A huge thanks to Lupeda for the kofis. Enjoy the bonus chapters!!

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“Teache—”

Just as Tong Zhanyan was about to thank him, moved by the gesture, the Devil King shot him a cold glance.

He immediately had a bad feeling.

“Got nothing better to do?”

One of his own men fired a shot?

Tong Zhanyan instantly pushed all his gratitude aside.

“Didn’t you hear the prep bell ring?”

Tong Zhanyan hurriedly followed the crowd toward the classroom building. As he ran, he couldn’t help but think spitefully to himself that he’d make the Devil King pay for this tonight with bok choy.

Tian Xinqing had already told Tong Zhanyan about the new classroom, but since it was his first time there, it still took him a while to find it.

The teacher had already started the class.

Nearly half the first-year students had left, and the second-year class had been reorganized. Qing Jiyue, Tian Xinqing, and a few others were still in the same class as him; right now, they were sitting in the middle row on the left.

Tong Zhanyan silently took a seat at the back.

Tong Zhanyan hadn’t meant to cause a disturbance, but his arrival was like a pebble dropped into a calm lake, instantly sending ripples through the room.

It left Tong Zhanyan feeling a bit helpless.

From now on, he’d only be able to attend class when he had free time—surely he wouldn’t have to go through this every single time?

Being a celebrity wasn’t exactly a walk in the park.

This was his first class since the opening ceremony, so naturally, he hadn’t understood much.

He hadn’t even received his textbooks yet.

After finally enduring until the end of class, Tong Zhanyan walked toward Qing Jiyue and the others under the curious stares of the crowd.

Tian Xinqing and Su Yanran were sitting at a table up front.

Qing Jiyue and Ning Langdong each occupied a table—one behind Tian Xinqing’s group, the other to the right.

Just as Tong Zhanyan was about to sit next to Ning Langdong, Qing Jiyue naturally pulled out a chair.

Tong Zhanyan paused for a moment, then had no choice but to sit down.

“Why are you here too?” Tong Zhanyan asked.

Qing Jiyue shouldn’t have been looking at Qing Suifeng.

“He told me to come,” Qing Jiyue said.

Tong Zhanyan immediately understood; Qing Suifeng’s personality was exactly the kind that would do something like this.

The base’s security was quite high; unless someone was determined to cause damage, Qing Suifeng wouldn’t necessarily be able to leave without access permissions.

Tong Zhanyan hadn’t even had time to settle into his seat before someone boldly approached him to strike up a conversation.

Tong Zhanyan could only smile in response, hoping their curiosity would wear off quickly.

Since Tong Zhanyan had to feed the pigs and chickens at night, staying in the dorms was out of the question, but he went to take a look anyway.

The school dorms were all standard; nothing out of the ordinary.

Tian Xinqing picked up his textbooks for him, and Tong Zhanyan planned to take them all back to the base to study on his own.

Qing Jiyue had to keep an eye on Qing Suifeng and the others, so he was staying at the base for the time being—which meant he’d be traveling with him.

In the taxi, no one spoke.

Tong Zhanyan thought back to the earlier “favor” and couldn’t help but ask, “Has he not given up yet?”

“Hmm…”

Tong Zhanyan didn’t know what to say.

Qing Jiyue looked at Tong Zhanyan quietly, his eyes deep and intense.

“What’s wrong?” Tong Zhanyan asked, puzzled.

Qing Jiyue looked away without speaking, but he seemed to be in a good mood.

The car stopped in front of the base. After they entered, Qing Jiyue spoke again, “Those crops seem to be working.”

Tong Zhanyan looked over.

Qing Jiyue said, “It’ll be a month in a few days. During this time, they’ve all had moments when their emotions surged out of control, but not once have they completely lost control.”

There had never been a precedent for curing the frenzy, so they had few methods to test the effectiveness, and the most effective one was simply to wait.

Once they enter the final stage, it takes anywhere from a few days to half a year before they completely lose control. And once it starts, even if they wake up every time, the frequency of these episodes will only increase.

Qing Suifeng, Yang Hong, and Tang Shijin have all fully entered the final stage. For all three of them to remain free of frenzy for an entire month is absolutely rare.

“That’s good,” Tong Zhanyan said, letting out a slight sigh of relief.

Though he claimed to be helping, there wasn’t much he could actually do.

