Chapter 52: Chapter 47 Hard to Persuade a Dead Ghost l

Translator: 549690339

Just then, Wang Haikun walked over, with Wang Yuzhu following behind him.

Seeing the shovel in Wang Yuzhu’s hand and the basket on his back, Qin Niu understood everything.

“Ah Niu, I told you to send a few baskets of fertile soil from the mountains. Why is it so troublesome? My uncle said that yesterday you dawdled until evening before you delivered it to my field, and you had an unwilling look on your face the whole time. Do you think 1 can’t afford to pay you or what?”

Wang Haikun cursed and swore, glaring with a pair of bull’s eyes.

He probably also feared being called a thief behind his back by the villagers, so he shouted especially loud.

Pay me?

Didn’t see a single copper coin.

Moreover, Qin Niu’s humus was selling for fifty wen a basket. Even Wang Furen was reluctant to spend that money, let alone someone like Wang Haikun who was tightfisted to the extreme.

“Master Kun, 1 only picked the best mountain soil for you because it was for you. But, the high-quality soil is simply too scarce. There’s just a thin layer. To collect such a big basket, it takes a whole day. Haven’t I been in the mountains these past two days? I haven’t even been able to take care of chopping wood or the crops in the field. I’ve just been collecting fertile soil from the mountains for you.”

Qin Niu was talking nonsense with his mouth full of lies, naturally speaking the language of ghosts when meeting one.

Hearing the furious tone of Wang Haikun, it was certain that Wang Yuzhu had whispered some detrimental words about Qin Niu to him.

But it didn’t matter.

Petty people are everywhere, and now that Qin Niu’s strength had increased, he naturally didn’t need to listen to Wang Yuzhu’s slander.

Given a little more time, he could even face the brother behind Wang Haikun without any fear.

This time should come very soon.

Because he had already figured out how to directly cultivate termites with the blood of the Ancient Banyan Tree.

In just two days, he had evolved an ordinary Young Worker Ant into a Grade Two Lightning Worker Ant. After experimenting a few more times, he should be able to use it on Fourth and the Ant Queen.

With a Grade Three insect, he would be able to go to the city and certify as an Insect Master.

Naturally, he would no longer fear Wang Haikun’s brother.

As for Wang Haikun, Qin Niu really didn’t take him seriously.

If pushed too far, Qin Niu now had the power to kill him outright.

With Qin Niu’s current strength, killing him would probably be easier than killing a Black Bear.

But to ruin his future over such a despicable person and attract the pursuit of the authorities—definitely not worth it.

After hearing Qin Niu’s explanation, Wang Haikun’s expression had already become much more pleasant.

He eyed the basket of humus on Qin Niu’s back, and said arrogantly, “Good that you know your place, kid. Hurry up and bring it to my field. Besides, I’m buying all the mountain soil left in your field.”

“But… but that’s the little bit of manure I’ve painstakingly stored! It’s meant for top-dressing the sorghum. Now that you’ve bought it all, what am 1 supposed to do with my sorghum?”

Qin Niu played the pity card with a sad face.

“Cut the crap. The seedlings of your sorghum are already so tall; my sorghum is still yellow-leaved and thin-stemmed. It’s your honor that I’m buying your lousy manure.”

“Master Kun… this manure can only be used on the poorest fields; it can’t be used on your poor fields! I’m afraid it might cause manure injury!”

“Humph, you think I’m a fool? This manure can be used on your field, and it can be used on my field, and the effect will only be better. Look at you, pinching and scraping. It’s just a few baskets of manure, isn’t it? I’m not refusing to pay. Go on, hurry up and carry this basket on your back to my place.”

“Alright then!”

With a look of ‘helplessness’, Qin Niu walked away with the mountain soil on his back.

Not far away, some villagers were secretly watching the commotion, but given Wang Haikun’s fierce reputation, no one dared to come closer.

Everyone saw that the sorghum growing in Qin Niu’s poor field was thriving and genuinely started to see him in a new light.

Ah Niu’s planting skills have greatly improved!

Indeed!

He might even become the second Xu Zhenchang of our Shuangfeng Village.

