Ch27.1 - You Don’t Understand Farming (Part One)

Cui QiChao conducted the inspection test on the farm field with the assistance of experts from the research institution and the experimental unit. They carried out the production test as well as regional testing at the same time.

In truth, it was generally required to do the regional test prior to the production test, but the conditions of the CX-7 were not the same. Cui QiChao’s testing yielded very positive results, and everyone was optimistic about the breed. As a result, doing the two tests concurrently would save them time.

The staff of the experimental field showed them the investigation report, and they were full of praise, “The disease resistance is very good, and the disease rate is very low!”

In carrying out the regional tests, the disease resistance of different breeds could be detected only when the disease of the crop was not treated. 

This crop group was cultivated in the vicinity of the group experimental site in Nanhai city. CX-7 was harvested here, with a yield of over 4600 kg. They then waited for the collected data from other crop groups and estimated an average yield of 4700 kg. The progression could only be described in one word: steady.

“We had a drought this year!” Crop performance, in general, was poor this year, but for CX-7 to have such performance, along with the fact that the performance difference between each plant was not large, the adaptability of the crop’s breed was exceptional. Yang, the director, was effusive in his appreciation.

After pondering, Director Yang said, “Originally, to be safe, we planned to send it to the Provincial Seed Breed Approval Committee, so we have submitted the information in advance. Now I feel that it should be submitted to the national level committee. But I’m not busy. I can apply for it later.”

Cui QiChao didn’t have any opinions on this, “Then I’ll trouble you.”

“It’s nothing. It’s what I should do.” Director Yang said with a smile, “After we obtain the approval, we can promote the cultivation of this crop on a large scale. In fact, during this period, many companies have called to ask when the product will be listed, and they don’t even mind what level of qualification we have obtained.”

For different crops, the approving committee had different standards. Grains must be submitted to the committee for grading. Some crops, however, would not need to be graded. However, for most farmers, passing the tests and obtaining permission would provide customers more assurance, and companies that did not have their products pass the approval needed to be held accountable for the quality of their crops.

Cui QiChao’s face was tinged with a smile. Since the CX-7 was popular in the past, his scurrying around for the crop was not in vain.

At this time, someone called. Seeing that it was from the canteen, Cui QiChao accepted the call, “What’s the matter?” 

“…Boss Cui, will you come back today?”

Cui QiChao glanced around, “The experimental tests have been completed, but I have an appointment for a meal with Director Yang from the research institute. What’s the matter?”

We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.

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Jel HlJtjb: “……” 

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Jel HlJtjb rjlv ragjlutaobgkjgvis, “Cgf atfgf jcs raevfcar lc atf mjcaffc cbk? Ofa’r nlvfb mjii.”

Of course, there were some students present at the time. It wasn’t mealtime, but a group of students who didn’t have class sat in the canteen, their emotions filled with tumult.

The canteen staff turned on the camera, holding it for everyone to see. 

When they saw Cui QiChao’s face on the screen, all the students in the canteen shouted ‘wow’ and pressed in closer. They were so bored waiting for their meals that they decided to protest. They weren’t expecting to see Boss Cui.

Cui QiChao got a little closer to the screen. Then a bunch of girls’ soft screams inexplicably rang out in the canteen.

After screaming, they were embarrassed momentarily. Then, they laughed in response.

Cui QiChao stared at them for a while, then calmly said, “The food at noon is delicious.” 

Then he hung up.

Three seconds later, the students applauded.

When they saw Cui QiChao, they knew that there was no problem with the food. Since Boss Cui didn’t leave, why would there be dark cuisine? So they could put their hearts at ease, and could go to the window to line up for the new dishes!

The news was spread everywhere. Those who were unaware of this issue would think that the school’s having a break. 

The auntie responsible for scooping rice brought out a big plate of peach shrimp, which was today’s new dish.

Although this dish also had fruit in it, this peach shrimp was fried until it’s red and curly. The peach was peeled and only its flesh was used in the dish. It is then cut into small pieces. The shrimp was also pink and tender with a little seasoning on it.

After the first person had gotten his food and took their first bite, the little worry that was left disappeared.

