Ch 122: The Farmer Ger in the Apocalypse

Time passed in a flash, and when the Awakening of Insects arrived, the progress of the workshop construction slowed down slightly as some of the workforce was diverted to planting sweet potatoes.

These sweet potatoes were intercropped along the ridges of the winter wheat fields. In the past, many households would wait until around the Qingming Festival to plant beans on these ridges. But this year, with the starch sausage workshop about to open, and with Shen Qing making it clear that sweet potatoes would be regularly purchased in the future, everyone in the village—except for the old Shen family—switched to planting sweet potatoes instead.

For households with many members, it was manageable, as even the women and gers could take care of the small ridges. But for those with fewer people at home, they had to take two days off to return and plant, which in turn slowed down the workshop construction.

Accompanied by the village head and his wife, as well as Zhao Shi and his wife, Shen Qing inspected the construction site and commented, “For us farmers, farming is always the top priority. Even after the workshop is up and running, we must not let work interfere with tending the fields.”

Zhao Youdang nodded repeatedly at the side. “Qing Ge’er has worked the land before—this is the truth. The land is our foundation.”

Shen Qing exchanged a glance with Madam Guixiang and smiled. “Exactly. By the time the workshop is finished, it’ll be the busy farming season. Aunt Guixiang, be sure to select more women and gers for the work. The men should still focus on the fields.”

Madam Guixiang held back a laugh. “Of course!”

She had already chosen most of the workers. She knew well how the starch sausages were made—one part involved grinding sweet potatoes into starch, and the other involved mincing meat. But since Qing Ge’er mentioned buying livestock to help with the grinding, that left only the meat chopping.

And in the village, there was no shortage of sturdy middle-aged women, not to mention the gers!

Zhao Youdang wanted to say something but, after thinking it over, couldn’t find the words. He opened his mouth but eventually just walked ahead with his hands behind his back.

Miao Shi was still staying in Shiqu Village these days. Shen Qing would return every few days to check on her and the workshop’s progress. Since his serious illness, many villagers had worried it would delay the workshop, but seeing him back in good spirits, they finally felt relieved and greeted him warmly.

Since Song Kaiji and Zhang Sujuan could no longer come, Shen Qing no longer needed to build additional rooms. The two existing ones were enough for him and Miao Shi. Especially now that he had the space pendant, he felt much more at ease storing valuables there rather than at home.

So, instead of building more rooms, he took the extra bricks and tiles to Shiqu Village. The Miao family planned to take advantage of the winter off-season to build a house so that Miao Ren’s wife could move in earlier.

With the family now running a tofu business, they were short on hands, and the bride’s family had started to soften.

“Qing Ge’er, it’s getting harder and harder to see you these days! Every time I see you, it’s a rare occasion!” Li Yanzi set down a plate of deep-fried, lightly salted peanuts and a plate of peach crisps in front of Shen Qing. These days, their family was living well, and they were willing to buy some refined snacks. And wasn’t all of this thanks to Qing Ge’er? She only served the best for him.

Hearing this, Shen Qing felt a little embarrassed. Li Yanzi and the others assumed he had been busy working for the noble patron. Only he knew the truth—he had just been entangled with Song Kaiji. The two of them, young and full of passion, had only just started indulging in physical intimacy and were unwilling to part for too long, which was why he hadn’t been back often.

With a flushed face, he picked up two peanuts. “I’ve just been busy… I’ll be back for longer stays soon.”

Soon, Song ge would need some rest too…

Miao Shi glanced at him. Every time Qing Ge’er returned, his condition was better than before, and now there was even a trace of sweetness in his demeanor. As someone who had experienced this herself, she might not have guessed that Qing Ge’er had already taken things that far, but she could tell that the two were in love and at their most affectionate. So, she said, “No worries. I’m staying at your uncle’s house just fine. The village workshop is in Aunt Guixiang’s hands, so it’s alright if you don’t come back often. Just take care of your own business.”

Shen Qing’s face turned redder. Business? What business? He wasn’t even going out on missions now; he was just spending all his time at the villa, clinging to Song Kaiji. If not for the fact that their team lacked a second space ability user, meaning the metal cages still required Song Kaiji to store and release them, making his presence necessary for missions, they probably wouldn’t even leave the bedroom!

