Chapter 63 Farming Department (Bonus Chapter) When Cheng Mo said these things…
Cheng Mo was still quite nervous when he said these things, after all, his skills did seem to be quite poor. When Zhi Yu came out of the bathroom, his expression had become much colder.
He thought Cheng Zhiyu was too materialistic! So what if his skills aren't that great?
Fortunately, Zhiyu liked his body very much, and he was willing to negotiate.
"How about it? Don't be angry anymore." Cheng Mo coaxed her with pleading eyes.
Cheng Zhiyu sighed helplessly. What was all this about?
“I’m not angry,” he said.
Why be so cold if you're not angry? Cheng Mo didn't want to think of any other reason: "Liar!"
Cheng Zhiyu stared blankly, completely at a loss. Should he forcefully distance himself from Cheng Mo? He couldn't do it; he couldn't stand the moment the other showed a wronged or hurt expression.
"Forget it, let nature take its course," Cheng Zhiyu thought wearily.
He pulled the covers up, closed his eyes, and said, "I'm tired, I'm going to sleep."
Seeing his exhausted expression, Cheng Mo didn't say anything. She quickly washed herself clean, crawled into bed, hugged Cheng Zhiyu, and kissed his ear: "Goodnight, Zhiyu."
Cheng Zhiyu: "...Good night."
Cheng Mo smiled; he was so happy.
Cheng Mo, who was so happy, was soon dealt a heavy blow.
After two days of work at the base, the river was cleaned up and the water pumps were installed. Finally, after arriving inside the base, the base could use water again.
That day, everyone spread the news, and their faces were filled with excited smiles.
They no longer have to painstakingly exchange contribution points for water, and even then, they can only get a tiny bit.
The river has never run dry as far as they can remember, which means they can draw water from it at will.
Upon hearing the news, every household happily grabbed their buckets and lined up to fetch water.
Some people were afraid that they would run out of water, so they ran as fast as they could, only to find that there was already a long queue when they got to the water station.
"I rushed here as fast as I could, why are there still so many people?" Someone looked ahead with worry: "Won't there be no water when it's my turn?"
"Pah, pah, pah, how could that be?" someone nearby said. "Haven't you heard they're drawing water from our own little river? How many of us are there? How could we possibly run out of water?"
"Yeah, don't jinx it. Why don't you guys stand in line for me while I go check ahead?" The person who spoke said there was plenty of water, but he was still a little worried and discussed it with the others.
The others were also very worried, and quickly said, "Then go and see if there's still plenty of water?"
So the other person went ahead to take a look, and a moment later returned with a smile on their face, reassuring them: "I saw that water pump is pumping water very quickly, it can fill a bucket in no time, there's plenty of water, we'll definitely get some when it's our turn!"
Upon hearing this, the others immediately felt relieved: "That's good, that's good."
Some people burst into tears on the spot: "Thank goodness, at least we have water to drink!"
No one around laughed at the person who cried; they wanted to cry too.
Just as predicted, the line moved quickly. The people who received water at the front carried full buckets of water and walked back happily.
When asked, he said, "Oh, I should have known better than to run so fast. I was going to get here sooner or later anyway. There's water here, so it doesn't matter if I come early or late."
"Tch, I bet you're all talk. You'd still run fast if we did it again."
Everyone around burst into laughter. The person being talked about wasn't annoyed at all, and snorted, "You guys don't want to run fast? I'm not talking to you anymore, I'm going back now."
Those queuing for water, when it was their turn, would first take a big gulp of water. The river water was sweet and refreshing, not only quenching their thirst but also filling them with joy.
Some people were still expressing their gratitude to Cheng Zhiyu and the others, remembering the kindness they had shown each other.
"I think Cheng and Tian are the lucky stars of our village."
"How so?"
"Look, as soon as they came back, we had rice to eat and water to drink. Now we're even planning to start farming. Once the crops grow, will we still have to worry about not having enough to eat?"
"Hey, now that you mention it, it's actually true?"
"Of course, how could I be wrong?"
"..."
Cheng Zhiyu and the others had no idea they were being talked about. Right now, they were discussing who should be in charge of planting the mutated wheat.
Although Cheng Zhiyu provided the mutated seeds and claimed to be a plant-type ability user, his ability was fake, so he did not intend to take on the task.
Seeing that he wasn't interested, Lin Kang decided to choose one from among the other plant-based ability users.