Qing Jiyue looked deeply at Tong Zhanyan; it was Tong Zhanyan who had given him hope. “The money for those crops—”

Tong Zhanyan cut him off. “We can discuss that later.”

A reduced infection rate might be rare and precious to others, but not to him—otherwise, he wouldn’t have fed them to his chickens.

In fact, if you were to calculate it, the chickens might have consumed more than Yang Hong and the others had.

He’d given Yang Hong and the others the ones with significantly lower infection rates; he hadn’t even picked the ones with 47% or 48% infection rates, though technically, those had also been reduced.

Qing Jiyue gazed deeply at Tong Zhanyan, and only after a long moment did he look away. “Alright.”

The two got into separate cars.

Tong Zhanyan headed back to the small building, while Qing Jiyue went to the rear.

After passing the small house and parting ways with Tong Zhanyan, Qing Jiyue summoned his Spirit Beast.

The car moved slowly, a gentle breeze blowing.

The little white tiger closed its eyes comfortably.

Qing Jiyue looked at it. Next time Tong Zhanyan wanted to pet it, he’d let him.

At the small house.

After entering and putting his books away, Tong Zhanyan immediately went to check on the pigsty.

They must have been starving; the trough was completely empty, not a single leaf left.

Now that they were full, the two pigs had regained enough energy to oink at him again.

“Ungrateful,” Tong Zhanyan muttered under his breath before heading back.

He took out the pig feed, put it in a pot to boil, chopped up some chicken feed to feed the chickens, and then cleaned out the chicken coop.

He had already checked it this morning, so he found nothing this time.

Tong Zhanyan could only go feed the pigs, feeling a bit dejected.

The sky was gradually darkening, and since the pigsty hadn’t been wired up yet, the house was rather dim.

Tong Zhanyan decided he needed to hurry up and run an electrical line.

As he poured the food, he still didn’t dare to lower his hands too much.

Once they realized the vegetables were edible, the two piglets stood up on the trough and looked up at him the moment he approached.

It was rather unsettling in the dim light.

For dinner, Tong Zhanyan drank the nutrient solution.

Drinking that stuff after eating regular food doubled the agony; it took Tong Zhanyan ages to recover.

Once he lay down in bed, Tong Zhanyan’s mind kept going over those eggs.

He’d collected two today, which meant two hens had already started laying eggs.

No, maybe three—because the one that had been lying before had been laying one every two days until a few days ago, so she shouldn’t have laid one today…

If there were three, then he’d have three eggs every day from now on, enough for one per meal…

The more Tong Zhanyan thought about it, the hungrier he got, to the point where he couldn’t sleep at all.

When he woke up the next morning, sure enough, he had dark circles under his eyes.

Having slept poorly, Tong Zhanyan felt a bit sluggish, but that didn’t stop him from checking the chicken coop the moment he opened his eyes.

He was in luck—he found one.

He wasn’t sure if it was laid by the same hen as before or by a new one.

After boiling the pig feed in a pot and feeding the chickens, he finally got to work on his own meal.

This time, instead of simply boiling them, he beat the eggs and steamed them.

By the time he turned off the heat under the pig feed, the steamed eggs were ready.

Tong Zhanyan resisted the urge to dig in immediately and first carried the pig feed to the pigsty to feed the pigs.

By the time he returned, the egg had cooled down considerably. He sat down under the eaves, bowl in hand.

Steamed egg has a completely different flavor from boiled egg—it’s much more delicate and melts in your mouth.

The steamed egg, without salt or soy sauce, had a slight gamey taste, but that didn’t dampen Tong Zhanyan’s appetite in the slightest.

In the livestream.

Everyone saw this scene as soon as they woke up.

“Can you really cook an egg like this?”

“It looks so soft and delicious…”

“Suddenly, the nutrient solution in my hand doesn’t taste as good anymore.”

“Senior, you’re a farming streamer, aren’t you? This is really upsetting me.”

“Eggs aren’t cheap either. One a day? That’s so extravagant.”

…

A single egg yielded just a small bowl of steamed egg custard. Even as Tong Zhanyan chewed slowly and savored every bite, he finished it in no time.

After drinking the last bit of water, Tong Zhanyan reluctantly put the bowl away.

If only the crops were edible too…

As he pondered this, Tong Zhanyan suddenly looked at the cherry radishes and bok choy growing in the field from those low-infection-rate seeds.

