Farming Games are All About Grinding

After adjusting the fire, Han Qiwu returned to the miniature Forest of Ten Thousand Trees and continued chopping away.

The remaining twenty trees were all just ordinary large-leaf poplars, nothing particularly special about them.

The sap from poplar trees smelled awful and had no medicinal value. Even if he cut them down, he wouldn't bother tasting them.

If it were white poplar, there would at least be some hope.

The catkins from white poplars could help reduce heat and inflammation, even treating chicken toes disease.

Judging by the looks of the meat chicken and Little Spark, who knows, this stuff might come in handy someday.

After chopping down twenty large-leaf poplars, Han Qiwu stood up straight, wiped his sweat, and was just about to head back to the house for dinner. Suddenly, a message in the texture of wood appeared before him.

[The total number of trees chopped has met the requirement. Daily tree refresh count is now increased to 40.]

A few seconds later, the notification dissolved into a wood-textured light band that flew to the area where 30 trees had been refreshed earlier, circling around and opening up ten new tree refresh plots.

More trees??

Han Qiwu didn't expect to be hit with such a pleasant surprise today.

That 300,000 gold coins were totally worth it.

In a few days, it'll be the weekend again. Better save up some cash to go shopping and see if there's anything good!

Making money sure is hard work, but spending it? Now that's real joy!

Time to head back for dinner!

A few minutes later, Han Qiwu placed the piping hot catfish stewed with eggplants on the table. He glanced out the window at the sight of Little Spark battling the electric jellyfish and shook his head helplessly.

Ah, younglings sure know how to have fun.

Never mind them—time to dig in.

The catfish stewed with eggplants radiated a heavy aroma. It wasn't particularly attractive in appearance, a bit monotonous in color, but its fragrance was enough to make up for its lack of aesthetic appeal.

After a few bites, Han Qiwu let out a long sigh of satisfaction.

How delicious.

The tender, delicate texture of the wetland catfish, combined with the unique fragrance of the eggplants, created a rich and layered aroma.

The creamy texture of the eggplants, after absorbing the delicious fish broth, tasted both savory and refreshing, cutting through any greasiness.

Pairing it with his own fragrant homemade rice made the meal heavenly.

Towards the end, Han Qiwu even brought out some pickled bamboo shoots with chili. The more he ate, the better it tasted.

"How unfortunate that I haven't planted garlic at home yet. Adding some garlic cloves would definitely make it even better," Han Qiwu thought greedily to himself.

Garlic and eggplants are truly a match made in heaven.

After eating and drinking to fullness, Han Qiwu leaned back in his chair, beginning to ponder over what to do with the eggs.

"There's still a decent stockpile of eggs at home. At this rate, there'll definitely be more eggs piling up in the future. I should really make a few more mayonnaise machines."

Earlier, when he was putting away some lumber, he had taken a close look at their reserves.

The wood stock sat at only 261 pieces, and that was counting the 63 pieces he had just collected from the miniature Forest of Ten Thousand Trees.

The main issue was yesterday; he had spent the whole day focused on collecting pinecones and hardly chopped any trees.

Blame that big squirrel, ugh!

The stone reserve had also dwindled to 316 pieces. In comparison, the stock of jade and iron ore was still sufficient enough.

"Making a basic chicken coop requires 100 wood and 100 stone. I can only imagine the higher requirements for an advanced chicken coop. Looks like there's no way I'll be able to build an advanced chicken coop today. I might as well whip up four mayonnaise machines instead."

Having decided on his plan, Han Qiwu took out the materials and began crafting.

Soon, four mayonnaise machines appeared in his inventory.

Han Qiwu stepped outside and placed the mayonnaise machines in the yard. He shouted at Little Spark, "Hey, Little Spark! Next time you put eggs in, make sure to include these four machines too. When I get the chance, I'll fetch you some thunder fruits as a treat."

"Screech!"

