Chapter 99: Full of Energy and Working with High Spirits
Aunt Chen stayed at Wang Zhizhi's rented house for a week, a rare occurrence. Wang Zhizhi sent Shi Wan photos every day, showing off how lavish the lunchboxes she brought were.
Shi Wan smiled without saying a word, and then took a picture of the sumptuous dishes in the cafeteria and sent it over.
Wang Zhizhi showed no emotion, only saying that next time she went, Shi Wan must take her to eat in the cafeteria.
Shi Wan replied to her expressionlessly, "You big glutton."
On the day Aunt Chen left, Shi Wan took some local specialties from the farm to Wang Zhizhi's house early in the morning. There were nutritious eggs and duck eggs, as well as freshly slaughtered and vacuum-packed chicken, duck and rabbit meat, and some vegetables that were picked that morning and were easy to carry and transport.
Shi Wan has been busy preparing these things since yesterday. Aunt Chen brought her so many things, she can't just eat and drink for free empty-handed.
Aunt Chen praised her for raising healthy plants and growing vegetables, but also expressed concern about how much money she would have to sell all those good things for. She suggested that she take only a small amount to try, since it was just her and Uncle Wang at home and they wouldn't be able to eat much anyway.
Shi Wan smiled and packed it for her. "If you can't finish it in one meal, save it and eat it slowly. I'll send you more when you're done. I don't have much else, but I have plenty of these things. Why are you being so polite with me?"
Aunt Chen then accepted it, feeling embarrassed.
After bidding farewell to Aunt Chen, who was reluctant to leave and repeatedly urged Shi Wan to go home with Zhizhi for the New Year, Shi Wan's focus returned to the operation of the farm.
Perhaps it was the abundance of love and delicious food from Aunt Chen that recharged her, but she felt incredibly energetic lately, working with astonishing efficiency. Even the numbers on the reports seemed clear and attractive to her.
It's true that people need to recharge occasionally, otherwise they feel like their energy has been drained by work every day.
When she had some free time, she went to the warehouse in Zone 1 for a look around, as usual.
Aunt Li and Lin Xiaomei still worked together seamlessly. When there were orders, they packed them up; when there were no orders, they rested. One of them crocheted new clothes for Tangyuan with flying needles, while the other buried herself in her studies, with a huge pile of past exam papers beside her.
The new look they're working on today is a vest shaped like a little bee. It's so cute it's almost unfair. Just looking at that tiny outfit, Shi Wan can imagine how adorable Tangyuan would look wearing it.
"Boss Shi is here!" Aunt Li, with her sharp eyes, put down her crochet hook and greeted him with a smile. "Tangyuan was just here supervising the work. I guess he went to inspect his territory again."
Lin Xiaomei also raised her head and shyly called out, "President Shi."
Looking at the orderly warehouse and the peaceful state of the two people, Shi Wan felt at ease. She shared some of the braised beef that Aunt Chen had given them with them, saying, "This is a special beef that Zhizhi's mother brought. You should try it too. It's especially delicious."
Aunt Li thanked him repeatedly, and Lin Xiaomei also whispered a thank you to President Shi.
After giving a few more instructions, she left the warehouse and strolled over to the hydroponic greenhouse.
Sure enough, Tangyuan was squatting in the greenhouse wearing his little bee hat. The hat should be a matching set with the vest that Aunt Li was knitting, both being equally adorable.
He squatted solemnly in front of the cultivation tank of the twinkling star grass, his hands tucked into his sleeves, performing the daily energy infusion ritual. In reality, he was just staring at it with wide eyes, and it was hard to tell if he was daydreaming.
When he saw Shi Wan come in, he only glanced at her perfunctorily, meowed twice as a greeting, and then continued to perform his duties as an assistant.
The starlight grass has now grown to the height of a palm, and its faint glow at night is incredibly beautiful.
The seven-colored mood berries next to it have also started to bear fruit. The small berries display a variety of rainbow colors, which makes people feel happy just looking at them.
