Fantasy Farm

Translated by XiaoWu

Edited by Yuki 

Lu Qingjiu prepared a sumptuous feast since there were guests and even specially made the kind of desserts little children enjoyed for the Jiaochong and Le Le. He had wanted to make a honey cake but after hearing that the Jiaochong disliked honey, he went with a chocolate cake instead.

Du Qinghong was full of praise for his culinary skills, especially towards the plate of sweet and sour ribs in front of her. The taste really surprised her. Tender pork ribs had been used which soaked up tons of flavour, with sesame seeds sprinkled on top. The aromatic gravy coated every piece of meat, bringing about a perfect combination of sweet and sour taste that made one unable to resist. The spicy diced chicken was also exquisite. The chicken had been fried until crispy which made the taste more pronounced when chewing it. Since it had been deep-fried, even the bones were crispy. Overall, it wasn’t too spicy, just nice.

“This is all really delicious.” Du Qinghong said. “The chefs I’ve hired can’t even compare to you.”

Lu Qingjiu laughed, “These are the chickens and pigs I raised on my own. The taste naturally cannot be compared.” 

Du Qinghong replied, “You’re too modest. Our supplies are also organically sourced but can’t achieve this sort of taste.” She ate another piece and immediately narrowed her eyes in bliss. “Too yummy…”

Lu Qingjiu was also happy hearing his culinary skills being praised, especially when he saw the two children happily eating. Although the Jiaochong was too proud to express himself, his bloated tummy told Lu Qingjiu he was very satisfied.

“Do you lack honey?” After eating, the Jiaochong wiped his mouth. “What strange thing are you keeping in the beehives in your backyard?”

Bai Yuehu glared unhappily at the Jiachong, “They are honey bees.”

If it was anyone else, the Jiaochong would have already refuted him. However, since this was Bai Yuehu, after enduring it for half a day, he could only force out a single sentence, “Fine. If you say it’s honey bees, it’s honey bees… In the future, you should put two more beehives in your backyard.”

Lu Qingjiu asked, “Are you planning to give me some honey?”

The Jiaochong waved his hands, evidently not very fond of honey . “Give give give. I’ll give you how many you want.”

“Thank you.” 

After the three finished eating, it was time for them to leave. Le Le took the initiative to hold the Jiachong’s hand as they got onto the back seat. Du Qinghong could no longer see the Jiaochong but now that she knew her son wasn’t talking to himself, she was relieved, and even expressed that she didn’t mind Le Le hanging out with the Jiaochong.

Lu Qingjiu watched as the three people left.

“It’s great to have the Jiaochong with him.” Lu Qingjiu said, “At the very least, we don’t have to be worried that Le Le will be bullied.”

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Lu Qingjiu: “…”

Yin Xun continued, “When that day comes, the Jiaochong has to go back to the park and continue sifting through trash…” 

Before he could finish, Lu Qingjiu patted his shoulders. “If Le Le can’t see him, there’s still us.”

“But… You’re also human.”

“Who says I’m human?”

As Yin Xun was unaware of the convoluted love story Lu Qingjiu’s ancestors had, hearing this made him astonished. “You aren’t? Aren’t you our household’s only precious human?” Their entire household wasn’t human and even Lu Qingjiu, their only human seedling was now being uprooted. 

Lu Qingjiu shook his head. “I’m not.”

“What are you?”

“I’ll let you in on a secret. I’m actually quarter-dragon.”

Yin Xun was speechless. 

Lu Qingjiu: “My grandfather was a dragon. Haha, you would never have imagined it, right?”

Yin Xun was completely rooted to the ground at this revelation before his expression suddenly twisted. “Fuck, when did you find out? Why didn’t you tell me earlier? Something so important-”

“Is it that important? Why is it important anyway?”

Yin Xun: “Of course it is! For example…” He suddenly trailed off because after careful contemplation, it seems as if this matter wasn’t that serious. After all, Lu Qingjiu appeared no different from another ordinary human, and did not resemble a dragon in any way. 

Lu Qingjiu sighed, “Look. I already told you it isn’t important.”

Yin Xun: “If you aren’t human, does it mean our house doesn’t have a single human?”

Lu Qingjiu nodded.

Yin Xun gave a long sigh, mourning  that their household had lost their very last bit of humanity. Lu Qingjiu was too useless as the last living human, not fighting to preserve his own identity. 