Crops with an infection rate of 20% or less aren’t bitter.

They’d already been uncovered; although they still needed some time to fully mature, both of these could be eaten even as seedlings.

Tong Zhanyan swallowed hard.

They haven’t grown yet; I can’t rush things…

Three minutes later, Tong Zhanyan put a pot of water on to boil.

He pulled up a few well-grown bok choy plants, blanched them briefly in boiling water, and couldn’t wait to taste them.

They really weren’t bitter, nor did they have that astringent taste.

They’re edible.

Confirmed this, Tong Zhanyan once again felt tears welling up in his eyes.

He quickly began eating in big bites.

Without salt or oil, the baby bok choy had the vegetable’s natural flavor.

It was a bit bland.

If only he could get some garlic, some chili peppers, and some vinegar…

Tong Zhanyan looked at the patch of chili peppers in the field.

He had two kinds of chili peppers: one with a high infection rate bought from Mr. Bai, and one with a low infection rate bought from the Alliance.

Neither was ready to eat yet.

Imagining that fiery heat, Tong Zhanyan’s mouth watered incessantly, and even the plain, boiled greens—devoid of oil or salt—began to taste delicious.

In the livestream chat.

“Didn’t they say he has anorexia and won’t eat bok choy? Why does he look like he’s enjoying it so much?”

“Those bok choy were grown from seeds bought later. Could it be…”

“What?”

“Low-infection-rate ones?”

“Under 20%?”

“But aren’t the ones under 20% only available from the Alliance?”

“They must have been bought from the Alliance. Aren’t Senior’s crops also sold on behalf of the Alliance?”

“So Senior can actually grow seeds with a low infection rate?”

“He plants them just like any other crop. I thought those seeds were ordinary ones, but they turned out to have a low infection rate.”

“That’s so Senior.”

“That’s so Senior +1”

“More importantly, he isn’t planning to feed those crops with a low infection rate to the pigs and chickens, is he?”

“I’m a little worried about that, too. The ones he’s currently feeding from are almost gone, and the third plot he just planted hasn’t had the plastic sheeting removed yet…”

“No way. Forget the high-infection-rate ones—the low-infection-rate seeds are a one-time use. Even Senior wouldn’t be that crazy.”

“I don’t think so either.”

…

The baby bok choy hadn’t fully grown yet, so Tong Zhanyan only pulled up four small plants. But since he’d already eaten a small bowl of egg custard earlier, he was still stuffed.

Feeling that warm, full sensation, Tong Zhanyan felt completely relaxed, and his mood improved accordingly.

Eggs, bok choy, cherry radishes—he felt he could already envision a bright future where he could eat properly.

Too bad there was no salt…

Oil, on the other hand, was easy to come by—he could extract it from pork, and he’d also planted rapeseed.

After resting a bit longer, Tong Zhanyan brought a crate out of the warehouse and made his final harvest of the eggplants and cucumbers.

Once finished, he had Mr. Bai transport the produce to the entrance while he pulled up the plants and shredded them to make compost.

With this final pull, the eggplant and cucumber harvest was completely finished, leaving the vast field empty.

Tong Zhanyan didn’t rush to till the soil; instead, he went to check on the other crops.

Corn could be harvested twice: once as tender corn for direct consumption, and another time after it had matured, dried in the sun, and was used for grinding into flour or as animal feed.

There’s nearly a month’s gap between the two harvests.

Those corn plants were ready to be harvested, but they were still in the tender stage; picking them now would cause the kernels to shrivel when dried.

Since Tong Zhanyan intended to save them for animal feed, he left them alone.

The pumpkins have grown considerably; the tender ones could already be picked, but Tong Zhanyan wanted the seeds.

A crack had split open in the center of the Chinese cabbage, and flower buds were faintly visible inside.

The rapeseed flowers had long since fallen, replaced by slender green pods encasing the seeds.

The string beans, carrots, and chili peppers, however, were all ready for picking.

Tong Zhanyan went back to fetch the rubber tubing used for identification and began taking samples.

These were already the second batch of seeds.

The first mutation in the cherry tomatoes occurred in the second batch of seeds.

There weren’t many of these three types, but together they numbered over a thousand. Afraid of missing any, Tong Zhanyan took samples very densely, which kept him busy until past 7:00 p.m.

They showed no sign of a decrease in infection rates.

Not a single one.