In the end, they chose a man in his forties named Fang Guowei. Unlike other plant-type ability users who, after discovering their plant-type abilities, had to choose farming because of their abilities, Fang Guowei was completely different; he genuinely loved farming.
Before the apocalypse, he was a farmer, and he was genuinely happy when he discovered that his superpowers could be used to farm.
Among the five plant-based ability users, he was the most diligent in farming and also made the fastest progress. Cheng Zhiyu discovered that even if he didn't bring the mutated seeds, Fang Guowei would eventually be able to cultivate mutated seeds that could be planted on a large scale.
The progress is just a bit slow.
However, compared to the other four people, he is progressing relatively fast. He has already cultivated the fifth crop of mutated rice, but unfortunately the yield is not high. After the fifth crop matures, the seeds will only be enough to plant half an acre of land at most.
However, I estimate that a qualitative change will occur by the sixth batch.
Once the mutated seeds from half an acre mature, there are plenty of plants that can be grown.
The other four people could only cultivate a small patch of crops, and the results were not very stable.
It's not that they weren't serious; it's just that they lacked a certain passion.
When Fang Guowei learned that he had been chosen to manage the planting of mutated seeds, he was somewhat at a loss and felt that he was not up to the task.
"Why not choose Xiao Cheng? I think he's much better than me?" The simple, middle-aged man rubbed his hands together awkwardly, looking somewhat insecure.
His gaze toward Cheng Zhiyu was filled with admiration.
Cheng Zhiyu felt a little ashamed. To be honest, if he didn't have his spatial ability, how could he compare to Fang Guowei?
Lin Kang said with a smile, "Brother Fang, since we chose you, everyone must think you are capable of handling this task."
Lin Kang was in his thirties, and calling Fang Guowei "uncle" felt a bit too old, so he called him "brother".
“As for Xiao Cheng, he’s an all-rounder, and there are areas where he’s needed even more,” Lin Kang said. “Farming is crucial to the base’s survival; can you guarantee you’ll do a good job?”
Fang Guowei was deeply moved. He had always loved farming, and now that Lin Kang had said so, he immediately replied, "Team Leader Lin, don't worry, I, Old Fang, will definitely take care of these lands as if they were my own children!"
After he finished speaking, he touched his nose sheepishly and looked at Cheng Zhiyu: "Exactly, if I have any questions, can I ask Xiao Cheng?"
Cheng Zhiyu felt immense pressure: "Uncle Fang, I might not be as good at farming as you are."
"You're being modest, aren't you?" Fang Guowei didn't believe it at all: "How could you be inferior to me in growing so many mutated seeds?"
Fang Guowei immediately assured him, "Don't worry, I will definitely not bother you if I can solve it. I will only come to you if I really can't solve it. Is that alright?"
Having said all that, what could Cheng Zhiyu say? He could only bite the bullet and agree.
When Fang Guowei saw that he had agreed, a smile appeared on his honest face, and he said with emotion, "Xiao Cheng is too modest. How could you not be as good at farming as I am? Haha."
Cheng Zhiyu said helplessly: I'm really not being modest.
Turning her head, she saw Cheng Mo secretly smiling.
Cheng Zhiyu looked at him.
Cheng Mo suppressed his smile and said in a pretentious tone, "Zhiyu is too modest. Is there anything you can't do?"
Fang Guowei, not understanding, laughed and said, "Yes, yes, young people have a bright future."
Cheng Zhiyu pinched Cheng Mo's waist in anger, but the latter was unfazed and blinked, saying, "Zhiyu, isn't it inappropriate for you to touch me in front of so many people?"
Cheng Zhiyu, her ears turning red, withdrew her hand, no longer wanting to pay attention to Cheng Mo.
Seeing that Cheng Zhiyu was ignoring him, Cheng Mo became anxious and leaned closer: "Zhiyu? Are you angry?"
"Zhiyu?...Zhiyu? You're really ignoring me?"
A handsome face came closer, almost touching Cheng Zhiyu's face, when the latter stretched out a finger, pressed against Cheng Mo's forehead, and pushed him away slightly: "Stop messing around."
When Cheng Mo saw that he had spoken, she smiled again and said coquettishly, "Zhiyu, I'll conjure up ears for you to touch when we get back, so don't be angry anymore?"
Cheng Zhiyu wanted to refuse, but after seeing that handsome face with a pair of fluffy ears, who could resist?
