The hotel was undeniably popular, remaining busy until past one in the morning, with some guests lingering over their drinks, unwilling to leave.
Two servers were left to attend to them, while the rest went to rest.
Lu Fan had been driven back to the village by car at dusk, summoned by Bai Xuemei. After all, he still had many personal matters to attend to.
Pine mushrooms had already been planted in the greenhouse. Besides controlling temperature and humidity, there was also the task of distributing the spiritual liquid. This was something no one else could do.
"Holy cow! There's almost half a bottle of spiritual liquid in the Spirit Gathering Bottle. It seems that large jade stone is quite effective." Lu Fan was so delighted to discover the significant increase in the spiritual liquid that he almost jumped for joy. With the spiritual liquid, his planting and breeding endeavors would be much easier.
"Xiao Fan! The greenhouse has been built, but where will the mushrooms grown here be sold? We can't dry them all into dried mushrooms, can we?" Zhao Rongrong, who had entered the greenhouse at some point, asked Lu Fan with a hint of worry.
This greenhouse had cost over a hundred thousand yuan to build. What if it didn't make any money?
"Mom! Don't worry! Sister Xuemei has already contacted several hotels in the provincial capital for me. Our mushrooms will fetch a good price!
Moreover, Village Chief Liu is helping me register a trademark. I also plan to create a brand for my exceptional wild vegetables. Hehe!" Lu Fan said excitedly.
"Then... son! We have Fan Xue'er at home, Liu Ruyan in the village, Shen Xinyi in the town, and now Bai Xuemei in the county. You... which one do you actually intend to make your wife?
We are a respectable family. You mustn't go astray and try to juggle multiple relationships!" Zhao Rongrong said cautiously.
"Hehe! Mom! You're overthinking it. I told you I want to establish my career before settling down. They... they are all just my ordinary friends," Lu Fan said with a smile.
"You..." Zhao Rongrong was about to say something more when a boisterous voice suddenly echoed from outside.
"I knew Xiao Fan wouldn't be interested in those good-for-nothing ornamental vases! Hehe! Auntie! You don't even see a good woman like me right in front of you. I'm a woman who can grace the hall and manage the kitchen." Taohua suddenly entered the greenhouse, holding Xiao Hu. This woman had happened to overhear Lu Fan's words at the entrance and was so excited she almost jumped.
In her opinion, Lu Fan's heart was definitely occupied by her alone. After all, Lu Fan had dripped his blood on her and recognized her as his own! Hehe! Besides, that slovenly old Taoist priest had also said that Lu Fan was destined for romance. Hehe! This boy was meant to be mine.
"Taohua... What... what are you doing here?" Zhao Rongrong was furious. Did she think her son would be interested in a widowed woman with a child in tow? Hmph! She was truly deluded.
"I'm here to collect eggs! How many wild eggs have you saved up? Give them to me to hatch chicks. Hehe!" Taohua said with a smile, deliberately bumping into Lu Fan. "Xiao Fan! Do you want me to lay an egg for you? Look how adorable Xiao Hu is."
"Taohua! What nonsense are you talking about! Come on, let's go get the eggs," Zhao Rongrong said, pulling Taohua out. She couldn't let this widowed woman be alone with her son, or something bad would happen sooner or later.
"Auntie, don't rush! I just arrived and haven't chatted much!" Taohua was pulled out reluctantly.
"Hehe!" Lu Fan chuckled. Were married women bolder than men, daring to think and do anything?
Lu Fan also came out of the greenhouse and returned to his own yard. He suddenly saw Wang Laowai leaning against the rabbit cage, fast asleep.
"Wang Laowai, dare to slack off and sleep on the job? Believe it or not, I'll deduct your wages!" Lu Fan kicked Wang Laowai as he shouted.
"Who?... Xiao Fan! You scared me to death." Wang Laowai shot up. Seeing it was Lu Fan, he finally realized what was happening.
"Wang Laowai! Why are you sleeping in the yard so late? Don't tell me Auntie didn't let you into the bedroom? Hehe!" Lu Fan said with a chuckle.
"Nonsense! My status at home is this!" Wang Laowai gave himself a thumbs-up. "Your auntie has to listen to me unconditionally! Every night, she has to warm my bed for me."
"Haha! Wang Laowai, you're bragging too much. If you're so capable, why are you sleeping in my yard?" Lu Fan retorted unconvinced.
"I have my reasons, Xiao Fan! Look..." Wang Laowai suddenly moved aside, revealing the rabbit cage behind him. Inside the cage, Wang Laowai had made a small partition and built a small nest. There were a few newborn rabbit kits in the nest.
"Holy cow! The rabbits have given birth!" Lu Fan was instantly surprised.