He stood by the window and picked up the dishes to eat. After eating, he affirmed to the people behind him: “It’s really delicious.” 

Sure enough, under the supervision of Boss Cui, even the fruit dishes in the first canteen did not fail in cooking delicious dishes!

The students’ psychological apprehension over the strawberry stew had progressively dissipated. This criterion should also be applied to the actual usage of fruits in vegetables. They cleaned the shrimps, deveined them, marinated them for a bit, sautéed them with chopped garlic, and stir-fried them till crimson. They then added the peaches and stir-fried them for a few minutes with salt and black pepper.

The stir-fried peach meat was not as sweet as it used to be, but it tasted just perfect in this recipe, so it didn’t overpower the flavor of the shrimp meat. The addition of black pepper and salt, as well as a little onion, sugar, oyster sauce, soy sauce, and other seasonings to the original components, enhanced the flavors of each item.

The soft, smooth, sweet, and delicate peach flesh and the crisp and tender shrimps were seamlessly incorporated into the meal. In the summer, it was incredibly refreshing and appetizing. The delicacy of the shrimp’s flavor was combined with a tinge of peach sweetness. 

However, the taste of the shrimp and garlic was more prominent. Along with the aroma of black pepper, and another mouthful of peach, one could tell that the peach flesh chosen for the dish was relatively tougher. In the process of stir-frying, the sweetness of the peaches was slightly lost, but with the fusion of the seasoning and juices emitted by the ingredients, the ingredients surprisingly suited each other.

This meal was especially appealing to female palates. It’s not greasy, and it wouldn’t make you sick of eating it. The dish’s overall aesthetic had a little girlish touch to it, which was rather distinct from other foods. It was not fit to be classified as “canteen food,” yet strangely, it was entirely made by the first canteen.

The dish cost five yuan a portion. And the portion wasn’t a lot, but it’s really worth it when the dish had cleaned out the shrimp deveining and contained peaches. 

The touched CU students announced the lifting of the alert that Boss Cui was leaving. And using sticker packs, they desperately expressed: ‘The fruit dishes are delicious, delicious!!’

When Cui QiChao’s CX-7 passed the provincial testing and was approved, the fruits across the school had matured, and the students had already eaten a variety of fruit-based meals. It had to be claimed that this was the most delicious and nutritious dish they could think of.

CX-7 was jointly launched by Nanhai Vegetable Research Institute and a seed company. The first batch of seeds were sold in many seed stores, but the quantity sold wasn’t a lot.

As soon as it was launched, the seeds of CX-7 were practically looted. 

The reason for this was because the initial group of people who purchased the seeds learned about it through forums such as Small Farmers’ Q & A, and they were the ones who requested the seeds from the supplier, rather than the other way around. When the retailer saw the consumer’s request, he sent it on to the supplier, who relayed the word to the crop farmers, and the retailer purchased the seeds.

CX-7 could be viewed as a role model, demonstrating that it was preferable to disseminate publicity early. The seeds were well-known before they were made available to the general population.

The majority of people were still waiting for the new seed to hit the market. However, with such a big population in China, the number of people bold enough to attempt the seeds was significant. Furthermore, the quantity of the initial batch they mass-produced was small, which resulted in a surge in CX-7 sales.

This group of farmers who bought CX-7 were destined to make a fortune this year. 

Most families and companies wouldn’t care about the breed of the peppers when they buy peppers. This was what crop growers cared about most because it affected their harvest. Sellers also cared about it because it also affected their business.

The majority of consumers just looked at the quality of the items and listened to the vegetable vendors’ recommendations. They looked at the crop type rather than the breed. For example, people might select one of their preferred crops, such as millet pepper or red pepper, or a locally produced pepper or a foreign-grown pepper.

CX-7 was different. CU was widely well known, and its canteen was also famous. It had been on the news several times.

CU students and those netizens who could only wait for the seeds were still making a fuss. It just so happens that the name of the seed was easy to remember. CX-7 was the chili pepper of CU—even in the future, many people thought that CU had a school of agriculture and bred CX-7. 

