Chapter 45: Can’t Be Overly Optimistic

“Honey, stop praising yourself,” Cheng Xiaolin threw him a look. “Whether or not it tastes good, we’ll find out in a few months when the fruit ripens.”

Cao Shujie chuckled and didn’t argue with his wife, continuing to explain to Xu Fang, Ye Beiwen, and the others, “Don’t doubt me, everything I’m saying is true.”

He pointed to a small house not far away and said, “See that place? I just had someone drill a well hundreds of meters deep there not long ago. The water is very clean. I use this spring water to irrigate the orchard. Just that alone—think about it, won’t the fruit taste great?”

Seeing her husband speak so confidently, Cheng Xiaolin this time didn’t poke holes in his claims, instead giving him an encouraging smile.

The small house above the well was built by Cao Shujie after Han Dingping and his team finished drilling, and he had Cao Zhenggang lead some people to help out.

For them, this was an easy job—something to do along the way, and they could make money at the same time. Why not?

Ye Beiwen, Huang Jingmin, and Deng Miaoshan were standing beside the fruit trees they each planted, taking group photos.

They struck various cute poses, each holding a little card with their name and date written on it, taking turns photographing each other as a keepsake.

Cao Shujie said to his wife, “Look, this trip wasn’t wasted for them, was it?”

“Honey, you’re so sly!” Cheng Xiaolin was truly impressed by his resourcefulness. How does he even come up with these ‘crazy ideas’? Amazing!

“What are you talking about? I’m getting things done.” Cao Shujie walked over towards Cao Zhenggang.

When he got there, he asked, “Grandpa Zhenggang, when you have time in the next few days, let’s settle the accounts.”

“Shujie, no rush. Let’s finish up here first,” Cao Zhenggang replied, pointing to a group of people installing the wire mesh fence.

Most of the fence was already up. The hardest part was digging holes every four meters, pouring concrete, and waiting for the concrete piers to solidify before installing expansion bolts. The actual installation was the easiest part.

Plus, the production capacity limitations at “Chen Zheng Protective Mesh” had slowed the construction down as well.

Thankfully, things had been busy these past few days, and everything was almost done.

Moreover, there was a bit of the wire mesh left over from Cao Shujie’s last purchase, so he sectioned off an area inside the fence to use for breeding livestock.

Hearing that Cao Zhenggang wasn’t in a hurry to settle the bill, Cao Shujie also relaxed. “Alright then, after we finish everything in the next couple of days, we’ll settle up together.”

…

That night, Deng Miaoshan, Ye Beiwen, Huang Jingmin, and Xu Fang had dinner at Cao Shujie’s house again. Then Cao Shujie and his sister drove them into town, found an inn near the bus station, and booked two rooms for them to stay in pairs for the night.

Ye Beiwen and the others saw that all the blossoms in the orchard had fallen and they’d each planted their own fruit tree. Since it would be next year before anything would bloom or bear fruit, there was nothing left for them to do and staying longer would only be a burden to Cao Shujie’s family. They decided to leave early the next morning and explore other places.

“I’ll come by tomorrow morning to have breakfast with you all,” Cao Huifang said after settling in her four classmates.

But Deng Miaoshan waved her hand and said, “Fangfang, don’t worry about us. We’ll sleep in a bit, sort out breakfast ourselves, and then head straight for the station. No need for you to run back and forth—it’s too much trouble.”

The others echoed her, so Cao Huifang gave up the idea of seeing them off.

By the time Cao Shujie and his sister got home, it was almost nine. Mengmeng was still awake, playing in the bedroom. As soon as she saw him, she ran over, looking up at him with her little face, “Daddy, kitten.”

Cao Shujie was a bit confused. “You want a little wild cat?”

“No,” Mengmeng shook her head, “Kitten, dress.”

“Where is it?” Cao Shujie asked, adding, “I’ll go find it for you.”

“Money, buy!” Mengmeng stretched her little hand out to her dad, shouting loudly.

Cheng Xiaolin was giggling nearby. Now it dawned on Cao Shujie, “Honey, where do you buy it? Get her one.”

“When you weren’t back just now, the two of us were browsing Taobao. She saw a pink short-sleeved T-shirt with Doraemon on it and insisted we buy it,” Cheng Xiaolin explained.

It was just a piece of clothing; Cao Shujie didn’t mind. “Then get it.”

Cheng Xiaolin beamed at her daughter. “Mengmeng, aren’t you going to thank Daddy?”

“Thank you, Daddy!” Mengmeng put her hands together, mumbling sweetly.

Seeing her adorable expression, Cao Shujie’s gaze softened even more, his eyes practically brimming with laughter.

“Honey, did you get all the girls settled in?” Cheng Xiaolin was still thinking about it.

Cao Shujie nodded. “They’re all in the inn. Don’t worry.”

He continued to Cheng Xiaolin, “Honey, I’m thinking since there’s nothing urgent at the moment, why don’t we go away for a couple of days?”

“There’s still work up on the mountain. Where do you want to go on vacation?” Cheng Xiaolin replied.

She wasn’t at ease leaving while there was still so much to do at home.

“Besides, it’s May Day Golden Week and all the tourist spots outside will be packed. If we take Mengmeng and squeeze through the crowds, we won’t see anything interesting,” Cheng Xiaolin shook her head. She didn’t want to go.

Hearing this, Cao Shujie gave up on the idea for now.

He decided to get everything settled quickly and then go out for a trip in a few days.

Cao Shujie felt quite motivated nowadays. At least he was no longer consumed by inner turmoil. His mood was relaxed, and he put his heart into his work each day.

“Daddy, horseback ride,” Mengmeng called out.

Immediately, Cao Shujie lifted his daughter under the arms, seating her on his shoulders and securing her legs tightly. “Mengmeng, sit tight, let’s go.”

“Yay, giddy up!” Mengmeng laughed gleefully. Next door, Wang Yuelan and Cao Jianguo heard her, their faces lighting up with smiles.

“Old Cao, seeing our son working hard at home like this feels really good,” she said.

But Cao Jianguo wasn’t so optimistic. He lit a cigarette, took a hard drag, and squinted, making the inconspicuous mole on his face stand out even more. “It’s nowhere near as easy as you think.”

“Shujie’s contracted nearly 80 acres all at once, all planted with fruit. When the fruit is ready, selling it will be a massive issue.”

Thinking of this, the look on Cao Jianguo’s face grew serious.

Fruit is perishable—if it doesn’t sell in time, it’ll all rot in your hands. At that point, it’s a disaster.

Wang Yuelan was a bit more optimistic. “I think since Shujie dared to contract all of it, it means he has a plan. Besides, he majored in agricultural science. I believe in him.”

“You really are his mom,” Cao Jianguo said, not wanting to debate it further.

He continued, “In a couple years, I’ll try to contact a few fruit buyers in advance, see if they can take Shujie’s harvest first. As for what’s left, if necessary we’ll spend some money to rent cold storage.”

“Yeah, that works.” Wang Yuelan nodded.

She wasn’t really naive—she knew her husband’s advice made sense.

Slowly, the moon climbed high. Occasionally a dog’s bark drifted in from outside. The wild cat on the roof and the husky in the kennel also chimed in.

A little while later, a patch of clouds floated over, covering the moon and plunging Cao Family Village into darkness. All the sounds quieted down.

Early the next morning, Cao Shujie was awakened once again by crowing roosters and barking dogs—another beautiful day had begun.

(End of this chapter)