Little Spark didn't even turn its head. It let out a loud shout and continued wrestling with the electric jellyfish.

The surrounding waters had already been cleared of all fish. Whether newcomers or old-timers, they all knew the score.

Those two top dogs are seriously not to be messed with.

Time to scram.

After setting up the mayonnaise machines, Han Qiwu collected the accumulated mayonnaise and dumped it into the selling bin. He didn't bother counting the exact quantity; he could just check the log tomorrow morning.

Once the mayonnaise task was settled, he put on his straw hat and made a beeline for the ranch.

After parking his vehicle, he had barely stepped inside when he heard the commotion from Xiao Shu.

"Dad! Let me do my homework right now! I love doing homework!"

"No more homework, my good son, take a break. Studying needs a balance between work and leisure."

"No way! I have to finish 100 bucks' worth of homework today! I already arranged with my classmates to go get fried chicken the day after tomorrow!"

"Dad will give you money. Just rest up a little."

"No way! I want to do homework!"

Han Qiwu: "???"

What's all this about?

Getting closer, Han Qiwu greeted them with a chuckle, "Brother Yang, Xiao Shu, what's all the fuss about?"

Seeing Han Qiwu approach, Xiao Shu immediately grabbed his workbook and ran over defensively, complaining with a serious face, "Cool Brother, my dad won't let me do my homework!"

As soon as Han Qiwu arrived, Yang Yangyang sighed in relief and started explaining helplessly.

After listening, Han Qiwu couldn't help but laugh.

Here's the deal: After Han Qiwu had left, Yang Yangyang came up with a brilliant idea. He promised to give Xiao Shu 20 bucks for every day of homework he completed, letting him choose whatever fruit he wanted to buy as a reward.

At first, it went pretty smoothly—but then Xiao Shu's little brain hatched an idea.

Twenty bucks for a day's homework? Then if I finish five days of homework in one day, I'll earn 100 bucks!

If I finish 10 days' worth, that's 200 bucks—jackpot!

Fueled by this excitement, Xiao Shu stayed up all night and finished six days' worth of language homework, even completing lessons that hadn't been taught yet.

And with surprisingly decent accuracy too.

Looking at the red-eyed Xiao Shu, Han Qiwu couldn't help but sigh helplessly, "Xiao Shu, you're too young to be pulling all-nighters. There'll be plenty of overtime for you to work after you grow up. Play while you can, alright?"

After a while of coaxing, Xiao Shu finally put down his homework and obediently went to bed. Before dozing off, he kept mumbling about 120 bucks.

Well, his math seems pretty good, at least.

Cautiously closing Xiao Shu's bedroom door, Yang Yangyang turned to Han Qiwu and said gratefully, "Thanks for your help today. If it weren't for you, who knows when that little rascal would've gone to sleep." Then he brought over a plate of watermelon and invited Han Qiwu to sit down and take his time eating.

"It's no big deal. Xiao Shu is a good kid, just needs someone to reason with him," Han Qiwu said, waving his hand while sneakily tapping the manual to pull up the purchasing menu. He selected the upgrade-building submenu.

[Current farm facilities available for upgrade: Basic Cow Barn → Intermediate Cow Barn, Intermediate Chicken Coop → Advanced Chicken Coop]

[Intermediate Cow Barn]

[Building Requirements: Basic Cow Barn (1/1)]

[Capacity: 6 calves]

[Materials Required: Wood (100/500), Stone (100/500), Gold (53,850/15,000)]

[Additional Equipment: Breeding Room]

[Note: The Intermediate Cow Barn allows you to breed calves.]

[Advanced Chicken Coop]

[Building Requirements: Intermediate Chicken Coop (1/1)]

[Capacity: 12 chicks]

[Materials Required: Wood (9/800), Stone (206/800), Gold (53,850/20,000)]

[Additional Equipment: Accelerator]

[Note: The Advanced Chicken Coop will bring you significant wealth.]