Li Yanzi brought over a pot of rock sugar chrysanthemum tea. Eating too many fried snacks over the New Year could cause internal heat, and this was perfect for cooling down. “That’s right, important matters come first! Your mother is living well at our place, so don’t worry about it!”

Now that Miao Shi had money of her own, plus her share of the tofu shop’s earnings, she often bought things to honor Grandmother Miao while staying at her maiden home. Naturally, her siblings benefited as well. With a sister-in-law like this, no one would ever complain about her staying.

Moreover, Liu Yue’e and Li Yanzi had something they wanted to ask Shen Qing for. “Qing Ge’er, when your village’s workshop is built, can our sisters-in-law and cousins from our maiden families come work there? They are all hardworking, quick, and clean. They wouldn’t slack off or take advantage just because of their relation to you!”

They had already heard from Miao Shi that the noble patron had strict rules but offered generous pay. Their own family was doing well now thanks to Qing Ge’er’s help with the tofu workshop. But their maiden families were still struggling, and if there was an opportunity, who wouldn’t want to help?

Shen Qing took a sip of the chrysanthemum tea. The homegrown chrysanthemums had a unique fragrance. However, some matters still required more thought, so he paused with the teacup in hand.

Liu Yue’e and Li Yanzi, noticing his hesitation, grew nervous. “Is it not possible? Just two people, one from each of our families. We’re real relatives, after all—surely the people in your village won’t object?”

In the countryside, it was common practice to prioritize one’s own kin when good opportunities arose. If it weren’t for the workshop belonging to the noble patron and not Qing Ge’er, they wouldn’t have been this cautious.

Shen Qing snapped out of his thoughts and smiled. “It’s not a big issue. It’s just that the patron plans to set up more workshops in the surrounding villages. It’s quite possible that one will be built in your maiden families’ villages, so you might not even need to come to Lantang Village for work. Otherwise, traveling back and forth every day would be exhausting.”

He had read plenty of novels recently and found an endless supply of business ideas. With Song Kaiji helping him analyze the most feasible and marketable ones—especially for trade in the apocalypse—he had already picked out a few to implement. “But if you’re in a hurry, you can work in Lantang Village first. Once the workshops in your home villages are set up, you can return. If you learn the trade here first, you might even get a foreman position when you go back. Oh, and Xiao Yu can come with me to be a patrol captain, joining Lantang Village’s patrol team. He can stay in the workshop at night to watch over things. With a family member in charge, I’ll feel more at ease.”

Miao Yu had been outside practicing his archery, shooting at a straw target with his crossbow. Upon hearing this, he ran in excitedly. “Ge, I’ve been ready for ages! When do I start?”

“When the workshop is finished, you’ll go. That way, when I leave for town, my mother won’t have to keep traveling back to Shiqu Village, and you can also look after her for me.”

Miao Yu patted his chest. “Leave it to me!”

Liu Yue’e and Li Yanzi were stunned. They had only been hoping to secure small jobs for their relatives—who could have expected such a big opportunity? A foreman role? That was something they never dared to imagine! “Th-this noble patron is opening even more workshops? How many?”

“I’m starting with a starch sausage workshop and another one for pickling radishes and drying them. I haven’t decided on the rest yet. I’m telling you two first—if your relatives have a lot of land, they should plant more wheat and radishes. I’ll buy them all later.”

These were all things that would sell well in the apocalypse. Especially pickled vegetables—paired with the coarse grain biscuits produced in the base, they made a decent meal for the poor. It wasn’t just about taste; without salt, people could easily lose strength.

When the time came, pickled vegetables could be sold in loose quantities by weight, and sales should be good.

However, opening workshops in other villages required careful planning. Shen Qing needed to discuss it with the village chiefs first.

Leaving aside how delighted Liu Yue’e, Li Yanzi, and Miao Yu were, Shen Qing wasn’t just agreeing to help his aunts’ relatives out of familial sentiment.

He had always trusted Madam Guixiang because she had always treated him well and was fair and just. He didn’t want to guard against her, but after listening to many books, Shen Qing vaguely realized that if the workshop had only one dominant force, it might not be good for him as the boss.

