Chapter 13 Warning Signs of Withering
# Chapter 13: Warning Signs of Withering
Before the joy of the shared farmland's bountiful harvest could spread across Qingxi Village, a dark cloud quietly settled in. The traditional crops, which had just supported the village's cultural and creative businesses, were now facing their first crisis.
That morning, Lin Xiaoman, as usual, led the villagers on a tour of the shared fields. Dewdrops clung to the tomato leaves, reflecting the scattered morning light. As they reached Uncle Li's old-variety tomato field, they heard him call out urgently, "Xiaoman, come and take a look! Why are these tomatoes wilting?"
Uncle Li was hunched over, holding a tomato vine. The once glossy green leaves had turned dark brown, their edges scorched. The star-shaped tomatoes hanging from the vine had lost their former rosy color, their skin gray and soft to the touch. "They were fine before I finished work last night. How did they become like this overnight?"
Lin Xiaoman's heart skipped a beat, and she hurried over. As soon as her fingertips touched the withered leaves, they felt dry and cold—older tomato leaves are usually warm, so this felt distinctly wrong. She squatted down and carefully scraped away the soil at the base. The roots beneath were black and tangled with fine, rotten mud. Up close, she could smell a faint musty odor.
"It's root rot." Lin Xiaoman's voice trembled slightly, and the strength of his fingertips squeezing the soil increased unconsciously. "Old varieties of tomatoes have sensitive roots. Once infected, they spread faster than ordinary tomatoes."
The news spread along the ridges of the fields, and the villagers quickly gathered. In Aunt Wang's old strawberry patch, bright red berries fell to the ground, soon rotting into a brown, slimy mess. The blueberry seedlings in the old orchard were even worse, their leaves covered in a thin layer of white mold, like frost, crumbling at the touch of a finger. Most alarming were the newly planted "honey heart" seedlings in the backyard. Their tender leaves were curled up, their buds were gray, and even their stems had lost their former stiffness.
Chen Wang was livestreaming from the courtyard, his phone pointed at a basket of freshly picked, old-variety tomatoes. The fruits in his camera were still vibrant red. "Look at this old-variety 'Star Pattern' tomato. The flesh is firm and two degrees sweeter than regular tomatoes..." He hadn't finished his words when he spotted Lin Xiaoman at the courtyard gate. Her hair was a mess from the wind, she clutched a withered tomato leaf, her face pale as a sheet.
"What's wrong?" Chen Wang immediately turned off the microphone, and the uneasiness in his heart instantly surged up.
Lin Xiaoman gently tugged at his sleeve, her voice choked with uncontrollable sobs: "Many of Gongxiangtian's old varieties have wilted, as if they were sick. The workshop still has many orders to send. If... if it can't be saved, our cultural and creative business will..." At the end of her words, her voice became smaller and smaller, and her eyes were red.
Netizens in the live broadcast room had already noticed something was wrong, and the comments were scrolling quickly: "What's wrong with the anchor? Sister Xiaoman seems to be crying?" "Is there something wrong with the crops?" Chen Wang didn't bother to explain, and hurriedly said, "I have an urgent matter, I will broadcast it to you all later", and followed Lin Xiaoman to the shared field, forgetting to put away his mobile phone.
Arriving at the edge of the field, Chen Wang gasped at the sight before him—the shared fields, lush and green yesterday, now seemed drained of their vitality. Tomato vines drooped from their bamboo trellises, and the strawberry beds were filled with rotten fruit. Villagers gathered around the fields, their faces filled with panic. Aunt Wang clutched her watering can, tears welling in her eyes: "Did I water too much yesterday? I should have watered less..."
"It has nothing to do with watering." Lin Xiaoman suppressed her inner confusion and took out her grandfather's old notebook from her canvas bag - the one she had given to Chen Wang before. Her fingertips quickly ran across the pages. "Grandpa wrote that old varieties of crops have tender roots. If there are foreign objects in the fertilizer, they are prone to disease." She suddenly looked up at Chen Wang, her eyes filled with anxiety, and her voice softened. "Which store did you buy the organic fertilizer from a while ago?"
