Chapter 67: Cao Shujie’s New Idea

Seeing his daughter Mengmeng’s indignant little face, Cao Shujie felt like laughing, but he knew he had to be serious and earnest at this moment. Otherwise, he might hurt his daughter’s fragile heart. “Mengmeng, tell Daddy, why did Mommy hit you?”

“It’s just… it’s just…” Mengmeng stammered, unable to articulate her thoughts clearly in her haste.

Cao Shujie gently stroked her little head, smoothing out her messy hair with his fingers, and patted her back softly. “Take your time, no rush.”

“I wanted to go out and play, but Mommy said no and hit me,” Mengmeng said.

Though her words were unclear, Cao Shujie understood the gist. He picked her up, cradling her in his arm, and wrapped his other arm around her back as he walked inside. “So, Mommy didn’t take you out to play, is that it?”

“Yes!” Mengmeng nodded, hugging her father tightly, feeling she had found her support.

Cao Shujie coaxed her, saying, “This is simply outrageous. How can she not let Mengmeng go out to play?”

“Let’s go and confront your mother together,” Cao Shujie said, getting more animated.

Hearing her father being so reliable, Mengmeng was overjoyed, her face blooming like a flower.

She even shouted happily, “Daddy, go for it, do your best!”

“Ahem, ahem!”

Just as the father and daughter reached an agreement and approached the door, a cough sounded. Though soft, it was like a thunderclap in Cao Shujie’s ears, making him shiver. He glanced over dryly and then smiled at Mengmeng, saying, “Mengmeng, let’s go. I’ll take you for a drive.”

“No, let’s deal with Mommy first,” Mengmeng pouted, showing just how upset she was.

Cao Shujie really wanted to put her down and walk away. This child usually seemed so clever; why wasn’t she picking up on the cues today?

Mengmeng seemed oblivious to her mother’s cough or the fact that she was sitting inside reading. She continued to complain to her father, “Daddy, Mommy’s so mean. She won’t even let me run.”

Her little mouth kept chattering away, making Cao Shujie’s head spin more and more.

Pointing to the woman elegantly seated on the sofa inside, Cao Shujie said, “Mengmeng, your mother is…”

Before he could finish, Mengmeng interrupted again, “Mommy also…”

Her litany of grievances could fill a short story, and the more she talked, the more animated she became, even spraying spit on Cao Shujie’s face. She even knew to wipe it off with her hand.

But wiping it off with a hand that had just been in her mouth and then wiping it on my face, what is that about?

Looking at his daughter’s saliva-covered hand, Cao Shujie leaned back as far as he could to avoid the magical hand.

But Mengmeng was stubborn, insisting on wiping her father’s face clean before she would let it go.

Watching this scene, Cheng Xiaolin frowned. She glanced outside, wondering whether she should leave quickly before her daughter came to ‘settle accounts’ with her. This little kid really wasn’t hygienic.

Finally, unable to stand it, Cheng Xiaolin took a tissue and wiped her daughter’s hand clean, allowing Cao Shujie to breathe a sigh of relief.

Seeing her mother, Mengmeng didn’t mention having her father ‘avenge’ her anymore. Instead, she reached out to wipe her hand on her mother’s clothes. Fortunately, Cheng Xiaolin had just cleaned her hand, or else it would have been a mess.

“You little rascal, are you asking for a spanking?”

Cheng Xiaolin muttered, seeing Mengmeng still clinging to her husband. She said, “Mengmeng, come down. Your dad just got back and is tired. Let him rest a bit.”

But Mengmeng wouldn’t listen, hanging onto her father’s neck and refusing to come down. She insisted that Daddy play with her, saying Mommy wouldn’t play with her and that she didn’t like Mommy anymore.

Kids are like that, unable to keep anything in their hearts, blurting out whatever they think.

Hearing her daughter say this, Cheng Xiaolin didn’t even want to respond.

…

Early the next morning, Cao Shujie took advantage of the cool weather to stroll up the mountain.

Reaching the orchard, he was pleased to see the fruit tree saplings thriving after being treated with nutrient solution. Everything was moving in the expected direction.

After checking the saplings, Cao Shujie went to the Old Orchard nearby. The kiwi vines and apple trees were laden with small fruits, growing noticeably day by day.

This was different from his previous life, where he focused solely on research. In this life, he was combining research with practical application.

This sense of achievement filled him with satisfaction.

Seeing yellowing branches and leaves on the fruit trees, Cao Shujie casually snapped them off and tossed them onto the ground.

Looking down, another issue was bothering him.

After spraying the nutrient solution, the fruit trees grew vigorously, but so did the weeds. This was truly a dilemma.

Should he buy some herbicide?

He immediately shook his head, dismissing the idea.

It seemed wasteful.

The only options were to hire someone to weed or buy a lawnmower himself, and perhaps start some livestock farming in the reserved area nearby?

These weeds could serve as feed for them.

With over 80 acres of weeds, they should be enough to feed pigs, cattle, and sheep. Then, he could collect and process their manure as organic fertilizer for the orchard, creating a perfect cycle!

The more Cao Shujie thought about it, the more feasible it seemed.

He didn’t want to waste any time and began researching the matter right there on the mountain.

“Hmm, I should buy some wire mesh from Boss Chen to partition this area into three sections for pigs, cattle, and sheep. Maybe even raise some chickens?” The more he considered it, the more ideas he had, his thoughts racing non-stop.

“Start small, gain some experience first. It’s not something that can be done overnight. Expanding later won’t be too late.” He wasn’t reckless; farming and animal husbandry were two different things.

Still on the mountain, he called Chen Xingquan, the owner of ‘Morning Guardrails.’ Once the call connected, Cao Shujie said directly, “Boss Chen, I need another 500 meters of wire mesh fencing, same specifications as last time.”

“That much?” Chen Xingquan was a bit surprised.

Cao Shujie didn’t hide his plans. “I’m planning to section off another area for livestock farming.”

After their conversation, he hung up and called Cao Zhenggang.

As the saying goes, don’t trouble two people with the same task. Cao Shujie trusted Cao Zhenggang’s character and work, so he felt at ease contacting him again.

Besides, Cao Shujie was considering whether to choose a spot on the other side of the mountain to build a pigsty. In the early stages, a small number of animals wouldn’t be a problem, but if he expanded later, the sheer amount of manure would be overwhelming. That wouldn’t align with the projects he planned to undertake in the future.

Lost in thought, time seemed to fly by for him.

Suddenly, the catchy ringtone of his phone broke the silence. Cao Shujie glanced at the screen and saw it was his wife calling, reminding him to come home for breakfast. He checked the time—it was already past nine.

“You guys go ahead and eat. I’ll come back once I’m done here,” Cao Shujie told his wife.

Cheng Xiaolin didn’t know what her husband was busy with at the moment, but she supported him unconditionally.

As they had agreed from the start, their views on major decisions were always in harmony.

Cao Shujie said he would go home for breakfast, but by the time he descended from the mountain and returned home, it was already lunchtime.

He had woken up early today, around four, and after organizing everything, he started his day.

(End of Chapter)