Chapter 20 Renting Land
"Dad, this is a fruit from abroad, called the king of fruits. If I can really grow this durian, our family could have steady income," Su He explained persuasively.
"How can you be sure people will buy this?" Fu Dajun asked. "I've never even heard of it."
"Someone's gotta want it if it's big overseas," Su He replied, then added, "I'm aiming to sell this as high-end—it won't be in the countryside but in the city."
"Alright, the land's yours. Plant what you want," Fu Dajun said.
"Dad, I really think we should go for this. If it succeeds, the profits could blow your mind. Just to put it in perspective, I plan to price this fruit at two bucks a pound."
Hearing this, Fu Dajun's eyes widened in shock.
"Two bucks a pound? That's pricier than pork!"
"Dad, I think our family should give this a try. Of course, if they really don't want to, I'll do it alone," Su He said so if they backed out and she struck it rich, they couldn't complain later.
"I'll discuss it with them when I get back. When do you plan to start planting?" Fu Dajun asked.
"Best to start ASAP. It takes months for the fruit to grow, so it'll be a long haul before we see returns," Su He answered seriously.
After descending the mountain, Fu Dajun looked lost in thought.
Honestly, hardly anyone ran their own business back then, especially in rural areas. Most just farmed, maybe selling some veggies in town now and then.
But in their village, barely anyone bought veggies, let alone unheard-of fruits grown on the mountain for urban markets.
Su He, though, wasn't worried at all. On the way down, a centipede suddenly appeared, triggering the robot Xiao Qi.
"Rare creature detected nearby. Target locked. Estimated value: 2,000 points."
Su He had thought she'd lose 100 points today, but her luck was insane.
She quickly took out a pair of tongs from her basket, but the centipede was way too quick to grab.
Luckily, Su He could see Xiao Qi's marker, or it would have escaped.
Then Fu Dajun stomped down, pinning the centipede's tail under his shoe.
"Thanks, Dad!" Su He said as she swiftly used the tongs to place the centipede into her basket.
In reality, she stored it in her space, but Fu Dajun didn't know that. Frowning, he said, "Su He, if you just toss it in like that, it'll escape soon."
Su He gave a nervous laugh. "There's a net on these—it's not going anywhere."
Both kids walked the entire way up and down the mountain by themselves, which pleased Fu Dajun greatly.
No pain, no gain. These kids'll go far, just like their dad—college-bound for sure.
By the time they returned, it was already lunchtime. Su He asked Fu Dajun to stay, but he brushed it off, saying he had stuff to handle.
After Fu Dajun left, Zai Zai suddenly hugged Su He and asked, "Mom, are we staying in the countryside forever?"
"You and Niu Niu like the country or the city better?" Su He countered.
"Niu Niu just wants Mom. Don't care where," Niu Niu quickly answered.
Miss Su smiled and said, "We will definitely go back to the city, but for now, let's stay in the village."
Miss Su was dead set on making the durian business work—she had to at least give it a shot.
But it was only for this period in the countryside; she would surely return to the city later.
Most importantly, Fu Tinghua hadn't been heard from for a long time, and she didn't know whether he was alive or dead.
Fu Tinghua didn't like the woman whose body she now inhabited, and having just found herself in this body, she'd never even laid eyes on him, let alone developed feelings.
She didn't know what to do when Fu Tinghua eventually returned.
Should she ask for a divorce, try to build a relationship, or just coast through it?
Coasting through it wasn't her style—how could two people without feelings live together for a lifetime?
She loved the two children, but that didn't mean she had to sacrifice her entire life.
She'd always dreamed of family, but why hadn't she married by the age of thirty? Wasn't it because she wasn't about to settle?
Honestly, thinking about it now, it would be better if Fu Tinghua just stayed at the border—it would spare her all this worrying.
After lunch, Miss Su took a nap with the two children.
When she woke up in the afternoon, she surveyed the big vegetable patch in the backyard and decided to plant some veggies to eat.
No sooner said than done. When the children woke up in the afternoon, they saw Miss Su had already tilled a small section of the backyard.
"Mommy, Niu Niu will help you," Niu Niu said as she ran to Miss Su's side.
"Okay, I'll... assign you a task," Miss Su said between breaths.
Sweat was pouring off her like water.
"I want to complete the task!" Zai Zai said excitedly.
"Alright, help Mommy pull out the weeds over there. Go at your own pace, okay? If you find any that might cut your hands, leave them alone."
"Okay!"
The two children were over the moon—they were finally old enough to help Mommy out.
After working all afternoon, Miss Su had only loosened one-third of the soil in the backyard. She estimated she'd be ready to plant in a couple days.
Farming was no joke.
She'd barely finished cleaning up when Aunt Niu came by.
"Miss Su, Miss Su, are you home?" Aunt Niu called.
"Yes. Oh, Aunt Niu, to what do I owe this visit?" Miss Su asked in surprise.
"Honestly, I told you to pick vegetables from my garden, but you never came. You're being way too formal with me," Aunt Niu said with a look that said you're being too distant.
"I... I completely forgot about it," Miss Su said, embarrassed.
"Don't worry about it, I picked some for you," Aunt Niu said, then took out several melons, some melon seedlings, and a big bundle of leafy greens from her basket.
"Aunt Niu, this is way too generous, I..."
"Oh, stop being so formal with me!" Aunt Niu said, setting the vegetables down in Su He's home, then picking up her basket and turning to leave.
"Aunt Niu, Aunt Niu, don't go yet! I've got something to talk to you about," Su He quickly stopped her and said.
"What is it? What's the matter?" Aunt Niu asked.
"That mountain over there—does your family have a flat piece of land near my land?" Su He pointed toward the distant mountain and continued.
"There might be some land there, but it's so far I barely go—can't say I remember well," Aunt Niu recalled before answering.
Hearing this, Su He perked up and pulled Aunt Niu to sit down. "Aunt Niu, I'd like to rent that land from you."
Rent land? These days, everybody's got their own—who'd need to rent?
The thought made Aunt Niu think the Fu family was downright heartless. They hadn't even given their daughter-in-law a single plot of land, and now with Fu Tinghua away, how were this widow and her children supposed to survive?