"How is it?" Cheng Mo pressed, "Do you want to touch it?"
Cheng Zhiyu: "...Yes."
Cheng Mo was pleased with himself; it seemed he was still quite attractive to Zhi Yu.
Fang Guowei was in charge of managing the farming. The other four plant-type ability users didn't object to this. They weren't as serious or skilled at farming as Fang Guowei, and since he was older, they didn't think there was anything wrong with listening to him.
“The five of you alone definitely won’t be enough,” Lin Kang said. “We said before that we needed to recruit a group of skilled farmers. From now on, you’ll be in charge of these people, Brother Fang. How about you take charge of this?”
Fang Guowei smiled and said, "Of course, but... there's no age requirement, right?"
Lin Kang raised an eyebrow: "Don't you already have someone in mind?"
Fang Guowei scratched his head, embarrassed, and said, "Well, not really. I wanted to recruit older people as much as possible. First, we're all native rural people. Apart from the young people, who doesn't know how to farm? But if we're talking about real experience, it's the older folks. Second, some of the older folks are struggling financially. If they have a way to earn contribution points, their lives will be a little better."
Cheng Zhiyu listened from the side and felt that Fang Guowei's words made sense. However, Lin Kang, who was standing to the side, thought more deeply: "Brother Fang, your idea is not wrong, but in addition to that, we also need to recruit some strong and healthy young people."
Older people have experience and can be used for technical guidance, but they're definitely not suited for manual labor. But farming can't be done without physical labor. Therefore, we also need to hire people of good build; these people don't need much experience, just someone willing to listen and work hard.
After listening, Fang Guowei nodded: "Team Leader Lin makes sense, let's do it that way."
Cheng Zhiyu originally thought that there was nothing for him to do, but when Fang Guowei heard that he had nothing to do, he simply recruited him to help with the recruitment.
He figured he had nothing else to do, so he might as well go and help.
So they wrote a notice and posted it in the place with the highest foot traffic at the base—next to the water pump—stating that the farming department was recruiting people with excellent benefits, and that those interested should come to the designated location after 3 p.m. to apply.
And so, the base's farming department began recruiting in full swing.
This recruitment drive was open to ordinary people, and many of them were overjoyed and eagerly spread the word, making plans to apply together.
By 3 p.m., Cheng Zhiyu found that there were already people queuing up. After all, the farming department offered good benefits, and it was a matter of future livelihood.
Moreover, the recruitment notice stated that once the first batch of crops was harvested, those working in the farming department would be provided with a meal every day.
This was a huge temptation for people who were struggling to get enough to eat, and many people came to join in the fun.
However, not everyone who comes here is genuinely interested in working.
For example, at the very beginning, Fang Guowei ran into an acquaintance. As soon as he saw the person, he waved his hand and said, "You're not good enough, next one."
The acquaintance immediately became unhappy: "Why can't I? You haven't even asked me anything yet, and you're already saying I can't do it. You...you're abusing your power for personal gain!"
The onlookers laughed: "Oh, lazy Chen, you actually know what 'abuse of power for personal gain' means?"
Chen, seemingly oblivious to the laughter, put his hands on his hips and said, "How could I not know? He's abusing his power for personal gain! I'm perfectly healthy, why should I be allowed to leave as soon as I arrive?"
Fang Guowei was speechless: "Lazybones Chen, before the apocalypse, the grass in your field grew taller than the crops. Did we bring you here to grow grass?"
The people around immediately burst into laughter.
Chen, the lazybones, showed no embarrassment whatsoever, saying without batting an eye, "That was in the past. Those prisoners had a chance to reform, but I'm not given that chance normally?"
Fang Guowei was too lazy to waste time talking to him. He was there to recruit people, not to put on a show for everyone. He waved his hand and said, "Stop talking nonsense, next one."
Chen Lanhan stood firmly in place: "I'm not leaving!"
Fang Guowei's face turned cold: "If you don't leave, I'll have no choice but to have someone kick you out."
Seeing that there were other superhumans around, Chen Lanhan was still a little scared. Before leaving, he said reluctantly, "This is not fair at all! Everyone, hurry up and come with me. I think this is a recruitment that Old Fang set up specifically for people who are on good terms with him. People who are not on good terms with him have no chance at all!"
