Chapter 28 The Choice of Responsibility Field is More Important Than Effort
That morning, Ning Jia woke up early.
She rubbed her eyes, and as she got out of bed with her hair all messy, she sleepily glanced at the yard through the bedroom window:
Strange, the water pipes in the yard seem to be moving on their own, watering the seedlings in the vegetable garden?
She was startled for a moment, then realized what was happening and muttered with a laugh, "We're here way too early!"
In the courtyard at a little past six in the morning, the sunlight was still weak and not very powerful, which was indeed a good time to water the vegetables.
Shi Ying held her two little hands high above her head, holding one end of the water hose, and stood by the flower bed, watering intently. Dao Ya directed her from the side, "Water this side enough, now move on to the other side." She then said to Gan Cao and Xue Cao, "Check if there are any weeds in the soil, and pull them out if you find any."
Pshaw, he's barely an adult yet, but he's already putting on quite the airs.
The licorice root looked a little sour, but it didn't say anything. It just squatted down in the soil and pulled out a few more weeds with even more effort.
"Hey, Licorice, be careful not to damage the seedlings," Daoya called out from the side.
"Okay, okay."
Licorice angrily tugged at the grass in the soil, her pale yellow hair standing on end in anger.
Ever since Daoya watched some agricultural program on that big iron box in Ningjia, her tone of voice has changed. She's become like one of those experts on the show, constantly giving orders and guidance. She's gone from a little kid to an "authority figure."
"Why should I?" Gan Cao retorted, feeling that he was the most knowledgeable about plants in the tribe, and that Dao Ya had merely borrowed the giant's knowledge and was no more capable than him.
He was feeling down when Ning Jia, who had just finished washing up, came out of her room and walked into the yard.
"Everyone, you've worked hard. Here, have some fruit."
Ning Jia placed a small stool in a corner of the yard, put a plate of cut fruit on the stool, and called out.
Wow, there's fruit to eat!
Snow Grass and Quartz peeked out and immediately jumped out of the small vegetable patch, each holding a piece of fruit, and sat on the steps to the side, swinging their legs as they ate.
The licorice and rice sprouts seemed oblivious, still busy in the vegetable patch—
"Daoya, you've watered this seedling too much. Can it even drink that much water?"
"Yes, you can drink it. The experts said that seedlings need to be thoroughly watered once to grow quickly."
"But didn't you pour too much water? Even one person can't drink this much..."
"You don't understand, Cai Cai is different from us humans..."
"How are they different? Don't we all need to eat, sleep, and grow up?"
...
The two little ones stood in the dirt, sweating profusely, their little black faces covered in mud, arguing loudly. In the end, one said, "You're an idiot," and the other said, "You're the biggest idiot," and they no longer knew what they were arguing about.
Quartz and Snow Grass were still eating, completely oblivious, and even had a relieved expression on their faces, as if to say, "These two are finally arguing."
Ning Jia came over with an ear of corn in her mouth. Seeing Gan Cao and Dao Ya standing there exchanging barbs, she squatted down and quietly asked Xue Cao, "What's wrong with them? Are they arguing? Should we go and try to talk them out?"
"It's alright, don't worry about them."
Xuecao briefly explained the reason for their argument, and Ningjia chuckled. These two little ones usually seemed quite gentle, but they were surprisingly competitive when it came to growing vegetables.
She thought for a moment, "How about we let them each take a plot of land and plant it in their own way? Once the vegetables grow, we'll see who's really good at it."
Xuecao's eyes lit up. "That's a great idea! How about I claim a plot of vegetable garden too?"
Quartz also found it interesting, "Then I want my own vegetable garden too!"
Finally, Ning Jia divided the flowerbed into four sections, and each of the four little characters claimed a small plot of land. They even marked their own plots, some sticking a small stone or a twig in the middle. Ning Jia also generously sponsored four small flags made from toothpicks and flyers.
As for the scallions growing in the foam boxes next to the flowerbed, Ning Jia took charge of them herself, quickly implementing the Ning family's vegetable garden contract responsibility system.
After planting their own little flags in the vegetable garden, Gancao and Daoya immediately started arguing. The two were full of energy and would run from the park before dawn every day to water, weed, and fertilize in Ningjia's yard.
Xuecao and Shiying were initially watching the two little ones having fun, but as they watched, they inexplicably became serious as well, following their younger siblings around every day, rolling up and taking meticulous care of the vegetable seedlings.
Only Ning Jia, who had been through a lot in the Titans society, was completely unaffected by the outside world. She adopted a completely laissez-faire policy towards the little green onions she was responsible for, watering them when she remembered and not watering them when she didn't... well, she didn't remember.
But she was also very busy. In addition to going to work as usual, she had to submit resumes, attend interviews, prepare food for the little people, and sell sachets and wreaths on a part-time job. She worked non-stop every day. In comparison, the little people who only needed to grow vegetables seemed to have an easy and happy life.
Soon, under the careful care of the little people, the seedlings all survived and began to grow slowly.
But in the eyes of the little people who had never grown vegetables before, the vegetables were still growing too slowly.
"Haha, Licorice, your vegetables are so short! How come they're even shorter than you?"
"Hmph, just you wait, my vegetables will definitely be taller than yours!"
"Just wait, but don't cry if you lose!"
"...Don't cry then!"
Just as Gan Cao and Dao Ya were anxiously watching their seedlings and exchanging harsh words, the scallions planted in the styrofoam boxes outside the flower bed had quietly grown. Compared to the tiny seedlings in the flower bed, those scallions were tall and plump, swaying in the wind.
What?! The little people were all dumbfounded! Ning Jia clearly didn't put any effort into planting vegetables, so how come the vegetables grew first? And they grew so tall?