Tong Zhanyan was somewhat disappointed, but this also clarified many things.

The decrease in infection rate primarily began with the third batch of seeds, with the probability increasing successively in the fourth and fifth batches.

From the first planting to now, he had changed locations, used different fertilizers, and the soil had been constantly changing; the decrease in infection rate was clearly not due to these factors.

The only commonality across these trials was that the condition of the crops themselves was gradually improving.

Especially after the third batch—by that stage, the seedlings had recovered somewhat. Though he still considered them frail, they were at least presentable.

So the problem lay with the crops themselves?

That made sense.

Crops with lower infection rates were more effective at suppressing the frenzy, and those with lower rates were all grown from the original seeds.

Since the original seeds had been stored for a long time, their vitality had certainly decreased, but they were still better than the high-infection-rate seeds available for purchase—they were relatively more vigorous.

So, if we improve the crops’ own vitality and condition, the infection rate will naturally decrease?

Can crops self-purify their infection rate?

Tong Zhanyan suddenly thought of Yang Hong and the others.

Yang Hong and his group hadn’t eaten the low-infection-rate crops, but Qing Suifeng had consumed them previously, and people outside had been eating them all along—though at most, they merely suppressed the infection and delayed its onset.

As for the crops with reduced infection rates, the timeframe was too short for Qing Jiyue to confirm their effectiveness at this stage, but judging by the current situation, there should be some effect…

So the issue isn’t how low the infection rate is, but rather the “purification” aspect—the fact that the crops can purify the infection rate?

Is there some component in those crops with reduced infection rates that other crops lack?

Tong Zhanyan thought it was possible, and the more he thought about it, the more likely it seemed.

Tong Zhanyan contacted Qing Jiyue.

It was already dark, and Qing Jiyue was at the back door.

Tong Zhanyan didn’t say it directly over the terminal; instead, he asked him to come over.

In less than ten minutes, Tong Zhanyan saw him.

He led him upstairs, out of the camera’s view, and outlined his hypothesis.

After listening, Qing Jiyue fell deep in thought for a long while; when he looked up again, his eyes were bright.

Knowing that Qing Jiyue believed him, Tong Zhanyan reminded her, “You should mention this to the lab as soon as possible and have them focus their research on it to see if this is indeed the case.”

“Okay.”

“I’ve planted more crops for the next batch. If it really is the case, there will be plenty of research material.”

Cherry radishes and baby bok choy are in the seventh batch; even if the infection rate doesn’t increase, it should at least remain stable.

Cherry tomatoes are in the fifth batch, while eggplants and cucumbers are in the fourth. He plans to plant a large quantity of all three in the next batch.

Additionally, string beans, corn, chili peppers, carrots, and Chinese cabbage have entered the third batch; if all goes well, they will also begin to mutate.

If the rate increases as expected, the numbers will be quite substantial by then.

Especially for cherry tomatoes, cucumbers, and eggplants—he’s planning to set aside two mu of land for each of them next time.

“Alright.”

“Also, you can call in some more people when the time comes. If scheduling doesn’t work out, just increase the sample size.”

“Tong Zhanyan.” Qing Jiyue took a step forward and embraced Tong Zhanyan. “Thank you.”

Qing Jiyue carried a faint scent of body wash—it smelled lovely.

Inhaling that scent and feeling the warmth radiating from beneath his clothes, Tong Zhanyan’s body tensed instinctively, and his pulse quickened.

Tong Zhanyan held his breath to stop himself from inhaling any more of it. He gently patted Qing Jiyue’s arm, signaling his to let go.

If they were just friends, a hug wouldn’t be a big deal, but he harbored feelings for Qing Jiyue that went beyond friendship.

Qing Jiyue had a fiancé, and it was clear their relationship was going well.

This wasn’t right.

Qing Jiyue didn’t let go; instead, he tightened his grip, as if he wanted to pull Tong Zhanyan right into his body.

They said they were helping each other, but in reality, Tong Zhanyan had helped him far more than he had helped Tong Zhanyan.

If it weren’t for Tong Zhanyan, if he couldn’t see even a glimmer of hope, he might have truly given up under his father’s relentless pressure.

But Tong Zhanyan appeared and showed him hope.

Qing Jiyue didn’t hold him for too long, trying to keep it brief.

Tong Zhanyan didn’t like him—he was downright annoying.