Maybe this was why emperors in those dramas loved to balance power.

Although he didn’t intend to curb Madam Guixiang’s influence, he still wanted to leave himself some room for maneuvering, just in case. Bringing some relatives into the workshop—even distant ones—without giving them any real authority, would at least make Madam Guixiang and the others in the village more cautious on their own.

This was also why he had Miao Yu become the patrol team leader for the workshop. There were many young men in the village who didn’t get along with Shen Qing, yet they had formed a patrol team, with many of those very same people as the main force. Previously, Shen Qing had considered Lian Shi for the role, but now, with Miao Yu added in, the two could take turns leading, which reassured him even more.

To Liu Yue’e and Li Yanzi, this was Shen Qing being a good person and looking after his family, so they were endlessly grateful. But in Shen Qing’s eyes, they were sending two people straight to him for his use.

Of course, this all depended on whether their relatives were truly as diligent and hardworking as they claimed.

In fact, Song Kaiji had also mentioned the concept of professional managers to Shen Qing. That would have been ideal—people who weren’t entangled in personal relationships, hired solely to work for Shen Qing, forming a single, independent force. But such people weren’t easy to find in Shen Qing’s world. Here, literate people who could do accounting were rare talents. So for now, he could only select and train some from among his relatives.

Laws and morals in this world were far less developed than in modern society, so trust was difficult to establish. This was why people preferred hiring family and fellow villagers—because at least they knew their backgrounds, which made them easier to trust than complete strangers.

After spending a night in Shiqu Village, Shen Qing headed back to the county the next day.

With the broker’s help, the four storefronts facing the street—apart from the one Shen Qing kept for himself—had all been rented out. The broker, Gold-Tooth, had carefully chosen long-term tenants who wouldn’t cause trouble. Now, one of the shops had already opened, while the other two were still being set up.

The one next to Shen Qing’s was a sweet soup shop. Shen Qing found this arrangement quite ideal—he would be selling fried starch sausages next door, and people might crave something sweet after eating too much salty food. Likewise, customers who came for sweet soup might catch the aroma of frying sausages and be tempted to buy one.

Their two businesses complemented each other well.

The other two storefronts had been rented as a pair, with the dividing wall removed. The signboard was covered with red cloth, so the shop name wasn’t visible.

Gold-Tooth explained to Shen Qing, “These two were rented by the same person, planning to open a cuihua shop.”

A cuihua shop, also called a cuihua boutique, specialized in hair accessories for women and gers. It also sold men’s hairbands and hairpieces. Unlike jewelry stores—like the Ruyi shop that Shen Qing used to visit, which sold gold and silver ornaments—cuihua shops mainly dealt in silk flowers, ribbons, hairbands, and headscarves. The pricier items included pearl hairpins, copper and wooden hairpins, as well as accessories like fan covers and embroidered pouches—things women and gers loved.

This was great too—it wouldn’t compete with Shen Qing’s snack shop, and the women and gers browsing for accessories might stop by for a bowl of sweet soup and a sausage when they got tired.

“As for the estate on East Mountain, construction is about to begin. The road leading there is also being built, and we’ll be hiring some locals for the labor,” Gold-Tooth added, listing the costs for building the estate and the road.

Now that it was confirmed the mountain cave was visible only to Shen Qing, he was no longer as enthusiastic about building the estate. But since he had already agreed, he didn’t go back on his word. He wasn’t short on money anyway, so he left it all to Gold-Tooth. “I trust your character, Boss Jin. I know you won’t cut corners—just handle it as you see fit.”

However, the road absolutely had to be built. That would make it easier to transport gluten sausages into the city. Shen Qing hadn’t minded walking into town before, but after riding in a cart, he realized how bumpy the journey was.

He also left the decoration of his sausage shop to Gold-Tooth, specifying that it didn’t need to be too fancy—just as clean and simple as the sweet soup shop next door. The only requirement was that the stove be placed at the front of the store so that passersby could see the sausages being fried and smell the delicious aroma.

After finishing his business with Gold-Tooth, Shen Qing entered the grand residence he had purchased.

Frankly, this purchase felt like a waste. He had only been here three or four times. The children living there froze in place when they saw him, only recognizing their master after a moment of hesitation.