"Hehe! I saw the rabbits had given birth. I heard that some adult rabbits bite the young ones, so I separated them. Because I was worried, I stayed here to watch them. I didn't expect to fall asleep. Hehe!" Wang Laowai chuckled.
"Good! Thank you for your hard work, Uncle Wang! You deserve a reward for being a midwife! Haha!" Lu Fan pulled out a hundred-yuan bill and put it into Wang Laowai's hand. "Uncle Wang! Go back and buy some good food, and let the whole family have a good meal."
"Xiao Fan! You called me Uncle Wang!" Almost everyone in the village, young and old, called him Wang Laowai. No one had ever respected him. Lu Fan not only gave him a hundred yuan but also called him Uncle Wang! He was suddenly a little emotional.
"Haha! Alright, hurry back and rest! The little rabbits are well-behaved, don't worry!" Lu Fan laughed heartily. He didn't expect to move Wang Laowai so much.
Wang Laowai left, and Lu Fan also sneaked out of his house and went to Liu Ruyan at the village branch. Firstly, he wanted to treat Liu Ruyan's illness. Secondly, he wanted to share the good news about the rabbit kits with Liu Ruyan.
...
The next morning, Lu Fan entered the deep mountains to collect medicinal herbs. The herbs in the deep mountains were better in terms of age and quality than those in pharmacies, and most importantly, they were cheaper. If Bai Xuemei's medicinal cuisine restaurant did well, the demand would likely be very high. That would also be a significant cost.
Since Lin Fang was there, Lu Fan wasn't in a hurry to go to the county town. Lin Fang's medical skills were quite good, and such a small matter as preparing medicinal cuisine would not go wrong.
After collecting the herbs, he returned and gathered the pine mushrooms from the pine forest. Then, he stored the remaining spiritual liquid in a small bottle. These were all treasures, and Lu Fan had already planned how to utilize them.
Upon returning home with all the items, he saw Liu Ruyan had come over early that morning to see the rabbit kits and wolf cubs. She was holding a fluffy rabbit kit with great joy.
"Lu Fan! Didn't you say you were going to raise the wild chickens and rabbits in the back mountain?" Liu Ruyan asked with her big eyes blinking when she saw Lu Fan return.
"I transplanted some of their favorite wild grasses on the hillside. They need to take root and survive, otherwise, they'll be gnawed clean. Also, I need to buy some iron fences to enclose the back mountain, to prevent people from casually going up the mountain. I also need to build some chicken coops and rabbit hutches for the wild chickens and rabbits. Even though they're free-range, they need a place to go home and lay eggs. We can't be searching for eggs all over the mountain. Hehe!" Lu Fan said with a smile.
"Then let's go to the back mountain and make a plan," Liu Ruyan said excitedly. She could already envision the scene of Lu Fan's back mountain being filled with wild chickens and rabbits in the near future.
"Alright!" Lu Fan nodded.
"Xiao Fan! Ruyan! Come back early for dinner!" Zhao Rongrong said, looking at Lu Fan and Liu Ruyan chatting happily, her heart filled with joy. She called out from behind.
...
After breakfast, Lu Fan sent Liu Ruyan back to the village branch and, on the way, carried the mushrooms to Wang Yan to dry. Seeing Lu Fan enter Wang Yan's yard, Liu Ruyan couldn't help but glare fiercely at the boy. But the silly boy didn't notice Liu Ruyan's expression at all.
"Xiao Fan! Collected so many mushrooms again? Come in and sit for a while, sister-in-law wants to... wants to talk to you about something!" Wang Yan rushed out of the room as soon as she saw Lu Fan enter her yard. Time rewards the persistent; the opportunity had finally arrived...
"Sister-in-law! How many peach trees do you have on your mountain?" Lu Fan did not rush into the house. After putting down the mushrooms, he asked.
"What's up? Want to eat peaches? Sister-in-law also wants to eat!" Wang Yan glanced at Lu Fan subtly. This boy was too handsome; she really wanted to give him a "monkey stealing a peach"!
"I want to lease your peach orchard!" Lu Fan, completely oblivious to the widowed Wang Yan's intentions regarding his "two peaches" below, said seriously.
"Okay! Don't talk about those worthless fruit trees. Even if you want to lease sister-in-law, it's fine! Come, let's go inside, I have something to tell you." Wang Yan hurriedly pulled Lu Fan into the house.
Ring ring... Ring ring... Suddenly, Lu Fan's phone rang.
Lu Fan quickly took out his phone and saw it was Bai Xuemei calling.
"Lu Fan, we're famous, famous... Our hotel is famous. We've been receiving so many reservation calls since early this morning..." Bai Xuemei said excitedly, almost incoherently.