Song Tan’s Chronicle - Chapter 97

Chapter 97: What to Plant on the Hillside

Carrying a plastic bag in each hand, Qiao Qiao brought all the fish fry back home.

Grandma Wang Lifeng and Wu Lan were busy in the yard, washing and scrubbing, working non-stop. According to local customs, when you hire neighbors to help with work, you must provide them with lunch. With Song Tan’s family of four, plus grandparents, Zhang Yanping, the excavator operator staying at their house, and the three old buddies helping Song Sancheng on the hillside, there were eleven people in total. Except for Song Tan, who ate sparingly, the rest could each eat two or three bowls of rice per meal.

Preparing meals for so many people was quite a task.

Song Sancheng was now busier than ever, and so was Wu Lan. Early in the morning, she had to go with Song Tan and Qiao Qiao to the field to pick Chinese milk vetch. As the weather warmed up, more of the plants in the field were blooming. The blooming ones couldn’t be harvested because they were too old and tough to eat. To ensure quality, they had to spend more time picking and sorting the plants each day.

Moreover, ever since people found out that Chinese milk vetch wouldn’t be available for long, more and more customers came to the market, buying ten or twenty pounds at a time to blanch and freeze at home so they could enjoy it until the New Year.

Today, Song Tan added another order early in the morning, “Mom, we need to send another two thousand pounds out of town today.”

The whole family was mobilized.

Wu Lan wondered aloud, “Is he buying to resell?”

Song Tan shook her head, “No, he said his family runs a farm-to-table restaurant. They blanch and freeze the Chinese milk vetch to serve to customers as complimentary dishes.”

Whether stir-fried, made into soup, or any other dish, as long as it’s fresh wild vegetables from the field, the customers love it. This brought them a lot of business.

In the past, Wu Lan would have been thrilled to earn money, but now she had to figure out how to work quickly and efficiently without delaying lunch preparation.

Having a lot of work can be stressful.

But…

“Oh my, with this four thousand yuan order, plus the money from selling vegetables these days, we should be able to pay off the remaining contract fee, right?”

She felt uneasy owing money for too long.

Song Tan burst her bubble, “Mom, since we plan to plant fruit trees on the hillside for the subsidy, we can’t just plant them and leave it at that. We need results this year.”

Three- to five-year-old seedlings cost nearly twenty thousand yuan per acre to plant about a hundred trees.

“Plus, you’ll need to hire people to plant and water them, right? The small hill will rely on the pond at the bottom for water. We’ll need to buy a water pump with long hoses, and those small expenses add up.”

“And our field…”

Before Song Tan could finish, Wu Lan closed her eyes in despair, “Alright, alright, enough.”

Then she asked, “Did the honey sell out? That’s money too!”

How could it not sell out? When she mentioned it in the group chat, the out-of-town customer who ordered two thousand pounds of Chinese milk vetch also bought ten bottles of honey.

In total, they had thirteen bottles, now leaving just one for their own use, and the stock was cleared.

The bees still needed a few more days to make more honey from the collected nectar.

When asked why he bought so much, the customer explained that he planned to serve honey water as a complimentary drink, just like the Chinese milk vetch dishes.

Song Tan mused that if it weren’t for the short time and unclear profits, this astute young man might have made their tea his restaurant’s signature item too!

As Wu Lan cleaned the vegetables, she directed Song Tan, “Make sure to go to the back hill later and feed the pigs and the chickens.”

Song Tan ran up the hill, looked at the flock of ducklings, and came back with an idea, “Mom, the ducks are molting. Let’s build a duck shelter by the pond on the hillside.”

Initially, she planned to raise them in the field pond, but that pond was a neat rectangular shape. In contrast, the hillside pond was shaped like a mirror with a handle, perfect for a simple duck shelter. The entire hillside would be easy to manage with King overseeing it.

Wu Lan thought for a moment, “No rush. Let’s finish clearing the hill first. The fruit trees are the priority!”

April waits for no one!

Then she asked, “What are you planning to plant?”

Song Tan, struggling with the tasks at hand, replied, “Delivery here is inconvenient, and the mountain roads are bumpy. The town doesn’t seem to have funds for road repairs either.”

In the suburbs, some can set up orchards and sell their produce on-site, but that wasn’t feasible here.

Not many could handle the bumpy ride up the mountain, even if they didn’t get carsick. The road was just too rough.

“Given the situation, we need to plant something that can be stored, is resilient, and can withstand transportation.”

Wu Lan thought for a moment, “Then it should be apples? Pears? Pomegranates? Dates? Grapes?”

She couldn’t think of anything else.

Fruits like the local cherries growing in their yard were definitely out. Though delicious, they bruise easily and spoil quickly after being picked.

Song Tan was still undecided, “I haven’t made up my mind yet.”

She was taking a risk without a solid plan. Any experienced farmer would tell you this approach could lead to losses.

Just then, Zhang Yanping came back, wearing a straw hat and carrying a rake, looking every bit like a seasoned farmer. He slouched his shoulders, a picture of misery.

“Sis, whatever you decide to plant, I know some people. Let’s go together and choose the seedlings. Just take me with you, please.”

He really didn’t want to go back up the mountain.

Wu Lan laughed, “Yanping, if it’s too much for you, go home. Staying here and working every day might make your mom worry.”

Zhang Yanping looked like he was about to cry: it’s not that he didn’t want to go home; his mom was the one calling every day, insisting he stay and work!

But his aunt finally said something fair: “Tan Tan, you should ask Yanping. Your aunt said he has a picky taste! He only eats the best fruits from the store.”

“If you’re going to plant something, plant something expensive.”

Zhang Yanping perked up, “Right! You should listen to me on this! Let me think… Apples and oranges don’t grow well here due to the climate. Scratch those.”

“Grapes are also out. The grapes from Zhengjia Valley are famous citywide, and it’d be tough to compete.”

“Now, domestic cherries and blueberries are popular, but our sunlight isn’t as good as theirs. Plus, those are often grown in suburban orchards, making them easier to manage. It’s a big risk for beginners.”

“Oh, and kiwi fruit is famous in Huacheng. Our climates are similar, so kiwi and other such fruits could be good. They’re hardy and can be stored well before they ripen.”

“Alright then,” said Song Tan, noting down his suggestions.

Wu Lan nodded, “Sounds good. Let’s consider that.”

Zhang Yanping, relieved that he didn’t have to go back up the mountain, cheerfully added, “Leave it to me. I’ll make some calls and find the best suppliers for seedlings.”

Wu Lan smiled, watching the interactions, feeling the warmth of family working together towards a common goal.