When Yang Dalang arrived home, Miao He’s tension peaked. Living under the same roof for an extended period, this person was the most likely to see through his facade, so he had to handle things carefully. Hearing the sound of the door opening, Miao He tensed up completely.
The footsteps went straight to the house, and with a creak, the wooden door was pushed open.
Miao He had already put down the hard biscuit he was gnawing on and was staring blankly, preparing to face the situation. However, the tall figure against the light didn’t even enter the house after glancing inside but turned and went back to the front yard.
Miao He held his breath, feeling like he had punched a pillow. His tension didn’t lessen; it only grew, like waiting for an interview, getting more nervous as time passed. He decided to face the situation head-on, thinking that a quick resolution would be better than prolonged anxiety.
Revisiting the original body’s attitude towards Yang Dalang in his mind, Miao He walked to the door and stiffly said, “I will pay back the money!”
The tall figure, squatting with his back to Miao He, paused and finally turned around. Miao He then saw that Yang Dalang, whose face had been blurred in the original owner’s memory, had high brows and deep-set eyes, with sharp and upright features. If not for the fierce scar on his face, he would definitely be considered a ruggedly handsome man by modern standards.
However, the imposing aura made Miao He struggle to speak. “The, the money for the treatment, I will repay it.”
Yang Dalang frowned, stood up, and looked down at Miao He, asking, “How will you repay it?”
Forced to look up due to the height difference, Miao He swallowed hard, realizing they differed by at least a head and a half. Could he withstand a punch from this man? “I, I can grow vegetables, I can repay it.”
Yang Dalang didn’t respond immediately, staring at him for a while. Miao He felt like he was being scanned by a laser, his skin crawling with goosebumps. Fortunately, Yang Dalang finally turned away and continued handling his game.
This ambiguous reaction made Miao He feel a bit relieved. By expressing his intention to repay the money, he wanted to indicate a clear boundary between them, hoping to maintain his character’s integrity without going overboard, which would also benefit his upcoming plans.
He quickly added, “I won’t run away until I’ve repaid the money.”
This time, Yang Dalang didn’t even turn his head, “If you run, I’ll just find you again.”
Miao He was taken aback. He meant to reassure the man, but the reply was unexpected.
Was this man really determined to treat him as a wife? Wasn’t he considering a peaceful separation?
If so, should he emphasize his rejection more firmly?
And why wasn’t Yang Dalang showing any anger despite everything the original body had done?
As he was pondering this, Yang Dalang stood up again and turned to him with a frown, “Go inside and close the door.”
Miao He looked closely and saw Yang Dalang holding a bloody knife in his right hand and a bloodied deer in his left.
The overwhelming scent of blood hit his nose!
Modern young people rarely encountered such scenes.
Swallowing hard, Miao He quickly made a new decision.
Until he understood Yang Dalang better, he should be more practical.
After a quick “Oh,” Miao He obediently closed the door to block out the bloody scene from the front yard. He paced around inside, nibbling on the biscuit again, but couldn’t calm down. Deciding that since Yang Dalang was temporarily settled, it was time to start his original plan: growing vegetables!
Yes, growing vegetables.
When he said he would repay the money by growing vegetables, he wasn’t joking.
Miao He went to the back room, opened the back door, and entered the backyard.
The yard was quite large, even allowing for future expansions of the main house. It was surrounded by a high mud wall, presumably to protect against wild boar attacks, given its location on the village outskirts.
The left side of the yard had a shed with wooden basins, tools, and some dried hides—likely where Yang Dalang tanned skins. There was also a small wooden hut for storing firewood. On the right were several large water tanks filled with well water, which Miao He had been using for his daily needs. There was a simple partition for washing. The middle area, about seven or eight pings (approx. 23-26 sq. meters), was sufficient for a vegetable garden.
Taking a few steps towards the front yard, Miao He quietly checked that Yang Dalang was still busy, then returned to the backyard corner. He took out a broken bowl filled with soil, which he had prepared beforehand. Placing the bowl on the ground, he closed his eyes and concentrated. When he opened them, a small clump of earth, seemingly appearing out of nowhere, lay in his palm.
Miao He called it “magic soil,” a mystical element he had from his previous life.
This clump of soil had appeared in Miao He’s dreams for years before one day, it magically materialized in his hand!
Having read some fantastical online novels, Miao He was excited and began experimenting with the soil discreetly.
Unfortunately, the soil was just a small clump. When he once tried to bury it in a flowerpot, it seemed to dissolve into the soil and couldn’t be retrieved. Miao He could only sense a small energy presence in the pot. His experiments showed that planting anything in that pot, be it vegetables or small fruit saplings, would result in rapid growth, regardless of climate, environment, or season. The plants would mature in a day, and subsequent yields would be remarkably quick. The exact time varied by plant type, sometimes only minutes, sometimes hours, akin to a farming game, very magical.