After being released, Tong Zhanyan immediately took a step back and looked away. “So, you’ll handle these arrangements?”

“Alright.” Qing Jiyue felt a bitter taste in his heart.

“Find a few more research institutions,” Tong Zhanyan said.

If everything really unfolded as he anticipated, there was an eighty to ninety percent chance that the reduced infection rate in the next crop would be impossible to conceal.

Getting the medicine developed sooner would also save more lives.

Qing Jiyue understood what Tong Zhanyan meant, and he couldn’t help but take another deep look at him.

After exchanging a few more words, Qing Jiyue went back to the rear.

It had already grown dark.

The chickens had been clucking with hunger for a while, and the pigs hadn’t been fed yet. Tong Zhanyan stood under the eaves for a moment before getting to work.

Once the evaluation was complete, the next day, Tong Zhanyan harvested the string beans, carrots, and chili peppers for the first time.

Since the chili peppers were small, he picked just a small crate; he gathered two crates of string beans, and pulled a full four crates of carrots.

After the harvest, Tong Zhanyan grabbed a hoe and began turning over the soil in the beds for cherry tomatoes, eggplants, and cucumbers.

Those plots had already been thoroughly tilled once before, and with the addition of decomposed soil, plant ash, and eggshell powder—plus several applications of manure—it required almost no effort at all.

Especially in the cherry tomato section, where he’d mixed in soil brought from the greenhouse, the soil he dug up crumbled on its own without even needing to be shaken.

Still, with so much soil to work with, it took Tong Zhanyan two days.

Two days later, Tong Zhanyan removed the plastic sheeting from the cherry radishes and bok choy in the third plot.

At the same time, the cherry tomatoes he’d planted earlier were already sprouting lush green shoots across the field.

Another two days passed, and when Tong Zhanyan harvested the string beans, chili peppers, and carrots for the second time, the eggplants and cucumbers had also begun to sprout.

By the time he harvested the string beans, chili peppers, and carrots for the third time—when they had reached full maturity—Tong Zhanyan called on Mr. Bai to help again.

Even though the quantity wasn’t as much as the cherry tomatoes, it would still take him nearly half a day to handle it all by himself.

The crops wouldn’t wait for him.

By the time he finished here, the cherry radishes and bok choy that Tong Zhanyan had previously used to feed the chickens, pigs, and people were also nearing the end of their harvest.

The third plot wasn’t ripe yet, so without hesitation, Tong Zhanyan pulled up the plants from the low-infection-rate plot.

Since he’d already cleared the entire area with the reduced infection rate, these low-infection-rate ones didn’t really serve much purpose.

In the Live Stream.

Watching Senior Da Liu pull up a whole patch at once, and seeing him casually rinse them off and toss them into the basin meant for chopping up pig and chicken feed, the crowd’s blood pressure began to rise.

“Did he make a mistake?”

“Are those really the ones with a low infection rate?”

“He’s pulling up the ones with a low infection rate to feed the chickens and pigs, too?”

“Someone please tell me that the low-infection-rate compost has better fertilizing effects, or I really won’t be able to understand this.”

“What is he doing?”

…

At the Planting Alliance.

Old Wang was on the phone with Old Xu.

They had started learning from Senior Da Liu’s farming methods at the same time. Since their progress was identical, they’d been in constant contact and discussion throughout.

Just in the past couple of days, the batch of crops they planted has finally reached harvest time.

This has made their discussions even more frequent.

However, the focus of their discussions has completely shifted from academic matters to the question of who is growing their crops better.

They can’t hold a candle to Senior Da Liu and his group, but when comparing themselves to each other, there’s still room for comparison. Because of this, the two of them are each sticking to their own opinions, neither willing to back down.

With all the arguing, as soon as Tao Zhengping, Shen Ye, and the others heard the two were about to message each other again, they immediately made excuses to slip away.

With no juniors watching nearby, the two men—who had known each other for most of their lives—argued with even greater fervor. Yet, as they argued, their attention was both drawn to the live stream that was playing in the background.

“Those are the seeds the Alliance sold, right?”

“Yes…”

“You’re sure?”

“Yes…”

“What is he trying to do?”

Old Xu was speechless this time.

“Those seeds only have a 10% infection rate.” Old Wang’s eyes widened in shock.

Seeds with a 10% infection rate are virtually impossible to buy on the open market—they’re in such short supply themselves.

