Chapter 465: 465
By now, the little one had already fallen asleep from exhaustion. Zhang Yuxi had already taken the quads to wash up and go to bed.
Lin Feng was tidying up Xiao Wen’s room.
"If you need anything, just let us know. We’re all family, so make yourself at ho!"
"Here are so toiletries, all brand new."
"The light switch is over here, and there’s a phone. Call
if you need anything at night."
"These are my T-shirt and shorts. You can use them as pajamas."
After giving careful instructions, Lin Feng smiled. "Rest up. Do you want
to wake you up tomorrow morning?"
Xiao Wen quickly replied, "Yes, please wake
up tomorrow."
Otherwise, I don’t know how long I’ll sleep in again.
"Okay!"
「The next day」
After Lin Feng prepared breakfast, he called the family to get up and eat.
One of the quads asked, "Why is Brother Xiao Wen at our house?"
Lin Feng smiled. "Brother Xiao Wen will be staying with us for a while."
Upon hearing this, the children all cheered happily.
The breakfast was very lavish, and Xiao Wen hadn’t had a proper breakfast in a long ti. Middle school started at a different ti than elentary school, and Xiao Wen usually left ho at seven, grabbing sothing to eat on the way. Only on Saturdays and Sundays would he have a good breakfast.
Lin Feng announced, "I’m going out shopping this morning. Your mom will help you review your fourth-grade lessons."
The quads asked, "What are you buying, Dad? Is it sothing yummy?"
"I’m going to buy hoes to build a fence for the garden. I’m planning to plant so vegetables."
When the children heard this, they wanted to go too.
"I’ll only be gone for an hour or two, and I’ll be back soon. There will be plenty for you to do when I get back."
The children’s disappointnt didn’t last long, and they asked what he was going to plant.
"Cucumbers, eggplants, long beans, chili peppers, things like that!"
The children were happy again.
Lin Feng smiled at Xiao Wen. "After breakfast, you should do your howork too. If there’s anything you don’t understand, just ask your aunt."
Xiao Wen had no objections. "Okay!"
After breakfast, Zhang Yuxi helped the children review their fourth-grade textbooks.
Xiao Wen was doing howork in his room. Looking at his school bag, he suddenly realized sothing.
I thought it was strange before. Weren’t we just coming to congratulate them on their housewarming? Why on earth was I told to bring my school bag? It seems Dad had this planned all along!
...
KNOCK, KNOCK, KNOCK.
"Xiao Wen, it’s . I brought you so fruit."
"Co in!"
Zhang Yuxi ca in with a plate of cut fruit. "Call
if you need anything, and you can also ask
if there’s sothing you don’t know!"
Xiao Wen nodded.
After a while, the sound of a violin ca from upstairs. Xiao Wen was taken aback. He ate the fruit while working on his Chinese howork. He had no problem with Chinese and math, but English was his weak spot. He could barely manage, as he didn’t have a solid foundation.
Lin Feng returned with the hoes. He had also bought a watering can, fertilizer, seeds, and so gardening books.
At noon, when the sun was hot and the children were napping, Lin Feng began to turn the soil. Zhang Yuxi stood by the window, reading to him from one of the gardening books.
By the ti the children woke up, Lin Feng had already turned over a large plot of land.
The quads exclaid, "Wow, that looks really interesting!"
Lin Feng said, "Your tools are over there..."
Xiao Wen also found it interesting. "Uncle, do you have tools for ?"
Lin Feng passed him the hoe he was holding.
"Use mine!"
The quads found their small hoes, small shovels, and small watering cans.
Lin Feng sat down to rest for a while, watching the children wield their tools and giving commands. "Co on, turn the soil just like Daddy did earlier! Be careful not to hurt yourselves."
Lin Feng sat in the shade, eating waterlon. "If you’re thirsty, co over for so waterlon. When you’re done, get back to work!"
One of the kids made one trip for waterlon, then a second. By their fifth trip, Lin Feng finally spoke up, "Can you leave so for ?"
The child smacked their lips after finishing a slice. "Okay!"
Since it was their first ti doing this kind of work, you couldn’t expect much progress. It was a victory if they just got the hang of it.
Zhang Yuxi ca over with a fan. "Honey, how much longer?"
"Almost done!"
The group was exhausted but felt that the work was aningful.
One of the quads said excitedly, "Mom, Dad said we each get to plant one kind of vegetable! Today we’re starting with tomatoes!"
The quads chose tomatoes because you can eat them.
Zhang Yuxi thought it was a great idea for each child to be responsible for one type of vegetable.
"Then how about this—after everything is planted, each of you writes in a journal about it, okay?"
The children had no objections and thought it sounded fun.
Lin Feng opened a book. "Co on, let’s find out how to plant tomatoes! Let’s get the tomato seedlings and follow the steps one by one."
Xiao Wen also got involved, finding it super interesting.
Lin Feng handed the book to Zhang Yuxi. "Honey, you read it out, and we’ll do the work!"
Zhang Yuxi took the book. "About 25 to 40 kilograms of fertilizer is needed per square ter of land. The fertilizer should be worked 6 to 8 centiters deep into the ground."
One of the quads posed a real stumper, "Dad, how much is 25 to 40 kilograms of fertilizer?" He then gestured with his hands, "Is 6 to 8 centiters this deep?"
Lin Feng pursed his lips and trotted off to the kitchen, returning shortly with a small device. It was a digital scale he used for asuring ingredients—small and handy.
Zhang Yuxi looked at the book again. "Honey, wait, there are more steps."
"Before putting the seedlings or plants into the ground, sprinkle a few handfuls of organic fertilizer or eggshells into the planting hole. When the tomato roots grow down, they will absorb these nutrients, which will increase the fruit yield."
Hmm, since it’s our first ti and we have no experience, we have to do this scientifically!
Lin Feng pursed his lips and brought out so fresh eggshells. "Daddy will make you all a cake tonight!"
Zhang Yuxi paused for a mont, giving Lin Feng a aningful look. Lin Feng leaned in and looked at the next steps in the book.
It clearly stated:
*Tomatoes prefer slightly acidic soil. Soil that is too acidic can cause calcium loss in the plant, leading to blossom-end rot. It’s recomnded to keep the soil’s pH between 6.0 and 6.8.*
*If a soil test shows a pH above 6.8, water the tomatoes with a mixture of cold coffee and an equal amount of water, or cover the soil with a layer of pine needles. If the pH is below 6.0, add so dolomite li or another calcium source, such as powdered eggshells or calcite powder, to the soil.*
...
Heh, back in the day when people grew tomatoes in the countryside, or even in pots at ho, there wasn’t so much fuss. Where am I supposed to get the soil tested?
Lin Feng pretended not to see that part. "The plants should be spaced 45 to 90 centiters apart. This spacing allows you to move between them to water, weed, and harvest."
"If you live in a hotter area, the spacing should be reduced to 23 to 46 centiters. This allows the plants to shade each other, preventing the fruit from getting sunscald."
Lin Feng asked the children, "Do you think it’s hot here?"
In truth, he had no idea if the outskirts of Yangcheng were considered hot, so he just picked 46 centiters.
Zhang Yuxi understood. "You guys go on ahead. I’ll read for you!"
So, with Zhang Yuxi reading, Lin Feng led the quads and Xiao Wen in asuring the distances and digging small pits. They had bought twenty tomato plants to set up four rows. They sprinkled eggshells and fertilizer into the twenty pits, and one of the quads was tasked with carefully inspecting each one.
After all, these are my crops! The thought of eating vegetables we grew ourselves is so exciting, so of course we have to be serious.
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