"Well done, Tangyuan, your bonus for dried fish this month is doubled!" Shi Wan smiled and ruffled Tangyuan's fluffy head.
Tangyuan squinted its eyes contentedly, making a satisfied gurgling sound in its throat, and wagged its tail triumphantly, demonstrating that actions speak louder than words.
After inspecting the first district, Shi Wan went to the store.
Before even entering, I could see through the glass window that the place was bustling with people, and the business was booming.
Today it was Mianmian's turn to be on duty at the store. She was squatting on top of the cat tree in the interactive area like a big triangular rice ball, her bright blue eyes looking down at the crowd below. Occasionally, she would reach out her paw to fiddle with the hanging feather toys, which made everyone exclaim in soft voices how cute she was.
Wearing its little frame, Ju Bao tried its best to chase a rolling toy ball. Although its running posture was still a bit awkward, its hard-working little appearance and increasingly steady steps won a lot of loving and encouraging glances.
As soon as Shi Wan entered the store, the saleswoman Xiao Yu quickly came up to her and said in a low voice with a hint of curiosity, "Boss, there's a customer over there who wants to talk to you."
Following the direction Xiaoyu pointed, I saw a well-dressed, gentle young lady holding a Siamese cat that looked a little nervous, standing in front of the Vitality Grass series product shelf.
"Hello, I'm the manager of this store. Is there anything you need to consult me about?" Shi Wan stepped forward and greeted him with a smile.
When the woman saw Shi Wan, it was as if she had seen a savior. She quickly said, "Hello, boss! This is my son. He... he's been acting strangely lately. He gets very stressed and hides at the slightest noise. He won't eat or drink. We took him to the vet, but they found nothing wrong. The vet said he'd get used to it on his own, but he hasn't gotten better and has lost several pounds. I'm so worried. You're so good at taking care of cats, you must have a way to help me, right?"
The Siamese cat, known as Prince, was trembling slightly in her arms, its blue eyes warily scanning its surroundings.
It was indeed very thin, a skinny cat, even its fur was dull and lackluster.
Shi Wan took a closer look and understood; she had seen this situation many times before.
She softened her voice and suggested, "Please don't worry, may I ask how to address you? Okay, Ms. Lu, I think the prince might be a bit emotionally sensitive. You could try our Energizing Calming Cat Bed. The filling contains a high concentration of plant extracts, which can effectively soothe emotions. You can also pair it with this completely plant-derived, non-toxic, and harmless tranquil fragrance to diffuse around the house and create a relaxing environment."
She picked up the sample and carefully let the prince smell it.
Perhaps it was the unique tranquil scent of the Vitality Grass that had an effect, because the prince's trembling seemed to lessen somewhat, and his nose twitched twice.
Ms. Lu stared intently at the prince, noticing the slight change. She grasped at this like a lifeline, exclaiming, "Does it really work? It seems to be helping a little, doesn't it? I'll buy it! I'll buy it all! As long as it helps the prince get better!"
“Don’t worry,” Shi Wan said with a smile, “The effect varies from person to person and from cat to cat, but so far most of the feedback has been good. You can also take a small sample pack of mood-soothing food to see if the prince is willing to eat it.”
She skillfully packed the products and carefully explained how to use them.
After seeing off the profusely thanking Ms. Lu, Shi Wan noticed a boy who looked like a student carrying a camera. He was squatting next to Ju Bao, carefully trying to take a picture, and muttering, "Go Ju Bao! You're the best! Your strength has healed me!"
Ju Bao seemed to understand his encouragement. She stopped, tilted her head back, and gave him a soft "meow," her amber eyes sparkling.
The boy was so excited that his hands trembled, and he kept pressing the shutter button.
Shi Wan felt a warm feeling in her heart as she watched this scene.
If she can bring a sense of healing to everyone, then she has done a good deed, right?
