Chapter 37: Planting Sweet Potatoes

Chapter 37 Planting Sweet Potatoes

There was no ready-made path up the mountain, and the sweet potato vines, resembling a small hill, were too heavy for Zhao An to carry alone. So he brought Qintong and Uncle Hai along to help deliver them.

Fortunately, their lives had improved significantly over the past six months. At the very least, they could enjoy bone broth soup every day. Qintong had shot up half a head taller, though his rapid growth made him appear somewhat thin. Uncle Hai, who had once been a withered old man, had regained his strength and vitality. Otherwise, carrying such large baskets of sweet potato vines up the mountain might have exhausted them completely.

Hu Sheng’s mountain stronghold was hidden away and housed many deserters and escaped convicts. Zhao An dared not bring anyone he didn’t trust, so he had no choice but to rely on Qintong and Uncle Hai.

When the three of them arrived at the gates of the Great Green Stronghold, the once chaotic fortress now displayed the orderly atmosphere of a military camp. In the center stood rows of wooden dormitories, while outside, three newly leveled mountain slopes were prepared for farming. The outermost perimeter was fortified with a wooden palisade resembling a city wall, with watchtowers placed every three zhang (approximately 30 feet/9 meters).

Before Zhao An, Uncle Hai, and Qintong could approach, two guards carrying wooden clubs walked over from a distance and demanded, "Halt! What are the three of you doing here?"

Seeing this scene, Zhao An couldn’t help but laugh. It really had the vibe of a bandit stronghold. After chuckling, he set down the basket of sweet potato vines on his back and said, "I'm your boss's man, here to deliver improved seedlings. Go quickly and inform Hu Sheng to come out and greet us." With that, he sat down on a large rock nearby. Even though he had come all this way, he still wanted someone to escort him for the final stretch—that's how willful he was.

"What man?" one of the younger guards asked, clearly confused, before being nudged by the older one.

The two exchanged glances, seemingly coming to some sort of understanding, and then the younger one ran back to deliver the message.

These gatekeepers were originally Hu Sheng’s subordinates, not the deserters who had recently returned. The older guard, though he had never met Zhao An in person, was well-acquainted with his reputation and dared not show any disrespect.

After Zhao An sat down to rest, the guard couldn’t help stealing glances at him. So this was their leader’s partner? Indeed, he was quite good-looking—no wonder the boss had become so smitten with him.

The guard didn’t have much time to let his imagination run wild. Almost as soon as the messenger found Hu Sheng, Hu Sheng rushed out of the stronghold at top speed. His face lit up with pleasure and surprise at the sight of Zhao An, completely devoid of the aloofness he had shown during their first meeting. Instead, he looked like a man whose wife had returned home after a long absence.

Yet the first thing he said to Zhao An was, "What are you doing here?" Though his tone was full of surprise, the words were enough to irritate.

Zhao An shot him an annoyed glance. "If I hadn’t come, would you have forgotten about me?"

"Ah—" Hu Sheng looked at Zhao An with frustration. "I wanted to come find you, but I haven’t prepared the bride price yet—no, the dowry. I’m still missing a pair of wild geese. It’s too hot now, and there are no wild geese in the south. I’ve already sent someone to the northern borders to find some."

Zhao An burst into laughter. "How can you be so silly?"

"I think so too," Hu Sheng admitted, pulling Zhao An up from the rock. "I should have come to find you earlier."

Zhao An looked into Hu Sheng’s eyes, seeing nothing but sincerity and guilt. He brushed the dust from his clothes and pointed to the three baskets of sweet potato vines. "These are the improved sweet potato varieties I’ve grown. Have someone plant them in the fields after sunset tonight."

Hu Sheng nodded and told the guard standing by, "Have these sweet potato vines carried to a shaded area and stored properly. Tonight, have the members of Unit Jia (Unit A) plant them on the left mountain."

Uncle Hai and Qintong saw the whole interaction between Hu Sheng and Zhao An. Uncle Hai could only sigh with resignation, while Qintong felt excited and eager. Seeing this stronghold of thousands reminded him of the terrifying memory from earlier in the year when they were escorted back to Zhaojia Village by a hundred soldiers. Now, he felt a sense of security, as if they had a powerful backing, and his hopes of opening a shop in the county town next year grew stronger.

Young people are always full of energy and vitality. After someone took their baskets, Qintong followed them to wander around the stronghold.

Zhao An, however, had to follow Hu Sheng back to his room to rest—this time, genuinely to lie down and recover. Carrying nearly eighty *jin* (about 88 pounds/40 kg) of sweet potato vines up the mountain had left blisters on his shoulders from the friction.

