Chapter 342: When Enemies Strike at Harvest

After Zhao Ze’s mother traded some corn for two lemons, the other lords—including Xia Qing—joined in, each swapping a few items before they finally got back to the main topic.

Zhao Ze’s mother turned to Xia Qing. “Qing, when you harvest alfalfa, make sure to wear your protective mask and gloves. When you strip the seeds off the stalk, the stench will hit you—it’s dozens of times worse than rotting corpse smell. It nearly knocked several of us out. The stink is so stubborn it’ll cling to your skin, and you can’t scrub it off.”

That unforgettable smell of rotting flesh from the first year after the calamity haunted everyone. It became the gold standard of awful smells; whenever people compared unpleasant odors, the smell of a decaying corpse was the benchmark.

Hearing this, Xia Qing instantly grasped just how scary the alfalfa stench was. If even regular folks could faint, those with scent-evolving abilities might just wish they were dead.

Xia Qing offered her thanks, then listened as Qi Fu chimed in. “I’ve noticed alfalfa seed stink drives off most birds.”

Li Si gave his professional take. “Birds mostly have terrible senses of smell. Even the evolved ones don’t have much olfactory development. Birds that love grains, like woodpeckers, parrots, and sparrows, have the tiniest olfactory bulbs, so if even alfalfa seeds repel them, it’s worth researching. Aunt Zhao, can we trade for some alfalfa seeds?”

“Sure,” Zhao Ze’s mother agreed quickly, sealing a deal with Li Si at twenty credits a seed. Instead, Li Si traded a bag of compost starter for thirty credits—a better bargain.

Once they finished trading, the lords launched into a lively debate about what else reeking seeds could be useful for.

There’s no use for them in corn-drying here though. Whenever birds flocked over during the corn-drying season, the evolved cats from Territory Seven and the evolved sea eagles from Territory Eight took care of it—all for free.

Xia Qing, lord of Section Three, didn’t have sea eagles or cats to rely on. She’d never dry her corn with those stinky seeds, afraid she wouldn’t even be able to stand being at home.

Honestly, the way Greenlight Alfalfa evolved this self-defense mechanism is genius.

Still, no matter how awful that stink is, she had to harvest those seeds.

After double-checking her mask, Xia Qing yanked up the eighteen alfalfa plants in her fields and laid them out to dry on a bare patch inside the greenhouse.

Just like Shizhong had shown her earlier, you harvest the whole plant and dry it together. That way, there’s no stench released during the drying process. As for whether the smell kicked in when it was time to strip the dried seeds—well, she’d deal with it then. Right now, clearing the fields came first, so she could fertilize, till, and plant the next crop.

Once the alfalfa was sorted, Xia Qing called it a day. To reward herself after an exhausting day’s work, she decided to dig up a Green Light Sweet Potato for dinner.

Just as Xia Qing was deciding which sweet potato to pick, she heard the Inspection Team patrolling near the Northern Barrier. Tan Junjie’s walkie-talkie crackled to life.

“Captain Tan, an intruder was caught stealing food from the western perimeter of the Safe Zone. Please alert all lords and ramp up patrols. Three reinforcement squads will arrive within the hour to support Territories One through Ten. Eight more will reinforce North District One, all under Captain Tan’s command.”

“Copy that,” Tan Junjie replied calmly. “Are the intruders human or animal? Have they been caught?”

“Human. We’ve already deployed the special ops team to pursue them.”

The news left Tan Junjie’s squad in heavy silence. Xia Qing, still holding those reeking alfalfa seeds, looked grim.

The Inspection Team guarding Territories One through Ten had seven members. Each reinforcement squad had at least ten—three squads meant a minimum of thirty more. Military command was quadrupling their strength to protect the lands.

What did that say?

It meant this human team raiding for food was powerful—and there were quite a few of them.

Harvesting sweet potatoes forgotten, Xia Qing rushed home. She grabbed a supply of grenades and ammunition from the basement storage, armed herself to the teeth, and prepared to defend her territory.

On her way past the sheep shed, she spotted Alpha and Lame Wolf’s sister with their heads raised at last—the sedative had finally worn off.

She darted back to the house, grabbed an antidote for the synthetic venom from the fridge, poured it into a clean bowl, and set it in front of Alpha. “Your Majesty, drink this—it’s the antidote for Devastation Snake venom.”

Alpha lowered her head and drank it all. Xia Qing then poured out some pure spring water, added painkillers, and gestured to the snarling, baring Lame Wolf’s sister. She told Alpha, “That medicine’s for her. Please make sure she drinks it, Your Majesty.”

Setting the water basin aside, Xia Qing addressed her companions. “There may be intruders coming to steal our food. I’m going to patrol and guard our greenhouse. Old Goat, Er, don’t leave the house—protect Her Majesty and Lame Wolf’s sister. Don’t worry, we have cameras. If anything happens, I’ll be back in a flash.”

As Xia Qing headed for the high slope, she heard Tan Junjie announce on the Lords’ channel: “With the fields ripe, all territories please keep your walkies on around the clock and speed up the harvest. Lords, confirm receipt.”

“Territory One, received,” came Luo Pei’s warm response.

“Territory Two, received,” Tang Huai chimed in.

Xia Qing followed: “Section Three, received.”

Once all Territories One to Ten checked in, Tang Huai immediately pressed further. “Captain Tan, rumor has it the lords from 158 and 159, and their inspection teams, were killed and their food stolen. Is it true? Who are the intruders?”

The Lords’ channel instantly erupted with chatter at Tang Huai’s words.

Xia Qing clenched her fists, rage flaring. As a lord, she knew all too well how hard farming was, and how precious every harvest felt.

In this moment of abundance, to have intruders slaughter their way in and steal the crop!

If those murderers dared show up on her territory, Xia Qing would never let them die easily. In these years of disaster, humans who butchered their own for food deserved nothing but eradication.

Tan Junjie answered Tang Huai with calm gravity. “No official notice yet. I don’t know if there were casualties in the western lands. Lords, rest assured—the sixth Inspection Team and incoming reinforcements will do everything to protect your territories. Please, don’t leave your land and contact us if anything develops.”

Luo Pei’s gentle voice sounded again. “Captain Tan, Azure Dragon Squad requests permission to defend the Northern Barrier next to Hill Forty-Nine. We’ll make sure no one crosses Hill Forty-Nine to enter any territory.”

“Thank you, Azure Dragon Squad, for the support.”

Hearing Tan Junjie’s reply eased Xia Qing’s tension somewhat. Tonight, the wolves were bound to come by with food for Alpha and Lame Wolf’s sister. If the Northern Barrier was filled with people, the prey would never get through. Then she’d have to feed her wolves from her stores.

Other lords near Hill Forty-Nine also felt a weight lift after hearing Azure Dragon Squad would defend the barrier.

Zhao Ze asked quietly, “The intruders killed off the lords and Inspection Team in two territories. If they’re that capable, why not trade credits for food instead of murder? All of us survived endless hardship to make it to the tenth year of disaster.”