Chapter 360 - Chapter 360: Why Don ‘t You Make Me a Promise?
Chapter 360: Why Don ‘t You Make Me a Promise?
Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
“Alright,” replied Xie Heng.
He watched as Zhao Chuchu researched the ginseng intently. He did not disturb her and walked out of the house to make dinner.
Zhao Chuchu did not manage to discover anything after a long time. Finally, she threw the ginseng aside and went to help Xie Heng make dinner. They would have an early dinner and check out where the ginsengs were dug up.
At the dinner table, Xie Jun excitedly brought up the incident of him digging up ginseng. He counted with his fingers how many he had to dig up to buy Zhao Chuchu and Xie Heng gifts.
“Sis, what would you like? I’m going to start saving money now so that I can give it to you as a gift.”
Zhao Chuchu could not bring herself to dampen Xie Jun’s enthusiasm. She replied, “Aside from food, I don’t want anything else.”
“Nothing they sell outside tastes better than Bro’s cooking. Does that mean I can’t get you anything?” said Xie Jun as he pouted. “Sis, please tell me. Is there anything else aside from food?”
Zhao Chuchu pondered for a bit before replying, “I can’t think of anything at the moment. Why don’t you make me a promise? How about honoring it when you grow up in the future?”
“A promise?”
“Hmm, relax. I won’t ask you to do anything evil.”
“Alright, it’s a promise, Sis. What about you, Bro?”
In Xie Jun’s heart, Xie Heng was second only to Zhao Chuchu.
“It is the thought that counts. So I will like whatever you give me,” said Xie
Heng.
Xie Jun rolled his eyes and said, “Alright, I know what to give you!”
Xie Heng saw through Xie Jun, but he did not expose him.
His limited patience was all used up on Zhao Chuchu and Xie Jun. Aside from these two, no one else was worthy of even a sideways glance from him.
He would only help those Zhao Chuchu wanted to help, and only for her sake.
Otherwise, he could care less whether they lived or died.
After dinner, Xie Jun helped put away the dishes.
The two brothers pushed Zhao Chuchu out of the kitchen, so she went to rest in the house.
Later that night, when Xie Jun was already asleep, Zhao Chuchu and Xie Heng quietly left to check out where Xie Jun and the other children had dug up the ginseng.
Zhao Chuchu took out a flashlight and inspected the holes.
As expected, the holes had been previously dug up and refilled. The soil did not appear to have just been dug up during the day.
There were also traces of soil that was not from the area.
The ginseng holes had no discernible order. It was as though the person behind all this had randomly found places to plant them.
“Da Lang, why do you think they are planting ginseng here? What are their intentions?” asked Zhao Chuchu. She still could not deduce the other party’s intentions. Why were they giving ginseng to the villagers of Lengshui Village?
Xie Heng got up and looked at Zhao Chuchu. He said, “They probably want the villagers to become lazy and make them want to get something for nothing!”
“If they can regularly get ginseng from the mountains, who would want to tend the fields? Ginseng is worth much more than grain. Once the villagers get used to such a lifestyle, no one would ever want to tend the fields again.” Zhao Chuchu was speechless.
Although Xie Heng’s imagination was a little wild, it was logical.
Aside from that, she could not think of a better reason.
“Although it does seem rather illogical, now that Lengshui Village has high-yield crops like rice, potatoes, great millets, and soybeans, for many, the temptation is too great. They all want to get their hands on these seeds. As long as they can master the techniques for planting them, they can reap even greater benefits.”
“Who do you think the culprit is?”
“I don’t know yet. We need to see who will come to find us in the near future.”
At that moment, Xie Heng did not know who was responsible for this. However, he had his suspicions.
Seeing that there was no evidence, he did not want to tell Zhao Chuchu, whom he suspected. If his intuition were off, he would have instead misled her.
“Come, let’s check out elsewhere and see whether we can catch this patron who is planting ginseng.”
Zhao Chuchu finished inspecting these ginseng holes and planned to search elsewhere.
She believed that this person could not just keep planting ginseng around the vicinity of Lengshui Village.
The area should be growing larger.
Zhao Chuchu and Xie Heng walked further away from the village to take a look and found newly planted ginseng.
Zhao Chuchu raised her eyebrows and said, “We actually have a patron. This ginseng should have been planted last night. Our culprit is quite capable. They managed to keep the ginseng alive even after moving them here. Don’t you think they should find something better to do?”
“The heart of man is the hardest to decipher. They might just have too much time on their hands.”
“They probably had a lot of time on their hands. Since thev want to zive us
these ginsengs, then I will help myself to them.”
Even though the ginsengs were too young, they still had their uses. Zhao Chuchu would not be picky.
Xie Heng laughed when he saw this. He helped Zhao Chuchu dig up all these little ginsengs that had just been planted. Their harvest was rather bountiful.
However, Zhao Chuchu did not dig them all up. They had to leave behind one or two stalks for the other party to continue planting them.
It was still early when they finished digging up the ginseng.
Zhao Chuchu asked Xie Heng to wait where they were. She quickly searched the mountains around Lengshui Village as fast as she could, but she did not find any strangers.
Only then did she return to the Xie residence with Xie Heng.
She looked disgusted at herself, all covered in mud and dirt.
Xie Heng quietly went to the kitchen to heat up some water.
Zhao Chuchu used this opportunity to prepare the ginseng.
Their medicinal properties weren’t strong, but they were still ginseng. So there would come a time when they would be useful.
Once the hot water was ready, Xie Heng went to call Zhao Chuchu to take a bath.
Zhao Chuchu was happy to enjoy Xie Heng’s meticulous care. She relaxed and enjoyed her bath before going to bed refreshed.
She was already fast asleep when Xie Heng finished his bath.
She only opened her eyes for a moment when Xie Heng also went to bed. She then closed her eyes again. However, she did not forget to say, “Da Lang, good night.”
When Xie Heng heard this, his eyes showed indescribable tenderness.
“Good night,” he replied softly, but Zhao Chuchu had already drifted back to sleep.
Xie Heng carefully laid down on his side and gazed at her peaceful face as she slept. He felt an unprecedented sense of satisfaction.
He only wanted to gaze at her like that till morning, quietly.
Xie Heng himself did not realize when he fell asleep while watching her.
The next day, Xie Jun got up bright and early.
The poison in his body has mostly been neutralized, with some remaining residue to be cleansed out of his body.
For his health, Zhao Chuchu had taught him a set of martial art techniques that could be used to strengthen his body as well as defend himself before she left for Guangqing Province. She instructed him to practice the complete set every morning.
Xie Jun was rather disciplined. Even without Zhao Chuchu and Xie Heng around, he kept to this practice every morning.
After finishing his set, he warmed up yesterday’s leftovers for breakfast. He did not wait for Zhao Chuchu and Xie Heng to get up. Instead, he carried a small basket on his back and went to find his friends to head up into the mountains to dig for ginseng.
The children in the village were enthusiastic as they had managed to earn money yesterday. So they all joined Xie Jun to head up the mountain bright and early, hoping to have more time to dig up more ginseng..