He lay on the bed, closed his eyes, and fell into a deep sleep almost immediately. Hu Sheng, who had once experienced blisters from long-distance horseback riding, felt a pang of heartache when he saw the red marks and blisters on Zhao An’s shoulders after he fell asleep.

He reached out to touch them but withdrew his hand. Finally, steeling himself, he took a silver needle, heated it over a flame, and carefully popped the blisters before applying the best cooling trauma ointment.

When Zhao An woke up, the burning sensation on his shoulders was gone, replaced by a soothing coolness. Yet, why did this cool feeling and the herbal scent filling the room seem so familiar?

Hu Sheng was no longer in the room. Zhao An noticed the jar of ointment on the bedside table and suddenly felt his face flush. Was this ointment really so multi-purpose?

When Zhao An went downstairs, he was surprised to see Uncle Hai playing Go with Li Dake, while Li Dake’s wife, Auntie Zhang, watched from the side, fanning herself.

Seeing Zhao An, Auntie Zhang waved him over. "We just had some cold chicken noodles and saved some for you. Come and eat."

But Zhao An wasn’t in a hurry to eat. "Where is Hu Sheng?" he asked, assuming Hu Sheng was busy with official duties. Yet, seeing how leisurely Li Dake seemed, there didn’t appear to be anything urgent.

Auntie Zhang covered her mouth and chuckled at the question. "You young people are so attached. Someone delivered supplies, so the general went to meet them."

Li Dake and his wife always referred to Hu Sheng as "the general." Hearing that Hu Sheng was meeting a guest, Zhao An didn’t press further and sat down to eat the noodles.

After finishing the meal, Zhao An felt much more refreshed. Just then, Uncle Hai and Li Dake finished their game, with Uncle Hai suffering a crushing defeat—his "great dragon" (major group of stones) mercilessly captured, forcing him to surrender.

Li Dake laughed triumphantly and gave Zhao An a meaningful look.

Zhao An waved his hands dismissively. "I'm not good at Go." He had never played Go before; his knowledge of the rules came only from his original body’s memories.

Li Dake’s smile widened, like a weasel eyeing a chicken. "I’ll give you a nine-stone advantage. Come on, let’s play. Even if you lose, it’s fine—we’re not betting anything."

In the end, Zhao An couldn’t resist and sat down to play. But before even a hundred moves, his defeat was imminent. Just as he began to break out in a sweat, Hu Sheng returned.

Zhao An immediately stood up. "I concede. It’s getting late—shouldn’t we have dinner now?"

"Don’t be like that," Li Dake protested, his addiction to the game undeniable. Even in Hu Sheng’s presence, he reached out to pull Zhao An back.

Hu Sheng gave him a look. "How about I play with you instead?" he said, causing Li Dake to quickly withdraw his hand and mutter sheepishly, "I finally found two poor players to enjoy a game with. Can’t you let me have my fun, General?"

Zhao An turned to glare reproachfully at Li Dake. Knowing full well that he was a weak player, Li Dake had still chosen to crush him—how unsporting.

Fortunately, Hu Sheng stepped in, patting Zhao An’s back. "Don’t mind him."

Zhao An nodded in agreement. "Let’s hurry and eat, then go watch them plant the sweet potatoes."

"Why do you want to watch them plant sweet potatoes?" Li Dake asked. He knew Zhao An lived in Zhaojia Village at the foot of the mountain and had surely seen farming work before. Moreover, carrying such a heavy load of vines up the mountain proved he wasn’t a delicate person—quite the fine young man.

He muttered under his breath, "What’s so interesting about sweet potatoes?" then glanced suspiciously at Hu Sheng, assuming he was just taking his lover for a stroll.

But Zhao An replied earnestly, "The sweet potato vines I brought are the best improved seeds. I can’t risk anyone stealing them, so I need to keep an eye on things. Uncle Li, you should also help keep watch in the future."

However, when he turned to Hu Sheng, he winked. What he really meant was that he needed to use his Supernatural Power on the vines. Though he couldn’t make them grow rapidly like a fully formed sweet potato, releasing his energy into the air would help the plants take root in the soil, ensuring the vines, cut a full day earlier, would survive.

Hu Sheng clearly understood his meaning but covered Zhao An’s eyes with his hand. "Don’t look at me like that," he said, though the unspoken words were, "It’s too alluring."

Zhao An pushed his hand away and glanced back at the three elders who had witnessed their interaction. They had all averted their eyes.

He could only give a light cough and change the subject. "What were you doing earlier?"

This reminded Hu Sheng, who smiled at Zhao An. "The wild geese from the north have arrived. I’ll go to your home tomorrow to propose marriage."