Everyone knew Chen Lanhan's character and didn't believe him at all, so they continued to queue up and wait for their turn.
On Cheng Zhiyu's side, everything went smoothly. When his mother heard that he had come to help recruit people, she even took the initiative to come and help as well.
Cheng's mother said, "You don't know the people in the village very well. You don't know who is lazy, who is hardworking, or who likes to cheat. Farming is a big deal in the village, so we need to recruit a group of honest and hardworking people. I can also help you keep an eye on things from the side."
With Cheng's mother's help, Cheng Zhiyu was able to screen people very quickly. Cheng's mother was incredibly impartial; she didn't hide any flaws from people, regardless of whether they were close to her or not.
Those who were eliminated left dejectedly, while the first round began with great joy.
Of course, there were also those who tried to cause trouble, but Cheng Zhiyu threw them out with a small scroll. When people saw what happened to the troublemakers, they all thought twice, and even if they were eliminated, they would only mutter a few words.
Being thrown out doesn't hurt much, but it's embarrassing.
Moreover, they also realized that Cheng Zhiyu was a superhuman, just that he usually had a good temper.
On Cheng Mo's side, no one dared to cause trouble; there were very few people queuing up in his line.
Cheng Zhiyu glanced at Cheng Mo, who immediately rested his chin on his hand and smiled at him.
Cheng Zhiyu: He doesn't look fierce at all.
Just then, someone who was too lazy to wait in line came over to Cheng Mo's side. They stared at the person who was grinning like an idiot, but when he looked at Cheng Mo, his expression immediately turned cold: "Can you drive a harvester?"
The visitor shook his head.
Cheng Mo: "Where's the tiller?"
The person continued to shake their head.
Cheng Mo pointed to the two-hundred-pound bag next to him: "Try carrying it."
The person obediently went to carry the bag, but after struggling for a long time with a flushed face, he could only lift it half a meter.
Cheng Mo frowned, and the latter immediately dropped the bag: "I'm leaving now!"
Cheng Mo: "?" I haven't said anything yet.
Oh well, it's not up to standard anyway.
Seeing that the row was empty again, Cheng Mo continued to look at Cheng Zhiyu.
"Zhiyu, I want to hug you so much." Cheng Mo's voice rang in his ears, and Cheng Zhiyu's hand holding the pen trembled. He subconsciously looked at his mother beside him.
Cheng's mother asked, puzzled, "Why are you looking at me like that? Hurry up and let the next person pass."
Cheng Zhiyu: "...Next."
Fortunately, Cheng Mo was using telepathy, so others couldn't hear him. It had been a long time since the other person had spoken to him like that, and he hadn't even realized it.
Cheng Zhiyu turned his head and saw Cheng Mo smiling. He glared at the other man.
"Why are you glaring at Xiao Mo for no reason?" Cheng's mother lectured her son, "I think you're just taking advantage of Xiao Mo's good temper. Be nice and don't glare at people."
Cheng Zhiyu: "..."
Cheng Mo coughed lightly, realizing that he had angered Cheng Zhiyu again, and felt a little guilty.
Cheng Mo: [Zhiyu?]
Cheng Zhiyu indeed ignored him again. Cheng Mo touched his nose and seriously considered how to coax him.
Most of the ordinary people in the base came to participate in the recruitment, including Xiang Qizheng.
Xiang Qi looked at the back of the line and decisively chose not to line up behind Cheng Zhiyu's line. He thought to himself, "I have a grudge against Cheng Zhiyu. He'll definitely use his power for personal gain."
After waiting in line for ages, Fang Guowei finally got his turn. After asking a few questions, Fang Guowei shook his head and said, "Next."
Xiang Qizheng, refusing to believe it, asked, "Am I selected?"
Fang Guowei said kindly, "You're not really suitable for our farming department."
Xiang Qi was immediately furious: "How am I unsuitable? I've been farming for over thirty years, how am I unsuitable?"
Fang Guowei explained patiently, “Everyone here has been farming for decades. If we were to select someone, they could all be chosen. We definitely can’t select people like this. Our requirements are that you can operate a tractor and a harvester, or you have exceptional strength. If neither of those are possible, you can have professional farming skills. You don’t quite meet either of those requirements.”
"And what about her?" Xiang Qi pointed to the old woman who had just walked away. "She's almost seventy, isn't she? Is she particularly strong? Can she drive a tractor or a tractor?"