With such a commotion, everyone learned that CU’s chili pepper was highly popular and would soon be distributed in marketplaces. Since it was trending on the internet, people also asked when they could buy it.

The product being trending on the markets had a direct impact on the purchase price of the consumers. CX-7 was a very stable crop when it was planted. As long as they paid more attention to diseases and insect pests, the quality and yield of CX-7 were very good. Because not many people had planted crops this season, the purchase price went up.

When the first batch of seeds hit the market, the reaction was overwhelmingly positive. The brand grew fast and maintained its appeal. When buyers were told it was a CX-7, which they had never heard of before, they were eager to purchase it..

At this time, the official CU’s Weibo also announced the exclusive formula of chili oil and several recipes the first canteen used, which greatly stimulated the enthusiasm of the customers. 

This included The Forest of Taste, which also came out to add fuel to the flames, saying that they had acquired a number of CX-7, hoping to “learn from the foreigners to gain control of them”.

It was not a matter of deep resentment. When people make fun of The Forest of Taste, they added more fuel to the fire.

As a result, during the harvesting time, the greater the buying price of CX-7, the higher the demand.

Those who were brave enough were filled to the brim with CX-7, while those who were timid would die of starvation. And those crop growers who had bought CX-7 seeds immediately were the ones who smiled brilliantly in the end. 

Based on this trend, even if more people planted the seeds in the next quarter of the year, the purchase price would not be significantly lower as long as the market for the seeds remained.

No matter what, after this wave of coincidental, intentional, and unintentional promotion of many parties, with the majority of netizens cooperating with the marketing, CX-7 had become a signboard. This meant that when purchasing seeds, some buyers would buy CX-7 together with the green pepper, red pepper, dry pepper seeds, and so on.

Ch27.2 - You Don’t Understand Farming (Part Two)

At this time, the news that CX-7 passed the national tests could only be called the icing on the cake.

This was Cui QiChao’s third year in CX University. By now, he had already earned multiple times the amount that he had initially invested to subsidize the first canteen.

Each virtual plane was independently operated and maintained by a specially assigned person. It was impossible for the company to close a virtual plane once someone entered it. Usually, no two actors would be sent into the same plane, and there would be differences in the genre, style, etc. among the actors’ worlds and characters. After an actor left a virtual world, the person whose identity the actor had used would disappear, with a reasonable explanation provided for their disappearance.

Having spent several years here, Cui QiChao gained some attachment to this place, which was quite beyond his expectation. He didn’t expect that data could be simulated this realistically. Whether it was the enthusiastic CU students and teachers, the caring relatives in the Cui family, or the silly XiaoBai, he had come to like everyone very much. 

Since Cui QiChao couldn’t take his profits with him to the real world, he donated a percentage to the school, while the rest was set up as a special fund for the canteens to buy vegetables. He hoped that the students of CU would never be troubled by dark cuisine ever again.

Soon, the end of Cui QiChao’s fourth year in CU and also his last day in this virtual plane arrived.

On the morning of his last day, the sunlight slowly shone onto his apartment. XiaoBai, who was sleeping on the bed’s footboard, stretched and straightened up, front paws resting on the edge of the bed. Cui QiChao hadn’t woken up yet, and the soft mattress was more attractive to the cat than the hard footboard or the small cat nest.

However, without Cui QiChao’s permission, XiaoBai only dared to go as far as momentarily place its front paws on the soft bed even though Cui QiChao was still asleep. Afterward, it descended from the bed with regret. At the same time, it meowed angrily to wake Cui QiChao up.

Cui QiChao turned over, stretched out a hand, and rubbed XiaoBai’s head. As he did so, it was as if someone pressed the pause button on XiaoBai because it squatted and stopped meowing.

He then made breakfast for himself and the cat, before heading to school together.

CU’s campus was surrounded by crops that utilized vertical planting. Wherever there was grass on the ground, a circle of racks would surround it. These racks were used to grow strawberries and so on, its structure making it convenient for the staff to water the crops. The school’s automated greenery-watering equipment was sponsored by the first canteen. Climbing plants could also be seen everywhere in the campus, making walls look green. The rooftops and the balconies weren’t spared either.

