【040】 Occasionally found treasure
Gu Juan, Xi Lang, and their group fished at the lake until after midnight, and they had a good catch, catching over ten fish. They caught six large fish, four of which were caught by Xi Lang. Because they were staying at the farm for two days, Han Lin bought all six large fish and released the smaller ones back into the lake.
At this time, the wind had completely stopped and the sun was warm on my body.
Li Ruicheng looked up at the sky and said, "Yes, God is kind enough to help us. It's worth our long journey from the imperial capital."
Except for Han Lin who works in Congzhou, he, Zhang Muheng and Cao Jie all came from the imperial capital.
Several people returned to Maixiangju. Cao Jie had not come back yet, so they took the fish to the kitchen and went to the vegetable garden together.
Xianye Farm's vegetable patch covers approximately six mu (approximately 1.5 acres). A variety of vegetables, including celery, garlic sprouts, bok choy, Chinese cabbage, chili peppers, spinach, lettuce, cilantro, and leeks, each occupy a square plot. Tourists, clutching intricately woven baskets, squat beside the plot, enthusiastically picking. Even children, four or five years old, clutch small baskets, diligently picking the vegetables their parents point out to them and placing them in their baskets. Their faces and clothes are covered in dirt, but they smile with joy.
Gu Juan was attracted by a big tree not far from the vegetable garden. He actually felt spiritual energy from that tree!
It was a banyan tree, its trunk so thick it required four people to hug it. Its emerald green leaves, layered and dense like clouds, looked like a giant green mushroom from afar. Beneath the tree, many tourists sat at stone tables to rest, and children ran and played around the tree.
Xi Lang followed his gaze and said, "That tree is a banyan tree, one of the attractions of the farm. Banyan trees mostly grow in tropical rainforests. Normally, there wouldn't be any in Congzhou, and even if there were, they wouldn't grow that big. But this banyan tree is very unique, said to be over a thousand years old, and is very famous in the province. Would you like to go and take a look?"
Gu Juan nodded and walked over.
Zhang Muheng and others followed.
Cao Jie was delighted to see everyone coming to the vegetable garden to look for him, but before his expression showed, Xi Lang and the others had already changed direction. He was so angry that he threw his basket to the ground, crushing several cabbages.
"Uncle, please don't be embarrassed." A little boy about five years old wearing a baseball cap made a face at him, scratched his face with his chubby fingers, and then pointed to the sign next to the vegetable patch, which read "Please do not trample on the vegetable patch."
Cao Jie: “…”
As we approached, the leaves seemed lush and vibrant, with red fruits dotted among the dense green leaves. Birds, unfazed by visitors, calmly perched on the branches, pecking at the fruits and chirping.
Zhao Keke and the woman Li Ruicheng called Nana pulled Han Lin and Li Ruicheng over to take pictures of them. They hugged the tree trunk, or hid behind the natural curtain formed by the hanging aerial roots of the banyan tree, and struck all kinds of poses comparable to models.
Tourists not far away thought that some big star had arrived and came closer to watch.
Gu Juan looked up, with subtle excitement and shock hidden deep in his eyes.
"What are you looking at?" Xi Lang asked.
Gu Juan pointed to him and said, "There's a green fruit over there." All the fruits on the tree were the size of marbles, but that green fruit was about the size of a ping-pong ball. It was also very conspicuous, visible just by looking up. Many people must have noticed its presence. Gu Juan decided to find out what it was. "This fruit seems to be the only green one on the tree, and it's bigger than the others. Isn't that a little strange? Could it be fake?"
Han Lin walked over and looked up. "It's true. This fruit is one of the peculiarities of this banyan tree. I heard that a fruit grows in that location every year, but every year, it never turns red until winter comes. Instead, it falls off naturally. No one knows why."
Gu Juan remained noncommittal. "Falling off naturally"? Has anyone seen it fall? This fruit was no ordinary fruit, but a piece of jasper jade. He had seen a record of it in the jade slips left by his master. Jasper jade is a wood-attributed spiritual stone with self-defense properties, known as a "natural amulet," and extremely popular among cultivators. And within this jasper jade, someone had inscribed numerous formations, including protective formations, rejuvenation formations, and qi-boosting formations. This is why the tree can survive in the central region and continue to grow for over a thousand years. It could be said that this fruit was a perfect amulet. The fruit's disappearance wasn't due to its natural fall, but rather its return to the tree's interior.
However, in recent years, Earth's spiritual energy has become increasingly scarce, making it difficult to supply the formation within the Jade Spirit Jade. If spiritual energy isn't replenished, the banyan tree will gradually wither in five years at most. Gu Juan was determined to obtain this "talisman." But destroying the tree would be a shame, so he didn't intend to take the fruit for nothing. If he could pick the fruit, he would water the banyan tree with two drops of spiritual spring water, ensuring it would flourish for another ten years.
