Chapter 96

Wang Yong didn't go into the kitchen because he suddenly remembered something. He went out of the house and ran to his Land Rover, opened the trunk, and took out a dozen plastic bags.

Godfather Cao Wei, seeing Wang Yong rush out of the house, thought something had happened. He then saw Wang Yong take out plastic bags one by one from the trunk, and the things inside seemed to be the roots of some plants, still wrapped in soil.

Because Cao Wei had spent his whole life in agriculture, he was the first to recognize what was in the bags.

"Is this bamboo rhizome?"

"Bamboo?"

Seeing everyone come out, Wang Yong couldn't pretend anymore and stopped to say, "Yes, it's bamboo. I dug these up from the forest when I was traveling in Yunnan. I plan to plant them behind the house. If they can survive, I'll try to create a bamboo grove in our village. What do you think, Godfather? Can the climate here support the growth of bamboo?"

Cao Wei thought for a moment before answering, "It's hard to say. The temperature in winter here is definitely not a problem for bamboo to survive. But I'm not sure if the environment here is suitable for bamboo growth. Although bamboo is very resilient, it's hard to say if it can quickly form a bamboo grove."

"Then what are we waiting for? If they can survive, let's plant them first. Whether they can form a bamboo grove, we'll see after planting them." Uncle, who had an impatient personality, said this, picked up a bag, and went back into the house to get a shovel, heading to the back of the house. Wang Dahai was very optimistic about the possibility of a bamboo grove in the village. It would be a great selling point! Besides, he liked eating bamboo shoots, and it would be very convenient to dig some out whenever he wanted.

"Hehe, that's right. As Wang Dahai said, let's plant them first, and we'll see what happens later." Yuan Yuan's father said, then picked up a few bags of bamboo roots and followed Wang Dahai to the back of the house.

Cao Wei shook his head and said nothing. He went back into the house to get a shovel, then picked up a bag of bamboo roots and went to the back of the house without a word.

By the time Wang Yong brought a few bags of bamboo roots to the back of the house, Uncle and Godfather had already dug a shallow trench, and Tian Yufan was placing bamboo rhizomes about a meter apart, then covering them with soil.

Wang Yong had dug up twenty-eight bamboo roots, including six types of bamboo: Phoenix-tail Bamboo, Moso Bamboo, Spotted Bamboo, Xiangfei Bamboo, Buddha's Belly Bamboo, and Arrow Bamboo. Although there were other types of bamboo in the small world, they were not suitable to take out now. He could only plant them secretly later.

Planting over twenty bamboo plants was no big deal for three grown men. With Godfather, a professional, Wang Yong wasn't worried about any mistakes. So he didn't bother with it and went back to the yard to fetch water to water the plants after planting.

Of course, ordinary water wouldn't do. Wang Yong brought nearly twenty buckets of spiritual spring water from the small world. With these buckets of water, there was no need to worry about the survival of the bamboo.

Still, Wang Yong was afraid the bamboo wouldn't adapt to the climate here, so he brought another bucket of spiritual spring water with a drop of the Water of Life and evenly watered the plants.

"Ouch! I'm getting old. How much work did we do? My back is already hurting." Yuan Yuan's father said, rubbing his back.

"Let alone you, even I, who do farm work all year, can't handle it." Wang Dahai wiped the sweat from his forehead and sighed.

"We worked too hard. It doesn't look like much, but it's all physical labor. Suddenly doing this much work is tough." Cao Wei comforted the two.

"Bullshit! Last year, when we harvested sweet potatoes, my wife and I dug half an acre in one day without getting up early or staying late. Just one year later, this little bit of work makes us sweat so much. I can't deny I'm getting old!" Wang Dahai said dejectedly.

"Your son is almost thirty, what more do you want?" Cao Wei teased him.

"Alright, we're done. Everyone, let's go back and rest!" Wang Yong called everyone back into the house.

Back in the house, Yuan Yuan gave everyone a basin of warm water to wash their hands. But as soon as she put the basin on the ground, Bao Bao and Bei Bei, the two mischievous little guys, rushed over, squeaking and playing with the water.

Soon, Xiao Keli also joined in. This little guy, being smaller, stood right in the basin and splashed water on himself, actually taking a bath.

Generally, animals have an instinctive fear of water, but these little guys at home were used to bathing every day and no longer resisted it. Especially Bao Bao and Bei Bei, the two clean-loving red pandas, who would fuss if they didn't bathe every day.

Yuan Yuan was very indulgent with these little guys. Just as Wang Yong was about to chase them out, she came over to protect them, smiling and watching the little guys play.

"Alright, let them play. I'll get another basin." She said, then went to fetch more water. This girl was worried that Wang Yong would bully her "little treasures" while she was away, so she kept looking back.

