Chapter 214: Trades and Troubles Before the Calamity

Xia Qing agreed right away. “Alright, thank you, Third Brother. Should I bring them over to you now?”

Zhang San replied in a cheerful mood, “I’ve asked Ji Li to come pick them up.”

After ending the call, Xia Qing walked into the greenhouse. Through the insect net, she spotted a flash of red light outside. In that instant, the two peanuts lying on the rock were gone.

Xia Qing just chuckled and crouched in the field, picking out peanuts for Zhang San. No matter how much selenium-rich edible peanuts cost per pound, the five pounds of Green-glow Wheat Seeds Zhang San offered were more than enough to make up for it.

With those five pounds of Green-glow Wheat, plus the three and a half pounds she’d harvested herself in June, Xia Qing could plant enough for next year. By next summer, her living standard would be lifted another notch—she’d be able to ditch the Yellowlight Wheat and eat only the Green-glow kind!

The batch Xia Qing sent to the North Barrier of Territory Three included not only the ones for her trade with Zhang San but also a bag of slightly younger peanuts. “This one’s a bit fresh, should be good boiled. Give it to Third Brother, Ji Ge, Yan-jie, and Ya Ge as a treat.”

Xia Qing had always had a close relationship with Plot One. Ji Li hadn’t expected she’d have no clue that Yan Long had followed Yang Jin into Evolver Forest. After accepting the peanuts and thanking her, he didn’t say anything more.

Once Ji Li was gone, Xia Qing returned to the greenhouse on the highland and caught a glimpse of the Evolved Squirrel racing back to a branch outside the greenhouse. It rubbed its tiny forepaws together, eyes fixed hungrily on the basket of peanuts.

Xia Qing laughed. “Still want more?”

The little squirrel realized it had been caught and shot off in a blur, vanishing without a trace.

Xia Qing took the rest of the peanuts home. She kept some for herself and spread the rest out on the cement roof of the storeroom to dry in the sun.

If she wasn’t pressed for time, Xia Qing would rather have dried the peanuts on the second-floor balcony. With a layer of glass between them and the outside, she’d feel much more at ease. Leaving them on the roof meant she had to make the protections extra secure.

She still wasn’t fully confident even after covering the peanuts with iron mesh and two layers of insect net. Xia Qing sprayed them twice with scent-masking and insect-repelling medicine. Then she handed a small piece of dried meat to the Sick Wolf that had followed her over. “Old Two, keep watch here and don’t let any birds or bugs mess with the peanuts. I’m off to pick cotton.”

The Sick Wolf wagged its tail happily and flopped down next to the peanuts, munching away on its meat.

Xia Qing grabbed a small bag of peanuts, went downstairs, and messaged Luo Pei to ask if she wanted some boiled peanuts. They were Yellowlight, but the black-skin selenium-rich variety—healthier than most.

Luo Pei replied quickly, saying that the peanuts in Plot One were the same black-skin kind and told Xia Qing to keep them for herself.

So the peanuts in Plot One and her territory probably came from the same spot, dug up by some little animal. She just wished she knew exactly where that field was.

Xia Qing put the peanuts in the kitchen and grabbed her bag before heading out to pick cotton. By this point, it was cotton harvesting season. The cotton plants were splitting open from the bottom up, fluffy white bolls appearing one after another.

She’d been picking every few days and had already harvested over a hundred pounds of cotton—more than enough for her needs. Xia Qing planned to sell the excess and only plant a patch of Greenlight Cotton next year, mainly just to enjoy the sight of those tri-colored blossoms.

While picking, Xia Qing yanked up the upper parts of the cotton plants that barely had any bolls. There were a few Yellowlight Cotton plants with small bolls left, but since they grew too close to the Greenlight Cotton, she pulled them too.

After seventy hours of Xiang Rain, with no less than three rounds of red-level rainfall, any plant could potentially undergo Xiang Evolution. Xia Qing wasn’t about to take unnecessary risks.

She ended up filling two bags with cotton but pulled out over three hundred plants in the process. She stripped the leaves from each stalk, leaving only bare branches tipped with cotton bolls to dry in the sun.

