Returning to the village to farm starts with activating the spiritual veins.

Chapter 10 Clearing the Forest

Early the next morning...

Wipe...

On the hillside, Sun Ran held a bottle of medicated oil and applied it all over his body, from top to bottom and front to back, to every part of his body that he could reach.

Not a single drop was missed.

After applying the ointment, he checked it again, then looked up at his uncle, Sun Bolang, and handed him the bottle.

"Here, Uncle, put some on too, to keep mosquitoes away."

"Tch, what good is this thing?"

Sun Bolang turned his head arrogantly and pulled a blue spray bottle from his basket: "Look at this, this is the real good stuff."

"This mosquito repellent, imported from Australia, is so easy to use—just spray it on! It's convenient and saves time, and mosquitoes won't dare come near you for at least three or four hours!"

As he spoke, he picked up the bottle, raised his hand, and sprayed himself with it, all the while glancing at his nephew with his chin: "How about it? Want some?"

"So you don't get bitten all over and make your grandma feel bad!"

"Hehe, Uncle, you should take care of yourself first."

Looking at his arrogant expression, Sun Ran was speechless.

This is the Qingling Dew given to me by a cheat code, okay? Is it some kind of imported mosquito repellent from you, Uncle, that you can use to stage an accident?

It's true what they say, good deeds don't always get rewarded, sigh...

He picked up the basket from the ground and strode to the right, saying, "Uncle, I'll go first then. See you later..."

"Hmph, don't cry if you lose tonight!"

Sun Bolang stood there with his hands on his hips and shouted loudly.

"Impossible! Uncle, you'd better think carefully about which fishing rod you're going to compensate me for if you lose!"

Sun Ran, carrying a basket on his back, walked into the woods laughing without looking back.

This arrogant behavior made Sun Bolang, who was standing behind him, so angry that he gritted his teeth.

lose?

How could I possibly lose!

He angrily lowered his head, picked up the basket from the ground, tossed it onto his back, and slung it over his shoulder...

Boom~

Then there was a crisp sound.

The basket was flung to the ground with a thud, scattering farm tools and other items all over the place.

Sun Bolang's face stiffened. He stood there, one hand on his waist and the other pointing forward in the air, maintaining the motion of swinging the basket. He gasped.

Hiss~

This is terrible!

My back is killing me!

He held his lower back with both hands, and it took him a long time to recover. He stiffly picked up his things, then grimaced and rubbed his lower back as he walked into the woods.

Last night, his father, Sun Zhonghua, applied medicated wine to his waist.

But who would have thought that the old man would be so heavy-handed...

He had originally thought that Sun Ran was probably no better than him and wouldn't be able to do much work.

At worst, I can just take it easy after I go up the mountain today.

Who knew that those words would spur me on, and all my previous plans to take things slowly would be forgotten.

And then tragedy struck...

What are we going to do now?!

Are we really going to lose to that brat?

He walked into the woods, supporting his back, and looked at the weeds covering the ground, feeling somewhat lost for a moment.

Meanwhile, in the woods on the other side...

"Hey, you know what, this Cleansing Dew actually works."

Sun Ran held a bamboo pole in his hand and tapped it against the grass, laughing heartily.

The mosquitoes in the mountains are incredibly fierce and huge.

But after he applied the medicated oil, as he walked forward, he saw swarms of mosquitoes flying away hurriedly several meters in front of him.

They didn't even dare to fly near him.

Even in the grass underfoot, you could hear rustling sounds, and every now and then you could see insects or something fleeing in panic.

Its effects are far superior to those of the original Tiger Balm.

Sigh, I wonder how my uncle is doing now, whether he's been bitten by mosquitoes.

Upon thinking of Sun Bolang, Sun Ran's grin widened even further.

After shooing away the snake by tapping the grass with the bamboo stick in his hand, he took out a sickle from his basket and started cutting grass with a swish.

In another month or so, the fruit on the tree will be ready to be harvested.

The ground needs to be cleaned beforehand.

His family's ten acres of mountain forest land are mostly planted with hickory trees, as well as some torreya nuts, bayberries, loquats, and the like.

The reason I came to clear the weeds was also for these hickory nuts. After harvesting them in a while, the nuts will fall to the ground, and if we don't clean them up properly beforehand, it will be troublesome to pick them up later.

What's even more frightening is that snakes might be hiding in the grass.

There are quite a few venomous snakes and insects here, such as centipedes, pit vipers, bamboo vipers, five-step snakes, banded kraits, and Zhoushan cobras...

These are all ruthless creatures that can kill someone with just one bite.

Especially with those two little ones at home, we need to be even more careful.

Therefore, he is now paying extra attention when clearing away these weeds.

But to be honest, this job is definitely much easier than transplanting rice seedlings.

After all, there's shade overhead, unlike planting rice seedlings in paddy fields where you have to endure the scorching summer sun.

Although it's a hillside and you have to be careful not to roll down it, it's still much more comfortable than being stuck in a muddy paddy field where you can't even walk.

In addition, after applying the medicated oil, he no longer had to worry about being bothered by mosquitoes and poisonous insects, so his movements of clearing the mountain and cutting grass were naturally exceptionally smooth and free.

He tapped the stick a few times, then swung the sickle, cut the ground, tidied it up, and tossed it onto the open ground.

Only the bushes are a little more troublesome; you'll have to switch to a machete.

As he cut grass and chopped firewood, Sun Ran couldn't help but hum a song.

Hmm, how do I lose?

impossible.

Which of my uncle's fishing rods should I choose?

……

Just as he was starting to figure out how to fleece his uncle, Sun Bolang was suffering in the woods.

