Apocalypse Chapter 20: Benefactor of Fruit Trees

Chapter 20: Benefactor of Fruit Trees

Translated by Addis of Exiled Rebels Scanlations

Editor: Karai

When Jiang Rong returned to his hometown in his previous life, there was no one left. Not only were there no people where he lived, but even the towns under the reservoir were deserted. After building a house in his hometown in this life, besides the construction teams coming and going, he had not encountered any locals. He never expected to meet locals here, let alone get caught by the owner of the orchard while picking fruits from the tree. If there was a crack on the ground, he would have crawled into it already.

The owner of the orchard was surnamed Li. The couple had been farming fruit trees on the hillside for more than twenty years. Most people in small places had connections, and their family and Chu Qiang’s family were in the same village, with a relationship of Chu Qiang’s uncle’s generation.

Usually, to facilitate the management of the orchard, they mostly lived on the mountain, only occasionally going down to the town below to buy some necessary supplies. Living on the mountain was inconvenient for water and electricity, so their family, like Jiang Rong’s family, used solar panels to maintain electricity in the house, and the water they drank was from the well. Because of this, the village below had already experienced water and power outages, but the lives of the couple were not much different from before.

This couple did not awaken any special abilities. Like Jiang Rong in his previous life, they were ordinary people who survived after the Great Crisis. However, their wolfhound, Huzi, mutated. According to Jiang Rong’s observation, Huzi’s abilities were much higher than Lele’s from his family.

Uncle Li’s house was built halfway up the mountain. Standing under the eaves, one could overlook most of the orchard. There were many vegetables planted in front and behind their house, and poultry were lying under the fruit trees to keep cool.

Under the eaves of Uncle Li’s house were more than a dozen large water tanks half the height of a person, filled with cool water. Seeing Jiang Xiaoheng curiously looking at the water tanks, Uncle Li explained, “These are the well water we draw out. When the sun goes down, we will use it to water the trees.”

The well water was too cold. Directly pouring it onto the tree roots would harm the trees, so the old couple would draw the well water out in advance to warm it up. When the sun went down, and the temperature on the mountain cooled a bit, they would carry the water to water the trees.

This work had been repeated every day for the past few months. However, after enduring for several months, besides making the old couple more haggard, they couldn’t see any results.

Mrs. Li brought out the electric fan from the house and blew it towards them, “The house is a bit messy, please don’t mind.”

The couple didn’t care about Jiang Rong stealing fruits. The mountain was remote, and except for fruit vendors and greedy children, few people would come up. During this time of consecutive high temperatures, not even a bird could be seen on the mountain, let alone the town below, where there were not many people left after experiencing the Great Crisis.

They were happy to see Jiang Rong and his son. They didn’t expect that there would be another family beyond the small stream west of the orchard. They were not alone.

At this time, Uncle Li brought a small basin of dark red bayberries and placed them in front of Jiang Rong, “Eat, Xiaorong. These were picked this morning, very fresh. Come, let the baby have some too.”

Saying that, Uncle Li grabbed a handful of bayberries from the basin and put them in Jiang Xiaoheng’s palm. Jiang Xiaoheng looked down at the bayberries, then looked at Uncle Li and Aunt Li, who were smiling, and finally his gaze fell on Jiang Rong.

Jiang Rong nodded slowly, and Jiang Xiaoheng, facing Uncle Li and Aunt Li, showed a bright smile and said loudly, “Thank you, Grandpa, thank you, Grandma~”

His father had taught him not to take things from others. If he couldn’t refuse, he must get the consent of his parents.

Xiaoheng’s gratitude made Uncle Li and Aunt Li burst into laughter, “What a good boy!” 

“Yes, he’s so cute and sweet-mouthed, he’ll definitely be a handsome guy in the future.”

Jiang Xiaoheng put the bayberries on the table and took one to eat. The bayberries were chilled with well water, sweet and juicy. Such fresh produce could fetch a high price outside.

Uncle Li pushed the basin of bayberries in front of Jiang Rong, “Eat, Xiaorong, don’t be polite. This year, with less rain, the bayberries are smaller than usual, but they taste good. There won’t be any fruit vendors coming to us in the future, these fruits will only be for our own consumption~”

Unexpectedly, Uncle Li made a sarcastic joke. Jiang Rong laughed, “That’s not necessarily true. Maybe in a couple of years, things will stabilize, and more fruit vendors will come.”

Uncle Li chuckled, “Alright, I’ll take your word for it. Oh right, Xiaorong, when did you return home? Are you and your son accustomed to living here? If there’s anything you need help with, just let us know.”

Jiang Rong felt relieved. It had been a long time since he felt such genuine care, “We returned a couple of days ago, everything’s fine.”

Jiang Xiaoheng’s attention was not on the bayberries. He nibbled on a bayberry, and his round eyes glanced at the sturdy big dog lying beside him, “Doggies.”

Following his son’s gaze, Jiang Rong looked over and felt even more embarrassed. Both were mutated dogs, but the dog from someone else’s family was tall, strong, and calm, while his own silly dog only knew how to wag his tail with his tongue hanging out. Now, Lele was rolling around in front of Uncle Li’s big dog, but the other dog completely ignored him!

Seeing Lele’s adorable appearance, Uncle Li couldn’t help but praise, “You’re raising your dog well, shiny and smooth. I’ve seen this kind of dog on TV, it’s a pedigree, what’s it called? Kiwi dog?”