Fang Guowei explained helplessly, "She has professional farming skills. Aunt Wu can judge what to do with the crops at what time based on her experience."
Xiang Qizheng retorted defiantly, "Then I can do it too!"
Fang Guowei: "The crops grown from the mutated seeds are different from the ordinary crops of the past. They cannot be judged based on past experience. Only old farmers who have farmed all their lives can judge them."
After he finished speaking, he stopped explaining, waved his hand, and said, "Alright, next one."
However, Xiang Qizheng persisted, resorting to conspiracy theories, pointing at Cheng Zhiyu: "Did you conspire with him? Is it because I offended him that you're not harassing me?"
Fang Guowei was speechless. If Xiang Qizheng hadn't said anything, he wouldn't have known at all that the other party had offended Cheng Zhiyu.
Cheng Zhiyu: "?" What does this have to do with me?
Cheng Mo looked over with a long gaze, licked his canine teeth, and wondered if Zhi Yu would stop being angry if he helped deal with this guy.
Fang Guowei stated seriously, "It has nothing to do with Xiao Cheng. He didn't even mention you!"
But Xiang Qizheng refused to believe it, firmly believing that he had offended Cheng Zhiyu and thus lost this opportunity, and he was determined to seek justice.
Someone asked, "How did he offend someone?"
"You don't know, him...blah blah blah..."
Whether he got justice or not is unknown, but those who didn't know what he did before, upon hearing the news, all spat and said, "Shameless!"
As for Xiang Qizheng's repeated demands for justice, they have seriously affected the people queuing behind him. Everyone is saying to him, "Old Xiang, stop embarrassing yourself!"
"Get out of here! Have you no shame? We're waiting for you. Hurry up and leave, don't delay us!"
"Xiao Cheng, hurry up and use that embarrassing thing of yours to throw him out. He's wasting our time."
Before Xiang Qi could react, he was entangled by something and then thrown out.
Xiao Juan probably sensed that Cheng Zhiyu disliked this person, so she deliberately didn't throw him out directly, but instead tossed him in the air.
Hearing Xiang Qizheng's voice, which was almost hoarse, Cheng Zhiyu gently tapped Xiao Juan: "Stop fooling around."
It wasn't that he was particularly kind; he was mainly afraid that Xiang Qizheng might get seriously injured and then blame him.
Xiao Juan reluctantly abandoned the person, shaking the vines as if she had just thrown away something dirty.
Xiang Qi, who had fallen flat on his face, got up, spitting out mud. He gave Cheng Zhiyu a sinister look, gritted his teeth, and left.
He truly remembered Cheng Zhiyu this time!
After Xiang Qizheng left, they didn't encounter any strange characters. By the time Cheng Zhiyu and the others finished their work, it was already dark.
Fang Guowei glanced at the people who had entered the first round. Apart from Granny Wu, who was quite old, the oldest was only around fifty years old.
After the other plant-based ability users finished their work and left, Cheng Zhiyu noticed Fang Guowei frowning and asked, "Is there a problem?"
Fang Guowei shook his head: "There's no problem, but I'd like to hire one more person."
Cheng Zhiyu asked curiously, "Who is it?"
Fang Guowei said, "Uncle Zhao."
Cheng Zhiyu was stunned for a moment before he remembered who it was: "Is it Grandpa Zhao from the Third Brigade?"
Fang Guowei nodded.
When Grandpa Zhao was young, he was a well-known expert farmer. People from other villages would even come to learn from him.
Cheng Zhiyu had also heard of this; the county had even presented Grandpa Zhao with an award before.
Speaking of which, Grandpa Zhao must be seventy years old this year, right?
Cheng Zhiyu felt that Grandpa Zhao was indeed a good fit. He was unparalleled in terms of experience and passion for farming. Although he was a bit old, he wasn't hired to do the work, but mainly to provide guidance.
Moreover, Fang Guowei had mentioned in advance that he wanted to recruit a few experienced senior employees.
"Sigh, speaking of which, Uncle Zhao is all alone now..." On the way to Grandpa Zhao's house, Uncle Fang sighed in the darkness: "Both of his sons were bitten by zombies, and his daughter, because of the apocalypse, married and moved away, and we haven't heard from her since. His grandson is working away from home..."
Cheng Zhiyu listened with a heavy heart. They walked to the dilapidated gate of Grandpa Zhao's house and knocked on the door.
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