However, only one plant at a time could benefit from this effect. Planting more in the pot would negate the mystical properties for the latter plants. Thus, making a fortune off this soil was impractical due to its limited quantity. Miao He had only occasionally grown high-value crops, like ginseng, to sell discreetly for extra cash to improve his life.
Moreover, the vegetables grown from this soil were not only fast-growing but also of superior quality. Fruits were larger and sweeter, vegetables were pest-resistant and fresh. The seeds from these plants, when grown in regular soil, still produced better-than-average crops.
After transmigrating, Miao He found he had a new clump of magic soil, giving him a boost of confidence. Using it now was part of his plan.
Initially, he could use the magic soil to cultivate superior vegetable seeds, plant them in the general garden, and produce high-quality crops for repayment. This would help him repay the money, and once he could leave the Yang family and live independently, he could scale up his operations without fearing exposure. For instance, growing high-value medicinal herbs or fruit trees at a manageable pace to avoid suspicion would ensure a comfortable life.
“What are you doing standing there?”
The sudden question broke the backyard’s silence.
Holding his “secret,” Miao He was startled, instinctively turning to hide it, but forgot his injured foot. The sharp pain caused him to lose balance, and the clump of soil in his palm fell straight into the ground!
Miao He was horrified, screaming, “Oh no!!!”
He lunged to retrieve it, only to watch helplessly as the magic soil dissolved into the earth beneath his feet.
Miao He was stunned. What should he do!?
Once the magic soil merged with the ground, he had no way to retrieve it!
He had failed to transfer the soil before. When he had tried to move it to a larger pot, most of the soil stayed in the original pot, and the new pot’s soil remained ordinary. Miao He dared not transfer the last bit of soil, fearing its loss. After that, he concluded the magic soil was immovable!
This felt like falling from heaven to hell. What should he do!?
Tears welled up in Miao He’s eyes, legs weakening from shock.
Yang Dalang, also startled, quickly approached. Hearing the commotion from the front yard, he hadn’t noticed the soil but saw the little ger stumble and fall. He rushed over and lifted him, “Does your foot hurt?”
The ger, with red-rimmed eyes, seemed dazed and didn’t respond to his question.
Yang Dalang asked a few more times, getting no reply, then sighed, picked Miao He up, and carried him inside. The ger didn’t struggle, looking stunned. Fearing serious injury, Yang Dalang settled him on the wooden bed, changed into clean clothes, and went out to find a doctor.
Left alone, Miao He’s brain finally started working again.
Calm down, he told himself. The magic soil wasn’t gone, just immovable.
There should be ways to retrieve it. Right?
For instance, buying the house.
Or buying better land and convincing Yang Dalang to trade?
Or, more ruthlessly, if something happened to Yang Dalang, wouldn’t the house be his?
It’s fine. Vegetables can still be grown, just in a different place.
The location was good, right in the middle of the backyard, perfect for a garden.
As for the future, who knows what else might happen…
While Miao He was trying to console himself, Yang Dalang returned with a doctor. The doctor, surnamed Lin, was one of the few non-Miao surnamed villagers and was familiar with Yang Dalang from his hunting injuries. He was affection
ately called Uncle Lin.
Uncle Lin examined Miao He’s ankle, rotating it slightly.
Miao He’s small foot, though not particularly delicate, was fair and much finer than a man’s.
“It seems better than before, no signs of further injury.”
Yang Dalang explained what he saw, making Uncle Lin unsure, “Well then, I’ll prescribe more poultices. Keep him off his feet for a few days. If it doesn’t improve, you’ll need to take him to town.”
Yang Dalang agreed, apologizing, “I’ll pay today’s fee once I sell the game, along with what I owe.”
Uncle Lin waved it off, “No rush, take your time. I’m not worried about you running off. Of all the villagers, I fear your debts the least. Besides, I haven’t charged you for the herbs you’ve brought me.”
Yang Dalang didn’t reply. After collecting the medicine, he returned to find Miao He still dazed, no longer avoiding or resisting his care. He spoke gently, “Rest well. Still hurt?”
Miao He, snapping back, met his eyes, red again. “It hurts.”
Annoyed and in pain!
While part of it was from being startled by Yang Dalang, the main reason was his own stupidity!
“If it hurts, listen and rest.”
Thus, the rest of the day, Miao He was in a daze.
Whether applying the medicine or being carried around by Yang Dalang.
He felt nothing could be worse than losing the magic soil.
Even at night, lying in bed with Yang Dalang, while the latter lay quietly, Miao He kept thinking about how to retrieve his soil.
Maybe he should dig it up? What if the soil in the ground had different properties from the pot?
Yes, he should dig it up again! But Yang Dalang had just returned, who knew when he’d go out again…
Wait, maybe he didn’t need to wait? He could say he wanted to turn the backyard into a vegetable garden, which would involve digging…
Yes, that’s it. He could start tomorrow…
In the dark, Yang Dalang seemed to turn unconsciously, propping his head on his arm, facing Miao He.
Those narrow, deep-set eyes, dimly visible, were observing and perhaps wondering.
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