Interstellar to 80s: A Scientist's Farming Mission

The villagers were chattering amongst themselves. An Ning stared at the Huang Daxian, feeling that something was odd.

’It... doesn’t seem to be dead.’

An Ning used the tip of her cane to poke the Huang Daxian’s belly. It didn’t move.

She poked it again, a little harder this time, feeling as if she were tickling someone.

”Hey, hey, hey—I think it moved.”

”Did it move, or are my eyes playing tricks on me?”

”It’s alive?”

Many of the villagers rubbed their eyes, trying to get a clearer look.

An Ning, understanding what was happening, smiled and said, ”Get up.”

Xiao Lang, beside her, unwillingly nudged closer, its gaze stubbornly insisting: ’Impossible.’

”Don’t be so hasty. You’ll see in a moment.”

As An Ning’s words fell, the weasel, which had a wound on its neck, miraculously climbed to its feet.

Before the astonished eyes of the crowd, the Huang Daxian clasped its two front paws together and bowed to An Ning.

The surroundings fell silent. The villagers didn’t dare to speak.

Not only did they not dare to speak, but some even felt the urge to kneel before the Huang Daxian.

In the north, the reputation of a Huang Daxian was truly no small matter.

Normally, when people encountered a weasel stealing chickens, they would instinctively shoo it away and reinforce their coops rather than kill the Huang Daxian.

”Were you the one stealing my vegetables?”

An Ning pointed to the greenhouse nearby. The Huang Daxian glanced back in a very human-like way, a pained expression on its face as the movement tugged at the wound on its neck.

’It’s become a spirit!’

This was what all the villagers were thinking.

Under everyone’s gaze, the Huang Daxian nodded its small head and looked at An Ning again.

It knew An Ning was the most powerful person here. In those two pokes with the cane, An Ning had used her spiritual power.

”A vegetarian Huang Daxian, no less.”

An Ning, who understood Feng Shui, could sense that the Huang Daxian before her had a clean aura and hadn’t done anything wicked or harmful.

She thought for a moment. Just as she was about to speak, Xiao Lang bared its teeth and glared at the Huang Daxian, its eyes shifting between blue and black.

’What a disgrace!’

Xiao Lang felt that it had somehow not won its first battle.

”Alright, the two of you... have different systems. The Huang Daxian follows... a magical Eastern cultivation system, while you follow... um... a future Eastern one.”

An Ning’s words, meant to coax a child, made Xiao Lang flop down aggrievedly on her shoes.

”There, there. You’re still small. You’ll be much stronger when you grow up.”

After comforting Xiao Lang, An Ning looked at the Huang Daxian, which was still standing opposite her, and said, ”I’ll let you eat the vegetables freely, so you don’t have to steal them. But in return, how about you help me watch over the greenhouse?”

The Huang Daxian didn’t agree immediately. Its small eyes darted back and forth as it thought.

An Ning upped the ante. ”You can bring your whole family.”

Visible surprise appeared in the Huang Daxian’s eyes, which then turned to fear and respect. It bowed to An Ning once more—it had agreed.

”Good. From now on, you’re a Huang Daxian with an official job.”

Saying this, An Ning took a cord from her pocket. A white Jade Token was attached to it.

She traced something on the Jade Token with one finger, and in the next second, writing appeared on its surface.

This trick made the villagers gulp.

’Just who is our employer?’

In the villagers’ eyes, a government official was naturally intimidating, but someone who could tame a Huang Daxian and write on a Jade Token with their bare hands was mysteriously even more frightening.

An Ning beckoned. The Huang Daxian understood and stepped forward, allowing An Ning to tie the Jade Token around its neck.

”There. From now on, you can come openly.”

The Huang Daxian shook the token on its neck in a human-like manner, gave An Ning one last clasped-paw bow, and scurried away in a few quick leaps.

As for the wound on its neck, it wasn’t deep. It probably had a way to heal it on its own.

After the matter with the Huang Daxian was resolved, An Ning left the villagers with the impression that she was not to be trifled with and that they should work hard.

The villagers all dispersed. An Ning went into the greenhouse alone and picked a large amount of vegetables.

That night, a batch of vegetables, the maximum amount An Ning could teleport, was sent to the interstellar market.

The next day, An Ning went to the market to buy a musical instrument for her performance at the New Year’s Day gala.

’An instrumental performance, enhanced with spiritual power, should be more than enough to be intimidating.’

After Yu Zheng dropped her off, An Ning, leaning on her cane, got out of the car by herself and walked toward the shops.

Surprisingly, the shops were quite crowded.

’It seems the standard of living for the people of Beijing really is higher. They have the time and energy to cultivate hobbies and talents.’

Unwilling to deal with the crowds, An Ning found a shop that wasn’t too busy, but not so empty as to be desolate, and went inside.

The instrument shop wasn’t large. Instruments hung all over the walls and were piled on the floor, leaving only a narrow aisle. At the other end of the aisle was the owner’s counter.

Right then, the owner was at the counter, explaining a guzheng to a customer.

An Ning wasn’t in a hurry, so she stood to the side and listened as the two of them occasionally plucked the guzheng.

The sharp, austere sound made An Ning feel that the guzheng would be a very suitable choice.

A few minutes later, the deal fell through. The person looking at the guzheng said they would look around some more and left the shop.

An Ning stepped forward, stopping the owner as he was about to put the guzheng away.

”Excuse me, may I take a look?”

”Oh? Sure. How many years have you been playing?”

The owner had just set the guzheng down when he heard An Ning say, ”I’ve never played. I’m thinking of learning. Is it easy to pick up?”

The owner’s movements slowed a bit, but it was true that many beginners came to buy instruments.

”Whether it’s easy or not, that’s hard to say. Why don’t you take a look first.”

The owner placed the guzheng on the counter. An Ning mimicked the previous customer’s hand gesture and went to pluck the guzheng’s strings.

TWANG—SNAP—

An Ning, with an odd expression, met the even odder expression of the shop owner and said, ”Sorry, I’ll pay for it.”

”That shouldn’t have happened...” The owner seriously doubted the quality of his own guzheng. After looking down to inspect it, he said:

”You’ll definitely have to pay. This was snapped clean off.”

The owner picked up the broken string with two fingers. Seeing the neat break, he seriously suspected An Ning had been sent by a competitor to cause trouble.

An Ning was genuinely embarrassed. She hadn’t expected the thing to be so fragile. She had only used a tiny bit of spiritual power, and it had snapped instantly.

”Um, sir, I’ll look at something else.”

An Ning’s gaze shifted, and she found a pipa in the shop. She took it down and went to pluck it with one finger.

SNAP—TWANG—

It broke again.

The owner, who was still dealing with the guzheng, only heard An Ning say, ”I’ll pay for it.”

The owner swallowed the words he was about to say. This time, however, he stared at An Ning, wanting to see what was going on.

An Ning placed the pipa on the counter and looked around guiltily. She saw a drum.

’This... surely this can’t break too, right?’

She walked a few steps over, picked up a drum mallet from beside the drum, raised it, and brought it down.

BOOM—RIP—

”Put that down! Don’t move!”

The owner couldn’t bear to watch anymore. He ran the shop to make a living, but he was also someone who genuinely loved and understood instruments.

An Ning looked at the large drum she had just broken and had a bad feeling. ’It seems playing an instrument with spiritual power isn’t going to work.’

”Sir—”

”Stop! I know you’ll pay for it! Don’t say another word!”

The owner looked at the large drum with heartache, on the verge of tears. ”Um... my merchandise is no good. Why don’t you try another shop?”