Since coming to live in this estate, the children had been well-fed, well-clothed, and had a proper roof over their heads. They hadn’t exactly transformed completely, but they looked noticeably better. Some had grown taller, and a few whose new clothes had already become short at the sleeves. The two boys had bulked up, and the girls and gers had rounder, healthier faces, unlike before when they had been skin and bones.

The children stood nervously before Shen Qing, looking awkward and unsure of how to serve him properly.

Luckily, Shen Qing didn’t mind. He casually asked if anything had happened while he was away and, hearing that everything was peaceful, he pointed at Mudan and Jade. “I remember you two—you’re quite good in the kitchen, right?”

Mudan was a ger, and Jade was a girl. They exchanged a glance before nodding cautiously. “We cook all the meals at home now.”

“Good,” Shen Qing said. “The shop outside belongs to us. I’ve rented out three of the storefronts, keeping one. You two know this, right?”

The children nodded nervously.

“I’m planning to open a snack shop there, and it’s an easy business. You two will start learning to cook there. If you do well, you’ll be working in the shop, and I’ll find someone to help you. You’re still young—my concern isn’t that you’ll cook badly, but that customers might not trust food made by children, so I need an adult there too. But if the business does well and makes me money, then when you turn eighteen, I’ll either grant you freedom or find a good family for you to marry into, with a handsome dowry.”

Mudan and Jade looked up, nervous yet hopeful. The other four children also watched enviously.

Shen Qing had already planned this, but saying it now would motivate Mudan and Jade even more. “Don’t worry, Master! We’ll work hard and learn properly!”

Shen Qing took out some starch sausages from his space pendant—though he made it seem like he had just brought them along—and led Mudan and Jade to the kitchen. He watched as the two children, just barely taller than the stove, stepped onto stools and began slicing and frying the sausages.

It wasn’t a complicated job—just slicing the sausages properly without cutting them apart, getting the knife work right, and frying them at the right temperature.

Shen Qing tried demonstrating but accidentally cut a sausage in half. A small piece rolled off the counter.

Shen Qing: “…”

Annoyed, he tossed the remaining half onto the cutting board. “Well, that’s the general idea. Figure it out yourselves.”

Jade truly had a knack for it. Even though Shen Qing’s demonstration was a complete failure, she only needed a moment of contemplation while holding the sausage before she managed to slice it evenly and beautifully, with impressive speed. Mudan was slightly slower but still did a good job.

When it came time to fry the starch sausages, the two children were even more focused. After just one or two attempts, they got the technique right—perfectly crispy on the outside, tender on the inside, neither burnt nor too hard.

This wasn’t a particularly difficult craft, and Shen Qing was quite satisfied. He left them with a few more starch sausages. “For the next few days, eat more of these and practice often. In two months, we’ll be opening the shop.”

Shen Qing had already told Song Kaiji about his plan to open a fried starch sausage shop. Upon hearing this, Song Kaiji immediately went to find Tang Wenjie, and after a brief conversation, Tang Wenjie forged a long, narrow frying pot.

“When we were kids, the fried snack stalls in front of our school used pots like this. The length is just right for skewers, and it saves oil,” Song Kaiji explained. “Once business picks up, we can expand—start frying potato slices, beef tendon noodles, mushrooms, green peppers…” Song Kaiji swallowed his saliva. “They’d all be delicious! And stuffing them into flatbreads would be even better!”

That very night, they carried the new frying pot home and convinced Mother Tang to make fried skewers in flatbread for dinner. The sauce needed some fine-tuning, but it was still incredibly tasty.

This kind of street food was well suited to the economic level of the residents in the northern part of the city. Shen Qing then gathered the other four children and reassured them, “Don’t be discouraged. I have plenty of businesses to run in the future, and who knows, this shop might expand. As long as you stay loyal, follow instructions, and work hard, I’ll release you from servitude when the time comes, just like Mudan and Jade.”

The children looked at Shen Qing, their eyes filled with longing for freedom but also some hesitation about the future. Lately, they had been living well—perhaps the best they had ever lived. If their master truly freed them one day, would their lives still be as good as they were now? They had grown dependent on their master for shelter and food. Would they be able to survive on their own?