Especially now that this batch was nearly depleted—they were counting them one by one.

Back then, the ones they gave to Senior Da Liu were ones they’d pooled together…

The batch they were using for their own experiments already had an infection rate exceeding 15%.

“Why don’t we contact Qing Jiyue? Maybe he made a mistake,” Old Wang suggested.

“I don’t think so…” Old Xu silently pulled out a nitroglycerin tablet.

Across from him, Old Wang also took out his inhaler.

At that moment, neither of them had the heart to mock the other.

Those were seeds with a 10% infection rate—seeds that even they had run out of—and yet they were being used to feed pigs and chickens.

Old Wang began to feel short of breath.

Old Xu also felt a tightness in his chest.

Tong Zhanyan actually felt a pang of regret, because he could eat these cherry radishes and baby bok choy—they were, after all, the only vegetables he could eat at the moment.

But the growth cycle of these crops was set; there was no way to hold onto them.

However, considering how rare low-infection-rate seeds were, he made a point of saving extra seeds—over a hundred plants’ worth.

Both of these varieties had strong seed-producing capabilities; a single healthy plant could yield two to three hundred seeds, so over a hundred plants meant thirty to forty thousand seeds.

Perhaps sensing his kindness, the next morning, the chickens laid a full four eggs.

That made him so happy his smile didn’t fade all day.

It also meant he didn’t drink any nutritional supplements all day, getting by solely on eggs, cherry radishes, and baby bok choy.

No oil, no salt—combined, these three items were like a diet meal, but here, Tong Zhanyan was already very satisfied.

The next day, Tong Zhanyan only found two eggs.

He wasn’t disappointed because the other crops with lower infection rates were also nearly ready for harvest.

Although this batch was mainly for breeding, with few fruits left, he could still sneak a bite or two.

That meant he would soon be able to eat cherry tomatoes, eggplants, cucumbers, string beans, carrots, and chili peppers.

Especially the chili peppers—even without salt, they wouldn’t taste nearly as good, but just thinking about them made Tong Zhanyan’s mouth water.

Plus, after harvesting the chili seeds, the husks could be saved for stir-frying. Beyond snacking, he could build up a stockpile.

With this in mind, Tong Zhanyan checked on them morning, noon, and night, never missing a chance even in his spare time.

During the days of waiting, he harvested the high-infection-rate string beans, chili peppers, and carrots once more.

Two days later, when the low-infection-rate chili peppers had almost all turned red, Tong Zhanyan harvested the high-infection-rate string beans, chili peppers, and carrots one last time, then pulled up all the seedlings.

After Boss Bai delivered the last of the crops to the gate, Tong Zhanyan sent him a generous red envelope.

Although they had originally agreed that he would just take a look at Mr. Bai’s greenhouse, Mr. Bai had not only helped with the settlement but also assisted with the harvest during this time; Tong Zhanyan felt he couldn’t let him go without giving him a red envelope.

As for the payment for the crops, even if the Planting Alliance couldn’t come up with that much money all at once, it would be paid out in installments over time.

Tong Zhanyan wasn’t in a hurry.

After finishing the harvest, he also received seeds for string beans, chili peppers, and carrots.

This time, Tong Zhanyan set aside over a thousand seeds of each variety.

After preparing the seeds, Tong Zhanyan let them air-dry overnight and planted them the next day.

After two days of hard work, when Tong Zhanyan checked on the chili peppers again, the ones that had ripened faster were ready to be picked.

That night, for the first time in over a year, he tasted chili peppers again.

Boiled eggs, boiled cherry radishes, boiled bok choy, and a small dish of chili pepper slices dipped in water—he ate with great relish.

Then his stomach burned fiercely for half the night.

This was the first time he had eaten chili peppers in the nearly twenty years he had lived in this body.

After the chili peppers, Tong Zhanyan began looking forward to the other crops.

Sweet-and-sour cherry tomatoes, crisp cucumbers, soft eggplants, texturally rich string beans, and uniquely fragrant carrots…

Before Tong Zhanyan could even start eating, the plastic wrap covering the cherry tomatoes had already started to bulge.

They were already eager to see the world.

Tong Zhanyan had no choice but to peel back the plastic for them, then prepare the large cups for transplanting.

He had bought the cups a long time ago.

It took him a full two days to punch holes in them, because he had to prepare not only for the cherry tomatoes but also for the other crops in advance.

