Chapter 156 Discussing the Village Park’s Construction

Chapter 156: Discussing the Construction of the Village Park

Professor Cen sat on the ox cart, hauling the goods toward home. Passing by Shitu, he saw the shopping mall under construction and grew curious.

"Stop, stop."

The obedient ox stopped by the roadside.

He went to a small roadside shop and bought two boxes of water, asking the shopkeeper, "Ma'am, what's being built over there? This plot of land is so big; it doesn't look like they're building houses."

The shopkeeper said, "That's right, it's not houses; it's a shopping mall."

Professor Cen was surprised and pointed across the road, "A shopping mall? Building a shopping mall in the countryside?"

The shopkeeper laughed, "You got it." At first, she also found it strange, but after watching the construction across the street every day, she had grown accustomed to it.

Professor Cen said as he paid, "The owner must have some interesting ideas, probably not very old, right?"

The shopkeeper said, "Not at all. She's very young, just a girl in her twenties, but she's capable. Have you heard of Xuehe Gourmet? That's hers."

"Oh~" Professor Cen understood and smiled, "Oh, so it's *her* business."

He gave a thumbs-up, "That girl is truly capable!"

After bringing the fertilizer and seeds back, the group prepared a vegetable patch in the yard and sowed the seeds they had bought that day.

Winter had set in across the country. J City, in southern China, had winters that were relatively warm compared to other southern cities, but some summer vegetables still wouldn't grow.

They went through the box of seeds and picked those that could currently be planted in J City, sowing them in the yard.

Yu Yingting and Zhao Yishan sat to the side, notebooks in hand, taking notes on what was being planted.

Zhao Yishan jotted something down in her notebook and said, "Why do you think Boss Jiang chose to build a shopping mall in the countryside? I don't get it. How many customers could there be out here in the mountains?"

Yu Yingting looked up, surprised, "Who did you say built the mall?"

Zhao Yishan said, "Boss Jiang, the one from Xuehe Gourmet. That's what Professor Cen said."

"Hmph." Yu Yingting's face twisted into a mocking expression. She felt she and the Jiang women just didn't mix. Jiang Yingxue had embarrassed her in front of her classmates; He Siqin's jewelry had also turned out to be genuine. The more she'd shown off that bracelet, the angrier she was when it turned out to be real.

"She's really daydreaming. Country folks will always be country folks. Make a little money and they start getting all these crazy ideas."

Zhao Yishan chuckled, "Hehe, her ideas are just too naive. The food at her stall is good, but building a mall shows she doesn't know her place. She'll regret it when no one comes."

Elsewhere, Xiao Zhao and Xiao Kui emerged from the Heavenly Thunder Body Tempering Ground. Xiao Kui looked miserable, covered in wounds, while Xiao Zhao was bright-eyed and bushy-tailed. The heavenly thunder felt like a light tickle to it; if Xiao Kui hadn't wanted to leave, it would've stayed to play a while longer.

Xiao Zhao asked, "Xiao Kui, why aren't you happy?"

Xiao Kui's face fell, giving Xiao Zhao a resentful look, "Xiao Zhao, don't talk to me for now. I'm just so done." They went in together, but it got zapped by the thunder while Xiao Zhao didn't lose a single feather. Heaven is so unfair; it was pretty bummed out.

Xiao Zhao pecked at a spiritual fruit by the roadside and swallowed it, "Alright then."

"Do you want one too?"

Xiao Kui glanced at the spiritual fruit nearby, "I'm not hungry."

"Alright then, I'll eat a few more myself."

The bird and the dog left the training ground to find the night sky dotted with stars.

They had missed dinner time, but a meal had been left beside Xiao Kui's doghouse and Xiao Zhao's bird nest. The hungry Xiao Kui buried its head in the plate, wolfing it down, temporarily forgetting the pain of being struck by lightning.

After quickly finishing its meal, Xiao Zhao flew to Jiang Yingxue's room.

"Knock, knock, knock."

"Come in."

Xiao Zhao landed on Jiang Yingxue's shoulder, lightly preening its feathers. The next moment, it seemed to smell something delicious and paused, "Sister, what is that? It smells so good."

Jiang Yingxue stroked its feathers, grabbed a handful of sunflower seeds, and opened her palm, "Xiao Feng and the others made these today. Try them."

"Great! I'll try."

Xiao Zhao happily snacked on the sunflower seeds. Ten minutes later, it said, "Xiao Yang and the others' cooking is getting better and better."

The sunflower seeds were planted by Xiao Yang in the Beast Forest. After harvesting the mature seeds, he and Xiao Feng divided them into two parts: one to press for oil, the other for making snacks.

The snacks were of two types: roasted and crispy biscuits made from shelled seeds. There were various flavors: milky, honey, spiritual chili, spiritual flower, and so on.

Jiang Yingxue tried each flavor and found them all delicious. If they produced enough, they could also be sold at the Xuehe shop.

After finishing a small bag of seeds, Xiao Zhao looked up, "Sister, the heavenly thunder's intensity is too weak. I didn't feel a thing."

Jiang Yingxue asked, "Which area did you go to today?"

The Heavenly Thunder Body Tempering Ground was divided into four areas based on cultivation level: Foundation Establishment, Golden Core, Nascent Soul, and Deity Transformation. Each area also had low, medium, and high subdivisions.

Although Xiao Zhao was a Divine Bird, it was still a fledgling. The heavenly thunder in the tempering ground was suitable for its training.

It cracked seeds while saying, "I went with Xiao Kui."

"Xiao Kui just reached Foundation Establishment, so it went to the lowest area. You should go to the area opposite it."

"Then I'll go again tomorrow," Xiao Zhao tilted its head. It had played enough for today and wouldn't go back until tomorrow.

"Ring, ring, ring~" At that moment, the phone rang. It was Secretary Zhiqiang.

"Ying Xue, are you free to come to the village committee tomorrow?"

"Secretary Zhiqiang, what's the matter?"

"It's the beginning of the month, hehe. Time to hand out last month's share, and also discuss the village park."

"Alright, I'll be there at 2 PM tomorrow."

The next day, afternoon.

Jiang Yingxue picked up her share of last month's profits from the fertilizer store, then discussed the construction of the village park with the secretary and village chief.

The village environment had improved significantly compared to over four months ago. Now, there was basically a trash can every 100 meters, and two garbage collection points had been established—one at each end of the village.

Bright streetlights had been installed from the village entrance to the exit, making nighttime walks feel safer and cozier. The village fitness square had also undergone major renovations, with workout equipment suitable for the villagers installed.

The village chief said, "Ying Xue, the Spiritual Flower Park is almost finished. When do you think we should plant the flowers? And will this park be open to the public or only for villagers?"

Jiang Yingxue said, "Let's hold off on planting until next spring."

The shopping mall wasn't done yet. She wanted to plant the spiritual flowers when the mall was nearly complete.