After finishing his meal, he stepped out into the still overcast sky. The rain wasn't heavy but showed no sign of stopping, and the visibility was so low that he knew there was no chance of leaving today.
Fortunately, he hadn't gone too far. The internet was spotty, but still usable to some extent.
Since video calls were out of the question, he could only resort to voice messages with Murong Yanran. Each message had to be resent two or three times to get through, which was incredibly annoying.
The limitations of the internet restricted their connection, so he had to end their chat abruptly.
This intermittent internet was worse than having none at all. He had, with great anticipation, purchased a membership for iQiyi and found a popular show, "Love Between Fairy and Devil." The first two minutes were smooth, but then...
The buffering, reminiscent of constipation, made him want to smash his phone.
While the fish trap seemed to be working quite well, going fishing in such ghastly weather would be pure lunacy.
After some deliberation, he decided to enter his space.
There was much to do inside. Coconut seedlings needed to be cultivated, and thousands of bamboo poles required preparation. So, he rolled up his pants and sleeves and got to work.
Picking up the fruit-picking tool, he walked to the edge of the coconut grove. He hadn't planted coconut trees in a while, and the expansion of Jiuzhou Island had added a significant stretch of beach, perfect for nurturing seedlings.
Nurturing coconut seedlings was much simpler; they didn't need to be spaced apart, just buried in the sand one after another. In this environment, no watering was necessary, and they would sprout in just over ten days – very fast.
It was just that his manual labor was slow. If he had a farming tractor to help with creating the rows, he could nurture hundreds of thousands of seedlings in a single day.
Half an hour later, Li Haochen stopped picking coconuts. He had gathered about a thousand, which wasn't a large number, but they were in clusters, and to nurture them as seedlings, each one needed to be cut open.
He took out the military knife he had bought previously and began to chop. It was sharp, but the small knife was unsuitable for such rough work; a cleaver would be much more efficient and comfortable.
He stepped out of his space, picked up the cleaver from the kitchen, and sharpened it a few times on the whetstone. Its edge gleamed. He ran his thumb along the blade; it was just right.
Carrying the cleaver, he walked across the sandy beach in his space. If he wrapped a piece of cloth around it, he would look much like Ding An from "The Blade."
With the cleaver, his speed increased considerably. He processed hundreds of coconut clusters in less than half an hour.
The cleaver had another advantage: digging pits.
Grabbing the handle and blade, he plunged it in and pried, creating a pit. It was fast, but his back and hands were taking a toll; his waist and hands ached after such a short time.
After preparing the rows, he started placing the coconut fruits into the pits, much like planting peanuts, but without covering them.
Li Haochen could be seen constantly moving back and forth across the beach, leaving countless footprints behind him.
Once all the coconuts were in the pits, he checked the time. It had already been over an hour. Including the time spent picking and cutting the coconuts, that was three hours to complete only a thousand. Considering the tens of thousands of acres of land in the entire county...
"Oh my god!"
A mournful cry echoed through the space, lingering for a long time.
Well, he had overextended himself this time, truly biting off more than he could chew. At this pace, it would take an eternity to plant the entire county.
Li Haochen had considered nurturing the seedlings outside, which would have made things easier for him. However, nurturing them outside would consume too much manpower and financial resources, and the germination speed was too slow, taking about two months. Moreover, the survival rate wouldn't be 100%. But his space was different; they could be transplanted in about ten days with a guaranteed 100% germination rate, though it meant he would be exhausted.
For a moment, Li Haochen was caught in a dilemma, weighing the pros and cons.
"Hardship is hardship, then."
After a long period of thought, Li Haochen decided to handle it himself.
Preparations for coconut planting were in full swing throughout the villages and towns. As the leader, he had to seize the time. Otherwise, if he waited for half a year or so and the seedlings weren't ready, they would have to waste their efforts clearing weeds again.
Furthermore, waiting too long would undoubtedly lead to wavering morale, which would hinder future progress.
He left his space. The rain had stopped outside, but the sky remained heavily overcast. After a brief consideration, he decided to set sail. Without any tools, the seedling cultivation speed had slowed down considerably.
He put on his gloves and pulled up all the fish traps. The harvest was decent, with fish, shrimp, and crabs, totaling about ten pounds, though they weren't very large.
After throwing them into the sea in his space, he came out and began cleaning the fish traps and the deck.
Half an hour later, everything was tidied up, and he set anchor.
He sailed for another six or seven hours. By the time he dropped anchor, it was almost midnight. His buttocks were numb from sitting.
It was a bit strenuous, but he had covered a good distance. He estimated he would reach Binhai by tomorrow afternoon.
It was too late to cook, so he had some biscuits and sausages to tide him over. He didn't set the traps again; he was too tired.
However, before going to sleep, he washed rice. There was a sufficient amount, enough for breakfast and lunch the next day. He set the timer for the rice cooker and went to sleep. Lying down, he was asleep in less than ten seconds; he was just too exhausted.
The next morning, Li Haochen was awakened by the aroma of food. He had only eaten a little to sustain himself the night before, and it had all been digested. His stomach was growling.
After breakfast, he spent half an hour doing morning exercises, breaking a sweat. He felt much more refreshed, both physically and mentally.
Soon after, the "Star" sailed towards the rising sun.
The sun rose and set. Thus, the "Star" sailed from morning until afternoon. Except for a thirty-minute break for lunch, he was on the move. Finally, he returned around 5 PM.
After parking the boat and stepping off, he felt something was missing. Suddenly...
"Damn, I forgot about little Emma."
Now, his trusty old mode of transport was gone, making it inconvenient to get around. Reluctantly, he had to take a taxi home.
As soon as he entered the village, everything before his eyes brought Li Haochen a pleasant surprise. A brand-new, two-lane asphalt road extended all the way to his villa, with flowering jacaranda trees planted on both sides.
He imagined it: come spring, the roadside would be filled with golden yellow jacaranda blossoms. Holding Murong Yanran's hand, they would walk along the path, enjoying the beauty of the sunrise and sunset, savoring the romance of the spring breeze – how wonderful it would be.
Returning to reality, since the road was completed, his house was likely in the final stages of finishing. Thinking about owning his own large house soon, Li Haochen's mood soared. He hurried along the road, but...
An ornate European-style electric gate at the entrance blocked his way. Peeking through the gaps, he saw no activity, no lights inside. He assumed everyone had left for the day and didn't want to trouble Wang Lunhao to come and deliver the keys.
The inability to enter and see his house left him feeling a bit disappointed.
"Beep beep~~"
At that moment, a car horn sounded from behind him. Turning around, a smile appeared on his face.