Gu Juan said meaningfully, "It is indeed very strange."
Xi Lang asked, "Do you like it?"
Gu Juan did not deny it, "It's hard not to like something unique. I just don't know whether we can pick this fruit." According to the current situation, no one has discovered the true peculiarity of this green fruit.
"I'm sorry, you can't pick it." A cold male voice sounded behind Gu Juan.
The visitor was a middle-aged man wearing a pair of gold-rimmed glasses, with a slightly fat face and an expressionless expression.
"Boss Zhou, how come you still have time to show up today?" Han Lin greeted the visitor with a smile and introduced him to Xi Lang and others, "This is Zhou Guangming, the owner of the farm." He is a frequent visitor here and is quite familiar with Zhou Guangming.
Zhou Guangming nodded calmly and glanced at Gu Juan. "So this is a friend of Attorney Han? Welcome to our farm. Our farm is an ecological farm. Aside from fruits and vegetables, no flowers, plants, or trees are allowed to be damaged. Even young tourists understand this."
He had a smile on his face, but what he said was very unpleasant.
Xi Lang, Han Lin, and the others' expressions darkened. If he told them not to pick the flowers, then he didn't. But he mocked Gu Juan, calling her worse than a child. This was a slap in the face.
Zhang Muheng laughed, "Old Han, it seems that you don't have much face."
Han Lin smiled wryly and opened his mouth to speak.
Gu Juan winked at him, then smiled faintly at Zhou Guangming. He took off his fisherman's hat and twirled it on his fingertips, saying slowly, "Haha. Why are you so excited, Boss Zhou? I mean well, too." Boss Zhou must understand the principles of "everything that goes to extremes must decline" and "everything that goes to extremes must reverse." This banyan tree may look lush, but in fact, it's already withering from within. If I'm not mistaken, the banyan tree's fruit has been decreasing year by year, its aerial roots aren't as plump as before, and its leaf shedding is gradually increasing. Is that right?"
Zhou Guangming's expression changed slightly.
"Today I'm making a prediction. In the next five years, the fruit of this banyan tree will become fewer and fewer, and the color of its leaves will become darker and darker, until in five years, it will inevitably wither. By then, I'm afraid this farm will also..." Gu Juan seemed not to notice Zhou Guangming's increasingly gloomy expression. "By the way, my name is Gu Juan. If this banyan tree doesn't wither in five years, you can sue me. But if this banyan tree does wither, hehe... what a pity."
Xi Lang smiled and nodded slightly. No matter what, he stood on Gu Juan's side.
Han Lin and Li Ruicheng both glanced at Gu Juan approvingly. Regardless of whether these words were true or false, they would undoubtedly leave a shadow in Zhou Guangming's heart, and the next five years would definitely be unpleasant for him. Good fellow, killing without shedding blood.
Zhang Muheng's eyes were filled with admiration. Anyone who wanted to stand with Xi Lang couldn't be a weakling.
When the tourists heard what Gu Juan said, they were half-believing and half-doubting, and whispered to each other.
Zhou Guangming's expression shifted, and he genuinely had doubts. Gu Juan had been right about the banyan tree's fruit, aerial roots, and fallen leaves, and he'd even said something that could sue him. Could he be telling the truth?
But then he felt it was too embarrassing to let a young boy influence his judgment, so he snorted and said lightly: "Don't bother with these." When he said this, he had no idea that five years later he would really kneel down and beg this young man.
Gu Juan shook his head regretfully and said to Xi Lang, "Old man, let's go. I'm hungry."
Xi Lang nodded, took two steps forward, and turned back. "Boss Zhou, you must carefully protect this tree for the next five years. If anything goes wrong, you won't blame our Xiaojuan. Oh, I haven't introduced myself yet. I'm Xi Lang, the general manager of the Hongtu Group branch. Even if this farm is valuable, our Xi family wouldn't be greedy for its money. So, you don't have to worry about us intentionally destroying the banyan tree to prove Xiaojuan's words."
Zhou Guangming was startled, his face turned red and white, and he wanted to say something, but Gu Juan and the others had already walked away.
No one noticed as a flash of silver light flashed across the green fruit. The fruit seemed to disappear for a moment before reappearing. At the same time, a drop of water flew towards the banyan tree like lightning and silently seeped into its trunk.
Gu Juan felt the Bi Lingyu lying quietly on the table in the space. He was in a good mood, smiled slightly, and glanced at Xi Lang.
I hope Xi Lang will like this gift.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
