Zhang Fan's mind went blank for a moment. The rockfish in the tank might be the only remaining rockfish in the world.
He hung up the phone and stared at the water tank with a serious expression.
Zhang Fan stood in front of the water vat, concentrated his energy, and poured his spiritual power into the water.
Golden rays of light fell into the water, and the rockfish sensed the light and greedily opened its mouth to devour the spiritual energy.
After Zhang Fan consumed most of the spiritual energy core within his body, the stone rock fish finally regained its strength.
A small fish poked its head out of the water's surface, then suddenly swam back in, splashing some water onto Zhang Fan's face.
It takes such a large amount of spiritual energy to restore the spirit of the stonefish; it's unknown how much spiritual energy would be needed to make them grow rapidly.
There are Qi-boosting pills in the water that can make the stonefish healthier. Zhang Fan is not concerned about their health now, but about how to make them grow faster.
"Zhang Fan, come help me quickly."
Just then, Li Chunyan's voice came.
When Zhang Fan went outside, he saw Li Chunyan carrying a large vat, walking with difficulty. Her face was covered in sweat, and the black chiffon top clung tightly to her skin, making her already fair skin appear even whiter.
The golden rays of the setting sun bathed her in light, gilding her like a magnificent oil painting.
Zhang Fan took the large vat and carefully placed it in the corner. Li Chunyan wiped the sweat from her forehead, her cheeks flushed from the sun, and panted heavily: "It's so tiring."
"Sister-in-law, where have you been?"
Li Chunyan gently kicked away the little gray dog that was clinging to her leg: "I made a jar of pickled vegetables and was thinking of selling it in the village. But the village chief Zhang Youde said that after eating my pickled vegetables, he felt much better and bought the whole jar. This is his jar, and he told me to keep making pickled vegetables."
She pulled two red bills out of her pocket: "Look, I earned two hundred yuan today."
Li Chunyan was all smiles, her face beaming with joy.
Zhang Fan frowned slightly. The kimchi jar at home, with water and kimchi, weighed at least 40 jin (20 catties).
Li Chunyan dragged her heavy steps and sat down in a chair, rubbing her aching arms.
Li Chunyan carried the kimchi jar all by herself from the top of the mountain to the bottom; no wonder she was so exhausted.
Zhang Fan's eyes welled up with tears: "Sister-in-law, how about we switch to another business?"
"No, mosquito meat is still meat. It's better than farming. It's okay if you're a little tired, sister-in-law. The most important thing is that you can recover."
"Sister-in-law, let me give you a massage," Zhang Fan volunteered.
Li Chunyan looked at Zhang Fan and smiled with relief: "Okay."
Zhang Fan walked behind Li Chunyan, massaging her acupoints while subtly channeling spiritual energy into her.
The pressure was just right, and Li Chunyan closed her eyes comfortably, looking completely relaxed.
The acupoints felt tingly and numb, as if a warm current was flowing through my body, so comfortable that I felt drowsy.
Zhang Fan was pondering the matter of the Stone Rock Fish when, while pressing down, he lost control of his spiritual energy and released too much of it, causing Li Chunyan to cry out.
Li Chunyan immediately covered her mouth, her panicked eyes snapping open, her face turning as red as an autumn apple.
"Did you...did you hear anything?" Li Chunyan asked in a panic.
"What did you hear?" Zhang Fan feigned ignorance.
"No...it's nothing, I'll go cook." Li Chunyan was busy running around.
She hid in the kitchen, covering her burning head, and muttered, "This is so embarrassing."
It took a long time for my racing heart to calm down.
While cooking, she saw fish in the water tank, but she didn't pay attention to it, assuming that Zhang Fan had caught them to play with.
She often felt lately that Zhang Fan wasn't stupid anymore, but now it seemed that Zhang Fan still had a childlike heart.
Li Chunyan smiled helplessly, realizing that she must have been too eager for Zhang Fan to return to normal, which was why she had this misconception.
During the meal, Li Chunyan still pushed the cured pork in front of Zhang Fan, while she only took one piece for herself.
Looking at the cured pork in the bowl, she had a flash of inspiration and told Zhang Fan about her plan: "Tomorrow I'll take the leftover pickled vegetables from home to the market to sell. If business is good, I'll buy some jars and make more."
"I'll smoke cured meat in winter."
Zhang Fan nodded repeatedly: "Sister-in-law will definitely succeed."
Li Chunyan was pleased with Zhang Fan's praise and was in a great mood. After dinner, she went to wash the vegetables and clean the leaves so she could make kimchi the next morning.
The ideal temperature for making kimchi is around 20 degrees Celsius. If the temperature is too low, the fermentation time will be too long, and if the temperature is too high, mold will easily grow on the surface.
Fortunately, the temperature in the shady areas of the rural adobe houses is not high, which just meets the requirements.
While Li Chunyan was making preparations, Zhang Fan finished repairing the wall.
After the wall collapsed, Zhang Tiegen cut down some bamboo and put it in the backyard, but he never found the time to repair it.
Zhang Fan split the bamboo, cut it into small strips of the same length and size, and pressed them forcefully into the wall to form a fence.
When Zhang Tiegen came out to empty the dishwater, he happened to see this scene and exclaimed in surprise, "Zhang Fan, you are really strong!"
Zhang Fan scratched the back of his head, looking a little embarrassed.
The sun set, the crescent moon climbed into the sky, and it was almost pitch black outside.
Although every household has electric lights, rural people have an ingrained habit of thrift and almost never use lights at night.
Everyone was in bed early when Bai Rou'er called.
"Zhang Fan, I...I couldn't find the Stone Rock Fish." Bai Rou'er's voice was filled with despair and deep self-doubt. "Am I really that useless?"
"Don't worry, things can always be resolved."
Zhang Fan's calm tone gradually calmed Bai Rou'er's panicked heart.
No matter when or where, he always gives people a sense of composure, remaining calm and collected even in the face of adversity.
No wonder Dad values Zhang Fan so much, saying he's a dragon in the pond now, and one day he'll soar to the sky.
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