“Welcome, host, to Magical Farm. The farm is currently Level 1. You have been granted one thousand coins. Continue upgrading to unlock more items.”
The mechanical voice appeared again. After finishing its explanation, it fell silent once more.
Lan Sisi suddenly recalled that on the night she transmigrated, she had been playing a game called Magical Farm. In that farm, all kinds of magical plants and animals could be cultivated.
If this really was the case, then in this era, it could be considered an extremely powerful advantage. Lan Sisi was overjoyed.
When she walked up to the wheat, she realized just how astonishing it was. The wheat was taller than she was, and the ears were so large that she could not wrap both hands around one.
With great effort, Lan Sisi broke off a single grain. After peeling it open, she found it packed full, containing fine, snow-white flour. At a rough estimate, it weighed several catties.
Lan Sisi felt that everything she had known for years had been overturned. What could she say, it truly lived up to the name Magical Farm. It was simply too incredible.
Not far from the fields grew a type of tree. The leaves of the tree were shaped like pockets and could hold about five catties. They were perfect for storing items, both environmentally friendly and sturdy.
She peeled open the ears from an entire stalk of wheat and poured the contents into the leaf bags. She filled three whole leaf bags with flour and stored them in the warehouse. Lan Sisi experienced the joy of a bountiful harvest.
The remaining wheat was harvested with a single command and stored in the warehouse. She could deal with it slowly when she had time.
The farm had given her a bag of wheat seeds. After planting them, she would need to purchase more from the farm shop using coins. Aside from that, all other seeds were still locked, appearing grayed out. Lan Sisi directly clicked to sow. Not long after, she saw green seedlings sprout from the soil, with a one-hour countdown floating above them.
This action earned her several dozen coins and experience points.
After that, Lan Sisi went to the chicken coop. Inside, there were four hens sitting quietly, seemingly nothing special.
Just as she was thinking that, she saw one of the hens suddenly lift its rear, adjust its posture, and then eggs began to shoot out from behind it one after another, pop, pop, pop…
Lan Sisi was stunned.
Each hen produced more than ten eggs before stopping.
It took Lan Sisi quite a while to process what she had just seen before she finally calmed down.
She collected the eggs from the coop and placed the feed that had been provided into it. A large bag of feed could last for a long time, and it was automatically replenished by the system, making it very cost-effective. When she placed her hand on one of the chickens’ heads, a prompt immediately appeared: “Do you want to harvest one chicken?”
It seemed that chicken meat could also be obtained. The smile on Lan Sisi’s face became a bit more genuine.
After finishing all of this, she went to take a look at the small wooden house. From the outside, it did not look large, but inside, it was actually a one-bedroom, one-living-room house. All necessary furnishings were present, and the system even indicated that the house could be upgraded and expanded.
Lan Sisi lay down on the soft spring mattress and let out a long breath. It was too comfortable. In the future, as long as she was alone at night, she could rest here.
After exploring her not-so-large farm, Lan Sisi closed her eyes and silently thought about returning. When she opened her eyes again, she was back in the dilapidated kitchen of the Lan family.
Following the farm’s rules, with a single thought, a virtual storage grid appeared before her. The eggs and flour she had just collected were clearly listed inside. Lan Sisi let out a breath of relief. At least now, she no longer had to worry about going hungry.
At that moment, Lan Sinian also returned from next door.
“Sis, I’m going to the fields. You should stay home and rest,” Lan Sinian said. After speaking, he picked up his tools and was about to leave.
“Sinian, I’ll go with you,” Lan Sisi called out. She had nothing to do right now, and it was a good opportunity to familiarize herself with things. The original owner had been diligent and capable at work, able to earn four to five work points a day, sometimes even five or six. Lan Sisi, however, had grown up in the city and had never done farm work before. If she exposed any inconsistency, it would not be good.
Lan Sinian could not argue with her and had no choice but to agree, though his eyes were filled with concern.
The fields were not far from home. After walking for a while, they arrived. Many people were already working there.
Lan Sisi spotted Aunt Sun from next door. Seeing the siblings, Aunt Sun greeted them.
“Sisi, why are you here? Shouldn’t you be resting at home?” Aunt Sun frowned.
“I’m already fine, Aunt. Right now, it’s just me and Sinian at home. If we don’t work, we won’t have anything to eat when the grain is distributed at the end of the year,” Lan Sisi said with a bitter smile. The farm was her safeguard and her fallback, so naturally, she could not tell anyone about it.
“Sigh, you’re still so young, yet you’ve gone through something like this.” Aunt Sun sighed, her eyes reddening. “If you ask me, your grandmother’s family is really heartless. You’re only sixteen, and Sinian is just nine. Why couldn’t they take you back in? When Aimin died, they were afraid you’d ask them for money. They came to take a look and left right away, worse than outsiders.”
After saying this, Aunt Sun spat on the ground, clearly disgusted by Liu Guihua and her family’s actions.
Lan Sisi, however, did not feel much. In her view, it was better not to have dealings with such a family at all. But in this era, filial piety weighed heavily on people, so she could not say such things. Otherwise, she would be the one in the wrong.
“I heard that old shrew from the Ge family came to cause trouble early this morning? Why didn’t you call me? I would have scolded her to death,” Aunt Sun said angrily.
