When she heard about pepper and ginger, Yu Hongdou began to question her entire existence.
These two ingredients were actually the female protagonist’s long-reserved trump card. It wasn’t until near the end of the novel, when the male protagonist was dispatched as a general to Bei Han Zhi Di, that she finally revealed them, donating large quantities of ginger products and pepper to the army (essentially to the male protagonist).
In the epilogue, when the female protagonist reached middle age and became a first-rank titled Furen, she published numerous cookbooks. These recipes included cultivation techniques for these spices, earning her widespread acclaim throughout the land. Even the emperor respectfully addressed her as [Furen].
Currently, both ginger and pepper were sold as medicinal herbs. Although everyone knew they were excellent for dispelling cold and aiding digestion, no one had thought to cultivate them.
In her early days, the female protagonist built her fortune through snack foods. To remove fishy odors and enhance flavors, she used large quantities of these two ingredients. However, lacking capital and not daring to purchase from pharmacies, she secretly cultivated them in the mountains. After establishing her wealth, she directly bought mountain land to cultivate various spices, with ginger, pepper, and chili peppers comprising the majority.
While reading the novel, readers initially thought the author was from Sichuan or Chongqing. Only later did they discover the author was actually a native of Guangdong who couldn’t tolerate even the slightest bit of spiciness. This contrast cuteness alone gained the author a massive fan following.
Now that her father and that fourth uncle had prematurely revealed the female protagonist’s trump card, would her future career and the romantic development between the male and female protagonists still proceed so smoothly?
“Is this really feasible? What if we can’t grow them successfully, or if the weather doesn’t cooperate and we have poor harvests? Would the Magistrate punish us?”
“Exactly, no one has ever cultivated these things before. What if we fail?”
“If everyone farms together, who will be responsible if someone slacks off or sabotages the effort?”
“We still have to tend to our own crops and won’t have time to manage other plots~”
Aside from the servants and tenants of wealthy families, no one had ever heard of everyone farming the same land together. The village had its share of lazybones and troublemakers, and everyone knew each other thoroughly. Why should they share the profits with those people?
The villagers erupted into discussion again, their arguments making Yu Hongdou’s head ache.
However, since the village chief had already made the announcement, it proved these issues had been carefully considered.
He addressed each concern one by one, becoming increasingly hoarse from speaking. Just then, he spotted Yu Sanlang trying to sneak away with his daughter and immediately saw his salvation. Dropping his usual village chief demeanor, he shouted at the top of his lungs to summon Yu Sanlang back.
Yu Sanlang had no choice but to put his daughter down and join the crowd, helping the village chief address everyone’s questions.
Xu Shi had only just heard about this matter but wasn’t particularly concerned. Her husband handled all household decisions. Seeing the chaotic crowd, she wanted to take her daughter home first.
Unfortunately, Yu Hongdou was thoroughly intrigued and eager to learn how the village planned to achieve collective prosperity despite the lack of unity.
As she listened, Yu Hongdou’s expression grew increasingly peculiar. Why did this sound somewhat like collective ownership?
The county provided seeds and would repurchase the harvest at proportional prices. Everyone worked together, divided into teams responsible for specific fields. Ten village administrators supervised and recorded progress. Each person had a base score, with points added for good performance and deducted for poor performance. Finally, payments were distributed according to scores. Wasn’t this exactly the production team model?
Could there be another time traveler? Or was the female protagonist secretly behind this idea?
The flurry of inquiries continued until nearly noon, when the village chief announced that an official notice would be posted here tomorrow and told everyone to return home first. In two days, the Magistrate would send someone to deliver ginger seeds and pepper, and more detailed regulations would be explained at that time.
Yu Sanlang breathed a sigh of relief. Ignoring the shouts behind him, he grabbed his daughter and hurried away with his wife at a brisk pace.
【Sign-in Location: Zhang Shan’s secret savings stash. Consume 1 sign-in point?】
【Sign-in Location: Gambler Ma Laizi’s stolen goods. Consume 1 sign-in point?】
【Sign-in Location: Li Erniu’s firewood pile. Consume 1 sign-in point?】
【Sign-in Location: Wang Fugui’s cellar. Consume 1 sign-in point?】
On the way back, several familiar sign-in locations still shimmered brightly. Yu Hongdou, the points magnate with 11 points to her name, acted swiftly and spent 1 point on Gambler Ma Laizi’s stolen goods.
