Chapter 23: Sign-in — Mango Pomelo Sago
They had walked more than ten li (about 5–6 km) in nearly an hour and a half. At first, everyone was still relaxed, chatting with the captain while keeping up with his pace. But gradually, people started to fall behind.
The group was now strung out over a distance of nearly ten meters. At the very back were Wang Mengmeng and Xia Zhipeng, who was being dragged down by her. In the middle were Liu Yao and her cousin Yu Zhiyu, who was pulling her along. The only three barely keeping up were Chen Yechu, Wang Jiandong, and Ning Xiyue.
Ning Xiyue was deeply grateful for the past few days she’d spent running all over the county to find sign-in points — that had been far more than ten li and had built up her stamina. At least she wasn’t lagging behind, though her legs felt heavy as lead. Tonight, she’d need a good massage to avoid soreness the next day.
Chen Yechu, on the other hand, was gritting her teeth and stubbornly refusing to fall behind. Several times when she slowed down, she broke into a brief jog to catch up.
The captain stroked the stubble on his chin and nodded with satisfaction. “Mm, this batch of girls isn’t bad.”
That Little Yue — despite the injury on her forehead — could still keep up physically. And the skinny, delicate-looking Little Chen turned out to have quite a determined character. Much better than the last batch of educated youths. Good, good.
Then he frowned as he looked at the few trailing behind. Those ones still needed to be observed. As long as they worked diligently and didn’t cause trouble, he would be tolerant.
Then the captain shouted loudly, “Kids! See that big willow tree up ahead? Once we pass it, we’re in our team’s territory. Hang in there — just a few more minutes!”
Everyone let out a huge sigh of relief at those words. They were finally almost there.
The massive willow tree ahead was so thick that it would take two people with their arms outstretched to circle it. Ning Xiyue couldn’t help but exclaim, “Captain, how old is this willow tree at the entrance of our team’s land? It’s enormous!”
The captain laughed cheerfully. “At least two or three hundred years. It’s been here since before this area was even settled. It’s the oldest thing around. At night, many villagers come here to rest — it’s very cool under the tree. After dinner, you can come chat here too. It’s always lively.”
Under the great willow tree, a group of little kids with bare bottoms were playing. When they saw them coming, they turned to stare curiously.
“Uncle Dawei, you’re back!”
“Uncle Dawei!”
All the children shouted happily when they saw the captain, and he responded with a big smile on his face.
It was clear that the captain was held in high regard by the villagers — even the children knew who he was.
When they reached the right side of the willow tree, the captain stopped walking. He took out a bundle of cattle feed that had been placed there earlier and fed it to the team’s precious ox.
“Little Yue, you three take a break here. We’ll wait for the rest before we go in.”
“Okay, Captain.”
Wang Jiandong immediately ran to examine the giant willow tree he was so interested in. Not tired at all, he circled it several times, touching it here and there, followed by a few curious children.
Ning Xiyue found a stone to sit on and took out her canteen for a drink. Chen Yechu came over and sat down next to her. She shook her own canteen and realized there was only a small sip left — nowhere near enough to quench her thirst.
Noticing her cracked lips, Ning Xiyue handed over her own canteen. “I still have some water. If you don’t mind, you can drink mine.”
“Thank you.” Chen Yechu gratefully accepted the canteen and tilted her head back to take several big gulps — she was clearly parched.
Ning Xiyue rubbed her calves with one hand and, out of curiosity, touched the ancient willow tree behind her with the other.
Ding! [Sign-in location discovered — Hundred-Year Willow Tree at the entrance to the Daliu Brigade. Would the host like to sign in?]
Huh? The system that hadn’t chimed in for days was finally speaking again.
Looking at the ancient tree in front of her, Ning Xiyue broke into a delighted smile. She hadn’t expected to encounter a sign-in location right after arriving.
“Sign in.”
Ding! [Sign-in successful. Reward: One sip of Mango Pomelo Sago.]
The words Mango Pomelo Sago made Ning Xiyue think of a refreshing fruit drink from a popular milk tea chain in her future life, and she instantly felt excited.
Even if it was just a sip, she was hot and tired — a fruity drink sounded perfect right now. And if it was cold, even better.
She eagerly opened her backpack to check, and this time the sign-in reward came with a note:
Mango Pomelo Sago: Relieves a full day’s fatigue. Just one sip restores your body to peak condition — no back pain, no sore legs. Your best companion for mountain paths and farm work. A permanent item you’ll treasure forever.
Wow. This was an amazing reward. It might not be the fruit drink she expected, but she cherished it even more. This was practically a lifesaver for an educated youth like her working in the countryside.
No more worrying about being exhausted after a long day’s work — one sip and all her fatigue would vanish. The next day, she’d be back to her best self.
And since this willow tree was where villagers gathered to gossip, she wouldn’t even need an excuse — she could come here every day after work to “farm” Mango Pomelo Sago.
With this, every tired day could now end in relief. Ning Xiyue even started to look forward to her future work in the fields. She couldn’t wait to test it out.
“Little Turtle (System), you’re my god right now.”
She absolutely adored her system — and this willow tree.
The Daliu Brigade really was a blessed place. She’d only just arrived, and fortune was already smiling on her.
Ning Xiyue wrapped her arms around the willow tree and gave it a little hug.
“Xiyue, be careful. There might be snakes, bugs, or mice inside the tree,” Chen Yechu reminded her, holding the water canteen.
“Got it, thanks.” Ning Xiyue withdrew her hands. She wasn’t afraid of those things, but she couldn’t ignore a kind warning.
She gently patted the willow tree. I’ll come hug you again tomorrow, Big Willow.
After waiting for more than ten minutes — during which the captain had fed the ox several bundles of grass — the stragglers finally arrived, one after another.
Zhang Dawei’s expression darkened. He had been counting on these kids for the autumn harvest, and now they couldn’t even manage this short walk. What was he going to do with them?
It dawned on him now that Old Li had fooled him. He’d been too focused on that one boy from the neighboring team…
Yu Zhiyu apologized sincerely, “Captain, I’m sorry for keeping you waiting.”
The others quickly followed suit, apologizing as well.
Zhang Dawei thought back to the previous batches of educated youths — some had been even more delicate. But after staying for a while, some of them had turned out quite capable.
At least this batch wasn’t causing any unnecessary trouble, and their attitude was decent. His expression softened slightly.
There was no sending them back now anyway. Zhang Dawei sighed. If he wanted the Outstanding Collective Award, he’d have to make do.
“Let’s go. I’ll take you to the educated youth quarters. There’s work to do early tomorrow morning, so get settled quickly. Don’t delay. The autumn harvest is the most important task for our team right now — treat it seriously.”
“Understood, Captain.”
Ning Xiyue looked in the direction the captain had pointed — the location of the educated youth station. Ning Xiaoxiao, she thought, we’re going to meet very soon.
