A daily intelligence report; in chaotic times and famine years, grain is plentiful.

"Bro! This flavor...it's so unique! It's tingly on my tongue, it's so delicious!"

Chen Dashan also tasted it and kept praising it: "That's right, with Sichuan peppercorns, this dish has a soul, and it feels like a proper meal."

Chen Mo also boiled Sichuan peppercorns in hot water and soaked his father's feet in it, because he heard that doing so could dispel cold and promote blood circulation, which would help alleviate his cold cough.

The fifth day of the second lunar month is the Awakening of Insects.

As spring thunder rolls by, all things revive.

In Chen Mo's secret vegetable garden, which he hadn't visited in a long time, the potato seedlings had grown wildly to more than half a foot tall without anyone tending to them, and the bean seedlings next to them had also climbed all over the trellis, showing a lush green scene full of vitality.

Sun Dazhu secretly went to take a look, and when he came back, he excitedly calculated, "Chen Mo, judging from how it's growing, we can harvest at least two hundred catties of potatoes and several dozen catties of beans."

But beneath the joy lay deep anxiety.

The Wang family's surveillance has become increasingly tight, and they haven't dared to go to the vegetable garden to weed or water it for more than half a month.

That night, Chen Mo tossed and turned, unable to sleep, and finally decided to risk going to investigate.

He was like a cat that roams at night, quietly sneaking up to the vegetable garden all by himself.

Instead of approaching immediately, he hid behind a large rock and carefully observed the area by the moonlight.

Upon seeing it, his heart skipped a beat.

There were signs that the vegetable garden had been disturbed.

His heart tightened, and he slowly, little by little, drew closer.

Under the moonlight, he could clearly see that the dozen or so potato seedlings next to the vegetable garden had been uprooted and thrown on the ground, their green leaves all wilted.

This is not something a wild animal would do. Wild animals don't so neatly pull up seedlings when looking for food.

are people.

He crouched down and carefully examined the footprints on the ground.

Two shoe prints of different sizes were clearly imprinted on the soil. One was wide and heavy, with deep grooves etched on the sole...

It's the imprint of the thick-soled boots that Wang Mang often wore.

Chen Mo clenched his fist tightly, his knuckles turning white from the force.

The Wang family not only discovered this place, but also deliberately uprooted and damaged the seedlings! This is not only a warning, but also a provocation.

Just then, a sinister laugh came from not far behind him.

"Chen Mo, what are you doing here in the middle of the night?"

Chen Mo's hair stood on end instantly, and he turned around abruptly.

Then they saw Wang Mang and Zhao Si emerge from the shadows of the woods, one on the left and one on the right, each holding a thick wooden stick.

Wang Mang pointed with his chin at the destroyed vegetable patch, a wicked grin on his face like a cat catching a mouse.

"You planted this, didn't you? You've got some nerve, illegally clearing wasteland on public land. According to village regulations, you'll be fined five bushels of grain. Or... how about we hand this land over to the public and let our Wang family farm it?"

After a moment of panic, Chen Mo quickly calmed down.

His eyes were fixed on Wang Mang, his mind racing.

"Brother Mang, what kind of joke are you making?" He stood up, patted the dirt off his hands, and said calmly, "How can this be called a vegetable garden? It's just a few clumps of weeds that are growing rather neatly. I was just passing by and came to take a look out of curiosity."

"Weeds?" Wang Mang seemed to have heard something utterly absurd. He took a step forward and stomped heavily on a surviving potato seedling, grinding it repeatedly. "Do you think I'm blind? Chen Mo, you've really hidden yourself well. Tell me, how many plots of land like this do you have left?"

Zhao Si, wielding a stick, approached step by step, blocking Chen Mo's escape route.

Chen Mo knew that things were unlikely to end well tonight.

His hand had already quietly reached for the handle of the machete tucked into his waistband, while at the same time, his peripheral vision was rapidly scanning the surrounding terrain, planning the fastest escape route.

Just as Zhao Si was about to swing his stick, Sun Dazhu suddenly shouted in the distance, his voice filled with anxiety.

"Chen Mo! Chen Mo, come out quickly! Your father is coughing up blood, you need to go home and check on him!"

Wang Mang and Zhao Si were both taken aback and involuntarily looked in the direction from which the sound came.

Right now.

Without the slightest hesitation, Chen Mo immediately turned around and disappeared into the dark woods beside him, vanishing into the night after a few quick flashes.

Wang Mang realized what was happening, cursed "Damn it!", but didn't give chase.

He looked in the direction where Chen Mo had disappeared, then looked down at the thriving vegetable patch at his feet, his sneer growing increasingly smug.

"Run? You can run away from the monk, but you can't run away from the temple."

He spoke ominously into the dark woods.

"This land will belong to the Wang family tomorrow."

When Chen Mo returned home, a strong smell of herbs wafted towards him.

His heart skipped a beat, and he rushed into the inner room in three strides.

His father, Chen Dashan, was leaning against the headboard. His face was pale, but his breathing was relatively steady. Sun Dazhu sat by the bed and breathed a long sigh of relief when he saw him return.

"Father, you..."

"I'm fine." Chen Dashan waved his arm, his voice weak but still strong. "This was Dazhu's idea."

Sun Dazhu wiped his sweat and lowered his voice, saying, "If you don't shout like that, how can you get out of this predicament? Wang Mang and his men are targeting you."

Chen Mo's tense nerves relaxed at first, but then immediately furrowed again.

"The ground has been exposed," he said succinctly.

A deathly silence fell over the house. That piece of land was the family's lifeline.

Chen Dashan remained silent for a while, then a ruthless glint flashed in his cloudy eyes: "If we can't save it, let's just give up on it."

"Father!" Chen Mo was unwilling.

Chen Dashan cleared his throat. "Let me finish. We can't just suffer losses for no reason. Mo'er, you and Dazhu, make another trip right now tonight. If you can get it back, get it back. If you can't get it back... then destroy it. Don't leave the Wang family even a single blade of grass."

Chen Mo understood.

Father is making a tough decision.

He nodded, his voice low. "The potatoes have just sprouted, and nothing else has grown in the ground yet. It doesn't matter if they're ruined. As for the bean sprouts... I can move them. The most important thing is that we can't let the Wang family think we depend on that land for our livelihood."

Sun Dazhu slapped his thigh and said, "That's right! Let them think that they believe we just planted whatever we wanted, that they snatched a useless piece of land, and that it will infuriate them!"

The night grew deeper.

Chen Mo and Sun Dazhu crouched down and sneaked back onto the hillside.

The two moved swiftly, like two field mice foraging for food under the moonlight.

"Bean sprouts first," Chen Mo instructed in a low voice.

He carefully used a machete to dig out each bean sprout along with its root ball, then Sun Dazhu carefully wrapped them in a damp rag before placing them in his basket. These were all hopes for the future; not a single one could be left behind.