【Sign-in successful: Obtained one copy of “Youxi Daquan – Ancient Games Collection.”】
…No surprise there. Gambling is essentially a game—it’s just that humans have demonized it.
After her heartache, Yu Hongdou comforted herself with Ah Q-style reasoning: since she had no phone and no playmates, being able to play some games wasn’t so bad.
Given that this spot hadn’t yielded anything particularly valuable, Yu Hongdou abandoned the idea of snagging Zhang San’s secret savings and began looking forward to the afternoon’s itinerary.
True to his word, Yu Sanlang didn’t disappoint his daughter. Without even eating lunch, he rushed home, wrapped up a few steamed buns, grabbed his tools, and hustled his wife and daughter away. If they didn’t leave immediately, they’d be trapped at home by visitors.
Having grown up in the village, he knew his fellow villagers all too well. Even if he explained things a thousand times, someone would inevitably show up to ask a hundred more questions. Yu Sanlang had no desire to repeat himself like a broken record.
“I’ve been so busy lately, it just occurred to me—Xiao Song told me that he and Hongdou saw an orchid plant on the mountain that day. I wonder if it’s still there. If it is, we could dig it up and give it to the Magistrate. Those wealthy families are very particular about etiquette, with all their rituals and gift-giving customs—they must be sick of receiving presents by now.”
Through recent social interactions and studies, Yu Sanlang had gained some superficial understanding of how noble families operated, and he couldn’t help sharing this insight with his wife.
“Such elaborate gift-giving does require considerable thought.” And money, Xu Shi silently added, thinking of the jewelry and gifts her husband had brought back. Even the items meant for casual gifting were exquisitely precious, so presents for elders and friends probably cost a fortune.
Hearing this, Yu Hongdou also started calculating in her mind. Her father had just received so many fine things from the Magistrate—it made sense that they needed to put careful thought into the return gift.
As she pondered whether she could contribute in any way, familiar green lights began flashing before her eyes one by one, making her little heart race with excitement.
【Sign-in Location: Taoyuan Village mountain entrance path. Consume 1 sign-in point?】
【Sign-in Location: Taoyuan Village Tudi Miao. Consume 2 sign-in points?】
【Sign-in Location: Dongshan Slope rabbit burrow. Consume 1 sign-in point?】
【Sign-in Location: Dongshan Slope wild vegetable patch. Consume 1 sign-in point?】
【Sign-in Location: Bandit Guo Jinlong’s treasure hiding spot. Consume 2 sign-in points?】
With limited points but unlimited sign-in opportunities, Yu Hongdou acted with swift precision, targeting the locations requiring 2 points.
【Sign-in successful: Obtained one Level 1 Fengshou Fu.】
【Sign-in successful: Obtained one night pearl.】
That’s it? Yu Hongdou felt somewhat disappointed when she saw the message. Just 2 points—enough to learn a lifelong skill.
And what on earth is Fengshou Fu? Aren’t I supposed to be in a Farming Literature world? Disheartened, Yu Hongdou opened the system panel to check the new items in her backpack.
【Host: Yu Hongdou】
【Sign-in Points: 8 (Automatically +1 after midnight daily)】
【Skills: Embroidery Level 2】
【Backpack: 1 Ancient Common Medicine Kit; 2 taels of silver; 3 jin of white rice; 1 set of painting tools + 20 sheets of Xuan paper; 1 copy of Ancient Youxi Daquan; 1 Level 1 Fengshou Fu; 1 luminous pearl】
Yu Hongdou’s gaze first fell on the Fengshou Fu—a yellow paper strip with red symbols, indistinguishable from talismans seen in films and TV shows. Its detailed information immediately displayed:
【Fengshou Fu: As the name suggests, it ensures bountiful harvests for all crops. A Level 1 Fengshou Fu doubles the output of crops on 1 mu of land. (Usage: Stand within the target area and tear the talisman)】
! She was wrong! Yu Hongdou promptly corrected herself. Such an advanced item is absolutely essential for Farming Literature!