Once he started transplanting, he would be busy for the next half a month.

By the time the cups were ready, the corn kernels had finally hardened, and the surface of the pumpkins had also toughened.

Tong Zhanyan waited patiently for another two days before harvesting.

He harvested two pumpkins; the flesh was divided into four days’ worth of portions, with half fed to the pigs and half to the chickens.

The corn was a bit more troublesome—after harvesting, it had to be dried first.

There was a large concrete area at the farm, but it was all near the entrance.

Considering that people frequently come and go, which might bring in dust with a high infection rate from outside, Tong Zhanyan took the time to peel off the husks, string them into several large bunches, and hang them under the eaves.

Because of this, the livestream was buzzing with activity for another two days.

“Is this how you dry corn? I feel like my understanding of things is constantly being updated.”

“It actually looks pretty nice.”

“Won’t they fall down?”

“Aren’t you supposed to pick corn when it’s still tender? How are you supposed to eat it when it’s grown this old?”

“Will it soften when cooked?”

“I think you can grind it into flour.”

…

With the harvest complete, many people returned to focusing on work and studies, logging in only at night.

The number of viewers in the live stream during the day dropped again.

However, Senior Da Liu’s total follower count had already surpassed eight million; even when it dropped, it rarely fell below 150,000, and during the evening peak hours, it often exceeded 300,000.

Although the old crops had been harvested, new seeds had already been planted.

Especially that eight-mu plot—even though it’s still empty right now, just seeing it is enough to get people excited.

After the corn was hung up, the low-infection-rate cherry tomatoes, cucumbers, eggplants, string beans, and carrots finally ripened.

Tong Zhanyan, drooling, picked the worst-looking fruit of each variety and sneaked a bite.

“Aren’t those supposed to be saved for breeding?”

“Did the streamer sneak a bite again today? He did.”

“He really knows how to eat—he ignores the seeds with a high infection rate but even steals the low-infection-rate seeds to eat.”

“Hahaha…”

“Eggs, bok choy, cherry radishes, and now these too… I’m starting to feel like I’m not living like a human being.”

“Damn, haven’t there been any giveaways lately? I’m getting more and more curious to take a peek inside.”

“I really want to go in and experience Senior’s life for a bit.”

“If I could live like that for just one day, I’d wake up smiling even in my dreams.”

“I’d even go to Senior’s place to be a pig—or a chicken, if nothing else.”

…

When you haven’t eaten, you’re just plain hungry; once you’ve eaten, it’s a mix of hunger and craving. After sneaking a round of snacks, Tong Zhanyan stared at the crops with eyes that were practically glowing green.

He had even seriously considered the point of keeping these seeds if the infection rate could be lowered.

Fortunately, he soon had no time to think about that anymore, because more than twenty days had passed since the cherry tomatoes were sown, and it was time to transplant them.

This time, the cherry tomatoes alone covered two mu of land. The thought of a vast expanse of lush green seedlings gave Tong Zhanyan a headache just looking at it.

And right after them came eggplants, cucumbers, string beans, carrots, chili peppers, Chinese cabbage, pumpkins…

Forget just him—even if there were three more like him, this would clearly be too much to handle.

Tong Zhanyan decisively began to consider hiring help.

The first thing that came to mind was his livestream.

There were plenty of people willing to come, but unlike harvesting, transplanting is a long-term project. Assigning a group to work for over ten days is too long, and rotating shifts means having to retrain them each time, which is a hassle…

Tong Zhanyan couldn’t help but miss Tian Xinqing and the others.

He still had to find a way to train a few long-term workers.

But hiring people was another headache…

He definitely needed people he could trust, and they had to be available to work full-time. Once hired, he’d also have to figure out their room and board—

As he pondered this, Tong Zhanyan couldn’t help but glance toward the back door. People he could trust, who were available, and who didn’t require him to worry about room and board—weren’t they right over there?

Still five of them.

The key was that they’d be staying here for quite some time.

With that in mind, Tong Zhanyan got up and got into his car, his long tail swishing back and forth as he headed toward the back.

When he arrived, Qing Jiyue wasn’t there, but the Devil King and Chu Yi were both present, and the five of them were gathered in the same cage, chatting.

Yang Hong glanced at the light screen popping up on his terminal while looking over at him; he’d already noticed Tong Zhanyan was coming.

