Chapter 21: Manor Level 21

A little further north, away from the wooden house, there was a place where the grass was abundant, and the terrain was flat. It was more than enough to build a large enclosure to house these animals.

You could also set up some chicken coops, cow sheds, pig pens, and the like, to provide shelter from the rain and give them a place to sleep at night.

Ai Ling thought this suggestion was good. After all, the heavy rain earlier had already left her exhausted from moving a few small animals around. If such a storm came again, with more and more animals, wouldn’t she be completely worn out?

Once she made up her mind, Ai Ling took her axe and went to the western forest to cut a lot of wood, asking Yuan Muchen to help carry it to the vacant land to the north.

Together, they built a nearly 500-square-meter super livestock farm, surrounded by high logs, effectively preventing wild animals from getting in and eating the animals.

Then, as Yuan Muchen suggested, they also built chicken coops, pig pens, cow sheds, and other grass shelters, large and small, to give the animals a place to rest and hide from the rain.

Ai Ling even thoughtfully spread a lot of grass inside the shelters, which was useful for feeding, sleeping, and keeping warm.

Looking at this huge livestock farm, Ai Ling immediately felt a sense of pride in her prosperity and thought she must also have a grand castle and a large orchard to match it.

Hmm, as for the castle, it seemed a bit much to imagine, but the orchard might actually be possible.

Right now, there weren’t enough fruit trees, but if she kept planting and grafting, she would eventually be able to grow a big orchard.

This was Ai Ling’s strength—every time something small and happy happened, she could imagine a whole string of even happier things.

Thinking about how her wind chime manor would look once it was completed, Ai Ling was filled with excitement and energy.

Seeing Ai Ling so happy, Yuan Muchen felt both happy and envious.

On the way back, he suddenly asked shyly, “Miss Ai, I see your manor growing bigger and bigger, and it’s taking more and more energy. It must be a bit tiring for just one person. Would you need to hire some help?”

Ai Ling thought for a moment and said, “It is indeed a bit exhausting, mainly because the livestock farm is too big and a bit far from where I live. I can’t keep an eye on it every day. If, by chance, some wild animals break the fence and get in to eat them all, or if the weather gets too hot and I forget to replenish their water, the whole plan might fail.”

She sighed, feeling a bit down. “It’s a pity I can’t find anyone to help. Besides us Xi Slayer, it seems like there is no one else on this planet, right?”

Yuan Muchen immediately laughed and volunteered, “Miss Ai, how about me? I’m strong and healthy now, looking like a big gorilla, naturally close to animals. I could help you guard the livestock farm. What do you think?”

Ai Ling was startled and quickly waved her hands, saying, “No, no, you’re my friend! How can I have you help guard such a place? Besides, I don’t have any wages to pay you. As the saying goes, no work without reward, it would really be too much for me to ask you to do this.”

Yuan Muchen hurriedly said, “No wages, no wages! All you need to do is provide me with three meals a day, and I’m full of strength. Although I can’t do any fine work, I can help carry things, pick up things, and take care of the animals. And… and…”

He scratched his head, a bit embarrassed, and said, “I also want… I want to be a little closer to you. That way, I would feel more at ease.”

Ai Ling was silent for a long time. Yuan Muchen looked up and saw her awkward expression and suddenly realized, explaining:

“Miss, please don’t misunderstand. I have no other intentions. It’s just… just that I feel close to you because you’re a human, like me. That’s why I dared to ask such a thing. If you’re not willing, I would never force you.”

Upon hearing this, Ai Ling finally relaxed and thought for a moment before asking, “Where are you living now? Have you built yourself a house?”

Yuan Muchen began to fidget and looked down awkwardly. “Heh heh, well… not yet. I just found a small cave in the western forest to live in. When I’m hungry, I catch a wild chicken or rabbit and roast it. When I’m thirsty, I drink spring water. It’s free and easy, so I didn’t think about building a house… I’m ashamed.”

Ai Ling nodded. “Since that’s the case, then it’s fine! We’ll build you a little wooden house next to the livestock farm, just like mine. We can be neighbors from now on!”

Yuan Muchen hurriedly said, “There’s no need to go through all that trouble, I…”

“Listen to me,” Ai Ling interrupted, speaking seriously. “Strictly speaking, these animals were all brought here by you, so from now on, you’ll be responsible for raising them. When I need meat, eggs, or other ingredients, I’ll exchange them with you for fruits, crops, or meals from my place. Does that sound okay to you?”

Yuan Muchen was startled and quickly declined, “No, no, no, that’s not what I meant. Miss Ai, I don’t want to take over the livestock farm. I really just want to help you, and be a little closer to you… also… I was thinking your meals are delicious, so I could sneak in a few more meals every day. Please, don’t misunderstand me.”

Ai Ling immediately smiled and said, “Oh, don’t think that way. I understand your intentions. There’s no misunderstanding. This matter is actually a favor I’m asking of you. If you worked for me, I really couldn’t afford to pay you. I’d rather not have this livestock farm than have an employer-employee relationship with you. I can’t stand that kind of constraint. Do you understand?”