He couldn't bend his waist; he could only stand up and squat straight down, making him look like a wooden doll.

Even just raising a stick and tapping it into the grass a few times can make you break out in a cold sweat.

He hadn't even cleared much land before he was already panting heavily, leaning against a walnut tree.

Am I really getting old?

Now he can't even compare to his own nephew?

He stood there, one hand on his waist and the other supporting himself against a tree, a bitter smile on his face.

After finally catching their breath, when they went back to clearing the forest, even more troublesome things happened.

After all that fuss, he was sweating non-stop, and the imported mosquito repellent he had sprayed earlier became ineffective in no time.

One by one, big, spotted mosquitoes buzzed around him and began to swarm.

Take a sip here, then a sip there.

For a while, you could hear a snapping sound coming from the woods every now and then.

The time he spends mowing the lawn and clearing the ground is less than the time he spends swatting mosquitoes!

"Damn, where did all these mosquitoes come from? We've never had this many in previous years!"

Wiping the sweat from his brow, Sun Bolang quickly took out mosquito repellent and sprayed it on. He stood there leaning on a bamboo cane, panting heavily.

A sense of unease washed over me.

If we really lose...

Thinking of his treasured fishing rods, Sun Bolang felt a pang of heartache. Impossible, absolutely impossible!

If I'm already this tired from doing this, that brat probably won't have it easy either.

He hasn't done this kind of work for several years, so he must be very rusty. As long as he can grit his teeth and persevere, he absolutely cannot lose!

Thinking of this, he endured the pain in his back, lifted his leg, and carried the stick forward again...

Meanwhile, in the woods on the other side, a completely different scene unfolded.

Having already cleared a large area of ​​woods, Sun Ran found a relatively clean spot, plopped down on the ground, and was happily eating a bag of spicy strips.

If Sun Bolang saw this, he'd be furious.

ton ton ton~

After finishing a few bites of spicy snacks, Sun Ran gasped for breath and then picked up the water bottle, taking a few more sips of water.

"Phew~ I didn't expect this spiritual spring water to taste a little sweet when mixed with water..."

After finishing his water, he put the kettle on the ground, wiped his mouth, and pondered to himself.

He fed the chickens at home diluted spiritual spring water for the past two days, and seeing no unusual symptoms, he gradually became bolder.

So when I left home in the morning, I simply added some to my water bottle.

However, he was cautious at first and didn't dare to add too much.

I poured 10ml into a large water bottle that was about a liter in size.

I don't know if it's just my imagination, but it seems like the boiled water tastes much better after adding the spiritual spring water.

Clicking his tongue in disapproval, Sun Ran, having rested enough, pushed himself up and continued walking forward, carrying his bamboo pole...

After eating some dry rations I brought for lunch, I worked all day and waited for the sun to set before packing up...

"Hey, Uncle, why is your head covered in mosquito bites?"

Outside the woods, Sun Ran was also greatly surprised to see his uncle, Sun Bolang.

"Stop talking nonsense! Everyone gets bitten by mosquitoes when working in the fields!"

Sun Bolang waved his hand impatiently and said.

"Hehe, that's not necessarily true. Look at me, I didn't get bitten, did I?"

Hearing his nephew's cheeky voice, Sun Bolang was taken aback. He turned around and saw that it was indeed true!

Despite being extra careful, wearing long sleeves and pants, the exposed areas were still covered in bites.

Where is that brat?

Not only was he wearing short sleeves and shorts, but he was also completely clean from head to toe, without even a single red bump!

Is there any justice in this world?

"You brat, how come you don't have a single mosquito bite?!"

"Hey, hey, Uncle, let go! It's my fault for refusing the Tiger Balm I offered you this morning."

"Pah, I had no idea it was so useful! Hurry up and hand it over!"

"Hey, wait a minute... damn it, Uncle, where are you taking your hand out of?!"

"Hey kid, I didn't realize you had such talent."

"Isn't that obvious! Uncle, you're just jealous, aren't you?"

"Pah! Why would I need to be jealous of you?"

"Hehe, that's hard to say..."

"Don't even mention it. But you're in luck, kid. I'm telling you, your aunt is planning to introduce you to a girlfriend."

"Oh? No need, Uncle, I can find it myself."

"You'll find it yourself? Where are you going to look? Are you going to search for a fox spirit in this deep mountain forest?"

"It doesn't seem like it's impossible..."

"No way my foot! By the way, how much land did you clean today?"

"How much... let me see, about half, I guess. We should be able to finish it if we come again tomorrow."

"How much? Half? How is that possible!"

"Why not? By the way, Uncle, what about you?"

"Me? I... I'm definitely better than you! I've already cleared two-thirds of it!"

"Uncle, are you bragging?"

"Impossible, absolutely impossible..."

The uncle and nephew walked down the mountain arm in arm, chatting and laughing.

However, what Sun Ran didn't notice was that just now, while the two of them were playing around, the water bottle in his basket accidentally fell out.

It rolled around on the ground a few times, and the loosely screwed bottle cap fell to the ground with a thud and flipped over.

A few drops of water mixed with the spiritual spring water dripped from the spout of the pot...

Soon after, a buzzing sound was heard.

A bee that was on its way back to its hive stopped suddenly as it passed by.

After circling a few times, it plunged down from mid-air and landed at the mouth of the bottle. After spinning a few more times, it plunged headfirst into the kettle.

Not long after, the bee wobbled out of the kettle again, flapped its wings, and flew away into the distance.

After a while...

hum~

With a low, rumbling sound of wings, a large swarm of bees flew out of the woods like a black cloud.

Before long, one after another, they landed on the kettle...