Chapter 67: Planting Ice Spirit Flower

“Everyone, pay attention and make sure you recognize it clearly. If you dig up the wrong one, you won’t get paid!”

The village head held up the Ice Spirit Flower again for everyone to see.

Once everyone had taken a good look, he continued, “Not only can you make money from digging up medicinal herbs, but you can also make money by planting them.

Madam Ye has said that she wants to hire two people to help plant the herbs on the mountain, and the daily wage will be ten wen.

As for who will do it, I’ve already decided, Zhang Da Li and Zhang Er Zhu.

If you two are up for it, you can go up the mountain this afternoon. If not, I’ll find someone else.”

“Okay!” Both men answered in unison.

“Uncle Li, why them? Why does this good opportunity always seem to go to someone else?” someone complained anxiously.

The village head glanced over the crowd. “Why did I pick them? Well, last time when we were digging the canal, everyone saw that Zhang Da Li and Er Zhu were really capable. They were always at the front, especially Er Zhu, he was so brave dealing with wild boars!

So when there’s a good opportunity like this, I thought of them first.

Of course, I also remember when others did well. The next time there’s a chance, I’ll definitely think of the third best, the fourth best, don’t you think?”

“That’s true, but who knows when the next chance will come?” someone muttered under their breath.

“The opportunity doesn’t just come whenever you want,” the village head said, his eyes twinkling. “But let’s say, everyone goes up the mountain to dig for herbs and they end up finding hundreds of plants. At that point, Zhang Da Li and Er Zhu will definitely be too busy, right?

Then Huai’an’s family will have to hire more hands, paying more money. That way, everyone gets a chance!”

“Yeah, that makes sense!”

“The village head’s right!”

“The more we dig, the more we earn. Maybe we’ll even earn money from planting herbs. It’s like a snowball effect, the more you roll, the bigger it gets!”

“So what are we waiting for? We should go tomorrow!”

“I won’t wait for you all. I’m heading up the mountain today to check it out,” said Er Dan’s father.

“Why are you in such a hurry?” someone asked.

“Who wouldn’t be eager to make money? If you’re not in a hurry, there must be something wrong with your head!”

“Hahahahaha!”

“One more thing!”

Looking at the villagers laughing, the village head became serious. “None of you better get any funny ideas. After someone goes through the trouble of planting it, don’t go digging it up to sell for money!”

“I’m telling you, the villagers I, Zhang Ya Suo, raise don’t lack morals like that.”

“But to prevent this kind of situation, starting today, everyone will supervise each other. Besides the people planting herbs, if anyone goes up to East Mountain, I’ll fine them! The fines will go to the person who reports them!”

“Uncle Li, then I won’t do anything tomorrow, I’ll just walk around East Mountain!”

“Count me in, I’ll go too whenever I have free time!”

“If you all go, who’s going to earn the money?”

“Who knows? Hahahahaha!”

Laughter echoed through the village and could be heard from far away.

Ye Xin Ran didn’t expect something so small would be made so official by the village head.

But the village head really had thought of everything.

It seemed that this village head, Zhang Ya Suo, had a knack for brainwashing people. If he were in the era she lived in, he might’ve been a top-tier salesman.

The crowd slowly dispersed, leaving only Er Zhu and Zhang Da Li behind.

They looked at Ye Xin Ran and Xiao Huai’an, cautiously asking, “We’ve only ever grown crops, not medicinal herbs. How do we plant this?”

“Actually…” Ye Xin Ran thought for a moment, “I’ve never planted it before either.”

“Ah?”

Both men were shocked.

Ye Xin Ran continued, “But I’ve seen people plant it, and for us, it’s just transplantation. The mountain still has its original environment, as long as we don’t damage the roots of the Ice Spirit Flower, there shouldn’t be a problem.”

“Alright, then we’ll give it a try!”

Zhang Da Li carried the herbs, and with Er Zhu, they headed to the mountain with Ye Xin Ran.

The soil on East Mountain wasn’t as fertile as on Mi Lu Mountain, and the underground water source was insufficient. The plants on the mountain weren’t as lush either.

However, the spot Ye Xin Ran had chosen was a valley on the mountain.

The valley faced the sun, and because it was in a lower area, it stored more moisture, giving it more vitality.

Ye Xin Ran picked the spot and instructed Zhang Da Li and Er Zhu to plant the half-basket of Ice Spirit Flowers they brought there.

“Don’t dig the holes too deep, just enough to cover the roots. Before planting, clear away any dead leaves and small grasses. Only leave the taller trees.”

“Xiao Da Sao, then we’ll clear a patch of land first, then plant the herbs. There are only about thirty herbs, so it’ll be done soon.”

Er Zhu suggested.

“Alright!”

Ye Xin Ran nodded, “Anyway, this area is yours to plant, so you can handle it however you want.”

Zhang Da Li looked at the direction of the sunlight and said to Er Zhu, “It’s a bit late today. Let’s clear a small patch first. Tomorrow, when there’s no work in the fields, we can come back and finish it.”

“Alright!” Er Zhu replied enthusiastically, “We’ll listen to Da Li Ge.”

The two men immediately got to work.

They first chopped down the waist-high weeds and small trees, then took rakes to clear a large patch of dead leaves from the ground.

Under the dead leaves, the soil was dark and fertile. Zhang Da Li, seeing this, immediately praised Ye Xin Ran’s good judgment.

“Lady Ye really knows how to pick the spot. The land I cleared at the foot of the mountain a few days ago is nowhere near as good as this.”

“This is a valley, so it’s definitely different from the land at the foot of the mountain. Also, this area doesn’t get enough sunlight for growing grains, but for Ice Spirit Flowers, which prefer shade but need some sunlight, it’s the perfect place.”

“Lady Ye is absolutely right!” Zhang Da Li nodded in agreement.

The two men worked quickly.

By the time they finished planting all the Ice Spirit Flowers, the sun had not yet set.

“You two have worked hard. Come with me to my house later to get today’s wages,” Ye Xin Ran said on their way down the mountain.

Zhang Da Li scratched his head, feeling a bit embarrassed. “It’s not necessary to rush. You can just pay us at the end of the month.”

“That won’t do!” Ye Xin Ran disagreed. “That way, I’d have to keep track of everything, which would be too much trouble.”

That made sense.

Zhang Da Li wanted to say that it would actually be fine not to get paid right away, but he hesitated, not quite able to say the words.

His family did need the money, but even if he had said something, it would have just been out of politeness.

When they got home, Ye Xin Ran took the money and paid them as agreed, ten wen each.

After finishing the work and preparing to head to the kitchen to cook, she noticed that Xiao Huai’an had already washed all the vegetables they bought with the three kids.

When they saw Ye Xin Ran return, all four of them looked at her eagerly.

“Aunt, what’s this hotpot thing you mentioned?”