Chapter 94

Li Dong didn't expect his daughter to post a WeChat Moments, and in just a few minutes, there were already several comments, from some of his former colleagues and old friends.

"Knife fish, too showy, but of course the effect was great, even Liu Kechang left a comment."

By lunchtime, the comments had already exceeded twenty. Li Dong was quite surprised. Could it really be that his photography skills were not good enough? Li Dong absolutely did not doubt his ability to organize words.

"Your daughter took the photos pretty well."

"Of course."

Li Jingyi showed a bit of pride, but then Li Dong's next words directly KOed her. "You must be quite familiar with taking photos, haven't you practiced a lot?"

Gao Jiajia saw Li Jingyi's expression freeze and couldn't help but laugh. Li Dong didn't say anything more, letting the little smart one figure it out on her own. "Don't just stand there, eat more. You look thinner recently."

"Brother-in-law, Jingyi just weighed herself this morning, she gained three pounds."

Pfft, this time Gao Jiajia couldn't hold back her laughter. Li Jingyi looked at Li Dong with a helpless expression. "Dad, I'm not worried at all about you finding me a new mom."

"This child, what are you talking about?"

Zhang Fengqin noticed Gao Guoliang secretly operating something on the side.

"One cup, don't pretend you didn't see me."

"One cup, one cup, this medicine is quite good."

Gao Guoliang now had a handle on him that Zhang Fengqin was holding, and his wife's strictness had already entered the late stage.

"Xiao Dong, isn't this wine a bit much?"

"There's still over ten pounds left."

Li Dong said. "I plan to buy more herbs and continue brewing, but the effect will be a bit weaker."

"Is the tiger bone okay?"

"Dad, don't worry about that. It's from an old hunter from many years ago, when the country encouraged hunting tigers."

"That's good."

"Jiajia, about the tiger bone wine, tell Qing'er and Xu Yue not to let it out. You never know who might have ulterior motives." Gao Guoliang's words hit Zhang Fengqin's heart. "Your dad is right, there shouldn't be any problems on my side, but I'm afraid you might talk about it outside."

"Mom, I understand. I'll call Qing'er and Xu Yue to tell them about it."

"Mom, it's not that serious."

Li Dong laughed and said. "Jiajia, try the knife fish. This time it was too rushed, but I'll see if I can get some fresh knife fish for you next time."

"This child, trying such expensive things once is enough."

Just as they were eating, the phone rang. Li Dong was helpless. "Mom, Dad, Jiajia, you eat first."

It was a call from Mr. Qu, a big boss that Tian Liang and Liu Kechang both tried to please. Li Dong didn't dare to be too negligent. Mr. Qu had seen the knife fish, but by now the knife fish was already on the table, and they had almost finished eating it.

"Mr. Qu, I'm really sorry. Next time, I'll call you first thing."

Li Dong promised with a chest-thumping guarantee, and then he subtly mentioned the tiger penis wine.

"Is it real?"

"The quality can be guaranteed, and those who have used it say it's quite good."

The tiger penis wine had effects on anyone, but Li Dong naturally couldn't guarantee 100% effectiveness, as nothing is universally effective for everyone.

Li Dong sent the news about the tiger penis wine to Tian Liang and Liu Kechang. Before Li Dong could finish his meal, Tian Liang had already arrived at the farm, which caught Li Dong off guard.

"Xiao Dong, you go back first. We can't keep the guest waiting."

Although it was a bit regretful that Li Dong couldn't spend the evening with Gao Lan, he couldn't neglect the farm's business, especially since he had resigned and now relied on the farm for a living.

Li Jingyi saw Li Dong off to the car. "Dad, work hard. I believe you will succeed."

"Thanks, daughter."

"Here's a boost for you."

Li Jingyi hugged Li Dong's big head and kissed his face.

"Work hard."

Li Dong watched in the rearview mirror as Li Jingyi's small hand waved, making a boosting gesture. His eyes felt a bit itchy and turned red.

Back at the farm, not only had Tian Liang come, but Liu Mingdong had also arrived.

"Brother, you're back."

"Let's take a look quickly."

Li Dong thought Tian Liang was not being supportive as a brother, being so eager, but Liu Kechang had the demeanor of a leader. "Mr. Tian, don't be in a hurry. Mr. Liu, did you wait long? Take a rest and have a cup of tea first."

"No need to rest, let's see the good stuff first."

Li Dong realized he had overthought it. Liu Mingdong wasn't as calm as he thought. Life is hard for middle-aged men, both outside and at home, especially when brothers don't support each other, making home life even harder.

"Alright."

In the collection room, Li Dong opened the cabinet and took out a jar of wine. "The effect of the wine varies from person to person. Mr. Tian, Mr. Liu, let's be clear upfront. The price of this wine is a bit high. Why don't you try it first, and if it works, we can talk about it."

"Brother Li, we trust you."

Li Dong poured two glasses and handed them to the two men. They hesitated for a moment, and Liu Mingdong nodded at Tian Liang. "Then we'll trouble you, Mr. Li, to see us off later."

The two men each drank a glass of the medicinal wine and spent the afternoon fishing at the reservoir. They both felt some effects, which were simply amazing.

"Brother, no more talk, I'll take the wine. You set the price."

"Mr. Tian, don't."

