Interstellar to 80s: A Scientist's Farming Mission

As Hua Cheng watched with a look of utter defeat, An Ning drove the tricycle to the foot of the mountain.

Wei Qi was patrolling the foot of the mountain and rushed over the moment it saw An Ning.

But Wei Qi stopped steadily in front of An Ning, refraining from pouncing.

An Ning, however, hopped off the tricycle and threw her arms around Wei Qi, ruffling the fur on its head. ”Why stop? Go ahead and pounce if you want. Don’t be shy.”

”Besides, liking me doesn’t mean you can’t like Bao Zhengkai, you know.”

Perhaps An Ning’s last sentence won Wei Qi over. The dog abandoned its restraint and nuzzled her leg a couple of times.

But the moment Da Huang came bounding down, Wei Qi immediately resumed its serious, alpha-dog demeanor—the aloof leader of the pack.

An Ning didn’t push it. She gave the approaching Da Huang a few vigorous ruffles, which felt so good the dog wanted to flop onto the ground and roll around.

Nearby, the look Wei Qi gave Da Huang was like that of a doting mother watching her unruly child.

The two dogs had somehow managed to stage a whole drama of ”a mother’s love.”

”Da Huang, go get Jiang Xia.”

”WOOF!”

Da Huang let out a bark and started running up the mountain.

Before long, Jiang Xia was being nudged down the mountain from behind by Da Huang.

Jiang Xia had been reluctant to come, but his heart leaped the moment he saw An Ning at the foot of the mountain. His steps immediately grew lighter.

’An Ning’s looking for me?’

No matter the reason, the mere thought that An Ning was looking for him made him so happy he couldn’t stop the corners of his mouth from turning up in a smile.

But Jiang Xia tried his best to keep his expression neutral. ’Smiling now would be too obvious.’

Jiang Xia ducked his head, pretending to watch the path. A smile tugged at his lips, but he quickly suppressed it and composed his handsome features. As he reached the bottom of the hill, he was just about to strike his most flattering pose...

”Jiang Xia—”

A man’s voice suddenly rang out, ruining Jiang Xia’s carefully planned moment. The look of disgust on his face could have pierced the heavens.

Jiang Xia looked toward the tricycle. Lying flat on his back inside was Hua Cheng, who was struggling to raise one hand toward the sky.

”Jiang Xia, help me.”

”Help? Am I hurting you?”

An Ning’s interjection made Hua Cheng bolt upright, his head shaking back and forth like a toy drum.

”No, no, no, no, no.”

”Absolutely not!”

Hua Cheng’s frantic reaction told Jiang Xia everything he needed to know: An Ning must have put him through the wringer on the way here.

He stood to the side, throwing his friend under the bus. ”You had it coming! Serves you right!”

Hua Cheng, who had just been pledging his allegiance to An Ning, turned to Jiang Xia with a wronged expression. His lips trembled, and his accusatory eyes looked like they wanted to speak but couldn’t. Jiang Xia stepped forward and—SMACK!—slapped him on the head.

”Feel better now?”

”Yeah.”

Hua Cheng obediently lowered his head, his face now a complete blank. ’I don’t dare make another face.’

’He’ll hit me somewhere else next time.’

Their interaction made An Ning smile with satisfaction. She generously tossed the tricycle keys to Jiang Xia.

”The ride is yours, and so is he. I came back from the east side of the village.”

”Oh—then I guess I’ll take the west road back.”

The two played off each other with perfect chemistry, making Hua Cheng, who was still in the cart, want to accuse them of being partners in crime.

Unfortunately, he didn’t dare.

Not only did he not dare, but under their combined gazes, he said with conviction, ”The west road is a great idea.”

Earning a ”you know what’s good for you” look from them both, Hua Cheng sat up straight, his eyes lifeless, and resigned himself to continuing his parade of shame.

The lesson was so profound that Hua Cheng didn’t dare flirt with any girls for a long, long time.

An Ning watched Jiang Xia drive away with Hua Cheng. Thinking, ’Well, since I’m already here,’ she decided to head up the mountain to get some work done.

Unfortunately, she hadn’t been working for even an hour when An Guoming showed up.

An Guoming, panting for breath, flopped down beside An Ning, unable to speak.

”Second Brother, what are you still doing here? Weren’t you heading out? You don’t need me to see you off, do you?”

An Ning fired off three questions in a row, but An Guoming could only gasp for air.

”You... you...”

”Go down... the mountain.”

An Ning watched An Guoming struggle to his feet, waiting for him to explain.

”The Feng Shui Master sent word. He wants to see you.”

”Hurry!”

The moment she heard that, An Ning dropped her hoe and took off running down the mountain.

On her way down, An Ning’s fingers moved subconsciously, performing a divination, but she couldn’t get a reading on anything.

’Some Half-immortal I am.’

After that moment of self-deprecation, she picked up her pace again, sprinting straight for the Feng Shui Master’s village.

An Ning was a little breathless by the time she reached the Feng Shui Master’s home. Outside the courtyard, she could see him watering his flowers with a leaky gourd ladle.

In the yard, the Feng Shui Master looked like a great sage living in seclusion. He slowly straightened up, offered a serene smile to An Ning at the gate, and said, ”You’ve arrived.”

The sight of the Feng Shui Master eased An Ning’s heart, and she stepped into the courtyard.

”If it weren’t for the rundown, mud-caked hovel behind you, you’d really look the part of a self-sufficient hermit.”

An Ning plopped herself down on a small stool without ceremony.

”CRACK—”

”I forgot to tell you, that stool is broken.”

The Feng Shui Master grinned smugly at An Ning, who was now sitting on the ground amidst a pile of wooden splinters.

An Ning got up, dusted off her backside, and shot the Feng Shui Master a look. ”You and your twisted sense of humor!”

”Heh, a twisted sense of humor is still a sense of humor.”

The Feng Shui Master set down the ladle and invited An Ning to sit at the stone table by the doorway.

”This won’t break on me, will it?”

”If you put your back into it, you never know.”

An Ning gave him an unladylike eye-roll, sat down firmly on the stone seat, and began pouring tea for herself. ”So, why’d you summon me?”

”Today, between 7 a.m. and 9 a.m., my time will be up. I wanted to ask a small favor of you, my young friend: to gather my ashes for me.”

SPLASH—

Water from the teapot kept pouring, overflowing the porcelain cup and flooding the tabletop.

”Careful now. I haven’t had my cup yet.”

The Feng Shui Master gently took the teapot from An Ning’s hand, set it aside, and found a rag to wipe the tea from the table.

”But... can’t you change your fate?”

Wiping up the water, the Feng Shui Master’s movements remained slow and deliberate as he continued his task.

”An Ning, you’ve always asked me why I live here, and you’ve always asked how old I am. How about I tell you everything today?”

”No.”

An Ning’s refusal was blunt. There was anger in her eyes as she said, ”If I know, that means you can leave without any lingering attachments. In your dreams. I won’t give you that satisfaction.”

”Hehehe... oh, you.”

The Feng Shui Master poured himself a cup of tea and looked at An Ning, his expression peaceful.

”I thought you, of all people, understood life and death.”

”I can accept my own life and death, and the lives and deaths of strangers. That doesn’t include you.”

They hadn’t known each other for long, but An Ning cherished their time together.

The man across from her was perhaps the only person on Ancient Earth who knew she didn’t belong to this world.

He would always be different to An Ning.

The Feng Shui Master’s eyes were clear and bright as he looked at An Ning. ”I am one hundred and forty-eight years old.”