Ning Jia squatted beside the styrofoam box, happily cut off a piece of scallion with scissors, and smiled smugly: Haha, you're silly, aren't you? This is what they call choice being more important than effort.
Daoya and Gancao, who had just been making harsh remarks, looked at each other, their eyes reddening as they wiped away tears, remembering their hardships over the past few days.
"Hey, don't cry, don't cry. Actually, I won unfairly."
Seeing that the little people were greatly discouraged, Ning Jia was afraid that it would dampen their enthusiasm and cause them to give up on growing vegetables altogether. So she quickly explained the growth cycle of various vegetables to them, and they finally understood.
Ning Jia concluded, "Therefore, we have a saying in our Giant World: knowledge is power. Valuable knowledge, coupled with diligent practice, makes it easier to succeed than simply working hard without any real effort."
Gan Cao, who was standing nearby, seemed to be deep in thought. Soon, there was one more little guy watching agricultural programs on TV in Ning Jia's place.
Day by day, the vegetable-growing business of the little people gradually got on track, but Ning Jia still didn't have a job.
"If only finding a job could be as easy as growing vegetables."
On a weekend morning, Ning Jia squatted beside the flower bed, looking at the seedlings that were growing better and better, and sighed softly.
"Is it difficult to find a job?" Xuecao asked, puzzled.
Ning Jia nodded, then shook her head. "To be precise, it's more difficult to find a suitable job."
Xuecao tilted her head and said, "Then we won't work anymore. We can make money selling sachets and flower wreaths, right?"
"How can that be the same? A formal job offers a stable income and includes social insurance and housing fund contributions, while selling sachets and flower garlands is unpredictable; customers come and go, and the income is unstable, plus the raw materials aren't always available..."
"But aren't flower wreaths quite popular with giants these days? You even said before that a big order could be worth a month's salary."
"Besides, didn't you suddenly lose your job before? A job that just disappears like that can't be considered stable, can it?"
Xuecao chattered on and on, saying things that Ningjia couldn't respond to.
Ning Jia was momentarily speechless. Recalling her recent income from selling sachets and flower wreaths, she realized it was quite substantial. If only… She slapped her forehead and suddenly stood up. “I almost forgot! I still have to deliver the goods later!”
In the early morning, Plum Blossom Park was practically deserted, except for a few elderly people exercising. Ning Jia, carrying a heavy canvas bag, quickly arrived at the large tree where the little people lived.
She had just put down the bag when He Meng and Bai Su appeared like little elves, "Ning Jia, good morning~"
Ning Jia smiled and said, "Good morning~ I brought you some egg pudding, would you like to try some?"
He Meng nodded vigorously, "Great, great, it sounds delicious!"
Upon hearing that there was food, Bai Su immediately turned to find the clan leader, Cang Lan. A short while later, Cang Lan appeared under the tree with the other clan members.
"Lord Ningjia, I heard from Xuecao yesterday that you're coming to collect the flower wreath today, is that right?"
"Well, no rush. I brought some egg pudding. Everyone, come and have some."
Ning Jia opened the container of pale yellow pudding, glanced at the perfectly intact pudding (which looked like tofu), and looked around. "Is there...?"
"Yes, yes, I'll go find it!"
He Meng responded enthusiastically and quickly disappeared. When she reappeared, she dragged over a long, thick, dark green leaf.
Ning Jia turned her head and saw that the leaf was really big; it could wrap up He Meng completely and tie a knot around her.
However, when Ning Jia took the leaf and prepared to tear it open, she found that the leaf was thick, hard, and very sturdy, and she couldn't tear it at all.
"The leaf He Meng found is too hard, let's use mine instead."
Bai Su quickly brought out the tender green oval leaves she had found. Ning Jia smiled slightly at her and slowly scooped out the smooth pudding little by little with a spoon, placing it on the leaves.
The little ones who tasted the pudding quickly exclaimed in surprise. Ning Jia shushed them, "Keep your voice down, there seems to be someone over there."
The little ones fell silent, but their faces still beamed with undisguised smiles. They stared at each other with their round eyes, communicating through their gazes:
Oh, this pudding is so delicious! So good! I heard it's made with eggs too. Giants are amazing; they can make so many delicious foods just from eggs...
Only He Meng ate her pudding quietly on the side, looking rather depressed.
After Ning Jia finished distributing the pudding and packed the flower wreath and jewelry that Cang Lan had brought into a box, she picked up the long leaf that had been placed aside and smelled it carefully.
Hmm? This smell... can't be, right?
She took out her phone, snapped a picture, and used an image recognition app to identify it. Hey, it really is a relative of a zongzi leaf… No wonder she thought this leaf looked like a zongzi leaf earlier.
She called out to He Meng, "Where did you find this leaf?"
He Meng still looked sullen, and pointed a thin finger to a corner in the distance, "There are many, many over there."
Ning Jia was truly impressed by He Meng's lucky streak. She had been to the park so many times and was quite familiar with the area, but she had never noticed these things before.
"He Meng, you're really amazing! You've discovered something really useful." Ning Jia gave He Meng a thumbs up.
He Meng's face lit up immediately, and she asked excitedly, "Really? Really?"
"Really, really! Come on, let's go take a look over there."
Ning Jia placed He Meng on her shoulder, and the two of them slowly walked towards the river. With He Meng's guidance, they found a lot of mugwort in a very secluded corner, as well as reeds, cattails, and other plants along the riverbank.
Thank you again for the gifts of nature!
Ning Jia's brain had already begun automatically thinking about how to utilize these natural resources. The melancholy of not being able to find a job was completely forgotten. She touched the lush mugwort and smiled at He Meng, saying:
"Thanks to your discovery, we'll have business to do again this Dragon Boat Festival."
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