But looking at the warm smile on Shen Qing’s face, they couldn’t help but gain confidence. Their master was so good to them—he was surely guiding them toward a future even better than the present.

Shen Qing gave Mudan and Jade their instructions to practice diligently, then went to Shiqu Village to check on Miao Shi. He made sure both Miao Shi and Old Lady Miao drank plenty of spiritual spring water before returning to Red City Base. His space was once again filled to the brim with grain bought in Anping County. Now that their team had expanded, they needed to feed more people, and food supplies were being consumed at an alarming rate.

In the beginning, Shen Qing didn’t skimp on food for the new recruits, making sure they ate to their fill. These people had likely been through long periods of hunger and deprivation, so they stuffed themselves at every meal. The food disappeared so quickly that Yu Le suspected someone was secretly reselling it. She conducted several surprise inspections before confirming that they were, in fact, eating all of it.

After about a week of gorging, the new recruits finally settled into a normal eating pattern.

Song Kaiji was out on a mission today. Shen Qing refilled the kitchen in their villa to the brim and stacked supplies along the second-floor corridor. Then he went to the apartments in the outer city, stuffing both kitchens there with food as well. Even so, there was still plenty left in his space with no place to put it.

This was one of Shen Qing’s bad habits—having lived through too many hard times, he had developed a hoarding mentality and a constant sense of crisis. Every time he made a trip, he felt the need to bring back as much food as possible, afraid that not bringing enough would be a waste.

Right now, all the ability users were out on missions, leaving only the non-combatant family members in the apartments. Shen Qing placed a few sacks of grain in each apartment’s living room. The new recruits seemed to be of good character—perhaps because they feared losing their place in such a well-provided-for team. So far, no thefts had occurred, and it seemed Yu Le had chosen people wisely.

But even after all that, he still had too much food. Song Kaiji’s space was also nearing its limit… Ever since Shen Qing had gained the jade pendant space, every trip to Lantang Village resulted in him bringing back an entire space full of food, all of which he stored in Song Kaiji’s space.

However, Song Kaiji’s space was also needed for other supplies—equipment, metal cages, vehicles… It was running out of room.

They couldn’t possibly rent a warehouse just to store food, could they? Shen Qing never imagined that one day he’d be troubled by having too much food and nowhere to store it.

He and Song Kaiji had even discussed with Yu Le the idea of recruiting another space ability user. But in the end, they dismissed the idea—what if they filled up the space, only for the person to run off? It was hard to trust someone they weren’t familiar with.

Shen Qing furrowed his brows, crouching on the ground in frustration as he pondered. A young boy nearby had been watching him for a while before hesitantly stepping forward. “Boss, how about storing it in our room? We still have an empty cabinet.”

Shen Qing followed him to take a look. The room wasn’t big, and it was shared by two brothers. Maybe because they were both boys, they didn’t have many clothes. Their belongings were sparse—just a few pieces of clothing hanging loosely in one half of the wardrobe, alongside a large suitcase.

The boy pointed to the other half of the wardrobe. “We haven’t used this side at all. You can store food here. Don’t worry, Boss, my brother and I would never steal from you.”

Shen Qing patted his shoulder reassuringly. “I don’t doubt you. I’m just worried it’ll inconvenience your daily life. The room is already small as it is. But alright, let’s put some here for now. We’ll use this supply first when cooking. Later, I’ll talk to Song Ge and see if we can figure something out.”

The boy helped Shen Qing arrange the grain, stacking it neatly against the back wall of the wardrobe until it was completely full. Then he asked curiously, “Boss, are you a space ability user? That’s amazing! I don’t have any abilities.”

Shen Qing didn’t want to discuss it—he wasn’t actually an ability user but a fraud pretending to be one. He casually replied, “My space isn’t that big, nothing special. Song Ge’s space is the real deal—he’s high-level, and his space is huge. He can even…” Shen Qing hesitated, then decided against mentioning teleportation. “Anyway, he’s much stronger than me. He’s really amazing.”

Shen Qing was filled with admiration. If only Song Kaiji could get even stronger and level up his ability one more time!

The boy listened to Shen Qing’s endless praise for Song Kaiji and muttered, “…Oh.”

◦°˚(*❛‿❛)/˚°◦