At this moment, two women in their twenties, who seemed to have a certain literary air about them, approached from afar.
They were in their youthful prime, fair-skinned, and seemingly out of place in this farmland.
One of the women, with her pants rolled up, was holding a delicate little net bag in her hand.
Zhang Feng glanced at it, spotting an aluminum lunch box inside.
This was something that had to be purchased with industrial coupons.
They were educated youth newly dispatched to the countryside.
"Thank you for helping us water the plants yesterday."
The woman with rolled-up pants handed the lunch box to Zhang Feng, "I heard from the brothers and sisters in the village that you hadn’t eaten, so we packed some food and brought it to you."
She then added an extra explanation, "I scrubbed the lunch box clean before I put the food in it; it’s very clean."
"Thank you, Sister Literate." Zhang Feng didn’t know her full name, but everyone in the village called her Sister Literate.
"Haha, Sister Literate..." The other woman always teased Sister Literate whenever she heard this nickname, "Our Pingping is the literate one."
"You’re so annoying!" Sister Literate playfully tussled with her.
Zhang Feng glanced at the other woman.
Her nickname was simple; everyone called her ’Freeloader.’
"Don’t let it get cold." After giving the lunch box to Zhang Feng, Pingping didn’t leave but took Zhang Feng’s hoe with both hands and earnestly said, "Brother Zhang, you go ahead and eat; I’ll help you with weeding first.
Once you’re done eating, I’ll take the lunch box back to wash it; you don’t have to worry about it."
As she said this, she seemed to wield the hoe with some skill.
In reality, when she struck, she missed the weeds and stumbled a bit too.
"Do you even know what you’re doing?" Freeloader asked, seeing this, wanting to join in for fun.
Zhang Feng didn’t bother with them and just sat on a nearby dirt mound to eat, knowing that no matter if he advised them or not, they wouldn’t last long.
Things turned out as Zhang Feng expected.
After wielding the hoe about ten times each, they no longer cared about appearances and sat in the dirt pit to rest.
"Look at my hands." Freeloader showed Pingping her already reddened palms.
"We’ve already made it here." Pingping, full of ambition, encouraged her, "Improving the villagers’ living conditions is our responsibility."
"Ah..." Freeloader said nothing, now just pining for city life.
Zhang Feng ate heartily, with wild vegetables and rice porridge, and two mixed-grain buns.
Having this for lunch was quite unexpected.
But Zhang Feng wasn’t picky.
His chopsticks occasionally hit the lunch box with a clang, and he polished off his meal in about a dozen bites.
Zhang Feng felt that this was quite a good start, having someone bring him food right away.
Except the ’Spirit Root’ was an enigma, with no specific training method, not quite perfect.
Looking again at his land, he decided to just focus on resonating and activating his meridians while continuing to weed.
Once his strength improved, he’d travel a few provinces, perhaps uncover some training methods.
"Brother Zhang, we’re leaving now."
Pingping and Freeloader picked up the lunch box and waved to Zhang Feng.
Zhang Feng was busy resonating his meridians, so he just nodded slightly.
But then he thought, this Pingping seemed quite good, willing to put in the effort to work, maybe she’d help him farm and till the land while he traveled.
This might be the cue at the start, letting him know who would lend him a hand.
"I’ll wash the lunch box; you two go ahead. I’ll return it to you tonight," Zhang Feng offered to wash the dishes, not just to be a gentleman but also because he had arrived in a new world, a complete unknown.
Couldn’t waste too much thought worrying about a gentlemanly matter like who washes the dishes.
Today was a satisfying day for Zhang Feng, having weeded continuously all afternoon.
Moreover, he wanted to plant some medicinal herbs instead of wheat.
Because there was no task requirement stating ’must be wheat.’
In maximizing gains, growing some common medicinal herbs and then studying the relationship between herbs and the soil seemed quite necessary.
It’s both a happy farming process and advancing medical-related knowledge.
Being happy and learning simultaneously is a good thing.
Calculating the time, it’s summer now, just a few more days before harvest.
Wheat matures from May to July, sown in autumn, hence called autumn harvest, but it doesn’t necessarily have to be harvested in autumn.
Zhang Feng planned to harvest after a few days, then visit the town to see if there are any medicinal herb seeds.
Upon returning to the village entrance.
Zhang Feng saw under a big tree, in the moonlight, Pingping teaching a few kids to read.
Around her were women and men watching, seeking novelty, occasionally whispering and chatting about household topics.
But just a few minutes passed, and the forty-something village chief came yelling, "Sister Literate is teaching the kids knowledge, what are you all doing standing around here?
And the eldest from the Li family, are you studying or just watching curiosities? Don’t think I don’t know! Get back home!"
The village chief was exceptionally domineering, quickly dispersing the crowd with a few words.
Upon hearing the chief implying others were secretly spying on her, Pingping felt slightly embarrassed, and her teaching voice grew softer.
Zhang Feng went straight over, placed the lunch box beside the tree, then nodded at Pingping before heading into the village.
The village chief saw Zhang Feng and smiled a bit more, saying to the approaching Zhang Feng, "The eldest of the Zhang family, come, let’s have a drink? I’ve had my wife make some good dishes."
Zhang Feng, when he ended up in this village, was five years old. Follow current novels on NoveIＦire.net
The village chief was sixteen back then and often took Zhang Feng around to find work at various homes.
Although both were ’pretty rough,’ they were industrious and efficient, and their relationship was quite good.
As for ’the eldest of the Zhang family,’ he was the only one with the Zhang surname in the village, and being alone, he naturally became ’the eldest of the family.’