As a lord, I was forced to farm

Chapter 847 Zhanhua Spiritual Liquid
Its leaves can nourish the trickling spring. It is said that wherever the ancient Zhanhua tree stands, there must be a spring. In the past, there was also a small crescent-shaped spring in Shicun.

The faint, scattered water elemental energy in the Auspicious Antelope Secret Realm was drawn to the Azure Flower Ancient Tree.

"Drip, drip..." Several slender branches stretched downwards, and some delicate dewdrops dripped down, which were collected by the people of Shicun Village using utensils.

“A month ago, the Zhanhua Ancient Tree began to drip spiritual liquid. Once there is enough spiritual liquid, Stone Village will no longer need to use jars to store it, but will let it flow freely. Perhaps it won’t be long before Crescent Lake reappears,” Gao Zhan explained when he saw Jiang Ran’s gaze fixed on the jars.

"Your Highness, the spiritual elixir nourished by the ancient tree of Zhanhua is very sweet. Would you like to try some?"

Jiang Ran nodded, and Gao Zhan was delighted. He immediately went back and retrieved a jade cup specially prepared for the Prince.

Gao Zhan scooped a full cup of the Azure Flower Elixir from the jar with a jade cup and respectfully handed it over.

Jiang Ran took a small sip. The spiritual liquid was clear and refreshing, like holding a mouthful of melted ice, with a herbal fragrance and sweetness like orchids in a secluded valley.

Swallowing it down, a cool sensation flowed down the throat and into the internal organs. In the sweltering heat of the Auspicious Antelope Secret Realm, taking a sip of the Azure Flower Spirit Liquid felt as if it cleansed away the turbidity of the world, bringing immense pleasure.

Gao Zhan remembered that Jiang Ran had three spirit beasts with her. Although only Mo Sheng and Fei Xuan were in Shi Village at the moment, after serving Jiang Ran the spirit liquid, he turned around and scooped three more cups with a jade cup and offered them to her, saying, "Spirit beasts, please enjoy."

Feixuan finally descended from the ancient tree of Zhanhua and gently rested on the rim of the cup. The liquid in the cup was drawn by the wind, swirling around its body before gradually disappearing into the air.

Gao Zhan was amazed, wondering what kind of butterfly it was that possessed such a magnificent appearance.

Mo Sheng, on the other hand, transformed into human form, held the cup with his fair hand, and drank it with an air of aloofness.

Bai Mei still didn't show up. It hated the environment of the Auspicious Antelope Secret Realm, but it was really craving the Zhan Hua Spirit Liquid. The liquid in the cup had been empty at some point, which made Gao Zhan feel annoyed. "I must have accidentally spilled the spirit liquid just now. I'll go get another cup."

"No need, you didn't spill anything." Jiang Ran stopped Gao Zhan's movements and asked him to take her to see the outside of Shi Village.

Stone Village is small, and to protect its safety, the villagers built a surrounding wall using stones.

Outside the wall, the scorching sun baked the boundless yellow sand, but it had changed a lot compared to the outside of Stone Village that Jiang Ran had seen at the beginning.

Rows of low-lying saxaul grasses added some greenery to the otherwise dull landscape.

Jiang Ran saw a sand wolf carrying a bunch of Kunkun tree saplings and grass seeds, accompanied by children aged eight to twelve and some elderly desert people.

They wore thin cloths to protect themselves from the scorching sun and sandstorms as they wielded shovels.

In the desert, the sand is dry and loose. If you dig too shallow, the wind will blow it halfway up in the blink of an eye. So you have to swing your shovels and dig deep until you reach a layer of sand that is not so dry. Then you can spread a layer of humus that was transported from outside the Xiangling Secret Realm and plant clumps of drought-resistant grass on it.

Planting them isn't enough. If the wind blows in the Auspicious Antelope Secret Realm, these grass seeds will be blown away before they have grown properly. Therefore, it is also necessary to painstakingly transport stones and withered grass to build a windbreak around them.

Gao Zhan said that they have now planted three or four hectares of grassland around Shi Village, and the grass planting activity in Shi Village is still ongoing. "Are the people planting grass mostly children and the elderly?" Seeing this scene, even though Jiang Ran knew that the desert people themselves were responsible for the current situation of Nanling, she couldn't help but feel some pity.

Gao Zhan said helplessly, "The people of the desert still need to make a living, especially in an environment like the Xiangling Secret Realm, where the cost of living is particularly high. Adults usually go to mine the Sun Stone to find Xihe Stone and go to the Northern Antelope to plant Yanyan Flower, so the burden of planting grass falls on the children and the elderly."

"But Your Highness, rest assured, the villagers of Shi Village kept some of the Flame Rock Flowers they harvested last time to nourish themselves. These children are in excellent physical condition; once they've eaten their fill, each of them can lift an ox," Gao Zhan said with a smile.

"Moreover, in addition to the people of Shicun, there are more than a hundred serious criminals in the southern suburbs of Shicun who are planting grass while their feet are shackled."

Jiang Ran nodded.

It is clear that the people of Stone Village genuinely want to make up for their mistakes in cutting down and destroying the ancient tree and damaging the Zhanhua Ancient Tree. As such, as the Lord of the Great Lodge, he will naturally try to help the Southern Antelope recover its vitality as soon as possible.

Moreover, only when the Southern Antelope Land is restored will the Azure Flower Ancient Tree, a quasi-divine tree, be able to give birth to a demon spirit one day, just like the Cloud-Splitting Divine Tree.

After leaving the Auspicious Antelope Secret Realm, Jiang Ran discussed the matter with the workers and households and decided to provide an additional one to five million spirit crystals to the Auspicious Antelope Secret Realm each year for afforestation.

They also decided to create a festival called "Arbor Day" to encourage the people of Da Su to plant the most trees between March 12th and April 12th. The individual or team that plants the most trees will be awarded the annual title of "Spring Comes from Barren Palms" and will be rewarded with 100,000 spirit crystals.

The specific planning still needs to be supplemented with many details and needs to be disseminated throughout the county, but I think the first Tree Planting Day can be held smoothly next March.

Time passed unnoticed and it was September of the 27th year of the Great Su Dynasty. The maple leaves in the mountains and forests began to turn red, with a faint crimson ring around their edges. The streams in the mountains became thinner and thinner, flowing and then disappearing into the crevices of rocks and mud in the blink of an eye.

On Xiabo Island, the palace of the Da Hua family has been under construction for two years. With enough spirit crystals and enough manpower, even though the palace is very tall, it is almost finished.

A light rain fell, and the clouds hung low over the island's peaks. The leaden gray sky looked somewhat gloomy, but the ground of Xiabo Island resembled strands of rosy silk torn by the wind, with gold and red intermingling.

The ground temperature on Xiabo Island was very high, and the air was filled with moisture. As soon as Jiang Ran stepped onto Xiabo Island, she was embraced by the extremely excited Da Hua.

Big Flower's body temperature was unbearably high, and her chest heaved violently as she spoke, "Friend, good man! My palace is finished, I love it!"

Big Flower was really strong; she wrapped her arms around Jiang Ran's, making her feel a little sore.

Jiang Ran chuckled and patted Da Hua's arm. "Stop hugging me. Aren't you going to take me to see your palace?"

"Hehe, you have to take her." Da Hua then let go of Jiang Ran.

The palace of the Great Flower was built at a cost of approximately 800 million spirit crystals.

The money was mainly spent on purchasing sturdy building materials such as blue bricks. Of course, Da Su's related industries and labor also earned a lot, but overall, it was what they were supposed to earn. With Jiang Ran keeping an eye on things, no one dared to do anything secretly in this big project.