Over the next two days, Xia Qing picked ten Yellowlight Pumpkins, two baskets each of cucumbers, tomatoes, and other vegetables, plus ten pounds of potatoes and ten pounds of wheat. She traded all this with Zhong Tao for three big rainproof tarps—just in case.

Afterwards, Zhong Tao gave her a reminder. “You’ve grown a good amount of grain and veggies these last few months. When the rain starts, save what you can but don’t fret if you lose some. Whatever you can’t salvage, just let it go—it’s not worth getting hurt to protect your crops.”

Getting injured during Xiang Rain could very well cost you your life.

“I understand. You and Kui Ge need to be careful too.” They were both soldiers, so they wouldn’t be able to leave during Xiang Rain but would surely be on guard duty in the Safe Zone. Xia Qing asked, “Tao Ge, could you check with the leader who has Greenlight Soybeans, see if they’d trade me a pound first? I can give two pounds of mung beans up front. For the rest, once he brings over the other five pounds of soybeans, I’ll pay the remainder.”

Zhong Tao asked, “Worried about those soybeans or something?”

Xia Qing nodded. “A few of my yellowlight soybean plants finally produced beans. I spent two hours boiling them and still couldn’t bite through. I’m afraid his Greenlight Soybeans are the same evolved type.”

Zhong Tao got it. “He’s not from our territory here, so I’ll have to ask around. Even if he agrees, it’ll have to wait until after the Xiang Rain for delivery.”

Xia Qing nodded in understanding.

Zheng Kui chimed in, “Xia Qing, is there any edible fish in your reservoir? I’d like to trade for one.”

Zhong Tao grinned. “His wife just had a baby girl and she’s still in confinement.”

A child being born safely in a year of disaster was something to celebrate. Xia Qing congratulated him first before saying, “As luck would have it, I have three male and four female Yellowlight Fish in my fish pond. I just caught them this morning and planned to keep them in a tub during the Xiang Rain. I’ll bring one over now.”

Zheng Kui was overjoyed. He’d asked more than ten other territory leaders already with no luck, so he was ecstatic Xia Qing had one. “Thank you so much, Xia Qing!”

Xia Qing fetched a male Yellowlight Fish from home, packed with water in a sealed bag, and brought along half a pound of Greenlight dried meat to hand over to Zheng Kui.

Greenlight dried meat was even rarer than Yellowlight Fish. Zheng Kui, never much of a talker, had gone red in the face. After paying Xia Qing in points, he thanked her again and again.

When she finished seeing off Zhong Tao and Zheng Kui, Xia Qing had just hoisted the tarps to head back to her territory when Tang Huai stopped her.

“Xia Qing, you’re still raising fish? You really don’t miss a thing, do you? Impressive, seriously.”

Xia Qing turned around, her face dark. “Tang Huai, if you just can’t shake your habit of eavesdropping, I’d be happy to puncture your eardrums for you.”

Tang Huai cursed her in his head but kept smiling, trying to be friendly. “Those solar panels I gave you—still working alright?”

Even with her Strength Evolution, Xia Qing still found the roll of tarps heavy. She replied coldly, “If you have something to say, spit it out.”

Tang Huai stepped outside, lowered his voice, and asked, “How’s that wolf of yours—is it still alive?”

Tang Huai didn’t bother hiding the fact that the Sufeng Squad had sent Xu Juan and Zhang Yong into Territory Three with cameras. Xia Qing lowered her voice too. “Want to know?”

Tang Huai nodded eagerly. “Definitely! Don’t worry, I won’t tell a soul.”

Yeah, right! Xia Qing gave him a thumbs-up. “Ten Greenlight river crabs for the answer.”

“What, am I nuts or something…” Tang Huai nearly burst out swearing, held it in, and stuck up a finger. “One crab, tops!”

Xia Qing haggled, “Two—one male, one female. Both alive.”

“No way.” As Xia Qing walked off behind the wild grass walls, Tang Huai stomped back to Territory Two, cursing the whole way. “Damn that woman—she’s even more annoying than Tang Lu. How has she even survived this long?”