The villagers whispered among themselves.

If one has outstanding planting skills, they could rent the Yan Family’s land to farm, strive for over a decade, accumulate wealth, and buy good fields to become wealthy.

Xu Zhenchang was a model tenant in the eyes of the villagers.

Qin Niu, carrying the humus, arrived at Wang Haikun’s field.

He saw that the base of the sorghum seedlings had all been covered with the ■purchased’ humus from his own field.

A cold smile appeared on Qin Niu’s face.

Good advice is no match for the one destined to die.

He had warned Wang Haikun in front of everyone not to use his manure. If something went wrong, it would be Wang Haikun’s own fault.

XXX

But preparations had to be made early.

Wang Haikun never went easy on those he could bully, always squeezing them to the brink of death.

When he saw that Qin Niu’s maize harvest was good, and he himself had nothing, it was hard to guarantee he wouldn’t come knocking to seize it by force.

Only by obtaining the Insect Master title as quickly as possible could he be worry-free.

After dumping the humus soil, Qin Niu didn’t bother with it anymore and went straight home with the basket on his back.

After a rest, he carried a hoe to the fields.

Wang Haikun saw this and thought that Qin Niu spent the day collecting humus for him and had neglected his own fieldwork. That’s why he went out to the fields so late, with the sky almost dark.

The other villagers also witnessed this and felt sympathy for Qin Niu’s plight.

But no one dared to speak out for justice.

Including his neighbor Wang Furen, who wouldn’t offend Wang Haikun over such a matter either.

After arriving in the field, Qin Niu first carefully inspected the maize seedlings and noticed that some leaves had holes or spots from insects.

But he couldn’t see any Core-Boring Worms.

He released five termites.

“Fourth, look around, see if there are any of these worms!”

Qin Niu gave the order to the Grade Two Lightning Worker Ant.

It led two worker ants and two soldier ants, climbing up from the base of the maize seedling. Their two antennae waved incessantly.

Fourth’s speed was astonishing, reaching the top in the blink of an eye.

It soon made a discovery, dashing into the tip of the maize seedling’s core, and before long, it dragged out a white worm several times larger than its size.

Labor point +0.01.

How come simply by letting it help catch a worm, his labor points as an owner increased by o.oi?

Could it be that a pet’s work also counts as the owner’s achievement?

That must be the case.

He examined the white worm, which indeed was the Core-Boring Worm.

Given its plump body, it must have been feasting on the tender leaves of the maize seedlings for days.

No wonder the young leaves of this maize seedling were growing slowly and had multiple holes. When the Core-Boring Worm was about to pupate, it would wrap itself in a tender leaf, using it like a blanket.

This would prevent the tassel of the maize from emerging, leading to deformity in the maize seedling or a severe decrease in maize yield.

Once it hatched, it would transform into a corn borer, then seek out mates, laying a large number of eggs.

At that point, it would be even more difficult to deal with.

Qin Niu brought the other four worker and soldier ants together to teach them to recognize pests again.

“Remember its scent, and as soon as you find one, bite it to death for me,” Qin Niu ordered the five termites.

To prevent the five termites from being eaten by frogs or wolf spiders in the field, his current method was to take them from plant to plant for inspection.

He didn’t let them fall to the ground.

Instead, he placed them directly onto each maize seedling.

There were fewer wolf spiders, which generally preferred to hunt on the ground and never spun webs.

They only made an egg sac when laying eggs, depositing the eggs inside the sac and then carrying it on their backs. Some would secure the egg sac beneath their abdomen, always keeping a close watch.

After all, it was their offspring inside.

As the five termites became more skilled in catching insects, their efficiency also continually increased.

At this time, Fourth made a new discovery, catching a green caterpillar hidden on the underside of a leaf.

Qin Niu scrutinized it closely, recalling the limited knowledge about pest control he had learned from books.

This insect should be the beet armyworm.

It belongs to the moth family, Noctuidae.

“You have begun to learn insect identification, able to distinguish some common insects through their appearance, color, and habits.”

“You have learned basic pest control techniques, allowing you to eliminate obvious pests during planting, increasing crop yield..”