The three elders laughed at the scene, watching Wang Yong awkwardly, but no one helped him. Wang Yong rolled his eyes and went into the kitchen.

"Dad, Uncle, what were you doing? Why are you all covered in dirt?" Yuan Yuan asked, surprised to see them all dirty.

Before Tian Yufan could speak, Wang Dahai said, "It's your husband exploiting us old guys! We're so old, and he still makes us work!"

This made Yuan Yuan blush and lower her head, too shy to speak.

But Wang Dahai, the old rascal, didn't let her off, saying, "What are you shy about? After the New Year, we'll arrange your wedding, and then you'll be sleeping in the same bed."

"You old rascal, stop teasing her! Don't you know girls have thin skin?" Cao Wei scolded him with a laugh.

Tian Yufan just smiled at his daughter, saying nothing. In his heart, he agreed with Wang Dahai. He was very satisfied with Wang Yong as a son-in-law. But he knew his daughter well and thought it was better to help her out of the awkward situation.

"Hey, Father-in-law, do you think the bamboo can really take root and grow here?" Tian Yufan's question shifted everyone's attention.

"Bamboo can grow in the north, but it's different from the bamboo in the south. The key is the winter. The north is too cold, and most bamboo can't survive!" Cao Wei explained.

"Right, I've seen some. They're as thin as fingers, just a clump." Wang Dahai added.

"Yes, that kind. I checked the bamboo we planted today. There's Green Bamboo, Moso Bamboo, and Spotted Bamboo. They are all subtropical plants from the south. It's hard to say if they will definitely survive. After all, only the temperature here is suitable for their growth, but other conditions are uncertain."

"How long will it take to determine if they are alive?" Wang Dahai asked the question he was most concerned about.

"Bamboo grows very fast. At its fastest, it can grow twenty centimeters in one night. I think if these bamboo sprout in the next two or three days, it means they can grow here, and we can introduce more."

"Hey! That's right. Imagine a large bamboo grove in the north. It would be famous nationwide! Rich people from all over the country would come to our village to see the novelty, hehe!" Wang Dahai was so excited by the future he imagined that he drooled.

But no one in the room noticed. Everyone was immersed in the vision of a vast bamboo sea. Especially Yuan Yuan, who seemed to already see the vast bamboo forest, just like in "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon."

Imagine opening the door and seeing a vast bamboo sea, with various fresh bamboo shoots and all kinds of small animals. Yes, Bao Bao and Bei Bei could be released into the bamboo forest. They should eat bamboo like giant pandas, right?

Bao Bao and Bei Bei, who were bathing the two lazy monkeys with Xiao Keli, didn't know that their owner was already thinking about releasing them into the bamboo forest. But red pandas do eat bamboo like giant pandas, so putting them in the bamboo forest would be a great idea.

"Where did you plant the bamboo?" Yuan Yuan asked urgently.

Not understanding what she wanted, Cao Wei replied, "Just behind the house."

Hearing the answer she wanted, Yuan Yuan rushed out of the house without stopping.

Yuan Yuan ran to the back of the house and saw the three rows of freshly dug and watered trenches.

She squatted down and examined them carefully. She was so shocked that she stood up, shook her head, and squatted down again to check. She even ran to another spot to check.

After checking all three spots, she confirmed that her eyes weren't deceiving her and hurriedly ran back into the house.

Back in the living room, Yuan Yuan, out of breath, said something that shocked everyone.

"The bamboo has sprouted, they're already coming out of the soil."

"What?"

"Impossible, they were just planted!"

"Let's go see."

"Right, let's go see."

Everyone rushed out, and when they arrived at the back of the house, they were stunned to see the bamboo sprouts clearly breaking through the soil.

Especially Cao Wei, the expert. This was not scientific! How could they sprout so soon after planting? Could they have already sprouted in the bags, and he just didn't notice?

The bamboo, planted just half an hour ago, had already sprouted and broken through the soil. What kind of growth rate was this? It was absolutely monstrous! Were they enchanted?

Cao Wei squatted down and carefully examined each of the twenty-eight bamboo plants. After checking them all, he confirmed that they had indeed sprouted and were alive. The largest sprout was already more than a centimeter high, and the bamboo was growing at an astonishing rate, as if you could hear them breaking through the soil.

"How is it, Old Cao?" Uncle asked, leaning in.

"Right, the bamboo is alive, and it seems to be very adaptable to the environment here. They started growing as soon as they were planted. I think in two months, there will be a small bamboo grove here."

"Ah! So fast?" Yuan Yuan's father asked, surprised.

"Great! I'll find Wang Yong to get more bamboo roots. Soon, our village will have a bamboo sea!" Wang Dahai said, then ran into the house to find Wang Yong. (To be continued.)