The CU’s canteens were always pretty crowded during breakfast. After years of accumulation and financial support, the canteen now had the financial capability to serve up to four different options each meal. In the morning, they had everything from poached eggs, porridge, and noodles to vermicelli, fried dough sticks, pancakes, and fruits. For lunch and dinner, they had introduced dishes that contained local influences, including local snacks. 

CU’s canteens had now fully completed their transformation from being the top server of dark cuisine to being the industry benchmark. It had also become one of Nanhai city’s representative locations. The school was always very popular during the yearly orientation period. Some knew that they were visiting a school, but those who weren’t aware thought that they were participating in a gourmet food festival.

We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.

Cui QiChao took XiaoBai to the canteen to greet the employees.

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“All cats have an insatiable desire to sleep.” Cui QiChao touched XiaoBai’s tail.

When he arrived at the office, Cui QiChao opened a box full of sun-dried ginseng, which he had planted on the hill at the back and had just harvested a few days ago.

It normally took six years for ordinary ginseng to be ready for harvest. But if the planting method was good, then one could shorten this harvesting time. Cui QiChao’s crops were already ready for harvest by its fourth year. He processed the ginseng himself, packaged it, and then gave it to Uncle Cui on the day he was set to leave.

This was the gift that he would give to the Cui family. They didn’t lack money, so he gave all his earnings to CU. Meanwhile, the ginseng he had planted could greatly improve one’s vitality and was no worse in quality than wild ginseng. The black-hearted divine farmer knew this very well. Father Cui, Mother Cui, and Uncle Cui were getting older. Ginseng might be useful to them some day. 

Cui QiChao took all his things and looked at the students in the dining hall. He nodded in satisfaction before leaving and heading to the president’s office. “Uncle, this is sun-dried ginseng. It’s for the elders at home.”

President Cui took the box and looked inside. There were many such supplements in his family, but how could they compare to this ginseng that his nephew himself had planted? “Haha, you really spared the effort. By the way, when are you going to say goodbye to your parents? Aren’t you going to leave?”

Cui QiChao was slightly stunned and thought that the data should be in the process of being altered by now. He shook his head. “I just went back last week. I left a letter for them. I don’t want to say goodbye to them face-to-face.” Otherwise, Mother Cui would have cried miserably. Even if she was just data, he wouldn’t be able to bear seeing that scene.

“That’s true.” President Cui placed his hands behind his back and stated, “Then Uncle wishes you a bright future ahead.” 

As President Cui said those words, Cui QiChao felt a sense of detachment. He took one final look at XiaoBai on his shoulder and found that there seemed to be a trace of joy in the silly cat’s eyes. Did it think it could finally escape from him?

…Then all of a sudden, his entire being fell into darkness.

.

. 

“Mr. Cui? Are you okay?” Lin Lin’s voice sounded faintly.

Cui QiChao opened his eyes, gaze gradually clearing up. He calmly nodded. “Please give me a glass of water. Thank you.”

After drinking the warm water, Cui QiChao got out of the equipment. He stood up, moved his stiff limbs, and looked at Lin Lin, who had been staring at him. “I think you’ve already talked with my lawyer.”

The smile on Lin Lin’s face grew a bit stiff. Of course. Although Cui QiChao’s viewership rate was at the top of the female genre and the audience’s stickiness was also very high, the viewers had truly been fooled by the program at the beginning. 

“Hehehe… Yes, Mr. Cui is worthy to be someone who awakened an emperor’s bloodline,” was all Lin Lin could say.

“I’m sorry.” It was unknown from Cui QiChao’s tone whether he really was embarrassed to have used their virtual plane solely to satisfy his desire for farming.

“Needless to say, I really… admire Mr. Cui. You truly didn’t date for four whole years. You didn’t even flirt with anyone. No ambiguous atmosphere could be sensed in the program at all, even after so many teachers and students have expressed their feelings towards you,” said Lin Lin. She felt a slight urge to laugh at the thought of how crazily the audience would respond now that the broadcast was nearing its final episode.

