Haven Online

With Xinya refilling the wooden barrels with the produce that had fallen onto the ground and Melting Snow lifting them into the back of the wagon, they were ready to go in no time at all.

"Alright, boys, it's time to head out," Old man Tan said after he reattached the donkey's harness to the wagon. 

Nodding their heads, Xinya and Melting Snow waited until the old man was seated before hopping into one of the empty spaces that were on his sides.

After taking a quick glance at the boys to make sure they were completely settled, Mr. Tan yelled, 'Giddy up' and with a crack of the reins, they were finally on their way.

Xinya couldn't believe how fast the donkey was, although it wasn't even a tenth as fast as Melting Snow's cousin's flying car, he could tell that it was at least 2x their walking speed.

Because even though it took them around 20 minutes of walking to reach the place where the old man was inside of the cornfield, it only took the old man 5 minutes to drive back to their starting point that was the road. 

Curious as to what their estimated time of arrival would be now that they were no longer walking, Xinya slightly turned his body so he could reopen his interface without the NPC noticing. Pulling up his map, he clicked on his travel route and saw that an hour was scratched off from their arrival time.

'Riding on the wagon is definitely a lot faster than walking, and that was for darn sure.' Xinya thought with a slight shake of his head. 'As soon as I'm in town, I'm so going to start the hatching process of my egg before I forget to do it again.' 

~

Looking at the two boys who were quietly watching the scenery go by, Mr. Tan decided to try to make some polite conversation since he knew it would be a long trip.

Plus, he thought that it would be nice to talk to someone while he was driving, besides his dear Píngguǒ. Even though he loved his donkey, he did miss having conversations with humans.

After his wife had died and his daughter got married and moved to town, he was quite lonely. 

"So, what are you two boys doing around these parts?" Mr. Tan asks with curiosity.

The sudden question startled Xinya, causing him to flinch and almost fall out the wagon. Gripping his seat tightly, Xinya turned his body towards the old man and forced a smile.

"Well, I want to start a business in food, and I don't believe that anyone grows the type of produce I require, so I decided to grow them myself and bought a farm."

Melting Snow, who had been listening from the other side, was surprised, he had no clue that Drifting Cloud was planning to actually sell the food he made, but it did make sense. He was just wondering how he was going to sell it.

"Oh? Which farm did you buy?" Mr. Tan asked, hoping that it was one of the empty plots near him so he would have some company.

"It's the one about a mile away from the cornfield," Xinya begins while watching the old man closely. Thinking that maybe this is the reason his luck led him to the man. "It's called Qīngchú Niǎo's farm."

Just like he thought, as soon as he said the farm's name, the old man's eyes flickered as if he knew something.

"Qīngchú Niǎo's Farm? I didn't think anyone would have bought that farm after the terrible tragedy that happened there," the old man exclaimed.

Melting Snow had gone back to sightseeing sometime during the conversation, but his ears twitched when he heard the word tragedy. Turning his head towards the man with interest, he said, "What do you mean? What tragedy?"

"I don't know if I should say," Mr. Tan fretted while nervously glancing back and forth between the two boys. He didn't want the young man to regret his purchase.

"It's alright, you can tell us," cajoled Xinya, knowing that whatever the old man told them would have something to do with what happened to Song Lingchen and his wife. "We aren't superstitious or anything."

Hearing the sincerity of the boy's words, the old man inclined his head in agreement. "Alright, I will tell you. I was just a lad when it happened, but I remember my mother talking about it. Qīngchú Niǎo's Farm was very prosperous and was the envy of everyone, but as the saying goes, the higher one flies, the farther they will fall."

"What happened?" Wide-eyed Melting Snow asked.

"That's the thing nobody knows. One day the farm was there flourishing beautifully, and the next, it was utterly destroyed by a fire. From what I remember overhearing, my mother said the investigators of the case expected it to be a robbery gone wrong. It was said that they found evidence that the previous owner and his wife were dead long before the fire even started."

[Find out what happened to Song Lingchen and his wife is complete!]

[Reward: 100000 EXP/ 10 Silver Coins]

[Part 2 of The mystery of Qīngchú Niǎo's farm will begin in 24 hours!]

'So, the couple did die in the fire as I guessed,' Xinya thought with a slight shake of his head. "Did they ever find out who did it?"

Shaking his head slowly, the old man said, "Sadly, they never did, which is why nobody ever bought the farm. They were worried that the spirits of Song Lingchen and his wife still lingered there, waiting for their revenge."

Melting Snow shivered at the thought, he might be an adventure junkie, but there were some things he would not mess with, and that was ghosts. He didn't want those things possessing his body and giving him ghost cooties.

"It was a terrible thing that happened to the couple, but it's more of a tragedy to let the farm that they worked so hard to build, sit there and rot. I think if I were to make their farm great again, their spirits would be able to rest in peace," Xinya honestly told the man.

The old man was taken aback by the sincerity in the green-haired man's words. Because he knew that if it was him that had built up his farm from nothing and made it prosperous only to have it destroyed in a blaze of fire, he wouldn't be able to rest in peace either. But if someone fixed it back to its original state, his legacy could live on, and he could enjoy the rest of his afterlife.

"I think you're right; if there is anything I could do to help you with it, please ask. Because, with the state that the farm is in, you will have a lot of work cut out for you."

Giving a hum of agreement, Xinya said, "I know. That's why I'm heading to town. I'm going to the library for research so that I can learn what I need to do to fix my farm's burnt land."

"Don't forget that we're also going there so we can learn how to farm as well," Melting Snow announced, jumping into the conversation. 

"What?! Are you telling me that you two know nothing about farming?" The old man asked, slightly aghast. How could someone who knew nothing about farming buy a farm?

Acting embarrassed, Xinya rubbed the back of his neck and lowered his gaze for a moment before showing one of determination. He knew if he played his cards right, he might be able to get the man to teach him. He didn't understand why he didn't think of the idea before. 

"Sadly, that is correct, it had been a dream of mine to own a farm since I young when I knew I wanted to start my own restaurant. But, as I lived in a city, I never got the chance to get any experience on how to grow things, besides the small flower garden I had. But growing flowers is different from growing things that are edible."

Seeing the resolution on the boy's face, Mr. Tan knew that the man would work hard to see his dream through, and suddenly like a lightning strike, he knew how to pay the green-haired man back for saving his sweet Píngguǒ.

"I think I finally have a way to repay you," the old man begins with a satisfied expression on his face. "How about you become my apprentice and I can teach you everything about farming."

[You have been offered to be Tan Quan's apprentice! Do you accept it? YES/NO]

After sneakily tapping on the yes, Xinya gave the old man a smile of appreciation. "Really? That would be great! I will make sure to work hard and learn everything."

[You are now Tan Quan's apprentice! ]

[The Apprentice Tab is available now!]

"Wait, what about me?" Melting Snow, who had been quietly listening to the conversation, asked. "Can I be an apprentice too? I want to learn how to farm as well."

"I'm sorry, youngling, but due to my age, I'm only able to teach one person at a time, but once your friend has learned everything, I think he will be willing to teach it to you," Mr. Tan replied.

Xinya understood that NPCs could only take one official apprentice at a time, so this excuse was probably something that the old man was programmed with, in case this exact situation ever happened.

"He's right, Melting Snow, once I finish learning everything I need to, I will teach you myself," Xinya said, remembering the farmhand feature in his Housing/Farming Tab.

Giving the green-haired man a smile, Melting Snow silently agreed. He would prefer to learn how to farm from his friend anyway. Plus, while Drifting Cloud was learning how to farm, he could take some time and level his Animal Husbandry by playing with the baby goat he found.