears rolling down her cheeks, "She's alive...she's alive..."

To revive the trees, they worked tirelessly from dawn till dusk, watering, fertilizing, weeding, and removing pests. But no matter how hard they tried, the thousands of fruit trees in the orchard began to wither and die one by one. Uncle Li and Aunt Li were heartbroken to see the trees they had cared for with their own hands die.

Now, their fruit trees are saved! With a wood-type ability user like Jiang Rong around, their fruit trees can finally survive.

Aunt Li held Jiang Rong's hand, unable to speak. Jiang Rong could only pat the back of her hand and say, "Auntie, don't get agitated, calm down."

Aunt Li kept shaking his hand, her words tumbling out in a jumbled mess of emotion, "Xiao Rong, thank you so much! You're a benefactor to our orchard!"

Uncle Li stroked the plum tree trunk with trembling hands, and light returned to his cloudy eyes. "Good, good, it's alive again."

Author's Note:

Fruit trees acquired! Rongrong and my son's fruit supply is secured!