She had gone to see the commentary barrage of the penultimate episode yesterday. Only the last episode remained, so no one expected a miracle to happen. Because Lin Lin specially released the news, such a situation occurred: 

[Hehehe, congratulations Cui QiChao for his achievements. To think that he didn’t date at all in such a youthful campus.]

[Finally. I gained 15 jin after watching this godforsaken live stream.]

[I heard that because his achievements have made LJJ company very speechless, Cui QiChao is going to fight for dominion in the male genre in his next plane.]

[What? I thought that LJJ turned a steel that was refined a hundred times into soft fingers! Why’s the next program not in the female genre?!] 

[? Are you crazy? He didn’t date at all on the school campus plane. How can he conquer the world? What he did is still acceptable for the eastern audience, but won’t the western audience grow incredibly anxious once they see what he’s doing? He’ll probably spend eight to ten years working on irrigation and water conservation.]

[The male genre audience from the east would also want to see him collect girls. He…]

[I don’t care. I’m going to watch his male genre show, and I’m going to cheat my father into watching it too QAQ]

[Congratulations in advance to the viewers in the male genre hehehe.] 

When Lin Lin was recalling what the comments were, she heard Cui QiChao say, “Do you know what happened to XiaoBai, my cat at school? Is this your company’s bug or something else you didn’t inform me about?”

“XiaoBai.” Lin Lin was given a sudden rude awakening. “Oh, right. About XiaoBai, our technology department investigated this matter for a long time, but the outcome of our investigation is very strange. Nothing peculiar was found. We are still trying to think of possible reasons for this problem here. I suspect that it’s because of a glitch in LJJ’s servers.”

Cui QiChao thought about it and said, “I like XiaoBai very much. If you can’t manage to find anything about it, can you intercept its data and place it in the next plane as my companion?”

Then observing Lin Lin’s expression, he said, “If you agree, then I can agree to some conditions.” 

“No need.” Lin Lin suddenly laughed. “You just need to be yourself, Mr. Cui. You may not be aware of this, but the virtual reality show you starred in has become… popular.”

Originally, they were required to investigate XiaoBai’s existence. However, its performance didn’t interfere with the program, and Mr. Cui brought a high viewership rate, which was one of the main bases for the amount of advertising revenue they would receive. Though, things were totally different from what Lin Lin had imagined at the beginning. It was all food and seed crops manufacturers who approached them and asked them for an advertising opportunity.

In other words, it wasn’t a problem to do Mr. Cui a favor. The LJJ company had long stopped considering how they should cut their losses. After all, they hadn’t lost money at all in this endeavor. On the contrary, they even made a lot of money.

Cui QiChao was a little surprised. He didn’t know much about the target market for programs like this. In the few years he had stayed on the virtual plane, he had only been planting vegetables in CU. He managed to become popular from that? 

But Cui QiChao didn’t feel like watching the commentary barrage. Instead, he said, “CU is too small. Have you prepared the next plane?”

“Already prepared.” Through watching the program, Lin Lin now knew what Cui QiChao needed most and revealed a piece of information to Cui QiChao. “The next plane you will enter is in the male genre. It has a little more original data, and the plane’s background is similar to the medieval period in the West.”

If someone were to ask what the reason for this map-constrained virtual plane was, it was to limit Cui QiChao. Because the map was relatively large this time, they were afraid that Cui QiChao wouldn’t play by the rules and flee to familiar Chinese territory to farm. If that were to happen, what was the point of this medieval live stream? They might as well just change the data.

Lin Lin took a glimpse at him and added: “Or! Di! Na! Ri! Ly! For this type of program, we hope that you will fight for dominion over a land.” 

“The Middle Ages?” Sure enough, Cui QiChao directly ignored most of the keywords that Lin Lin had mentioned.

Just like how the 21st century was only a vague concept in Cui QiChao’s mind, the same could be said for the Middle Ages as well. Thus, he carefully looked through the materials.

In spite of the vast lands, the agricultural productivity was low, the crop yield was also unbelievably low, the farming system and methods were extremely backward, the tools used weren’t simple to utilize, and a lot of work had to be done by hand…

Heart slightly aching, Cui QiChao said, “These people don’t understand what farming is!”