Chen Wang was stunned for a moment, then realized: "It's the agricultural supply store in town. The owner said that the fertilizer is specially used for old varieties and has sufficient fertility. I was thinking about rushing the order and didn't look at the ingredients carefully..."
"Hurry up and bring us the remaining fertilizer!" Lin Xiaoman's voice was a little higher than usual, but still a little timid. It didn't sound like an order, but more like an anxious request.
Chen Wang didn't dare delay and ran home. He soon returned with half a bag of organic fertilizer. Lin Xiaoman squatted down, tore open a corner of the package, and sniffed it. Her face paled instantly, and she took a half step back, her voice trembling. "It's mixed with herbicides... Older crop varieties have sensitive roots and can't handle it at all."
"What? How dare a shady merchant mix this stuff in!" The villagers were instantly furious. Uncle Li clenched his fists until his knuckles turned white. "I'll call a few young men and go to town to settle the score with him!"
"Uncle Li, don't go yet!" Lin Xiaoman hurried forward, gently pulling his arm, her voice a little hoarse. "Going to him now won't save the crops. We have to find a way to remedy the situation first, otherwise it will be too late." She flipped through her grandfather's notes, finally stopping at a certain page. Her fingertips tapped the handwriting, her tone softening. "Grandpa wrote that if old varieties of crops are contaminated with chemicals, watering the roots with leaf mold mixed with honey can help, and spraying the leaves with water boiled with pear branches can sterilize them."
"Is the leaf mold in the old orchard enough to irrigate so many fields?" Chen Wang frowned and looked across the entire shared field, feeling unsure.
"If it's not enough, use mine!" Grandma Zhang walked out of the crowd on crutches, her voice firm. "I've had leaf mold piled up in my backyard for over ten years. I save it every year for my fruit trees. It's sure to save the old varieties!"
"I have honey! I just took it from the beehive yesterday, no sugar added!" Aunt Wang wiped away her tears and immediately joined in. "There are a lot of pear branches in the old orchard. I'll go cut them down! Be careful and don't touch the trees!" Uncle Li also suppressed his anger and took the initiative to do the work. Even the usually quiet old accountant said, "I have a big iron pot at home, it's perfect for boiling pear branches in water!"
The villagers chattered in unison, their earlier panic gradually giving way to unity. Chen Wang gathered himself and began dividing the work: "Uncle Li, take a few young men to dig leaf mold. Both at Grandma Zhang's house and in the old orchard. Aunt Wang, organize the women to go home and collect honey, storing it in clean pottery jars. The old accountant, take a few people to chop pear branches, being careful not to damage the old trees. The rest of you, stay with Xiaoman and me to pick the diseased leaves first and prepare the ingredients for the repair."
Wangfu, crouching at Chen Wang's feet, suddenly ran over with a small plastic shovel in his mouth. He placed the shovel at his feet, his tail wagging gently. Chen Wang stroked its head, and the warmth in his palm slightly calmed his anxiety. The old crops were the hope of the village. If they couldn't be saved, not only would the cultural and creative workshop be shut down, but the villagers' hope would also be lost.
In the compounding yard, clay pots and wooden barrels were scattered across the floor. Lin Xiaoman squatted on the ground, sifting leaf mold, but her fingers trembled uncontrollably, causing the sieve to slip from her hands several times, spilling the soil all over the floor. She looked at the leaf mold, her eyes welling up again: "It's all my fault! If I had reminded you to check the fertilizer ingredients earlier, this wouldn't have happened..."
Chen Wang put down the wooden spoon and gently supported her arm. "Don't blame you. It's my inexperience. I thought the old variety needed enough fertilizer, and I didn't check the fertilizer carefully. The responsibility lies with me." He picked up a clean sieve, put it in her hand, and said softly, "Let's work together to find a solution. With everyone's help, the old variety can definitely be saved."
Lin Xiaoman looked up at him, tiny particles of dirt clinging to her eyelashes. Her eyes were watery, but she wasn't crying anymore. She took the sieve and slowly sifted the soil, her movements gradually becoming steady. At that moment, the young honeysuckle seedlings in the backyard swayed in the wind, their curled leaves opening a little—perhaps because of the wind, but it made Lin Xiaoman's eyes light up: "Look, it doesn't seem so wilted anymore!"