Great, today is another day to accumulate +1 merit.
In the afternoon, Su Qing couldn't find her at the farm. She called and learned that she was at the store, so she took some time to come to the store and brought with her the new quarterly production optimization plan version 2.0.
"As you said last time, those low-frequency products have been adjusted to quarterly production. I have re-planned the freed-up capacity, focusing on the Vitality series and the Low-Fat series."
Su Qing, dressed in a well-tailored suit trousers, spoke quickly and clearly, "In addition, the newly recruited employees in Zone Two have completed their training and entered the workshop. Their production efficiency has improved by about 12.3 percentage points. Here is a detailed data report."
Shi Wan took the thick report and looked at the dense yet clearly organized data and charts. She exclaimed sincerely, "Manager Su, having you is truly a blessing. Your efficiency is unparalleled!"
Su Qing raised an eyebrow, her tone slightly smug, "Come on, I'm just doing my job. But you look great lately, it seems Aunt Chen's loving care is having a significant effect."
"That's right!" Shi Wan touched her slightly rounder cheeks, which she had recently gained weight from, and joked, "I feel like my health and mana bars are fully restored! I could read ten reports in one go without even breaking a sweat!"
The two looked at each other and smiled.
Looking at the endless stream of customers and the leisurely cats in the store, Su Qing's tone softened, and she made a rare joke, "Judging from the current situation, the road ahead for our farm is so bright that it's impossible to sleep at night."
“Who says otherwise?” Shi Wan joked with a smile, her gaze sweeping across the cozy space before finally settling on the vast sky outside the window that belonged to the farm. “Anyway, I think we’ll definitely get better and better.”
As a busy and fulfilling day came to an end, Shi Wan, as usual, finished her last tasks in the study of the main house.
She checked the growth data of the cat-themed seeds in the hydroponic greenhouse backend, replied to Elder Qiyuan's inquiry about the preliminary taste test of the seven-colored mood berries, and Vice Minister Qichen secretly sent a message saying that the red ones tasted the best. Finally, she confirmed the list of special supplies to be sent to the cat planet for the next batch.
After doing all this, she stretched and walked to the window.
As night fell, the farm was dotted with lights, and the office building in the Second District was still lit in the distance, suggesting that Su Qing was probably still working overtime.
She closed her eyes and took a deep breath of the air, which was filled with the fragrance of grass and earth.
Nighttime has a strange characteristic: it easily evokes feelings of sadness or emo in people.
At this moment, Shi Wan couldn't help but think of Xing Lin.
The main reason was that when she used to work overtime and get tired, she would stop and look out the window, and Xinglin's gentle voice would ring out.
So much so that she hardly felt lonely in this quiet moment.
Xinglin's conversations didn't have a specific theme. Sometimes they would talk about the farm cats. The cow and the tabby got into a fight and even bit off a piece of fur, but neither of them wanted to embarrass themselves, so they didn't come to Shiwan to complain or play the victim.
Sometimes he would talk about the strange tales he used to enjoy reading. He was young then and very interested in these kinds of books, but he was also afraid. So he would hide under the covers at night and be too scared to sleep. Finally, he mustered up his courage, hugged his pillow, and went to sleep with his older brother.
Then he was ridiculed by his older brother for many years.
Xinglin knows a lot and has many stories to tell. Shi Wan listens with great interest during her work breaks, and Xinglin will even urge her to go to the kitchen for a warm glass of milk whenever she has a spare moment.
It makes the nights seem a bit lonely now that he's not here.
Shi Wan crossed her arms and looked at the farm, then looked up at the sky, which was pitch black.
She sighed.
Just as I was feeling melancholy about spring and autumn, I suddenly felt that the invisible link deep in my consciousness that connected me to Xinglin seemed to pulsate very slightly.
It was like the most distant star in the night sky suddenly winking at the silent ground.
Shi Wan blinked, and somehow, that feeling of loneliness seemed to suddenly disappear.
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