As he approached and saw the snacks and drinks scattered around them, Tong Zhanyan couldn’t help but twitch the corner of his mouth.

He was working himself to the bone up front, while they were living off his food and lodging, living quite comfortably.

“How’s it going?” Tong Zhanyan stepped into the cage.

“Not bad.”

“Just a little boring.”

“Anything up?”

The group spoke up one after another.

A smile spread across Tong Zhanyan’s face. “Want to come over to my place and do something that isn’t boring?”

The others exchanged glances.

Yang Hong was momentarily stunned before quickly catching on to what he meant—he’d been watching the livestream the whole time.

He felt a flash of delight, but hesitation followed the joy. “I think I’ll pass…”

“You can’t stay in this cage forever,” Tong Zhanyan said.

If things were truly improving as Qing Jiyue had said, then it wouldn’t be a big deal.

Besides, it’s just playing in the dirt—nothing serious. It’s not like we’ll get easily riled up.

The group exchanged another glance.

Tong Zhanyan added, “We can bring those guys along too.”

As he spoke, he looked over at the group of guards in front of the small building, sipping drinks and chatting.

Seeing them, Tong Zhanyan felt even more bitter.

Why did he feel like he was the only one suffering in the entire base?

The group exchanged another glance; Yang Hong was clearly tempted.

“Let’s go take a look then,” Qing Suifeng said with a smile as he stood up. “So many people want to come but can’t. It’s a rare opportunity.”

Seeing that Qing Suifeng had spoken up, the others no longer hesitated and stood up one after another.

Moments later, the group headed toward the small cottage.

Apart from Yang Hong, Qing Suifeng and the others had clearly seen his cottage on the livestream as well. After getting out of the car, they immediately began looking around with curiosity.

Tong Zhanyan didn’t stop them. While letting them explore freely, he went back to the storage shed to fetch cups, small shovels, and stools.

With the cameras set to anti-shooting mode for everyone except him, Tong Zhanyan wasn’t worried that the group would be recognized.

Once everything was ready, he didn’t forget to water the cherry tomatoes that needed repotting with a sprinkler, to prevent the soil from falling apart during the move.

Finally, Tong Zhanyan waved cheerfully and handed out a set of tools to each person.

At the live Stream.

“Host, are you giving away prizes again? How come I didn’t know about this?”

“I don’t think so?”

“Then where did these people come from?”

“Why do the ones in the back look like bodyguards?”

“Is this a team-building event for rich people?”

“Aaaah! When did this service launch? Why didn’t anyone tell me?”

“Start saving money immediately. ”

“Where do I pay?”

“Senior, you finally got it—I’m tearing up.”

…

“I’ll show you how…” Tong Zhanyan demonstrated, “It’s not hard; just try to place the seedling in the middle.”

It really didn’t look difficult, and after Tong Zhanyan finished demonstrating, the others got to work.

The Devil King, Chu Yi, Tang Shijin, and Qing Suifeng looked completely focused, while Yang Hong’s mouth was stretched into a grin from ear to ear.

Tong Zhanyan didn’t rush to start his own; he planned to watch from the sidelines for a while.

It was the first time any of the five had done this. Although many of them had impressive backgrounds, their movements weren’t much better than those of the people he’d selected from the live stream giveaway.

Devil King, in particular, clearly wasn’t cut out for delicate work. On top of that, he was afraid to use any force, so it took him ages just to position a single seedling properly.

Tong Zhanyan walked over, took the cup and the seedling from his hands, and said, “Like this…”

Devil King watched intently.

“That’s it,” Tong Zhanyan said, brushing the soil off his hands.

Devil King picked up the cup again and tried once more.

Tong Zhanyan looked at the others.

The other four had already filled their cups. Tang Shijin was almost done with her second plant, while Chu Yi and Qing Suifeng were already grabbing new cups. Yang Hong, meanwhile, was watching him with eager anticipation.

Tong Zhanyan walked over to take a look. “You’re doing a great job.”

Yang Hong’s face lit up instantly.

If the people back in the group knew that he not only lived here and ate his fill of crops every day, but was now even being called upon to work, they’d surely go crazy.

Chu Yi and the others all glanced at Yang Hong’s plant, then looked at their own.

Seeing that their own work wasn’t too shabby, they breathed a slight sigh of relief.

Wang Yanzhou frowned deeply; he was the only one who’d been criticized.