Chapter 16: System Reward—Rare Fruit Seeds

Faced with the stern faces of the police officers, the few people trembled and dared not lie. They then recounted everything in full detail, of course, excluding any mention of the tiger pack.

After the questioning, everyone returned home. Lying on her bed, Jiang Cha felt drowsy.

[ Ding— ]

[ Your task has been completed, and a mysterious mission accomplished. Your reward of 5 yuan has been deposited into your pocket. ]

[ In addition, a mysterious gift has been placed beside the well in your yard. Please check and collect it. ]

At that moment, Jiang Cha, half-asleep, was instantly awakened by the notification. She reached into her pocket and found a coin clearly marked with the number 5—five whole yuan. She kissed it twice.

Wonderful! Another five yuan. Tomorrow she would go to the cooperative store to buy meat and vegetables and treat everyone at home to a good meal.

Then she remembered the mysterious gift mentioned by the system. She hurried to the well in the yard, looking left and right, but found nothing at first.

Finally, in a small, obscure corner beside the well, she discovered four packets of seeds.

She picked up the packets, wrapped in plastic bags, and looked at them.

“Seeds? What kind of mysterious gift is this?”

But when she opened the bags, she found notes inside each one.

Durian, mangosteen, jackfruit, rambutan.

Then she realized that the local climate was perfectly suited for cultivating these fruits.

However, in this era, these fruits were not yet popular; they were considered imported delicacies.

If she could introduce these imported varieties and be the first to try cultivating them, wouldn’t her family become prosperous?

Jiang Cha smiled wryly, secretly admiring her own cleverness.

Looking at the four packets of seeds, she thought, these are excellent! This truly was a mysterious gift, worth far more than the five yuan.

Jiang Cha happily hugged the four packets and slept soundly through the night. The next day was a weekend, perfect for going out to the family fields to see if she could plant them early.

If sown now, they could be harvested by October. These fruits could yield two or three harvests a year, so there was still time.

The next morning, Jiang Cha woke unusually early. Clutching the four packets of seeds, she rushed out excitedly, while Zheng Xiaozhen looked at her with suspicion.

“You’re usually asleep until noon on weekends. Why are you so eager today?”

Jiang Cha paused, deciding to ask her mother since she wasn’t very familiar with the fields.

She approached Zheng Xiaozhen, busy in the kitchen, and cautiously asked, “Mom, what are we currently planting in our fields?”

Zheng Xiaozhen looked puzzled. “Why are you suddenly interested in the fields? We mostly have mangoes and lychees, but those aren’t seasonal fruits. Since it’s not their harvest season, the fields are naturally empty.”

Jiang Cha’s eyes gleamed. “That’s perfect! Mom, I have a few packets of seeds from imported fruits. Let’s plant them now. When the fruits grow, we can sell them in the city. These fruits are rare and valuable. Our family will surely make a fortune!”

Zheng Xiaozhen didn’t believe her. This child rarely worked in the fields and had lived in the northern city for years, only returning home a year ago. How could she possibly know what kind of seeds these were?

Seeing her disbelief, Jiang Cha mysteriously pulled out the packets and showed them to Zheng Xiaozhen.

“I’m not lying. Look!”

Zheng Xiaozhen stopped her work, wiped her wet hands on her apron, and took the packets.

She carefully opened one, grabbed a handful, and sniffed. Indeed, these were fruit seeds.

“Are you sure these can grow here?” Zheng Xiaozhen asked skeptically.

This region was lush and rainy with an average yearly temperature above 20 degrees Celsius, almost a tropical rainforest.

Planting here required care; some plants simply couldn’t survive.

So the locals had relied for generations on growing tropical fruits.

Since fruit yields were high but prices low due to competition, farmers earned little.

This led some to resort to poaching rare rainforest animals, which were worth thousands of times more than fruits.

Jiang Cha smiled brightly. “Durian, jackfruit, rambutan, mangosteen—these are perfect for our climate. They won’t grow well anywhere else.”

Zheng Xiaozhen was puzzled. She had never heard of durian or mangosteen. Though common in the 21st century, these fruits were still unknown here, as they hadn’t yet been introduced.

Although she didn’t fully understand, Zheng Xiaozhen trusted Jiang Cha’s word. If Jiang Cha said they could grow, they probably could.

Putting down her chores, she followed Jiang Cha to the family fields.

Jiang Cha looked at the small plot of land and her smile immediately faded into disbelief.

She pointed at the tiny patch. “This is our family’s field?”

Jiang Cha was stunned. She had assumed every household had at least an acre.

But staring at the few miserable, tiny, rundown plots, she was speechless.

Zheng Xiaozhen nodded. “Yes, this is our land.”

Seeing Jiang Cha’s frown, Zheng Xiaozhen explained, “It’s because your father drank, owed money, and gambled. When he couldn’t pay, he had to give away most of the land. So now, only this little patch remains.”

She sighed inwardly. The land was pitifully small, about the size of the family’s bathroom in the 21st century.

Nothing much could grow here. They’d have to think of renting or buying more land.

With a heavy heart, Jiang Cha went to Song Bo’s house. Today was the day to release the pangolins back into the wild—an event she could not miss.

Song Bo’s home was still crowded. When Jiang Cha arrived, she saw the police officer from yesterday chatting happily with Song Yingjie.

The officer kept holding Song Yingjie’s hand now and then, looking very familiar and friendly.

As Jiang Cha entered, Song Yang spotted her and called out, “Jiang Cha, come quickly!”

Everyone inside immediately turned their attention to her.

Jiang Cha recognized not only the police officer from yesterday but also the experts she had seen a few days ago at the Song family’s bamboo house.

Dong Zhengyu greeted her cheerfully, “Jiang Cha, you’re here!”

Jiang Cha approached and noticed a red scroll-like object on Song Yingjie’s desk.

Song Yang proudly said, “The police uncle gave our family a commendation banner. I didn’t expect you to come. They said they’d deliver one to your family later.”

Jiang Cha looked incredulous, pointing at herself, “I get one too?”