Yuan Muchen was a bit stunned, so Ai Ling made a firm decision. “Alright, it’s settled then. I wouldn’t know how to raise these animals myself, and you’re perfect for the job. Plus, we’ll be living on this planet for a long time, and maybe more Xi Slayer will come here looking for a livelihood. You can’t just keep doing things for me forever, right?”

“Little brother, I am willing…”

“Listen to me first. For now, take good care of the livestock farm, and treat it like your business here on this planet. I’ll take care of my manor, develop my crop improvement business, and that way, when we have surplus resources, we can trade them.”

Ai Ling looked at the land with longing in her eyes, her bright eyes full of smiles. “One day, when more Xi Slayer come here, and everyone has their own business, this planet will gradually become prosperous, right?”

Her words even moved Ai Ling herself, and Yuan Muchen couldn’t help but tear up. “I never imagined Miss Ai was so thoughtful and forward-looking. I’ve learned a lot from you.”

Yes, he thought, although he didn’t mind doing things for Ai Ling, after all, he was just a big gorilla. It didn’t seem proper to always be around her.

And He Xi didn’t think highly of him either. If He Xi came back and saw him constantly hanging around Ai Ling, he would surely get angry.

It would be better to do what Ai Ling suggested, build his own career, and then interact with her as equals.

That way, he’d have something to do, and Ai Ling wouldn’t feel awkward—it was the best choice.

Having thought it through, Yuan Muchen solemnly bowed to Ai Ling.

“Thank you, Miss Ai, for thinking of me so much, even considering the future of Blue Star! In that case, I’ll become a full-time animal trainer from now on, and you can leave all the animals to me. I promise we’ll always have an abundance of chicken, duck, meat, and eggs.”

“Good, good, good,” Ai Ling clapped her hands happily. “Then let’s start building your wooden house!”

Yuan Muchen nodded in agreement and then added, “Miss Ai, you can help me build a wooden house, but it doesn’t need to be as complicated as yours. I just need a small room, a bit higher up, right next to the livestock farm, so I can see all the animals at a glance.”

Ai Ling happily agreed.

To be honest, if she had to spend another half a month building a wooden house like hers, she really wouldn’t have the energy for it.

The seedlings were starting to sprout, and she needed to hurry and transplant them.

【This Number 1 has completely become Number 5’s assistant. Should we still kill the Demon King?】

【Don’t be so cruel, always thinking about killing the Demon King. Aren’t you thinking about how hard they work to turn Blue Star into a paradise?】

【Then wait for He Xi to successfully escape and come turn our planet into hell? I really don’t know how your brain works.】

【My brain is very well-developed, no need for you to worry. Oh, love and peace!】

【I still think that both Number 5 and Number 1 are tricks of the old witch, and their ultimate goal is still to kill He Xi. Just wait and see.】

【Don’t care, I just want to watch the pastoral idyll!】

After handing over the work of raising animals, Ai Ling immediately felt much lighter.

But Yuan Muchen said that there were still many things he didn’t understand about animal husbandry.

Specifically, how to tame the animals, how to breed them, and how to make them happy so they could lay eggs and grow meat, these were areas where he needed Ai Ling to provide more guidance.

Ai Ling naturally agreed to help. Talking about it was much easier and more enjoyable than doing the work herself.

After helping Yuan Muchen build his little wooden house, the weather had been sunny for over ten days, and the seedlings in the rice field had grown to about two fingers long.

Seeing the water in the field gradually decreasing, Ai Ling felt it was time to pull the seedlings and transplant them.

When she was a child, Ai Ling had helped her grandmother plant crops and knew exactly what to do.

First, she needed to plow the rice field that was to be planted.

Ai Ling didn’t have any plowing tools, so she had to use a hoe instead. After this session, she was nearly too exhausted to get out of bed.

Once the field was plowed, she pulled the fully grown seedlings out and bundled them into small bundles to bring them to the rice field.

When it was time to plant, she took one small bundle of seedlings at a time, divided them into smaller bunches, and spaced them about 15 cm apart to ensure they were arranged neatly.

Ai Ling remembered when she was little, every time she planted, her section was all crooked and uneven—some were loose, some were dense—while her grandmother’s section was always perfectly neat, and it looked very comfortable.

The villagers passing by would often tease Ai Ling, saying her seedlings looked worse than those tossed carelessly by others.

But her grandmother never scolded her, only praising her for finishing her section on time, which was already quite good.

Her grandmother also said, “When our ^[1]Ling’er (靈兒), the “er” (兒) is a diminutive suffix in Chinese. It’s often added to names (especially childhood nicknames or when speaking affectionately) to make the name … Continue readingLing’er grows up, she won’t have to do such hard farm work. Why bother making it look perfect, right?”

From then on, Ai Ling didn’t mind too much. After all, when she grew up, she wouldn’t need to farm, and as long as it was decent, that was enough.

Ah, if only her grandmother knew that after she was transported to this other world, she spent every day working hard on farm tasks, would she be disappointed?