Chapter 9: A Somewhat Unruly Lake

Liu Heming had a restless night. For one thing, his body ached all over, and for another, he worried that the wolves outside might decide to wander over to his place.

He first looked out the window—everything was calm. There were no wolves disguised as dogs waiting for him outside, which eased his mind a little. No wonder Town Mayor George had told him to get his gun license as soon as his paperwork was sorted out.

He looked down at his hands and had to admit, his mom’s remedy really worked. The seven big blisters, once shiny and swollen, had shrunk. As long as he was careful now, they would be fine and heal completely in a couple of days.

This was a small comfort in his difficult life. Even though his muscles still ached terribly, he had to keep working. If the System really took away his ability to speak, how would he connect with his daughter? Life would only get harder.

Breakfast was simple again—milk and Bread. The town’s only Small Supermarket did sell steaks, but he thought that was too extravagant. Milk and Bread were good enough. Someday, when he had his own chickens and ducks, he would definitely make plenty of salted duck eggs—they were so tasty.

As he nibbled on his Bread, drank his milk, and imagined eating salted duck eggs, this breakfast actually felt quite satisfying.

Today, he wasn’t as reckless as yesterday—he wore gloves. Yesterday, he had been too excited and hadn’t thought of it. Mainly because, in his childhood memories, his parents never wore gloves when they worked in the fields.

He slowly continued clearing the area. He didn’t waste the roots and dead grass; he set them aside to dry. They could at least be used as kindling, so he wouldn’t have to go foraging in the Forest.

Without enough water and Fertilizer, the Land here was really poor. This was actually one of the better spots on the Ranch. Further out, the Land was even worse.

There was an old saying in his family: “Tend the land your whole life, neglect it and you’ll be poor forever.”

No matter how good the Land is, you have to take care of it to yield a rich harvest. But if you leave it alone and let it go wild, you won’t have much hope in life. The hard work of laborers isn’t just about planting in spring and harvesting in autumn—it’s part of every single day.

He had more time this morning, so Liu Heming didn’t work like a madman the way he did yesterday. When he felt tired, he rested for a while before continuing. There was no shame in it—it wasn’t like anyone was watching him, and even if they were, he didn’t care. His body needed time to adjust, or else he’d collapse from exhaustion sooner or later.

During his breaks, he tried to contact the System again, but it seemed determined not to respond until the task was completed. There was nothing he could do but endure it.

Lunch was again Bread and milk, accompanied by imaginary side dishes. He could manage like this for a few more days before restocking in the nearly empty Town.

In the afternoon, he thought he shouldn’t just focus on the fields outside. The wolves hadn’t wandered in last night, but what about tonight or tomorrow night? Would they come then?

The Log Cabin was a bit better than the Warehouse, but not by much. Especially after the shaking from the night before last, some of the windows had stopped working properly.

After inspecting the entire cabin, Liu Heming felt a chill run down his spine.

When building houses in the United States, people often included a basement for storing miscellaneous items. This small Log Cabin had one too, and what made him nervous was that there was a small door in the basement leading outside. The wood on that door had rotted away, leaving a large hole.

If he hadn’t noticed, and a wolf wandered over and slipped in through that hole, he’d be in trouble. He found some old wooden planks and used parts from a broken lounge chair to block the door securely.

After replacing the lightbulb in the basement, he started going through the clutter to see if there was anything useful. Secretly, he hoped to find some treasure—worrying about money was driving him crazy.

He ended up covered in dust, but of course, he found no treasure. Some of the broken furniture could be taken apart and used to patch up the windows.

He walked through the entire house, jotting down in a small notebook which parts needed repairs and where the wiring had to be replaced. A house that had been empty for so long had too many hidden dangers. But this rundown place was his only home now; he didn’t have the money to build a new one.

He held his phone for a long time, hesitating, but finally put it back in his pocket. He wanted to call his daughter and talk to her. After all, his English was fine now, so there would be no barrier between them.

But then he thought, what could he say to her in his current situation? A four-year-old isn’t too young or too old—it’s just the age when they start to understand the world. He wanted to make sure every interaction, every conversation with his daughter was perfect.

Just as he was lost in thoughts of a happy future with his daughter, a noise from the Lake interrupted him. He looked up and saw that water was bubbling up from the Lake, and a lot had already flowed out.

“What’s going on? Is it going to flood my entire Ranch?” Liu Heming said gloomily after watching for a while.

The water was gushing out quickly, and in just a short time, a large area was covered. The Land here was dry, but even so, the water spread far.

He had heard of natural springs before—people measured them by the number of “eyes” or openings. But this was just a wild Lake, not some famous wild lake like the one behind the Summer Palace where people used to meet for fights. What was it trying to prove? If it kept gushing like this, given the terrain, it would eventually flood the whole area. All his hard work clearing the Land would be for nothing.

He watched nervously for over an hour until the Lake gradually calmed down. The water that had flowed out seeped into the ground, nourishing the Land.

Liu Heming sighed inwardly—this was just torturing him. To stop this unruly Lake from spewing water everywhere, he would have to dig a ditch to channel the water and keep it from spreading.

It’s true that soil needs water, but too much water can make the ground hard and compact. Even if you plant rice someday, you still need to drain the water sometimes.

Being a Farmer wasn’t easy, and being a Farmer with an unruly Lake on your Land was even harder. He had to add another task to his work plan: dig a ditch.

But he could put it off for now and observe for a few more days. If the water kept gushing out tomorrow, he’d have to do something about it, or all his efforts would be wasted.