“I’m sorry?”

Yin Xun shook his head and went home with the words ‘Lu Qingjiu is too useless’ written all over his face.

Lu Qingjiu didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. After closing the door, he discussed with Bai Yuehu where in their backyard to set up the beehives for the real bees promised by the Jiaochong

Hearing this news, the Qinyuan with their five day work week expressed that they were immensely gratified. Originally, they had also wanted to thicken their skin and request for an extra winter break but after meeting Bai Yuehu’s ice-cold gaze, they could only shrink back and continue pretending to be a busy bee. But realistically speaking, compared to actual bees, the Qinyuan really looked too different, to the point they could hardly be called bees. 

The next day, Lu Qingjiu went to town and bought two new beehives and placed them beside the Qinyuan’s hive. A few days later, little bees began to move into the new hives and started working to produce honey. Probably due to the Jiaochong, these bees were not aggressive and wouldn’t sting even if they got close. They didn’t even need to wear professional equipment when collecting honey and could just harvest it directly. However, unlike the Qinyuan’s honey, the bees’ honey had a stronger honey taste and tasted more similar to normal honey. It also did not have the beautifying effects of the Qinyuan honey. Although it didn’t work too well as a face mask, it was good for eating.

Lu Qingjiu also heard from Du Qinghong that she had invited the Jiaochong to live together and also hired two new nannies to care for Zhuang Le. Learning from her previous mistakes, Du Qinghong no longer threw herself into work but instead spent more time around her son. This matter could be considered a happy ending.

The only problem was officer Hu Shu who was kept in the dark throughout. He never understood what happened or found the culprit.

For the truth, Hu Shu even went as far as to bring a few kilograms of pork to Lu Qingjiu’s house, hoping he would let slip something. 

Unfortunately, Lu Qingjiu’s mouth was shut as tightly as the clams in the river. He could only leave the same way he came in, losing the few kilograms of pork he had brought.

Eventually, the investors said they wouldn’t pursue this matter anymore and with that everything ended.

As summer arrived, the weather grew warmer.

The trees in the yard all sprouted leaves and the rabbit they’d raised for several months had grown fatter and fluffier, looking extremely cute. 

Yin Xun touched the bunny’s soft bottom with a face of bliss as he praised its cuteness. Something so fat must definitely be yummy…

Lu Qingjiu: “…”

Rabbit meat was indeed delicious but killing them was a little cruel. Bai Yuehu was extremely proficient, efficiently skinning the rabbit  and handing the meatto Lu Qingjiu.

Lu Qingjiu boiled it for a while in order to preserve the elasticity of its meat so it was tasty. As he cooked, Yin Xun stood by the side watching wide-eyed, asking what flavour the dish would be. 

Lu Qingjiu said, “Rabbit salad. Go peel some peanuts.”

Yin Xun nodded and left happily.

As the rabbit boiled in the pot, Lu Qingjiu prepared the other ingredients for the dish. He stood beside the window with his head lowered. Suddenly, he felt a huge gust of wind slam into the window. It was too strange, even extinguishing the flame on the stove.

The wind also seemed to be carrying something along which coincidentally hit Lu Qingjiu in the face, momentarily chilling him. Raising his hand, Lu Qingjiu touched his cheeks and discovered that the wind seemed to have been carrying dark-red blood. Earlier, he had just been hit with a drop of blood. This blood didn’t appear to be fresh as it had a slight stench that made others uncomfortable. 

If Bai Yuehu was here, he’d definitely know something. Unfortunately, he had gone off so Lu Qingjiu had no one to ask. He simply rinsed the blood off and shut the window. But the wind continued to blow, slamming violently against the window. Lu Qingjiu’s gaze revealed a trace of uneasiness.

When Yin Xun came back after peeling the peanut,. the wind had stopped but Lu Qingjiu casually mentioned it. “The wind earlier was really strong.”

“What wind?” Yin Xun asked in surprise.

“Wasn’t it really windy just now?” Lu Qingjiu asked. 

“Windy?” Yin Xun didn’t understand. “It wasn’t. I was shelling the peanuts in the living room, but didn’t see any wind.”

Lu Qingjiu’s eyebrows furrowed. “Is that so…”

Yin Xun: “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing.” Lu Qingjiu shook his head and changed the subject. “I’ll ask Bai Yuehu when he gets back.”