Jiang Rong couldn’t help but laugh, “It’s a corgi, a short-legged corgi.”

Mrs. Li glanced at Lele, who was playing with his four short legs, “This little dog looks obedient.”

Jiang Rong modestly said, “Tiger is even better, tall, strong, and with a higher level of mutation.”

Uncle Li nodded proudly, “Yes, those days it didn’t eat or drink, and my wife and I thought it couldn’t make it. Later, we found out that Tiger had mutated. Thank goodness for it, otherwise, my wife and I would have been eaten by ants.”

A few days ago, in the evening, he and his wife were cutting down dead fruit trees by the stream when suddenly Tiger rushed over, grabbed their sleeves, and ran up the mountain. After running for a while, they looked back and saw several wild boars rushing down from the mountain, followed by a large swarm of ants.

If it weren’t for Tiger’s reminder, they would have been swallowed up by ants just like those wild boars.

Jiang Rong sighed, “He’s really a good dog. With him around, you can feel a little more at ease.”

Seeing Uncle Li and Aunt Li, he couldn’t help but think of himself in his previous life. Thanks to Lele, he and his son were able to survive for so long after the crisis. Tiger was much stronger than Lele; he would definitely protect them, the old couple, for a longer time.

Upon hearing Jiang Rong’s words, Aunt Li sighed heavily, “How can one feel at ease in this kind of world? I heard that the town below is in chaos, everyone is without water and electricity. I don’t know what to do next…”

Aunt Li’s words brought a heavy atmosphere, and Uncle Li also became despondent. His eyes were red, and his face was full of worry, “Yes, if the weather continues to be hot like this, all these fruit trees in the yard won’t survive…”

These fruit trees were the couple’s life’s work. Since planting these saplings, they had cared for them as if they were their own children. The fruit trees were also very vigorous. The fruits produced in their orchard were of excellent quality and taste, and in previous years, fruit vendors were always coming to buy.

This year was different. Since the weather began to heat up, he and his wife had been getting up early and working late every day to water the trees. However, despite their efforts, many fruit trees still withered under their eyes. The old couple saw it happen but felt helpless.

After understanding the troubles of Uncle Li and Aunt Li, Jiang Rong pondered for a moment and put down the bayberries in his hand, “Uncle Li, can I take a look at those fruit trees that are about to die?”

Uncle Li looked at Jiang Rong in confusion, “Huh?”

Jiang Rong explained, “I am also a mutant, but I have abilities related to wood. Maybe my powers can help the fruit trees.” 

Since Uncle Li and Aunt Li had warmly invited him and Xiaoheng, morally and logically, he should help them. As soon as he finished speaking, Uncle Li and Aunt Li looked at each other in surprise. They didn’t expect Jiang Rong to be a mutant. After understanding what Jiang Rong said, Uncle Li stood up excitedly from his chair, “Ah! Alright, alright! I’ll take you there!”

However, Jiang Rong wanted to temper their expectations, “Uncle Li, Aunt Li, let me try if I can help. If I can’t, don’t blame me.”

Uncle Li was surprised, “Why would we blame you? If we have to blame someone, we can only blame the heavens.”

The first fruit tree Jiang Rong faced was a plum tree. Although the old couple had tried to reduce the fruit load on the plum tree, it was still gradually losing vitality in the heat. The plums on the tree were wrinkled, completely devoid of the lively appearance of fresh fruit.

Seeing this plum tree, Uncle Li felt distressed, “This is a new variety introduced just two years ago, and it’s just starting to bear fruit this year. Xiaorong, can you see if you can save it?”

Jiang Rong reached out and gently touched the plum tree. A trace of green vitality quickly penetrated into the trunk from his fingers.

Mrs. Li, standing nearby, anxiously asked, “Xiaorong, do you need any medication? We have some pesticides at home…”

Mrs. Li had seen experts treat diseased fruit trees before. After they inspected the fruit tree, they would prepare various potions. Mrs. Li’s family still had some basic pesticides, which might be useful for the fruit trees.

At this moment, the withered plum tree’s leaves unfolded as if they had absorbed water, turning from yellow to dark green at a visible speed. The tired branches regained their elasticity and vitality, and the shriveled fruits became plump again. In the blink of an eye, the dying plum tree turned into a healthy one, full of branches and leaves, and bearing fruit.

Seeing this scene, Uncle Li and Aunt Li were both stunned. Uncle Li wanted to smile, but the redness in his eyes and the shimmering tears made him look like he was crying.

After a moment of astonishment, Mrs. Li lowered her head, and tears rolled out of her eyes in big drops, “It’s alive… it’s alive…”

To restore vitality to the trees, they had been getting up early and working late to water, fertilize, apply insecticide, and weed. But no matter how hard they tried, thousands of fruit trees in the orchard were starting to wither and die. Watching these fruit trees they had cared for themselves die, Uncle Li and Aunt Li’s hearts were breaking. But now, their fruit trees were saved! With Jiang Rong, an esper with wood-related abilities, their fruit trees could finally survive.

Mrs. Li held Jiang Rong’s hand tightly, unable to speak. Jiang Rong could only pat her hand and say, “Auntie, don’t get too excited, stay calm.”

Mrs. Li kept shaking his hand, speaking incoherently with excitement, “Xiaorong, thank you, thank you! You are our orchard’s savior!”

Uncle Li trembled as he stroked the trunk of the plum tree. The cloudy eyes showed a glimmer of light again, “Good, good, it’s come back to life.”

 

 

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