Chen Wang looked in the direction she pointed. The leaves of the seedlings had indeed stretched out a bit, and hope began to emerge in his heart: "Let's sift the soil quickly and prepare the materials sooner, so that we can save them sooner."
Soon, the villagers who had been away began to return. Uncle Li and his men pushed a cart piled high with leaf mold, the dark brown lumps of earth emitting a fragrant, decayed aroma. Aunt Wang returned with the women, their clay jars filled with golden honey, the sweet aroma emanating from the lids. The old accountant and his men carried bundles of pear branches, the fresh stems still wet with dew.
Everyone got busy according to Lin Xiaoman's instructions: the strong men took turns stirring the leaf mold and honey water, the wooden shovel hitting the wooden barrel, making a "clattering" sound; the women set up a big pot in the yard, cut the pear branches into small pieces and threw them in, the firewood "crackled", and the hot air wrapped in the fragrance of the pear tree filled the yard; the children also came to help, holding small basins to pass soil and water, their little faces flushed.
Chen Wang shouldered his sprayer, filled it with water from the cooled pear branches, and headed for the tomato field. The sun grew stronger, burning his face. Sweat trickled down his forehead, dripping into his eyes, stinging them, but he didn't bother to wipe it away. He reached a withered tomato vine and flicked the switch, letting a fine mist of water fall onto the leaves. After a moment, he noticed the withered vine tremble slightly, as if absorbing the water.
"It works!" Chen Wang was delighted and increased the speed of spraying. The clothes on his back were soaked with sweat and stuck tightly to his body, but he didn't feel tired at all.
Elsewhere, Lin Xiaoman squatted beside a honey fruit seedling, holding a small bowl of honey water. She dipped her fingertips into the water and carefully dabbed it onto the leaves. As soon as her fingertips touched the leaves, the tips of the seedlings shone a faint green—perhaps a psychological effect, or perhaps it was truly effective, but she couldn't help but exclaim softly, "It seems to be coming back to life!"
The villagers heard her shout and looked over. Seeing that the seedlings were indeed showing improvement, they became even more motivated. Uncle Li shouted, "Keep working hard! Our old varieties will definitely survive!"
Everyone worked until dusk, when the setting sun painted the sky orange-red, before finally stopping. Looking back at the shared fields, the leaves of the old tomato vines had regained some of their luster, tiny new shoots had sprouted in the strawberry patch, the white mold on the blueberry seedlings had mostly faded, and the leaves of the honeyberry seedlings had fully unfurled, gleaming with a tender green.
"He's alive! He's really alive!" Aunt Wang excitedly pulled the people next to her, laughing and dancing, tears mixed with sweat streaming down her face, but she was full of joy.
Chen Wang and Lin Xiaoman stood side by side on the ridge of the field, looking at the old crops gradually coming back to life, and smiled at each other. Lin Xiaoman gently rubbed his arm, her voice a little tired but cheerful: "Fortunately, I have Grandpa's old method and everyone's help, otherwise I really don't know what I would do."
"We carried this through together." Chen Wang's fingertips gently touched her hand, then quickly held it. "Next time I buy fertilizer, I'll definitely check the ingredients carefully. I won't be careless anymore. I won't let this happen again."
At this time, Grandma Zhang came over with a large bowl of mung bean soup, steam rising from the bowl. "Everyone, come and have some soup to cool down! The old variety is fine, it's better than anything else!"
The villagers gathered around, each holding a bowl of mung bean soup. The cool, sweet taste slid down their throats, dispelling any fatigue. Some talked about their earlier panic, while others laughed at their faces covered in dust from sifting the soil. Their laughter drifted down the ridges of the fields, blending with the rustling of swaying leaves.
The evening breeze blew across the shared fields, carrying the fresh scent of earth, the sweetness of honey, and the delicate fragrance of pear trees. Chen Wang, holding Lin Xiaoman's hand, slowly walked along the ridge of the field, Wangfu following at their side, his tail wagging cheerfully. He looked down at their clasped hands, then up at the gradually recovering fields. Suddenly, a realization dawned on him: This crisis hadn't broken them; instead, it had brought the villagers closer together, and the feelings between him and Lin Xiaoman had become clearer through their shared adversity.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