Joking aside, there were only about ten pounds of tiger penis wine left in the jar. If he gave it all away, he might not be able to get such good stuff again.

"Mr. Tian, how about this? I'll give you two bottles, but I can't give you more. Mr. Qu also wants some, and I need to keep some for myself."

Mr. Liu didn't say anything, but at least two bottles. Both had felt the effects of the wine, which were simply miraculous.

"Three bottles, one ten thousand each." Tian Liang opened with a price of ten thousand, which wasn't cheap, but considering the price of medicinal wine, it wasn't too much either.

Li Dong gritted his teeth. "Alright, I'll pack them for you."

Seeing Li Dong bring over beer bottles, Tian Liang didn't know how to comment, but with the tiger penis wine, the bottles didn't matter. Mr. Liu also took three bottles, and Tian Liang transferred 66,666 yuan.

"Mr. Li, there are really a lot of good things here."

Liu Mingdong noticed a few bottles of ancient well wine in the cabinet and was quite impressed.

"Brother Li, you're quite capable."

Tian Liang said with a smile.

Mr. Liu nodded. There were indeed a lot of good things, especially the tiger bone wine and tiger penis wine, which were rarely seen outside.

"Hey, is this a monkey head mushroom?"

"Mr. Tian, you're really testing me."

The large monkey head mushroom was placed in the cabinet as a store treasure, though it wasn't too expensive, around ten thousand yuan, but it was rare.

"Mr. Liu, look, Brother Li is good at everything, but he's a bit secretive, hiding all his treasures." Tian Liang said with a smile. "Alright, I won't take it."

Tian Liang and Liu Mingdong went through all the good things in the store. Tian Liang spent another twenty thousand, and they were sent back to the city, where they were inevitably invited to dinner. However, since it was a holiday, Li Dong politely declined and returned to the farm.

Thinking about the high-end gift shop owner introduced by Tian Liang, Li Dong had an idea. Some of the things from the farm that weren't used or needed could be sold to this person.

Although Li Dong now had about four or fifty thousand yuan, the farm's lease fees, plans for farm picking, additional fishing spots at the reservoir, and the laying of a stone path would cost at least ten to twenty thousand yuan.

After calculating, although the farm's business was improving, it still relied on big customers like Tian Liang. This wasn't a long-term solution, and the farm needed to generate its own revenue.

Li Dong sighed. If it weren't for the mountain goods and old wine he brought back from 1978, he wasn't sure if the farm could continue to operate.

"I need to get more good things and build the farm's brand."

Currently, the farm had gained a bit of fame in the city, but the visitors were mostly young couples chasing trends, who were not stable and had low spending power.

"First, I need to put up the sign."

For the mountain goods, Li Dong had someone custom-make bamboo signs with carvings of mushrooms, black fungus, and other mountain goods. The words on the signs were written by Li Dong himself, as he had practiced calligraphy for many years as a Chinese teacher.

"Uncle Weishan."

Li Dong hung the sign and called over Han Weishan to ask about the day's situation. There were still some tourists, five people fishing, and more visitors came to see the swans and red-crowned cranes, experiencing the rural charm of water wheels, wheelbarrows, mills, and stone grinders.

Although there were many visitors, few actually spent money, and the total income for the day was only about six hundred yuan.

"Not bad." There was no cost, as most of the income came from experiences like the water wheel and wheelbarrow. The five people fishing bought about ten pounds of carp.

Twelve yuan per pound, one hundred and twenty yuan in total. Li Dong counted the money and put it away. "Uncle Weishan, thank you for your hard work. Here are some mooncakes and crabs."

"How can I accept this?"

On his first day of work, the boss gave him something, and Han Weishan was a bit at a loss.

"Uncle Weishan, don't be so formal. Consider it a holiday benefit."

Li Dong said with a smile. "There's nothing else to do here, you can go home now."

"Then, boss, I'll go home first."

Li Dong put away the money and took a walk around the yard, which was neatly cleaned. The fishing gear was organized, and the wheelbarrows, water wheels, mills, and stone grinders were all cleaned and neatly arranged. Even the grass for the little flower was cut. Indeed, he was a hardworking and honest person.

It had to be said that the Uncle Weishan introduced by Han Weiguo was really good, making Li Dong's life much easier. The weeds in the vegetable garden were all pulled out.

"Ah, this leaves me no chance to work." Li Dong sighed and lay on a reclining chair in the yard for a while.

There was nothing good for dinner, just some steamed crabs, a pot of yellow wine, and a couple of simple dishes. The mooncakes were too greasy and couldn't be eaten.

"Should I get a set of Legos to play with like Jingyi?"

No, it's quite expensive, and raising a daughter isn't easy. If she's not smart, you worry about her being cheated; if she's too smart, you worry about being cheated yourself. Being a father isn't easy.

"Ah."

"Dad."

The phone rang; it was Li Jingyi.

"Dad, have you called Grandpa and Grandma?"

"Just did, you should call them too."

"Hehe, I already called them." Li Jingyi said with a smile. "Grandma even asked me to come back for the holiday, but I already promised to go to your farm, so I can't."

"Dad, don't disappoint me."

"Don't worry, Dad has prepared a lot of fun and meaningful activities for you."

"That's great, I'll take a lot of photos to help Dad promote the farm."

Li Dong thought, "I'll pass on that. I'm afraid your classmates won't come after the promotion."