“If you ask me, your father was good in every way except his judgment. What’s so good about that Ge family boy? His mother practically wants to tie him to her waistband. If you marry into that family, you’ll definitely be tormented. It’s actually good that things turned out like this. A verbal agreement without betrothal gifts or formal documents doesn’t count. Later, I’ll help you find someone better,” Aunt Sun said, worried that Lan Sisi might feel upset, and tried to comfort her.
“Thank you, Aunt. My father just passed not long ago. I don’t want to think about these things yet,” Lan Sisi said, lowering her head. She was only sixteen now. In her previous world, she would still have been a middle school student. Getting married so early felt unnatural to her. Besides, now that she had Magical Farm, there were many things she could do in this world.
“Sisi, Sinian, didn’t I tell you to rest for a few days?” The team leader came over and asked when he saw them.
“Uncle Team Leader, I’m already fine. I can work. I still need to earn work points to support my younger brother,” Lan Sisi said with a smile.
Seeing her like this, the team leader did not know what to say. He sighed and eventually assigned them lighter work. Both of them were sent to cut pig fodder.
The production team raised pigs, and at the end of the year, one would be slaughtered. Each household would receive a portion, allowing them to taste meat once a year.
Cutting pig fodder was not particularly difficult, and Lan Sisi was able to pick it up. She was just a bit slow at first. Lan Sinian assumed her body had not fully recovered, so he quietly cut extra fodder and, without saying anything, placed it into Lan Sisi’s basket. His own basket only had a thin layer.
Lan Sisi noticed his small actions and glared at him. Lan Sinian scratched the back of his head and smiled sheepishly.
During the lunch break, several blisters had already formed on Lan Sisi’s palms. They hurt with even the slightest touch. She quietly kept her hands behind her back so that Lan Sinian would not see.
Lan Sinian took out two coarse steamed buns they had brought from home. The two of them sat on a hillside and ate bite by bite. The buns were rough, and swallowing them made the throat hurt, yet Lan Sinian ate with great relish.
“Sinian, do you want to go to school?” Lan Sisi asked as she looked at him.
“No,” Lan Sinian answered quickly, but Lan Sisi clearly saw a trace of longing flash through his eyes.
Lan Sisi felt a pang of heartache and gently patted his head. “Don’t worry. I will make sure you get to study.”
Upon hearing this, Lan Sinian turned to her and said, “Sis, I won’t go to school. I want to earn money so you can live a good life, eating white rice every meal. When Dad was still around, he always said that I’m the man of the family and that I should take care of you.”
Lan Sisi was deeply moved. In her previous life, her parents had died early, and she had no siblings. Everything had depended on her own efforts. No one had ever said such words to her.
“A jinx like you still wants to go to school? Dream on!” a sharp voice suddenly rang out.
Lan Sisi turned to look and saw a young girl with braided hair and delicate features. However, her expression of twisted disgust ruined her appearance. This was her third cousin, Lan Meili, who was a few months older than her. She had always liked to bully her and Sinian. Her sharp-tongued, mean demeanor was exactly like her mother, Yu Shi.
Lan Sinian clenched his fists, his eyes reddening slightly. Lan Sisi held his hand.
Seeing the siblings look at her, Lan Meili deliberately took out a cornmeal bun and bit into it, her expression full of smugness. But in the eyes of Lan Sisi, who had lived for over twenty years, it was nothing more than childish behavior.
“At such a young age, yet your mouth is so foul. Sinian, don’t pay attention to her,” Lan Sisi said. Although she did not want to argue with a child, she would not allow herself to be bullied.
“Who are you calling foul-mouthed? My mother was right, you and Lan Sinian are just like your mother, short-lived ghosts! Jinxes! Born to be debts to collect!” Lan Meili shouted angrily out of embarrassment.
Lan Sisi stood up and walked in front of her. Her face was expressionless, but her anger was evident. “Say that again. Do you believe I’ll tear your mouth apart?”
Lan Meili felt a trace of fear, but she still forced herself to stand her ground. “Go ahead, you useless girl!”
Slap!
Lan Meili covered her face, tears welling in her eyes, filled with hatred. “You actually dared to hit me!” she shouted as she lunged toward Lan Sisi.
Lan Sisi pulled Lan Sinian behind her and kicked forward. Her movement was clean and swift. Lan Meili fell flat on her back and finally burst into loud sobs.
“Just you wait!”
After saying that, she ran off while covering her face. Lan Sisi let out a scoff. With such little courage, she still dared to cause trouble. All those years of taekwondo training had not been for nothing.
Lan Sinian looked at Lan Sisi with shining eyes. “Sis, you’re amazing.”
Lan Sisi patted his head. “Sinian, before, I was too weak. From now on, I will protect you well. No one will bully us again.”
After a short lunch break, the siblings returned to work.
Lan Sisi’s palms hurt terribly, but she could only grit her teeth and persist. Seeing that her complexion did not look good, Lan Sinian thought she was unwell and quietly followed behind her to help.
As the two carried pig fodder past the fields, they saw Eldest Uncle Lan Jianshe and Third Uncle Lan Aijun. When Eldest Uncle’s wife, Fang Shi, saw the siblings, she immediately turned her face away, as if afraid of being associated with them.